Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: 1장 - 5 (4)
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As the village expanded into a city, most of the original village layout was losing its circular shape.
The village square and spawn point had been quite close, but now the urban structure was evolving to place them far apart.
And amid this tremendous upheaval,
This mention of "all people" apparently included the village NPCs as well.
The NPCs, along with the people of Dimension 64, were floating while protected by a transparent barrier.
People were extremely flustered by this sudden transformation of the land.
Even though they had been warned in advance.
The key point of the order I gave Siron yesterday was to prepare for the expansion into a city.
Neither Siron nor I knew exactly how the village expansion would occur, but it was better than doing nothing.
After receiving the order, Siron must have gathered the administrators,
decided on countermeasures through a meeting, and notified all residents in the dimension about the expansion and response plans.
Among those notifications would be warnings not to leak information about this situation on the community boards and orders not to use any newly changed functions unless directed by the administrators.
The barriers holding people afloat in the sky were slowly descending as the ground gradually stabilized.
Soon, most people could move through the newly transformed city streets while still within their barriers.
It was a spectacular sight: countless materials popping out of thin air and stacking into high-rise buildings without a single human hand involved.
People were admiring the numerous buildings they would live in from now on with awe.
A few minutes ago,
the ordinary village that had only a handful of large buildings
was turning into a massive city where 3-4 story buildings were the baseline and some reached dozens of floors.
With the central stone tower in the city square finally being erected,
New system messages were delivered across all of Dimension 64.
Of course, I saw them too.
Techniques...?
This was the first message about the system being unlocked since arriving in the Transcendent World.
Even when new ranks or special stats were added to my status window last time, there was no mention of the system unlocking.
I immediately checked my status window.
Sure enough, there were major changes.
A new Techniques tab had appeared below the Skills tab.
This newly added tab seemed like a very important system feature.
I also checked the tickets that had been granted right away.
Reading the details of the tickets already placed in my inventory,
they allowed travel to the Shared Dimension,
and there was a time limit: forced return after 24 hours.
However, the note warned that you absolutely could not return before the 24 hours were up.
And they could only be used by the person who received them.
I thought about these granted tickets.
'Then I can't go right now. Hunting in Zone 5 comes first.'
The Shared Dimension was important, but after handling a few things in the city, I planned to head out hunting immediately.
Then, a sudden question occurred to me.
'Did I receive this ticket alone? Or did everyone get one? If so, did they get the same number?'
Judging that everyone probably received them, I grabbed one of the administrators who was still dazed from the recent changes.
He jumped in surprise but quickly composed himself and spoke with me.
From our conversation, I confirmed
that everyone had received exactly 3 tickets, with all the same precautions.
As expected, these tickets were personal items that anyone in the same dimension could obtain.
I thought a bit more about the Shared Dimension, following up on yesterday's considerations.
'No one knows what the Shared Dimension is like.'
If it turned out to be a dangerous place,
I would be the safest person to explore it across all dimensions.
But I had to go hunt in Zone 5.
Fortunately, a perfect test subject was right in front of me.
I immediately told him to use the ticket.
Before he could even respond,
I gathered my Unique Intimidation at my fingertip.
At that moment,
the Unique Intimidation, visible only to me before, was now clearly visible to everyone.
I didn't even know how this would feel as oppressive pressure given his low stats,
but he began trembling violently, as if I had used a King's Presence skill.
He used the ticket almost immediately, following my order,
and vanished in a flash of light.
Once he was gone, I felt the urgency of time and ran off quickly.
The city's expansion had happened simultaneously with the opening of Zone 5.
Yesterday, I had been making various plans for the expansion.
Recalling my first hunt in Zone 4,
and considering how much time even that had taken, I had a hunch that hunting in Zone 5 might take more than a day.
Therefore, before heading out to hunt,
it would be best to handle some business in the city first.
And I had already identified the top priorities in the city.
First.
Not just the city could be expanded.
The other zones could be expanded too.
According to the ranking restriction notice, you could increase the layers of other hunting grounds with gold.
Checking that out was my first task.
And second.
I had once visited an NPC with a level 37 dialogue restriction and discovered that after the city expansion, conversation was possible.
This NPC in particular was important because it revealed that systems differed between dimensions.
This NPC was my second priority,
and the third and final one was simply to take a quick tour of the city.
