[Guldin’s Necklace]
*Grade: Legendary (1-Star ★) (Partially Unsealed)
*Mental Power +10
*Magic Power +3
*Contains Mental Power Amplification (7-Star ★★★★★★★). Increases Mental Power by 100 for 10 seconds.
*Can be used once per day (1/1)
Its attributes remained difficult to believe no matter how many times I examined them.
The fact that it increased Mental Power by 10 was already an absurd figure.
‘It even increases Magic Power by 3.’
The necklace granted nearly two and a half levels’ worth of Stats by itself.
I could hardly believe that another one-star Legendary Artifact with such attributes could exist.
‘And the Stat increases aren’t even the greatest part.’
Mental Power Amplification.
Increasing Mental Power by 100 for ten seconds was equivalent to gaining twenty levels’ worth of Stats.
* Furthermore, Mental Power is the most important Stat for you. One might believe that this Artifact was created specifically for your sake!
Increasing my Mental Power by 100 would raise the amplification of Sage’s Aura by another ten times.
It would not be an exaggeration to call this an Artifact tailor-made for Sage’s Aura.
‘And this is only the result of partially unsealing it.’
It was astonishing beyond belief.
When I first obtained Guldin’s Necklace, I had hurriedly gathered the necessary materials under Aleon’s guidance and managed to remove part of its seal.
Even then, I had not expected anything extraordinary.
‘Who could have imagined that I’d strike such an enormous jackpot?’
Did Black Hand know?
Did they realize that the item they had handed over to me was actually an extraordinary Legendary Artifact?
* Only its one-star power has been unsealed, yet the embedded skill is already seven-star. I cannot even estimate what grade it will reach once the seal has been completely removed. You obtained something truly exceptional. This appears to be a necklace you can continue wearing for a very long time.
I agreed with Aleon.
Perhaps once the seal was fully removed, it would rise from <Legendary> to <Mythic> grade.
Magnificent.
In any case, I owed all of this to Aleon.
<Black Hand> had probably placed the necklace at auction because they had failed to find any clue to removing its seal.
Thanks to <Guldin’s Necklace>, I now believed I might be able to defeat the ‘Corrupted Ent of Despair’ within one minute.
Anyone else who heard that would have called me insane.
Even ‘James,’ the holder of the greatest record in history, had taken nineteen minutes and fifty-seven seconds to clear the trial.
‘But I genuinely think it’s possible.’
This time, I looked down at the Tome of the Sage.
It was the second reason I felt confident that I could finish the battle within one minute.
The <Tome of the Sage>, which had advanced to two stars.
[Tome of the Sage]
*Grade: Mythic (2-Star ★★) ▲
*Growth-Type
*Vitality +7 ▲
*Magic Power +7 ▲
*Mental Power +7 ▲
*Casting Speed +15% ▲
*Movement Speed +15% ▲
*Mana Recovery +55% ▲
*Status Effect Resistance +55% ▲
*Immunity to Appraisal Skills
*Mana Consumption -1% (New)
*Lightning Elemental Power +3 (New)
*Exclusive to Kim Hajun (Bound)
Every one of its attributes had increased after it advanced to two stars.
Vitality, Magic Power, and Mental Power had each increased by 2.
The other effects had also increased by at least ten percent.
It had even gained Mana Consumption Reduction.
‘What I’m looking forward to most right now is the +3 Lightning Elemental Power.’
According to Aleon, the expected value of the Lightning Elemental Power increase ranged from one to three.
It could have increased by only one, yet I received the maximum value of three.
Because of that, Aleon once again told me that my luck was outrageously good.
* Do you truly intend to postpone obtaining your next Special Skill?
‘Yes. Honestly, I struggled with the decision until the end, but after obtaining Guldin’s Necklace, I don’t need it immediately.’
A new Special Skill was granted every five levels.
Now that I had reached Level 10, I could obtain another one just as I had received <Sage’s Alchemy>.
However, I decided to postpone selecting it.
Why?
‘I still can’t identify the symbols upon the leaves with Sage’s Sight.’
Last time, Aleon’s assistance had allowed me to choose the symbol I wanted.
Without his help, however, I could not perceive the symbols at all.
Did that mean I would have to leave every future Special Skill selection entirely to chance?
‘Of course not.’
There was another method.
