Chapter 141

Chapter 141:

“Wow, it finally happened.”

Baek Jinwoo was truly ecstatic.

The Rune Dwarf had successfully pulled through!

He had managed to return to the precise capability he possessed prior to the update.

Production Lv. 6, and Masterwork Production Lv. 3!

From Stormy all the way to Rune Dwarf, every companion was doing their part, progressing rapidly as if driven by personal ambition.

“You put in some serious effort, Rune Dwarf.”

• Hehe! It is you who put in the hard work, Savior. The sole reason I managed to advance so much faster this time is because of your thoughtful support!

“Well, I appreciate the kind words.”

Baek Jinwoo flashed a grin and pulled up his status display.

A fresh set of runes had become available.

[Displaying list of producible masterwork items.]

[Rampage (Rare), Omni (Rare), Howling (Rare), Emperor (Rare), Trinity (Unique)]

[Deadly Poison (Rare), Ruination (Rare), Fire Dragon (Rare), Bitter Cold (Rare), Annihilation (Unique)]

[Walls (Rare), Life (Rare), Knight (Rare), Savage (Rare), Blaze Emperor (Unique)]

“Oh, absolutely perfect.”

Blaze Emperor.

It was available at last.

The absolute pinnacle among every flame-element rune — a fundamentally overpowered rune that could only exist as one sole set across the entire game!

The method for creating it mirrored the process for Trinity and Annihilation.

Just like combining three Omni Runes yielded a single Trinity, and three Ruination runes produced one Annihilation.

Three Fire Dragon runes fused together to forge a single Blaze Emperor.

“Rune Dwarf. Just hold on. Your savior is going to give you a taste of a Blaze Emperor production hammer in the very near future.”

• Ooooooh, I am incredibly excited! I will be counting down the moments!

Excellent.

Just about everything was organized and ready now.

He might as well scale the Tower of Trials to gather some additional Fire Dragon rune ingredients while he was already on a roll.

He was currently positioned at the 30th floor.

Rachel’s personal best was the 50th floor, so the objective was to press onward directly to that benchmark!

The squad lineup was straightforward.

Ramba, Drill Sarge, Burst Dragon, Rolly, Aso, LG, Dhampir.

An entire group consisting solely of EX-rank summons. Nothing below that.

He had intentionally left the other companions behind.

Baek Jinwoo’s identity was anchored by his EX-rank summons, and they were the specific ones requiring progression.

There was no reason to dilute valuable experience points across too many individuals.

“Darling.”

Yu Jia addressed Baek Jinwoo as “Jinwoo-ssi” during formal public gatherings.

However, when they were entirely by themselves, the affection was dialed up completely.

It was hard to blame her, honestly.

They hadn’t even been in a relationship for a full month yet.

“Yes?”

“Please don’t overexert yourself. If things begin to feel overwhelming, do not force the ascent. Simply head back down.”

“Don’t fret. Do you truly believe I am incapable of navigating a route that Rachel has already successfully cleared?”

“…I am merely anxious, you know? You mentioned you are tackling them sequentially, rather than taking it one single floor at a time.”

The Tower of Trials, where she had previously sent him off without a single drop of anxiety — now caused her genuine worry.

Aso, who had been brought out from the summoning space, strode over toward Yu Jia.

• Mother!

“Oh!”

Yu Jia pressed both of her hands tightly over her mouth.

The tiny entity gazing upward at her was simply far too charming.

• Do not worry! I shall ensure Father’s safety!

“I-Is that so? Hehehe. You are incredibly brave, aren’t you?”

Yu Jia was particularly fond of that specific title — “Mother.”

She wasn’t quite at the age to actually be a parent, but regardless. It signified that even his summoned entities recognized them as a true pair.

“Our little Aso needs to look after Father exceptionally well, alright?”

• Understood!

Tap tap!

Aso tapped the blade resting at her side with absolute assurance.

Despite her delicate appearance, the exact instance those fingers wrapped around that hilt, she transformed into a Sword Demon (劍鬼) completely.

She hadn’t surpassed Drill Sarge in power just yet, but even he was left speechless by the sheer velocity of her advancement.

• Well then! Shall we begin our trek~?

• Fully prepared, my liege.

• Grwooorrr……

• Let us advance.

Standing before the Tower of Trials.

Every single companion burned brightly with an intense desire for combat.

Perfectly prepared!

There was nothing remaining except to push directly forward.

“I will return before you know it.”

Right before crossing the threshold, Baek Jinwoo slid an arm around Yu Jia’s waist.

The pair shared a brief, gentle kiss.

The guardian of the 40th floor was the Cronotaur.

The monarch of the Minotaurs — a half-human, half-bovine terror.

It went without saying that the blueprint of every single dungeon remained perfectly clear in his mind.

[You are currently eligible to contest the 31st floor.]

