Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Skill Advancement
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"Follow me."
At my command, Dwin reflexively bowed his head and trailed behind me.
We headed back to Zone 2, to the cave where the Star-Eyed Wolf had been.
Dwin simply followed silently in my footsteps.
There was a subtle difference in his demeanor compared to this morning, as if something in his mindset had shifted.
But I didn't pay it any mind.
When we arrived at the cave, a massive wolf with pitch-black fur greeted us as expected.
I ordered Dwin to accept the elite quest, then subdued the wolf in exactly the same way as before.
Just before delivering the killing blow, I handed the finish to Dwin.
The wolf's corpse turned to dust and vanished under the blade of Dwin's now stronger sword. Unfortunately, nothing was left behind.
Dwin had been level 4, and landing the final blow pushed him to level 5.
He immediately hit complete, claiming a hefty chunk of experience from the elite quest reward.
At that moment, his level rose again to 6.
Dwin had leveled up, but he couldn't purely bask in the joy.
The moment his level rose again, the look in his eyes as he gazed at me changed ever so slightly.
I spoke to him.
"Head back to the village now. Don't let me see you until noon tomorrow."
"Just like yesterday, no using the inn. Buy only two meals' worth of food per day. The others too."
Dwin hesitated for a moment, but soon bowed his head and quietly slipped out of the cave.
Now, I was the only one left in the forest again.
I headed to the cave of another Star-Eyed Wolf. This was the last monster of the day.
It stared at me with the same serene yet overwhelming presence as before.
But this time was different.
The previous Star-Eyed Wolf had been killed by Dwin, so [Grasp Complete] hadn't applied to it. However, my body, honed by [Grasp Complete], could now take down any monster more easily than before.
I read some of its movements and toyed with it using the minimal effort.
The Star-Eyed Wolf was powerless against my overwhelming strength.
The fact that it was the same wolf-type monster made the trained power feel even more pronounced.
And with that, the final hunt of the day ended.
On my way back to the village, instead of going straight there, I sat down in the meadow and drank a mana potion.
The cool liquid slid down my throat, and my depleted demi-god power began to slowly refill.
I closed my eyes and expanded [Domain].
The space within a 50-meter radius faintly warped, becoming an extension of my senses.
Consume demi-god power, recover with potion, consume again. Repeat.
It was tedious and painful work, but I didn't stop.
How much time passed?
It was when the artificial sunset glow faintly pushed back the forest's darkness.
Finally, the change I'd been waiting for arrived.
The second skill advancement.
Like Demi-God Body, Domain saw a dramatic performance boost upon reaching 2nd Grade.
The range expanded from 50 meters to 75 meters, and most notably, the demi-god power consumption efficiency improved markedly.
I could now maintain the domain longer and more stably with the same amount of power.
Satisfied, I smiled and retracted the domain.
With this, both class skills had advanced to 2nd Grade.
I opened my status window to review today's gains.
Alignment: Evil
Unique Ability: [Universal Resistance]
Skills: [Domain 2nd Grade], [Demi-God Body 2nd Grade], [Grasp Complete 1st Grade]
Overwhelming.
All stats had soared well past 20.
It was a miraculous result born from massive level-ups and skill advancements.
I checked my inventory too.
Current gold held: 13,355
And the inventory was piled with materials from today's hunts.
The item counts had built up nicely too.
Item materials: 57, Ring: 1, Weapon selection vouchers: 18, Mana potions: 35, Stamina potion: 1.
The last one was the most crucial: the key.
As I gazed at my inventory, I sank into thought.
On day 6, holding over 10,000 gold.
This was proof that, across all dimensions, I was undoubtedly the richest.
After confirming all that, one final task remained.
Without hesitation, I opened the Soul Shop and bought an [Experience Check Scroll].
Using the item brought up a new info window before my eyes.
Now I had concrete numbers.
EXP requirements ramped up far more sharply than expected with each level.
'Level 19 needs 350, but 20 jumps to 1,000. It spikes dramatically every time the tens digit changes.'
EXP demands surged even more after level 20.
At this rate, just slimes and wolves wouldn't cut it for keeping up level-up speed.
Opening Zone 3 was urgent.
And to unlock Zone 3, I needed to hunt more monsters, more efficiently.
Should I use the monster summon scroll again?
But I had no idea how many monsters Zone 3 required.
I calmed my impatience by reviewing the EXP chart.
This made it clear how vital achievements were.
Achievements effectively lowered level-up difficulty permanently.
Reaching level 20 with 19 stats was far harder than with 20 stats—by several times over.
Leveling isn't as easy as I thought... Even rushing with spawn kills, I can't bridge a 10-level gap.
But at the same time, it let me plan far more precisely moving forward.
Worthwhile purchase.
I closed the info window and mapped out tomorrow's plans in my head.
EXP and gold farming via new slaves, skill training.
