NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 53
A certain sea of Thea.
Located at the exact opposite of Providence, the deepest part of Thea.
There, in the profound darkness, something stirred.
A merman swam through the abyss.
Covered in scales and bearing gills, its grotesque form left no doubt—it was a creature of the deep.
A seabed cliff, so deep the bottom was unseen.
The merman knelt, gazing down.
“O Abyss…”
From beneath the abyssal precipice, darkness opened its eyes.
To avoid madness from meeting its gaze, the merman shut its own.
Beneath the Black World Tree, among the legion commanders, one held the highest seat.
One of Thea’s most terrifying beings.
A darkness that resided in the deepest depths.
The Abyssal Commander.
“Our plans have been disrupted….”
A plan to manipulate dungeon anomalies, starting from Korea and targeting the entire Earth.
It was continuously thwarted.
By unexpected entities emerging from Korea.
The darkness beneath the precipice trembled.
A deep, resonant voice echoed through the ocean.
[Merely the ebb tide before the great wave.]
A colossal eye gleamed, large enough to fill the chasm between the cliffs.
[Press forward even harder.]
“…Understood.”
The merman, eyes still shut, gracefully paddled away from the darkness.
###
[Breaking News: A certain Awakener has achieved a ‘Perfect Clear! (Solo)’ of a D-rank dungeon, successfully thwarting the World Tree’s invasion!]
[In honor of this remarkable feat, a divine blessing has been bestowed upon the region. Please join us in celebration!]
A notification appeared before Korea’s Awakeners.
A radiant new barrier of light enveloped Seoul.
└ Something felt off after they cleared four consecutive E+ dungeons…
└ They actually broke through D-rank? Our Perfect Clear Awakener is amazing!
└ And once again, they solo-cleared, huh?
└ Experts claimed D-rank couldn’t be Perfect Cleared… guess they were wrong!
└ These comments are gold.
└ Let them hype it up. If it keeps our Perfect Clear Awakener happy and in Korea, that’s all that matters.
└ Experts? Don’t talk nonsense. Our Perfect Clear Awakener exists beyond common sense.
└ …Okay, that’s a bit much.
Kang Hyun grimaced as he read through the comments.
“Ugh, why are they like this?”
This was why he didn’t enjoy checking social media.
But Aden kept shoving the phone in his face.
“Nobody’s complaining about not getting an E-rank blessing anymore, huh?”
“It just means people finally feel safe, doesn’t it?”
Korea, once the most tension-filled place in the world.
Now, it had become the most secure.
All thanks to Kang Hyun.
Yet not everyone was simply rejoicing.
└ I heard Korea’s Perfect Clear Awakener solo-cleared a D-rank dungeon yesterday.
└ Yeah, so what?
└ I mean, it’s impressive, but why bring it up here? This is a Japanese forum.
└ What’s the problem? It’s been on international news a lot.
└ Checked OP’s post history. Are you from Korea? You seem to post a lot about them. (◉‿◉);;
└ No need to be so sensitive.
└ Off-topic discussions will be deleted.
This post was removed for violating forum rules.
└ Damn leftists. Get out of our country.
Kang Hyun had no interest in Japan’s reactions.
Something else had his attention.
[Would you like to open the ‘Silver Box’?]
“Alright then….”
Drumroll!
He had only opened a Silver Box twice before.
He received it as a reward for achieving ten Perfect Clears.
But D-rank dungeons started rewarding Silver Boxes outright.
‘Then does C-rank drop Gold Boxes?’
He had never seen a Gold Box.
His last two Silver Boxes contained ‘Skill Level-Up Coupons.’
‘At first, I thought they were trash.’
But they turned out to be invaluable.
His
Combining
It allowed him to steal turns in battle without fail.
Thanks to that, he had managed to land multiple decisive blows in a 3-on-1 fight against a B-rank opponent.
Against opponents of the same rank?
He would hold an overwhelming advantage.
‘Apparently, the higher the skill level, the greater the difference between levels.’
If he reached level 7?
Only a handful of people worldwide had level 7 skills.
It would unlock an absolutely broken ability.
‘Come on, another Level-Up Coupon.’
He was excited.
[Opening ‘Silver Box’ now.]
“Let’s go!”
“Here we go!”
A dazzling silver effect.
Even more dramatic sound effects.
His heart pounded.
Shiiiiing—
Ding!
[You have obtained ‘Mono Core.’]
“Huh?”
“What’s that? A glass bead?”
A blue orb the size of a fist appeared.
Was it an item?
“Wait a sec….”
“Does it feel like the air is stirring?”
“Oh, you can feel it too?”
Of course, as an elf, their mana sensitivity was excellent.
Good disciple—her talent was remarkable.
As the core appeared, the surrounding mana flow changed.
Mana swirled around the core, quietly gathering in place.
[Mono Core]
[A core that independently condenses the natural mana. Theoretically, it can gather near-infinite mana, though the efficiency decreases as the stored mana increases.]
“Independently gather mana? And infinitely?”
‘Is that even possible?’
This was something Kyle had never seen in his past.
The potential uses for this item seemed endless.
“Hmm? I don’t understand. What’s it for?”
“In the simplest sense, just meditating near this would yield far better results.”
Especially since Kang Hyun’s cultivation method involved Dragon’s Breath.
Since just breathing would accumulate mana, using this would improve efficiency significantly.
“It’s like a portable ley line.”
