The humongous Bug Monarch battled against the Divine Dragon, who'd returned to his original form. They were completely tangled together, both attempting to kill each other. It was complete chaos.

The bug army attacked Gainus, while Kang Oh's party aimed for Jacques. It was both all-out war and a battle royal at the same time!

Kang Oh used Gluttony on a BB-rank mass-produced sword. All of his abilities were increased twofold, and jet-black energy rose from his body.

"Huahp!" Kang Oh cleaved through a Mantis Demon, leapt into the air using an Armored Scorpion as a foothold, and landed on Jacques' back.

Whoosh!

Ptoo! Ptoo!

Hideous winged insects, or Sjacks, spat yellow mucus at him. At the same time, Predator Ants shot their acid at him from behind.

"Hmph."

Abyss Claw!

The jet-black aura immediately cut through anything in his way. Then, Kang Oh thrust his sword into Jacques' shell.

Clang!

Unfortunately, Jacques' shell was so tough that he hadn't even left a mark. But Kang Oh knew several ways of breaking through a tough shell like this one.

'Start with a Slash!'

Swish.

Slash left behind a nail-sized mark.

'A small crack can cause a dam to collapse!' Kang Oh stabbed the small mark. However, Jacques' body rocked up and down due to Gainus's assault.

"Ugh."

For a second there, Kang Oh floated in the air. At this rate, he would fall off of Jacques' body!

Kang Oh immediately used Darkness Chain, and wrapped it around a bump on Jacques' back. Then, he reduced the length of the chain. By doing so, he returned to his original spot. After that, he thrust his sword into the mark once more.

Stab!

A small crack formed in the shell. Kang Oh kept striking at the same place over and over again like a miner.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

Demon Sword Ubist was a multi-purpose tool.

Fang Bearing Blade!

Upon its activation, Jacques' shell split open.

Whoosh!

Kyaa!

Monster moths flew over his head and shot beams at him. A Mantis Demon flew over with boisterous flaps of its wings, and opened all four of its arms.

"Don't get in my way!" Kang Oh tried to swing his blade. However, Jacques' body shook again, so he lost his balance.

He kept a tight grip on the chain, which kept him from falling, but he was left completely defenseless.

Bam!

"Ugh."

The Mantis Demon's blade sunk deep into his flesh. However, that wasn't the end of it. It had four arms in total, so it could still attack with the other three!

Swish!

Another one of its blades came flying at him. This time, it was aiming for his neck!

"Grr!" Kang Oh gritted his teeth, and rolled to the side without letting go of the chain.

Snap.

The Mantis Demon missed, but it immediately swung its four arms.

Moon's Protection!

A barrier surrounded his body.

Bam, bam, bam!

It blocked all of the Mantis Demon's attacks, giving Kang Oh the precious time he needed to get back into position. Once he was ready, Kang Oh fiercely swung his sword.

"Die!"

Slash!

A white line followed his horizontal swing. The white line passed through the center of the Mantis Demon's body.

Swish!

Kang Oh followed up with a strike to its neck. However, his blade was empowered by a jet-black wave.

Darkness Strike!

Boom!

[You have defeated a Mantis Demon.]

"What a pain in the ass." Kang Oh refocused on Jacques' shell; the same shell he'd cracked already!

At that moment...!

"Kuhaaahk!" Gainus cried out.

Jacques had sunk his fangs into Gainus's neck and wasn't letting go, no matter how much Gainus retaliated with his teeth and claws. It seems like the navy blue poison had taken effect, making him feel extreme pain.

'I have to hurry.' Kang Oh raised his blade. However, the bugs were interfering again. 'I've had just about enough of you!'

He wouldn't go to any dungeons that contained insect-type monsters for a while!

At that moment...

"Leave them to me." Ruinari descended from the sky. "Please focus on your task! I will take care of them."

"Thank you," Kang Oh said earnestly. He had really needed help, after all.

"Hurry!" Ruinari yelled.

Kang Oh focused completely on Jacques.

Ruinari was extremely skilled. He killed countless waves of approaching insects. They didn't bother Kang Oh again, allowing him to completely break through Jacques' cracked shell.

"Huahp!" Kang Oh thrust Demon Sword Ubist deep into Jacques' flesh, and then used Tempest Tiger, Abyss Claw, and Lightning Breath!

Boom!

He used everything in his arsenal. Red shards of light fell from the exposed flesh like a waterfall.

Jacques squirmed. However, Kang Oh tightly gripped the Darkness Chain with his off-hand. Plus, he wasn't getting attacked by the bugs anymore, so he didn't fall this time.

"Have another taste of this!" Kang Oh repeatedly stabbed Jacques with Ubist. Unable to withstand the pain any longer, Jacques created poison spheres once more.

"Keep going. I'll take care of them!" Ruinari yelled.

"Understood!" Kang Oh focused entirely on damaging Jacques. After all, he was the only one that could break through his immortality.

Whizz, whizz, whizz!

The poison spheres shot in every direction. In response, Ruinari stretched out his wings.

Wind God's Fluttering Wings!

Ruinari, who'd killed countless insects, used his secret move.

Whoosh!

A giant golden bird appeared. It wasn't a real bird, but an aura, a mass of power that coalesced into a bird shape. However, it was absolutely humongous. It truly was a secret move!

The giant bird aura blocked everything. Not only did it stop the bizarre, hideous insects from approaching Kang Oh, but it also stopped the poisonous spheres too!

"We have to hold out!"

"Please eat this and hold on!"

Eder, Sephiro, Cyndia, and Muhawk were all together when the poisonous spheres came flying at them. They constructed a bone fence and a barrier to protect themselves.

