Chapter 86 - The Greatest Swordsman, Next (2)

The minute that Lee Kyung-bok suggested seemed to pass in a second.

"Alright, focus now."

As the timer ended, he revealed the invitation code. At the same moment, semi-transparent silhouettes burst out of the mirror.

It was literally a split second.

Ten players entered the code and completed their connection.

- Haha, amazing!

- What speed!

- Ten digits, instantly cleared! Haha!

- It didn't even take a second, damn! Haha!

- I think I was more focused than during course registration! Haha!

- Really, I couldn't miss this opportunity!

- Is this what they call ticketing?

- M company is different, as expected! Haha!

The audience burst into laughter at the situation. However, their attention soon shifted to the participants.

- Wow, what a class of M participants!

- Wow, 30 clearings?

- The minimum is 5! Haha!

- Even among veterans, there's a difference in level.

- Hey;; If you've seen the ending, why don't you leave?

- Ah, this is really a ghost! Haha!

- Ghost... what?

- Please, stop picking on that point!

Unlike the existing raid system, to be summoned as a 'Holy Spirit' in the castle, certain conditions were required. Naturally, only players who had seen the ending at least once were eligible, given that this was the final stage.

"Ah, the numbers above their heads are the number of clearings, right?"

Lee Kyung-bok, reading the chat, could infer what the numbers above the gathered Holy Spirits' heads meant.

The lowest number was 5, and the highest was 30.

- Yes, that's right!

- But, doesn't it take at least 100 hours just to push through the story?

- Yeah, that's right.

- Really? It takes that long?

- I think the best players can do it in about 12 hours now.

- Ah, haha, the standards of the best players and gods are different.

- Haha, so that person has spent over 3,000 hours?

- Just pushing through the story?

- Please, live your life...

- At this level, they're not Holy Spirits but ghosts! Haha!

- Ah! Too scary!

Lee Kyung-bok chuckled at the chat reactions and looked around at the Holy Spirits.

'But why did these people come to snipe me?'

While others might not know, Lee Kyung-bok did. His divine artifact was detecting a threat from the Holy Spirits.

'Fortunately, they're not malicious, but they did come with a purpose.'

It wasn't as bad as it could have been. If they had been randomly selected, the threat levels would have varied. However, the threat levels of the gathered Holy Spirits were similar, indicating that people with similar tendencies had gathered to snipe him.

'Let's proceed for now.'

But since only he knew this, Lee Kyung-bok lightly clapped his hands to draw attention.

"Thank you for coming despite the last-minute invitation. Um, how about a brief introduction?"

At Lee Kyung-bok's question, laughter spread through the chat again.

- What kind of smell is this!

- Ah, haha, that's why I can't stop watching God Player's stream!

- The play is superhuman, but suddenly acting like a newbie! Haha!

- Heng! Holy Spirits can't talk, you know!

- King-level, but still a god, right?

Alicia explained, a bit late, as if confirming the audience's comments.

"Seems like they are souls from a different plane of existence. To communicate with us, they need a physical medium."

Lee Kyung-bok nodded, having only heard about the conditions for cooperative play and bad endings.

"Ah, I see. Then, unfortunately, we'll skip the introductions and proceed."

Fortunately, his words seemed to be heard, and the Holy Spirits nodded.

'This feels a bit different from the snipers I expected.'

Lee Kyung-bok thought as he walked through the mirror corridor. When discussing with his friends, they had already considered the possibility of snipers appearing.

As they exited the corridor, a spacious area appeared. The air was stuffy due to the thick layer of dust that had accumulated from lack of maintenance.

"This is the Grand Hall. If you go up those stairs, you'll reach the audience chamber."

Alicia added from his shoulder. Indeed, there were stairs leading to the upper floor in front of them, and on either side, rows of armor stood.

There were a total of 10.

"But why the barrier? Hmm... let's look around. There should be an object that serves as the medium for the barrier."

Lee Kyung-bok nodded at Alicia's explanation.

"Clearly, these armors are the mediums. The number matches the Holy Spirits, so they must be the mediums."

- You got it!

- Yeah, anyone can see that.

- It's a consideration for players who got lost in the maze!

- ??? : What? I just went straight through.

