Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 338

Suho had always wondered. He had encountered Nidhogg multiple times by now. Each time, it had been for the same purpose: to pass on the primordial darkness to the successors of the other Monarchs. Without exception, every one of those successors had been able to identify which of Nidhogg’s many heads contained the darkness meant for them.

It was a kind of instinctual recognition, only possible because the succession ceremonies had been crafted specifically for them. Perhaps Nidhogg had let slip the information on purpose to devour them. It could easily have been bait, coaxing its prey to step willingly into its own mouth. Without fail, every one of those successors had followed that lure, diving headfirst into Nidhogg’s jaws without hesitation.

That series of events was the succession ceremony. Once swallowed by Nidhogg, each successor was presented with two options. Be consumed by the darkness, or consume the darkness themselves and find their way back out. Those lacking the qualifications would choose the former. They would merge with the vast, imposing primordial darkness, melting within Nidhogg’s belly. If one chose the latter, they would overcome the trial, placing the primordial darkness inside their own vessels. When they emerged, it would be as a new Monarch.

Suho had watched each and every one of those succession ceremonies unfold.

So what about me?

That only made him even more curious.

Which one holds the darkness meant for me?

He had no idea what his darkness was, nor which of Nidhogg’s many heads contained it. No matter how hard he looked, he simply couldn’t see it.

The others seemed to recognize theirs right away. So why can’t I? Am I still unworthy somehow?

That couldn’t be it. He had already overcome the King of Dragons’ trials no less than three times. In fact, he had even earned the title, “Qualification of the King of Dragons.” So why was it that even after all these encounters with Nidhogg, he still couldn’t see anything? It was impossible to tell which darkness was meant for him.

He had even brought up the question with Antares once.

“Do you think... being my father’s son has something to do with it?”

He was the son of the Monarch of Shadows. As the Monarch of Shadows was already a Monarch himself, he possessed his own primordial darkness. This meant it was entirely possible that, having been born his son, Suho simply couldn’t take in any other darkness. After all, he was using the shadow power just like his father. The trials given by Antares had already proven him worthy, but perhaps he still wouldn’t be chosen by Nidhogg. Maybe not now. Maybe not ever.

But Antares had only smirked when Suho asked him that.

“Not all primordial darkness is the same.”

His expression had brimmed with prideful arrogance.

“I am Antares, the King of Dragons, and the Monarch of Destruction. The strongest Monarch of all. I ruled over the others. Did you truly think it would be as easy to be chosen by the darkness I once carried as it was for the others?”

Indeed, Antares had been the only one who could stand against the Monarch of Shadows alone.

“I may have lost the war fighting legions against legions, but as a Monarch, my level was at that of Ashborn’s himself. That was me. Antares.”

This was the source of Antares’ pride, and also of his power. He’d made no exaggeration. Proof of this was in the fact that the back of Jinwoo’s hand still bore the scars where Antares had burned him. It was almost like a brand, reminding Jinwoo that while Antares had lost the war, in battle he had been Jinwoo’s equal. It was a mark that said “Do not forget this.”

“Of course, I’m not saying the other successors had it easy. But because you offered to be their shaman, you facilitated the process.”

This was undeniably true. Thanks to Suho’s mysterious ability, each successor had all but skipped the Sea of the Afterlife and reached Nidhogg without delay. Without him, without his faithful role, they might never have discovered the World Tree at all. More likely than not, they would have wandered endlessly through the Sea of the Afterlife, and died in the waters long before they encountered Nidhogg.

Antares wasn’t the only one who had seen this. Even the other dead Monarchs had been disappointed when they’d first laid eyes on their own successors, given how weak they were. This was only natural, since all of the successors were either survivors or stragglers who barely survived the war with the Monarch of Shadows. It was unreasonable to expect anything too great from the likes of them. Ironically enough, it was the son of the Monarch of Shadows himself who helped the weak successors achieve growth and eventually begin their succession ceremony.

Antares had only chuckled.

