Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented-Chapter 169

**[Sword Barrier]**

**[Invincibility While Active]**

The Sword Barrier surrounds the user in starlight, providing temporary invincibility and can be used as an area-wide attack when deployed. Without releasing it, the user can maintain limited resistance while moving within the shield’s protection.

The starlight’s shield remains around the body for about 3 seconds—similar in mechanics to other classes' temporary invincibility skills.

Three seconds is more than enough.

*Boom-boom-boom!*

*Shwoooosh!*

Surrounded by starlight, I surged forward through the fierce gale of miasma threatening to erase everything before me.

*Roaaaar!*

The miasma breath attack covering the entire front didn’t stop after a single burst. Had I chosen a careless backward dodge, I’d have been swept up by the lingering storm as soon as my invincibility wore off.

Counting the seconds within the shield’s protection, I closed in on the golem, striking its body as I moved.

One second, two seconds, 2.5 seconds, 2.8 seconds.

The breath attack still hadn’t ended. With only 0.2 seconds left on the Sword Barrier, I couldn’t maintain my position at the front any longer. I quickly dashed to the rear, using a Flash Step to escape the blast zone.

*Step.*

I lowered my stance.

*Flash!*

A streak of light sliced through the miasma, and I positioned myself behind the golem, out of range of the breath attack.

At that moment, the breath finally ceased.

*Whoosh!*

Dodging the golem’s massive left arm as it turned, I began analyzing its standard attack patterns one by one.

First, a two-hit horizontal swing with its arms, followed by a dual-arm slam. The range was huge. I could block the swings, but the slam had an unavoidable guard-breaking effect. If I took it head-on, I’d end up like crushed jerky. So, I needed to achieve a precise guard on the second strike.

*Clang!*

At the perfect moment, I parried the golem’s arm, then countered as its massive arms slammed toward me from above.

*Swoosh.*

*Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!*

I phased through space, slashing my sword coated in starlight across the thick miasma surrounding the golem’s body.

A precise guard on the second swing, counter on the slam, and then it follows up with a spinning attack that targets even behind me.

The golem’s arms wrapped around its body.

*Whoosh!*

*Clang!*

Though I failed to match the timing on my first attempt and was knocked back, this time I blocked it perfectly, nullifying the damage with a precise guard.

And then, the breath attack.

*Bzzzzz!*

Purple miasma flared in the golem’s head.

This time, I didn’t need to use my Sword Barrier. As long as I avoided being knocked back by the spin, I had options. I’d used a left counter on the slam, so now I could switch to a right counter.

*Swoosh.*

*Boom-boom-boom!*

With the breath attack active, I moved to the rear and dealt free damage.

*Whizz-whizz-whizz!*

I’d gotten the hang of its standard patterns.

Frequent blocking didn’t seem necessary. I just needed to focus on the timing of the spin. A precise guard would not only prevent knockback but also grant me a *Vitality* buff to boost my damage output.

Visit freewebnoveℓ.com for the best novel reading exp𝒆rience.

Despite being a rock, this boss was fast, with deadly area-wide attacks and a devastating breath follow-up. But as long as it followed a set pattern, I could respond accordingly. This boss’s standard pattern wasn’t especially challenging. Compared to Zakham from the *Abyssal Tree* raid dungeon, it was practically friendly.

The standard patterns felt appropriate for an elite dungeon level.

The real challenge would be its special patterns.

---

**[Named]**

**[Level 55 Nightmare Amalgamation]**

**[HP 80,014,912 / 100,000,000 (80%)]**

With the golem’s HP at 80%, a special pattern should appear soon—probably at 70% or 60% if not now. Either way, it was time to stay alert.

*Clang!*

As sparks flew from my next strike on the golem’s body, I eased off my offensive slightly.

The golem suddenly paused.

*Boom!*

With a light stomp, it leaped to the center.

*Crash!*

The entire basin shook as a deafening roar reverberated through my body and ears.

For a heavy mass of rock, it sure moved well. It even had a jump pattern. Was it planning to crush me like this?

But what happened next shattered my expectations.

A strange, sticky sound, not the usual rumble of stone, reached my ears.

Where was it coming from?

There was only one answer.

Of course, it was coming from the golem.

And then.

“That” began to ooze from the golem’s entire body.

*Gurgle. Gurgle-gurgle.*

Black.

A thick substance with the consistency of both liquid and gas—somewhere between the two.

*Gurgle-gurgle.*

The black, viscous substance overflowed from the golem, beginning to fill the clearing.