However, they were already poisoned, and weakened as they were, they weren't fully capable of blocking the poisonous spheres. Their complexions gradually blackened more and more. They didn't have much time left.

They weren't the only ones without much time left; Gainus wasn't in good shape either. Jacques' poison had already spread throughout his entire body.

Dragons had inherently strong life force, so Gainus was holding out as best as he could, but he would soon reach his limit.

"Kang Oh!" Gainus desperately yelled. 'If I die here, or we fail, then I'll come back and kill you no matter what!' That's probably what he was saying.

Hearing that, Jacques shook with happiness. It looked like Gainus was on his last legs.

'Ooh, to think I'd be able to kill Gainus! Ooh, Lord Maya!'

He had almost no HP left, but it didn't matter. After all, he was immortal.

'When this is over, I'm going to step on your corpse and laugh!'

But things never really go the way you want them to, do they?

At some point, Jacques felt like his body was being drained of its energy.

'What is this?'

He hadn't felt this feeling ever since he'd become immortal. Jacques had felt this feeling once before, but it was before he'd become immortal. It was the same feeling he'd felt when he was destroyed by the God of Destruction, Ulam!

Following his death, the God of Creation, Maya, resurrected him, and ever since, he hadn't felt what it was like to die.

But why was feeling like this? Why now? Jacques couldn't understand what was going on.

'I'm not dying, am I? No, that's impossible! I'm immortal!'

He struggled till the bitter end.

However...

"It's over!" Kang Oh raised Demon Sword Ubist into the air, and forcefully swung downwards.

Everlasting Darkness!

The Abyss Predator, Ubist, was a demonic beast that came from another world! It was an entity capable of breaking the very laws that bind this world. Ubist was even capable of devouring the almighty power of the gods themselves.

"No, that's not possible..."

Till the very end, Jacques was unwilling to accept his death.

He should've been suspicious. Isn't it strange that Gainus came here personally? The fact that he's here means that he has a way of overcoming my immortality.

But Jacques had been too arrogant; he believed that the world revolved around him. That he was the predator, and Gainus was the prey.

Ultimately, Mayanes Jacques paid the price for his arrogance.

[You have defeated the Symbol of Arrogance, Mayanes Jacques.]

[You have cast judgment on an unforgivable criminal, who not only insulted the gods but also attempted to supplant them.]

[Fame has increased significantly. The churches will be more welcoming to you.]

[You have partially completed the goddess's quest.]

[Remaining Mayanes: 5]

[Gluttony is active.]

[Stats have been stolen.]

[Sense +3]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

"I killed the Mayanes!" Kang Oh raised Demon Sword Ubist into the air, and his companions beamed and cheered.

The remaining bugs lost all of their strength once Mayanes Jacques was killed. With this, the battle was over. However, the bugs weren't the only ones who'd lost their strength.

"Ugh." The Divine Dragon, Gainus, fell flat on his face.

Thud!

He had been exposed to Jacques' poison for far too long, and had finally reached his limit.

"Lord Gainus!"

"Divine Dragon!"

Kang Oh and his companions quickly rushed over.

* * *

"I'll put my honor on the line and save you."

Eder began healing Gainus. It wasn't easy healing a dragon due to their large bodies, but he kept his word. He managed to save Gainus's life.

This was only possible due to Jacques' death. Once he was gone, the seven poisons went with him. Of course, Eder's healing skills also helped significantly.

Sometime later...

"Did you get him?"

That was the first thing Gainus asked once he came to.

"Yes," Kang Oh replied.

"Good, you got him!" The white-scaled dragon smiled, and transformed back into his old, human form. "Hmm, I'm more comfortable in this body than my original one. It must be because I've assumed this form for so long."

"Thank you for all your hard work." Kang Oh bowed his head.

"Haha, yeah. I did go through a lot." Gainus bore a scar on his neck from where Jacques bit him.

"I should've killed him faster. I'm sorry." Kang Oh had the decency to look apologetic.

"You should've. If you had taken any longer, then I would've died," Gainus stared at him and said.

"..." Kang Oh said nothing, and just scratched his head. He wanted to get closer to him, but it looked pretty tough.

'Phew.' He inwardly sighed.

"It's fine. You managed to get him in the end. I was just joking around."

"If you need me to do anything, don't hesitate to ask. I'll do whatever you ask of me."

"Do your best to kill the rest of the Mayanes."

"Yes, sir."

"There's that same confidence from before. I'll be watching you. Oh, right, what happened to the God of Creation's source?" Gainus asked.

Cyndia opened up her hands, revealing the God of Creation's source. It looked like a star plucked from the night sky.

"We've finally reclaimed one."

"We'll gather all of them soon," Cyndia said. Her voice was calm, yet firm.

"Indeed. Protect it well."

"I plan on delivering it to the goddess as soon as we leave."

"Mm, good thinking. Then let's go. I'm sick of insects now."

Everyone agreed with Gainus's line of thought. 'No more insects!'

"Oh, and Lord Gainus. Jacques left behind a Mayanes-only ring. How will we dispose of this?" Cyndia asked.

It was clear that Kang Oh would ask for it.

Jacques' ring was an SS-rank item, and its effects were amazing, befitting its rank. It was an item that could be sold at a hefty price if it were remodeled. However, the ring wasn't his to take.

"A Mayanes-only item, huh. I'll keep it safe, so that it doesn't go to the others."

"Yes."

Gainus took the ring, which was embedded with a giant amber stone. Their business with Mayanes Jacques was over.