Absolute Dweller-Chapter 182

‘Fortunately, summoning retainers still works.’

I summoned only the three who had been on standby: Lee Joon-hyuk, Jang Seong-jun, and Jeong Sora.

And immediately—

‘Enhancement.’

I used Enhancement to reinforce their bodies.

A sinister black mist blanketed the area outside the domain, thick and ominous.

As soon as the three of them, now wrapped in black energy, joined the front lines, the situation barely balanced out.

Had I been even a little late, the shadow creatures’ attacks would have reached the transparent barrier.

‘Good. Just in time.’

Though Jeong Sora had summoned fewer elementals than I had, her spirits exhibited far greater influence thanks to her new Spirit Master class buff.

What stood out the most was the high-tier fire spirit she had personally contracted after becoming a Spirit Master— Ryan Flameheart.

Whoosh—

Every time his flaming sword swung, dozens of shadow creatures were cut down.

BOOOOOOM—!

He was essentially doing the work of dozens of regular spirits alone.

‘And he’s doing it outside the domain.’

Currently, my spirits were positioned inside the domain, forming a battlefront.

As the domain expanded, it gradually pushed forward, clearing away the dark mist that blanketed the Outer Edge of the Inner World.

The scene was one of light driving out darkness, with the spirits firmly anchored within the domain’s glow.

The reason was simple.

‘They need to stay inside to receive the buff.’

The Spirit Kings I had contracted had gained a level-up buff, enhancing the strength of all spirits by up to tenfold.

And yet, despite this massive boost, Ryan Flameheart, who fought outside the domain, still outperformed them all.

A level 51 spirit should not have been able to exhibit this level of combat ability.

‘The Spirit Master buff is really insane.’

With Jeong Sora’s class and title perfectly aligned, she received additional effects, making her combat efficiency borderline absurd.

‘That takes a huge load off my shoulders.’

Meanwhile, the domain continued expanding in real-time.

The problem was that with each expansion, the area that needed defending increased exponentially.

At this moment, the battlefront alone stretched over two kilometers.

If Jeong Sora hadn’t been here, I would have had to shoulder the entire burden myself.

‘Jang Seong-jun is holding his own too.’

While the spirits held the inner battlefront, Jang Seong-jun handled aerial threats.

Using telekinesis, he hovered in the air, obliterating every flying monster that approached.

Though assisted by the wind spirits, he single-handedly controlled the entire aerial battlefield.

‘The issue is that Lee Joon-hyuk isn’t as effective as expected.’

Against regular monsters, he had always displayed overwhelming prowess.

But against shadow creatures, his performance was lacking.

‘Because they have no bodily fluids.’

His water-based weaponry required mental energy to generate water, so his influence was inevitably limited.

“Elquines.”

As I called out the name, droplets of water gathered in the air, forming into the small figure of a girl.

"Eh—?"

Elquines, eyes filled with curiosity, scanned her surroundings before tilting her head at me.

I spoke to her.

“Can you help that guy over there?”

Elquines turned in the direction I pointed—toward Lee Joon-hyuk—and broke into a mischievous grin.

"He looks fun—!"

She lifted her tiny, water-formed hand, and in an instant—

WHOOSH!

Dozens of thick streams of water shot up around Lee Joon-hyuk.

SSSHAAAA—

In mere seconds, a torrential downpour formed a controlled storm in a several-hundred-meter radius around him.

She had essentially altered the local weather—inside a restricted space.

Now, Lee Joon-hyuk had the perfect battlefield.

SPLAAAAASH!

Though I had lost my ability to command elementals as their ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ ruler, Elquines had leveled up, regaining a significant portion of her raw elemental power.

Now that he no longer needed to expend mental energy to generate water, Lee Joon-hyuk’s performance skyrocketed.

SPLAAAASH!

Every time he unleashed a high-pressure water jet, shadow creatures were sliced in half.

Though shadow creatures looked formless, their outer shells were actually incredibly tough.

Even with high water pressure, cutting them so cleanly was almost unnatural.

Using Absolute Dweller’s Eye, I observed closely—and discovered the secret.

‘So that’s how he’s doing it.’

The key to his water jets lay in the particles mixed inside.

Tiny, razor-sharp fragments—as hard as glass or stone—were suspended within the water, massively enhancing its cutting power.

His Water Blades sliced through shadow creatures like tofu—an absurd level of cutting force.

‘That would work on regular monsters too.’

Of course, against normal monsters, it was easier to burst their bodily fluids than to cut through them.

SSSHAAAA—

Elquines continuously poured water into the area, relieving Lee Joon-hyuk’s mental burden and maximizing his combat ability.

Having obliterated the shadow creatures in his vicinity, Lee Joon-hyuk glanced toward me.

Elquines, beaming, waved at him with a playful smile.

‘Hmm.’

As Lee Joon-hyuk and Elquines exchanged greetings, I noticed something strange.

‘I’m not losing any mental energy?’

Elquines' power was on a completely different scale compared to other spirits.

With a single hand gesture, she had summoned an entire rainstorm.

Whenever I summoned spirits and they used their abilities, my mental energy drained in real-time.