Dark and sticky.

The concentrated miasma that had accumulated over a thousand years now spilled out to saturate the entire Heavenly Basin.

“Ugh.”

I gasped involuntarily.

In *Asteria Online*, I’d never heard of anything like this.

No, I had seen something like this before—some slimy creature in the Demon King’s castle.

This was condensed miasma.

A fusion of humanity’s darkest sins into a substance with its own twisted will.

The sticky miasma pouring from its body seemed to replace the air itself in the basin.

If I were consumed by that dense miasma, my human body wouldn’t be able to maintain its shape.

I clenched my teeth.

This kind of overwhelming entity lurking in an elite dungeon? It could’ve easily belonged in the Demon King’s castle.

I needed holy power.

Without holy power, I couldn’t counter this amalgamation.

But right now, I had neither the holy sword nor Saintess Elena by my side.

I took a few steps back.

*Gurgle-gurgle.*

The miasma that oozed from the amalgamation began spreading like gas or thick mucus, steadily surrounding me.

I was trapped, surrounded by the dark, sticky energy that filled the clearing and would soon overrun the entire basin.

I glanced over my shoulder.

Not yet. There was still an escape route.

I could run if I wanted to.

Maybe I should escape? Staying here would be a senseless death.

No, calm down, Rain. This world isn’t real. It’s not like I’ll actually die, right? What, did I just step back in time? Would retreating and retrying really offer a solution?

This is a game. A special pattern. There must be a way to counter it. They wouldn’t design a mechanic that leaves you completely helpless.

This meticulously crafted world...

Even that monster is still just a named boss within a game.

They wouldn’t place an unbeatable boss without a solution.

For now, I’ll endure it with the Sword Barrier.

And then figure out my next move from there.

*Clink.*

I steadied my sword, preparing to activate the barrier.

*Gurgle-gurgle.*

Just as the thick river of miasma was about to engulf me...

*Flash-!!*

A pillar of holy light shot down at my position.

I dispelled the barrier preparation with a sigh of relief.

“Phew.”

Good thing I didn’t run away.

I had hoped there would be a safeguard mechanic.

The Divine Marks, relics still imbued with holy power, remained in this world.

Before facing this boss, I’d completed the task of activating the Divine Marks.

It had been a necessary step after all.

The Divine Marks from the three locations had created a dome-shaped holy magic circle.

This was now purifying the entirety of the Heavenly Basin, enclosing it in sacred power to counter the dense miasma.

The holy circle had detected the source of the concentrated miasma and initiated full purification.

But the relic’s power alone wouldn’t be enough to purify such dense miasma quickly.

At this point, only a small, narrow area around me remained free from the miasma’s influence.

The battle area currently available to me...

...an eight-meter-wide circle.

Within the pillar of holy light.

*Bzzzz!*

*Gurgle-gurgle.*

The holy power and the miasma now fought to fill this space. The holy magic was slightly ahead; the miasma thinned as it was slowly purified.

It would take time. For now, I’d have to restrict myself to this eight-meter-wide circle.

The final named battle of the Heavenly Basin.

In a way, this was not only a boss fight but also a purification process for the miasma source. If I could shatter that golem, the purification would progress faster.

An unsettling thought crossed my mind.

Why was my area restricted to just eight meters?

If this clash between miasma and holy power was part of the named battle’s mechanics...

Then...

“A gimmick to restrict the battle zone...”

The miasma couldn’t penetrate this space.

But the *Nightmare Amalgamation* didn’t seem bothered by the pillar of holy light.

*Boom!*

Standing amid the surging miasma, the black golem leaped into

the air.

“Ah!”

*Whoosh!*

I quickly activated the Sword Barrier.

The golem’s massive form slammed down, covering my entire area.

*Crash!*

*Screech!*

Sparks flew as the golem’s body pressed against my starlit barrier. The golem’s weight bore down on it, but it couldn’t crush me.

I’d been uncertain whether the Sword Barrier could withstand such force, but thankfully, I wasn’t flattened. Given the system’s invincibility effect, it made sense. I could protect myself from the jump attack with the barrier.

*Boom!*

The golem lifted itself off me and stomped the ground once more.

*Whoosh!*

The massive black form jumped again.

The jump wasn’t a one-time thing.

A direct hit would mean death, and being knocked back would end it, too. I’d be swallowed by the miasma wave.

I had a feeling that enduring in this confined space wouldn’t be easy.