Chapter 221


    Harphael bit his lip hard enough to draw blood.


    “Damn it, we’re doomed.”


    The directive to stop him hade through, even bringing in the demon king-ss Transcendent, “Mandora,” to assist. So, even if his own doppelganger had fallen in the first stage, defeating Mandora’s doppelganger should have been impossible.


    But how did this happen?


    “Lord Mandora has been defeated….”


    Harphael looked up at the ceiling. Mandora’s voice echoed down to him.


    <i>


    “Was he truly that strong?”


    <i>


    “A trick, you say?”


    Even as just a doppelganger, Mandora was demon king-ss. What kind of trick had Jeong-hoon used to bring it down? Harphael’s curiosity lingered, but he held his tongue, recognizing the unmistakable fury in Mandora’s voice.


    * * *


    Havingpleted his job advancement, Jeong-hoon immediately entered the Emperor of Martial Arts’ realm.


    [The Martial Emperor’s Realm]


    -A secret library chronicling all who have attained the peak of martial prowess


    The Martial Emperor’s realm was, in essence, a library. Countless books filled the shelves, ranging from ancient, worn tomes to newer, well-preserved volumes.


    “So, this is my first time here.”


    Before his return, when Jeong-hoon hadpleted his fourth ss advancement, he was in a Unique-tier, standard ss. So, instead of a library, he had simply learned a transcendent skill essible to his ss.


    However, a hidden ss was in a different league altogether. Not only was it limited to a single individual, but the gap in growth widened drastically over time. The transcendent skills highlighted this difference.


    Standard sses could only acquire one transcendent skill, whereas hidden sses had ess to a full three.


    [yers with a true hidden ss hit the jackpot…]


    —I heard you can get as many as three transcendent skills after fourth ss advancement.


    └Sure, but good luck reaching Level 301


    └Plus, the quest difficulty is insanely high, they say.


    └True, it’s tough to get, and leveling up is ridiculous too.


    Despite this, yers revered hidden sses. Once cleared, the difficulty became worth it as they gained power far beyond standard sses.


    “Those Transcendent bastards. Not allowing a fourth ss advancement…this is why.”


    Jeong-hoon had already surprised many. Who wouldn’t be astonished watching his progress?


    The Transcendents were likely observing quietly, and it probably grated on them. That must be why they’d had a demon king-level Transcendent intervene in his fourth ss advancement quest, aiming for his failure.


    [So, how many can you choose here?]


    Jeong-hoon held up three fingers.


    “Three.”


    [Only three?]


    Mukho couldn’t hide his displeasure. It was understandable, given how severely he’d been beaten when facing that creature.


    Honestly, Jeong-hoon had beenpletely taken aback when he first confronted the doppelganger. At this early stage in reality’s awakening, only Apostle-level Transcendents had been able to intervene in the real world. Demon king-level Transcendents, like Mandora, rarely appeared until muchter—and even then, only one or two.


    But here was a demon king-ss Transcendent, right at the start of his fourth ss advancement quest.


    “Three is rather few.”


    The reward felt unusually stingy, considering he had defeated such a formidable opponent.


    Then, suddenly:


    [You have vanquished a demon king-level Transcendent.]


    [A hidden area has opened.]


    ‘Hmm? What’s this?’


    Jeong-hoon tilted his head in curiosity as a blocked wall began to glow, revealing a newly formed passageway.


    [Entering the hidden area will allow you to take only one book.]


    The selection had dropped from three books to one.


    [Oh,e on! Three books is way better! Just one? That’s ridiculous!]


    ‘But wasn’t this passage unlocked as a reward for defeating that creature? Seems like it’s worth exploring.’


    Mukho and Anima had opposing opinions, but Jeong-hoon agreed with Anima’s assessment.


    “Even if it’s just one book, it’s bound to be iparable in quality.”


    Without hesitation, he walked through the passage. Inside, the space was empty—no bookshelves, nothing.


    [What the… there’s nothing here?]


    “Looks like it.”


    Jeong-hoon took a few steps into the room, and suddenly, a light began to radiate from the center. The light gradually formed into a single object, eventually taking the shape of a book.


