Chapter 91
Chapter 91
Translator: Penny
Chapter 91
20th Floor.
The 20th Floor held great significance for me.
The meaning of reaching one-fifth of the Tower, as a numerical value in itself.
And it was the floor I had initially decided to completely block the Constellations after.
Though I might lift the block if any variables arose.
Was I supposed to reap a beautiful ending?
I was planning to just leave it blocked if a Quest Type Stage appeared, but…
『The Pandemonium difficulty 20th Floor is a Dungeon Type.』
This floor was also a Dungeon Type.
『Clear the Dungeon, 'Blazing Coffin.'』
The Dungeon name was brutally ominous.
I soon understood why the Dungeon was named Blazing Coffin.
Scorching heat surged from the floor.
I deployed Bodyguard Qi, blocking the rising flames and heat.
First, I needed to understand the structure of this Dungeon.
I expanded my Energy Sense, but all I could immediately discern was that I was stuck in a very narrow space.
Energy Sense wasn't a power like X-ray vision.
It was about flowing Qi into structures or scenery to grasp their approximate location.
And roughly identifying lifeforms that reacted to that Qi.
That was impressive enough, but it wasn't as accurate as X-ray vision.
It could end instantly if I didn't focus on my Energy Sense.
The sword I held in my hand was an item obtained as a reward for reaching the 13th Floor.
[Flying Light Silk Sword]
As a Martial Arts World Floor achievement item, it was a sword from the Central Plains martial world.
I was alternating between using [Flying Light Silk Sword] and [Mundum Exstinguit].
KWA-AAAAANG!
With Sword Qi infused into the sword, I struck the wall of the closed Dungeon, but there was no reaction.
It seemed to be a Dungeon that couldn't be broken from the inside. One that had to be cleared from within.
Before lifting the Constellation Block, I decided to first ask the Senior Transcendental in the Transcendence Gallery.
Title: Anyone ever been trapped in a place like this?
Author: ㅇㅇ*
The Dungeon name is Blazing Coffin… Just based on what I've seen with Energy Sense, it's a straight space. Heat and flames are rising from the floor.
If I didn't have Bodyguard Qi, my whole body would have been burned to a crisp.
I need to escape quickly.
-
It's a closed type with a special structure. Yes, you're right, you need to escape quickly.
-
Archmage) Hmm, what color are the flames?
Of course, they're red… I was about to write that in the comment when I noticed the black flames flickering beneath my feet.
I quickly tapped on the floating keyboard.
-
Yes*) Black?
-
Archmage) Black Flame… That's a rather troublesome type of flame.
-
Yes*) Why?
-
Ice Queen) Kkong! Water or ice, which are supposed to be its counters, don't work well against Black Flame!
-
Ice Queen) Of course, my ice works…! Kkong…!
It seemed the Ice Queen Senior could give me an item needed for this floor.
But.
-Water King) But!!! Interdimensional Trade is on cooldown, you knowwww!!!!
Right.
Interdimensional Trade had a damn cooldown.
-
Archmage) If Black Flame is spread across the field, the BOSS MONSTER is probably using it properly.
-
Yes*) Probably.
As someone who had experienced the 20th Floor, I could infer that much.
-Archmage) There is a way. A way to solve it with what you have.
The Archmage Senior told me the method.
I listened to the Archmage Senior's method and understood.
I closed the Transcendence Gallery and put the Terminal into my Inventory.
***
Kwajik!
The black flames distorted thickly in the air.
I had just lifted the Constellation Block.
['The Emperor with Immortal Glory' waves hello, pleased to see you.]
['The Judge with a Thousand Eyes' confirms that your current location is the Pandemonium 20th Floor Stage.]
['The Guide Who Follows the Stars' laughs at you for falling into a not-so-good place.]
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' says it's a very familiar place.]
So, notifications from the Constellations were endlessly popping up in the lower right corner.
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' says that you won't be able to clear this floor's BOSS MONSTER without their Authority.]