* Reach the second floor and obtain the second Sacred Treasure, the <Robe of the Sage>. Once you possess it, Sage’s Sight will be able to see through Yggdrasil’s leaves.
The <Robe of the Sage> possessed the power to strengthen Sage’s Sight.
I intended to select my Level 10 Special Skill after obtaining it.
This time, I would choose a combat-related ability rather than a non-combat one such as alchemy.
‘Good. That settles it. Shall I enter now?’
The decisive moment had arrived.
I expressed my intention to undergo the Ascension Trial.
[The Ascension Trial begins.]
A message appeared before me.
White light enveloped my body.
The largest Ascender community.
Two weeks earlier, posts concerning ‘Unknown’ had spread through the community like wildfire.
The flames had diminished considerably since then.
Nevertheless, posts about Unknown still appeared occasionally.
Just like now.
* Is there truly no possibility that Unknown is Korean?
└ I believe he’s Korean.
└ The Chinese Embassy: ??
└ That Chinese Embassy joke is getting old. Everyone knows the Chinese government lies whenever it opens its mouth.
└ Honestly, I don’t want to believe them either, so I’ll assume he’s Korean.
└ If he records another achievement as Unknown, we might be able to tell. If he were truly Chinese, would it still say Korea beside his name?
└ Exactly. If he were Chinese, he would have returned to his own country already. Why would he still be climbing the tower from Korean soil?
Interest in whether Unknown was truly Korean or Chinese had persisted ever since his first appearance.
However, that was not the question receiving the greatest attention.
What everyone wanted to know most was—
* Who thinks Unknown will surpass James’s record in the first-floor Ascension Trial too?
└ Does anyone?
└ James’s record is too difficult. Even if the fastest ascent record of eighty-nine days can be broken, no one will ever beat his clear time of nineteen minutes and fifty-seven seconds.
└ Exactly. I agree.
└ That’s the general consensus. Honestly, I already think claiming that Unknown will beat the eighty-nine-day record is excessive. Anyone who believes he’ll also break James’s clear time has a problem with their intelligence.
└ Exactly. Anyone who knows what equipment James wore during the first-floor Ascension Trial would never say that. No one had ever achieved a record like his before, and no one ever will.
└ James will probably remain the only person with a clear time in the ten-minute range forever.
Most people believed that James’s record could never be broken.
There was one major reason.
James had been equipped with Legendary-grade items from the very first floor.
* The reason James’s record is so untouchable is that no one else can destroy the Corrupted Ent of Despair’s personal barrier as quickly as he did.
└ Exactly. Even James said in an interview that removing its barrier was the most troublesome part.
There were several reasons people struggled against the Corrupted Ent of Despair.
Its attacks inflicted numerous Abnormal Statuses, and its roots and leaves possessed tremendous destructive power.
However, the fundamental problem was the extraordinarily powerful Magic Shield surrounding its body.
* It’s estimated to be a three-star Magic Shield. How can a first-floor monster possess a three-star shield? If someone really designed the Sky Tower, they must have done this specifically to eliminate as many Ascenders as possible before they reached the second floor.
That was why defeating the Corrupted Ent of Despair took so long.
An Ascender needed both sufficient attack power and endurance to wear down a three-star Magic Shield.
Fortunately, the creature’s Movement Speed and Attack Speed were extremely slow.
The battle took a long time, but defeating it was still possible.
* In any case, if Unknown wants to surpass James, relying solely on his Trait or skills won’t be enough. He needs equipment comparable to James’s. Unless James personally lends him his equipment, surpassing that record is realistically impossible.
That was why most people believed that Unknown would struggle to surpass James’s record.
It was reasonable by the standards of common sense.
However, they did not know what kind of Trait Hajun possessed.
They did not know how he had prepared for the Ascension Trial.
Nor did they know what equipment he carried.
SHIIIIING!
When my vision changed, a desolate landscape appeared before me.
A gray sky.
Barren earth devoid of all life.
At the far end of the wasteland stood a withered tree more than three meters tall.
[Lv 10]
[Special Boss]
[Corrupted Ent of Despair]
The words floated clearly above its head.
That creature was the gatekeeper of the Ascension Trial—the existence that had driven countless Ascenders into despair.
“GRRROOOOOOOOAAAAAAH——!”
When it roared, Fear infused with Magic Power shook the earth and swept over me.
