The Dragon's Hidden Battery
The morning sun streamed through the window as I opened my eyes, having just finished my Qi Circulation.
When I blinked slowly, Nyx’s face came into focus, staring at me intently.
A little embarrassing, honestly.
“Yeah. Were you watching me the whole time?”
“Wait, are you telling me the goddess herself stood guard for me?”
I was at a loss for words.
I never expected her to stay up all night keeping watch.
A small wave of emotion touched me.
“Huh? No, I’m fine.”
That’s because I’m embarrassed, okay?
If I told her the truth, she would definitely tease me mercilessly, so I changed the subject.
“It’s nothing. Circulating qi also relieves fatigue.”
I let out a small chuckle and checked my internal energy.
It had increased by a mere grain of rice.
Still, it was much better than when I first started.
The energy from the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng that I hadn’t fully absorbed was still scattered throughout my body.
In the end, the ginseng’s virtue had contributed far more than the Three Talents Qi Gong itself.
However, some of the qi absorbed during circulation had settled somewhere other than my dantian.
“Hold on a second.”
This was the first time I had seen internal energy accumulate anywhere other than the dantian after circulation.
I had heard of heart methods like the Purple Lightning Great Heart Technique that created small secondary dantians across various acupoints, but…
There was no way a basic martial art like Three Talents Qi Gong possessed such a function.
As I observed the spot where the qi had gathered—
“Ah—” A sound of realization escaped me.
The culprit was the skill I had extracted from Ness’s essence: Dragon Pearl.
“The internal energy that Three Talents Qi Gong couldn’t fully digest seeped into here.”
The amount was around 10 points.
Roughly one-tenth of my current stats.
“The Dragon Pearl was storing my internal energy.”
I took the opening stance of the Blood Claw Technique and stimulated the pearl. The stored qi immediately poured out.
The energy from the Dragon Pearl blended seamlessly with the qi in my dantian, without the slightest discomfort.
Wait… doesn’t this mean it’s basically an internal energy auxiliary battery?
“Not right now, sure. But once I learn stronger martial arts, I’ll run out pretty quickly.”
There was a hidden opportunity waiting on the eleventh floor.
If I learned the Beast King’s Hundred Martial Arts, my current internal energy reserves would severely limit my combat endurance.
“It’s still a bit disappointing in terms of quantity.”
The accumulated energy was only about one-tenth of my total true qi.
It could only be used as a trump card in battle.
“What is it?”
A reasonable point.
Following Nyx’s suggestion, I directed the qi from my dantian into the Dragon Pearl.
The Dragon Pearl absorbs your internal energy.
[11.2/50]
[15.4/50]
It could actually store it?!
My mouth fell open.
“Goddess.”
“This is amazing! You were right!”
I grabbed Nyx’s arms and spun her around on the spot.
Internal energy that could only be increased through Qi Circulation.
Right now it was growing rapidly thanks to the Moonview Stone and the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, but normally, no matter how much you circulated, it only increased by a pitiful amount.
That was exactly why martial artists from the previous timeline had taken so long to stand out inside the Tower.
The Dragon Pearl had solved that chronic problem to a significant degree.
While I was spinning around holding Nyx’s hands—
Bzzzzt—!
The vibration of my phone echoed through the studio apartment.
“Who’s calling at this hour?”
When I let go, Nyx staggered, unable to regain her balance.
Maybe I got a little too excited.
Sorry, Goddess.
Leaving the dizzy goddess behind, I reached for my phone.
[Han Suchang — Team Leader]
What does this guy want so early in the morning?
The moment I pressed the answer button and held it to my ear—
— Yu Jinho, Special Task Force Member!!!!
“Whoa, you scared me. Why are you yelling the second I pick up?”
Han Suchang’s voice was thick with excitement.
Since I had only ever seen his calm and composed side in my previous life, it was honestly hard to get used to.
“Alright. I’ll look it up now.”
The moment I opened the internet as he suggested, a short exclamation slipped out.
“Oh.”
* * *
1. Hidden Boss on Tower Floor 7
2. Yu Jinho Breaks Record Once Again
3. Black Tiger Team
As expected.
So that’s why the team leader called first thing in the morning.
“Breaking a record isn’t that big of a deal.”
“Records are measured by team, though.”
It was past midnight, so the Tower raid records must have updated by now.
Even so…
“This is strange.”
“The hidden boss makes sense, but the news is spreading way too fast.”
Han Suchang took a deep breath before continuing.
His voice suddenly dropped.
“About the seventh-floor raid?”
“The source must have been the Baekho Guild.”
That was obvious.
It was common knowledge that the Baekho Guild Master and Seo Jeongmin didn’t get along.
Come to think of it, the internal affairs of the LS Group wouldn’t become public until much later.
“I just noticed from the way you were talking.”
“The Player Association gets to raise the profile of the Special Task Force, so it’s a win-win for everyone.”
No wonder.
The appearance of a hidden boss and the rumors about the Black Tiger Team that had only been whispers until now hadn’t come out of nowhere.
