An ancient-looking mansion and the serene pond in front of it. Both evaporated into grains of sand. Yoon-seok watched the process absent-minded.
Flash-!
A white light swallowed the space before disappearing entirely. When Yoon-seok returned to his senses, he was suddenly back in his familiar waiting room.
ââŠâ
His sight gradually recovered from the white light burned into his retinas.
Yoon-seok clenched and unclenched his hands. Were the senses he felt real or fake?
âThatâs a useless thought.â
It wasnât something he could waste his time on right now. He had already walked so far that he couldnât go back. So, Yoon-seok has to keep going.
Tuk.
Slowly, his trembling stopped. Breathing deeply, Yoon-seok swiped the tablet to confirm one thing.
ăList of Achievementsă
Exploiter (Achieved overall evaluation of SSS grade) + 1,500 LP.
Threat +1LP.
Newly achieved Threat. Unlike the other achievements recorded so far, there was no description, and the LP reward was only one.
âItâs probably like matching assortments.â
Yoon-seok wasnât foolish enough to not realize why this achievement existed or why he acquired it.
âThreat.â
It was like the Towerâs surveillance network that filtered out those who might pose a threat in advance.
âProbably, the fulfilled condition is to kill those who donât die.â
Of course, due to this achievement, he didnât know how the Tower would start treating him. However, Yoon-seok wasnât concerned. As always, he would figure it out when the time came.
âUntil then, I only have to do what I can.â
Yoon-seok muttered aloud.
âElle.â
There was something he wanted to check through her.
An invitation arrived, and his vision went dark again. When Yoon-seok opened his eyes, Elle was right in front of him.
âYoon-seok! Who did you meet there?â
ââŠ?â
Yoon-seok tilted his head. He met the Heavenly Warrior, killed him, and gained one of his powers as a prize. The reason why he came here was to check what power it was, but Elle seemed to know nothing.
ââŠWerenât you watching?â
âThe shield blocked my sight of the other adminâs place so that I couldnât see anything.â
âI see.â
âSo, what happened?â
Elle pushed her head closer. Her eyes sparkled like a curious childâs. It must be boring to be left alone in the cabin every day. However, how much should he tell her?
âI met Namgoong, the Heavenly Warrior.â
ââŠYou met that guy? So? What happened?â
To sum up, Yoon-seok killed him and gained his power. Nothing went wrong up until that point. However, what happened next confused him.
ăThe unique code of Unique Skill {Divine Ultimatum} C8041J951mI61-0 is permanently deleted.ă
This identification number could only be attached to factory-made products. Looking at this, he became anxious that if he broke the Tower, Elle would disappear too. ButâŠ
âI donât have to say this since she didnât see it.â
Yoon-seok swallowed the rising words. He didnât want to pass this anxiety onto Elle. No, it was his job to prevent that future. That was why he was trying so hard to become stronger.
âWhat kind of power did I get?â
When Yoon-seok asked, Elle stepped back.
ââŠIâll check it out now.â
That being said, she might need a little time. Yoon-seok waited calmly.
âWhat will it beâŠ?â
He spent 1 million WP to meet Namgoong Cheol, and instead of purchasing his power, he chose to kill him. Since he didnât have the power he wanted, he decided to take this opportunity to get something better.
âBut I hope I get at least a 700,000 WP one.â
Namgoong Cheol had 35 powers, so Yoon-seok set the break-even point at around 700,000 WP. If it exceeded that, it was a benefit. Of course, the most important thing was power and synergy rather than money, but anyway.
ââŠIs it Twilight? That wonât come out, right?â
4.1 million WP. He didnât know exactly what the ability entailed, but Yoon-seok was quite curious because he bragged that it was a power more expensive than Elleâs Clairvoyance. However, it was a 1/35 chance to acquire it, so he didnât expect much.
âLetâs not expect too much. Itâs amazing enough if I get Third Sword or White Lotus Technique.â
âItâs over.â
Elle said.
âThere are two new additional powers.â
ââŠTwo?â
Yoon-seok was flustered for a moment, but it was a matter of course. He used b Predation} in the 23rd-floor duel. Was it called Conversion?
âAh, one came from the last duel. Please tell me that one first. What kind of power is it?â
âItâs a power that converts your points into 100% pure gold. I see that you can change it to about 100g for 10,000 points.â
It was a useless power. Why would he change precious points to useless gold?
âIt fits him, howeverâŠâ
Yoon-seok breathed out a long sigh and clicked his tongue. It was regrettable that the power was randomly selected.
âWhat kind of power did I get from Namgoong Cheol?â
Yoon-seok moved on. If Carpbennyâs power was an appetizer, Namgoongâs was the main dishâŠ
âSkill Selling.â
ââŠSkill Selling?
