26

Chapter 26: Blackwater Serpent

The moment Subin's Stone Emperor's Blade met the serpent's fangs, the impact shook the entire cavern.

BOOM!

Water exploded outward.

Subin's feet slid several meters across the stone floor, but he remained standing. The serpent's head recoiled slightly before its enormous body twisted beneath the surface.

Subin narrowed his eyes.

"That bite is stronger than the Stone Guardian."

The serpent's golden eyes remained fixed on him.

Its body disappeared beneath the black water.

Subin didn't move.

His Predator's Sense spread outward.

The surface of the lake became completely still.

Then—

WHOOSH!

The serpent erupted from the water behind him.

Subin turned instantly.

Fang Step!

His body shifted sideways as the serpent's jaws snapped shut where his head had been.

The creature's enormous body crashed onto the shore.

Subin's sword flashed.

Stonebreaker Edge!

SLASH!

His blade struck the serpent's neck.

A shallow wound appeared between its scales.

Subin's expression changed.

"Hard scales."

The serpent twisted its body.

Its tail swept toward him.

Subin jumped.

The massive tail passed beneath his feet and smashed into the cavern wall.

BOOM!

Stone fragments fell from above.

Subin landed on the serpent's back.

His sword immediately stabbed downward.

CLANG!

The blade struck a scale and bounced away.

The serpent twisted violently.

Subin jumped clear just before its body slammed against the ground.

He landed several meters away.

The serpent's wound was already beginning to close.

[Regeneration detected.]

Subin's eyes narrowed.

"So brute force won't work."

The serpent opened its mouth.

A dark blue sphere began forming inside.

Mana gathered rapidly.

Subin's Predator's Sense immediately warned him.

He moved.

A beam of concentrated mana erupted from the serpent's mouth.

BOOOOOOM!

The beam tore across the cavern.

Subin used Fang Step repeatedly, moving between the gaps in the attack.

The beam struck the opposite wall.

Stone melted.

Subin's expression became serious.

That attack wasn't something he could afford to take directly.

The serpent fired again.

Subin moved sideways.

Another beam.

He jumped.

Another.

He rolled beneath it.

The cavern shook with every impact.

Subin watched carefully.

His Sword Comprehension activated.

[Target analysis initiated.]

[Blackwater Serpent combat analysis: 11%.]

He continued observing.

The serpent wasn't simply attacking randomly.

Its head movement preceded every mana blast.

Its body coiled slightly before physical attacks.

Its scales became brighter immediately before defensive reinforcement.

Subin began recognizing the patterns.

The serpent attacked again.

Subin moved toward it instead of away.

The creature opened its jaws.

Mana gathered.

Subin knew the attack was coming.

He stepped to the side.

The beam missed.

He immediately accelerated toward its head.

Silver Flow!

His sword struck.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

The serpent's scales cracked.

The creature roared and violently shook its head.

Subin was thrown into the air.

He adjusted his body.

Fang Step!

He landed safely.

The serpent lunged again.

Subin raised his sword.

CLANG!

The blade stopped one of its fangs.

The force drove him backward.

The serpent continued pushing.

Subin's boots carved lines into the stone.

His muscles tightened.

"You're strong."

He suddenly released the pressure.

The serpent's momentum carried its head forward.

Subin stepped sideways.

Flowing Edge.

He redirected the creature's head.

Its jaw slammed against the ground.

Subin's sword immediately descended.

This time, he didn't aim for the scales.

He aimed for the gap beneath the jaw.

One Edge.

Sword Intent gathered around his blade.

The attack became incredibly precise.

SHING!

The Stone Emperor's Blade pierced through the softer flesh beneath the serpent's jaw.

The serpent violently recoiled.

Dark blood splashed across the ground.

Subin withdrew his sword and jumped backward.

The serpent's regeneration immediately began working.

But this time, the wound didn't close completely.

Subin noticed the difference.

His Sword Intent had interfered with the regeneration.

He smiled.

"So that's what Sword Intent can do."

The serpent became enraged.

Its entire body began glowing blue.

Mana flooded through the cavern.

The black lake began rising.

Subin looked around.

Water climbed the walls.

The serpent wasn't simply attacking him anymore.

It was manipulating the entire lake.

[Warning.]

[High-density mana surge detected.]

Subin's expression became focused.

The serpent's body disappeared beneath the water.

He could no longer see it.

But he could feel it.

His Predator's Sense detected movement beneath the surface.

Fast.

Very fast.

Subin moved.

The serpent erupted from the lake.

Its mouth opened wide.

Subin jumped onto its upper jaw.

The creature twisted violently.

He maintained his balance.

His feet moved with the serpent's motion.

Silver Flow.

His sword struck repeatedly.

One scale.

Two.

Three.

Then he saw it.

A slightly different-colored scale beneath the serpent's left eye.

Subin's eyes sharpened.

"Core protection."

The serpent attempted to shake him off.

Subin used Fang Step.

His position changed.

He landed directly beside the creature's head.

The serpent opened its mouth.

Mana gathered.

