Chapter 36

Chapter 11. Akasha's Snake (4)

After parting ways with Galied, Yeonwoo hurriedly moved to the location where Akasha's snake was said to appear. According to the landscape he had seen in the diary, the area should have been densely packed with stone mountains like a forest.

"......"

However, what greeted Yeonwoo was a complete ruin, a mess of destruction.

'How did anyone find this place? No one other than Artia should know about it.'

Encountering Akasha's snake could only be described as a stroke of luck upon luck. It only appeared once during the tutorial period, and Yeonwoo had to be in the right place at the right time, coincidentally receiving help from Galied.

But because of that encounter, Artia exists now, he could say with certainty.

Moreover, Akasha's snake only appeared for a few days, at most three. But the traces left here were at least a week old.

Yeonwoo thoroughly searched the area, hoping that the Akasha's snake Pant and Edora had faced was a similar fake.

However.

'Damn. It doesn't even give me a chance to hope.'

Yeonwoo found the nearly torn-apart corpse of Akasha's snake beyond the collapsed stone mountains. The snake, as large as several stone mountains combined, lay dead. Each scale was as big as Yeonwoo, and its length was so great that the end was not visible.

Even though it was clearly dead, it still seemed to retain its ferocity from when it was alive. Just looking at it from the front was overwhelming.

Yeonwoo carefully examined the corpse, hoping that Pant and Edora had left something important behind.

But this was also in vain. The most needed parts of Akasha's snake, such as the inner core and venom sac, were all missing. It was evidence that Pant and Edora had hunted Akasha's snake as precisely as Yeonwoo.

'How did they catch it?'

In the end, Yeonwoo clicked his tongue and took a few steps back from the corpse. Even then, he couldn't see the entire corpse at once. The more he looked, the more his curiosity grew.

Akasha's snake was very difficult to hunt. Its size, temperament, and strength were formidable, making it hard to approach. Its venomous fangs could melt rocks.

It was so strong that even dozens of players might not be able to catch it. How did two people manage to do it?

Does that mean they were so strong that it was unimaginable?

Or.

Was there something else?

'The way they summoned Akasha's snake... I can't even guess how they did it.'

Even if they used Undine's cup, how could they summon Akasha's snake so quickly?

Did they use some kind of spell?

Or was there some other method he didn't know?

Various thoughts swirled in Yeonwoo's mind.

But after all those thoughts, only one remained.

'What should I do now?'

Yeonwoo briefly took off his mask and ran his hand over his face. It was almost the first time he had taken it off since entering the tutorial. His mind was so cluttered that he needed to feel the wind on his bare face to clear his thoughts.

The hidden piece he had been aiming for since the start of the tutorial had vanished in vain.

Even if he had started a week late, he had confidence because of Akasha's snake.

But on the other hand, he also felt that he had been complacent.

Now he finally understood how Pant and Edora had achieved such unbelievable merit points.

But what good would regret do now?

Everything was in vain.

He had to do something immediately.

Yeonwoo quickly brought up the tutorial ranking in the air.

[Tutorial Ranking]

1st. Edora (64,571 Points)

2nd. Pant (58,774 Points)

3rd. Khan (57,300 Points)

...

40th. Confidential (40,980 Points) (Himself)

...

'The remaining points to 1st place are about 20,000. The gap is steadily narrowing.'

Yeonwoo narrowed his eyes.

'If I gather as many emblems as possible in Sector E and consume all the hidden pieces in Sector F, and then make a quick win in Sector G...'

Yeonwoo quickly thought through various scenarios.

But he had to shake his head at each one.

'The time is too tight. The best I can achieve is 11th place. If I'm really lucky, maybe 8th. 1st place is out of the question.'

Yeonwoo had a reason to absolutely need to be 1st. Only then could he advance the spark of revenge. If he didn't become 1st, it would all be in vain.

Moreover, he needed Akasha's snake's inner core to complete the succession procedure.

His plans were unraveling in various ways.

This meant he had to completely revise his plans.

But Yeonwoo had no immediate means to do so.

The only option was to run as hard as possible until the end of the tutorial.

With the intention of accumulating as many merit points as possible, Yeonwoo decided to leave the location.

Right then.

"......What is that?"

Yeonwoo stopped in his tracks and noticed something on the opposite side, which he had not thoroughly examined.

Following the head of the corpse, several footprints were visible, and there were signs of a strong impact to the skull from the outside.

At first, he thought it was a wound made by Pant and Edora while hunting the snake.

'No. These are definitely wounds made after it died. And they are recent.'

It was evidence that people had visited before Yeonwoo, other than Pant and Edora.

'Something is going on.'

Yeonwoo had a gut feeling that something was up.

But on the other hand, he also thought that he should move to a different location to accumulate more merit points.

However.

'Let's go check it out.'

Yeonwoo decided to trust his instincts. In battle, such animalistic senses often led to unexpected results.

Whoosh!

Yeonwoo kicked off the ground and soared into the air. His movements were much lighter than before, a change that occurred after obtaining the Swift Step skill.

He became more agile and quick.

