Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant novel Chapter 220

There’s a term called a “key item.”

Also known as an entry ticket, a key item is an essential object required to enter a special Gate—and the Memory Fragment of the Volcanic Island was exactly that kind of item.

Su-ho immediately used the combination formula.

As a result, the fusion pot’s grade increased from the lowest tier to low-tier, its color deepening. Su-ho placed all eleven Memory Fragments into it.

[ You have placed the Eleventh Memory Fragment of the Legendary Volcanic Island into the fusion pot. ]

[ You have placed the Seventh Memory Fragment of the Legendary Volcanic Island into the fusion pot. ]

[ You have placed ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) the Third Memory Fragment of the Legendary Volcanic Island into the fusion pot. ]

[ You have placed the Fifth Memory Fragment of the Legendary Volcanic Island into the fusion pot. ]

......

He shoved them all in at once, without caring about the order.

Then he activated the combination formula right away.

[ Beginning fusion. ]

[ Fusing... ]

[ Huh? What's happening to the pot?! ]

[ Congratulations! A rare treasure has been created from a low-tier fusion formula! ]

[ You have acquired Memory of the Legendary Volcanic Island (S). ]

[ You have achieved a great feat—10 bonus stat points will be awarded. ]

The combination was a success.

The Memory of the Volcanic Island resembled a gemstone—opal. But it wasn’t bright or radiant like a real opal.

It had a somewhat faded glow.

He had expected to get a key item, but he hadn’t expected to receive bonus stats along with it.

Not that it was all that surprising.

After all, no key item of this grade had ever been discovered anywhere in the world before.

Su-ho invested all the bonus stat points into Strength, then checked the item’s information.

[ Memory of the Legendary Volcanic Island ]

– Grade: S

The sealed memory left behind by the deeply slumbering legendary volcano.

The one who holds the memory shall reach the sleeping volcano.

A brief description.

No other details were given.

How unkind.

But that was fine.

Most key items react the moment you inject them with mana.

With practiced ease, Su-ho channeled mana into the Memory of the Volcanic Island.

The faded memory began absorbing mana, then slowly started to emit a faint glow from within.

[ The Memory of the Volcanic Island guides you to the volcano. ]

A system notification popped up in front of him.

At the same time, a small minimap appeared in the corner of his vision.

The minimap showed a red dot marking Su-ho’s location, and a yellow dot indicating the destination.

“Let’s go, then.”

Su-ho began moving, following the minimap’s guidance.

***

Thankfully, the place marked on the minimap was Hallasan.

Following it for quite some time, Su-ho eventually arrived at the very top of Hallasan—Baekrokdam Crater.

Su-ho peered down into the sunken crater of Baekrokdam.

“Knew it.”

He had a hunch the Hallasan Gate would be centered on Baekrokdam, and sure enough, that’s where the trail led.

Well, it couldn’t be helped.

This place was the most iconic part of Hallasan.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Su-ho shifted his gaze and looked toward the crater, where water should have been pooled.

But there was no water.

It wasn’t because of a Gate or mana influence.

Baekrokdam’s water level naturally came and went—it was that kind of place.

Confirming that the water was gone, Su-ho began descending into the crater.

There was no one around.

No monsters, either.

But for some reason, the area surrounding Baekrokdam was devoid of even a single plant, like a dead land.

As Su-ho approached the heart of Baekrokdam—

[ The Memory of the Volcanic Island reacts to ???. ]

[ The Memory of the Volcanic Island resonates with ???. ]

[ The Memory of the Volcanic Island opens the path to ???. ]

Flash!

A burst of light accompanied the system messages.

At the same time, a portal materialized right where Baekrokdam stood.

“So this is it.”

The Gate to the Volcanic Island.

Su-ho approached and checked the portal’s information.

[ Tomb of the Sealed Volcano ]

– Entry Requirements: Level 160–199, at least 2 Orange Stats and 2 Red Stats.

– Maximum Entry Limit: 5 people.

After reading the portal’s conditions, Su-ho nodded in surprise.

While he barely met the level range, seeing the stat restrictions written below confirmed what he suspected—this wasn’t a Gate just anyone could enter.

“Even capping it at under level 199...”

That limit implied this was a Gate on par with a two-star dungeon.

And it only allowed five entrants.

Even the Nest of Wind allowed six.

This one had harder entry requirements and allowed one fewer person.

Su-ho had no way of knowing how difficult it would be.

But it didn’t matter.

“In the end, it’s still a one-star Gate.”

Just as there’s a vast difference between zero and one, there’s an equally vast gap between one and two.

No matter how strong it was, it was still within the one-star range.

That’s why Su-ho stepped into the Gate’s portal without hesitation.

[ Entering Tomb of the Sealed Volcano. ]

The moment he stepped through, the scenery began to shift around him.

What first filled his vision was pitch-black color.

But it wasn’t darkness.

Amid the pitch-black, red veins of light spread like blood vessels, until—

BOOOOOM!!

A massive explosion erupted right over Su-ho.

“What the—!”

A wave of heat blasted him from the front.

Scorching heat surged through his airways.

Swept up in the explosion, Su-ho was flung far into the distance.

But the angle of his trajectory was high—his body was launched clear out of Baekrokdam, and he started falling down the slope of Hallasan.

Floating in midair, Su-ho furrowed his brow as he realized what had happened.

“Seriously.”

To think this was the welcome he got upon arrival.

He quickly activated several skills.

[ Blessing activates. ]

[ Blood Weapon activates. ]

Using Blessing, he inflated his stats, and with that boost, summoned an even sturdier weapon.