Chapter 275: Chapter 275

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

Chapter 275

[[Title] Transcendent of Humanity has grown to Lv.10.]

As Jeong-hoon claimed his reward, the title he desired advanced to Lv.10.

[Transcendent of Humanity Lv.10]

- Type: Unique Evolution Title

- Grade: Celestial

- Automatically manipulates the mana of nature, restoring magic power periodically.

- Permanently annihilates dungeons. (High-grade dungeons cannot be annihilated.)

- Partially unaffected by the influence of Transcendents.

With the level reaching 10, the speed at which depleted mana was restored increased significantly.

Demon King-class.

The statement wasn’t an exaggeration.

Before the regression, Jeong-hoon’s title level had only been 4.

Even in that state, he had managed to defeat Apostle-class Transcendents in one-on-one battles.

Back then, he had scarcely benefited from serendipitous opportunities.

The fact that he could fight on equal footing was entirely due to the title.

As the range of immunity to the "Aura" of Transcendents expanded, it allowed him to withstand their influence.

Even now, at Level 3, the reason I managed to hunt Darkhan—who was close to Sovereign-class—was largely thanks to the Seven Deadly Sins.

Without the Seven Deadly Sins, it would have been impossible for Jeong-hoon to defeat the enemy, no matter how skilled he was.

The "Enhanced Judgment of Death" invoked by the Seven Deadly Sins, which was immune to the influence of "Aura," had been critical.

Whatever the case, the Seven Deadly Sins is playing a crucial role for me right now.

Jeong-hoon turned around after completing his task.

Having received his reward, it was now time to leave.

James Marcus and the other survivors remained frozen in place.

They still couldn’t believe that Darkhan, a Sovereign-class entity, had been defeated.

“Master! You’ve returned!”

Michael, who had been waiting outside, greeted Jeong-hoon respectfully.

“Yes.”

Jeong-hoon’s gaze shifted.

In the corner, the Seven Deadly Sins was fast asleep, snoring softly.

“Master, that thing devoured the stats of all the deceased.”

“Is that so?”

The deceased referred to those who had been wiped out by a single reflected attack during the battle against Darkhan.

From Jeong-hoon’s perspective, they were traitors. He felt no sympathy for them.

If anything, he was grateful that the Seven Deadly Sins had absorbed their stats.

Let’s take a look.

===

[Seven Deadly Sins]

- Type: Sloth, Gluttony, Wrath

- Level: ?? (Grows by absorbing stats)

[Detailed Stats]

Strength: 382

Agility: 371

Vitality: 390

Defense: 381

Wisdom: 362

Magic Power: 388

Mental Strength: 370

===

The Seven Deadly Sins' overall stats were now nearing 400. With just a bit more absorption, it wouldn’t take long for them to surpass that threshold.

“Master, those bastards aren’t worth dealing with.”

Michael pointed at James Marcus and Louis Verdan.

At his words, the two flinched, their shoulders trembling as they avoided Jeong-hoon's gaze.

“Why? What’s the issue?”

“They’re bragging about backstabbing you.”

“B-bragging? That’s not what we meant!”

“We just meant it’s a relief that the power didn’t go to me but to you, Jeong-hoon!”

James Marcus and Louis Verdan hastily protested.

Jeong-hoon’s eyes narrowed as he looked at them.

“Either way, that means you gave off that impression, didn’t you?”

“That’s….”

“…Sorry….”

Jeong-hoon let out a quiet sigh and said,

“This second cataclysm only happened because I was here, but there won’t be a third. You understand what that means, right?”

“…….”

“…….”

The faces of James Marcus and Louis Verdan instantly darkened.

To complete the episode at 100%, they would need to endure three cataclysms in total.

During the first cataclysm, Jeong-hoon had gained an unknown power.

In the second, he obtained the strength to rival a Sovereign Class transcendent.

However, the second cataclysm could only be stopped because Jeong-hoon was there.

With Jeong-hoon gone, stopping the third cataclysm—where the difficulty would increase even further—would be impossible.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“Jeong-hoon, please. Could you help us with the third cataclysm too?”

James Marcus shamelessly asked, wearing a pleading expression.

At his brazen request, Michael’s face turned red with anger.

“Wow, they backstabbed you, and now they’ve got the gall to ask for help. Unbelievable.”

Jeong-hoon raised a hand to stop him.

“Michael, that’s enough. Go inside.”

“Master! Are you really saying you’re going to help those jerks?”

“Why?”

“No, Master, you’re not some pushover—! Hrk!”

Michael urgently clamped his hands over his mouth.

It felt like he had just said something he absolutely shouldn’t have.

Despite that, Jeong-hoon’s expression remained calm. It was because he agreed entirely with Michael's opinion.

Helping those two would make him the biggest fool imaginable.

Jeong-hoon had no intention of doing so, nor was it even possible in the first place.

I have only 7 hours left.

The only reason he had as much as seven hours was because time flowed differently inside the portal compared to the outside.

If the time had flowed the same, he would have been forcibly ejected before he could even finish the trials.

“Go back.”

“Yes!”

Michael answered loudly, realizing he had to leave before Jeong-hoon could say anything further.

Thankfully, Jeong-hoon didn’t stop him. He sent both Michael and the Seven Deadly Sins, who were napping in a corner, back without a word.

Then, glaring at James Marcus, Jeong-hoon spoke.

“As Michael said, I have no intention of helping you.”

“...Jeong-hoon, I know you’re angry. But we can’t stop the apocalypse with our strength alone.”

“Of course not. But if you don’t enter and wait outside, penalties will pile up. Eventually, Earth will be erased.”

“......”

Michael’s face stiffened.

Regional annihilation.