[You have mastered the technique of freely manipulating your body.]

[The skill proficiency of 'Swift Step' has increased by 1.2%.]

Thud!

Yeonwoo reached the end by kicking the corpse's head a few times mid-air.

Near the top of the skull, there were marks of a large ax being swung by several burly men.

'They were trying to extract something from the skull. What? The brain?'

As far as Yeonwoo knew, the only useful parts of Akasha's snake were the inner core and venom sac. The rest, despite its size, was difficult to process and had little use.

But they were trying to take the brain?

Why?

Yeonwoo could easily deduce where the group that took the brain had gone by the size of the footprints left on the snake's skull.

'They were orcs.'

Yeonwoo suddenly remembered what his brother had written in the diary.

The various monsters in Sector E had different customs adapted to their environments.

Especially the orc village in the eastern region had long revered Akasha's snake, the original master of the stone mountain area, as a god.

In Sector E, various monsters lived in groups. Lizardmen in the northern swamps, goblins and kobolds in the western forests, orcs in the eastern stone mountains, and mostly ogres and trolls in the south.

However, the eastern stone mountains were not the orcs' territory, as Akasha's snake lived deep underground.

Occasionally, Akasha's snake would come out and attack the village, making it a source of fear for them.

So they had a custom of venerating it as a god.

It seemed the orcs had belatedly realized that Akasha's snake was dead and had taken the brain to do something.

'What are they trying to do? If it's just a ritual, they could have done it here or taken it back to their village.'

The orcs' trail led in the opposite direction of their village.

'Something is going on. Something!'

Without further delay, Yeonwoo followed the orcs' trail, moving swiftly.

Whoosh!

The orcs had moved deep into the wasteland, far from the ruins. The deeper they went, the darker the wasteland became, and larger and more rugged stone mountains appeared.

A place his brother, who had thoroughly explored Sector E, had not been able to reach.

It seemed they were heading to the very edge of Sector E.

Yeonwoo soon encountered a cliff that seemed to rise endlessly.

'The Great Cliff. This is the eastern end of Sector E. Then...'

Yeonwoo opened his Dragon Eye and scanned the cliff.

The orcs' trail led to a small cave hidden by rocks and trees.

'Is there such a place? What are they trying to do here?'

Without hesitation, Yeonwoo entered the cave.

At that moment.

['Akasha's Snake Den' entered for the first time.]

[1,000 additional merit points obtained.]

'What?'

Yeonwoo's eyes widened at the sudden message.

A snake den?

And one where Akasha's snake resided?

Thump! Thump!

Yeonwoo felt his heart pounding.

The den where Akasha's snake had nested was a place that even Galied had not found. His brother had not found it either.

Therefore, Galied had to stick to the designated time to meet Akasha's snake.

But if the den was found, the story changed.

'Akasha's snake might have laid eggs or have a mate.'

And the fact that the orcs had moved the brain so carefully suggested that there was something hidden.

Even if not, there must be something comparable to Akasha's snake.

Yeonwoo moved as quietly as possible into the cave. The deeper he went, the louder the orcs' murmurs became.

And.

Yeonwoo witnessed dozens of orcs standing in rows in a vast open space.

'What is this?'

Thump! Thump! Thump...

The orcs were bowing in a reverent posture, in sync with the drum beats, reminiscent of a solemn religious ceremony.

At the end, on an altar, were piles of dead orcs and lizardmen, and above them, a tray containing Akasha's snake's brain.

'These guys are out of their minds.'

Yeonwoo frowned at the swirling madness and crouched as low as possible.

If he caused a commotion, he would be trapped in the cave forever.

Then.

Thud! An orc shaman suddenly rose from his seat, striking the ground forcefully with a bell-topped staff.

He then recited a prayer in a mad voice.

"Hisss! Our god, who was killed by wicked humans! Rise again in anger! Take the souls of our warriors and reincarnate as a great being to punish them!"

The orc shaman then took a torch from the bronze brazier on either side and set fire to the sacrificial bodies.

Whoosh!

The rough flames immediately consumed the sacrifices, as if they had been doused in oil.

And.

At that moment, a strange phenomenon occurred.

Sizzle...

Normally, when a body burns, it turns into black ash. But the sacrifices, upon being engulfed by the flames, began to transform into white smoke.

The smoke gathered in the air and was sucked into the brain on the tray, like a sponge absorbing water.

The brain rapidly absorbed the smoke.

As it did, the number of sacrifices piled up quickly decreased, and the brain twitched as if it were alive.

At that moment.

When the sacrifices were almost gone, a part of the brain tore open, and something popped out.

Kaaah!

"......!"

When he saw it, Yeonwoo's eyes widened.

It was a snake.

Much smaller than the Akasha's snake he knew, but still about three meters long.

A baby Akasha's snake.

It was crying out, saying it was hungry.

Kaaah!

At that moment, a message appeared before Yeonwoo.

[Hidden Quest / Resurrection Ritual]

Content: Akasha's snake is originally a being composed of half matter and half spirit. Therefore, if enough essence (Akasha