[Do you wish to advance?]

Confirm.

Hmmmm!

A surge of energy wrapped around his entire physical form, and the environment transformed in a split second.

Set against a completely pitch-black backdrop, a monumentally large doorway materialized before his eyes.

“This certainly brings back memories.”

He had witnessed it displayed on a monitor more times than he could possibly track, but experiencing it firsthand felt entirely different.

Swish.

A towering portal constructed from chiseled stone.

Its facade was fractured and uneven, displaying the immense burden of eras past within its aged composition.

• My liege.

• Allow me to handle this.

“Proceed.”

Grrrrrrnnk……!

Drill Sarge strode forward and threw his weight into it. The massive door began to slide open with a grinding screech.

A low, resonant vibration — as if the ground itself was shifting positions — gripped the atmosphere encompassing them.

The vibration that signaled the inception of the labyrinth.

Magnificent and intimidating in equal proportions.

However, there was absolutely no cause for anxiety.

The 31st floor merely contained defensive mechanisms and scouting forces to watch out for.

“Ramba, begin accumulating the enhancements.”

• Upon whom?

“Distribute them across Aso, Drill Sarge, and Rolly.”

• Understood!

“Dhampir and LG, lead the advance and maintain our defensive line.”

• Mm.

LG and Dhampir.

Neither of them functioned as an unyielding defender quite yet, but they had accumulated significant progress through focused training.

Their runes had been properly inserted as well.

Minotaur scouts would present no real challenge whatsoever.

“Up next, Stormy.”

• Understood, Jinwoo-nim.

“Continue accumulating Dragon Burst charges, then deliver the final strike. Make sure your timing is precise.”

• Leave it to me!

This comprised the grand tactical approach of the Baek Jinwoo forces.

Aso, Drill Sarge, and Rolly would batter the target to the brink of collapse, and then Stormy would provide the decisive, fatal blow.

Provided the charges accumulated without issue through floor 39……

The Cronotaur awaiting on the 40th floor ought to collapse without putting up much of a fight.

They would completely wipe it out before it even gained the opportunity to deploy its troublesome traits.

Baek Jinwoo advanced forward with a steady, calculated stride, keeping the line secure.

There was zero reason to rush.

The forces only grew more potent the more charges they managed to accumulate.

A period of time slipped away.

• UWOOOOOH……!

A pair of Minotaur scouts (B-rank) ambushed them from both flanks with echoing bellows.

• Grwoh?

LG dropped his posture low.

Drill Sarge, Aso, and Rolly didn’t even bother intervening at first.

THWACK!

The exact moment the Minotaur’s heavy blade embedded itself into LG’s physical frame—

That was the precise cue for the offensive units to act.

Slash, sla-slash!

Drill Sarge and Aso sliced their blades in smooth, sweeping motions, while Rolly’s curved blade tore deeply across the creatures’ sides.

SHUNK!

Crimson sprayed wildly from the gashes.

• UGH, UWOOOORRGH!

The beasts collapsed down onto their knees with piercing cries of agony.

Far too simple.

It wasn’t that the adversaries lacked strength — it was simply that his companions had developed to such a formidable degree.

Each one possessed fully completed runes, with attributes pushed to the absolute peak through intense conditioning.

As long as they navigated and logged the layout of the maze correctly, advancing through it would be an incredibly smooth process.

• Allow me to conclude this.

Fwoosh!

Stormy’s blazing embers existed in an entirely separate category now.

An additional five hundred points allocated directly to Intellect.

Combined with the Fire Dragon rune stacked right on top of that!

A Dragon Burst that could easily match the output of any S-rank completely incinerated the collapsed Minotaurs down to their skeletal remains.

[The True Devour trait triggers.]

[The offensive output of Dragon Burst scales up permanently.]

Perfect. Perfect.

That was the distinct sound of ascending in power!

Keep moving forward!

If the 31st floor represented the gateway to the maze, the 32nd floor constituted the actual maze itself.

“Aso.”

• Yes!

“From this point onward, you are responsible for placing the path markers.”

The single most vital element when charting a maze was ensuring one never surrendered their orientation.

Each time they arrived at a fork in the path, Baek Jinwoo instructed Aso to slice a tracking mark directly into the floor surface utilizing her blade.

“Rolly.”

• Krrk……

“Your responsibility is identifying hidden mechanisms.”

• Krrk……

Mazes were packed to the brim with concealed hazards.

Pressure plates. Projectile launchers hidden in walls.

There were even hazardous sections where the stone barriers would slide together to flatten trespassers — obstacles that proved problematic even for Baek Jinwoo to manage safely.

LG possessed the most massive physical structure, meaning he was the most sluggish to pivot or evade.

That was precisely the reasoning behind positioning Rolly at the very front of the line.

