Woah, exclaimed Ha-eun.

It wasnt as much as Ha-eun, but Ohjin also looked around with quite a bit of surprise.

Its really beautiful inside.

An enormous underwater tunnel.

The view of the beautiful sea was on full display as the tunnel was made out of something that looked to be translucent glass.

Outside the tunnel, fish that they had never seen in their life were swimming freely in the sea.

Its like we entered an aquarium.

As Ha-eun had expressed, it wouldve felt similar if there was an aquarium that was built hundreds and thousands of times the normal size.

Riak placed his nose near the ground.

Sniff, sniff. There doesnt seem to be any monsters nearby.

Its probably because there are a lot of Awakeners near the entrance.

Are we going deeper inside?

Of course.

The goal was to farm the amount of starstones needed to complete the Black Heavens quest.

They hadnt come all that way to relax and watch the scenery.

[Then lets head deeper inside.]

Plop

Vega sat on top of Ohjins head like it was her exclusive seat. She wrapped her hands around Ohjins curly hair like they were reins.

I shall lead you to your destination well, Lady Vega.

[Fufu. The rides comfort is very nice.]

Vega received his playful remark and patted his head.

Step, step

They headed deeper inside while looking at the pleasant scenery.

Was it due to it being a high-difficulty gate? The presence of humans gradually started to disappear.

And then

Mrclughluhlua!!!

The ground shook with the sound of a strange cry.

A two-meter tall fish with a large build appeared at the other side of the tunnel. Despite it being a fish, its body resembled a human starting from the bottom of its neck.

Merpeople?

Its a monster known as a Murloc.

Thank god its not called a mermaid.

Ha-eun looked at the Murloc with disgust.

The Murloc had muscles like that of a bodybuilder overdosed on steroids all around its body. It couldnt look any more grotesque when it had that kind of bulky body with the face of a fish.

Fwooooosh!!

Looks like itll be full of protein once its barbecued.

Ha-eun smirked while creating flames on both of her hands.

Ha-eun, wait.

Hm? Why?

I want to try facing one of them alone.

Ohjin was curious as to how well he would be able to face off against 5-Star monsters.

The demon beasts that appeared in Sokcho were also 5-Star.

How much stronger had he become when compared to then? His curiosity of wanting to test that question boiled up.

Okay, I got it.

Ha-eun put out the flames and took two steps back.

Click, clack!

Ohjin sent mana into the steel rod and then grasped what turned into a silver spear with a crescent blade.

There are three of them.

The one in the middle had the bulkiest build.

Starting from that one

Grip

After grasping his spear

Bang!

Ohjin swung it down against the ground and used it as a lever to propel his body high up into the air.

Mrrrrgggll!!!

The Murlocs reacted quickly and created distance from where he could land.

They split apart into three and planned to attack Ohjin simultaneously, each from a different direction, as he fell.

Nope.

Bang!

He shot his wire shooter.

The revamped wire shooter shot out the wire at a speed that was much faster than before.

Swoosh, swoosh

Mrrrggl?

The wire wrapped around the Murlocs body.

Lightning Charge.

Bzzzzzzzzzt!!

The powerful blue lightning ran down the wire and fried the Murlocs brain.

Brgrugugulgrul!!!

Indeed.

It was a 5-Star monster.

It did squirm from pain, but the lightning running through the wire wasnt enough to kill it.

However

That is all.

Whirrrr!!

With the loud noise of metal, the wire pulled tight.

Slash!

The silver spear swung in a wide arc and cut the Murlocs body in half.

Mrgrugugul!

Mrclughluhlua!

The other two Murlocs quickly rushed in.

They were fast.

The force behind their charge was enough to hear the sound of air ripping apart.

This is a bit disappointing.

It was only natural. They werent strong enough to be a threat to him.

Fwish, fwish, fwish, fwish!!

Ohjin raised his spear above his head and rotated it like a propeller.

Fwoosh!

Blue flames blazed up ferociously at the tip of the spear.

Hmpf!

Matching the timing with when the Murlocs got in range, he held on to the end of the shaft and swung it widely.

Swoop!

With the illusion of the spears length increasing for a moment

Spat!

