Chapter 395
[Congratulations.]
As soon as Taesan returned to the labyrinth, a voice spoke to him. Taesan immediately knew whose voice it was.
“The witch.”
The Green Witch. She was the one who addressed Taesan.
[You’ve already reached the same realm as me… You’re incredibly fast. It’s not bad for me, but it does make me feel a little melancholy.]
She shared her vision with Taesan through their contract. The stronger Taesan grew, the more power he gained and the tougher his opponents became, the closer she came to her goal. Taesan’s growth was never a bad thing for her.
But she had spent countless years at the rank of Immortal.
Literally an immeasurable span of time. Yet Taesan reached the Immortal state in what was just a moment for her. She couldn’t help feeling bittersweet.
[Still… it’s not a bad thing. The stronger you become, the greater the possibility you’ll discover the path to transcendence.]
The witch’s voice sounded slightly excited.
[I wonder what you’ll become. Will you, like me, stop at immortality? Or will you go forward and forward, like the gods, and reach transcendence? I’ll keep watching.]
With that, the witch’s voice faded.
The witch wanted to find the path to transcendence. That was why she made a contract with Taesan.
But he was walking a path completely different from an ordinary Immortal or even a transcendent.
Whether he would actually help the witch, Taesan could not know.
He opened the community. Those who had survived and returned to the labyrinth were loudly chatting.
[Oliver Khan [Hard]: How are things in Asia and Europe?]
[Daniel Darmont [Hard]: We’re fine. It was tough joining up with Africa’s group, but there were no major issues.]
[Kim Hwiyeon [Hard]: We’re okay too. There were some problems, but… Taesan was with us.]
[Amelia Aerin [Solo]: I felt something terrible even across the sea. Are you all sure you’re alright?]
[Lee Taeyeon [Solo]: We’re fine. There were some deaths, but within expectations. No major problems.]
Lee Taeyeon left a calm message. Amelia, sensing something different, asked,
[Amelia Aerin [Solo]: You seem different somehow. Did something happen?]
[Kang Junhyuk [Solo]: Something did change after all the quests ended. Did Taesan tell you anything?]
Amelia, Kang Junhyuk, and Lee Taeyeon were all Solo mode players and often talked, so they quickly noticed Lee Taeyeon had changed.
[Lee Taeyeon [Solo]: Yeah, something did happen.]
Lee Taeyeon brushed it off. Amelia seemed curious but didn’t press further.
Lee Taeyeon had regained the memories of her previous life.
She would now descend the labyrinth at a different speed and by different methods than before.
After glancing at the community, Taesan began to check his points.
5,800 points. An enormous sum. The natural use was for skill proficiency, but he hesitated on how best to spend them.
“I can’t use them on soul skills, of course.”
Nor could he use them effectively on skills above a certain level.
He considered using them on magic or black magic, but now that he had so many types, the efficiency had dropped.
After some thought, Taesan decided.
“I’ll save them for later.”
There was no need to use them immediately. He could hold onto them and spend them on new skills he gained.
There were quite a few skills he could acquire. Advanced magic. And now, with Lemegeton, he could even make contracts directly with demons. It seemed best to use the points on skills gained from those.
Having decided, Taesan moved.
He was still on the 78th floor, in the Library of All Things.
He headed deeper into the stacks.
—
The first to notice him was the librarian, Jorge. Sensing Taesan, he closed the book he had been reading.
“You were gone for quite a while. Where have you been?”
Jorge looked at Taesan.
Then he fell silent.
Staring at Taesan, his face twisted into a frown.
“…You’ve ascended?”
“That’s right.”
“What on earth…”
Cracks appeared across Jorge’s face.
“How could you possibly do it so quickly…”
He let out a groan.
As the manager of the Library of All Things, Jorge had accumulated vast knowledge, but even he was shocked at the level Taesan had reached.
“This is unbelievable.”
That was all he could say. Greed and desire flickered across Jorge’s face.
He was the library’s manager, the Apostle of the God of Knowledge, endlessly pursuing knowledge.
Taesan’s very existence was a provocation to his thirst for knowledge.
But Jorge could do nothing more. He simply didn’t have the authority.
So he could only smack his lips in frustration.
“At times like this, I almost resent Metis. So, are you heading down now? Or will you stay here a bit longer?”
“I’ll stay a little longer.”
“As you wish.”
Even as he said that, Jorge’s gaze never left Taesan, as if he intended to observe everything about him. Taesan ignored it and went to see Ainzhar.
“Ooooh!”
Ainzhar was the first to exclaim when he saw Taesan.
“You’ve ascended! I could see the potential, but how did you do it so quickly…?”
“I used a bit of a shortcut.”
He’d reached that level not through his own strength, but through faith—a shortcut, in a sense. Ainzhar understood the implication and laughed heartily.
“There’s no such thing as a shortcut to ascension. It’s just a difference in the path you walk. You obtained your power fair and square. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
With words of thanks, Taesan drew his sword.
“On that note, would you spar with me?”