âYes. Itâs a power that can convert a skill into APâŠâ
âYou donât have to explain more. I know what kind of ability it is.â
âYesâŠâ
Elle lowered her head sullenly, and Yoon-seok rubbed at his chin. The price of Skill Selling power was 900,000 WP. Although it wasnât Third Sword, White Lotus, or Twilight, the break-even point was narrow. He had Skill Synthesis, but Skill Selling could also be quite useful.
âAt this rate, did I find back the money I investedâŠ?â
There was no jackpot, but Yoon-seok decided to be satisfied with this much. Not everything could always go in the best direction.
Yoon-seok enjoyed a chat with Elle before returning to the waiting room. Then, he reconfirmed what he got from the 23rd-floor duel.
âI forgot about it because I was so immersed in training.â
If it werenât for Elle, he wouldnât have remembered.
âHow did I manage to miss that?â
Yoon-seok smirked as he swiped the tablet. Next, he identified the Unique Skill b Treasure Hunter} obtained during the previous duel.
Visit wuxiaworld.eu for extra chapters.
{Treasure Hunter}
Rank S â Can awaken the hidden ability in special treasures. The remaining usage 0/3.
Rank A â When a treasure is obtained, three options appear.
Rank B â When more than ten treasures are equipped, all stats increase by +2.
Rank C â When a treasure is obtained, there is a 5% probability that an additional special treasure will be obtained.
Rank D â The value of equipment can be quantified and checked. If the userâs equipment score is two times higher than the enemiesâ, all stats increase by +1.
Rank E â After winning a duel, a Treasure in proportion to the opponentâs equipment score is acquired.
Rank F â Equipment below Rank E+ can be purchased for free. The remaining usage 0/5.
It was clear how the challenger Carpbenny grew stronger.
âAnyway, the all-stats increase is nice, but I have to wear ten treasuresâŠ?â
Yoon-seok smacked his lips. Should he say that it was a bit disappointing again this time? First of all, b Treasure Hunter} had good synergy with b Predation}. But, the problem was timing. Not only was it impossible to collect ten treasures before the 25th floor, which is the time of their showdown⊠there was no remaining availability left for the core ability at Rank S.
ââŠI should only use this until then and sell it through Skill Selling or synthesize it.â
While at it, Yoon-seok even checked the equipment Dragon Godâs Bracelet (Rank SS). It wasnât much, and the ability shown in the duel was all it had. He decided to keep it for now and sell it later when he needed points.
âIs that it?â
He could spend his points and upgrade his gear closer to the duel, so what needed to be done in the waiting room was finished. Now, he only had two things left to do. Finding the six remaining colleagues and choosing the right opponent to train against in the arena.
âI also have to tell her what I heard from Namgoong, and it wonât be bad to do all of that in Moorim.â
Above all, there are many powerful people in Moorim like Cheon-ma and the Heavenly Buddha.
âAnd the land is smaller than Seheranbad.â
Yoon-seok bought and tore several tickets to Moorim without a second thought.
ăReturning to Moorim.ă
He couldnât even remember how long it had been since he visited Moorim.
Cold air filled his lungs. He saw leafless trees and white snow covering their branches when he opened his eyes.
âWhere am I?â
Looking around, he saw a huge pot half buried before his eyes.
âAh, itâs here.â
After escaping from Cheonma-dong, Yoon-seok practiced martial arts with Cheon-ma here. At that time, it was spring, and the flowers were in full bloom, but a bitter winter had arrived before he knew it.
âI also ate a lot of delicious things back then.â
Memories came rushing back as clearly as if it was yesterday. Yoon-seok smiled, recalling the time they spent together. Cheon-maâs lessons were intense, but it was fun when he thought about it now. Although that was what reaching a new state was likeâŠ
The time had blurred by when they sat down and talked.
âWhat is she doing right now? I didnât tell her I was coming to Moorim.â
Finally, Yoon-seok took a map out of his bag and realized his mistake.
âAh, this isnât a Moorim mapâŠ.â
The map named Whale Lighthouse given to him by Ashton marked his current location, but he needed a more precise map. Yoon-seok went back to his first question.
ââŠâ
âŠWhere was he? Of course, he couldnât tell. Yoon-seok escaped from Cheonma-dong and just followed Cheon-ma. He didnât even know if this place was to the south or north of the lake.
âYeah, is that soâŠâ
He felt like a lost child. Come to think of it; this was nothing new.
Thud, thud.
This happened every time he went to a new dimension. Yoon-seok closed his eyes.
Whoooooooosh-!
100m, 200m, 300m, 500m, 1,000m⊠he gradually spread his magic out in a radius around him.
âDark⊠clothesâŠ!â
It wasnât until the radius reached about 1km that Yoon-seok detected a presence. Dozens of them, at that.
Yoon-seok increased the density of the widespread magic, and slowly the faint voices became clear.
âKill the Dark Prince!
âKill him!
âFerocious Water Dragon!
âUgh, arghhhhhhhhh!
It sounded like two sects were fighting over there right nowâŠ
âI can secretly take one person out and ask for directions.â