“Enough of these pointless thoughts. Focus on getting stronger. When the time comes, I will drop you into the fire myself. Don’t doubt for a moment that I won’t.”

The time had finally arrived. This very moment. It was here, right before his eyes. Antares gave Suho the same crooked grin as before, then gladly hurled Suho straight into the flames.

[You have accepted the job change quest.]

[Generating a dungeon for your job change quest.]

There was a vibration as the walls of the cavern collapsed. The ceiling melted like it was made of lava. The rising heat began to scorch Suho from all sides.

Beru screeched, “Young Monarch!”

Suho looked around him as Beru called out to him in shock. Then, Beru vanished. The zealots he’d been fighting disappeared as well. Even the massive door they’d entered through was gone without a trace. Suho had been completely separated from reality. Now, it was just him and the Apostle of Domination, who had been reborn as a spirit of fire through the process of spirit transfer.

The space around him had become a blazing inferno, a hell born from the Apostle’s flames. Suho understood the situation immediately.

This is a dungeon for the job change quest.

This was different from the trials Antares had given him so far. This time, it was a true job change quest, created by the system itself. Antares had cut off this space from Earth in order to facilitate the process. Now, this place had become a quest dungeon completely isolated from reality, meaning Suho could release his full power without fear of destroying the surrounding area.

Not only that, but because the Apostle of Domination had recklessly drawn upon the power of the Outer Gods, Antares had cut off the dimension early to prevent Earth’s fabric from tearing and collapsing under the strain. It was possible that had been exactly what the Apostle was aiming for. If Earth’s dimension were to collapse, a massive rift would open, allowing the true forces of the Outer Gods to invade.

“Focus on nothing else. Only on the trial at hand.” Antares’ voice echoed directly in Suho’s ears. “In this place, there is only you, Suho. This trial is meant for no one else. You can access no outside help, not even your shadow soldiers. It would be especially troublesome to have someone like Beru intervene.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than a system message appeared in front of Suho.

[Potions and shop access are prohibited in the current location. Even if your level increases, status recovery will not occur.]

Antares had excluded Beru from the scene, but the system had blocked even potions and the shop.

[You cannot exit until the job change process is complete.]

Even his way out was sealed. Suho laughed incredulously.

“Isn’t this basically the same as being swallowed by Nidhogg?”

“An astute observation. That’s exactly what this is.”

Antares’ laughter returned. He hadn’t just isolated this dimension from the rest of Earth—he had flung it straight into Nidhogg’s maw, bringing the Apostle of Domination with it. The Apostle realized this even before Suho did and was greatly confused, so much so that he forgot he’d been in the middle of attacking Suho.

“Wh-what is this place?!”

He was in utter shock. Immense pressure bore down on him in this place. As one might expect of a collective intelligence, he rapidly pieced together what was happening.

“The World Tree! This must be the energy of the World Tree! Oh gods above, I have finally found the roots of this very universe! Hahaha!”

Since he had been born through an Elvenwood, it was easy for him to recognize the presence of the World Tree, which was of a similar nature. By instinct, he quickly realized the true purpose behind Nidhogg’s existence, the very creature he now inhabited. Suho was to defeat the trial given to him by Antares here. As the opponent in question, the Apostle of Domination had the same goal. His flames erupted in response.

“I see it now. If I devour you here, I will become the master of this powerful darkness. Such is the purpose of a succession ceremony.”

He had reached his conclusion. With the confusion gone from his eyes, the Apostle turned to Suho, his gaze burning with heat and desire. This was an opportunity. The primordial darkness that slumbered here brimmed with extreme heat and the power of destruction. The moment he devoured Suho within this place, that magnificent power would merge with his flames. He was sure of it.

He could already feel the heat lending him strength. Whether it was because of their shared affinity for fire, because the primordial darkness had already chosen him, or because the dead Monarch had deliberately empowered the Apostle to test Suho, it didn’t matter. Whatever the reason, the conclusion was clear.

“Let me tell you something. This vessel I’m using was capable of destroying an entire nation by itself.”