Mrrrgluru!!

The Murlocs upper and lower bodies separated.

Blood and intestines gushed out.

Did it take me around 5 seconds?

Ohjin chuckled as he shrugged. He did expect it to be easy, but it was much more one-sided than he thought.

Damn does this make any sense?

Ha-eun approached him with an expression of disbelief.

Are you really a 5-Star? No, besides that, how did you become this strong in two months

When comparing the current Ohjin and the Ohjin she had seen during the subjugation at Sokcho, the difference was heaven and earth.

Ha-eun had also thought he was strong compared to his star back then, but now it was unbelievable.

At this point, shouldnt you be able to beat a 6 no, a 7-Star?

Didnt I tell you? I fought and beat a 7-Star Awakener not too long ago.

Oh, youre right.

Ha-eun scratched the back of her head and pouted.

Still, catching up to me half a year after you awakened is making me feel a certain type of way.

I probably cant beat you yet. Havent you completely recovered your body?

Ha-eun was an Awakener that was on the strong side amongst 7-Star Awakeners in the past.

Now that she had also obtained a new power, the Dragon Eyes, victory in a head-to-head match couldnt be guaranteed.

Heh! Of course I still win in a one-on-one fight!

They werent words full of bravado.

In order to face Ha-eun, who had fully recovered, it was still unreasonable to imagine it without using either Exceed or Vegas blessing.

And

Smirk

The tip of Ha-euns lips curved up.

Click

She raised her hands behind her head and removed the eyepatch that was covering her left eye.

I havent been playing around, you know?

Snap!

Ha-eun lightly flicked her fingers.

Fwooooosh!

Chains made of flames were created in a blink of an eye and rushed towards a corner in the tunnel.

Rattle, rattle!

Mrrrrgulllgll!!!!

Mgcrul! Mgggrrrul!

Two Murlocs that were secretly hiding in the corner were dragged out by the flame chains.

They had a smaller build when compared to the three Ohjin eliminated, but there was a Murloc that had menacing thorns prodding out around its body.

Looks like there are assassin-types, as well.

Mrclugh!!

They took their time observing the two Murlocs tied up by Ha-euns flame chains. Purple liquid was dripping from its thorns that were like those from a blown pufferfish.

Snap!

M-Mgr

Fwoosh!

As she snapped her fingers once more, the flame chains turned the Murlocs bodies into ash.

How did you know they were hiding? asked Ohjin with surprise.

He hadnt expected there to be two more Murlocs hiding nearby.

Well

Ha-eun smiled as she placed her hand on top of her exposed left eye.

Despite its appearance being grotesque, she fumbled around with it lovingly.

I should be able to see this much when it was a gift from a certain someone.

Huh. Why does she look so cute all of a sudden?

[Khm!]

Vega cleared her throat in discomfort.

[5-Star monsters certainly arent much of a threat.]

Yeah.

Ohjin nodded and then started harvesting the starstones.

As per the rumors, two starstones came out of each corpse.

Its been a while since Ive seen a blue starstone.

It even felt welcoming as it had been swarming with demon beasts lately.

Does this mean that the weird phenomenon in this gate isnt from the influence of the Black Stars?

So far, the Black Stars power had always been involved in locations where demon beasts appeared.

Blue starstones signified that they werent demon beasts, which meant that there was a high probability the cause of the gates weird phenomenon was something else.

Lets look into that later.

It was time to enjoy the unexpected EXP event.

Grrr. So it was a gate where these weaklings appeared. My excitement has died down.

Disappointed, Riak puffed smoke from his nose.

Judging from how you called them weaklings, Im guessing monsters of this level are easy, even in your restricted state?

Of course! Just what do you think of this mighty Riak!

Then lets use this opportunity to test how much power the both of you can use.

Ohjin looked at Riak and Vega.

[Ho. Are you saying that you want to confirm how much help this lady can be?]

After all, its important to confirm what our total forces add up to.

[Fufu. Desiring to test out a celestials power is truly discourteous, however]

Dazzle

Vega flew towards Ohjin.

[Im also curious as to how much power Ill be able to use in this state.]

Alright.

Ohjin went a little deeper inside the underground tunnel.

