Chapter 150: Chapter 148 — A New Evolution

My footsteps froze.

The giant dolphin’s body...

Was floating motionlessly on the water’s surface.

Its shining blue skin...

Had completely lost its luster.

Even the vibrations that always filled the area...

Had vanished.

I landed beside it immediately.

I extended my hand toward it.

Cold.

No pulse.

No energy.

"Damn it!"

I shouted violently.

Waves burst outward in every direction.

"How did it die?!"

"How can a Greater Catastrophe Beast die like this?!"

I quickly began examining its body.

No wounds.

No traces of battle.

No poison.

Nothing.

Then...

I stopped.

I narrowed my eyes.

Its belly...

Was strangely shriveled.

Even the energy inside it...

Was almost completely empty.

"No."

I whispered slowly.

"Don’t tell me..."

My eyes widened.

"Was obtaining the belly fat... the final stage of the dolphin’s life?"

I whispered.

I shut my eyes tightly.

"Damn it."

I muttered quietly this time.

It wasn’t just a beast.

It was...

An entire source of resources that had suddenly collapsed.

Silence filled the area for several moments.

Even the water itself...

Was unnaturally still.

Then...

Suddenly...

The dead dolphin’s body trembled slightly.

I immediately stepped back.

"Hah?"

In the next moment...

Its belly slowly split open.

Booosh...

Water burst outward.

Then...

A small glowing blue sphere emerged from inside it.

It trembled weakly.

Releasing faint vibrations.

I slowly approached.

At that moment...

The system’s voice rang out.

{ Greater Catastrophe Beast Core Discovered }

{ Vibrational Dolphin Core }

"So that’s why."

I whispered.

"That material is considered so rare."

"But..."

I narrowed my eyes.

"This leaves me facing a new problem."

"I still have a large remaining quantity."

"But... because of my agreement with the Ice Lord, it will inevitably decrease if I’m not careful."

I sighed slowly.

Then looked toward the tiny dolphin core.

It flickered weakly within the water.

"Damn it."

I whispered.

"I was treating you like nothing more than a golden cow."

I extended my hand.

Then carefully transferred the core into an isolated area inside the cave.

I slowed time there to the absolute minimum possible.

Rushing things might damage the core.

Then I placed several healing flowers around it.

"Live."

I said quietly.

"Or at least... don’t die yet."

I spent the next hour thinking.

Then...

I could no longer remain there.

Later, I used the time to further refine my attacks and control.

I moved between training...

Rest...

And analyzing previous battles.

The Air Shield.

The tiny blades.

The silver spears.

The Flame Art.

Everything...

Was slowly improving.

After three days...

I jumped up from my bed during the night.

{ Unique Armor Received }

The system’s voice echoed out.

My eyes widened in surprise.

Then...

A smile appeared.

"So the first armor is finally complete."

I whispered.

I immediately opened the system.

{ Unique Armor — Firm as the Mountains }

My breath halted for a moment.

Then I pressed it instantly.

Suddenly...

The armor appeared before me inside the cave.

Booooosh...

A massive body crashed onto the stone floor.

The impact alone...

Made the ground tremble.

My eyes widened in shock.

"What the hell is this?"

I whispered.

The armor was enormous.

Dark black in color, crossed with brown stone-like lines.

The shoulders were gigantic.

And the gauntlets were terrifyingly thick.

Even the boots...

Looked like mountain blocks.

I slowly approached it.

Extended my hand.

Then touched it.

In the next moment...

The entire armor trembled.

My energy instantly fused with it.

{ Master recognized }

{ Compatibility: Excellent }

Then...

A huge stream of information flooded my mind.

{ Main Armor Trait: Mountain Stability }

{ The more firmly the master stands in place, the greater the defensive durability becomes }

{ Impacts can be stored within the armor and later released }

{ Accumulation Consumption: Low }

My smile slowly widened.

"Hah."

I laughed lightly.

"So this is what came out of my ideas?"

Previously...

I had chosen the ancient defensive weapon—

( The Mountain That Never Rusts )

—as the core component of this armor.

It was a purely defensive weapon.

Literally possessing no offensive power at all.

In exchange, all its strength was focused entirely on defense.

It never suited me.

But I never traded it away either.

A weapon like that could become a problem if used by a master belonging to a major group.

The moment I learned about armors...

One of my first ideas was to place The Mountain That Never Rusts inside one of them.

I also added several healing flowers...

To give it regenerative properties.

But it seemed the materials...

Had chosen something else.

Shock absorption.

Something more suitable for my battles.

Something...

That would finally allow me to survive direct hits.

I looked toward the armor once more.

Then...

I remembered something.

"Wait."

I whispered.

"This... is only the first one."

I smiled.

"This world... really is vast."

I said.

The following day...

My entire focus shifted toward testing the armor.

I headed directly toward the Flame Unicorn.

It was the strongest Catastrophe Beast I possessed.

The moment I stepped into its domain...

The area was filled with scattered flames and drifting smoke.

