Seeing Aros’s confused expression, Ouroborus explained. “Jason completed the test as the last human alive, but as it was only the second difficulty, his reward was a wish. He requested to be sent back in time.”
“Reversing time? Sure, why not.” Aros rolled his eyes, now unsure to the extent of Ouroborus's power. “So, Jason is not as young as he appears? Ugh.”
Ouroborus was exasperated. “I didn’t expect you to be so strict. In Earth’s first test, you refused to pick a champion, so they ended up having a much harder time. The purpose of your role is to guide talented test-takers. If Shenlong had your guidance, things would’ve been different.”
“Okay, okay. So maybe I’m too picky!” Aros finally admitted.
Ouroborus chuckled. “It’s okay—thanks to that trait of yours, I was able to find a potential disciple.”
“Who? Jason? He’s decent, but to be worthy of being your disciple? No way.” Aros scoffed.
“As he is now, I agree.” Ouroborus smiled as he continued. “What if I told you during the battle against the final boss, he died.”
“Hm?” Aros was startled.
Ouroborus sounded excited. “Imagine my shock to witness a mortal, through sheer force of will, force his soul back into his body. I imagine at the time he wanted to protect his friends, what with him being a tank and all.”
“The Unyielding Path?” Aros jumped to his feet. “How is that possible?! I’ve only heard legends of mortals possessing a Path.”
He thought back to long ago when he crossed paths with a creature possessing an Unyielding Path. The energy it possessed was incredibly tenacious, almost to the level of being impossible to destroy. Considering Jason was still a mortal, it was clear he was far more gifted than that creature.
“I’ve only seen it a few times myself,” Ouroborus admitted. “But yes, I suspect it to be the Unyielding Path.”
Aros fell into his seat, his joy fading. “After you changed things around, the next floor is the final floor now, right?”
“Yes.” Ouroborus stood up and prepared to leave. “The reason I gave Jason a second chance is that he showed potential. Let’s see if the floor which gave rise to his Path destroys him or changes his fate.”
Chapter 27
Jason was at the front of a large gathering of ascenders. At his side were Peter and the others, while behind them stood the berserk division.
Farther back, hundreds of ascenders surrounded a group of tradespeople, mainly engineers and carpenters. Unlike the combat-hardened ascenders, they wore expressions of dread, and many shifted uncomfortably on their feet. One even vomited.
Peter’s voice abruptly rang through the air. “We move in thirty seconds!”
Everyone tensed, their eyes focusing on a portal at the front. Jason rubbed Tank’s head affectionately before taking a stance. As the seconds ticked by, he heard Peter remind Andy. “Don’t use your imagination energy until I say so.”
“U-u-u-understood.” Andy’s teeth wouldn’t stop clattering. Today was the first time he’d be on the front lines, and if it weren’t because of the necessity of the situation, he would never have come. Even now, he wanted to run away to safety.
Jason mentally counted the time as he felt numerous buffs fill him with strength. When three seconds remained, every ascender took out a vial and downed its contents. It was a recent invention—a berserk potion with no negative effects. The cost was absurd, even more so for an entire army to use it.
Jason interfaced with the portal in front of him, his eyes hardening upon reading the notification. It was the precursor to the final floor.
Warning: monsters will not attack the area on the other side of this portal for one week. The countdown begins upon using this portal. Prepare wisely.
Months ago, upon hearing about the portal and its ramifications, Jason nearly fainted. Nobody knew it, but that night he had a heart attack and couldn’t sleep at all, as panic and anxiety set in, collapsing his mentality.
After returning to the past, he had subconsciously locked away the decades of memories of loss and despair. But now, upon suddenly confronting the final floor once again, those memories broke free, drowning him in grief and misery. Honestly, the past few months had been a blur. Even now, as he stood before the portal, seconds before entering, he remained numb, as if in a dream.
When thirty seconds passed, he selected to teleport with his raid. Everything went black, and then, the world was dyed red.
Jason robotically tried to sense the presence of monsters. Feeling nothing, he inspected his surroundings, hoping and praying it wasn’t the final floor.
A triangular silver structure hovered off the ground in front of him. From it, a thin beam of blue energy shot into the air, which spread out to create a dome much like the mana barrier skill.
Jason’s vision spun as repressed memories surfaced. Scenes of death and destruction, monsters gorging on the essence of his friends and allies, hope dwindling with every passing day. This was the final floor.
Peter’s face was grim as he took in his surroundings. He saw Jason standing motionless, his eyes unfocused. Peter reached out a hand but stopped and decided to ignore him. Peter recalled everything about the floor of death before shouting commands. “Sam, Rodrick, take two squads and scout our surroundings. I want a detailed map in two hours!”
“Got it.” The rogue and ranger duo gathered their team before heading out.
“Construction division.” Peter pointed around. “I want a ten-foot-high wall as soon as possible. Use whatever materials you need.”
After several more orders, Peter glanced up at the transparent blue barrier big enough to cover a small town. His gaze followed the resonating beam down to the silver structure, a notification informing him of its stats.
