Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 364

From beneath Suho’s feet, a pitch-black shadow began to spread, engulfing the entire area. It rushed outward like a black sea, as if the Sea of the Afterlife had spilled into this world and was now pouring across the land.

This wasn’t far from the truth, for from that deep darkness rose the undying souls who had crossed death and returned again. They were the tens of thousands of shadow soldiers who answered Suho’s command—an awe-inspiring sight. Their deafening cries swept across the foreign dimension ruled by the Outer Gods like a grand requiem. At their center stood Suho, gripping a dagger in each hand.

“Let’s go,” he said.

With those words, the war began.

“Hahaha! An interesting party you’ve got here!”

Laughing heartily, Ammut charged into the heart of the enemy forces, clenching his fists. The moment he swung his fists, a rapid series of explosions erupted. Every surface struck by his fists or feet detonated violently, flipping the ground and shredding every foe upon it. Even brushing against the force of Ammut’s energy caused the Apostles’ blood and flesh to rip apart.

This was the Iron Body Technique trained to a fine edge, and it was nothing short of a calamity. He was a Crocor, the strongest race of the crocodile humanoids. Now, as the King of Monstrous Humanoids and the Monarch of Tribulation, he had become a living tribulation himself. He had always been impressively strong, but now, having absorbed the primordial darkness, he was a weapon of war unlike any other.

“Hahaha! I love this!” Ammut let out an exhilarated laugh, unleashing the full extent of his power.

This was not Earth, nor the dimension he had once occupied. This was the enemy’s stronghold—where he could go wild however he pleased, without a single thought for what came next. It was a playground where he could destroy everything in sight. Now armed with the primordial darkness, this was an opportunity to activate his full strength.

The other Monarchs felt the same.

“Can’t let myself fall behind!”

On the opposite side, Thomas Andre, transformed into a massive giant, was plowing through the enemy ranks like a living siege weapon. He, too, was grateful for this rare chance to fight without restraint. The King of Giants leapt into the air with a booming laugh. The ground where he had stood crumbled into a massive crater. Then, up above, Thomas clasped his giant fists together and brought them crashing down on the grotesque alien land with all his might.

“Destruction!” he called, naming a skill, and the devastating force of it crushed everything within range. Even those outside the radius were caught in the blast, ripped apart by the shockwave. The remains of his victims shot skyward, then fell like rain. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“Capture!” Thomas shouted next.

This time, an overwhelming gravitational pull radiated outward from Thomas’ location, yanking everything nearby toward him with irresistible force. It was as though he had become a black hole. All the demonic beasts he had blasted outward with his power were now yanked right back in. Once again, the Destruction skill struck them with a bang.

The two Monarchs laughed like madmen.

While the pair tore through the enemy ranks from opposite sides, Sirka, the Queen of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Nightmare, took a different approach.

“Now, let’s see you endure this! It’s the cold we elves have endured all our lives!”

Sirka spread both arms wide. In the empty air, countless shards of ice gathered together. They transformed seamlessly into Tridents of the Ice Tree, too many to count. However, Sirka didn’t hurl the spears at the enemies herself. Instead, she let them scatter in all directions. They landed vertically in the ground, right into the heart of the enemy lines. A sharp crash followed.

In that instant, a chain of cracking sounds spread out. From those points, sheets of ice formed, and icy trees immediately rooted themselves in the earth. At the same time, crystalline branches made of ice shot upward rapidly from the trees.

[The Monarch of Nightmare and the Queen of the Snow Folk used the power: “Nightmare Tree.”]

All around them, massive Nightmare Trees began to rise. These grim trees had no leaves, and the sight they created was not unlike the land of the Elvenwoods which had ruled the elves long ago. Their properties were not so different, either.

[The power: “Blizzard of Disaster” has activated around the Nightmare Trees.]

A natural disaster that froze everything it touched chased down the enemies fleeing the Monarchs’ assault, locking them in place with ice.

At the same time, Gray, the Monarch of the Hunt and the King of Beasts, shot forward. The predator of the Primeval Beastwood, the massive king of the wolves, roared. His sharp claws and fangs tore into the Apostles ahead of him, ripping them to shreds. With a vicious crunch, he crushed those who charged at him in a single bite. Then he raised his head high and howled, infusing it with his authority. The sound echoed across the battlefield.

[The King of Beasts and the Monarch of the Hunt activated the skill “Scorn of the Weak” on all prey.]

The “Scorn of the Weak” debuff had come into play. The weak monsters, numerous but low in strength, immediately lost their momentum and grew even weaker.

“Now!”

The players, seasoned by their in-game experiences, did not miss the opportunity. The enemies before them were now affected by the debuff “Weaken,” further hindered by Sirka’s blizzard and the effect of “Slow.” Every player who had accessed this hunting ground, labeled “Dimension of the Outer Universes 1” through their game avatars, began the hunt with fervor.

“Time to level up!”

“Don’t let a single one escape!”

The players shouted with glee, launching indiscriminate attacks against the weakened enemies.

