Kae

Dungeon Diver CH731

I can see, feel, hear, smell, and fully comprehend everything simultaneously that is happening around me for over 100,000 kilometers in every direction.

The ends of the exile zones, where little to no ether is left in the dead worlds, pile up even further than my vision.

The memories of other Citadels are vivid in my mind, but it seems even they are further away than my senses can travel as well. The Upper Realm is truly vast.

However, the Citadel above me is clear in perfec...

Dungeon Diver CH730

Ember’s Astral form adapts to his hybrid form being activated, and he grows close to a kilometer tall.

His sharp-clawed hands and feet glow hot with white physical and mental ether, and his long, pointed tail waves behind him; showing everyone in the room that he is clearly not a human.

Outlines of ether-infused fire flicker all over his being, and the Demon’s purple eyes widen in fear.

Andras completely forgets about the warlords he’s fended off and moves his spear fo...

Dungeon Diver CH729

The Citadel Wide holograms go dark, and confusion spreads through the tens of millions of lords that were forcefully pulled from their daily lives by a mandatory avatar command to watch.

“Where’d they go??”

“What happened? Did they turn off the broadcast?”

“The Demon won… that must be it…”

“No way! You saw The Ogre Conglomeration Head and High Orc Leader take out the dragon in a single attack. They couldn’t have lost!”

“Yeah! Berserkers ...

Dungeon Diver CH728

[Moments Earlier, Thousands of Kilometers Above in the Citadel]

Ember still only has a [203] on his palm as he faces the Noble Demon sending a beam of strange black energy his way.

The long red-haired human activates his Astral Form. While it is a limited version of the truly massive display he could show off in his dragon form, a dense green divine light expands outward to grow Ember’s energy body to over 100 meters tall.

Dense waves of Ether flow into the Astral Form, an...

Dungeon Diver CH727

The moment I activate my new buff, the [Noble Bloodline Transformation], the strange vibrations I can barely sense around the Exile Guardian become magnified; and the same frequency begins to radiate from my own body.

It creates a strange resonance, and everything happens extremely quick.

I close and open my eyes to unseal this power, and it floods outward, not from a single source, but from within every cell in my being.

It feels like I’m viewing the world around me from ...

Dungeon Diver CH726

An unfathomable weight presses down on my chest.

In the same amount of time it took for me to break this monster's chain and gain the advantage for a split second, it turned the tables on me and has shown the absurd strength that was sealed within.

Every moment that passes, I feel more and more power leaking out from the demonic one-eyed figure, with a stoic expression. From kilometers away, it holds me down with its ranged weapon like this is a menial task.

I can feel my As...

Dungeon Diver CH725

From the moment I'm struck, my body shuts down to allow my mind to deal with the mental attack rather than focus on the overwhelming sharp pain assaulting every one of my cells.

However, the day's worth of training, turning my ether healing into an automatic intuitive habit, still treats this brutal barrage the same as any other attack.

On top of that, from my past training, every time an ether-imbued strike pushed my being past its limits, the reaction afterward only made me stro...

Dungeon Diver CH724

It turns its entire black heavily armored body faster than I’ve ever seen any monster move before.

An enormous single white eye with a jet black pupil locks onto me, and its spiked ball on a chain spins around its head a single time before it lunges forward.

A streak of red and white light is left behind, and my Divine Foresight skill begins tracking the many multiplying options I have before me.

Its speed is absurd, and a shockwave of aura is bursting out from its being, ...

Dungeon Diver CH723

Ava surpassed level 10,000 after killing the 3 other Demonic guards that were attacking us.

I send out a pulse of perception, watching four more nearby zones full of guards on duty coming our way; and even further out, transmissions from guard posts further up and around the mountain are being sent out, alerting every Demonic Beast within a 3000 kilometer radius that there are intruders in our exact zone.

“Rank up, I’ll hold off the attackers while you’re out. You’re going...

Dungeon Diver CH722

The moment my blade leaves my storage, I feel the core within it instantly sync with my own.

Excess threads from the atmosphere fall in all around me, filling my body with a surge of power and extreme pain at the same time.

I feel my entire being exposed to the merciless pressure of the Upper Realm in all of its glory.

My flesh continually deteriorates and heals, and even my Soul Sword breaks apart with millions of fractures the second it’s exposed to the open air.