- King-level players got lost in the maze! They pushed the totem and did everything!

- Let's confirm!

Encouraged by the audience, Lee Kyung-bok approached the nearest armor. At the same time, his instincts sent a warning signal to his mind.

"Sure enough."

A whooshing sound accompanied a blade slicing over his shoulder. If he hadn't been prepared, it could have been a fatal blow.

Lee Kyung-bok stepped back and drew his sword.

"They're not going to make it easy."

Green aura flared like flames from the armor as it drew its sword.

Alicia shouted loudly.

"Broken Ones...! These are the Decider's personal guard! Be careful!"

- Wow, he dodged that!

- This is the really tough part.

- Seriously, after getting out of the maze, you meet Yuda Hee and get sent back to the entrance.

- But not for God Player!

- Learning by dying (0 deaths)

- Is it the Knight route with 10 guards? In other streams, there were 7.

- No, 10 Holy Spirits were invited, so there are 10 guards.

Meanwhile, Alicia looked around the other armors with a bewildered expression.

"Using their souls as mediums for the barrier... but why?"

Before she could answer her own question, the guards attacked. Lee Kyung-bok glanced at another armor and then fixed his gaze on the guards.

"They seem to wake up one at a time."

- Yeah, one at a time is the norm.

- One Holy Spirit, then 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, and so on.

- Once you take out this one, it gets easier!

- Ah, haha, you don't need to give advice!

- Still, can't help it, haha!

A metallic clang echoed as Lee Kyung-bok deflected the guard's sword and struck a weak point.

However, as expected of the guards, they didn't go down easily. The opponent rolled away and regained their stance.

"There's no need to face them one at a time, I think."

As he spoke, a question mark appeared in the chat. Lee Kyung-bok pushed off the ground.

His charge was met with an amplified aura as the guard counterattacked. Green sword beams flew in an X pattern, but Lee Kyung-bok's speed didn't decrease.

With a light flick of his left hand, the incoming sword beams shattered and scattered. Lee Kyung-bok slipped through the gaps and delivered a sword strike.

With a crunch, the blade pierced the armor.

The green aura that had flared like flames quickly faded. The motionless armor fell to the ground.

- What???

- Cut the sword beams with a dragon's breath?

- Haha, amazing!

- Did the guard just die?

- The aura fading means it's dead, right?

The audience was stunned by the quick battle. However, they were those who hadn't faced the guards before.

- Is this even possible?

- Did he just guess? No way, right?

- God Player wouldn't just guess, haha.

- Did he find the sealing rune right away?

- Elden players are so skilled, haha.

- Even if he's not as good as the best, he shouldn't die this easily, haha.

- Seriously, it usually takes at least 10 tries to figure out, right?

- Wow, no time to pee!

- Bladder, are you serious? Haha!

- He's been peeing non-stop, haha!

The audience, who had faced the guards, were even more shocked.

The guards were those who had sealed their souls in the armor to protect the Decider. They wouldn't fall until the sealing rune, located somewhere on the armor, was removed.

In other words, it was normal to go through trial and error to find the weak point, the sealing rune.

"Rune? I saw it."

Lee Kyung-bok said, checking the chat. Another wave of question marks flooded the chat.

"When the aura flared, there was a starting point. It was also a bit brighter. You can see it if you watch the replay."

- Huh?

- You could see that?

- Seriously, how many frames can you catch with your eyes?

- Eyes! Those eyes!

- Ah, haha, when God Player says it, it's true.

- Seriously, even if you watch the replay, it will be as he says.

After scanning the chat, Lee Kyung-bok smiled and headed towards another armor.

- Huh? Where?

- Heng? You need to investigate again to possess the Holy Spirit!

- Holy Spirit: Excuse me, streamer?

- Ah, haha, now I see that 'M' means intuition.

- Intuition is also a lot of fun, haha!

The audience laughed and chatted, but the mood soon changed.

- What? No way!

- Really going to wake them all up?

- Ah, 9:1, go!

- As expected, God Player! He does it so casually!

- His confidence is insane, haha!

Lee Kyung-bok circled the 9 armors. Green auras flared one by one.

Nine guards, weapons in hand, surrounded Lee Kyung-bok. But his face remained calm.

