Chapter 4
Rewards poured in like a tidal wave.
The names alone were shocking, especially considering this was the first Abyss’s reward.
Forget the Gold Box—there was even a Platinum Box!
And not just any Platinum Box.
‘A 3-Star Platinum Box… I didn’t even get a regular Platinum Box until I was over Level 70. I’ve never even seen a 3-Star before.’
It was said to be a miracle that defied understanding.
After soloing a Fallen Ghost with a 109-level gap, calling it a “mythical feat” and praising it endlessly wouldn’t be enough.
Even so, the fact that a 3-Star Platinum Box was being offered as a reward was surprising even to Park Chan-woo.
There were five types of “boxes” obtainable in the Abyss.
Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond.
The Diamond Box was a “dedicated box” only obtainable after reaching Level 99, so for almost everyone else, the Platinum Box was the highest attainable tier.
Each added star drastically increased the quality of the rewards.
Three stars?
He couldn’t even begin to imagine what it might contain.
‘Only about 1% get a Gold Box in the first Abyss.’
Even just a Gold Box was an impressive achievement.
In the past, less than 20% even survived, and the most they walked away with was a measly Bronze Box.
Those who earned a Gold Box in the first Abyss made up less than 1% of the total population.
However, this time, a miracle had occurred with a survival rate exceeding 90%, leaving 824 survivors.
All 824 received a Gold Box—an unprecedented event.
‘No one even got a Platinum Box.’
Despite that, he was certain no one had gotten a Platinum Box.
If someone had, Park Chan-woo would’ve known.
The armament granted by a Platinum Box was immensely helpful for progressing through the Abyss.
Though only a single tier above Gold, the treasures inside the Platinum Box were in a different league.
If someone had obtained one, they would’ve rapidly grown stronger and monopolized all the gains.
There’s no way Park Chan-woo wouldn’t have noticed someone like that.
That was the very reason he returned to the moment the first Abyss opened.
‘The rewards from the first Abyss determine your growth speed.’
Back then, he had been too slow and too late.
He didn’t even begin seriously tackling the Abyss until over six months later.
It wasn’t until society had completely collapsed that he finally took action.
…How deeply he regretted that.
If only he had shortened that gap, if he’d claimed the high ground earlier, he wouldn’t have had such extreme thoughts like sacrificing Sephiro just to return to the past.
He was convinced that even just acquiring the first Abyss’s reward properly would’ve drastically altered his “growth ceiling.”
‘Anyway.’
Park Chan-woo stared at the floating text again.
The rewards were insane, but what came after was even crazier.
Numerous Creators were showing interest in him.
Park Chan-woo smirked.
‘The Creator who made this Abyss might go bankrupt.’
The content of the Abyss was created by those “Creators.”
A supreme being had placed the Fallen Ghost and arranged for 881 people to play a deadly game of tag.
These were the “Lords of the Abyss,” entities unrelated to the Twelve Species.
Their bet on this Abyss produced a projected survival rate of 21.7%.
Yet 93.5% had survived—more than four times that number.
The Creators who placed bets lost all their “coins,” and the Creator who opened the Abyss—the Subjector—likely went bankrupt after coughing up 824 Gold Boxes and a 3-Star Platinum Box.
‘By now, it should be making an appearance.’
He fought to keep his swirling thoughts steady.
At last, another message surfaced, and Park Chan-woo internally cried out “Eureka.”
[The Subjector ‘Panting Maw’ proposes a reward exchange, offering something better.]
[If you accept, you’ll receive 100 Gold Boxes instead of the [Platinum Box (★★★)].]
[Additionally, you’ll gain the option to form an ‘Incarnation Contract’ with ‘Panting Maw.’]
[Unlike an ‘Apostle Contract,’ the Incarnation Contract grants buff effects in Abysses created by ‘Panting Maw’ and allows you to inherit a ‘Secret Class.’]
Just as he expected.
‘So it really doesn’t want to go bankrupt.’
There had been instances of Creators going bankrupt in the past.
Each time, they twisted and squirmed, trying anything to recover, attempting to win over those who cleared their Abysses with all sorts of offers.
The most common tactic was “reward reduction.”
They’d act as if they were offering something better or being generous, subtly scaling down the actual rewards to avoid bankruptcy.
