Chapter 79
Chapter 79.
'Why is that Gold dying?'
Lee Ganghan blinked his eyes as he watched the revived Dwarf.
The thorn's poison.
It just stung a little and that was it.
Why is that dwarf foaming at the mouth, collapsing, dying instantly, and then reviving again?
Meanwhile,
"That guy is fine, but why am I...?"
The Dwarf who had been looking at Lee Ganghan with distrustful eyes.
"Th-that's right. The Thorn Flower I found this time was a trap!"
He reasoned that he died because he chose the wrong Thorn Flower.
He picked up his telescope again and started looking for another Thorn Flower.
Then, not long after.
"There it is!"
He quickly found another Thorn Flower and ran toward it.
-Dwarf has good eyesight ㅋㅋㅋ
-Why does he find Thorn Flowers so easily
-That's a skill, a skill
Unlike Lee Ganghan who had found Thorn Flowers using his skills.
The Dwarf who could find Thorn Flowers one after another with that small telescope certainly had excellent talent.
But.
Prick.
The dwarf who got pricked by the thorn just like before.
"Gr-grgrgr..."
He foamed at the mouth again and collapsed.
['Team Member 1' has died.]
['Team Member 1' has died 3 times, so a heavy Death Penalty will be imposed.]
Then.
A message appeared saying that since he died 3 times, the penalty would become stronger.
"What happens when the Death Penalty gets stronger?"
"Sniff, sniff? You don't even know that? This is common sense."
"Yes, I've never died before."
When Lee Ganghan shrugged his shoulders.
"Wow. That's annoying."
The Fox Beastman who had been favorable toward Lee Ganghan so far squinted his eyes.
-ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Even the fox who was favorable can't stand that comment
-But I really didn't expect him not to die even on this map
-Originally the first death has almost no penalty right ㅋㅋ Why is he gritting his teeth so hard trying not to die
-??? No, even if he wanted to die, they don't give him the chance to die, what can he do
-ㄹㅇㅋㅋ
Since he had cleared even the map that was thought to definitely kill and start from floor 1.
It wasn't unreasonable for viewers to think that way.
Of course, he himself had done his best to protect his Heavenly Demon Constitution grade.
'I guess I look relaxed to others.'
Well, viewers who didn't see him play in the First Tower.
They must have thought today was his greatest crisis.
Then, the Fox Beastman opened his mouth.
"After the 'Death Penalty heavily imposed' message appears, your level drops by 1 each time you die."
"By 1?"
"Yes. It's quite a penalty, right?"
They say it gets harder to level up as tiers go higher.
If you drop by 1 level each time in Gold, the impact would be significant.
The Dwarf also seemed to feel burdened by this penalty.
"Groan..."
He didn't rush at the Thorn Flower recklessly like before.
"Human! How exactly did you survive that poison!"
He was interrogating Lee Ganghan about how he survived.
"I just got pricked?"
"What?"
"No, it just stung a little for me? I was surprised when you collapsed with a prick. Is it okay for a Gold to die so easily?"
"Wh-what did you say...?! You Bronze bastard!"
"Look, look."
Swoosh.
Lee Ganghan approached the Thorn Flower.
He picked up the remaining thorn and stabbed it deep into his own arm.
"I'm fine, right?"
"Uh, um... What is this? Do you have some poison-related skill?"
"I'm just a bit healthy."
"Ha!"
When the Dwarf clicked his tongue as if dumbfounded by that answer.
"Sniff, sniff. Can I try too?"
The Fox Beastman approached the Thorn Flower.
"By all means. Everyone else can try if you want."
"Ah. Then I'll try once too..."
"I'll give it a challenge!"
Even the two human players who were watching from behind gathered.
They took turns getting pricked by the Thorn Flower.
Then.
"Kr-krgh..."
"......"
The two human players still died suddenly.
One couldn't even make a groaning sound and died.
At least the Fox Beastman.
"Wow... This is intense...?"
His face alternated between turning red and blue.
"Ah... This... doesn't seem like it was made to be cleared...?"
With those words as his last.
He collapsed with a prick.
-What, why is everyone dying
-Wasn't the strategy revealed earlier...?
-Getting pricked by Thorn Flowers was only possible for the Heavenly Demon~! ^-^
-The poison gas isn't the problem, they can't even endure getting pricked by the thorn ㅋㅋㅋ
-Regular players should just quietly start from floor 1, right?
