The Phoenix's Final Flight
Lee Jin-hyuk's strategy had been simple from the start.
With the same volatile temper he possessed before his regression, Jang Man-hong was bound to swing his blade like a madman, completely indifferent to whether his subordinates lived or died.
He was exactly the kind of lunatic who grew ecstatic whenever he encountered a player of exceptional talent—someone like Jin-hyuk.
Sure enough, Jang Man-hong had worked himself into a frenzy, pouring every ounce of his strength into a singular, desperate attempt to kill Jin-hyuk.
To an onlooker, the full-force assault of a mid-tier ranker might have seemed incredibly perilous.
In truth, it was dangerous.
After all, the chasm separating a 9th-floor player from a mid-tier ranker was wider and deeper than any physical canyon.
But that logic only applied to ordinary players.
For someone who had staked everything to regress, someone who even possessed the vessel of a Constellation, a mid-tier ranker was simply out of his league.
They were no match for him.
Hadn't even Dang So-wol, who was far stronger than this man, ultimately fallen to Jin-hyuk?
'Though fighting Dang So-wol was definitely a lot harder,' Jin-hyuk thought.
Thud!
Jin-hyuk kicked aside the mangled remains of Jang Man-hong's corpse and swept his gaze over the surroundings.
"T-this is impossible..."
"How could this happen...?"
"He was a ranker! A ranker!"
"...And a mid-tier one at that?"
The players of the Heavenly Demon Cult gathered here all shared the same disbelief.
'Isn't this too much?'
No matter how brilliant his track record or how many times he had proven himself, Jin-hyuk was still just a player who had barely reached the 9th floor.
It was only natural that his level, stats, and skills would be incomplete.
In the Tower, the highest floor cleared was the absolute metric of strength.
They had believed that any player from the 10th floor or above could easily subdue Jin-hyuk, even without the intervention of the Demonic Blade Divine General, Jang Man-hong.
That was why they had questioned the Heavenly Demon's decision to send Jang Man-hong in the first place.
They had assumed there were plenty of players here who could kill Jin-hyuk in a one-on-one fight.
Yet, look at the result.
A player from the lower floors, Lee Jin-hyuk, had slaughtered a ranker.
It wasn't even a surprise attack. If anything, Jin-hyuk had been at a disadvantage because he had allies to protect.
The gap in their specs should have been astronomical.
And yet, this was the outcome.
It was shocking.
No, "shocking" didn't even begin to describe it.
This was the shattering of an implicit, long-standing law of the Tower: that a lower-floor player could never defeat a higher-floor player.
The absolute rule of hierarchy had been broken.
"You'd better keep just standing there and watching," Jin-hyuk said, pointing his sword at them.
He met the gaze of every single person staring at him.
"Unless you want to die next."
In truth, if he had used his trump cards, he could have killed Jang Man-hong much faster.
But doing so carried critical disadvantages.
First, he risked exposing his hidden cards to the enemies watching him.
Second, Kaelion and the divine beasts behind him could have been caught in the crossfire.
Thus, he had opted for a slower but safer method to suppress and eliminate his opponent.
The result was a resounding success.
Because of Jang Man-hong's wild, indiscriminate swings, the surrounding cultists and witches had backed far away.
Having successfully instilled a deep terror of his presence, none of them dared to step forward.
Crackle...!
While he bought even a single second of time, the divine beasts were making their escape. Nothing could be better.
'Perfect.'
Wreathed in flames, Jin-hyuk retreated back to the Phoenix's nest.
"Y-you are truly magnificent..."
The Phoenix stared at Jin-hyuk, her beak slightly agape in sheer disbelief.
She had known he was strong ever since he raided the divine beast ranch alone to rescue them.
But she had never imagined it would be to this extent.
For a 9th-floor player to slay a ranker so effortlessly was beyond comprehension.
Having resided in the Tower for a long time, she understood exactly how absurd this feat was.
"Is your body... alright?"
"I'm fine."
"No penalty even after exerting that much power?"
"None. More importantly, get ready."
"Ready for what?"
"They're about to make their move."
Just as Jin-hyuk said, the cultists were reorganizing their ranks, preparing to charge once more.
They assumed that although Jin-hyuk had won through some unexpected variable, he must be exhausted after fighting a mid-tier ranker.
They believed they could still fulfill the Heavenly Demon's command to capture Jin-hyuk, the Phoenix, and the divine beasts alive.
"You need to go."
"..."
"I will protect Kaelion and the egg to the very end."
Seeing Jin-hyuk's reassuring resolve, the Phoenix reached a decision.
'Yes. I can truly entrust them to this child.'
*Slide.*
'Now, I will burn everything I have to keep him alive.'
With resolute determination, she took Jin-hyuk's hand.
"If that child is born..."
*Gently.*
"There was so much I wanted to teach her. Even if she doesn't become a Phoenix..."
"...Lady Phoenix?"
"It seems the time has come."
Cracks began to spiderweb across the Phoenix's face, spreading down her body and clothes.
*Whoosh!*
A brilliant orange flame erupted.
"My child. Please look after the egg containing my daughter's power and essence. And the other divine beasts as well."
*Flap!*
Returning to her true form, the Phoenix began to kindle her final embers.
It was one of the Phoenix's authorities.
The power to burn her own life force to tear through the space of a floor and create a gate.
While she had held back before to preserve her strength, she was now burning the entirety of her life's flame.
She knew that if she hesitated any longer, Jin-hyuk and the other divine beasts would be in grave danger.
"But why?"
To Jin-hyuk, this was an unexpected sacrifice.
The Phoenix had wanted to see the egg hatch.
Wasn't that why he had summoned Misty in the first place?
"Is it not beautiful to flare up so brilliantly in one's final moments?"
The target is being completely extinguished.