“Ley line?! That’s a goldmine in real estate!”
“…Do people talk about it like that nowadays? What happened to romance and adventure?”
Back in the day, discovering a ley line made people dream.
Would they build a kingdom on it? Or maybe there was a dragon’s lair nearby? That’s how exciting it was.
Although this wasn’t as high-level as a true ley line, it was still an excellent find.
“This Silver Box really delivered.”
It looked like training efficiency was about to skyrocket.
“Man, opening rewards like this is addictive.”
“I’m also excited for the World Quest rewards!”
“Oh yeah, there’s that too.”
Though the details were still unknown.
Even when he opened the quest window, it still said [Reward: Being calculated….].
“Are World Quest rewards really that great?”
“They always have been, so far.”
Maybe blanketing all of Korea with blessings would finish it.
That would guarantee a clear.
“Can’t wait to see what’s next.”
They planned to clear four E+ dungeons every two days.
D-rank dungeons would be tackled every other day.
Thus, the dungeon-clearing plan was set.
The next day.
“Dad, I’m home.”
“Huh?! What are you doing here without notice?”
His father was surprised by the sudden visit but quickly beamed with joy.
“Here, hide this.”
“Huh? What is it that needs hiding… Whoa! Valentine 30-year!?”
“They gave me this when I asked for good liquor. Did I do well?”
“Hey! This is worth over a million won! Where did you get the money for this?”
“I got a performance bonus.”
After hiding the liquor, Kang Hyun’s mother returned from the market.
“A gift for you, Mom.”
“What is it? Oh my! Is this Gucci?”
“They gave me this when I asked for a nice bag. Got it with my bonus.”
And for Kang Subin, who was still at school—
“Is this what Subin kept talking about?”
“That’s what I heard. I asked for the latest phone, and they handed me this. Give it to her when she gets back.”
“Leaving already?”
“Your son’s busy. I’ll be back again soon.”
Though his parents felt a little disappointed, they were also delighted.
More than the gifts, it was reassurance that their son was doing well.
Right after, he cleared four E+ dungeons.
Thus ended the first day of their dungeon-clearing plan.
South Korea’s current E-rank blessings:
12 total, excluding Seoul.
23% of South Korea’s land blessed.
The next day.
Ding!
[World Quest rewards have been updated.]
[Quest: Dungeon Anomaly Defense]
[The Black World Tree is scheming something evil. Stop their plans and protect South Korea.
Quest Completion Conditions:
Resolve the dungeon anomaly: 0/1
Uncover the mastermind: 1/1 (Completed)
Reward: Heroic Weapon Box]
“A weapon box? That’s usually random.”
“But… heroic?!”
What was that supposed to mean?
A descriptor like Silver or Bronze?
But it felt oddly different.
“It is time to upgrade my weapon, though.”
“Trading in a billion-won weapon for a heroic one?”
That billion-won sword was light but lacked power.
The obsidian sword he had drawn previously was an assassination weapon.
It dulled in bright places.
“Heroic, huh? Can’t pass that up.”
It was originally a D-rank dungeon day, but plans changed.
They went all-in on E+ dungeons instead.
[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]
[Incredible Achievement! E+ Dungeon Cleared….]
[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]
[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]
[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]
Day 2.
South Korea’s E-rank blessings:
16 total, excluding Seoul.
31% of South Korea’s land blessed.
The next day.
Training with the Mono Core yielded results.
Ding!
[‘Magic Power’ has increased. (D → D+)]
“Congratulations!”
“This is why I can’t stop chasing rewards.”
Long live the Mono Core.
Long live the portable ley line.
Meditation felt like a whole new experience.
“I can clear even more dungeons now.”
That day, they cleared six E+ dungeons.
Another world record.
Day 3.
South Korea’s E-rank blessings:
22 total, excluding Seoul.
43% of South Korea’s land blessed.
The next day.
Ding!
[You have obtained a ‘Dried Shincheonsoo Elixir.’]
“Just tried one for fun, but it’s a dud.”
“Maybe we should’ve saved it.”
“Eh, just one.”
He swallowed it immediately.
Mana replenished.
Might as well hit more dungeons today.
Thus, he set an unbelievable record of 12 consecutive clears.
Day 4.
South Korea’s E-rank blessings:
34 total, excluding Seoul.
66% of South Korea’s land blessed.
And finally, Day 5.
[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]
[Incredible Achievement! You have completely repelled the World Tree invasion by clearing an E+ dungeon!]
[Due to your accomplishments, blessings will descend on the surrounding area! Everyone will celebrate your achievements!]
South Korea’s E-rank blessings:
40 total, excluding Seoul.
About 80% of South Korea’s land blessed, the initial goal.
Experts had predicted this blessing percentage as the key to solving the anomaly.
At that moment, a notification appeared for Kang Hyun and all awakened people across Korea.
Ding!
[World Quest completed.]
“Oh?”
“Oh!”
South Korea had escaped the dungeon anomaly.
The first country in the world to do so.
Shortly after, just as foreign news outlets began writing articles—
Another notification appeared.
Ding!
The alert made awakened people worldwide look up.
[World Quest has been triggered.]
[The Black World Tree is scheming something evil. Stop their plans and protect Earth.
Quest Completion Condition:
Resolve the dungeon anomaly: 0/1
Reward: Being calculated….]
[Countdown begins.]
[Time Limit: 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes.]