I...

Dungeon Diver CH721

The enormous demonic dragon, flapping its wings above in the cubic dueling room, swoops down, dark demonic energy trailing behind it.

None of the Warlords move a muscle, and the Noble Demon closes its eyes, digging deep within its mind to unlock its Noble Bloodline Transformation.

It is the only technique on its status that doesn’t use a system command; it has to be unsealed naturally. This is what sets many Noble Bloodlines apart from all the other Lords in the Upper Realm.

Dungeon Diver CH720

Four black horns jut out from the Demon’s forehead, with a purple glossy glint that shimmers when he steps forward.

Two of the horns are far larger and curve upward and over the sides of his head as a natural layer of defense, while the other two are centered on his forehead as smaller studs that, from a distance, look like another set of eyes.

His height reaches about 10 meters naturally, but the plumes of dark demonic energy following and surrounding him make his stature seem ...

Dungeon Diver CH719

High above the green clouds, a meeting between 4 Elder Warlords plays out.

Now, with all of the pieces of the past lining up, Ember begins outlining a plan for them to follow through with in order to take back control of this Citadel.

Torvak’s eyes are wide as Ember finishes his last words. “Genius… the Demons will never see it coming…”

Zashen, the Berserker King, starts swinging its blades about, and can’t stand still, moving in and out of the hologram's view. �...

Dungeon Diver CH718

The two massive Demonic Sand Worms dive down toward me, and my fists glow with bright white light.

Behind their heads, zigzag patterns of flashing green mana and divine energy fill the sky as Ava slams the worm that followed her down to the ground while coming back to throw off the course of the worms heading my way.

The stats she’s pulling from my many worlds are steadily rising as her avatar acclimates to the new power.

This is clear to see because instead of just changi...

Dungeon Diver CH717

“Another Noble Demonic Being??” I reply as the slope of the wyvern’s back makes it easy for Ava and me to slide down, coming to a thud on the slanted rocky ground beside the large monster.

It replies while looking up at the bright white light.

“That’s right. The guardian of the Exile Zones comes from a Noble Grade World. No one but the Noble Demons can control it… Perfect to keep Lords that indulge in illegal business in line down here.”

I consider its words an...

Dungeon Diver CH716

The Wyvern’s gaze doesn’t move off of us, and continues to become more skeptical as I try to explain why I’m here.

“I assure you, I am not aligned with the Demons. This agreement you’ve made with them is not knowledge that I have…”

The massive, blue-scaled monster stares with an unchanged gaze, but I feel the Ether aura around it begin to grow hotter; as it already said, it didn’t believe me and wants concrete proof.

The ground beneath its taloned feet starts...

Dungeon Diver CH715

The massive shadowy figure flapping its wings in the clouds above continues to circle the battlefield, watching its subordinates surround and overwhelm us.

I’m not necessarily in any real danger; however, in my current state, I can’t fly to get away from these seemingly endless hordes of blue-scaled lizards.

The best I can manage is a few steps into the air, and even then, the monsters surrounding me are far faster, so running wouldn’t solve my issues.

I’m able to ea...

Dungeon Diver CH714

No more voices ring out; only footsteps and hot Ether-imbued auras emerge from the green fog around us.

The pull in my Ether Senses tells me all the approaching Lizardmen have Ether strength similar to the one I just incapacitated in a single attack.

However, it most likely means these are all just miners, and their plot Lord is not present.

I try to sift through more of the Goblin King’s memories as the hordes of lizards come out of the fog in full clarity.

Every si...

Dungeon Diver CH713

With Ether powering our footsteps, Ava and I make great time rushing through the two empty zones that make up the first portion of the middle ring.

Each plot ranges from 5 to 25 kilometers wide, and the neutral pathways between zones are a few hundred meters thick at most.

Within the two zones we cut through, many exiled lords with [0]s on their palms show up in my senses as they continue to work, mining out pits of stones just like back in the Hollow District.

From my new r...

Dungeon Diver CH712

As we start to walk, my gaze catches the massive black axe stuck in the ground, one that didn’t dissolve with the Goblin King’s avatar.

Many memories of this Lord using a system storage rush through my mind, but training to replicate that ability without avatar commands seems far too time-consuming right now.

I turn to Ava and yell out, pointing to it.

“Bring that axe along with us. I want to save it for later.”