-Yeah... There's a reason for sending them to floor 1;
Viewers who had been excited thinking a new strategy emerged after seeing Lee Ganghan erase the poison mist.
They realized the reality.
They thought finding the Thorn Flower was the hardest part.
But there's no one who can survive getting pricked.
"Sigh... This won't work. It's just instant death."
"As expected, the level difference between Heavenly Demon Lord and me is too great. I'll give up."
The two revived human players.
After dying instantly, they realized that resisting the Thorn Flower poison was impossible.
They gave up on the second attempt.
However,
"Ah~ Wait, I'm also a player who doesn't lose to anyone elsewhere! This is a bit annoying, you know?"
The Fox Beastman who revived afterward.
Rather than giving up, he seemed to have developed a fighting spirit and was approaching the Thorn Flower again.
Then.
"Sniff, sniff, Sniff."
He came close to Lee Ganghan and smelled him.
"Player 5, all the human players were calling you Heavenly Demon Lord, should I call you Heavenly Demon-Lord too?"
"Well, do as you please."
"You endured the thorn poison with pure physical ability, right?"
"Who knows?"
He didn't even understand why they were making such a fuss about that thorn poison in the first place.
Lee Ganghan answered nonchalantly, but.
"My nose should be right. I can sense monster-like vitality from you."
Rather, the Fox Beastman had some kind of conviction.
"And if vitality is needed..."
Swoosh.
The Fox Beastman reached into the air.
He pulled out a long scroll from there.
Then.
Bite.
He bit his own tongue to draw blood.
He wrote characters on the blank scroll with his blood.
After completing the sentence with his own blood, he knelt down and held the scroll high above his head.
"Great Sage Equal to Heaven! Red Eyebrow seeks your help!"
As the Fox Beastman shouted more seriously than ever.
Crackle...!
A blue flash sparked and the scroll disappeared.
"Groan...!"
The Fox Beastman's body began to be engulfed in blue light in an instant.
Then soon.
Crack, Crack...!
Sounds of joints twisting came from the fox's body.
'...A monkey?'
The opponent who had been a Fox Beastman.
Changed into the form of a monkey.
***
-No, what's happening suddenly ㅡㅡ
-He was completely cute when he was a fox but suddenly became a fierce-looking monkey ㅠ
-The monkey's expression is so nasty ㅋㅋㅋ
The Fox Beastman who called himself Red Eyebrow.
His transformation into a monkey was visually shocking even to the viewers watching.
Unlike the fox who had been cute.
The monkey that appeared after the light flashed was incredibly fierce.
Meanwhile,
-But what is Great Sage Equal to Heaven?
-Great Sage Equal to Heaven is Sun Wukong's nickname
-Could he be related to Sun Wukong ㄷㄷ
-Wasn't Sun Wukong 1st place in the Arena winning streak record? ㅋㅋ He appears here too
After seeing the fox offer a scroll to the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.
Quite a few viewers connected that name with Sun Wukong.
That would make sense.
The title 'Great Sage Equal to Heaven' symbolizes Sun Wukong.
And the form the fox changed into was also a monkey.
"If it's Great Sage Equal to Heaven, is it Sun Wukong?"
When Lee Ganghan looked at the chat and asked Red Eyebrow who had turned into a monkey.
"You know the real name just from hearing the title? Humans are fascinating."
The opponent readily acknowledged that he was 'Sun Wukong'.
-ㄷㄷ It's really Sun Wukong
-How can a fox summon Sun Wukong?
-But if you look at the Arena, wasn't Sun Wukong also a player? Can players help Silver players?
-Right; Is proxy possible in the Tower of Infinity? ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
While viewers were amazed by Sun Wukong's descent and found this phenomenon fascinating.
"I can't stay in a Silver's body for long, so let's clear it first."
Swoosh.
Sun Wukong approached the second Thorn Flower that the Dwarf had found.
Prick.
He pricked himself with the thorn.
'Unlike when he was a fox, he's relaxed.'
Sun Wukong showed no change in facial color or anything.
Tap, Tap.
He brushed off the thorn with his hand.
"Hmm. Your stamina is over 15? Even though you're definitely human."
He looked at Lee Ganghan with fascination.
"Wh-what? 15? Human?"
"Right. This is poison that you endure with pure stamina."
Sun Wukong told this to the shocked Dwarf.