Tier 1 Mana Barrier
Mana stored: 1,000,000
Mana regenerated a second: 100
It prevents most demonic creatures from entering. Each point of damage blocked consumes 1 mana.
The stats were the same as those in Jason’s report, which was good news. This floor wasn’t supposed to appear for many years yet, so the more things stayed the same, the better. Not the monster levels, of course. Hopefully, those got lowered significantly.
Unfortunately, even after Peter poked and prodded, he wasn’t able to open the floor of death’s store. Based on what Jason said, there was supposed to be a store baked into every mana barrier. The better the tier, the better the store. Peter furrowed his brows as he made his way to Jason, then shook him forcefully. “Yo, we got a problem.”
The jolt shook Jason awake. Seeing this, Peter continued, “The haven doesn’t come with a store.”
“It doesn’t? Are you sure?” Jason grew solemn. He understood the ramifications of not having a store.
“Try it. Maybe I made a mistake.” Peter pulled his friend over to the contraption.
The result was the same. Even after focusing on the mana barrier, Jason wasn’t able to pull up the shop. His voice was hollow. “How will we upgrade the haven?”
“There must be a way. Right now, we need to gather as much info as we can. We only have a week before monsters begin to attack.” Peter’s brain worked overtime, forming ideas and hypotheses.
Just then, Peter saw a pale-faced ascender belonging to Sam’s squad run over. It had only been a few minutes since he sent them away, so seeing a member return so soon gave him a bad feeling. When the scout approached, Peter asked. “Why not call me?”
“Doesn’t work.” The scout touched his necklace and shook his head. He gathered his thoughts before continuing. “Outside the barrier is a general-type mental suppression. It’s strong.”
Peter’s expression fell. “How is it compared to Shenlong?”
“Maybe twice as strong.” The scout wasn’t sure.
“Damn.” Peter sent the scout away before cursing. This was terrible. They’d just entered the floor and already encountered several fundamental changes to the tower’s rules. He
could deal with the missing store. There was probably another method, but mental suppression covering the entire floor? That made most of his forces useless outside the barrier.
Shenlong was on standby not far away. Using his superhuman body, he was able to eavesdrop on Peter. After the scout left, he strode up to Peter, a firm glint in his eye. “I’m heading out.”
Peter wanted to deny his request, but he nodded reluctantly after seeing the look in Shenlong’s eye.
“I’ll come with,” Jason said as he checked his equipment.
Shenlong turned to glance at Jason. “No, you aren’t in the right state of mind. Get yourself together.”
Jason could only watch, stunned, as Shenlong sprinted off as soon as he said his piece. Jason looked to Peter, who only winced and nodded before running to someplace else.
“Am I that unreliable?” Jason took a deep breath to relax his nerves. It was only then he realized sweat covered him from head to toe. Sighing emotionally, he found a place to himself and began to meditate.
Chapter 28
Piles of ore, metal, and other materials filled the haven. It was a dizzying sight; darkstone was pitch black, manatide released motes of light, and luminescent ore glittered. Each had a unique effect, a common trait of high-grade goods.
Andy stood before a pile of jewels, feeling heartache. He’d acquired most of these through various, ahem, illegal means. Although Peter compensated him, he’d much rather have the gems.
“Excuse me?” Just as Andy was considering which store to visit next to restock his collection, a stern middle-aged woman walked up to him. She wore black glasses and a business suit to match. In her hand was a clipboard with numerous drawings.
Andy turned to the woman, immediately finding her unpleasing to the eye. There was nothing for him to ‘inspect’.
“Karen, in charge of construction.” She nudged her glasses while giving him a look as if to assess his worth. “You can create illusions?”
As soon as Andy nodded, she turned and walked away. “Come with me.”
Andy followed helplessly. This type of serious person clashed with his personality, leaving no room for fun.
After a short distance, Karen stopped near the edge of the haven. She pointed with her finger. “Create a transparent wall, fifteen feet wide and thirty feet tall around the entire haven. I want a watch tower every fifty feet, and…”
She listed off various specifications for a minute. Andy, initially irritated, found the task refreshing. After several minutes, he was able to bring her blueprint to life.
Karen turned and reevaluated Andy before asking. “How long can you maintain this?”
“I created a quasi-divine grade spear for Shenlong, so a few hours at most,” Andy replied, sighing inwardly. While he did as Shenlong asked not long ago, he didn’t like the fact that Shenlong preferred ordinary-looking spears. It went against Andy’s artistic style! He wanted to create a heavenly, awe-inspiring spear, not some ordinary stick.
“Great, thanks.” Karen gave a curt smile.
A short while later, Jason opened his eyes, not expecting this floor to leave him so traumatized. He tried to console himself by thinking this time would be different. He had powerful allies at his side, their potential in full bloom. Better yet, they were all on the same team. It wouldn’t be like before, where they built separate havens and backstabbed each other. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried to logic his way through his emotions, they repeatedly clawed at his mentality. At most, he could mask it.
