Chapter 172: 36th Floor. Madman (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 172: 36th Floor. Madman (4)
Kang Jun-hyeok lightly flicked his sword.
Since it was a mere fragment of the Yellow Pig, the power it could manifest was limited. Had it been the original entity, defeating it in such a manner would have been impossible. Its stomach was vast enough to devour an entire galaxy.
One could only deal meaningful damage to the true entity through abstract concepts, not physical force.
Well, if it were that powerful, it wouldn't be stuck here.
Leaving the fallen carcass behind, Kang Jun-hyeok walked away. When he returned to the Madman, the man let out a cackle as if he had been waiting for him.
"You're back sooner than I thought. It’s a headache, isn't it? You must have gone through a lot of trouble."
The Madman clearly assumed that Kang Jun-hyeok had failed to defeat the Yellow Pig and had returned in defeat. It was a perfectly normal reaction.
It was just that Kang Jun-hyeok was not a normal person. He spoke up calmly.
"I defeated it."
"…Huh?"
"The Yellow Pig. I killed it and came back."
"What did you say?"
The Madman asked repeatedly, his face twisted in bewilderment as if he couldn't process the words. Kang Jun-hyeok gestured with his chin toward the direction he had come from, looking annoyed.
"If you don't believe me, go see for yourself."
"…."
Boom!
The ground gouged as the Madman’s body vanished in a blur.
A moment later, he returned. He had covered a distance that took Kang Jun-hyeok days to travel in just a few dozen seconds.
The Madman returned with eyes wide as saucers.
"It’s true? What the… how? How on earth? Uh?"
The Madman was utterly flabbergasted. It was a natural reaction.
Objectively speaking, this might have been the most difficult quest among all the Loser’s quests he had given so far. The opponent was the Yellow Pig. It wasn't some mere minion of a Victor who had once devoured a galaxy; it was a fragment of the entity itself.
It was a being that could not be defeated unless one knew the specific strategy. In fact, in his past life, it had taken over a year for all the players in the universe to cooperate just to figure out that strategy. The Madman likely expected Kang Jun-hyeok to fail or, at the very least, take decades to succeed.
But Jun-hyeok knew the answer.
He knew it better than anyone else in the universe—better even than the Losers.
From the perspective of the Madman, who knew nothing of this, it felt like he was dreaming.
"How did you do it? It took even us months to figure out how to deal with that thing. And you did it in less than a month? …What is this?"
The Madman unconsciously looked at the Master of All Weapons. The weapon spoke in a low, resonant voice.
[An intuition for perceiving things from outside the universe. That is my assessment.]
"What? You were thinking that?"
This was news to Kang Jun-hyeok as well. The Master of All Weapons continued.
[I once thought this fellow was an incarnation of the Master of the Universe. But no matter how much I thought about it, that was impossible. So, I reached a simple conclusion. This fellow can intuitively perceive things that are external to this universe.]
"…Is that even possible for a being of this universe?"
It was like saying a being from a lower dimension could grasp the concepts of a three-dimensional world. The Madman wore a bizarre expression, but the Master of All Weapons simply spoke calmly.
[I also believe it should be impossible. However, he is actually producing results and achieving his goals. Only fools deny the truth when the results are right in front of them.]
"Hmm…."
The Madman still looked like he couldn't quite accept it. However, he could be certain of one thing.
Kang Jun-hyeok was different.
He was different compared to any player he had ever seen—no, compared to any being in the universe, players aside. After a moment of contemplation, the Madman nodded.
"…Fine. You’ve proven your confidence. Quest cleared."
[Hidden Quest Cleared.]
[Reward: The Madman acknowledges you and will craft equipment for you.]
"Then, I leave it to you."
Kang Jun-hyeok gave a thin smile. The Madman clicked his tongue regretfully as he gathered the materials Jun-hyeok handed over.
"Tsk. I wanted to use these myself. But I guess this isn't so bad either."
In the end, he had gained the opportunity to work with materials from the Victors. He walked into his house with a joyful laugh.
"I'll have it done within three days, so wait here!"
"Understood."
Kang Jun-hyeok didn't stay idle during those three days. He didn't remember everything from his past life perfectly; parts he deemed unimportant had been forgotten or erased.
He needed to sharpen his senses. He roamed the abandoned battlefields, dealing with and responding to the remnants left behind by the Victors. While not perfect, he managed to reclaim a significant portion of his past-life combat instincts.
And three days later.
"I made it!"
The Madman held out a glove with shining eyes. It was a black gauntlet, fitted with strange devices that emitted a low mechanical hum.
"Can you explain it to me?"
"Of course! Our powers require a preparation process. Whether it's chanting magic, moving internal energy, or summoning spirits. To handle great power, you need time. But the Victors—especially the Empire from Somewhere—don't need any of that crap."
Anytime, anywhere, they could explode with power close to their full strength without any delay or preparation. The Madman handed over the gauntlet with a proud face.
"This is equipment that embodies that concept."
* * *
[High-Output Gauntlet from Somewhere]
• Slot: Weapon
• Rank: High-Rank
• Attack Power: +100
• Equipment Ability: Delivers a powerful blow dealing 8,000 damage.