Subin didn't retreat.

He stepped forward.

His sword began glowing faintly.

Sword Intent concentrated along the edge.

One Edge.

He didn't think about the serpent's size.

He didn't think about its level.

He didn't think about its regeneration.

He only thought about one thing.

Cut.

His sword moved.

SHING!

The blade passed beneath the serpent's eye.

The reinforced scale split.

Subin immediately followed with another strike.

SLASH!

The sword pierced deeper.

The serpent's body suddenly froze.

Then an enormous wave of mana erupted from its body.

BOOOOOOM!

Subin was thrown backward.

He crashed against the stone floor and rolled several meters.

His shoulder struck a pillar.

Pain spread through his body.

He immediately got back up.

The serpent was still standing.

But its movements had changed.

Its golden eyes were losing their brightness.

The wound beneath its eye continued spreading.

Subin understood.

He had damaged something important.

The serpent charged.

Subin stepped forward.

Neither retreated.

The serpent opened its jaws.

Subin raised his sword.

At the final moment, he shifted his body.

The serpent's fang passed beside his chest.

Subin's blade moved upward.

Stonebreaker Edge.

The sword cut through the damaged section beneath the jaw.

Then he rotated his wrist.

One Edge.

The same motion continued into a second slash.

The serpent's head was severed.

Its enormous body collapsed into the black lake.

Water surged across the shore.

Subin stood motionless.

For several seconds, there was only the sound of falling water.

Then the system appeared.

[Blackwater Serpent defeated.]

[Level increased.]

[Level 25 → Level 26.]

[Level 26 → Level 27.]

Subin breathed out slowly.

Two levels.

He looked at the enormous body.

The creature had been considerably stronger than the monsters on the upper floors.

A glowing core emerged from its chest.

Subin approached and picked it up.

[Blackwater Serpent Core]

[Grade: Epic]

[Purity: 81%]

[Mana Content: 6,420]

Subin's eyes widened.

"Six thousand?"

That was an enormous amount of mana.

He stored the core.

Then he noticed something beneath the serpent's body.

A dark blue scale was glowing.

He picked it up.

[Blackwater Scale]

[Grade: Rare+]

[Property: High Mana Resistance]

[Durability: Extremely High]

Subin considered it for a moment.

"It could be useful for armor."

He stored it as well.

The cavern slowly returned to normal.

The black water settled.

The blue mana crystals resumed their slow pulsation.

Subin looked toward the stone door on the opposite side of the lake.

It was still closed.

He walked toward it.

As he approached, the door began glowing.

A notification appeared.

[Blackwater Guardian defeated.]

[Passage unlocked.]

The massive door slowly opened.

Behind it was another corridor.

Subin took one step forward.

Then stopped.

He could feel an unusual presence ahead.

Not sword intent.

Not the pressure of a monster.

It was something else.

A powerful concentration of mana.

He opened his status.

[Level: 27]

[Strength: 51]

[Agility: 50]

[Vitality: 45]

[Intelligence: 25]

[Mana: 18]

[Unassigned Attribute Points: 40]

[Sword Intent: Beginner — 14% comprehension]

[Sword God Foundation: 7%]

Subin looked at his unassigned points.

He had gained two levels from the serpent.

He now had enough points to make another significant improvement.

But he decided not to distribute them yet.

Something told him the next section would demand more than raw attributes.

He stepped through the doorway.

The corridor descended.

After several hundred meters, it opened into a massive underground chamber.

Subin stopped.

His eyes widened.

The entire chamber was filled with weapons.

Not hundreds.

Thousands.

Swords, spears, axes, bows, shields and countless other weapons rested against the walls.

But unlike the earlier sword chamber, these weapons weren't ancient relics.

They looked newly forged.

At the center of the chamber stood a gigantic stone furnace.

Blue flames burned inside it.

The system appeared.

[Dungeon Forging Hall detected.]

[High-level mana furnace detected.]

Subin looked at the furnace.

Then at the weapons.

A thought immediately occurred to him.

The Stone Emperor's Blade was powerful.

But eventually, he would need a sword that truly matched his own path.

A weapon that could evolve alongside him.

He walked toward the furnace.

The moment he reached it, a notification appeared.

[Weapon refinement facility detected.]

[Current weapon: Stone Emperor's Blade.]

[Potential refinement detected.]

Subin's eyes narrowed.

"Refinement?"

The system continued.

[Requirement: Epic-grade mana core.]

Subin immediately thought of the Blackwater Serpent Core stored in his inventory.

He smiled.

"So that's why I got it."

He didn't hesitate.

He took the core from his storage.

The moment the Epic-grade core appeared, the blue furnace erupted with flames.

WHOOM!

The entire chamber lit up.

The Stone Emperor's Blade vibrated inside its sheath.

Subin's expression became serious.

His sword had already carried him through countless battles.

But perhaps it was time for it to take another step forward.

He slowly drew the blade.

The weapon reflected the blue flames.

Subin looked at it.

"Let's see how far you can go."

The furnace roared.

And the refinement process began.