    ‘So that’s why it was only one book.’


    It seemed there was no other option to choose from. Jeong-hoon approached the book.


    —


    [Transcendent: Elevation of Power]


    – Type: Skillbook


    – Rank: Celestial


    – Using this skillbook will grant you the skill, “Elevation of Power (Celestial).”


    —


    A transcendent skill, Elevation of Power.


    It was a skill he had never encountered before.


    ‘Celestial!’


    The skillbook was of Celestial rank, above even Legendary. Without hesitation, Jeong-hoon used the skillbook.


    [You have acquired the transcendent skill, Elevation of Power.]


    Transcendent skill:


    Elevation of Power.


    – Type: Passive


    – Level: 1


    – Rank: Celestial


    – Elevates power by one tier.


    ‘Elevates power by one tier?’


    Jeong-hoon tilted his head in confusion. There were no changes in his level or stats. He didn’t even feel any stronger.


    ‘Could it be a skill that allows me topete against the Transcendents?’


    If that were the case, it would make sense. After all, he had been desperately seeking growth since his regression. Yet, despite his efforts, he had barely managed to handle just one demon king-level Transcendent. Even facing the doppelganger, if it hadn’t been for Mukho’s proximity attack reflection and counter-attack runes, he would have certainly lost—there was a clear gap in their levels.


    Jeong-hoon formted a hypothesis.


    ‘There exists an invisible wall between me and them.’


    No matter how much he grew, he felt no confidence in defeating those above him. However, if this “elevation” could bridge the gap with the Transcendents…


    ‘Then I’ve gained something incredible.’


    Moreover, transcendent skills were capable of growth. This meant that with proper development, he could potentially elevate his power by several tiers.


    Jeong-hoon clenched his fist.


    “I can’t believe I actually got this.”


    At that moment, a voice came from behind him. Jeong-hoon turned his head.


    “…Who are you?”


    It was an old man he had never seen before. Moreover, there was no trace of any aura emanating from him.


    ‘This means he has immense strength that I can’t even perceive.’


    Since this was in the space of the Martial Emperor, it was certain. Despite that, Jeong-hoon felt no need to be on guard. There was no sign of hostility in the old man’s eyes. Instead, he regarded Jeong-hoon with a look of satisfaction.


    “Me? I’m just an old man who died a long time ago.”


    “And why have you appeared before me?”


    “Hoho, because you’re the first among those who entered this space to take that book.”


    “…Are you its owner?”


    The old man shook his head.


    “Not at all.”


    “Then who are you?”


    “I was the one who possessed it before you did.”


    “I see.”


    “…It’s going to be a difficult journey for you.”


    A shadow passed over the old man’s face. His words suggested that he, too, had been toyed with by the Transcendents and had ultimately failed.


    “I understand.”


    “Good to know.”


    The old man smiled and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, a small light began to swirl around Jeong-hoon’s body.


    [All skills level up to Max.]


    Jeong-hoon’s eyes widened slightly. With his Steadfast Will, the rank of the skill he had acquired rose to Legendary, resetting its level to 1. In an instant, the levels of those skills shot up to Max.


    But that wasn’t all. The newly acquired Elevation skill also reached Max.


    [Elevation of Power]


    – Type: Passive


    – Level: 10


    – Rank: Celestial


    – Elevates power by two tiers.


    The power that had previously increased by one tier leaped up to two tiers in an instant.


    “What is this…?”


    “It is everything I can give you.”


    “How…?”


    “By obtaining that book, you allowed me to intervene, even if just for a moment.”


    Jeong-hoon nodded. In the hidden space of the Martial Emperor, defeating a doppelganger of a demon king-level Transcendent was nearly impossible.


    “…I see.”


    “Anyway, thank you. I had been blocking ess to what I left for the next generation… and you managed to break through.”


    Defeating a Transcendent in the demon king level was no small feat. Even though it was a doppelganger, fulfilling the conditions allowed him to get this far.


    “Yes.”


    “That skill is still not in itspleted form. I couldn’t finish it, but you mustplete it and change this damned fate.”


