Primordial Awakening: I Can Evolve My Skills Infinitely - Chapter 247

Chapter 247: The Darkness Monarch is Here
The massive tendril came crashing down on Sam’s position, slamming into the ground with a deafening impact that cracked the earth beneath him.

Slash!

But even as the blow landed, Sam’s blade flashed.

The tendril that had struck him was sliced clean in half, its black flesh tearing apart with a sharp hiss before dissolving into a cloud of dark mist.

[Primordial Barrier: 99/100]

The faint glow of his barrier shimmered around him, holding firm despite the force of the attack.

He still had one layer of protection left to keep him from being crushed, so there was no reason to panic.

“You would’ve had a better chance at living if you didn’t attack,” Sam said with a grin, his voice echoing through the battlefield.

He scanned the endless field of blackened tendrils that swayed and pulsed around him like the veins of a living creature.

“Now,” he added, his grin sharpening, “you’ll die like the others.”

[It is but an honor if this happens,] the monarch’s voice rumbled through the air, calm and ancient.

[But… do you truly believe you can do this… in my domain?]

“I was in the [Pale Monarch]’s domain,” Sam said, his tone casual, “and even in the [Judge Monarch]’s. And…”

True Primordial Spirits!

Sam lifted his hand, summoning one of the most powerful forces at his disposal.

A crimson light erupted before him, forming into the shape of a towering spirit clad in red and gold armor.

The [Judge Monarch]’s spirit had arrived—reborn through Sam’s power.

Its entire form glowed with the energy of Sam’s affinities—Judgment, Chaos, and Shadow all weaving through its spectral body like rivers of living flame.

“…Now look at him.”

[Too bad you have fallen, old friend,] the other monarch said solemnly, gazing upon the summoned spirit.

[But… it needed to be done. The primordial cannot live for much longer anyway. He’s getting too close to them.]

Sam didn’t even blink.

He didn’t care what the monarch was talking about.

He simply stared forward, expression blank, eyes cold.

“Show yourself, then,” Sam said with a grin that didn’t reach his eyes. “Or are you going to keep hiding?”

Fwish!

Dozens of tendrils burst from the ground, coiling and twisting as they lunged toward him.

But Sam was faster.

He darted between them, slashing one apart, dodging another, leaping through gaps in the storm of tendrils that tried to swallow him whole.

Some turned toward the crimson spirit beside him, but the [Judge Monarch]’s spirit met them head-on.

It raised its four arms, each gripping a weapon—a blade, a hammer, a gauntlet, and a jagged scale—and tore through every tendril that came close.

Each strike carried raw primordial energy, far stronger than the monarch had ever possessed in life.

After all, this version was fueled by Sam’s power.

[What are you talking about?]

The monarch’s voice came again, laced with genuine confusion.

[You are already seeing me, though.]

“Huh—”

Sam didn’t have time to finish before the ground began to quake violently.

He steadied himself as the tremors deepened, cracking the land beneath his boots.

The tendrils that had been attacking suddenly stopped moving.

Every single one of them froze, twitching for a moment before sinking back into the blackened soil like serpents retreating to their burrows.

Sam frowned.

Aura Radar!

He sent out a pulse of aura, a crimson wave expanding outward from his body.

It scanned the surroundings, revealing faint outlines of monsters lurking across the landscape.

But something was wrong.

The dozens of monsters had stopped whatever they were doing.

Their heads tilted upward toward the sky.

Sam followed their gaze. And when he looked up, his stomach dropped.

“What…”

The massive white circle in the sky, something he had assumed was a sun, was trembling.

Its perfect shape quivered. Then, slowly, impossibly, it began to move.

[Only the blind may not see what stands before them.]

The monarch’s voice came again, resonating from every direction at once.

[And if you had an ounce of awareness, you would know that you stand no chance.]

[Not against me in particular… but in general. Do you truly think you can win?]

Sam’s eyes widened as he took a slow step back.

“This is…”

He had seen monsters, kings, gods—but nothing like this.

Because as that white circle shifted, an enormous shadow began to emerge from behind it.

The light peeled away like a veil, revealing the colossal shape of a being so large it seemed to fill the entire horizon.

Then Sam understood.

That “white orb” wasn’t a sun.

It was something attached to the chest of a giant.

[I was always there.]

The being’s voice reverberated through the air like thunder, each word sending vibrations through the ground.

The creature was made entirely of tendrils—millions of them.

Black tendrils formed its body, and faint white ones traced outlines along its limbs, chest, and face, defining its shape against the dark sky.