Of course, Han Yuseong had no time to pay attention to that.
I hadn't yet used the Black Flame countermeasure that the Archmage Senior had told me.
It wasn't a BOSS MONSTER level, so I could defeat it sufficiently with my usual attacks.
['The Watcher Swimming in the Abyss' estimates your Rank to be 6th Rank.]
['The Sword Demon of the Black Typhoon' is astonished by your growth rate.]
['The Constellations are wary of your growth rate.]
Even though I was hiding about 30% of my power, they estimated me to be 6th Rank.
I couldn't tell if that meant they were good at predicting or not.
As the Transcendence Gallery Seniors had said, the Echoing Specter, a Monster in a form close to an 'Evil Spirit,' emitted fierce light, but it was destroyed more easily than I thought.
Maintaining Bodyguard Qi, I pierced through the first curtain of fire and moved forward.
Smoke billowed thickly.
The next Monsters I encountered were of two types.
First, the Monster Scold, which looked similar to the Echoing Specter but had a distinct form and tried to stick to my body and explode.
Bbibit-!
KWA-AAAAANG!
The Scold exploded thunderously after a rather cute sound.
I could block the Scold's explosion just by maintaining Bodyguard Qi.
Second, there was a Monster called 'Fire Watcher.'
A soldier with a skull head thrust forward a spear held in both hands.
The flames contained in the spear seemed comparable to the Aura that a 6th Rank could manifest.
A whirlwind of fire brushed past my side.
Tss tss tss!
Han Yuseong's Sword Path struck through the scattering sparks.
The skull's head was crushed.
Han Yuseong entered the final location.
The BOSS room.
I threw open the massive door that didn't look like a door.
Perhaps because of the Dungeon's name.
It felt like I was opening the door of a coffin.
Heat flowed out endlessly.
Unlike the Monsters I had seen so far, the density of Black Flame was definitely thicker.
[BOSS MONSTER]
[Revnarr]
It was a Monster with a size not much different from Han Yuseong's body.
It was a demon in the form of stacked black flames. The massive figure raised both arms high.
The hammer held in both hands fell vertically to the ground.
KWA-AAAAANG!!
Black flames spread thickly in the air.
An alert window appeared before Han Yuseong's eyes, who had pulled his body back just in the nick of time.
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' is certain that you cannot defeat the BOSS MONSTER Revnarr without receiving their Authority.]
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' suggests that you receive their Authority.]
-The weakness of Black Flame isn't water-type attacks, which are its elemental counters, but stronger flames of the same type.
The Constellation, 'The Crimson Blazing Creator,' was probably basing this certainty on this point, which the Transcendence Gallery Senior had mentioned earlier.
This time, a Constellation Quest alert window appeared.
I thought the Crimson Blazing Creator had posted it.
The Constellation that registered the Quest was unexpected.
『Constellation Quest generated! 'The Saintess Who Chases the Light' has registered a Quest.
Quest: Clear this Stage without receiving any help, such as receiving Authority from any Constellation.
Additional Condition: None.
Reward: Item – Dragonbone of Recovery』
'Hmm, at least the reward is an item, not something like Authority…'
'The Saintess Who Chases the Light' was a Constellation that I had heard about separately from the Transcendental Gallery Seniors a few months ago.
'They said she was an ambiguous Constellation.'
Whether she was in a completely hostile position towards Han Yuseong himself, or whether she was an existence that had to be an enemy due to her position as a Constellation.
-
Archmage) 'The Saintess Who Chases the Light' is probably Vedis Marnia… literally a Saintess. She's a healer, and… when you reach the end of the Tower, you'll inevitably have to climb alone, which would be more disadvantageous.
-
Absolute Monarch) Hmm, there are few Hard Difficulty Climbers who haven't received help from Vedis even once.
-
Water King) What are you talking about, she's a blood-soaked Saintess who beats up Monsters while endlessly healing herself!! She was stronger than me at times!
At least, her reputation seemed to be intact during the previous Climb.
