Chapter 75 - Bloodline is Everything

[Translator - Helga ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]

Chapter 75 – Eruption of Power (2)

At Kwon Hanul’s provocation, a smirk crept across Frederance’s face as well.

“Everyone says that at first.”

The black serpent grew even longer, high enough to reach the ceiling, looking down on Kwon Hanul from above.

“They all think they’ve got a solid countermeasure—until the poison hits.”

Kwon Hanul studied Frederance.

Sure, he spoke provocatively, but he had no intention of just sitting there and letting the poison get him.

He trusted his Superhuman Blood and Healthy Bloodline, but his opponent was a villain from Pandemonium.

They may operate in different domains, but this man had reached the pinnacle of hunters. He couldn’t afford to take a direct hit from someone that strong.

“How long are you going to just stand there watching?”

Frederance finally spoke.

“Or should I start things off myself?”

Even before he finished speaking, the serpent’s head dropped like a meteor. Its mouth wide open, aiming to rip Kwon Hanul apart.

It was a simple attack—but the pressure behind it was anything but. The force was so intense it displaced the air around it in a burst.

Kwon Hanul quickly retreated. The serpent’s head crashed into the spot he had just been standing on.

A split second later, the ground shattered to dust. The sheer destructive force was overwhelming.

“…That’s intense.”

Before coming here, he had heard from Joo Hayun about that snake.

The Dividing Serpent.

Frederance’s signature and trump card skill.

It spawns endlessly dividing snakes. Their strength scales with the user’s stats, and they can use the user's skills and items.

Each fang of that snake was filled with a venom crafted by Frederance himself.

One bite, and it’s game over. Even a graze was dangerous.

It was Frederance’s secret weapon, developed to overcome the short-range limitations of most poison-based skills.

“This skill scales with the user's power, granting immense physical might.”

Frederance wasn’t just a villain of Pandemonium. He also carried the Superhuman Blood trait.

If all that power was reflected in the skill, the destructive force made sense.

“You’ll have a hard time blocking this.”

The black serpent pulled its embedded head free. Hissing menacingly, it charged again.

Kwon Hanul clenched his fist.

This time, he didn’t dodge. Instead, he lunged forward.

He punched straight into the charging serpent. The impact from their clash rippled through his forearm.

If this were the Kwon Hanul from yesterday, his arm would’ve shattered from the force.

But today’s Kwon Hanul was different.

<‘Diamond Aura’ protects your body.>

The black serpent began to burst apart, starting from its head. Black fragments scattered in every direction.

“Everyone thinks they’ve got a solid plan.”

He’d dodged earlier just to gauge the skill’s power.

“Until they get hit.”

But the current Kwon Hanul wasn’t someone who’d be shaken by just that level of attack.

Even though his prized skill had been destroyed in one blow, Frederance still wore a smile.

And then—

“…Ugh.”

A wave of intense dizziness slammed into Kwon Hanul’s head. His vision darkened, and strength drained from his legs.

A groan escaped his lips from the sheer pain.

“You thought the venom was only in the fangs? Foolish. The entire snake is poison.”

The toxin continued to spread throughout Kwon Hanul’s body. He could feel his systems deteriorating in real time.

“I loaded it with a colorless, odorless neurotoxin. The moment you destroyed that snake, the poison dispersed in every direction. And you… you inhaled it all without realizing.”

His vision faded to black. Ringing filled his ears.

“Starting to realize the gap in our levels?”

No answer.

Still, Frederance felt more than satisfied.

“What’s the matter? Weren’t you talking so confidently just now? Cat got your tongue?”

He chuckled.

“You see now? Aside from your bloodline, you’re nothing but—”

“Hoo...”

Just then, Kwon Hanul let out a long breath and straightened his back.

“Damn, that really hurt.”

He started stretching, loosening up muscles that had stiffened from the toxin.

“…What’s going on?”

Frederance stared in disbelief.

“Why… are you still standing? You should be writhing in agony for at least three hours.”

“I adapted.”

Kwon Hanul said it like it was no big deal. Frederance’s face instantly contorted.

“Don’t be ridiculous! Do you even know what kind of poison that is?! I’ve spent my entire life developing it! And you adapted?!”

Frederance was more agitated than ever before.

And understandably so.

Poison was the path he had chosen—abandoning his bloodline in the process.

It wasn’t just a specialty. It was his everything—his pride.

And now someone said they adapted to it?

In just a few minutes?

“What’s the point of telling the truth if you won’t believe it?”

Kwon Hanul clicked his tongue and looked away.

