Chapter 251: Chapter 251

He meant it literally.

Without Flame Body, it would’ve all ended at the first hourglass.

Su-ho let out a light breath.

Thanks to the skill effect, the searing heat hitting his respiratory system was now halved.

He had been shifting his weight back and forth from the heat just moments ago, but now with 50% flame resistance, the burning sensation on his soles turned lukewarm.

The Flame Horse snorted.

Was it just a normal snort?

No—more like a disgruntled puff, annoyed at Su-ho’s calm demeanor.

‘What are you gonna do, laugh at me?’

With composure, Su-ho resumed watching the hourglass, waiting for all the sand to fall.

The Flame Horse stared at him briefly, then resumed its pacing.

Wherever it went, orange flames flared up.

The flames seemed more intense than before, but with the S-rank Flame Body, it was bearable.

So he ignored the Flame Horse completely and just stared at the hourglass.

Finally, the sand in the second hourglass was fully depleted.

[ The Nameless Blacksmiths nod at your perseverance. ]

Another approving nod.

The second hourglass moved next to the first, and the third began to pour.

The Flame Horse cried out once again.

At the same time, its mane and skin turned yellow.

Naturally, the scattered flames also turned yellow, and the temperature spiked again.

‘Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t sit still.’

Three hourglasses left.

Meaning, only three more rounds of enduring.

Without Flame Body, he would’ve either given up or become steamed food by now.

Then, he heard bubbling from beneath his feet.

Why now, after being calm all this time?

And sure enough—his bad feeling proved accurate, as always.

Something began to emerge from the boiling lava.

They took humanoid forms and slowly climbed the walls, emerging through the iron lattice.

Su-ho squinted to check their name tags.

– Wailing Magmanum Lv.???

Dozens of Magmanums climbed through the lattice.

Just like the Flame Horse, their levels weren’t displayed.

Were they also objects like the Flame Horse?

Their bodies glowed yellow like the surrounding fire.

Their insides resembled molten balloons, and after some thought, Su-ho gripped his Blood Sword.

‘Better to be cautious.’

Soon, the summoned Magmanums began moving toward him.

There was no hostility in their behavior.

But the closer they got, the more the temperature spiked.

Su-ho immediately activated his skills.

[ Blessing activated. ]

[ Holy Enchant activated. ]

Divine radiance enveloped his Blood Sword.

Without hesitation, he swung at them.

[ Cloud Slice activated. ]

A divine arc sliced through the air, severing the surrounding Magmanums.

Their heads were cleanly chopped off.

But in return, the Blood Sword caught fire.

Just like the volcano monsters from the Hallasan Gate.

‘Damn it, what a pain.’

This is why dealing with volcano types is always annoying.

Su-ho glanced at the hourglass.

Still plenty of sand left.

Then, he sensed something odd.

He had definitely split the Magmanums in two, but no system message indicating they were defeated appeared.

The sliced Magmanums groaned.

Like zombies, they stood back up, reattaching their split bodies and regenerating.

‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’

Apparently, they were a regenerative type, like magma-based slimes.

For enemies , you had to destroy the core.

Su-ho immediately activated Mana Detection.

[ Mana Detection activated. ]

As the skill triggered, he could see the flow of mana.

He scanned the enemies carefully.

But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t find any cores inside them.

‘What the...? Why can’t I see anything?’

Mana Detection was active.

And yet no core appeared inside their bodies.

The mana pattern in their bodies was constant.

Just like the ambient objects.

To confirm, Su-ho looked at the Flame Horse.

No core, no vital readings.

They had the classic traits of indestructible objects.

That meant attacking them was pointless.

It would only be a waste of stamina.

Su-ho canceled the Blood Sword and stowed it away. The Magmanums resumed their approach.

But as soon as they got within a certain distance of Su-ho, they stopped advancing.

That told him everything.

The purpose of these enemies.

The third phase of this trial wasn’t just about increasing the base temperature—it now included the heat generated by the presence of the Magmanums.

With lava creatures right in front of him, even Flame Body wasn’t enough.

No, it now felt like it did when the skill was still B-rank.

At this rate, he’d burn out.

After scanning the area, Su-ho decided to use his Blood Weapon creatively.

He formed the Blood Weapon into a pillar and climbed it, escaping to a higher altitude.

It immediately got easier to endure, far from the Magmanums and the Flame Horse’s flames.

‘Should’ve done this sooner.’

But peace didn’t last long.

