Ascension Through Skills

[Special Quest Begins] [Defeat the enemies and survive.]

Monsters appeared from all four directions. At the same time, a colorless curtain fell from the sky with a thunderous noise.

Koogooong!

It blocked each of the four directions from interfering with each other. Taesan slowly approached and struck it.

Zzeoeoeong!

The vibration spread along the colorless wall, and the wall remained unscathed.

“Is it invincible even with these stats?”

The curtain was a warning not to interfere with the other directions. After testing it for a moment, Taesan turned his gaze to the monsters.

Guroog.

Guroog.

A number of monsters revealed themselves. If Taesan’s memory served him right, there should be a hundred F-rank monsters.

He calmly raised his sword.

Contrary to the composed Taesan, screams of terror erupted elsewhere.

“Aaaah!”

“Save me!”

They came out somewhat prepared, but there were too many monsters. Confronted by what seemed like triple-digit numbers of monsters, people panicked and tried to enter the city hall.

“What the!”

“Why can’t we go in!”

However, a transparent curtain also blocked the path leading to the inside of the city hall. While they were flustered by this, the monsters had reached near them.

In all three directions, approximately 30,000 people panicked and flailed around in terror.

Hwiyun desperately tried to reassure them.

“Don’t be scared! They can’t kill you!”

She tried to calm people down but to no avail. They were running about frantically, trying to escape in a space from which escape was impossible.

“Damn it.”

Hwiyun gritted her teeth and charged at the monsters.

If there were people of a similar level to her, it would have been a bit easier, but both Junggeun and Taeyeon had gone to assist in different directions. She stopped a monster with giant tentacles from striking a man’s head and counterattacked.

Guroog.

She blocks the flailing tentacles. She was pushed back little by little due to the difference in strength, but she covered this difference with skills and quick movements.

[7 damage to Monster 5446654451.]

Guroog.

She barely managed to take down one monster.

But she couldn’t stop all the monsters. One monster attacked a man. A young man, sensing death, screamed like a woman.

“Aaaah!”

[7 damage to Jeong Junyong.]

“Ah…huh?”

The young man who got hit had a surprised look in his eyes. Hwiyun, facing one monster, shouted.

“The monsters aren’t that strong! If you’re a little careful, you can survive! We have to fight!”

People had given up on fighting due to their fear of the monsters’ horrific appearances, but the monsters themselves were only as strong as beginner-level monsters and weren’t that powerful.

At this point, both Junggeun and Hwiyun could easily handle them. Their attack power wasn’t high, and their speed and strength weren’t too overwhelming.

Their basic health was 100. They wouldn’t die even if they were hit more than ten times by a monster. Those who had been running away began to realize this.

“They said rewards would be given based on performance.”

“So, can’t we just give it a try?”

Little by little, greed began to spread.

They began to step forward and fight.

They stabbed at the monster’s neck and pounded it with their gauntlet. Those who got hit ran off to gulp down health potions before returning to the fight.

Hwiyun smiled bitterly, thinking how easy it was to understand them.

But it wasn’t bad. There were only a few like her, those on Hard Mode, who were fighting furiously. However, they were outnumbered and were being pushed back, so this change was a welcome relief.

The same was true elsewhere. Once people in the area Junggeun was responsible for realized the monsters’ attack power was low, they rushed in. It was similar in the areas Junhyeok and Taeyeon were in charge of.

“Cling onto them!”

“Kill them!”

Junhyeok whistled at the sight of people charging in of their own accord.

“This is easy.”

“Indeed.”

Taeyeon replied as she moved her hand. A monster’s neck was split into a triangular shape. Those fighting alongside her couldn’t hide their astonishment.

“You’re as strong as a monster…”

The man who muttered this was a relatively high-ranking player in Hard Mode. He wasn’t at the level of Junggeun or Hwiyun, but he was capable enough to handle a monster on his own.

He considered himself quite strong. He believed that even Hwiyun and Junggeun wouldn’t find it easy to defeat him.

But the two from Solo Mode were stronger than him.

This was a great shock to him, who had been dismissive of Solo Mode.

Junhyeok laughed sarcastically.

“We’re not that strong.”

“What the…”

The man who was about to say, ‘Aren’t you strong’ closed his mouth.

“Anyway, there’s a real monster here.”

Taeyeon looked beyond the barrier. Over there, no one else was present; only Taesan was there.

Hwiyun had said that they should win quickly and go help him, but from what she saw, there was no need for help.

Taesan casually swung his fist.

Crash.

The monster’s head crumpled. He kicked another with his foot. That monster’s lower half exploded and disappeared.

Gulp.

Gulp.

Dozens of monsters simultaneously pounced on Taesan. Taesan calmly drew his sword.

Clash.

In an instant, afterimages formed, and the monsters were reduced to chunks and disappeared.

He brushed aside the damage window obstructing his view and thrust his sword. The monster, which was hiding in the shadows, was impaled. Taesan used force to cut it upward, splitting it in half.

Gurgle.

Using the corpse of its kind as bait, one monster barely managed to attack Taesan’s chest.

[Kang Taesan's Block has been activated.] [0 Damage to Kang Taesan.]

Crash.

The monster’s head burst apart before it could even rejoice in its successful attack.

With each movement of his sword, monsters died, and hundreds exploded with each movement of his body.

It was truly an overwhelming gap. They were, at best, around 13 to 14 on average in terms of stats. Simple calculations showed there was almost a twenty-fold difference between them and Taesan.

[This is fascinating.]

A spectating ghost murmured.

[That number must represent their count.]

“Right.”