Mrrrgurul!!

There are four of them this time.

No assassin-types.

Ohjin looked back to take a slight glance at Riak and Vega.

Grrr! Stay put there and observe, human!

[This lady shall demonstrate her strength.]

Riak and Vega charged at the Murlocs.

Slash! Swish! Sla-Slash!!!

Mmmrrrggglll!!!

The silver wolf ran across the tunnels walls like they were flat ground and darted through the Murlocs.

Bzzzzt!

[How dare you be so ill-mannered in front of this lady.]

Blue lightning slivered across the ground like a snake and tied up the Murlocs.

In the blink of an eye, the blue lightning climbed up the Murlocs body and dug into the gills on its neck.

The Murloc that had lightning flown into its gills collapsed and started to have a seizure on the ground.

Woah.

Ohjins eyes sparkled as he looked at Vegas control that had consistently made him exclaim without fail.

However, Ohjin, who was calmly observing the battle, clicked his tongue in shame.

The output is too low.

The power of lightning Vega could output in a restricted state was, at best, around the rank of a 2~3-Star.

Vega did take down the Murlocs with her astonishing control, but the output was not nearly enough to land the finishing blow.

Its the same for Riak.

It felt like Riak was barely able to cover his miserably weakened strength and speed by making use of his overwhelming technique.

Looks like I wont be able to get carried.

* * *

It didnt matter.

Ohjin had no plans of relying on their strength to develop in the first place.

Grr! This is annoying! shouted Riak in frustration.

It was understandable. If it wasnt for the restriction, Riak would be able to turn the monsters into ashes in an instant, but instead, he was forced to expend great effort to deal damage.

Heheh! You boasted, but it looks like you were nothing much.

Wh-What did you say?

Fufu. Looks like I have no choice but to help out~

I dont need it!

Ha-eun cackled as she started to participate in the battle.

[Fuu. Its already exhausting.]

Vega sighed deeply and sat down on Ohjins shoulder.

Well done, Vega.

[It looks like I wont be able to give you much help.]

Vega dropped her head like it was a shame.

Its better this way.

[Hm? What do you mean?]

I would become indolent once I started to rely on your strength. The current amount of strength is perfect.

Ohjin comforted the dispirited Vega.

[Fufu. Are you comforting me?]

With a faint smile on her face, she patted his forehead.

[You really are a strange child. I understand why the past Vega got into that kind of r relationship with you.]

Vega smiled bashfully and finished her words in a low voice so that Ha-eun couldnt hear.

Strech, strech

It looked like Vega was embarrassed by the words she said as she pulled on Ohjins earlobes.

Uh, hm.

Though he had never been in that kind of relationship with Vega in his past life

Didnt I tell you?

Ohjin put on a slight smile and looked back at Vega on his shoulder.

Its fine if you dont remember. Its fine if you dont reminisce.

Like how the world wouldnt disappear because you closed your eyes

Even if you forget, I still remember. Whether they are happy or sad memories.

[My child]

Vegas pupils shook.

This should be enough, right?

It was time to end things.

Lets go now.

[Okay.]

As they got near, they could see that Ha-eun had already finished the battle.

Lets harvest the starstones and head deeper inside.

Grr! Ill fight alone this time!

As they were going deeper into the gate

Hm?

they discovered three Murlocs collapsed on the ground with holes pierced all around their bodies.

Fuya. Indeed, Its a little~ difficult to take down three at once!

The youth with orange hair that they saw at the entrance was taking a rest while drinking a potion.

A spherical marble was floating around him.

Hm? You are

The youths eyes wandered towards them. In a short frame of time, his expression changed second by second, and the edge of his lips gradually went up.

Lightning Wolf! Youre the Lightning Wolf, right?

Yes.

It wasnt a nickname Ohjin particularly liked, but he had gotten a fair bit used to it since so many people addressed him that way.

Hahaha! Iya~! I didnt think that I would be able to meet the Lightning Wolf here! Im a fan!

The youth lent out his hand.

Uh how do I put this. You could say this was destined to be in one way or another, so

He pointed at the marble that was floating around with his thumb as smiled.

Do you have any thoughts on taking part in my stream as a guest?

What?