Past Life Returner

“Hmm…”

The evaluation after completing the extraction was not very good. There were not as many mana stones collected as I had expected. Although there were quite a lot of other spoils, only a few stood out in terms of quality. However, there was even a clear difference between them and the artifacts that had been passed down among the orc tribes. Perhaps it was because they came from weaker small kingdoms.

[Level: 655 (45.14%)]

Nonetheless, I couldn’t be satisfied with the first spoon. It was not easy to notice any signs as my stomach had expanded.

The amount of power absorbed from the warehouse was more than enough to create a challenger Awakened. Originally, it was supposed to be a treasure trove that was considered unprecedented in the history of the Awakened and begins from outer space. Even the First Evil and First Virtue could not enjoy such wealth and prosperity in the past. Looking back, I was completely different from who I was now.

I pushed the door open. The autumn wind was waiting for me, and it swept away the dust that had scattered on the warehouse floor. Kim Ji-Hoon was blank, but soon regained his senses. He said as if he noticed why I had been consistently collecting loot, “Do you know…that the recovery rate of high-class spoils is not good?”

There was a hint of frustration in his tone. Then, he quickly lowered his head with a look of realization that he had crossed the line. He was excessively excited as he had caught a glimpse of my divinity.

I found his mistake quite funny. Just because of one mistake like this, multiple guys had been expelled from the privileged class. There were also countless people who lost their lives because of this. Kim Ji-Hoon would know this better than anyone else.

I tapped his shoulder as he turned ghastly pale. In the first place, it was anticipated that the recovery rate of high-class loot would not be good. However, Awakened armed with them would advance with great momentum, and real powerful forces emerged from there. It was because the strength imbued in Mana users was much greater than most loot items.

Mana stones were similar, so it was annoying that the dwarven tribes had gathered them. I postponed the hunting plan. It was not just about how many mana stones the dwarves had accumulated, but rather, it was a priority to find out how they were using the abundant stones. They must have been doing more than just collecting them.

I started by thinking about the fact that they lived underground. The destination was a massive underground tunnel that could constitute a civilization.

[You have activated Gate Formation.]

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Then…

Huh?

[* You have been interfered with by an unidentified magitech device.]

[Remaining time (until Gate Formation): 5 days]

This was the first time such a thing had occurred. This was not because of the Old One’s Protection. Since I had begun suspecting that some faction was collecting mana stones, I had been concerned about this possibility. I changed the destination to the surface land. Only then did the space start to tear apart and expand.

***

On the surface, there was no trace of any civilization. The dense forests resembled a primitive ecosystem. Even barren mountains formed of rocks had clusters of plants and animals that had adapted to the environment.

The surface was indeed not the territory of the dwarves. It was known that they had delved into the underground since ancient times, starting from the era known as the Primordial War. I had no interest in what the dwarves ate or how they lived there. All I cared about was how the powers spread throughout the entire underground were created.

Finding an entrance seemed difficult, but if I couldn’t find it, I could just make one. It was a method to deliver a significant impact to these boundaries without using too much power.

[The skill ‘Odin’s Thunderstorm’ has been created.]

I pulled out the Great Silver from the void. The sensation of a heavy blade tightly gripped in my hand was satisfying, but the shape that was created solely for surprise attacks was not suitable for the present.

[The Great Silver has transformed its shape.]

[Change: Dagger → Spear]

It became thicker, and the blade extended upwards. Since the main weapon I had been using recently was the Thunder Spear, the familiar weight felt welcoming. Even the moon seemed to be in awe of the newfound grandeur of the Great Silver, as it brightly lit the entire spear. It made the silver color even more pronounced.

[You have used Odin’s Thunderstorm.]

[Target: The Great Silver]

A violent reaction occurred, which could be either the soul of the Great Silver screaming or its own frustration at becoming even more powerful. The vibrations that shook my grip were intense. It became stronger as it reached all the way to my fingertips, and it subsided as I firmly grabbed the spear’s shaft.

At the moment when I held the spear downward, the lightning tendrils converged on a single point at the tip of the spear. It resembled what happened when a skeletal dragon or a Dragorin unleashed its breath.

I am finally testing this combination here!

However, an unwelcome guest interrupted me then. His audacity deserved applause, but if he intended to hinder me, then he should have brought at least the Great Red with him. Moreover, his abilities wouldn’t be able to withstand the shockwave that would occur when the spear collided into the ground.

I struck the spear straight into the ground. As the explosion that burst at the tip of the spear was like a breath was strong enough to injure me, I pulled out the Flame Shield. I was freefalling into the underground, and a deafening noise that could turn the world upside down relentlessly clashed against me.