That was the penalty, and currently, the penalties had already reached a dangerous level.

If the third cataclysm was left unchecked, Earth would vanish in an instant.

“Anyway, I’ll be forcibly returned in seven hours.”

“...Returned?”

“Of course. I only had 120 hours to visit this place.”

“I see…”

James bit his lip hard.

If Jeong-hoon left, Earth was doomed to destruction.

“James, if you had chosen not to betray me, things wouldn’t have turned out this way.”

“......”

“If you were going to send me back, you should have explained things properly. But instead, you collectively killed me because you were scared of losing your power?”

“...I’m sorry.”

“Honestly, I’d love to kill you with my own hands, but it’s not even worth the effort.”

“......”

“If you’re going to atone, enter the third cataclysm yourself. Confront the enemy and fight to the very end.”

“...Understood.”

James nodded heavily, his face pale.

The remaining survivors said nothing.

No matter how things played out, it was an undeniable fact that they had wronged Jeong-hoon.

***

Jeong-hoon no longer belonged to this place.

[Remaining time has reached '0.' Returning automatically.]

Psyche’s pocket watch forcibly sent Jeong-hoon back to his original world.

The return was simple.

His vision darkened briefly, and when it cleared, he found himself back at the exact spot where he had activated Psyche’s pocket watch.

Baal’s voice greeted him immediately, as if he had been waiting all this time.

Jeong-hoon raised his head and locked eyes with the demon’s crimson gaze.

“Yes. I had a productive trip.”

“Yes.”

Jeong-hoon checked his title.

The title that had been stuck at Level 3 had now advanced to Level 10.

With a title of this level, achieving the ultimate power no longer seemed impossible.

Baal’s eyes curved into crescent shapes as he smiled.

“Another wager?”

“Wait long? How much time has passed since I left?”

120 hours.

Jeong-hoon had spent exactly 120 hours, or 5 days, using the watch. Yet, twice that time—10 days—had passed here.

It seems the flow of time varies between dimensions.

Nodding to himself, Jeong-hoon spoke.

“This wager—does it involve ultimate power?”

“So, you think I can’t obtain ultimate power?”

Jeong-hoon’s lips twitched into a faint smirk.

“You’re deliberately provoking me.”

“What’s at stake?”

What could he possibly gain from Baal?

“The Ultimate Star?”

“Hmm, that does sound tempting.”

The offer was undoubtedly alluring, but Jeong-hoon deliberately let his sentence trail off.

“Add one more to the deal, and I’ll accept.”

“Simply put, I want two.”

Two Ultimate Stars.

That was the only way it’d be worth his time.

Jeong-hoon smiled slightly.

"So, you're saying you won't do it?"

"Then, you're betting two Ultimate Stars?"

"Deal."

* * *

Before acquiring the ultimate power, Jeong-hoon contacted everyone who had crossed into Darvis for a mid-check.

The first reply came from Ha-Jin.

[It looks like it's about to end, but it'll take a little longer.]

Ha-Jin had headed to the Duchy of Naobi, located to the north.

‘The Duchy of Naobi, was it the one where they obtain ancient artifacts?’

The Duchy of Naobi had been a family that consistently produced Swordmasters.

The Empire's sword.

The guardians of the north.

All of these referred to Naobi.

The reason Ha-Jin was sent to the Duchy of Naobi was because after the reality shift, it was altered to allow the acquisition of ancient artifacts.

Of course, there was only one ancient artifact, and whoever got to it first would be the owner.

‘If it’s about to end, it means they’ve reached the ancient artifact.’

However, acquiring the artifact wouldn’t be easy.

Especially the final trial of taming the soul of the artifact, which boasted insane difficulty.

‘I should give a tip.’

Without a tip, there was no way Ha-Jin would pass the final trial.

Jeong-hoon sent a tip about taming the soul of the artifact to Ha-Jin.

[Wow, okay. I’ll try it this way.]

A reply came from Ha-Jin.

But what about the others? Why haven’t they contacted him?

As Jeong-hoon pondered, Bong-Goo also messaged him as if on cue.

[Hyung! I’m done now!]

Fortunately, it seemed Bong-Goo had succeeded in obtaining a fortuitous opportunity.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

‘Good. What did you get?’

Bong-Goo had headed to the Duchy of Valderman in the west.

The fortuitous opportunity there was a dagger.

Not just any dagger, but a Legendary-grade dagger.

It was on par with the dagger Jeong-hoon had, Anima.

Since Bong-Goo had risen to the rank of King of Shadows, adding a Legendary-grade dagger would likely create great synergy.

[Hehe, I got something amazing. I’ll show you when I get back!]

A grin escaped Jeong-hoon’s lips.

Even without boasting, he already knew what Bong-Goo had obtained.

‘Is Mother busy?’

His mother, Yeo Sunwoo, and Yeo Min-Ji still hadn’t replied.

[Master, what’s it like to be a returnee?]

‘Right. I’m curious too.’

Through Psyche’s pocket watch, Mukho and Anima realized that Jeong-hoon was a returnee.

“It’s just... okay.”

[Just okay?]

‘Hmm?’

It seemed like an unexpected answer.

Of course, had it been before using the pocket watch, the response would have been that it was the best.

After all, he had corrected his regrets and gained the opportunity to change the future.

However, this return wasn’t just about turning back time.

It was a return to the parallel world version of himself, and strictly speaking, the original world’s Jeong-hoon was dead.

‘In a way, it could be considered possession.’

If he returned to a parallel world, where did his counterpart in this world go?

That was the question Jeong-hoon had.

“First, let’s get the ultimate power.”

Such questions might eventually be answered in the future.

For now, it was best to focus on the present.

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

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