With the rapid increase in my adaptation to this ...

Dungeon Diver CH711

The 5 Great Demon Families are bound together in an alliance to rule the Upper Realm.

It is their family loyalty and strict hierarchy that keeps them from betraying one another and focused on advancing for the good of their family branches.

To ensure these strict rules and regulations are followed, all Demons within the major Royal Branches have their avatars connected to a central interface monitored by all of the family heads.

If any Demon dies, all the families will be no...

Dungeon Diver CH710

As green threads assimilate with my core and body, with these newfound stats increasing all of my being, the gravity pressing down around me lessens just slightly; and the process of healing speeds up faster than my deterioration.

–

Simultaneously, high up above in the Citadel, Ember reaps the benefits of my rewards as well.

We share levels, stats, and worlds.

The green glowing [1] on his palm, blocking the Demon’s Ether-infused blade, ticks up to a [167], and his ...

Dungeon Diver CH709

More notifications stream into my mind, ranging from a massive MCP absorption option, an upgrade option for my [Extreme Strength] skill to [Divine Grade], and 166 notifications for the transfer of worlds into my possession. However, there are no level ups.

In the deep sea of darkness within my mind, where the 3rd Class human world lies, tons of new planets begin flowing into my consciousness. Billions of links of loyalty, along with a full expansive view of their worlds down to the last...

Dungeon Diver CH708

The glowing [166] flashes by my eyes as the Goblin King’s hand, almost the size of my entire body, misses me by less than a meter and grabs its massive battle axe resting in the ground of black stones.

It shimmers with green divine energy and pulses with white Ether once the Lord picks it up and turns my way, yelling again.

“Answer me, human! You’re not permitted to be in this Zone! It shouldn’t even be possible.”

The massive battle axe, with ...

Dungeon Diver CH707

The two Demons walk into the center of the lobby with their arms crossed, glancing up at the ceiling while frightened sales workers and customers scatter.

Neither says a word as they enter the elevator to ascend to the trade center’s top floor.

A flurry of transmissions ripple throughout the Volterra district, even reaching neighboring lower-class districts. Those on the bottom floor who witnessed their arrival recall the events of days past and understand that whatever is happe...

Dungeon Diver CH706

[~1 hour ago. Just before the Goblin King arrived in the Hollow District Exile Zone.]

Ember watches the World Trading Palace from his top-floor office, just as he has for days, taking in the view of the nearby streets, awaiting a guest after receiving a transmission from Torvak that he finally picked up the package he requested.

Randel and Syl’s surprised greeting to their employer can be heard as the door automatically opens, and Ember turns from his desk.

He finished rea...

Dungeon Diver CH705

We walk the border for hours, stopping to absorb piles of 4th class Ether Stones that litter the landscape outside the border of this mining zone.

We cover tens of kilometers of ground, curving around the outside of the zone, and with every stone I absorb, the process of pulling in ether gets faster and easier.

While collecting stones, I practice activating my footsteps, and occasionally, between absorption sessions, I ask Ava to hit me with her hammer.

However, my healing s...

Dungeon Diver CH704

A burning hot white hammer slams into me, sending me flying into another pile of rocks before I can even heal from our first collision.

My body feels as though it's covered with pins and needles, and the third attack is coming my way faster than I can react.

Ava’s voice rings out as she slams me across the black stone landscape again.

“Say the word and I’ll take it down a notch, but I can keep this up all day!”

Half my mind is concentrated on summoning wisps of...

Dungeon Diver CH703

Beneath the Citadel, my training and mining sessions with Ava carry on.

I begin using the same instinctual ether summoning I did to block her attacks, but this time, I cover my fists in the warm white glow.

My footwork and movements are slow, and I can’t land a single attack on the hobgoblin’s body. However, she lets me practice my punches, slowing her movement speed to block with her hammer instead of going fully on offense during our sparring sessions.

After three hour...

Dungeon Diver CH702

Less than ten seconds have passed since the first round's timer began counting down, but an unsealed 1st Class Demon now lies unconscious on the dueling room floor while a human stares forward with an unchanged expression.

The entirety of the trading center’s uproar and cheers that started when the match began ceases.

Just like the tension before this duel began, the unease has returned…

It doesn’t make any sense.

A 5th Class human defeating a 1st Class demon in ...