Energy returned to Han Suchang’s voice.
The more my fame grew, the faster his own position—having created the Special Task Force—would rise.
Considering the future that was coming, this was a positive change.
That guy would probably get promoted through his own abilities even without me, but giving him a little push wouldn’t hurt.
“You must be busy.”
“Go ahead and take care of it.”
As soon as I hung up, Nyx perched on my shoulder.
“Yesterday’s Tower raid became a hot topic.”
I decided to show her the articles, both to boast about my contractor’s competence and to keep her entertained.
Baekho’s Promising New Team and Player Yu Jinho Confirmed to Have Broken the 7th Floor Record.
Baekho’s Secretly Raised New Team Completely Dominated by a Single Player?
7th Floor Record Broken. Overwhelming Contribution Gap — Black Tiger Team Issues Explanation…
“I still have a long way to go.”
It had been two months since I returned to 2025.
The speed at which I was gaining fame was incomparably faster than in my previous life.
“At this rate, I can push my plans forward a little.”
“I’m thinking of forming my own team.”
“It’s not a team I’ll take on every mission with.”
Although I called it a team, to be precise, I was preemptively recruiting talented individuals in preparation for the war against the Old Gods.
While establishing a guild was only possible from Bronze rank onward, forming a team only required mutual agreement.
“You actually remembered?”
Lee Jiyoung.
A barrier specialist and one of the few players in Korea who would reach Grand Master rank.
During the tutorial, I had taught her how to use her unique ability and briefly formed a party with her.
Right. In 2025, that person should still be staying in Korea.
If I moved quickly, it would be a huge advantage once I eventually established my guild.
“There’s one more person.”
“They’re not that strict.”
I grumbled, but I couldn’t exactly deny it.
My standards for judging a player’s talent and ability were calibrated to the standards of the apocalypse era, after all.
Bzzzzt—! Right on cue, Han Suchang called again.
I answered and spoke before he could say anything.
“I have one request.”
“Look into one person for me. Actually, make it two.”
The authority of the Player Association.
When else was I going to use it if not now?
* * *
The Player Association held the complete list of everyone who had been invited to the Tower.
Although the government supported player registration, each country operated its own server, making it easy to secure the list of awakened individuals.
My first destination was North Daejeon, where the barrier user Lee Jiyoung lived.
When I arrived at the café we had agreed to meet at, a woman jumped up in surprise.
“Master! Over here!”
Lee Jiyoung waved both arms enthusiastically to greet me.
By the way…
“You’re still calling me Master, huh.”
“Once a master, always a master! A teacher for a day is a teacher for life, right?!”
I never expected a classical Chinese idiom to come out here.
I sat down across from her with the table between us.
“It hasn’t been that long since we last saw each other. Not even a month.”
“A lot has happened though. Especially to you, Master.”
From the way she was talking, it seemed she had read the articles about me.
“Has your barrier control improved much?”
Lee Jiyoung twitched her cheeks and gave a mysterious smile.
“I can overlap up to three layers now.”
She answered in a proud voice.
Already three layers.
I knew she had talent, but I hadn’t expected her to shave off several years of training just from a few pointers.
“That’s because I worked hard. Right, Master’s summon?”
“If I don’t call a summon a summon, then what should I call it?”
The two of them were engaged in a strange standoff.
Well, one of them was actually a goddess.
“Goddess, please hold back a little when there are a lot of people around.”
Nyx huffed and turned her head away.
She really hated being treated like a summon.
I’d have to warn Jiyoung about that later too.
“I’m planning to form a team.”
“You, Master?”
“Yeah. I’m gathering colleagues who will work with me from now on.”
“Then the reason you asked to see me was…”
“To recruit you as a team member.”
“Of course I accept!”
Lee Jiyoung’s current demeanor was completely different from the person I remembered.
Was she always this energetic?
Well, we only truly became close during the apocalypse, so it made sense that she had been more reserved back then.
“No. Read the contract first and then decide.”
— Daily commute to the Seoul Team Training Center.
— Tower missions must be carried out in the presence of team members.
— Training with Team Leader (me) five times per week.
— Three meals provided daily.
— 2% of earnings from Tower missions will be taken as team operating funds.
— Monthly salary of 10 million won. Subject to adjustment every six months.
— Contract period of 3 years.
There were various other clauses, but the core points were listed above.
“There’s a team training center?”
“Not yet. I’ll make one as soon as I gather the members.”
The 2 billion won deposited by the Baekho Guild.
The 1 billion won earned from selling goods obtained in the tutorial and the Tower.
Plus the Association’s support funds and other miscellaneous income brought the total to 4 billion won.
It wasn’t enough to buy a proper building in Seoul, but for now, I could probably rent a decent-sized place.
Money was meant to be used at times like this.
“It might be burdensome to leave your hometown, but…”
Before I could even finish speaking, Lee Jiyoung signed the contract.
“Master! When do I start?!”
Hey, at least let me finish talking!