"Let's go. 3 minutes left for the descent."
He moved toward the entry portal.
'He said he can't stay long after descending into a Silver body.'
3 minutes is pretty short.
Lee Ganghan nodded and also approached the entry portal.
"W-we... then can't we go to the 11th floor? It's a chance to destroy the tower...!"
The Dwarf opened his mouth with regretful eyes.
Going to the 11th floor gives you a chance to destroy the tower.
He knows that well too.
But.
"Your stamina isn't enough anyway, right?"
"......"
"You guys just go to the 10th floor."
"......Got it."
When Sun Wukong spoke logically.
The Dwarf accepted this while showing deep regret.
-The dwarf was so stubborn with Heavenly Demon Lord but can't move in front of Sun Wukong
-Is it because he's named? Sun Wukong is also 1st place in Arena winning streak record
-But these other race guys seem to know some information about each other, why do we know so little? ㅋㅋㅋ
-Exactly ㅋㅋ We're only getting some information through the Heavenly Demon channel
Compared to the other races who seemed to know things.
Humanity knew far too little.
When complaints arose about why only they knew so much.
"Going in."
Flash!
Sun Wukong entered the portal first.
'I should go too.'
When Lee Ganghan followed him into the portal.
[Players who resisted the Thorn Flower's poison can challenge the 11th floor at the entry portal.]
[Will you enter the 11th floor?]
A message appeared asking if he wanted to enter the 11th floor.
When Lee Ganghan pressed yes.
Flash!
His body was engulfed in light.
[You have entered the 11th floor of 'Garden of Death'.]
A garden filled with thick poison mist like before came into view.
However, if there was a difference from the 9th floor.
Writhe, Writhe.
Instead of purple flowers.
Giant plants were moving grotesquely and blocking the path.
-The mobs from the lower floors appear here
-Carnivorous plants + poison gas, that's the ultimate combination ㄷㄷ
-So that's why only players with thorn flower resistance can enter
-They have such good regeneration that you have to burn them with fire
So those plant types were the enemies that appeared on the lower floors.
While viewers were sharing tips about dealing with plants.
[Clean up the Garden of Death neatly and meet the garden's owner!]
A new message appeared.
Since it says to clean up.
I guess I have to clear out all those plants?
'I don't have enough Sacred Fire to use the Flame Angel's Sword right now. I'll have to smash them all with my fists.'
The Sacred Fire that had been greatly consumed making the intruders into Lowest Grade Disciples.
If he used the sword here too, the Sacred Fire might downgrade by one level.
So this time, Lee Ganghan decided he'd have to solve everything with just his fists.
"Clean up neatly... How troublesome. Human."
Sun Wukong, who seemed to have seen the same message, frowned.
"Why?"
"Swear on your name that you won't kill Red Eyebrow. Then I'll sweep them away for you."
He suddenly asked Lee Ganghan to make an oath.
"Red Eyebrow is the fox from earlier?"
"That's right."
"It's a cooperative match, why would I kill a teammate?"
"Teammate?"
At that answer, Sun Wukong looked at Lee Ganghan as if he found him interesting.
"You're a naive fellow. We're ultimately competitors. We might cooperate for regular rewards, but it's normal to fight each other to monopolize special rewards."
"Ah."
So even if they cooperate to clear regular rewards like the 10th floor reward.
For special rewards like the 11th floor, they backstab each other trying to monopolize them.
When Lee Ganghan learned about the cooperation in 'cooperative matches'.
"So make the oath."
Sun Wukong demanded the oath again.
-Why does he keep telling him to swear ㅋㅋ
-Just do it for him
-ㄹㅇ Even if you swear, you can just backstab anyway, right? ㅋㅋㅋ
-Still, betrayal is a bit...
There doesn't seem to be any particular restrictions on the oath.
It seems like he just wants a verbal 'promise'.
Well, he had no intention of killing teammates anyway.
"I, Lee Ganghan, will not kill Red Eyebrow in this place."
Lee Ganghan made the promise as Sun Wukong requested.
Then.
"Lee Ganghan...? Ah. You're the new 'Record Breaker'."
Sun Wukong nodded as if he understood.
"Since someone like you staked your name on it, I naturally trust you'll keep the promise."
Sun Wukong turned his back to look at the garden full of carnivorous plants.
Swoosh.
He slowly extended his right index finger toward the sky.
"Come forth, Ruyi."