Investigate the area, test every suspicious spot, and only advance once the path was confirmed safe.

He had additionally designated a guard for the rear flank.

Surprise strikes from behind and pincer maneuvers were constant hazards, so Drill Sarge secured the trailing position.

• What about my role? What exactly am I supposed to do? Am I merely meant to swing this implement around indefinitely?

Ramba’s face twisted into an annoyed pout.

Ah.

Ramba……

Your specific contribution is arguably the most vital one here……

“Exactly. Your assignment is to converse.”

• EX-CUSE ME?

“Keep the morale up and keep us engaged so boredom doesn’t set in. You are our official narrator.”

• What sort of nonsense is—! Every other companion is scanning for hostiles, spotting hidden hazards, placing tracking marks, reducing targets to cinders… Why am I assigned nothing but—!

“Now that is genuinely uncalled for, Ramba.”

Baek Jinwoo stated his case with absolute gravity.

“Mazes possess highly intricate designs that can easily break down a person’s mental fortitude. Encircled by stone barriers on every front, never knowing what constitutes a hazard and what doesn’t — you cannot comprehend the sheer volume of mental strain it inflicts. However, your endearing, lively commentary genuinely mitigates that exact psychological pressure.”

• R-Really?

“Without a doubt.”

Those inflated cheeks collapsed back down in an instant.

And just like that, she was happily chattering away once more.

Ramba’s simple, uncomplicated nature truly is a massive benefit.

The 33rd floor presented a distinct shift in environment. It comprised a zone designated as the Stone Hall, concealed within a remote sector of the maze.

Typically, an adventurer would wander aimlessly across the 32nd floor until accidentally stumbling into the Stone Hall, which would satisfy the requirements for completion.

Baek Jinwoo transitioned directly into the 33rd floor layout.

“From this point, it turns into a massive, unbridled skirmish. You all have been harboring quite a bit of tension, haven’t you? Step inside and completely dismantle the place!”

Nestled inside the maze’s expansive, hollow atrium rested a mammoth architecture crafted entirely from stone.

The commander overseeing this specific zone was Karg (A-rank).

A prominent elite directing the Minotaur Stone Warriors (B-rank) — an incredibly vicious adversary.

• UWOOOOOOOH!

The chaotic Stone Warriors immediately commenced launching massive chunks of rock.

Their defining combat maneuver: defensive position bombardment.

And the boulders were incredibly massive.

The very instant they impacted, the stone floor fractured apart and jagged debris showered outward — a genuinely fatal threat.

However.

Da-da-da-dat!

Drill Sarge and Aso nimbly sidestepped the plummeting projectiles and scaled the architecture with seamless, practiced agility.

Even though they commenced the 33rd floor lacking any active Ramba enhancements, they navigated the terrain with absolute fluidity.

Slash, sla-slash!

• UWOOOOH!

• GUWOOORRGH!

The peculiar detail was that they merely lopped off the upper limbs of the bovine entities before pressing forward without stopping.

Naturally, the actual extractions belonged exclusively to Stormy.

Storm Dragon Arts.

Hidden Method.

Shift.

A Dragon Burst overflowing with intense velocity remade itself into an extended, winding torrent of pure flame.

The result?

It shot clean through the skulls of the Stone Warriors that Drill Sarge and Aso had previously incapacitated, securing the definitive takedown.

The execution wasn’t merely precise. It was perfectly integrated.

And within a brief window—

• KRAAAAAAAAAAAGH!

An infuriated Karg emerged directly from the deep interior.

Immensely more massive than any common Minotaur, its entire physical frame was reinforced by dense stone and mineral sheets. A truly horrifying spectacle.

Grasping an immense stone mallet in one clenched fist, with every single stride it executed — BOOM, BOOM! — the foundation vibrated violently.

• This target belongs to me!

• You lack the necessary development for that creature just yet, Aso.

Slash, sla-sla-slash!

Drill Sarge and Aso resembled ravenous predators.

In their eyes, that massive Karg amounted to nothing more than a blood-soaked hunk of quarry, completely ready to be claimed.

• Everyone, clear the area.

Stormy had been accumulating her enhancement charges throughout the entire duration.

Annihilation.

The ultimate ability of the Ancient Burst Dragon — the definitive breath weapon — poured forth from her outstretched palms.

KA-BOOOOOOOOM!

A singular wave of pure destruction, and the 33rd floor was thoroughly concluded.

A solitary strike.

An elite guardian of the Tower of Trials that would typically require a standard challenger a full day to wear down, and she had neutralized it in a single instance.

Yet Baek Jinwoo failed to exhibit even a shred of astonishment.

For the individual he had transformed into now, this was precisely how events were anticipated to unfold.

“Excellent performance, everyone. Let us move to floor 34 next.”

Every single challenge up through the 39th floor — he was systematically dismantling it all within the span of a single day.