-Archmage) I also received quite a bit of help from Marnia… But that doesn't mean we can fully trust her as 'The Saintess Who Chases the Light.' After all, from a Player's perspective, Constellations are bound to be enemies.
Han Yuseong's thoughts were the same as the Archmage's.
The Saintess didn't set a condition to clear the floor without blocking the Constellations.
I couldn't tell if she did it on purpose or forgot.
It was a good thing.
'I've never shown the Constellations magic before.'
It was better to hide it if I could.
Anyway, after the 20th Floor, I didn't intend to lift the Constellation Block unless any variables occurred.
Revnarr's face was just flames itself without eyes, nose, or mouth, but I could feel its gaze.
Tss tss tss……!
Sword Qi bloomed on the sword.
That Sword Qi soon transformed into Sword Force.
The core of the advice I had heard from the Archmage Senior a moment ago came to mind.
-
Archmage) Black Flame isn't greatly affected by water-attribute attacks.
-
Archmage) But if you counter it with a stronger attack of the same fire type, you can neutralize it.
-
Archmage) Can you do it?
I wasn't trying to do it because I thought I definitely could, but just because it was worth trying.
With Sword Force blooming on the sword, I drew a magic Spellcasting with my left hand.
Fire-attribute magic.
Eldur.
Simultaneous deployment of Aura and Magic Power.
And.
Fusion.
Something else covered the Sword Force.
Crimson flames flickered within the white Sword Force.
'Done.'
I could feel my Magic Power dropping sharply, but I had enough remaining Magic Power.
A bizarre act of not manifesting magic individually.
But mixing Sword Force and magic into one.
If the Constellations who were blocked and couldn't see had seen this scene, they would have been shocked.
They didn't even know that the Archmage Senior of the Transcendence Gallery had developed a way to manifest magic through Aura Circuits.
Of course, the Transcendental Seniors would have been quite surprised too.
Even if they knew that magic could be used with Aura Circuits.
It was close to impossible to mix Sword Qi and magic in one go without multiple trials and errors.
Logically speaking.
Han Yuseong did it in one go.
Han Yuseong struck the sword vertically.
Flames split the BOSS MONSTER Revnarr's body in two.
Alert windows covered Han Yuseong's vision again.
[Your level has increased!]
[Lv.82 → LV.84]
[You have cleared the 20th Floor Stage.]
['Player - Han Yuseong' is tallying the score for the 20th Floor Stage.]
The existing 20th Floor ranking score window appeared.
1st - Union Leader: 1,129 points
2nd - Ja Myungcheonnyeo: 1,112 points
3rd - Black Star: 914 points
4th - Chasing: 893 points
5th - LifeIsPainByDefault: 891 points
⋮
⋮
[Score tallying is complete.]
[Han Yuseong: 5,410 points]
I lifted the Constellation Block.
I had to lift the block to receive the rewards.
The sight of it disappearing into ashes and smoke after being cut in half must have caught the Constellations' eyes.
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' cannot easily believe that you defeated the BOSS MONSTER without their help.]
Han Yuseong found that notification a bit absurd.
-Sword of Light) But if you continuously beat it while maximizing Sword Force, you don't necessarily have to approach it from the perspective of targeting 'Black Flame.'
In fact, as the Sword of Light Senior had commented, even if I hadn't fused Sword Force and magic, I could have defeated it with just Sword Force with purely more power.
I had just put in a little more effort to try out the Fusion of Sword Qi and magic.
['Blood Demon' greatly mocks a certain Constellation, saying that they shouldn't be a Constellation if they have such a loose mouth.]
['The Crimson Blazing Creator' expresses great anger.]
『You have cleared the Constellation Quest registered by 'The Saintess Who Chases the Light.'』
『Reward: 'Dragonbone of Recovery' has been delivered. Please collect it from the 6th Floor Stairway waiting room.』
['The Saintess Who Chases the Light' says that you have worked hard.]
With this alert window, I was summoned to the 21st Floor Stairway waiting room.