Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Tower Event Aftermath
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I couldn't hold back my curiosity and clicked not on the announcement, but on the Sword King's post.
The Sword King's post was packed with information.
'Cleared the 4th stage... even got a title and achievement.'
I checked the comments below it too.
The post had hundreds of comments. It was the first one I'd seen with so many.
The Sword King's 4th-stage clear.
And the massive ranking shake-up.
Top rankers who chose 4th or 5th stage saw joy and sorrow split wide open.
That brief moment choosing between 4th and 5th stage...
Turned out to be a pivotal decision that reshuffled rankings by several spots.
'Sword King at #3... back to his original spot. Lord probably dropped to #4, and the old #4 too.'
Still, #2 Eok held his position.
I wasn't the only one with a big gap to those below.
Sword King mentioned getting a title and achievement.
That was likely true. Seemed like he was the only one to clear 4th stage.
If 4th-stage clear gave title and achievement...
What about 5th stage...?
But the event was already over.
And I, who couldn't even properly pass the mid-boss on floor 5,
had no way of reaching floor 10. Impossible.
I skimmed the comments and clicked the community event announcement.
Early termination, huh. That explained why the wrap-up notice came up despite the full 12 hours not being over.
I looked over the various stats below.
Abandoned?
...
I scrolled down further through the stats.
Top Records1st Stage
Highest Floor: Clear
Fastest Clear: 28 min 41 sec 2nd Stage
Highest Floor: Clear
Fastest Clear: 51 min 22 sec 3rd Stage
Highest Floor: Clear
Fastest Clear: 1 hr 14 min 40 sec 4th Stage
Highest Floor: Clear
Fastest Clear: 6 hr 56 min 12 sec 5th Stage
Highest Floor: Floor 5 (Abandoned)
Fastest Clear: N/A
5th-stage abandonment.
That was me.
#2 forfeiting on floor 3 was already public knowledge.
So everyone knew #1 reached floor 5 of 5th stage.
817 eliminated...
Eliminated meant death.
Their EXP was completely wiped out.
EXP I could've claimed someday... I shook off the regret and closed the notice.
Now I started properly diving into the community posts.
Reading that lament-filled post, I thought to myself.
These were people who passed Earth's trials to get here, right?
More fragile minds than I'd expected.
I moved right on to the next post.
Skimming various posts gave me tons of info.
From what the community knew, rewards differed hugely by stage, including floor clears.
Floor clear rewards:
1st: just gold.
2nd: EXP and gold.
3rd: added item materials.
4th: items.
5th (from my experience): added titles.
Full clear rewards were a big upgrade from floor rewards.
1st: EXP and gold.
2nd: items.
3rd: titles.
4th: even achievements.
Compared to 4th, 5th felt stingy on rewards relative to difficulty.
Everyone who picked 4th climbed ranks—that said it all.
Maybe search for 5th-stage posts...
I focused on ranking-restricted ones.
View limit: #68. Way below my rank.
I clicked it immediately.
Posts just for rankers felt way different from the public ones.
There were even a few mentions of me.
Listening to their talk got my mind racing.
5th-stage tower.
19 challengers total.
About half reportedly died.
Difficulty ramped up sharply higher up.
But having reached floor 5, I knew.
The jump from floors 1-4 was nothing compared to 4 to 5.
That floor 5 mid-boss was straight-up unbeatable by design.
Back then, with combat power near 50 stats, I took down the Giant King.
Floor 4 had a freak just shy of 30 stats,
and even that was after five enhancements.
Floor 5 gimmick.
Those circles etched on the floor.
Was it meant to be solved first before challenging?
They say after mid-boss, floors 6 and 7 are easier than 5.
Looking at 4th stage's progression,
if I'd passed 5,
I might've made it to floor 9 even.
'Regrettable, but water under the bridge.'
Floor 5 became an unforgettable memory for me.
After that, I browsed more community posts.
Posts about unique abilities synergizing well with tower for big climbs.
About mental trauma setting in.
About huge gaps in unique abilities—even same level, floors differed by 3. Shocking even to me.
Lots on #1 too.
Overwhelming floor gap to #2.
The sole tower abandonment oddity.
What rewards #1 got from 5th stage.
Curiosity about #1's job, etc.
The enigmatic #1 had all sorts of speculation flying.
Survived? No, abandonment doesn't mean that. Etc.
More talk about me than the 5th tower itself.
'This reaction even without clearing?'
Feeling like I'd gathered enough info, I went to close the window.
Then spotted another Sword King post.
This one rank-restricted to #3.
As the sole 4th-stage clearer, bound to have good stuff—I dove in.
This post, visible only to two others, felt far more candid than his public ones.
Shortly after it went up, #2 Eok commented.
#2 Eok's comments were as rough and direct as ever.
I quietly watched their exchange.
It fizzled out at some point.
Sword King gave up when persuasion failed.
I closed the community window.
Thought about his proposal.
Info sharing, cooperation?
Didn't apply to me at all.
I reflected once more on my #1 position.
#1.
Proof of overwhelming power—and a thorny path drawing everyone's envy and checks.
Fine for solo fights like this event.
But if an event pitted us directly against other dimensions?
They'd see me as the enemy, band together. Form alliances to take me out.
Creating a common foe to tighten internal bonds—humanity's old survival tactic.
This future was inevitable.
1v1, confident against anyone.
But dozens or hundreds coming at me? Even I wasn't sure.
I'd already devised four survival strategies.
First: Attain untouchable overwhelming power.
Not really a strategy—my endgame goal. Must pursue relentlessly.
Second: Hide my identity as much as possible. Or develop concealment even if discovered.
My "Transcendence" nick and #1 status still secret in community. Maximize anonymity. Grow in shadows, emerge when ready to sweep all.
Third: Avoid head-on clashes, minimize fights.
Specialize in ambushes, assassinations, 1v1s to never get surrounded.
Slaughtering weaklings as the overwhelming strong was exception.
Fourth: Prevent enemy alliances.
Sabotage formations, sow internal discord and distrust.
My growth path inevitably made everyone foes.
I fully accepted that.
System would throw new variables; rankers wouldn't stagnate.
I recalled my four strategies.
Pursue overwhelming power, maintain secrecy, evade battles, disrupt alliances.
Not separate—must execute all perfectly, simultaneously.
Could build my own faction against alliances, but
no one would truly be mine.
Dominating by force didn't make them loyal.
Building a force needed more thought.
Only my own power was the sole shield in Transcendence World.
Thus ended that long, long day.
[Dimension - 64]
Just before noon.
Siron scanned the crowd gathered in the village square with sharp eyes.
Yesterday's chaos and fear had been replaced by cold order and control.
In his absence, he was this group's ruler.
Siron thought of O-Hun.
Where was he now, what doing?
Was he #1?
If so, what did abandonment mean?
If not, did he survive the tower?
...Or become a cold corpse?
Didn't matter either way.
If he returned, I'd be his sharpest sword.
If not, I'd carry his will and rule this dimension.
Siron's eyes gleamed coldly.
Noon struck.
The spawn point began to glow.
Siron stepped forward toward the new faces.
His voice now mimicked the master he revered.
Cold, intimidating, devoid of emotion.
"Listen well. If you want to live."