“…I’m sorry.”
The voice was small, but it resonated, overwhelming all noise.
Clank!
The thrown stones and weapons stopped.
The anger, hatred, and even fear etched on their faces seemed to pause for a moment.
“…I’m sorry.”
Once again, I uttered it with sincerity.
[Mind Intent: Infinite Return]
Then the cries and voices of resentment that filled the surroundings began to subside. Silence flowed instead.
“Did you say…sorry?”
A trembling voice from someone in the crowd.
“You killed us. You took our families, trampled our futures. And now you say…sorry?”
The voice was thick with tears. It was sorrow deeper than resentment.
I slowly nodded toward him.
“That’s right. I have no excuses for you. What I did cannot be justified by any reason.”
I continued.
“But still, I will walk this path. I will not forget the harm and sorrow you suffered. I will do everything I can to ensure your sacrifice is not in vain.”
At that moment, someone in the crowd shouted again.
“But that means nothing to us! We’re already dead!”
I lowered my head at those words.
“You’re right. What I say may mean nothing to you. But…”
I conjured a small flame on my palm. It was light shaped by my Mind Intent. That small light gradually spread, illuminating the surroundings.
“…Through the pain you endured, through your unjust deaths, I have finally realized the meaning of being human.”
As the light grew brighter, their forms began to blur and fade.
“The price for sacrificing you will never disappear. But from now on, I will fight for you. I will stake everything I have so that the tragedy you suffered is never repeated.”
Then the crowd fell silent again. A strange stillness flowed, neither anger nor sorrow.
After a moment, an elderly man in the crowd spoke to me in a trembling voice.
“I understand… your sincerity.”
At that moment, the entire crowd’s image blurred.
“But do not forget. Our death is your sin and your responsibility.”
I bowed deeply at those words.
“I will never forget.”
My sincere apology was melting their apparitions. The voices of the crowd, gradually fading, added one last thing.
“…Then go now. Do what you must.”
Paaaaaah!
In an instant, all illusions vanished as if exploding. At the same time, the dark waves that had composed the trial of the 62nd floor calmed down.
“Did you think I wouldn’t see through the essence of the trap you set?”
Nepas. The final trap he had prepared was atonement. The illusion just now—the apparitions of the Gritia Continent’s people who died by my hand—was unlike any before; it was a sediment of the heart that could not be dispelled. If I had tried to kill them, the sediment within my heart, the heart demon, would have grown, binding and corrupting me. Knowing that, I did not raise a hand. Instead of attacking them, I apologized and begged for forgiveness. Because that was the only way to break through the trap he had set.
I slowly lowered my hand and raised my head. It felt like a huge lump in my heart was dissolving. And finally.
Step.
Step.
I could reach it. Piercing through the pitch-black sea, to the black tower. As if welcoming me, I entered through the open door.
[You have passed the trial of the 62nd floor.]
The system message rang out. And then, revealed before my eyes, was Nepas, the one who had caused all this trouble.
“How could a mere human…?”
He was astonished. It was inevitable. He must have thought he had set a trap that no human could avoid, one that would inevitably ensnare them. But he overlooked one thing.
“Humans, humanity, are beings with greater potential than you think. Boundless potential that someone like you cannot judge.”
He was consumed by arrogance and pride. Because he had lived for eons. Because he had traveled through time and dimensions, absorbing countless powerful beings. Therefore, he arbitrarily defined their limits.
“You probably thought everything would go as you planned, but from now on, it’s different. What you’ve seen so far… will be eroded by humanity’s infinite potential.”
I wasn’t saying that I was that adversary. Perhaps Leon, or Seo-jun, or someone I don’t know will become his adversary.
“Ridiculous. Humanity except for you is no match for me. If only I could kill you, you alone…”
But his words did not continue. His existence was fading. Although he had obtained over five Seals and could arbitrarily invade the 62nd floor, the price was death. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s his end.
‘He possesses infinite life. Even if he is destroyed, he only pays a part of it as a price.’
He had countless lives. Therefore, for him, death was merely the loss of a part. Knowing that, I could not expect his death from the failed invasion.
I stood blankly for a while. A heavy yet strange sense of liberation I had never felt before enveloped my entire body. It felt like I had broken the shackles of guilt and reaffirmed the true meaning of the path I was walking.
