To know the enemy and the self (1)
Bloodseeker Sword, an amorphous sword inspired by Chul Namgoong’s Sword Manipulation made from Bloodseeker’s Energy. It didn’t consume much energy, but three grips were his limit since it required high concentration to control. However, did the meditation training that he had done during his 45-day guarding mission help?
He’d gained two more swords as a result. This means that by adding the two he held in his hands, he could handle a total of seven swords at once.
「 Six swords are being used. Increases strength by +1.」
「 Seven swords are being used. Sword is infused with Phantom Energy.」
Attack speed 4x, Power 3.5x, his magic (Bloodseeker Energy) consumption rate halved, and his agility and strength stats upped by one. Up until Phantom Energy, which he had no idea what effect it entailed, the effects brought by King of All Swords were inconceivably great.
Yoon-seok felt like it had great potential. It was an effect that maximized the efficiency of making Bloodseeker Swords. The limit to maintaining all seven swords was five minutes, but…
If he interpreted it differently, wouldn’t it mean that the harder he worked, the better it would become?
‘If I could handle a hundred swords all at once….’
He was still far off from such a goal at the moment, but it might be possible someday if he continued to improve. No, he was sure it was possible. He realized that nothing was impossible with the human body by looking at the Heavenly Devil’s sword.
“…”
Afterward, Yoon-seok, who had been practicing with the Bloodseeker Sword, felt an overwhelming sense of mental fatigue and stopped abruptly. Controlling Bloodseeker Sword was like solving a complex mathematical problem that required head. He wasn’t sure what was so difficult, but at least that was what Yoon-seok felt.
‘It’d be more convenient if I had the skill to assist….’
Yoon-seok, who came from Earth, had no strange prejudices against the usage of magic. As important as it was to control a character, should he say that its performance was also important? Well, among those who came all the way here, who didn’t think that way…
He might gain control someday, but if the system could resolve the issue easily and quickly, Yoon-seok would’ve chosen the latter choice a hundred times over whether it was ability, stat, or skill, the Tower challengers’ nature grows stronger after combining the three.
‘Nothing catches my eye.’
Yoon-seok opened the store and scanned through the skills being sold. Amplified Arithmetic, Enhanced Thought Process, Focus, Brain Burst, Automaticity, Ego Booster…
They might look strange as a single power, but an appropriate skill might be born after synthesizing them all. But he didn’t have the budget to purchase them now, so he had to pass it up for now.
‘The only way to grow stronger is to keep ascending.’
Taking it for granted, Yoon-seok finally checked his LP. Before he used 500LP to purchase a mission order, he’d completed additional achievements and gained 920LP.
「List of Achievements」
-One-up (Avoid 100 consecutive attacks) +30LP
-One Strike Kill (Win with one attack) +30LP
-Coin Collector (Achieve10 coins on-hand) +30LP
-Slayer (Killed 1,000 challengers) +500LP
-Only Unrivaled (Succeed in Only Difficulty mission) +300LP
-Snake’s Tongue (Won victory in a duel via speech or deception) +30 LP
After checking the conditions of the Slayer achievement completed during the mission trial, Yoon-seok laughed bitterly. Well, he guessed what kind of achievement it would be…but 1,000 people?
He didn’t think it was a system error, but honestly, it was unbelievable.
‘Let’s save up LP for future use….’
Yoon-seok opened the chat room next. He’d learned about the mission trial from Elle in advance, and he had no one to talk to in the chat room, so naturally, he stopped visiting.
[Entering the chat room on the 9th floor]
[Current Participants 2/741]
A total of two current participants. Other than Yoon-seok, this meant that only one person was connected to the chat room.
‘741 people?’
It was a surprisingly large number. Yoon-seok tried limiting it only to the Earth via the filter.
‘So I’m the only one.’
Maybe there’s more on the upper floors, but…
However, after confirmation, Yoon-seok was the only Earth challenger on the 9th floor.
-Predator: You there?
Yoon-seok talked to the only other person. No reply. They might be busy after joining the chat, or they didn’t want to answer. Deciding to wait a little longer, Yoon-seok trained with Bloodseeker Sword with the window open.
Then the answer returned shortly after. It was just one word.
-Fireworks: Newcomer?
Yoon-seok continued the conversation quickly, even though he laughed at the unexpectedly direct response.
-Predator: Yes. But why are there so few people here compared to the total number?
-Fireworks: It takes 1 or 2 tries for those who ascend, and those who can’t at first won’t, no matter how many times they try. They all went their own way.
It meant that there were this many people who gave up their mission and went to the plaza or returned to their respective worlds with tickets. Considering that those who chose a full return weren’t included among the participants, the number of people stuck on the 9th floor was easily estimated.
What kind of trial would it be this time? Yoon-seok, who hadn’t heard about the ninth floor trial from Elle, asked.
-Predator: Can you tell me about the trial?
-Fireworks: There’s no point in telling you.
There’s no point? As he was typing to ask what they were talking about…
-Fireworks: Think about how much you know about yourself before you challenge.
Fireworks left.
[Current Participants 1/741]
The lofty words made him question it further. What the hell did they mean by that? There was no way to know, but…
There was no hope in waiting for someone to enter the chat room and kindly explain it to him.
‘Do I have no choice but to face it head-on?’
Yoon-seok somehow felt like he was back at the start, but he wasn’t that anxious. However, before choosing to head for the trial, he recalled what Fireworks had said, so he asked himself.
‘How much do I know about myself?’
He had no clue. So he had to ascend. He would know once the side effects of b Bloodseeker’s Ultimatum} disappeared.
「Get ready. The duel will begin soon.」
Only one step to the tenth floor. Not long left.
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