They’d probably try to lower not just his reward, but also the other 823 survivors’ rewards as much as possible.
‘If I didn’t know anything, I might’ve accepted.’
To someone unaware, the offer might sound tempting.
They might even jump at the chance, thinking they could become “allies” with the one who built this hell.
One over a hundred sounds better, and they might dream of becoming an unrivaled powerhouse through the Incarnation Contract instead of an Apostle Contract.
But Park Chan-woo knew better.
He knew this was bait.
Just a desperate ploy from someone trying to avoid bankruptcy.
One hundred Gold Boxes?
Not even a joke—it’s not comparable to even a single Platinum Box.
Once you move up a box tier, it’s impossible to substitute it.
That’s how drastically the quality of obtainable armaments changes.
Especially a 3-Star Platinum Box.
‘An Incarnation Contract is just a slave contract. It’s nothing but wordplay.’
The Creators.
It’s better to keep a distance from those Lords of the Abyss.
Becoming an Incarnation would make you heavily influenced by those Creators.
You could be forcefully summoned into the Abysses they make, or be ordered to tamper with “survival rates.”
If the survival rate is too high, you might be told to discreetly kill off participants, for instance.
There were actually quite a few Incarnations who acted like trolls in that way.
“Screw… off.”
Park Chan-woo flashed a triumphant smile and flipped his middle finger.
In that moment—
[“No! This can’t be! Do you know how hard it was to earn that right?!”]
[The Subjector ‘Panting Maw’ has gone bankrupt!]
《‘Panting Maw’ has been stripped of their title as a ‘Creator.’》
《Due to overwhelming debt, they have been demoted from the rank of ‘Lord.’》
《As the individual who contributed the most to the Creator’s bankruptcy, you are awarded [3 Coins].》
《Coins can be used to escape from an unwanted Abyss.》
‘Just as expected.’
Right from the start, one Creator was gone.
It was immensely satisfying.
He hadn’t eaten, but he felt full.
And on top of that, he gained Coins.
‘Three Escape Coins from the beginning. If my comrades saw this, they’d probably pass out from jealousy.’
Let it be said clearly—Coins were the greatest treasure.
They were, without exaggeration, treasure among treasures.
The ability to escape from a wretched Abyss at will.
As time passed, the difficulty of Abysses would increase.
Some Abysses offered pitiful rewards but demanded endless time and effort.
Others were designed to target specific individuals.
So-called “Sniper Abysses.”
If you got targeted and had no Coins, the odds of dying were a staggering 95%.
The problem was that getting even one Escape Coin was like plucking a star from the sky.
That’s why staying under the Creators’ radar was extremely important.
But he had gained a whopping three of them from the start.
It meant he didn’t have to fear the Creators.
‘Even Creators opening Sniper Abysses would be under pressure. If the target escapes, they suffer a heavy blow.’
The Abyss was a battleground between participants and Subjectors.
Naturally, if the Subjector’s goal failed, they would suffer damage.
Just like this time—bankruptcy.
So—
‘I won’t be making any deals with you.’
《You have rejected all Apostle Contracts.》
《The proposing Creators are displeased.》
‘If you don’t like it, then go ahead and snipe me.’
Even if they opened a Sniper Abyss now, it didn’t matter.
Acquiring a class through an Apostle Contract?
It was a valid path, but Park Chan-woo had no intention of making deals with the Lords of the Abyss.
Creators were beings who, once they got one thing, demanded two more.
He planned to walk a path that was his alone.
Only then did Park Chan-woo finally close his eyes in peace.
* * *
When he accessed the media, the world had changed.
「The ‘Abyss’ that all of humanity experienced simultaneously—what is it?」
「Current estimates place the death toll in Seoul alone at over 100,000.」
「The Awakening of Humanity—what path must we take moving forward?」
「The End Has Come!」
TV, newspapers, the internet—every outlet was talking about the Abyss.
Late afternoon.
Having barely made it home, Park Chan-woo took a shower and sat on the edge of his bed.
He rubbed his hair dry with a towel while fidgeting with his phone and leaving the news on the TV.
“…Was it always this hard to use?”
After living two decades without any electronics, even using one by memory wasn’t easy.
In half a year, the foundations of society would completely collapse.
