Murim (1)
"Time until next duel: 719:58:19"
The duel timer, which had been stuck at zero ever since he reached the 6th floor, began ticking down once more.
"……."
Yun-seok froze for a moment, then took a deep breath and pieced together the current situation.
So many changes had hit him all at once that confusion was natural, but he couldn't afford to space out now.
What the hell?
Duel Tower No.4. All Duel Towers meet the criteria. Dimensional fusion…….
The system messages that had popped up earlier gave off the vibe that multiple towers like this one existed, and they were now linking up into one.
Does that mean I'll start running into challengers from other towers during trials now?
It was a plausible hypothesis…… but nothing was confirmed.
Every single message from start to finish had been a chain of mysteries.
Rankings, tower closures, and so on. And it wasn't just that— the fact that 2,000 challengers had reached the 20th floor hit Yun-seok like a truck.
...Let's check the rankings first.
The system hadn't kindly explained how to use it, but Yun-seok naturally gravitated toward the tablet.
[Arrival Order]
Sure enough, a new category called [Ranking] had opened up.
Without a second thought, Yun-seok clicked it.
And then…….
*10,000th: Predation - Earth
*9,998th: SeventhDwarf - Pedomia
*9,999th: SpaceshipCaptain - Taclane
Nicknames and origins of countless challengers, including Yun-seok's own, scrolled by.
The message had said 2,000 people, so why were there 10,000 ranks?
The question formed just as something else caught his eye.
Taclane and Pedomia. Both were dimension names he'd never heard before.
...So that's what fusion means.
Yun-seok slowly scrolled up the ranking board from the bottom.
Earth, Sehelanbard, Killian, Murim. Plus newcomers like Taclane and Pedomia, adding up to 12 more dimensions for a total of 16.
2,000 per tower, five towers merged? That math checks out.
If each tower pulled from three dimensions, it fit roughly. Raguna had once mentioned that Yun-seok's own tower had only three dimensions before Earth joined.
...But seriously, what the hell is the goal here?
He suddenly wondered what purpose this tower served in gathering challengers.
No answers came, just like always.
Instead of wasting time, Yun-seok focused elsewhere.
Anyway... I'm dead last?
10,000th out of 10,000 challengers. What was the metric? Combat prowess? Hard to swallow.
There might be stronger folks out there, but bottom tier? No way.
As his brow furrowed deeper, something in the top right caught his eye.
[Arrival Order]
So straightforward it clicked instantly.
If that's the standard, of course I'm 10,000th.
Clicking the sort option brought up more criteria.
Yun-seok cycled through them to see the differences.
Starting with win/loss record.
[Win/Loss Record]
*5,621st: Predation - Earth (23 wins, 1 loss, 0 draws)
Way lower than expected.
Just one loss climbing to the 20th floor. And this was his rank?
More importantly, that meant the 5,620 challengers above him had perfect records to the 20th floor.
Yun-seok let out an involuntary scoff.
The standards are totally different from before…….
Nearly 2,000 others shared his exact record, too.
Interesting.
Competitors who existed unseen, always pushing him to stay sharp and grind. Now their presence felt real.
The more info, the better.
Next, average rating.
[Average Rating]
*391st: Predation - Earth (SS+)
Much better—top 400, even with 700 ties.
Solid upper ranks.
Is average rating the tower's own evaluation?
Felt like it. Just more granular with plus/minus markers.
Another scoff escaped.
Even the tower thinks there are 390 ahead of me.
What a kick in the teeth. Perfect motivation.
Might as well check the next one.
[By Dimension]
This ranked challengers per dimension separately…… letting Yun-seok tally 20th-floor arrivals easily.
[By Dimension]
Killian: 995
Murim: 507
Sehelanbard: 492
Earth: 6
Total: 2,000
Hard to deny now.
That many had really made it to the 20th floor.
Most just never showed at the plaza?
Aside from Cheonma, he'd never seen or heard of other 20th-floor climbers there.
But this many popping up? Shocking, sure……
Come to think of it, Cheonma had been the same. Never showed until after the 20th.
No word on the Steel King or that 18th-floor swordsman. Same for the mystery killer on the 6th-floor plaza.
Even Yun-seok himself had only popped in briefly for intel, focusing on personal growth over mingling.
If everyone's like that, it makes sense…….
What really shocked him was elsewhere.
Killian demons—barely seen in the plaza—made up half of 2,000. Fine.
But……
Earth has six?
He hadn't expected that many from Earth. A measly 0.3% of the population, but he'd quietly assumed he was the only one.
The shock hit harder.
Who were they? Why hide from Earth entirely?
Curiosity piqued, Yun-seok scanned Earth's list…… and tilted his head.
A familiar nickname jumped out.
*5th: GrapeJam - Earth
Who was that again? Memory clicked fast.
That aggro troll from back then.
The one who stormed chat like Lu Bu, toying with hordes of challengers.
Still alive was surprising enough…… but all the way here?
Since I'm last by dimension, it's probably arrival order too.
Switching back to average rating, Yun-seok focused on Sehelanbard and Murim.
Curious about Steel King and Cheonma's ranks.
He didn't know their nicknames, but dimension, rating, and vibe let him guess.
And there they were.
*14th: Steel Warrior (SSS) - Sehelanbard
*1st: Heavenly Demon (SSS+) - Murim
Steel King's self-rating was SS during the auction, but he'd climbed since—fair.
No other steel-themed names.
Cheonma's was obvious. Right at the top, bold as brass.
One snag…….
Why's it in English……?
Murim didn't use letters like that. And such a goofy nickname?
Some backstory, probably.
He'd ask if they met again. No time to dwell—too many priorities.
13 at SSS+ average rating #1…….
Tower deemed them Cheonma-tier. 90 at Steel King's level too.
How monstrous to outrate him? Hard to picture, but…….
"...Guess I really need to get serious now."
Yun-seok steeled himself anew.
720 hours from now. Matching begins.
Probably random. And packed with potential monsters stronger than him.
Big picture? Same as always.
Prep for the next duel. Grow as much as possible in the time left.
So how to grow…….
Yun-seok drew his sword in the waiting room for the first time in ages.
He used to train whenever free, but post-Transcendent Authority, he'd focused stats.
Now even that hit a wall.
After Strength and Agility hit S-rank, effort exploded.
Simple math: 5 years per rank-up.
Solo training has limits.
could solve time via duels, but 5 years was no joke—even for a grind fiend like him.
And +1 Strength/Agility didn't guarantee visible gains.
Five years sword training would yield more.
Realizing Middle Dantian use opened his eyes: he had plenty already.
True lack? Maxing their potential.
Thus, basic physical training or WP for other trials? Unappealing.
"……."
Yun-seok pondered his month.
Then it hit him.
Cheonma Cave.
The source that made Cheonma Murim's apex—and top dog even here among dimensions.
He'd planned to visit at a wall…….
No time for delays.
No guarantee against Cheonma-tier in the next duel.
Make the month count.
Elle's warnings nagged, but hit A-rank, fate shifted. Her "chance" resolved too.
Murim should be fine.
Decision made.
And then—
Ring ring ring! Ring ring ring!
Murim trip sounded good, but…… something needed handling first.
Not just him dazed by the tower's upheaval.