<‘Healthy Bloodline’ detects a deadly poison!>

The messages kept flashing.

All signs that his Healthy Bloodline had neutralized the poison—and that his stats had increased.

“…Fine. Let’s see you adapt to this next one.”

From beneath Frederance’s feet, another black serpent shot up.

It was smaller than the first one—but this time, there were eight of them.

“This time, I’ll inject the poison directly into your body.”

The eight snakes lunged in unison, mouths open, venomous fangs ready to strike.

“Did you learn nothing from watching the last one get obliterated?”

Kwon Hanul planned to crush all eight of them before they got close.

He drew back his fist, aiming for the leading serpent—

Then a sudden sense of danger flashed through his mind.

Instinctively, he twisted his body. A stream of venom pierced through the spot where his head had just been.

When the toxin hit the ground, it blew a massive hole into it.

But it hadn’t melted the floor.

The hole had been punched into it by sheer pressure—like a high-pressure jet of fluid.

“You’ve got good instincts, dodging that.”

Kwon Hanul turned toward Frederance.

At some point, the villain had summoned four more serpents.

One of them had just fired that venom jet.

“But how long can you keep dodging?”

The eight snakes pounced again.

Kwon Hanul kicked off the ground, dodging to the side. Another venom jet immediately followed.

“Tch.”

If he focused on attacking the eight snakes, the venom would strike.

If he paid attention to the venom, the snakes would close in.

It was an annoying, frustrating strategy.

“Alright, time to get serious.”

The four venom-spraying snakes surrounded Kwon Hanul.

From every angle—above, behind, to the sides—they launched their venom jets.

Simultaneously, the other eight serpents watched for an opening, ready to strike with their fangs.

“Got you now.”

Before he knew it, twelve serpents had completely surrounded Kwon Hanul.

Genius Bloodline warned Kwon Hanul of the incoming danger.

There was no time to evade.

Even if one snake was struck down with a punch, another would immediately lunge in, aiming for an opening.

Watching Ferdrance from between the swarming snakes, Kwon Hanul spoke.

“You’ve thought this through quite well.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Twelve snakes bared their fangs and lunged at once.

Just as Genius Bloodline sensed, there was nowhere to dodge.

Kwon Hanul summoned his Dragon Demon Aura. At the same time, he clenched his fists and steadied his stance.

The Superhuman Bloodline doesn’t affect magical power. It only enhances the physical body.

But it does reinforce the magic channels—strong enough to withstand even reckless techniques.

“Haa…”

The Dragon Demon Aura gathered into his fists. Kwon Hanul slammed his fist into the ground with all his might.

In an instant, the unleashed pressure and Dragon Demon Aura obliterated all twelve snakes.

“……”

Ferdrance, witnessing the spectacle, muttered involuntarily,

“You damn monster…!”

Ferdrance had never underestimated Kwon Hanul.

Ever since witnessing him crush a living puppet with a single blow, he’d regarded Hanul as a threat that required full strength.

That’s why he had released the Dividing Snake—a skill he rarely used.

It was a trump card, meant only for critical moments.

“You damn monster…!”

But now, Ferdrance realized something.

Kwon Hanul wasn’t merely an opponent who required full strength.

He was someone you’d have to risk your life to defeat.

“How… How is this even possible?!”

It made no sense.

Kwon Hanul wasn’t a world-ranked fighter, nor did he possess more than three S-rank stats.

In contrast, Ferdrance had multiple S-rank abilities and was a villain affiliated with Pandemonium.

His poison was lethal—strong enough to kill even those several tiers above him.

Logically, Kwon Hanul should have already turned into a puddle of blood from Ferdrance’s venom.

But reality was different.

Ferdrance was the one being overwhelmed. None of his tactics were working.

“There’s not even someone like you in Pandemonium! This shouldn’t be happening!”

Ferdrance grabbed his face with his palm, taking a long breath.

He forced himself to calm down. If not, he felt he might break.

“……No. As long as I sink my fangs in once, I win.”

“I’m not sure what makes you so confident.”

Kwon Hanul rolled his wrist casually as he replied.

“Are you even confident you can land a bite in the first place?”

Ferdrance ground his teeth.

“If something doesn’t work, just increase the numbers.”

A black swamp rose once again beneath his feet. This time, thousands of small snakes emerged.

Kwon Hanul looked unimpressed.

“When quality fails, you’re going for quantity now?”

Ferdrance no longer answered. Instead, he sent the swarming snakes charging.

They surged like a tidal wave crashing down on Kwon Hanul.

“Guess I’ll have to wipe them out again before you come to your senses.”