Just then.
Swish!
Mist rose, and a form appeared again. It was not Nepas. This time, it was the true administrator of the 62nd floor.
“Excellent!”
As soon as the administrator appeared, he offered genuine praise.
“The illusion created by Nepas could not only destroy you but also break your spirit. But you sincerely acknowledged your sins and sought forgiveness. That is why you passed the trial.”
I quietly looked at him.
“You are a human burdened with guilt, but at the same time, a being with the power to transcend that guilt. That power is the essence of your martial arts.”
As the administrator spoke, light radiated from his body. Slowly. And that light condensed into a small seal before me.
[Seal of Domination (62)]
“Take this. This seal will prove that you are a true administrator.”
I slowly reached out and grasped the seal.
[The Seal of Domination awakens additionally.]
[Seal of Domination enhancement complete. Current number of seals held: 3]
Ordinarily, the reward would have ended there. But.
“In respect for your martial arts, that transcendent realm beyond human.”
The 62nd floor administrator. What he gave me was… Cain’s Immortal Gloves. One of the Cain’s Immortal Set.
“This is a symbol of immortality only obtainable by those who achieve a worthy feat.”
Just as I suspected. The Cain’s Immortal Set cannot be obtained through ordinary trials. Only by approaching the Realm of the Unknown as I did now, and by achieving seemingly impossible feats and accomplishments, can it be obtained. Moreover, it wasn’t just three pieces of equipment. With three pieces collected, the set effect was activated. That was…
[Another Life: The wearer nullifies all fatal damage once, immediately purifies all status ailments, and restores HP to maximum.]
It was an effect far superior to any artifact I had obtained so far. Especially the ability to instantly overturn a critical crisis in battle. It was an essential power for the increasingly fierce battles in the tower.
“See that the seal is maintained…”
After giving his final instructions, the administrator slid away and disappeared. As the administrator vanished, I let out a deep breath. Although I had achieved unexpected results, I couldn’t let my guard down. I was still being hunted, and Nepas was chasing me quickly.
At the time Kim Si-won ascended the tower. A dimensional rift had occurred in South Korea. Right now, this place was a hellish bloodbattle between humans and monsters. That was inevitable because the rift that opened was not a single dimensional rift but a powerful rift formed by the merging of five dimensional rifts.
Nepas was clever. It was seeing several moves ahead. Instead of opening dimensional rifts on multiple continents, he took advantage of the gap left by Kim Si-won and dropped the most powerful nuclear bomb on South Korea.
“Everyone, maintain formation! Focus on the front!”
Leon’s roar shook the ground. He was the general commander at the forefront of this rift, leading thousands of Awakeners. And before his eyes, a massive rift was torn like a wound in the air.
Meanwhile, at another front.
『Perfect Slash』
Swoosh!
As Seo-jun swung his sword, a massive force was released, sending the monsters pouring from the rift flying away. Leon stood by his side.
“Seo-jun, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I can still hold on.”
Seo-jun’s eyes held unwavering fighting spirit. But Leon knew. As the battle continued, his body was gradually approaching its limit.
‘I have to hold on until Master returns. We must endure somehow.’
Leon encouraged himself and his comrades, continuing to command.
“Healing team, treat the wounded at the rear immediately! Tankers, regroup and maintain the barrier!”
Just then.
Kwa-kwa-kwa!
A massive monster emerged from the rift. An overwhelming pressure of a different dimension than before.
‘That…?!’
Leon’s eyes flashed. The most powerful entity appearing from the dimensional rift. At the same time, the disaster-level monster pushed off the ground and charged into the middle of the front line.
“Kyaaah!”
Kwa-gwang-gwang!!
In an instant, the Awakeners holding the front line were knocked away helplessly.
“Block it! We must block it! If we can’t stop that monster, the front line will collapse!”
Leon’s eyes met Seo-jun’s. Seo-jun understood that gaze.
“Let’s go!”
Both of them threw themselves toward the monster at the same time. Leon stepped forward first, using a powerful shockwave to stop the monster’s movement. Without missing that opening, Lee Seo-jun swung his sword.
Spaaah!
The sword light flashed, cutting deep into the monster’s body. But the monster, as if enraged, began to rampage even more.
Kwa-kwa-kwang!