Thousands of spirits were constantly consuming power, so it was unavoidable.

The only saving grace was that most of them were fighting inside the domain, which reduced my burden.

The Spirit Kings' buffs had improved efficiency, allowing greater output with fewer resources.

Even so, Elquines should have been draining my mental reserves.

Yet, no matter how many times she used her power, I felt nothing.

Something was off.

I opened my inventory to check.

And instantly realized the reason.

‘She’s using my money.’

Every time Elquines activated her abilities, my balance decreased in real time.

‘Well, it barely even makes a dent now.’

With the population of my territory growing, my income had skyrocketed.

The revenue from monster hunting alone was staggering.

But beyond that—

Tax collection, shop settlements, and marketplace profits had surpassed all expectations.

At this point, I didn’t even bother counting the exact amount anymore.

The steady revenue from solar power plants and nuclear power plants was also a significant factor.

As proof, the Absolute Dweller’s Wallet had accumulated trillions in funds.

And that was after making multiple new investments.

At this point, the small amount Elquines was burning through was utterly negligible.

‘This changes things.’

Just the fact that the Spirit Kings, now classified as familiars, weren’t consuming my mental energy made them worth using.

“Sylphid, Trowell, Salion.”

I summoned the spirits.

“Support the elementals and hold them back.”

As the Spirit Kings burned through my wallet’s funds, the shadow creatures started getting pushed back.

‘Nothing beats throwing money at a problem.’

We steadily pushed them back.

And then—

‘The mist is clearing.’

At about 500 meters into the edge of the Inner World, I finally reached a spot free of the black mist.

And—

SSSHAAAAA—

From the shattered glass shards, from the windows of intact buildings, from the glass of abandoned cars—

Light began to pour out.

Unlike the outside world, here, the light ascended from the ground toward the sky.

‘Morning has arrived.’

The sun was rising in the real world.

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From that point, everything fell into place.

BOOOOOM! BOOM!

The shadow creatures rapidly weakened.

It seemed that the black mist had been enhancing them.

‘And in contrast, light weakens them.’

As the sunlight flooded in, the black mist that had spread across the outer zone lost its influence.

‘In that case—’

I attempted to use the Ring of Communication to contact Kim Ga-young in the real world.

But—

[Target cannot be found.]

It seemed communication between this world and the outside world had been severed.

‘No choice, then.’

I couldn’t know exactly what was happening outside, but her power was needed here.

‘Summon retainer—Kim Ga-young.’

Kim Ga-young, Team 4 Leader responsible for the Gangwon-do region, appeared.

“...Jae-hyun-nim?”

Luckily, she hadn’t been in combat.

Judging by the instant noodles in her hand.

“...I apologize for summoning you without warning.”

“No need.”

Kim Ga-young quickly assessed the situation, her eyes scanning the battlefield.

“Give me your orders.”

“We’re currently constructing the domain.”

Since her husband, Ha Dong-geon, had once been a domain construction target, she immediately understood what I meant.

“We need to hold back those creatures, correct?”

“Yes. Your abilities seem particularly lethal to them.”

Kim Ga-young surveyed the battlefield, then spoke.

“...It’s unfortunate that Kellikan isn’t here.”

Her powers were most effective when she was riding a mount.

There was a huge mobility gap between moving on foot and riding Kellikan.

“That can be solved. Sylphid.”

The wind spirit, who had been freely soaring above the battlefield, immediately swooped down.

“Whaaat~?”

With her languid smile, she looked at me.

“I need you to help her fly.”

“Ah~.”

Since contracted Spirit Kings couldn’t leave the domain, Sylphid had been especially restless.

She often snuck out and played mischievous pranks on civilians.

“Can she control it herself?”

“...It’s her first time, so it’ll be hard~.”

“She’ll manage.”

Unlike regular people, retainers had superior physical reflexes and adaptability.

“...Fine, then~.”

With a playful grin, Sylphid landed on Kim Ga-young’s back.

And in that instant—

SSSSSHAAAA—

A pair of wings made of wind unfolded from her shoulders.

“...This is—?”

She stared in fascination.

“Try moving as you think.”

And then—

“Ah!”

The wind wings flapped once.

Kim Ga-young was lifted into the air, momentarily wobbling before quickly stabilizing.

“...Heeeh?”

Sylphid pouted.

“No fun~.”

With that complaint, she vanished back into the battlefield.

“Then, I leave it to you.”

“...Understood!”

Kim Ga-young ascended over the battlefield, and her impact was greater than expected.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The arrows of light she fired split into dozens of fragments, raining destruction upon the shadow creatures.

Even a slight graze was fatal to them.

They died even easier than orcs.

Her presence completely tipped the scales.

And at that moment—

‘Now we’re finally seeing it.’

THOOOOOM—!

As the domain expanded, I finally caught sight of him.

The ruler of the Inner World.

A massive, shadowy wolf.

‘Absolute Dweller’s Eye.’

I focused.

Unlike the other shadow creatures, which lacked a visible level, this one—

「Shadow Master (Lv. 71)」

—had a clearly displayed level.