“Oh!” A giant wall surrounding the edge of the haven greeted Jason. It was silver, made entirely from an alloy recently discovered by Su Long. It boasted incredible defense and could even regenerate. The watchtowers stood high, magical cannons and ballistae built inside of them.
Not only that, but the entire structure glittered with magical runes. Jason recognized several of them. One reflected attacks, another bolstered defense and health, while another increased the stats of those standing on it.
Lastly, artillery in the hundreds filled the interior of the haven not far from the wall. Each shot cost several gold and there were war weapons from the thirtieth floor. Even Jason would have a hard time surviving under their combined barrage.
All this reassured Jason, albeit barely. He got to his feet and went to find Peter to help with any remaining tasks.
Not much time passed before a commotion came from the lookouts on the wall. “Shenlong’s back!”
“Get a healer!” Another quickly added.
The gate to the north opened. Shenlong entered with a calm expression, but his attire was anything but. Numerous cuts and wounds covered his body, and he was even missing several fingers. Thankfully, it was nothing healing couldn’t solve, and sure enough, he was soon back to full health.
Peter and Jason ran up to Shenlong, both wondering if there were any more changes. Before Jason could ask, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes in surprise when he saw what Shenlong was holding. “What! You got essence?!”
“Mm.” Shenlong held up the viscous ball of black mist. “I wanted to ask for advice before I used it.”
(Tier 1) Essence
Worth 100 essence.
Essence is used to create a rune representing a concept.
Peter turned to Jason with an uncertain look. “Didn’t you say these were exceptionally rare?”
“One in ten thousand.” Jason nodded, feeling a little doubtful as well. Was Shenlong this lucky?
“Oh. I suppose I should add it came from a mutant demon,” Shenlong commented casually.
“A mutant?! Here?” Jason exclaimed as a jolt of electricity shot down his spine, a terrifying idea entering his mind.
“I’m certain. Also, although the monsters I found were few, they were all mutants.”
Jason and Peter both swore repeatedly. Peter asked for clarification. “Were they demons?”
Shenlong rubbed his beard thoughtfully. “They shouldn’t be like Cay Wolf. More like demonized monsters than demons.”
“That’s good.” Jason sighed. If they encountered bona fide demons so early, it would be terrifying.
Shenlong held up the essence in his hand. “Anyway, how exactly should I use this? Your report was a little vague.”
Jason felt a bit envious as he explained. “There’s a lot of freedom. For starters, you can create or enhance a skill. You can even evolve attributes.” Jason paused. “Try this: look at the essence and imagine creating a skill that allows you to see into the future.”
Shenlong followed the advice and frowned. “It says I need a trillion essence.”
“A trillion essence isn’t bad for precognition, right?” Jason shook his head and continued. “Now try to imagine creating a skill that allows you to see one second into the future, then try one second into the future but only for the target in front of you.”
Following this experiment, Shenlong expressed his understanding. “Mm. So having focus reduces the cost.”
Peter clicked his tongue. “This item is ridiculously overpowered.”
“They were extremely rare back then,” Jason commented dejectedly.
“I’ll save it for now.” Shenlong stored the essence away after a moment of thought
After discussing various topics for a while, the north gate opened once more. The scout team arrived with a detailed map of the surroundings and reports of a shocking discovery.
A town populated by demons was only forty miles to the north-east!
Chapter 29
Demon.
The word held multiple meanings, and inside the tower meant something specific. To be known as a demon, all you had to do was steal another creature's strength, usually by consumption.
The reasoning was straightforward: why bother training for years on end when you could just take someone else’s strength for yourself?
Demons generally skyrocketed in power faster than anyone else, but they lived short lives. Stealing the strength of others was taboo. Most lifef
orms held hatred toward demons and would work to hunt them down at all costs.
It was tough for a demon to reach great heights. Besides being hated, consuming the strength of another was inefficient. It was only after countless years that a new species was born, solving this issue.
A pure demon.
The universe was full of abilities, and a pure demon could consume them all with frightening efficiency. Vex, the god of darkness, was one such demon.
The floor Jason found himself on was not unlike a farm. Countless demonic monsters hunted each other, evolving until pure demons harvested them. And now, those very demons lived just forty-some miles away from the base Jason and his companions occupied.
Inside the haven, Peter sent off the construction team, much to their relief. When the last teleported away, he turned, appreciating the defenses as he made his way over to Shenlong, who was recounting his experiences outside the haven to the top ascenders. “…the lycan’s stats were about thirty percent higher than mine, but its technique was crude so I was able to overcome the difference.”
Carly blinked as she voiced her doubt. “Just thirty percent? How were you wounded to that extent?”
Shenlong shook his head. “The beast cared little for its life. If you were about to take a hit, you would normally retreat, but the lycan doubled down. I didn’t want to trade blow for blow. It was frustrating.”
Sam, the leader of the scout team, leaned forward. “We saw numerous fights between monsters while we were out. As you said, they care little for their lives.”
Jason listened silently next to Roy and Olivia. At Peter’s suggestion, he refrained from holding their hands through every problem the team encountered. It was only in this way they could adapt and grow. Unfortunately, it seemed his knowledge became less useful the more time passed.
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