Chapter 129: 24th Floor. The Poisoned City (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 129: 24th Floor. The Poisoned City (2)
"…By any chance, are you familiar with this kind of technology?" the Mayor asked cautiously.
Kang Jun-hyeok closed the tank with practiced ease, his movements as fluid as those of a seasoned technician. Of course, Jun-hyeok didn't actually understand the technology itself. It was simply the power of his Observation skill.
Having reached Proficiency B, the skill had transcended mere perception. No matter how complex the machinery, it provided the solution in an instant. Modern technology was no different; he knew nothing about programming, yet he was likely more proficient at it than anyone else on Earth. That was the true power of a skill—the essence of high proficiency.
He successfully sealed the tank, but the next hurdle immediately presented itself. Stepping outside, the Mayor let out a heavy groan.
"We managed to close the tank, but there is still so much of the drug lingering in the air."
The chemicals that had already been released didn't just vanish. The city remained blanketed in a thick, suffocating fog.
"I don't know what we can do about this," the Mayor muttered, clutching his head in distress.
Jun-hyeok silently observed the mist. There’s mana in it.
This wasn't a simple narcotic. It was a magical catalyst created by infusing mana into the substance. If that was the case, there was a solution. Jun-hyeok pulled two pieces of Amber from his inventory and tossed them into the air.
Arcana Gem Magic revolved around the manipulation of gems, and each stone possessed unique properties. The property of Amber was the absorption of mana.
"Swallow it."
Vwooom!
The magic formula within the Amber activated, releasing a massive shockwave. The Mayor, who had been watching in confusion, widened his eyes.
"Ah, the fog is…"
The mist was vanishing.
"I've cleared most of it," Jun-hyeok said. "The remaining traces of the drug will disperse on their own over time."
"My goodness. You are truly incredible! To think you could solve these problems one after another!"
The Mayor made a great fuss, but Jun-hyeok cut through the praise. "Now we need to treat the people's addiction."
"Is it too much for your Divine Power, Sir Jun-hyeok?"
"My Divine Power isn't inexhaustible. I can only treat a few people. Is there a pharmacology expert in the city?"
"There is a herbalist!"
Realizing Jun-hyeok's intent, the Mayor moved quickly. They found the herbalist, who was grinning vacantly while high on the drug, and Jun-hyeok used Divine Power to snap him back to his senses. Once he regained clarity, the herbalist was horrified by the state of the city and immediately realized his duty.
"I must create a medicine to treat the addiction! I'll get to work!"
"I will help you," Jun-hyeok offered.
The herbalist immediately began checking symptoms and formulating a remedy. Treating a mana-infused drug that had blanketed an entire city was no easy feat. Jun-hyeok assisted the struggling man, providing answers so quickly that the herbalist gave him a bewildered look.
"It feels as though you know more about medicine than I do…"
A week passed in this manner, and they finally succeeded in creating an antidote. However, a new problem arose.
"We're short on ingredients. We need to go to a nearby city, but it takes at least a week just to get there."
A two-week round trip. One week had already passed, and if it took another two weeks, they wouldn't have nearly enough time left. Jun-hyeok decided to take matters into his own hands.
"I'll go."
"Thank you! Here is the list of required ingredients!"
Taking the list, Jun-hyeok left the city. It would take a normal person a week to reach the neighboring settlement. For him, it wouldn't even take a day.
[ Vision Expansion. ]
[ Rift Movement. ]
Jun-hyeok gathered the ingredients and returned to the city in just two days. The herbalist looked utterly stunned.
"…You're back already?"
"Here they are."
The herbalist let out a hollow laugh as he inspected the supplies. "Unbelievable."
"But there is one issue," Jun-hyeok added.
One of the ingredients required a specific flower, but it wasn't for sale in the nearby city. He had only been able to obtain the seeds. The herbalist nodded as if he had expected this.
"That flower withers quickly, so we have to grow it whenever we need it. We can just plant the seeds, but it takes a full month to bloom."
"A month?"
To a herbalist living in this world, a month was a reasonable wait. But not for Jun-hyeok. He only had 21 days remaining. He would have to force the flowers to bloom.
"There's no need to wait a month."
"Pardon?"
Jun-hyeok headed to a vacant lot near the city, the herbalist following with a confused expression.
[ Ground Leveling. ]
Rumble!
The ground was leveled in an instant. After planting the seeds one by one, Jun-hyeok raised his hand.
[ Plant Growth. ]
Sshhh.
The seeds germinated and grew at an incredible speed. Vibrant purple flowers bloomed in an instant. The herbalist's jaw dropped. Jun-hyeok brushed off his hands.
"Let's get straight to production."
"…Are you perhaps a special messenger sent by the gods to save our city?" the herbalist asked with total sincerity.
From then on, the two worked together to produce the medicine and treat the addicts. In the process, Jun-hyeok acquired a new skill.
[ Passive Skill: Pharmacology ]
[ Rank: Low-Rank ]
[ Proficiency: F ]
[ Effect: Mastery over all techniques related to handling medicine. Allows you to handle them with near-expert skill. ]
With the acquisition of the skill, the speed of production accelerated. Jun-hyeok became even faster than the herbalist who had spent his entire life in the trade. One by one, the addicts began to recover.