"Choosing who to attack first would be a hassle. We might as well do it all at once."

The Holy Spirits looked at each other in surprise, thinking he was considering their safety by taking the risk.

- Holy Spirits are shocked!

- They were about to play rock-paper-scissors, haha!

- Rock-paper-scissors, seriously, haha!

- What kind of consideration is this?

- Ah, this is consideration that comes from skill, right?

- Overconfidence ON!

Meanwhile, the nine guards charged at Lee Kyung-bok. The area was instantly bathed in green light.

Amidst the green, blue flames erupted.

The size of the blue flames was insufficient to push back the green light, but the blue flames (青炎) did not easily extinguish.

Despite the continuous attacks from the guards, Lee Kyung-bok held his ground. He broke their flow and turned it to his advantage.

- Amazing!

- Visuals are insane!

- How does he dodge all that?

- Controlling the dragon's breath in the middle of all that?

- Seriously, how can he see all that in such chaos?

Both the audience and the Holy Spirits were captivated by the spectacle. The interplay of green and blue created a dazzling display, and the blue flames of his sword dance gradually consumed the green auras.

But it eventually came to an end.

"Huff."

Lee Kyung-bok took a short breath and sheathed his sword. Around him lay the armors, each with a single, precise wound.

- Perfect angle!

- This is unedited, right? Haha!

- It feels like a performance!

- Wow... the guards have different weapons, and he counters them all!

- Unique-grade smurf class, wow!

- Seriously, where do you see this kind of play?

- Amazing, he takes them all out in one hit!

- Bladder jokes, come out! You were right!

- Doctor: Did you develop incontinence from watching the stream?

- Seriously, how does he hold it in without peeing, haha!

The chat was filled with the audience's admiration.

- At this level, he could solo it, right?

- Seriously, how does he do it?

- No, even soloing isn't easy.

- After this part, soloing skips the battle and goes straight to the audience chamber.

- Seriously, haha, then it wouldn't be as exciting.

- Almost missed something amazing, haha!

- What's next...?

- Alright, Elden players, no spoilers!

When someone expressed doubt about cooperative play, explanations quickly followed. Experienced players, mindful of spoilers, explained, and Lee Kyung-bok nodded.

"Since I invited the audience, I can't just send them back, right? Alright, you've waited long enough. I'll distribute the armors now."

Lee Kyung-bok examined the fallen guards' armors one by one. Alicia guided the Holy Spirits with incantations.

The armors, now emitting orange auras instead of green, stood up. Once the last one possessed a body, Alicia said brightly.

"Done! The barrier is gone now."

- Wow... finally the final boss!

- How long has it been since we saw a zero-back bus?

- This time, with 10 people!

- Seriously, these are all veterans!

- Even King-level players are just regular Elden players in front of God Player!

- Haha, he's the best!

- His tone is so King-level, haha!

The audience expressed their excitement. Suddenly, the Holy Spirits quickly surrounded Lee Kyung-bok.

The chat was confused, but Lee Kyung-bok remained calm.

"Thought you'd attack from behind during the boss fight, but this is unexpected?"

- What?

- Sniping?

- Seriously, why are these veterans sniping?

- Sniping here?

- Not just one, all 10 are sniping?

- Group sniping, wow!

- M company is really something, damn! Haha!

The audience finally understood the situation. As the chat buzzed, the Holy Spirit with the most clearings stepped forward.

"God Player's skills are acknowledged by everyone here. We didn't gather here out of jealousy or for attention."

Lee Kyung-bok realized this was their leader.

"It might sound like an excuse, but we have a reason to stop you."

"Reason?"

"Yes."

A different kind of sniping.

- What? What is this?

- Sniping, right?

- Is this some kind of fun hidden camera?

- Never seen this kind of sniping before, haha!

- What, does the stream have a difficulty setting?

- Haha, what? Does the stream have a difficulty option?

The audience stopped criticizing and watched the situation unfold.

"The people here are all veterans, as you can see from the number of clearings. Do you know what our pleasure is? Helping newbies, commonly known as 'sleeve insertion.'"

'Sleeve insertion' is a term derived from pickpocketing, referring to the culture of veterans giving to newbies.

- Sleeve insertion here?

- Haha,