It wasn’t light that let Sam see it—it was the faint luminescence of those white threads, twisting and pulsing like living veins.

[Do you see now?]

“Yeah,” Sam muttered, rolling his shoulders, tightening his grip on his primordial sword. “I can’t really not see it.”

He raised his blade, ready to fight.

[I am not done.]

“Huh.”

Fwish! BOOM!

The air exploded as shockwaves rippled outward, tearing through the ground like an earthquake.

Sam shielded himself as his aura flared, his barrier shimmering to hold back the pressure.

When he looked up again, his breath caught in his throat.

Across the massive being’s entire body—its arms, chest, and legs—hundreds of eyes had appeared.

Each one opened with a wet sound, shining like pale orbs of misty glass.

All of them stared directly at Sam.

[Look at me.]

“I am.”

[No.]

Sam frowned, confused.

But then he looked higher—past the chest, past the thousands of twisting tendrils that made up the creature’s form.

And when he finally saw its head, his body froze.

“Holy shit…”

At the very top stood a humanoid head, carved from darkness itself.

It had no mouth, no ears, no features—only two enormous, white eyes that leaked pure aura.

Unlike the others, these weren’t mere lights. They were endless.

They had depth, like looking into two galaxies condensed into orbs of light.

And they were fixed on him.

[So what now?]

Sam’s instinct screamed at him to check the creature’s status before anything else happened.

—

[Darkness Monarch]

[Level: 100]

[Skills: Dark Tendrils, White Tendrils, Corruption Spread]

[Description: The third monarch. A being of incomprehensible scale who seems carefree about most things, though perhaps it’s only because nothing can truly challenge him.]

[Hell-Mode Analysis: There is no need to hesitate.]

—

Sam stared at the panel, then up at the creature towering before him.

At least a kilometer tall. The sheer scale was overwhelming.

Even the [Roaring Titan], the third layer’s [Forsaken Lord], had only been about two hundred meters tall.

This thing dwarfed that monster five times over.

He could probably crush the Titan underfoot like a bug if he wanted to.

“…Well,” the [Darkness Monarch] finally said, his deep voice echoing across the empty world, “what now?”

[Kill him =)]

A simple message appeared in Sam’s interface.

He didn’t even react to it.

He simply stood still, focused, calm, yet ready to strike at any instant.

Void Watcher!

The world dimmed as Sam activated his [Class Skill].

Information began flowing into his mind instantly, revealing glimpses of the monarch’s aura and intent.

[Void Watcher: Massive killing intent detected. Target follows orders from “the Colossals” and “the King.” No personal hatred toward user.]

Sam’s eyes narrowed. It didn’t matter if the monarch didn’t hate him.

He still intended to kill him. That was reason enough to fight.

“And you think,” the monarch continued, “that just like the others, you can keep reviving endlessly until you defeat me?”

A grin crept across his faceless visage.

“Fool.”

Fwish!

He snapped his fingers.

Instantly, the air grew heavy.

The entire world seemed to shift.

Dark energy poured down from the sky like liquid smoke, spreading over the battlefield in an endless wave.

‘What now,’ Sam thought, bracing himself as his aura flared to full power.

The ground beneath him cracked, and tendrils began to stir once more.

He could feel the fight coming.

And if that was the case… he had to be ready.

Determination Intuition! Blood Verdict!

He activated both [Class Skills] without hesitation.

A crimson aura flared around him, wrapping his body in a violent storm of energy, while a golden light shimmered over his eyes, sharpening his focus to its peak.

The world went silent.

Everything, the trembling ground, the swirling darkness, even the monarch’s countless eyes, seemed to pause for a heartbeat.

Sam’s grip tightened on his blade.

And at that moment…

Ding!

[You can now sense determination.]

“Huh.”

Sam looked ahead, and noticed that a powerful crimson aura was coming out of the monarch’s figure.

‘Determination…’ Sam thought.

This faint aura was how determination looked if you could actually see it.

It surrounded every individual, and the aura was more visible and strong the more determination a being had.

Sam had never seen it before, but the sheer amount the [Darkness Monarch] exhibited was enough to know he was strong.

Also, a panel appeared before him:

[Darkness Monarch’s Determination Status: Unshaken.]

‘Hm.’

It could also give him some kind of status about the determination of other beings, allowing to know what’s happening.

It could be useful in the future, though it wasn’t going to be game-changing.

But then… Sam decided to look at his own determination.

And the moment he did, his eyes widened.

‘What the fuck…’