• Cooldown: 3 days
Created using a ship part and a core from the Empire from Somewhere.*
* * *
Kang Jun-hyeok’s eyes widened.
8,000 damage.
It was an astounding amount of fixed damage. Not only that, but the weapon's base attack power was a whopping 100.
"Now. Since you've received new equipment, you should test it out, right?"
The Madman urged him on, looking even more excited than Kang Jun-hyeok. Jun-hyeok equipped the gauntlet and headed toward a small hill.
"Don't pull your fist back or put strength into it. Just touch the target and activate it."
"Like a one-inch punch?"
"Exactly!"
Kang Jun-hyeok followed the Madman’s instructions. He placed his fist against the hill and activated the gauntlet.
[High-Output Gauntlet from Somewhere.]
Then, a thunderous roar erupted.
KABOOM!
An intense force slammed into the hill. With the sound of something being crushed, everything was blown away. He used Balancing to keep his body from being pushed back by the recoil.
"…Heh."
Kang Jun-hyeok let out a hollow laugh as he surveyed the scene before him.
The entire hill was gone.
It had vanished without a trace, leaving only a flat, empty field.
He could have achieved something similar now if he gathered all his internal energy to use the Master of All Weapons' martial arts or threw all his gems at once. However, handling that much power required sufficient time and a high cost.
In contrast, this gauntlet brought out such power simply by placing a fist and activating a skill.
The output of a warship from the Empire from Somewhere—a vessel capable of destroying stars on its own—was concentrated within this small gauntlet.
The Madman smirked, looking satisfied.
"Good. The power is a bit disappointing, but… not bad! What do you think?"
"It’s excellent."
The best part was that the equipment had no penalties for him. A typical player could only use one weapon, so they would have to keep the gauntlet equipped at all times.
But Kang Jun-hyeok had Omni-Weapon Control.
He could handle two weapons simultaneously. He could simply wear the gauntlet while drawing and using his sword or spear. It was near-perfect equipment.
[Are you wearing it over me? How uncomfortable.]
"Deal with it."
However, the Master of All Weapons also had to overlap in the form of a glove. Kang Jun-hyeok smiled silently at the grumbling weapon.
"Thank you."
"Come back again. I have many, many things I want to make."
Kang Jun-hyeok nodded.
[36th Floor Quest Cleared.]
[Rewards are determined based on your performance.]
[Checking achievement rate…]
[Verification complete.]
[Achievement Rate: 100%]
[Perfect Clear. Congratulations! Additional rewards will be granted.]
[The effect of the Title: Perfect Player has been added.]
[4,444 Gold has been granted.]
[Perfect Clear Reward: Obtained [Weapon: High-Output Gauntlet from Somewhere].]
[Perfect Clear Reward: Obtained [Title: Victor Slaughterer].]
[Players who have Perfect Cleared the 36th Floor: 1.]
[You are the only one!]
[Universe Announcement.]
[Please offer your congratulations! Everyone in the universe! A Perfect Player has appeared on the 36th Floor. This is a feat that no one has ever achieved before!]
[Feat +4]
Kang Jun-hyeok returned to Earth.
There were two Perfect Clear rewards. One was the weapon he had already received, and the other was a title. The title's effect was also substantial.
* * *
[Title: Victor Slaughterer]
• A title given to one who has killed three or more Victors.
• Effect: All stats increase by +7 when facing a Victor.
* * *
A +7 increase to all stats.
Though limited to when facing a Victor, it was a monstrous figure. When combined with the Victor Slayer title he had obtained previously, his stats would increase by a total of 10 when fighting a Victor.
In essence, it was the same as his level rising by more than 5. This was enough to change the outcome of a battle.
The Perfect Player title also added +1 to all stats when facing a Victor.
"This is good."
He had succeeded in completely winning over the Madman.
Satisfied, Kang Jun-hyeok called Pixie. Having received his memories, she wore a similarly bizarre expression.
[…I’ve been feeling this for a while, but what exactly are you? How do you know the strategies for these things?]
"I just have good intuition."
[Intuition for perceiving things from outside the universe? That actually makes sense.]
[350 Starlight.]
Pixie spoke as if she found it absurd and handed over the Starlight.
[You’ve gathered quite a bit of Gold and Starlight by now, haven't you? When are you going to use them?]
"I'm thinking about it."
Should he gather small things to supplement his overall power? Or should he go for one single, overwhelming power? He was still debating that part.
"For now, later."
[Got it. See you next time!]
After taking a sufficient rest, Kang Jun-hyeok entered the Tower again.
[37th Floor Quest.]
[Save the people of the village that worships a monster.]
The 37th floor was a rural village that worshipped an Imugi.
The strength of the Imugi itself wasn't that great. It was almost embarrassing to even call it a monster. Even an ordinary player could suppress it somehow.
However, the faith of the villagers was the problem.
Their faith in the Imugi, which had lasted for hundreds of years, was incredibly deep-rooted and strong. Furthermore, being a rural village, their hostility toward outsiders was intense. Even if one defeated the Imugi, a Perfect Clear would be out of reach if they failed to gain the trust of the villagers.
Gain the trust of the villagers.
Destroy their worship of the Imugi.
Those were the conditions for a Perfect Clear on the 37th floor.
And that was the field Kang Jun-hyeok was most confident in.