The Flame Horse, which had been ignoring him, suddenly galloped over and delivered a powerful rear kick to the blood pillar.

Seeing Su-ho distance himself, the Magmanums also began clinging to the pillar.

The lava-bodied creatures lit the pillar on fire, and like wildfire, flames spread across the entire structure.

That ended the usefulness of the blood pillar.

After some thought, Su-ho decided to use his final card.

After all, Bulgasari had a skill called Flame Affinity.

Responding to his master’s call, Bulgasari popped out immediately.

Su-ho asked with concern.

“You holding up okay?”

It responded energetically.

Finally, Su-ho managed to smile.

“Good. I was really worried you wouldn’t be able to handle it. I’m counting on you, Bulgasari.”

As expected of the awakened Bulgasari.

Thankfully, the Flame Horse and Magmanums didn’t approach it.

Apparently, summoned creatures were exempt.

Seeing their reaction, Su-ho nodded.

“Then let’s begin, Bulgasari.”

Receiving its order via intent, Bulgasari immediately began chomping on the iron tracks.

Su-ho had two strategies in mind for Bulgasari.

First: block the Magmanums’ approach using Bulgasari.

Though they emerged from beneath the iron tracks, they couldn’t get too close to Su-ho.

The iron tracks around the junkyard test site were where they stood, so if the tracks were gone, they’d have no footing.

It seemed like a good plan.

Bulgasari couldn’t resist iron.

Second: bulk up Bulgasari using the iron, allowing Su-ho to ride it and distance himself from the Magmanums.

‘Now that I know they don’t target Bulgasari, this plan can’t fail.’

Bulgasari cried out in alarm as it munched on the tracks.

“What? What’s wrong?”

Its mouth was swollen.

Seeing that, Su-ho clicked his tongue.

“Don’t tell me—it’s too hot to eat?”

This couldn’t be happening.

Su-ho closed his eyes.

He hadn’t expected this outcome at all.

‘I thought Flame Affinity would let it eat that stuff without a problem...’

Flame Affinity let it endure heat, but eating scorching iron was a whole different issue.

Su-ho cast Heal and Recovery on Bulgasari, patting it gently.

“You did your best... I’m sorry for making you do that.”

Bulgasari was de-summoned after being healed.

Now, Su-ho really had no cards left.

The Flame Horse snorted in laughter.

Pleased that Su-ho’s efforts had gone to waste.

The snort stirred deep rage in Su-ho’s gut, but he calmed himself with mind control.

‘Getting worked up just makes it feel hotter.’

The Magmanums were groaning right in front of him, making it incredibly hard to stay calm.

Snorting and groaning.

If those damn mouths would just shut up, it’d be way easier to endure.

‘There really isn’t another way?’

He had tried everything, but it felt even hotter now.

His entire body was drenched in sweat, his hair matted and split.

It felt exactly like overstaying in a sauna.

‘If only those groaning things weren’t right in my face...’

If only the lava-born creatures would crawl back where they came from.

‘Wait a second... I didn’t need Bulgasari to eat the tracks at all, did I?’

Su-ho immediately drew his sword.

Someone who learned how to slice steel as the first form of Heogong-style.

He swung his sword at the tracks beneath the Magmanums.

[ Steel Cutter activated. ]

The satisfying sensation in his fingertips.

The cut was clean, and Su-ho couldn’t help but smile.

The tracks weren’t just flat steel—they were reinforced beams, so they could be cut.

Why hadn’t he thought of this earlier?

He immediately cut the rear part as well.

[ Steel Cutter activated. ]

With both ends severed, the beams finally crashed down.

The cut steel beams fell into the molten lava lake below.

So did the Magmanums standing atop them.

The Flame Horse, seeing this, let out a baffled snort.

Su-ho grinned and swung his sword again.

[ Steel Cutter activated. ]

[ Steel Cutter activated. ]

One after another, he cut the tracks.

Eventually, he successfully severed all the tracks connected to the test site he stood on.

The Flame Horse had long since retreated to the far side, avoiding Su-ho’s strikes.

With all the bridges cut, both the flames and the Magmanums were gone, and the heat dropped drastically—finally, it was bearable.

From afar, the Flame Horse stared at him in a daze.

Su-ho smirked and flashed a grin.

‘Now what are you gonna do?’

And just then, the third hourglass finished emptying.

As the last grain of sand fell—

[ The Nameless Blacksmiths narrow their brows at your actions. ]