Of course, they were much weaker than the Monarchs individually, but thanks to the foundation the Monarchs had laid, they could now hold their own. Such a chaotic fight wasn’t very efficient, however.

“Arsha!”

At Suho’s call, Arsha instinctively recognized what she needed to do. The Monarch of the Void and Queen of Insects scattered her Void Insects in all directions.

“Hello everyone!”

Each one of them transformed into a miniature version of Arsha and greeted the players with cheerful voices. The sudden appearance of tiny, adorable fairies startled many of the players, but only for a moment.

“My name is Arsha. From now on, I’ll be your helpful companion on this thrilling adventure!”

Each copy of Arsha began offering friendly introductions. Each one attached itself to a different player and began offering timely, tailored advice.

“Oh, dear. An attack from the rear! Twist aside to avoid that one. And strike back immediately afterward!”

“There’s far too many people clumped together over there! It’ll be more efficient to hunt on this side!”

Their guidance proved incredibly helpful. For the humans who had been gamers, it felt just like a familiar tutorial. The copies’ support was not only verbal, either. Though they appeared cute, they were still Void Insects at their core. The moment the player they accompanied was exposed to lethal danger, they tore into the void and created temporary defensive barriers.

“Oh no! Careful! You are not leveled up enough to fight this Apostle just yet!”

“Why don’t we kill those magic beasts over there first, level up, and try again?”

Thus, dimension walls came into being, dividing the battlefield into manageable zones. This provided organization and structure, allowing the players, who had been confused and disordered, to fight with a layer of strategy. From a distance, the chaotic battlefield quickly began to resemble a properly organized war front, and the change came swiftly.

Suho, however, was not focused on the enemy. His eyes were on their bodies.

[Target is eligible for shadow extraction.]

[Target is eligible for shadow extraction.]

[Shadow Extraction is not possible due to corrupted mana.]

[Shadow Extraction is not possible due to corrupted mana.]

[Target is eligible for shadow extraction.]

[...]

He had to admit, this was quite interesting. Where the Monarchs and players had fought, the corpses of the slain lay in droves. System messages floated above them, some of them eligible for extraction. Without hesitation, Suho extended his hand toward them.

“Arise.”

Shrieks rang out from the ground.

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

The monsters that had just been enemies rose once more, their bodies now billowing with black steam. The players’ eyes widened in disbelief.

“Wh-what the heck is that?”

Their surprise was warranted. The enemies they’d just killed had come back to life, after all. But then, they realized—those reborn monsters were made of the same dark shadow substance as Suho’s shadow soldiers. Their shock faded, replaced by beaming smiles.

“We have even more allies than before!”

“Everyone we kill fights for us!”

“Yeaaah!”

In war, momentum and morale were everything. The players shouted with renewed energy, throwing themselves into battle with even greater enthusiasm. Suho wasn’t done yet.

[Shadow Extraction is not possible due to corrupted mana.]

[Shadow Extraction is not possible due to corrupted mana.]

[...]

Plenty of corpses that could not be extracted still remained. However, for the now-Monarch of Transcendence and the Protector of the World Tree, even these broken souls were resources for war.

“Extract.”

[Power: “World Tree’s Fruit” has activated.]

The essence of every tainted soul that could not be raised as a soldier flew into his hands. He then purified, compressed, crystallized, and extracted.

A notification rang out.

[Rune Stone: “Hard Scales” successfully extracted.]

[Rune Stone: “Leg Strength Enhancement” successfully extracted.]

[Rune Stone: “Sharp Senses” successfully extracted.]

[...]

If they couldn’t be turned into soldiers, then he would use them as rune stones.

“Arsha!”

At Suho’s call, Arsha’s main body flew to him at once. He handed over the many rune stones floating in the air to her.

“Skills. Give them out as rewards as you see fit.”

“Understood!”

The order was carried out immediately. Arsha immediately gathered all the rune stones and handed them out to her clones assisting the players. Suho could have chosen to learn all the skills himself, but it wasn’t necessary. He was already far beyond the point where a handful of miscellaneous skills would make him any stronger. Besides, this was a war. It was far more effective, strategically, to allow each soldier to develop specialized skills and grow.

“Well done! I have a gift for you!”

“Wow! It’s a new skill!”

“Very good! Learn this skill and it will make you stronger!”

“Yay!”

“Congratulations! I happen to have three skills on hand. Would you like to choose one?”

“Cool!”

Thanks to their new skills, the players began to do even better on the battlefield. Everything followed a game-like format, a medium deeply familiar to humankind. Even as the wrath of the Outer Gods poured down from above, the players no longer felt the same overwhelming dread they once had back on Earth. They still understood that this was real and not just a game, but Gray activated the Roar of the Battlefield regularly, strengthening their resolve and courage.

“Hahaha!”

“Excellent! No matter how many I kill, there’s no end to them!”

All around them, the powerful Monarchs were fighting right alongside them. Under that protection, humanity charged boldly toward the enemy once more.