Swept up in that attack, Leon and Lee Seo-jun rolled across the ground and were thrown far away.
“Kugh…!”
Lee Seo-jun spat blood and stood up again. His entire body screamed, but he couldn’t back down. At this moment, the lives of countless Awakeners rested on his shoulders.
But how? This monster was a calamity born from the merging of five dimensional rifts. Even Leon and Seo-jun found it difficult to handle.
‘If Master were here… Master wouldn’t have fallen like this…’
Seo-jun felt the absence of Kim Si-won, that empty place. If it were his master standing here instead of him, there would have been no sacrifice like this.
Helplessness. Frustration. A heart demon wrapped around his body.
“You…”
Sensing Seo-jun’s heart demon in the urgent situation, Leon. But there was nothing he could do. The front line began to collapse in an instant.
“Le…Leon-nim! We can’t hold any longer!”
“We need to retreat! If we keep going like this…!”
Screams and cries continued through the communication network. The battle line crumbled, and the Awakeners were pushed into the abyss of despair. Even the elite human forces that had been painstakingly raised were helpless before this monster.
And in the middle of it all, Seo-jun stood. Staggering. His two legs, standing on the broken ground, barely supported his already broken bones. Beneath the collapsing sky, he clutched his sword, covered in blood.
‘No… I can’t back down like this…!!’
Lee Seo-jun’s eyes trembled.
‘I must protect this.’
But everything was collapsing. Support forces were already exhausted. The barrier at the rear had collapsed, and monsters began to infiltrate civilian areas. Soon, even South Korea would be consumed by this calamity.
“Kyaaaaah!”
The monster roared again and swung its massive arm. Even those who were setting up barriers against the shockwave fell helplessly.
“Kugh…!”
Lee Seo-jun gritted his teeth. He had fought using all the power he could muster, but it had no effect.
‘I’m… still too weak.’
He wanted to become as strong as his master… like Kim Si-won. But the wall was too high. The gap between him and his master, who had reached the Unknown, was huge.
But… it was then.
“No.”
A question and resistance from deep within. It was his own will, suppressed for a long time.
“Master walks his own path. Nepas walks his. And you walk your own path.”
‘My… path…?’
“Do not deny the potential within you. You are human. Because you are human… you can transcend limits.”
At that moment!
Kwaaaang!!
A black rift split above his head. But within that collapsing gap, paradoxically, a brilliant light began to rise.
Pwoom!
An explosive light surged from Lee Seo-jun’s body. A blue Mind Intent soared into the sky, and the gaps in the collapsing ground began to close. The blood covering his body disappeared, and his bones and muscles were reconstructed into a new form. It was as if a divine nature had descended upon the earth.
“…Uwaaaaah!!!”
His roar echoed as if shaking the universe.
And then.
“…Krrr?!”
The monster cowered. It felt fear for the first time. Lee Seo-jun’s gaze no longer wavered. His Mind Intent had now reached a transcendent level beyond the human realm.
『Mind Intent: Genesis』
As he took a step, space was cut. Even without swinging his sword, his Mind Intent itself became a blade, severing the monster’s leg completely.
『Mind Intent: Great Cycle』
The monster’s regeneration ability, which had restored itself and neutralized enemies, began to collapse in reverse. Cells broke down, flesh twisted, and the monster could no longer sustain itself.
Kwaaaaang!!
Lee Seo-jun soared into the sky for the final blow.
『Mind Intent: Ultimate Heart Wheel』
A blue ring rose behind his back. It was a crystallization of will that transcended the cycles of life and death, destruction and creation. The tip of his sword shone.
And then.
“This blade falls in the name of humanity!”
[Slash of Annihilation]
“Kwaaaaaaaaaang!!”
The Mind Intent of annihilation pierced the monster’s core, slicing the dimensional rift entirely.
The massive hole collapsed as if torn apart, and the monsters being sucked into the rift let out desperate screams and vanished.
Collapse terminated.
Rift blocked.
Disaster-level dimensional monster eliminated. Front line maintained.
The tremors subsided.
The collapsing sky quietly closed.
Lee Seo-jun, standing above the black rift, slowly descended to the ground.
Countless Awakeners watching him could not close their mouths.
At last, humanity had given birth to another transcendent.