Chapter 5

Endgame Tier

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

His heart was pounding like crazy. His breathing became rapid.

But there was no way to calm his excitement.

‘Eternal grade…!’

Eternal grade equipment almost never appeared, even from Diamond Boxes. Up until his return, Park Chan-woo had only managed to obtain three Eternal-grade items.

The items obtainable from the Abyss are divided into eight grades: Normal, Rare, Unique, Epic, Ancient, Legendary, Eternal, and Zero.

The highest grade you could get from a Gold Box was Epic, and even from a Platinum Box, Legendary was the limit. It was a grade that shouldn’t have been possible to obtain.

‘…I’ve heard that when the box’s star rating increases, higher-grade items might appear, but…’

Even that was extremely rare. But getting an Eternal-grade item from a Platinum Box was unheard of.

‘Excluding the Chalice of the Sealed God, I’ve never had any Zero-grade equipment or items, so this is practically the highest grade obtainable in the Abyss.’

And it wasn’t just the grade that was surprising.

‘They’re all endgame tier.’

Just the names alone were enough to make his mind go blank—equipment known as “endgame” items.

The World Tree Staff, the Helm of the King’s Demise, and the Gaz Knight’s Greatsword were all top-tier among Eternal-grade items, worthy of being called the best. Even if you had a high level, you couldn’t become a high-ranker without such equipment.

These were the exclusive proof of the strongest, and no one would dare dispute their status as “endgame” items.

What about the Heart of the True Dragon and the Book of the Stars?

Eating the Heart of the True Dragon would change your constitution. The Book of the Stars was an item used to change your class to “Star Mage.” Both were items that any mage would drool over and desire.

‘And I have to choose just one of these?’

It wasn’t an easy choice. Even though he was walking the path of truth now, Park Chan-woo was originally a warrior and a knight. The Helm of the King’s Demise and the Gaz Knight’s Greatsword weren’t directly related to mages, but knowing their value made it hard to give them up easily.

‘The Gaz Knight’s Greatsword was one of Sword King Lee Hyuk-soo’s prized swords.’

The Gaz Knight’s Greatsword, in particular, was one of the five swords used by Sword King Lee Hyuk-soo. The image of him smashing the head of the Ox Demon King with that greatsword was still vivid in Park Chan-woo’s mind, as if it had happened yesterday.

How envious he had been.

Park Chan-woo had never been lucky with equipment. He had never had a proper sword.

‘If I start with that sword, I could properly walk the path of a knight…’

It had an incredible effect that raised the level of all sword-related skills. He could undoubtedly make his mark as a knight more effectively than ever before.

But Park Chan-woo shook his head.

His aptitude wasn’t with the sword. Even though it might allow for rapid growth, he wouldn’t reach the pinnacle. Even if he wielded the best sword and had perfect armor, he still wouldn’t reach the level that Sword King Lee Hyuk-soo had attained.

He had already experienced this once.

The reward he would choose had been decided from the beginning.

Park Chan-woo’s eyes trembled slightly.

The unique options attached to the World Tree Staff were incredibly powerful. They were abilities that any mage would dream of having.

‘Great Magic. It means turning a spell into a divine power.’

The most important was the third option. Transcending one chosen spell into Great Magic meant granting it power akin to divine authority.

Park Chan-woo smiled slightly.

Even though he wasn’t a mage yet, that would soon change.

‘…I will walk the path of the Archmage.’

The Dragon God Sephiro.

Many had tried and failed to reach that monster.

But the only one who had ever wounded its body was Park Chan-woo, with his magic.

The Dragon God, who was called the lord of magic, had been so impressed that he had referred to him as an Archmage.

If Park Chan-woo walked the path of truth properly, he could achieve a different outcome this time.

‘It’s already evening.’

Park Chan-woo gazed out the window.

The sun, which had been slowly setting, had now completely disappeared.

Darkness had spread across the world. It was the time when everyone was beginning to drift off to sleep, one by one, preparing for tomorrow.

At this moment, everyone was letting their guard down.

No one believed that the Abyss would open again tonight.

No one thought such a thing could happen repeatedly.

Park Chan-woo had thought the same in the past.

‘They don’t care about our circumstances.’

He looked up at the full moon.

Soon, a brief message appeared before the eyes of all humanity.

Night had fallen.

For some, it might be the most brutal night, and for others, it might be the most important.

Park Chan-woo was already looking at the moon.

‘If the Death Abyss opens, at least tens of millions of people will die.’

The Death Abyss was the worst possible scenario.

Humanity had experienced a Death Abyss once before, and after that, they did everything they could to ensure enough participants were gathered to avoid it.

Grim Reapers appeared worldwide, slaughtering people indiscriminately, and it continued until sunrise.

However, those who participated in the Abyss at night could obtain countless treasures.

Nightly Abysses didn’t occur often, and the more special the night, the more valuable the rewards.

Naturally, the Abyss of the “First Night” was particularly special. It was said that countless priceless treasures were found, treasures beyond estimation.

‘I didn’t participate, though.’

But in the past, Park Chan-woo hadn’t participated in this Abyss.

He had been too terrified by what he had experienced during the day to even consider joining.

He wasn’t alone—most people felt the same way. There was widespread concern that they wouldn’t reach the required 2,000,000 participants.

But.

‘There are more crazy people in the world than you think.’

Now, Park Chan-woo had become one of them.

He had just two goals for the Abyss of the First Night.

‘…To obtain a class and to find the Philosopher’s Stone. I must achieve these two things.’

These were the two key elements that would form the foundation of his rapid growth. He needed to find the Mage class and the ‘Philosopher’s Stone’.

It was said that the Philosopher’s Stone, also known as the Sage’s Stone, was discovered in the Abyss of the First Night. However, no one had managed to obtain it.

But if he truly wanted to walk the path of the Archmage, he had to find it.

The sooner the Philosopher’s Stone was acquired, the more enormous the benefits it would bring as a ‘growth-type treasure’.

If he could obtain the Philosopher’s Stone at this point, he would be one step closer to confronting the Dragon God Sephiro.

‘I will surpass you, Sephiro.’

No, Park Chan-woo wanted more than that. His goal was to become an absolute being that no one could oppose.

Soon, the awaited message appeared before him.

BOOM!

Suddenly, a massive explosion erupted in the distance. Something had fallen from the sky like a comet, evaporating everything around it.

‘It’s one of the Twelve Divine Generals.’

One of the Twelve Divine Generals had appeared in Korea.

—Lee Hyuk-soo, if you could go back in time, what would you most want to avoid?

—You really are a crazy bastard, asking such strange things. If I could go back, what should I avoid?

Sword King Lee Hyuk-soo.

He was one of the strongest humans, the third to reach level 99.

On the path to the Dragon God’s domain, when the entire Death Squad was being slaughtered, he was the one who never avoided a fight, who possessed an indomitable spirit and was known as the ‘Abyss Hunter’.

With a grim expression, he answered Park Chan-woo’s question.

—…Of course, the ‘Abyss of the First Night.’ Other Divine Generals are manageable, but that ‘Dragon General’ is impossible to kill.

If he could go back in time, he would avoid the Abyss of the First Night at all costs. Especially, he would never fight the Dragon General.

‘Lee Hyuk-soo must be here too.’

Park Chan-woo thought as he watched the world turn into an Abyss.

In this Abyss, Sword King Lee Hyuk-soo was present.

And so was the ‘Dragon General’, the most fearsome and deadly of the Twelve Divine Generals, who had caused the deaths of 1.98 million people.

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