Later, a countless number of monsters would appear. Some people even suffocated, buried in the sheer volume. The threat was not only from their sheer power but also from their numbers.

[It must require quite a bit of power to send this amount to someone else's world. What for?]

“You mentioned it when talking about gods; what does ‘that power’ refer to?”

[Their divine force, influence field, value, and so on... Things related to the transcendental in some way.]

“So, you need to use that to interfere with someone?”

[If it's simple, it's possible without using it. You can provide compensation of dust-like value without loss of power, assuming a fair trade. You have items that you received when you cleared trials. That's about the level for gods.]

For him now, it had great value, but it seemed like it had no value at all to a god. Thinking about the items to be gained at the end of Solo Mode, he understood.

[But to give rewards that have even a tiny bit of value to the transcendental, permanent loss is needed. Like the contract of the apostle or the skills given to you.]

Gurgle.

He crushed the approaching monster. He threw his sword into the skull of a monster that was trying to take advantage of an opening from the left. The sword smashed the monster’s head.

That was the last monster.

As he approached and drew his sword, Taesan said,

“Keep talking.”

[In simple terms, as they become transcendent, interference with mortals becomes harder, and to make meaningful interference, they have to sacrifice something. And that power does not recover easily.]

“Then what is this guy?”

Taesan pointed at the monster’s corpse.

Hundreds of monsters. According to the ghost’s words, it meant a considerable loss of power. But as far as Taesan could remember, new monsters kept appearing even when he was dying.

The ghost made a groaning sound.

[I'm not sure either. It's not a typical transcendental being. It seems to be a higher existence... I need to see more to know. But why isn't it ending?]

Taesan had killed all the monsters, but the quest completion hadn’t appeared. Taesan kicked the monster’s corpse and sat down.

“We have to wait until it’s over everywhere else.”

Just dealing with one direction did not mean it was the end. Taesan waited leisurely.

Everyone must be celebrating right now.

The time when their joy would turn to despair wasn’t far away.

“Huff, huff.”

Hwiyun, who had knocked down the last monster, wiped her sweat. Cheers of joy resonated from all around.

“We won!”

“We won! Hooray!”

Everyone raised their hands with joy. They embraced each other, savoring the victory.

There were some who died, but it was extremely rare. Excluding those who couldn’t maintain their line and stepped out, everyone survived.

As they celebrated their victory, the quest was also completed.

[Special quest success] [Rewards will be given when returning to the labyrinth.]

All four directions had achieved victory. They were embracing each other with faces full of anticipation and joy.

[Special quest start] [The second wave begins.] [Defense area: East, west, south, and north based on the city hall.] [Defeat the enemy and protect the city hall.]

“Huh?”

“There’s more?”

Their confused gazes shifted to their respective directions.

A monster appeared from the direction where they had previously emerged. The tension on people’s faces eased.

“Oh, just one?”

“Just one isn’t a big deal…”

Unlike their relaxed attitudes, Junggeun’s face hardened.

“…Wait.”

He had seen a monster that was even bigger and more formidable while moving with Taesan.

A monster outside the standards, whose movements were too swift to follow.

If Taesan hadn’t brought it down, it would have been a monster capable of killing him and a hundred others.

The monster that appeared now looked similar to that one. He tried to tell people that something was wrong, but someone acted before he could.

“Just one monster!”

A man stepped forward confidently.

The man was one of the top fighters in Normal Mode, and he had delivered decisive blows to several monsters. This time, he intended to prove his strength by engaging in one-on-one combat.

The man’s sword pierced the monster’s chest.

[1 damage to monster 54612154.]

“…What?”

Thud.

[52 damage to Choi Minsik.]

“Ah, huh?”

[54 damage to Choi Minsik.]

“Huh…”

The man fell.

The monster moved. In that instant, everyone except Junggeun and a few players from Hard Mode completely missed its movement.

With a loud explosion, people were sent flying. Like ants being swept away by a fierce wind, they were utterly powerless.

The people realized it from this attack. The monster hasn’t been ranked yet, but they still could tell.

This was a monster of a higher level, different from those they had encountered so far.

The fear they had momentarily forgotten returned. People began screaming and scrambling to escape once again.

“You can’t run away!”

Junggeun gritted his teeth and shouted. There was no place to run from a monster. The only way out was to fight with their lives on the line.

As Junggeun stepped forward to charge at the monster, the monster’s arm moved.

Feeling a chilling sensation, Junggeun quickly ducked.

With a loud roar…

“Ah!”

People behind Junggeun were sent flying. Chills ran down Junggeun’s back, causing him to grit his teeth.

“What the…”

It was incredibly fast. Dodging it was half-luck. He couldn’t guarantee that he’d be able to dodge again.

It was incredibly powerful.

‘Are we supposed to beat this?’

Despair was etched onto Junggeun’s face as the monster began to move silently.

Thud.

[43 damage to monster 78541212.]

The monster fell.

Taesan brandished his sword.

An E-class monster, a dimension apart from the F-class monsters. It was certainly powerful, but Taesan was stronger than those who had cleared Easy Mode. It was not a problem for him.

The problem was the others. They were not yet ready to defeat an E-class monster.

“What a cruel existence.”

The only way to overcome it was literally to stake their lives. If they could inflict even 1 point of damage, they could win by committing themselves to attack, prepared for death.

He wanted to help, but he was obstructed by the barrier, unable to help. He could only hope they managed to win on their own.

However, since he alone had taken on one direction, they were more numerous and should be able to take it down with fewer casualties than the previous world.

“I have to do what I have to do.”

The barrier only prevented interference with each other. It didn’t prevent him from moving far away.

Taesan left the city hall and headed towards the devastated city.