Chapter 41
Episode 41
[Park Il-chim has donated 1 DP!]
What the hell is Armor of the Vengeful Spirit Horde? I've never seen that before?
[Holding Back Laughter has donated 1 DP!]
But what I'm really curious about is... Ego Formation, that's creating a personality, right? So is that personality a person? Or not? Philosophically speaking...
[Corpse-Spirit-Martial-Sovereign-Pilgrimage-In-Progress has donated 100 DP!]
Boss, I've been watching since your first broadcast. Back then you were just a necromancer with an insane concept, but now you've become a super rookie the whole world is watching. I'm moved. I'm with you for life, boss.
I could see the donation chat scrolling up endlessly.
I could practically feel the DP piling up by the thousands in an instant.
"Hey. Thanks for all the donations, everyone."
I sat on the throne and waved lightly, smiling.
Especially Cheokcheok Seoksa, that fellow.
He gave me some really good information. This must have been a damn hard skill to get.
And Big-Spender Ajusshi only ever drops ominously meaningful remarks when he donates.
Something about being a faction... Well, he's not wrong.
Because designing a personality and granting it to an undead is already broken from the start.
"That Laughter-Holder fellow's question is interesting too."
I looked at the chat and chuckled.
If you create a personality, is it a person or not?
It was a philosophical question.
Well, that's a problem to think about later.
"Alright. First, I've confirmed both Mythic Grade rewards."
I slowly rose from my seat and spoke.
"At this point, I'd say today's labyrinth breakthrough was a huge success, right?"
-Huge success of huge successes
-Corpse-Spirit bro was absolutely legendary today
-Two Mythic Grades + solo raid boss + hard-mode full clear... holy shit
-He did all of this in one day??
-Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign's life story is going to end up in textbooks
-Boss, I'm with you for life!!
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks, everyone."
I smiled contentedly and looked at the chat window.
This is really something.
The Dimensional Tower was practically handing out freebies, so there was no reason for me to refuse.
"Then that's it for today's broadcast! See you all tomorrow!"
And with that, I ended the broadcast.
* * *
I turned off the broadcast and returned to the Dimensional Tower Lobby.
Still seated on the throne, I decided to calmly organize today's results.
Anyway, this throne.
Isn't it too hard? My butt's getting a little sore... I should bring a cushion.
Let's see. Level 24. I went up four levels at once on Floor 2 this time?
Well, sure.
If I was the first to fully clear hard-mode Floor 2, I should get at least this much.
"So, has my output increased a bit too?"
While seated on the throne, I slowly began to manipulate my Necromantic Mana.
Whoosh...
I could feel pitch-black Necromantic Mana pouring solidly out of my dantian.
I could definitely feel that my output had jumped enormously compared with before.
Actually, thanks to the Necron Ossuary, I was a broken character whose Necromantic Mana recovered the instant I used it, so I almost never ran short.
But even though the recovery was fast, the output of a single blast itself was pretty weak.
It felt like tap water gushing out, but with weak water pressure.
But now I could feel that the output itself had become considerably stronger.
It felt like it had suddenly surged after Level 20.
"Let me test it out. Necromantic Mana Arrow."
I lightly raised my hand and activated the skill.
Whoosh...
Pitch-black spheres began floating up above my head.
One, two, three, four, five.
A total of five black spheres circled above my head.
"If I pour a bit more Necromantic Mana into these."
I channeled additional Necromantic Mana into the five spheres.
The spheres gradually swelled, radiating a weighty pressure.
What had started out the size of marbles had grown to the size of fists before I knew it.
"Fire."
I flicked one of the spheres toward the floor in front of me.
Boom!
The sphere struck the pure-white floor and detonated with a solid boom.
The pure white space rippled for an instant with a pitch-black shockwave.
"Hmm. This."
I stared at the blast mark and smacked my lips.
"Is that about as strong as sword qi?"
By my previous life's standards, it seemed to have about the power of a single strand of sword qi from a first-rate martial artist.
Of course, it was still far below the Sword Aura of a Transformation Realm master.
Still, for a Level 24 who had only just started being called a super rookie, it was quite usable.
"It would've been better if I could swing it directly. Well, this is better than nothing."
A little disappointed, I opened the skill window.
[Corpse Control / Town-Grade Undead Subdimension / Necromantic Mana Arrow / Necromantic Mana Manipulation / Dignity of the Corpse Lord / Undead Recycling / Self-Reclamation / Corpse Processing / Soul Curse / Soul Binding / Necro Item Crafting / Necromantic Barrier / Life Drain / Touch of Decay / Blended Ego Formation / Armor of the Vengeful Spirit Horde]
"Hmm. Let's see."
I quietly examined the two newly added skills.
Then one thing suddenly caught my eye.
"Huh? Blended Ego Formation, is this an upgraded version of Self-Reclamation?"
[Self-Reclamation].
It was a skill I'd obtained a while ago but never used because there was no particular occasion for it.
Actually, aside from Necromantic Mana Manipulation, I hadn't really used most of them properly.
Anyone watching me might wonder whether I was even a Necromancer.