The boundary finally came into my view. The traces left by the lightning bolts striking it were distinctly visible as cracks were forming. As the spear’s tip made direct contact with the boundary, the lightning bolts burst out once again. The combined result of the shockwave and the added lightning bolts was more than enough to fill the vast area of the surface land.

There was only a small gap near the Flame Shield, and the lightning forces that soared upward with the shockwave swirled like massive pillars, reaching all the way to the sky. From a distance, it would look like a light pillar piercing through the underground.

However, that was not true. It had originated from me, so I definitely knew what it was.

I pulled the shield closer in preparation for the impending explosion. I also spread my wings to protect my back. The forces that formed like pillars while shooting upward ultimately burst.

Thud-!

It took quite some time for the dust to settle. The area engulfed by the explosion had vanished from sight, whether it was underground or on the surface.

Then, the boundary had revealed its true nature. I was astonished by the magnitude of the enormousness that stretched to the horizon. The part I was standing on could be the sky in the dwarves’ civilization, but it looked like a black ocean to me.

Due to the recent powerful shockwave, it trembled, resembling sea weaves. No matter where I looked, the black boundary was forming the ground I was standing on. The fact that the boundary remained intact despite this was remarkable.

I looked down. Everything looked black as if I was peeking into a tinted car window. There were so many things looking up at me. They were terrified and couldn’t control themselves. They were mostly around the residential area near the magma-filled foundry.

I moved on while stepping on the boundary and stopped at a point where I was close to a building where one of the kingdom's emperors would live.

One of them looked up at me and shouted in a loud voice. It was loud enough to reach this far. Nevertheless, the two shaking eyes were no different from the other frightened creatures around. 

“Please leave us alone!”

Since then, the noise of machinery operating began, and I felt a weird sensation. Despite being scared, there was no hesitation in his actions. There was no doubt that he had long prepared for this moment. Otherwise, why would he have prepared a ladder reaching up to the boundary?

More accurately, it was a metal ladder that could adjust the height. When the sound of the machinery ceased, the dwarf had already reached the edge of the boundary. In terms of location, they were about two meters below where I was standing. The dwarf’s aged face and determined expression was now close to me.

The dwarf looked up at me and said, “Allow us to remain here.”

“You must know who I am, right?” I answered from above. The dwarf chose not to respond. “You expected my arrival, didn’t you? Answer me, dwarf.”

If that was the case, then this must have been a part of the Old One’s larger plan. A boundary created specifically to target me? I carefully examined the area below, thinking there could be traps. However, there was none.

There only seemed to be one purpose of the boundary:. To protect, nothing more. To prevent me from entering.

“Our ancestors have passed down the story. You will be able to hear the answers you seek at the eastern end. So, please leave us alone.”

The dwarf continued, “Find King Foyer as you reach the coast.”

He stared at the Great Silver for a long time, then added with growing impatience, almost in a desperate manner, “We dwarves have no interest in the surface land.”

The symbol of the Old One was commonly found in the Greenwood community, but I could not find any such a thing down there.

I pointed out, “There were some who attacked my land through the expedition team.”

“They must have been people who claimed to be descendants of the Great Silver. They are unrelated to us and anyone who violates our rules is not our kin.”

“Rules?” I asked.

“As I mentioned before, our rule is to not interfere in surface matters.”

I narrowed my eyes. “...Did you say the eastern end?”

***

I surveyed the area while waiting for the dwarf named King Foyer. I had never heard of such a place before. Looking down from the sky, the eastern sea was divided into small and large islands.

The higher I went, the wider the view of the sea I received. However, it only expanded my sight of the haphazardly scattered islands. Perhaps, there had been a natural disaster that made the entire Star Dragorin dangerous, or there might have been a collision as destructive as a disaster. Was it the Old One and Doom Kaos?

Soon, I felt a dwarf’s presence. He was noticeably an elderly dwarf. He waited for me to come down, then he clasped his hands neatly. His body was trembling, and his voice shook as he spoke.

“In the beginning, the lands occupied by Elsland, Barbas and us were part of one single continent.”

It was clear that this dwarf had also prepared extensively for today. His words were too long as a greeting and sounded like a speech.

The dwarf shifted his gaze towards the islands and continued speaking, “Saint Cassian knew all about the evil scheme of that evil king. The evil being known by various names like the Old One, Lacryma, and the System. That is where Saint Cassian had his last fight against the evil king, and this is…”

The dwarf took out the records of Saint Cassian from his jacket. Dozens of sheets were held tightly in his grasp.

“These are his words that were left by our ancestors. Please accept them. If you have any requests, we will comply. So please bestow mercy upon our lives in the underground.”