Clearing the 24th floor was notoriously difficult. Enduring the drug's effects was one thing; waking the Mayor was another, and infiltrating the underground was yet another. Stopping the machinery was hard, and purifying the fog remaining in the city was considered near impossible. On top of all that, one had to manufacture the medicine to treat the entire population.
Under normal circumstances, a Perfect Clear was practically impossible on this floor. In fact, the floor wasn't even designed to be cleared in this manner. However, Jun-hyeok solved every problem using his unique array of skills and cards.
Finally, twenty-eight days after Jun-hyeok entered the 24th floor, the last addict was cured.
"Aaaah!"
"It's a miracle!"
Despite the massive disaster, not a single person had died. Once the city had stabilized, the Mayor summoned Jun-hyeok and bowed deeply.
"Thank you so much, Sir Jun-hyeok! It is all thanks to you, Priest! The city survived because of your grace."
"I only did what needed to be done."
"Ah… so humble as well! We can never truly repay the debt we owe you. It is a small token, but please allow us to express our gratitude!"
The Mayor clapped his hands. Guards entered and handed over a pouch filled with gems.
"Gems."
Jun-hyeok opened the pouch. There were about ten gems inside of decent size and purity. Since he was running low on materials, it was the perfect reward.
"Thank you."
"That is not all! Bring it here!"
The guards carefully brought out a sword. The Mayor took it and presented it to Jun-hyeok.
"This is a sword with a long history, passed down through my family for generations. There are rumors that a Hero once used it. The reason those villains were making drugs in the underground was likely to seize this blade."
"Is it alright for you to give me such a treasure?"
"If not for you, Sir Jun-hyeok, we would all be dead. This is only right."
Jun-hyeok accepted the sword. At that moment, the quest concluded.
[ 24th Floor Quest Cleared. ]
[ Calculating achievement rate… ]
[ Achievement Rate: 100% ]
[ Perfect Clear. Congratulations! Additional rewards will be granted. ]
[ The effect of the Title: Perfect Player has been applied. ]
[ 4,112 Gold has been rewarded. ]
[ You have obtained the Perfect Clear reward: [Gems]. ]
[ You have obtained the Perfect Clear reward: [Descending Sword]. ]
[ Players who have Perfect Cleared the 24th floor: 2. ]
[ Universe Announcement. ]
[ Please offer your congratulations! A Perfect Player of the 24th floor has appeared. ]
[ Feat + 2 ]
* * *
The added effect of the Perfect Player title was resistance to poisoning. Unfortunately, it wasn't very useful to Jun-hyeok, as he already possessed Mental Resistance and Poison Resistance.
The sword, however, was quite impressive.
[ Descending Sword ]
[ Type: Weapon ]
[ Rank: Mid-Rank ]
[ Attack Power: +50 ]
[ Description: A sword passed down through generations in a small city. It is widely known as a blade once wielded by a Hero. Whether the legend is true remains unknown, but the energy contained within the blade is anything but ordinary. ]
Its attack power was a whopping 50—15 points higher than the White Light Sword. It was a masterpiece with a chilling aura lingering on the blade. To think such a weapon existed in a small city; it was no wonder the conspirators were willing to poison a whole population to steal it.
Afterward, Jun-hyeok summoned Pixie and shared his memories with her. Pixie flicked the ash from her cigar, looking intrigued.
[The content itself is boring, but your response was interesting. You really used every trick in the book.]
This floor clearly demonstrated what kind of player Kang Jun-hyeok was. Pixie muttered, [If it were anyone else, they probably would have cleared it in a completely different way.]
"Probably." Jun-hyeok didn't deny it.
Pixie was right. He wasn't the only one who had Perfect Cleared the 24th floor. However, no other player possessed such a diverse array of skills.
Then how did the other player achieve a Perfect Clear? The answer was simple: Overwhelming Divine Power.
The role of Divine Power was the purification of corruption. If someone possessed enough of it to purify an entire city at once, they could achieve a Perfect Clear through brute force.
That person was born as an incarnation of the gods—one of the top players in both the present and the future.
The Saintess.
The other Perfect Player of the 24th floor was the woman known as the Saintess. She must have seen the announcement by now, Jun-hyeok thought.
He recalled a memory of her.
—I’m telling you, I’m the reincarnation of the gods! You need to show me more respect and consideration!
A smirk escaped him as he imagined the complaints currently pouring out of that chatterbox mouth.
The amount of Starlight earned from this clear was 120. Since there were no hidden elements, it was a fair amount. Next was the 25th floor. As Jun-hyeok recalled the nature of that floor, he suddenly paused.
"Ah."
[What is it?]
"Nothing." Jun-hyeok shook his head. I've already come this far.
The Tower granted to them by the Master of the Universe was, to be blunt, not that difficult in the early stages. One could clear it even while making mistakes. It was only in the later stages that the difficulty truly spiked.
But the 25th floor was different. It was the floor that had forced the most players to retire, leaving countless survivors traumatized.
I struggled quite a bit there, too.
But Jun-hyeok actually smiled. Bring it on.
He leisurely laid down on the bed, ready for what was to come.