*Roar!*
With orange wings enveloping the entire area, the Phoenix's nest erupted in flames.
Soon, the nest dissolved, merging with the Phoenix's wings.
By consuming the nest itself, the Phoenix's life force surged exponentially.
'It's already over.'
Jin-hyuk knew.
Once she consumed the nest—the very symbol of her life—to force her power to go berserk, there was no turning back.
All the Phoenix could do now was fanning the flames as high as possible.
She would last five minutes at most.
"Damn it!"
"Witches, what are you doing?!"
"We're trying!"
"Damn it! If only one of the High Rankers were here...!"
The witches desperately drew magic circles to resist, and the cultists swung their swords with every ounce of strength they could muster.
But it was all in vain.
Their bodies were helplessly consumed by the flames.
'What is this...?'
Jin-hyuk was also stunned; he had never seen such power from a non-Constellation being.
*Whoosh!*
"My King!"
"...Whoa, whoa, whoa?!"
In an instant, Misty, Erandir, the unicorn, and the other divine beasts were swept up and sucked into the gate.
Thanks to the Phoenix expending all her power, the gate formed rapidly, sending them to the 5th floor.
"The others may leave, but you and the elf child cannot escape the 9th floor."
Since they weren't just visiting the 9th floor, but were players currently undergoing a trial.
"Lady Phoenix!"
"I leave them in your hands, child."
With a benevolent smile, the Phoenix ascended high into the sky.
*Flash!*
[A Constellation belatedly realizes the situation and gasps in shock.]
[A Constellation looks at you with concern.]
*Fwoosh!*
As she spread her wings from the earth and soared into the heavens, it looked like a giant, blooming flower of light.
The power of the Divine Beast wraps around you powerfully.
Transporting to an unknown location.
The target is a player currently undergoing a trial. Certain restrictions apply to the authority.
You will be moved to a location of choice within the 9th floor.
*Whoosh!*
The Phoenix's ascension.
As the sight of her soaring toward the stars burned into his eyes, a change began to take place within Jin-hyuk's body.
The remaining power of the Phoenix begins to dwell within you.
Ascension. The sight of soaring toward the stars grants you a new enlightenment.
'Where is this?'
When Jin-hyuk opened his eyes, he was greeted by a world glowing as if bathed in a perpetual sunset.
It was a realm where the Phoenix had seemingly ascended to become the sky itself, a sky cradling clusters of stars.
'Where am I?'
The strange thing was that he couldn't make a sound.
And this place did not feel like the 9th floor.
Though it was still filled with cliffs.
'The cliffs on the 9th floor aren't this colossal.'
Aside from the sky and the cliffs right in front of him, everything else was a blur.
'What on earth is this...'
In this sunset-hued world, even gravity felt faint, making it difficult to move his body.
*Bounce, bounce, bounce!*
Something small bounced rapidly toward Jin-hyuk.
'The egg?'
*Boing!*
As if resentful of having been asleep for so long, it rushed forward with frantic speed and snuggled into Jin-hyuk's chest.
'Oof!'
The hard egg flew at him so fast it felt like being struck by a steel ball.
It was quite heavy.
'Have you been well?'
*Bounce, bounce!*
Seeing the egg bounce happily, it seemed his thoughts were conveyed even without words.
Delighted by its playful antics, Jin-hyuk ran around, chasing after it.
'Huh?'
It was strange.
His body, which had felt heavy as if submerged in water or floating in zero gravity, was gradually growing accustomed to the environment.
*Flash!*
Just as he was getting used to the new surroundings, a figure appeared in the distance.
An elven woman curled up inside a giant orange sunflower.
It was Kaelion.
"Jin-hyuk!"
Unlike Jin-hyuk, she could move freely in this space.
Seeing her glide over and wrap her arms around him, she seemed far more accustomed to this place than he was.
"What is this... Huh?"
The moment he touched Kaelion, Jin-hyuk found he could speak again.
Although the sound resonated strangely, his voice carried clearly.
"What happened?"
"The Phoenix... she left a gift for us."
*Bounce, bounce!*
"Let's go!"
With a mixture of sadness and cheer, Kaelion took Jin-hyuk's wrist and pulled him upward, soaring higher and higher.
*Whoosh!*
The stars drew closer, as if they were ascending into the cosmos with their bare bodies.
...!
They moved so fast that the orange sky and the cliffs soon vanished from sight.
The first thing they saw was a cluster of stars shaped like a lava colossus.
A star cluster in the shape of a woman trapped inside a black brazier was also visible.
Another star cluster had creepy teeth and a hand shape that perfectly matched the one that had targeted the divine beasts.
A star cluster sitting on a throne surrounded by countless weapons.
A star cluster holding a burning sword, its body half-melted.
And even one that was incomparably massive compared to the others.
The projections of the Constellations who had been eyeing Jin-hyuk were all gathered here.
You have reached the star clusters.
Along with the echoing message, blue sparks of mana blocked the star clusters from approaching.
*Bzzzzzt!*
Among the star clusters, the woman with the black brazier smiled.
*Fwoosh!*
Before the other Constellations could react, the egg began to burn.
The Hearth of 'Eternity' blazes.
The insufficient energy is replenished.
*Crack!*
Soon, cracks began to spread across the egg.
As the egg cracked further, the star clusters began to recede once more.
*Flash!*
Jin-hyuk's eyes snapped open.
"What is this...?"
What greeted Jin-hyuk's eyes was a barrier made of orange flames.
Judging by the cliffs visible outside the barrier, they were somewhere on the 9th floor.
"Ugh..."
"Kaelion."
He supported Kaelion as she barely managed to regain consciousness beside him.
*Crack... crack!*
The egg, slowly cracking, came into view.
The insufficient energy is replenished.