[The Tome of the Sage’s <Status Effect Resistance> has activated.]
Its Fear contained the Abnormal Status (Slow), but it had no effect upon someone who possessed the <Tome of the Sage>.
RUMBLE!!
When its Fear failed, the creature slowly pulled one of its roots from the ground.
A tree capable of moving.
Seeing it in person was certainly remarkable.
I had not yet entered its attack range.
Once I did, however, I would experience firsthand the monstrous power I had only heard about through rumors.
‘I’ll finish this before that happens.’
I recalled the combination attack I had devised.
Then I immediately raised my hand and aimed at the creature.
First, I would bind it.
‘Shadow Binding.’
Black light flashed from the <Ring of the Shadow King>.
RUSTLE!!
Countless black hands emerged from the creature’s shadow and wrapped tightly around its body.
It was so enormous that I briefly wondered whether those slender-looking hands could restrain it.
“GRRROOOOOOAAAH!!”
The creature was completely immobilized by the shadow hands.
As expected of a Legendary Artifact!
However, its resistance was considerable.
The shadow hands trembled unstably.
They would not be able to restrain it for long.
That did not matter.
I intended to finish the battle within ten seconds.
* Remove its barrier first! Despite being only Level 10, it possesses a three-star shield. What an absurd creature.
Ordinarily, I might have needed to strike it several times before removing the barrier.
However, I possessed a method capable of eliminating it instantly.
[Dispel Ring]
*Grade: Heroic (1-Star ★)
*Contains Dispel (5-Star ★★★★★)
*Nullifies magic skills of five-star grade or below.
*Can be used twice per day (2/2)
The Dispel Ring I had obtained from the Treasure Goblin!
‘Dispel Ring!’
FLASH!
Pure white light erupted from the Dispel Ring and removed the barrier surrounding the creature.
Magnificent.
What excellent performance.
Was this ring truly only Heroic grade?
It had probably received that grade because Dispel was its only effect.
Had it possessed one or two additional options, it would undoubtedly have been evaluated as Legendary.
After all, I had never heard of another one-star Dispel Ring on the market containing a Dispel skill of three-star grade or higher.
In any case—
“GRRROOOOOOAAAH!”
The creature released a startled roar when its barrier disappeared.
So, you sensed it too?
You already know what is about to happen.
Grinning, I immediately activated ‘Mental Power Amplification (7-Star ★★★★★★★),’ the skill contained within <Guldin’s Necklace>.
[Mental Power increases by 100 for 10 seconds.]
Ahhh.
A refreshing clarity swept through my mind.
As my Mental Power surged, the Corrupted Ent of Despair, which had appeared somewhat imposing moments earlier, now seemed infinitely small.
Numerically, it was equivalent to gaining twenty levels.
Perhaps the change was only natural.
‘So this is how the world appears after Mental Power exceeds one hundred.’
I wished the sensation could last forever.
However, I had only ten seconds.
I needed to defeat the creature within that time.
‘Three strikes should be enough, right?’
Ten seconds should allow me to cast Thunderbolt three times in succession.
Hoping it would fall within those three attacks, I manifested Thunderbolt.
CRACKLE, KRA-KA-KA-KRAK!!
The moment Thunderbolt formed—
Clusters of sparks several times thicker than usual erupted from my hand.
Sage’s Aura was currently amplifying my power by 24.9 times.
On top of that, the <Tome of the Sage> had increased my Lightning Elemental Power by 3.
I could no longer estimate how many times stronger this Thunderbolt was than before.
It was still a one-star spell, but mathematically, perhaps its power now rivaled magic several grades higher.
‘Perhaps…….’
Could I kill it with one strike?
Filled with inexplicable excitement, I immediately launched Thunderbolt.
KRA-KOOOOM——!
A destructive peal of thunder rang out as though the world itself were ending.
The entire landscape was flooded with brilliant emerald light.
A short while later—
[The first-floor Ascension Trial’s <Hall of Fame> rankings have changed.]
1. Unknown (Korea) - New (00'00'05)
2. James Smith ▼1 (00'19'57)
3. Haruto Tanaka ▼1 (00'38'21)
4. …….
5. …….
At a moment no one had anticipated, the first-floor Ascension Trial’s Hall of Fame rankings abruptly changed.
The world was thrown into chaos by a record so shocking that no one could have imagined it.