The unicorn was lying atop a pile of fire.

The instant it sensed my presence...

It leapt up in alertness.

Previously...

Fighting it had been easy.

Remain in the sky.

Avoid its ranged attacks.

Then crush it with stronger attacks from above.

But...

The moment you touched the ground, its strongest attack activated.

"Flame Horn."

I whispered uneasily.

I closed my eyes.

"Equip."

I whispered.

Invisible threads instantly spread out.

I couldn’t see them.

But I felt them.

They wrapped around my entire body.

It felt as though a new robe was being woven over me.

Quickly...

The massive armor formed perfectly over my body.

And most importantly...

It was light.

As light as sleepwear.

I landed on the ground.

The heat was intense and burning.

But today...

Under the Unique Armor — Firm as the Mountains...

The environment felt completely normal.

The unicorn gave me no time to think or analyze.

It charged forward, striking the earth with powerful steps.

Flames ignited over its horn.

Then suddenly, the horn turned black.

Its charge sounded like war drums.

I looked toward it.

Waited.

Nervously.

Then...

It was suddenly right in front of me.

BOOOOOOOOM...!

I was blasted back dozens of meters violently.

I gasped...

Then crashed into the ground.

"Aaah..."

I whispered.

I stood up.

A wave of dizziness hit me suddenly.

Then...

It disappeared.

I looked down.

I was fine.

No injuries.

Nothing.

Just...

The force of impact.

"So that’s how it works."

I whispered.

"I need to withstand the impact myself... while the armor provides protection."

The beast charged again.

I stood firm.

Then...

Hours later...

I finally left.

It had been truly exhausting.

But...

I smiled.

"Extremely good."

I said.

I slowly removed the armor.

Its layers vanished from my body like smoke.

But...

Even after it disappeared...

I could still feel a strange heaviness in my limbs.

A comforting heaviness.

As though my body itself...

Was beginning to grow accustomed to enduring.

I sat near the entrance to the domain.

Watching the unicorn from afar.

It was breathing heavily.

Clearly, the prolonged battle had exhausted it as well.

"Even a Greater Catastrophe Beast..."

I whispered.

"Couldn’t pierce it easily."

At that moment...

The system screen appeared before me.

{ Armor Compatibility Increased }

{ Unique Armor — Firm as the Mountains }

{ Current Compatibility Rate: 13% }

I narrowed my eyes.

"Compatibility?"

I whispered.

Then...

I quickly understood.

The armor wasn’t merely a tool.

It was something that required harmony with its user.

The more I used it...

The stronger it would become alongside me.

My smile widened.

"So."

I stood once more.

And looked toward the unicorn.

"We’re going to spend a long time together, you bastard."

Several days passed...

The Ice Lord requested to meet me.

I declined.

Then...

Three new armors arrived.

I wasted no time...

And immediately began using them.

Then...

Two weeks passed.

I had not appeared in the arena during all that time.

Not even for the loser matches.

But...

Today.

My steps were calm and calculated as I walked toward the palace hall.

"You must attend... today is the day the rewards for the first victory are distributed."

The Ice Lord had said in his message.

Rewards?

Of course I would go.

No one knew what I might receive.

I advanced through the palace.

The corridors felt different than usual.

Quieter.

And far more luxurious.

Tall white pillars.

And a red carpet stretching all the way to the main hall.

At last, I arrived before the hall.

A gigantic gate...

Slowly opened.

Then...

I entered.

My eyes widened slightly.

"What is this?"

I whispered inwardly.

The hall was enormous.

Circular in shape.

And around its edges...

Many masters were seated.

All of them Fourth Rank.

"Don’t stare too long."

The Ice Lord’s voice came from beside my ear.

I turned toward him.

He stood there with his usual smile.

But this time...

He seemed more serious.

He approached me.

"Today."

He whispered.

"You won’t only receive rewards."

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"What do you mean?"

He sighed lightly.

Then looked toward the distant platform.

"Today... you’ll also learn who your opponent in the next round will be."

"Why the sudden change?"

"Perhaps to give the masters time to prepare."

He answered.

"And the major factions..."

He added.

"Have already started competing."

"I don’t understand."

I said.

"Today... new masters will be added to the tournament."

He paused briefly.

Then added with a faint smile.

"There are five new masters."

I didn’t answer.

But my gaze shifted toward the platform.

At that moment...

A massive sound thundered through the hall.

BOOOOM...

The ground trembled slightly.

Then...

A gigantic man entered.

Wearing a heavy black cloak.

Around his neck...

Hung the fangs of enormous beasts.

And the moment he entered...

The entire hall fell silent.

Even the Ice Lord...

Lost his smile for a moment.

"Who is that?"

I whispered.

He answered quietly.

"One of the leaders of the Black Hunt Guild."

"A Fourth Rank master..."

He whispered.

Then...

His eyes narrowed.

And he added:

"One of the most dangerous people who could set his sights on you... he’s on the verge of advancing to the Fifth Rank."