Even without knowledge of such labels as “National Level Hunter,” the followers of the Itarim had long been searching for vessels like these. The greater the vessel, the more energy they could summon from the outer universes. Whether the vessel survived the experience was not a concern. Even if they died from it and turned to ash, they could simply be fed to an Elvenwood and brought back to life. That was how the chrysalises worked. They were the true fruit, the result of a combined effort between the Apostle of Paradise and the Apostle of Domination.

The Apostle raised one hand, and the ceiling of the cave began to melt.

“But that was only Christopher Reed while he was alive. The Apostle of Paradise and I have completed this vessel further.”

His fingers began to elongate with flame. He pointed them toward Suho.

“It is now a pathway, impossible to measure by the standards of this universe.”

In that instant, his entire form, armored in flame from the spirit transfer, began to fracture. Like a spider’s web, the cracks spread across his body. Those very fissures turned into the “pathway” that he had mentioned, and the energy of the outer universes began to spill through.

“Our purpose was to bring to this world a power strong enough to shatter this vessel.”

The Apostle grinned.

“Even if this dimension has been cut off,” he declared, “bringing me to the World Tree was your fatal mistake. I will claim all the power that lies here.”

At last, he released his power in earnest. The flames raged.

“I shall become a Monarch myself.”

He hurled himself at Suho. With him, a barrage of fiery spikes rained down like missiles from every direction, all targeting Suho. Fire rained down. It wasn’t a bitterly cold winter that came for Suho, but a firestorm, a blazing tempest bent on annihilation.

“You cannot escape,” the Apostle said.

The countless fire spikes exploded in midair before even reaching Suho. But before the heat from the explosions could dissipate, the flames regrouped like living creatures and transformed into fire butterflies, both large and small. Those fiery butterflies zigzagged unpredictably, aiming for Suho’s blind spots.

Then, more explosions, again and again. The intense heat caused the cave floor beneath Suho’s feet to bubble and churn. The rock melted, turning into lava. The ceiling above still rippled with waves of scorching heat, distorting the light. Everything about this hostile environment wanted Suho dead. If Sirka had faced “winter” as her opponent, Suho now stood against “summer,” a literal inferno like the heart of an active volcano.

“Feels like home. Do you recognize this place?” Antares asked, sounding completely at ease.

Suho was in no position to respond, but the answer came to him nonetheless. This place was strikingly similar to where Suho had encountered Antares for the very first time. But Suho now was not the same as he was back then. At that time, he would have been burned to a crisp by Antares’ power if it hadn’t been for his father’s apparition. Things were different now.

Kamish’s daggers appeared in his hands. These weapons, crafted from the bones of a dragon, were special. They did not melt in the Monarch’s flames. In fact, they grew sharper and stronger in its presence. Holding the daggers in a reverse grip, Suho’s eyes burned with a calm intensity. They were a stark contrast to those of the Apostle of Domination, his gaze seething with madness.

Though standing in the midst of disaster, Suho showed no sign of agitation. He gave the presence of a silently boiling volcano in the cold depths of the ocean, dormant but ready to erupt.

With a flash of light, Suho jumped head-first into the destruction that surrounded him. He swung his daggers.

[Skill: “Mutilation” has activated.]

The blazing mana from Suho’s second heart, the Heart of the King of Dragons, poured into Kamish’s daggers and weaved through them, intertwining with the blades. Suho tore through every incoming threat with ruthless precision.

As Antares watched, he was strongly reminded of Jinwoo—the man who had once dared to challenge the Monarch of Destruction. His son now asked Antares a question.

“You said I couldn’t summon shadow soldiers. But what about my shadow?”

Suho wasn’t really asking for an answer. He could simply try it himself.

[Shadow Extraction – Level 2 – Shape Transformation]

[Authority over shadows.

No mana required.

The shape of shadow soldiers can be transformed at will.]

Suho altered his shadow—or rather, his very soul.

“Arise.”

Beneath him, Suho’s shadow rose, covering the entirety of his body like a set of armor.

[Skill: “Spirit Transfer” has been learned.]