All critical; messing up even one could jeopardize my top spot.
I needed to be harsher on myself, devise even crazier plans.
Unbeknownst to me, since arriving in the Transcendence World, my ambitions had been steadily climbing without end.
Walking the dark path back to the village.
Suddenly, life on Earth flashed in my mind.
What if I hadn't come here on day 1?
What would I be doing now?
Hearing the system announcement, hunting wooden dolls for points?
Would I have taken on this brutal, life-or-death competition?
Or like most, settled into reality and ignored the chance?
Or maybe challenged it but failed.
If I'd succeeded and arrived on day 2 or later, would I be someone's slave like Dwin now?
Or would I have subjugated them and become the new ruler?
Impossible to say.
But one thing was certain.
The system chose me.
Even if pure chance or fate's prank, the result stood.
Right now, I led everyone.
I shook off the fleeting thoughts.
The past didn't matter.
Only the now and the future I'd forge.
I cleared my mind and arrived at the inn.
Lying in bed.
But for some reason, my heart still raced wildly.
[Dimension 99]
A man gazed up at the Transcendence World's artificial sky.
A sunset painted as if with a brush dipped in red, unrealistically vivid.
The man taking in the sight was Kim Hyuk.
The one who arrived on day 2.
It had been five days since he'd been assigned to Dimension 99.
'Five days since then, huh?'
Short time, yet so much had happened.
As he lost himself in thought, a familiar voice came from beside him.
"Kim Hyuk? What about the Star-Eyed Wolf? Tried the Compound-Eyed Wolves today—they're no joke."
Kim Hyuk turned to see Bason approaching.
His day-2 companion, now the most trustworthy ally.
Bason was the one Kim Hyuk trusted most.
"Tomorrow. Use today's earnings to get everyone basic gear first. We gear up solid before going."
Bason nodded at his words.
Then, someone approached from afar.
I eyed him; he glanced at me briefly.
We gave each other a curt nod and he passed by on his way.
Bason clicked his tongue softly.
"That guy's always bad news."
Kim Hyuk said nothing.
That one arrived on day 3.
He had plenty to say about the man too.
An existence with a subtle distance, not quite a comrade.
If that guy had arrived before me...
Kim Hyuk considered his day-2 arrival pure luck.
From the community, he knew each dimension's vibe varied wildly.
And that vibe was mostly set by day-1 arrivals.
Dimension 99 was no exception.
The day-1 and day-2 encounter. Kim Hyuk had been through it too.
Upon arrival, five day-1 guys welcomed them.
They tried controlling all resources just because they came first.
Arguments broke out; the mood soured.
They asserted vested rights with veiled threats.
Their levels were all 2 from hogging day-1 slimes.
At their arrogance, Kim Hyuk didn't hold back.
I stepped forward.
And then, I unleashed my unique ability in a surprise move.
Meant to intimidate, the terrifying power grazed past them.
Intentionally aimed to miss.
Imagining a real fight, they got spooked and never brought up control again.
Looking back now, it was a close call.
We were all level 0 then.
Now I knew a 2-level gap was huge, but not back then.
If it'd escalated, facing five level 2s alone would've been tough.
Especially since they all had unique abilities.
If I'd followed their orders even for a day, I'd never have grown like this.
After that, Dimension 99's atmosphere smoothed out.
Thanks to my first-day feats, the day-2 group naturally recognized me as leader.
It put me in an absolute advantage, making me the highest level here.
As numbers grew, day-2 group seized full control of Dimension 99.
The reason was clear.
The day-2 group pledged fair treatment for newcomers.
Not total equality, of course.
By taking from the day-1 group's share.
Day 1 split slimes half-half, but as numbers swelled, day-1's cut shrank.
Now, those five were forced to just five slimes each for quests.
On day 5, slime shortages sparked big gripes on our side too.
But luckily, Zone 2 opened then, quieting complaints.
Today's wolf earnings would buy basic defense gear for all.
Minimal prep for tomorrow's Star-Eyed Wolf fight.
Were there others from day 2 who dominated day 1s? Unreported in community, but possible besides him.
Suddenly, Elizabeth from the waiting room crossed his mind.
Was she doing well?
Not worry. He didn't care that much for others.
Just curious. Short meeting, but how she fared.
Dimension assignments were random.
Some like ours found order; others, a few strong ruled all.
Community posts overflowed with gripes about home dimensions.
Some treated people like slaves.
Even dimensions with killings.
Many fretted, but some mocked them.
Couldn't interfere in others' internals, naturally.
Elizabeth was zone 1st place.
Unique ability holders got talent treatment even in controlled societies.
She was surely fine.
Unless dumped in a mad evil dimension, she'd survive well.
With such thoughts, Kim Hyuk looked up at the darkening sky.
His companion had already left.
Gazing at the artificial Transcendence World landscape, he soon turned toward the inn.