‘If I can just minimize the damage when the large-scale Abyss opens in six months… when humanity first encounters the Twelve Species…’
At the very least, the government might still function.
The difference between having infrastructure and not was like heaven and earth.
But the large-scale Abyss set to open in six months—“The First Racial War”—was no joke.
Even against the weakest soldiers, humanity suffered an overwhelming defeat.
As a result, humanity had to offer up 120 million people.
Ten million to each species as sacrifices.
Just remembering it still made his blood boil.
“God of Offerings. How long do you plan on sleeping?”
He muttered to himself.
The God of Offerings still gave no reply.
If it had returned, it would have shown some sign—but there was none.
There was something else strange, too.
He was sure he saw a message stating more tributes were needed to resurrect the God of Offerings.
“Hey. Don’t tell me you used your soul to bring me back or something?”
He said it half-jokingly, not really believing it.
The God of Offerings was strictly give-and-take.
It never made a deal it couldn’t profit from.
He had once made a contract with it by chance while walking the path of magic, but it had never given more than what it received in offerings.
It definitely wouldn’t have sacrificed its own soul just to send him to the past.
‘…It must just be asleep.’
It had gone silent for days at a time before, too.
Park Chan-woo shook his head, pushing the thought aside.
There were more important things to focus on now.
‘My level only went up by one.’
From Level -99 to Level -98.
That made no sense.
Honestly, he’d expected to gain at least five levels.
Being at Level -99, he figured the required experience points would be minimal, allowing for a leveling storm.
But that wasn’t the case.
‘If I don’t return to normal levels, I’ll die within 500 days.’
By “normal,” he meant Level 1.
In other words, he still had to level up 99 more times.
In the midst of all this chaos, and he’d only gained one level.
His vision suddenly darkened.
Not dying after 500 days—dying within 500 days was the real issue.
It meant he could die anytime before then!
More importantly—
‘…My stats didn’t go up even though my level did.’
His stats were still stuck at the minimum default of 1.
Due to the “Weakest” status, all base stats were fixed at 1.
That didn’t mean there was no way to grow stronger.
‘I just need to raise additional stats through gear options, class effects, support spells, or offerings to the God of Offerings.’
Only the base stats were fixed—bonus stats could still be increased.
And there were many ways to boost those.
Thanks to the massive level gap, the rewards had improved, too.
With his thoughts now organized, Park Chan-woo brought out two boxes.
The Gold Box and the 3-Star Platinum Box.
‘Time for an exciting unboxing.’
No reason to delay.
It was far more exciting than unboxing an expensive luxury item.
This was his favorite moment.
The thrill of collecting boxes in the Abyss and discovering treasures within.
Park Chan-woo first opened the Gold Box.
《Opening ‘Gold Box.’》
《You have acquired [Shoulderguards of the Demon (Epic)]!》
Name: Shoulderguards of the Demon
Level: -98
Grade: Epic
Description: Shoulder armor favored by high-ranking demons of the Abyss. Due to its low level, its defense and durability are reduced.
Equip Slot: Shoulder (Pauldron Type)
Defense: 2
Durability: 110
Unique Option: Increases Health and Strength by 2 each.
“Oh…!”
Park Chan-woo let out a short cheer.
Not bad.
Same grade as the Lizard Slayer Blade, but with far better options.
It was exactly the kind of gear he needed.
When he placed the skull-engraved shoulder guards onto his shoulders, they automatically adjusted to fit him perfectly.
‘Much better.’
With his Health and Strength each raised by 2, his body felt noticeably more at ease.
Base stats were still fixed at 1, but the bonus stats seemed to apply properly.
Now only one thing remained.
He could wait to level up before opening it, but Park Chan-woo thought differently.
‘If you save it, it turns into crap.’
The Abyss wasn’t kind enough to let you hoard treasures.
If it broke from use or got replaced by something better, he could always offer it to the God of Offerings later for other benefits.
Park Chan-woo carefully opened the 3-Star Platinum Box.
《Opening [Platinum Box (★★★)].》
《Platinum Box reward exceeds expectations threefold.》
《Confirmed reward grade: [Eternal].》
《Select one from the five rewards below.》
[World Tree Staff], [Helm of the Ruined King], [Heart of the True Demon Dragon], [Grimoire of the Stars], [Greatsword of Gazz Knight]
“……!!!”