Even a short look around
would let me quickly identify any important changes in the city.
The special quest clue had mentioned an underground city beneath the city, and the path there might be easier than expected, making it well worth checking out.
I had several NPCs to visit,
so amid the chaos of the transforming city, I kept a close eye on a few specific ones.
Observing where they moved, I could visit them without wasting any steps.
For the first task—how to expand zones with gold—there was a clue.
I traversed the wider streets of Zone 0
and sought out a middle-aged male NPC adorned with jewelry.
This NPC had a level 40 restriction, and I had visited him once before in between.
At that time, a message had indicated conversation would be possible after the city expansion.
But now, things were different.
"Welcome."
As I entered the luxurious building,
the middle-aged man smiled immediately, baring his teeth in greeting.
After speaking with the NPC right away, I felt relieved that he was indeed the one I was looking for.
This guy was the NPC who handled zone expansions with gold.
In truth, clues about gold expansions were quite scarce,
but if it involved an NPC, this one was the closest candidate, so I hadn't wasted time finding him.
I began the conversation with him
and heard various explanations about adding layers.
Once layers were added to each zone here,
touching the location transfer stones in each zone would bring up a system window,
and then you'd be transported to the selected layer, he explained.
After hearing the explanation, I asked,
"So, have location transfer stones appeared in all zones now?"
The NPC confirmed yes.
I immediately asked about the price for Layer 1.
The NPC smiled and replied.
According to him, Layer 1 cost 10,000 gold, Layer 2 was 20,000 gold.
It increased by 10,000 gold per layer.
Calculating it out, changing slime spawns from 500 to 1,500 would cost a total of 30,000 gold.
Whether that was a good price or not would require more thought.
This wasn't like before, when I summoned monsters with Soul Origins.
Experience was still precious, but if hunting Zone 5 took more than a day...
From my personal perspective,
there was no need to add layers; I could just hunt the remaining monsters in Zone 5.
Of course, long-term, it would be essential.
I decided to come back here after finishing the Zone 5 hunt.
Now it was time for the second task.
I had observed this NPC's movement too, so I found him quickly.
The mansion I visited gave off the same vibe as before—like he was deliberately hiding away—in an unassuming residence.
Attempting conversation with the NPC, I could talk without restrictions.
But.
"Please undergo Technique Measurement first."
The NPC only told me to get a Technique Measurement.
This wasn't a system restriction per se, but it effectively limited dialogue.
As I was about to ask more,
"You'll understand once you visit the central library in the city."
The NPC said that and clammed up.
With no choice, I started wandering the city to find the library.
Since I planned to look around anyway, it didn't feel like a loss.
Thinking it over briefly,
the central library would likely be at a key structural point in the city.
Checking a few important spots, I discovered a massive library.
Climbing the high stairs and opening the scholarly front doors,
I saw vast rooms filled to the brim with bookshelves across multiple floors.
Touching the library books one by one right away,
I realized all of them had various restrictions.
And in this vast library, there was one NPC.
This librarian-like NPC
didn't give detailed answers on most Technique-related questions but revealed several facts.
One system function,
Technique Measurement generates a Technique based on your current abilities.
Confirming that it cost no resources to measure,
I immediately found and selected the newly added Technique Measurement function in the system window.
'It takes about a day.'
Leaving the library with no reason to stay longer,
I wandered the city a bit more in case I found Technique-related info, but such a short search turned up nothing.
For the underground city clue—my next task—
even after spending considerable time, I couldn't find the route.
This seemed like something to dedicate a full day to.
In truth,
the changes from Zone 5 and the city expansion weren't just these.
There were special dungeons too.
But special dungeons didn't seem directly related to Zone 0.
I continued exploring the city afterward.
I checked the updated weapon shops, armor shops, and even the pawnshop.
After buying some items from the revamped general store,
feeling time slipping away, I headed to the city entrance.
Then,
I crossed the bridge at the city's outskirts,
passed the entrance that had become like a wall, and cut across the middle of the meadow.
Looking back, the city was incredibly majestic,
its ornate architectural style and subtle otherworldliness unlike anything on Earth
evoking the grand capital of a fantasy world.
Ending my brief admiration, I ran toward Zone 2.
It was time to head to Zone 5.