“I’d love to!”
Ainzhar laughed heartily and drew his sword.
The duel began anew.
Until now, Taesan had dueled Ainzhar many times, but in every match, Ainzhar had never gone all out.
He didn’t use his true swordsmanship or show his real movements. Even so, Taesan had never once managed to land a blow on Ainzhar. There was that much difference between them.
But not anymore.
Kagagagak!
Sword clashed with sword. Against Ainzhar’s powerful attacks, Taesan did not retreat a single step.
[You activated Decarabia’s Twisted Vegetation.]
The black magic he had always used.
But now its power was on a different level.
Kwa-gwagwang!
Roots erupted, shaking the entire library. If Jorge hadn’t raised a barrier, part of the library would have been destroyed.
All the roots that pierced through the world were summoned.
Ainzhar, cloaked in golden light, swung his sword in response.
Kwadudeuk!
The roots were sliced apart by his golden blade.
But the golden light surrounding Ainzhar was also noticeably diminished.
“This is fun!”
Ainzhar’s eyes sparkled.
“No need to hold back anymore!”
Ainzhar stomped the ground.
In an instant, he appeared right in front of Taesan. Even now, Taesan could barely follow his speed.
But it wasn’t beyond his ability to react.
Taesan swung his sword.
[You activated Strong Strike.]
Kaaang!
Taesan’s body was pushed back with a grinding sound.
But he took no damage. He had successfully blocked Ainzhar’s true attack.
‘As expected, he’s strong.’
Ainzhar was a monster.
Now that Taesan had reached immortality, he understood it clearly. If they fought a hundred times, he would lose ninety-nine.
But now, he could win that one out of a hundred.
At this point, he had reached the same level as Ainzhar.
With variables like Boundary Line, divinity, and main-tier skills, victory was no longer impossible.
Taesan stomped the ground. His sword sliced sharply toward Ainzhar.
Kugugugung!
Their duel lasted for nearly half a day before it ended. Ainzhar looked extremely satisfied.
“That was good. It’s been a very long time since I could let loose.”
After a short rest, Taesan went to find Levinenov. Now that he had become an immortal, he thought he might be able to intervene.
But it was still impossible. Ainzhar clicked his tongue in regret.
“It seems you really do have to reach the 84th floor first. I’m counting on you, Taesan.”
“Understood.”
His check-in with Ainzhar was finished.
He had gained enough of the knowledge he sought.
There was no longer any reason to stay in the Library of All Things.
He headed toward the passage to the 79th floor, where Jorge was waiting.
“So you’re finally going down?”
Taesan nodded. Jorge manifested his authority.
[78th Floor Cleared.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[You have obtained the Book of Knowledge.]
[You have obtained ???.]
“Status window.”
[Level: 161]
[Shield: 19,100/19,100]
[Health: 200,277/200,277]
[Mana: 20,341/20,341]
[Magi: 2,218/2,218]
[Strength: 37,845]
[Agility: 37,985]
[Intelligence: 33,941]
[Attack +10,125]
[Defense +6,752]
[Target is in optimal condition.]
[What are those stats?]
The ghost let out a dry laugh. Even those who cleared the labyrinth normally might not have stats as high as Taesan’s.
Taesan checked the rewards he’d received.
[Book of Knowledge.]
[Contains a small portion of the Library of All Things’ knowledge.]
“A miniature Library of All Things, huh.”
He flipped through its endless pages. Even with reconnaissance and focused detection, he couldn’t find the end.
The Library of All Things was literally an infinite library. Even Jorge hadn’t read every book. Even if this was only a part of it, it was no surprise the end couldn’t be found.
He planned to read it bit by bit when he had spare time.
[Used ???.]
[Obtained the Sword of All Things.]
[Sword of All Things.]
[Strength +300]
[Agility +300]
[Intelligence +300]
[Mana +200]
[Magi +75]
[Attack +750]
[Black Magic +10]
[Magic +10]
[A sword made by containing much of all creation. The power within is so great that the user cannot wield it all.]
It was literally a weapon that raised all his stats. Fortunately, Taesan could wield both magic and black magic, so it was perfect for him.
After finishing his preparations, Taesan descended the stairs.
[79th Floor Quest Begins.]
[Prove your strength in the Domain of Struggle.]
[Reward: Ring of the Victorious Struggler.]
[Secret Reward: ???]
The 79th floor.
The 80th floor was just ahead. As Taesan prepared to descend, the labyrinth shook.
He waited calmly—this had already happened several times before.
Before long, Balbabamba appeared.
Balbabamba said nothing at first.
He simply stood there quietly. Taesan also didn’t speak.
[You.]
After a while, Balbabamba spoke.
[You really are giving me a headache.]
His voice was filled with deep exhaustion.
* * * * *
(T/N: Still not back to a regular upload schedule, but I’ll be uploading at least 5 chapters per series every week, in order based on the most recent series I picked up. No fixed days yet, but I’ll keep the bulk uploads coming as best as I can!)