    With those words, the old man vanished, having exceeded the time he could maintain his form.


    Jeong-hoon stared at the spot where he had disappeared and muttered softly, “I will definitely do so.”


    —


    The gap between the third and fourth sses was immense. It wasn’t just about the rise in stats. From the fourth ss onward,mon passives applied.


    [Rage]


    – Type: Passive


    – Rank: Celestial


    – Increases attack power by 20%.


    – Increases critical damage by 15%.


    – Ignores 20% of defense.


    – Ignores 20% of damage reduction based on level.


    Upon transitioning to the fourth ss, Jeong-hoon gained this additionalmon passive: Rage.


    The power was impressive, but the most crucial aspect was thest point.


    Ignoring damage reduction based on level meant that if his opponent was at a significantly higher level, the damage would still be considerably reduced. Now, he could ignore 20% of that reduction.


    With the ability to ignore 20% of defense, it was only natural that the gap between the third and fourth sses widened.


    Whoosh!


    “Keuhk!”


    Jeong-hoon’s arrow pierced the neck of the Lv. 133 Arc Enermic.


    Of course, there weren’t any monsters that could showcase such power yet.


    [Questpleted.]


    [The progress of the Episode Dungeon clear has reached 100%.]


    [You have cleared the Episode Dungeon.]


    [You have gained 10,000,000 experience points.]


    “Hoon, are you going to keep repeating the episodes?”


    Beside him were Ha-Jin and Bong-Goo.


    “Yeah. For now, I’m focusing on episodes.”


    “Aren’t you going to stream?” Bong-Goo asked.


    Thest video he had uploaded was about mining.


    [Views: 671,621,892]


    With over 600 million views, his subscriber count had surpassed 10 million and was approaching 20 million.


    Although the growth rate was slowpared to the views, the fact that he was on the verge of hitting 20 million was still an impressive figure.


    And with such explosive poprity, many were eagerly waiting for his next stream.


    “There’s nothing I can share as a tip yet.”


    In reality, he could reveal something if he wanted to, but there weren’t any incredible items hidden like before in the mining video.


    It was wiser to clear the episodes a little more to save time.


    And soon, Baal would make an appearance.


    ‘The next stream will be about the dungeon he points to.’


    Jeong-hoon had already nned his next broadcast.


    “Well, it’s only the HoneyTube when there are actually tips to share.”


    “That’s true,” Ha-Jin and Bong-Goo agreed wholeheartedly.


    “Then let’s call it a day.”


    They had already finished two episodes.


    Clearing one required almost several days of effort, but since it was an episode they had alreadypleted, one day was enough.


    “Oh! We finally finished?”


    “Wow! Now we can rest, right?”


    Ha-Jin and Bong-Goo wanted to throw themselves onto their beds immediately.


    They had been in a sleep-deprived state for 40 hours.


    While their bodies were fine thanks to the stat boosts from New World, they desperately wanted a break after moving without rest.


    “Yeah. You worked hard.”


    Jeong-hoon sent them home.


    Ha-Jin and Bong-Goo hurriedly left, wanting to disappear before Jeong-hoon changed his mind.


    ‘Those kids are just fleeing outright.’


    But he would call them back in a day anyway.


    Just like in the M?rchen Kingdom, there were episodes that could be entered alone, while others required exactly three people to enter.


    [Are you finally going to rest, Master?]


    ‘It’s time to take a little break.’


    Mukho and Anima wanted Jeong-hoon to rest.


    “That’s right.”


    Bzz—


    At that moment, Jeong-hoon’s smartphone vibrated.


    The caller was Yeo Min-ji.


    He took out his phone and answered.


    “Yes, hello.”


    [Hoon! The Japanese are starting to move!]


    “Are you sure?”


    [Yes! A group of 14 users led by Iwase Haruto and Kaneda Shun has crossed over to Korea.]


    “Okay, got it.”


    Jeong-hoon ended the call.


    [What the… No rest for you?]


    ‘Really… What a ridiculous timing.’


    While the other two sighed, Jeong-hoon was smiling.


    He never expected to receive news during his downtime.


    It was perfect timing.


    ———-


    </i></i>