Anyway, if Self-Reclamation was about "restoring an existing ego."
Then Blended Ego Formation was about "designing and creating a completely new ego from scratch."
They were on different levels.
If Self-Reclamation was recovering a corrupted file, then Blended Ego Formation was coding an entirely new program.
"Well, if I use both well, they'll create synergy."
After staring at various skills for a while, I lightly stretched.
"Should I call it a day here..."
I'd broken through the labyrinth all day and even received Mythic Grade rewards, so it had been a sufficiently fulfilling day.
At this point, a little rest was how you kept going for the long haul.
"Today, instead of making Si Ha-rin cook, I should just order some fried chicken."
There are days when you crave greasy fried chicken and a can of beer more than android home cooking.
Today was exactly that kind of day.
I stowed away the throne and slowly walked out of the lobby.
* * *
The moment Lee Mu-seon fully cleared the 'Higher-Difficulty Floor 2.'
A familiar message appeared once again in the system windows of Awakened around the world.
[The Dimensional Tower Floor 2 trial has been fully cleared for the first time.]
[That awakened person is Korean.]
[A permanent blessing has been granted to all Dimensional Tower climbers of South Korea.]
[Blessing: Faint Regeneration]
And the moment its effect became known.
The whole world was thrown into an uproar once again.
"Regeneration?"
A Dimensional Tower climber somewhere in South Korea looked at a wound on his arm and opened his eyes wide.
The abrasion that had been bleeding steadily just moments ago.
In an instant, the bleeding stopped, new flesh grew, and it healed over.
Faint Regeneration.
Literally, it was a faint level.
But its effect was by no means faint.
Light abrasions stopped bleeding and healed over on the spot.
Even with serious injuries, at least the bleeding stopped with astonishing speed.
The most terrifying thing in Dimensional Tower climbing was death by blood loss.
And this was an effect that reduced that entire risk.
This wasn't just a simple buff; it was a tremendous blessing that raised survival rates themselves.
[Korean Awakened got spoiled again lololol] (52,847)
Tutorial reward upgrade + Floor 1 reward upgrade + now regeneration too??
This Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign fellow is really carrying Korea's entire Dimensional Tower infrastructure
-No but regeneration is really on a whole different level??
-Bleeding out is the number-one cause of hunter deaths, and that's being reduced across the board??
-Korean hunter survival rates are skyrocketing thanks to Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign
-At this point, isn't he basically a national hero?
-Not just a person of national merit—he's practically a founding hero at this point
-We seriously need to build a statue of our boss
-Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign: the ultimate insurance policy for Korean Awakened
-What are hunters from other countries going to do without Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign lololol
-Naturalization applications from abroad to Korea are going to explode
[Overseas reactions) Foreign hunters jealous of Korea again.jpg] (38,201)
I scraped up the overseas reactions.
USA: We need our own Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign
Japan: Only Korea gets all the good stuff (again)
China: We must get that man
-No but seriously the whole world is going crazy over Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign alone
-I've never felt this secure about being Korean
-Corpse-Spirit Martial Sovereign, please never leave Korea. I'm serious
Various communities were once again filled to the brim with praise for Lee Mu-seon.
A single super rookie was changing the climbing environment of an entire nation.
And that while the man himself was clocking out to go order some fried chicken.
* * *
At the same time.
A private meeting room directly under the Dimensional Tower Administration in Beijing, China.
A grim silence hung over the round table beneath the dim red lighting.
On the wall screen, the red words "Operation Failed" stood out clearly.
Lower-Floor Decapitation Unit: all members dead.
Target elimination failed.
"So the mission failed."
Deputy Director Wang Zihe tapped the round table quietly with his fingers and spoke.
His voice carried a cold composure rather than anger.
"Xu Xinlei's unit has been annihilated. There is not a single survivor."
The military officer beside him delivered the report in a grave voice.
Wang Zihe's eyes narrowed.
On the screen, the 'target' sat on a throne as carefree as could be, smiling at the viewers' chat.
Even after annihilating the elite unit China had just sent after him,
That young man didn't even seem to know who they had been.
"We should have nipped him in the bud before he grew this much."
Wang Zihe slowly rose from his seat.
"Now that it has come to this, we change direction. Begin the recruitment operation. If he refuses to come over, eliminate him in the real world."
At Wang Zihe's words, every gaze in the meeting room turned toward him at once.
"If we can get him to naturalize to China, all the better. We have intelligence that the United States is already trying to recruit him, so we move first."
"But Deputy Director. Our unit just tried to kill him. If he learns of that fact."
"Then we simply ensure he never learns."
Wang Zihe twisted the corner of his mouth coldly.
"The dead do not speak. The Lower-Floor Decapitation Unit never officially existed. There is therefore no evidence anywhere that we tried to kill him."
A brief silence fell over the meeting room.
"We will proceed with elimination and appeasement simultaneously. Either way, in the end, we simply need to get him into our grasp."
Wang Zihe stared quietly at the young man on the screen.
"Jiangshi master Lee Mu-seon. You are too dangerous to keep alive, and too valuable to kill."
The red light fell deeply across his face.