Kwon Hanul raised his Dragon Demon Aura once more. This time, he prepared a technique.

But then—

Hundreds of snakes exhaled a toxic mist all at once. The volume was so overwhelming that it completely obscured vision.

Kwon Hanul was about to blast the mist away using his Dragon Demon Aura, but suddenly paused.

He wasn’t alone in the hideout.

Mei Hong, Kwon Hudon, and Takamine Ryoko were there too.

While Hanul could withstand the poison, the others couldn’t.

He had no choice but to use a different technique.

Black Dragon Ascension Art

Flow Style: Wind Severance

Kwon Hanul brought both hands together in front of his chest. Manipulating his mana, he began gathering the poisonous mist.

Originally, Wind Severance was a technique that compressed aura and air into a massive slashing wave.

But Hanul only compressed the poison, then absorbed it into his body.

“...Kgh.”

Though he had developed a tolerance, it was still taxing. Ferdrance’s poison wasn’t to be taken lightly.

The poisonous mist vanished completely. At that moment, Kwon Hanul noticed the black snakes forming a wall around him.

“So this is what you were aiming for?”

The snakes all bit down on different parts of Hanul’s body. There were so many that they nearly buried him.

At that instant, Dragon Fear roared through the area. All the snakes clamped onto Hanul exploded simultaneously.

“Fangs of snakes can never pierce a dragon.”

Kwon Hanul stepped forward, crushing the remains underfoot.

Despite the countless bites, not a single scratch marred his body.

It was thanks to the Blackriver Set and Diamond Aura.

“Is that all you’ve got?”

At his question, a grin spread across Ferdrance’s face.

“No.”

Instinctively, Kwon Hanul looked down.

The shattered remains of the snakes began to gather.

Soon, they reformed into a giant serpent—larger than the one before—towering right in front of Hanul.

With no time to react, the massive snake coiled tightly around his body. The crushing force made his bones creak.

Fangs like longswords pierced his neck.

The Blackriver Set was breached. Even the Diamond Aura that coated his skin couldn’t hold.

The venomous fangs sank in.

Immediately after, the entire black serpent dissolved into venom and invaded Kwon Hanul’s body.

“I’ll admit it honestly. You were a tough opponent.”

Ferdrance approached Kwon Hanul. His steps were light, full of confidence.

“Ridiculous, isn’t it? That someone like me—a villain of Pandemonium—felt pressure from a greenhorn who just started gaining fame.”

He was exposing his own vulnerability, but it didn’t matter.

He had won. What was there to fear?

“Do you know why I won and you lost?”

No reply came.

And of course, there wouldn’t be.

The poison inside Kwon Hanul was Venom Purity—a toxin Ferdrance had personally refined.

Just one drop could turn a metropolis into a death zone.

Even with resistance, no one could survive that.

“I have experience. You don’t.”

Pandemonium was a world where the strong devoured the weak.

To join it, Ferdrance had fought countless battles.

Even after becoming one of its villains, he had to keep fighting to maintain his position.

And all those battles had become deeply ingrained experience.

“I’ve already figured you out completely—your fighting style, your tactics, even your temperament.”

Right now, Kwon Hanul was dying. Perhaps already dead.

“What a shame. I could’ve made you my underling.”

Suddenly, Ferdrance heard something near his ear.

Kwon Hanul was muttering something in a faint voice.

Ferdrance leaned down to hear.

“…ra…”

“What?”

“…don’t know…”

At that moment, Kwon Hanul raised his head. His skin had blackened from the venom, and his entire body trembled.

But his eyes were still fierce.

“You… don’t know… anything… about me…”

<‘Healthy Bloodline’ has completely neutralized the poison!>

His skin rapidly returned to normal. The trembling ceased.

Seeing this, Ferdrance recoiled in shock.

“You… You’re not serious—!”

Kwon Hanul didn’t wait for him to finish.

He surged forward, thrusting out his fist.

Black Dragon Ascension Art: Basic Form

Tendon Style: Frostwhite Devotion Fist

It was already too late to dodge.

Ferdrance hurriedly summoned his defensive aura.

With an 80% affinity, he had learned to control it freely.

He concentrated all of it into his abdomen—exactly where Kwon Hanul’s punch landed.

“Not a chance!”

Ferdrance roared.

But the moment fist met aura, something unbelievable happened.

Kwon Hanul’s fist turned golden—then shattered Ferdrance’s aura like an eggshell.

“What the—!”

Before he could even process it, Kwon Hanul’s punch slammed into his entire body.

[Translator - Helga ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]