Chapter 37

Chapter 37
## Chapter 37: Transcendence

“Is it possible for Randolph to secure the top spot in the upcoming main objective as well?”

High atop a skyscraper in Gangnam.

A member of the newly formed Hero Alliance headquarters broke the silence with a question that was currently haunting the thoughts of every active player.

Could the man known as Randolph—who many suspected was the legendary Phantom—truly dominate Main Quest 5 the same way he had the others?

Phantom was a mythic figure, a relic from the pinnacle of the gaming era. The depth of his tactical understanding likely eclipsed the collective intelligence of the entire player base.

Yet, those who specialized in the study of “mysteries” remained cynical about his prospects.

“It’s a long shot at best,” one remarked.

“Most mysteries are essentially decorative anyway,” another added.

The common consensus was that these abilities were more about prestige than practical combat utility.

“Perhaps… if one possesses a ‘Ruler’ category mystery, it might change things.”

“Agreed. The powers held by those who govern the great metropolises are in a class of their own, providing passive benefits just for holding them.”

“But Randolph has only cleared the fourth quest. Taking over a city? Even the transcendents find seizing a capital nearly impossible.”

“It’s doable if you have a massive organization behind you, like Master does. But Phantom is a loner, isn’t he?”

The skeptics were firm in their reasoning. To obtain a top-tier mystery, one required either overwhelming individual power or the backing of a powerful faction. By utilizing a private army to conquer and hold a territory, one could unlock the “City Ruler” mystery—a power known for its game-breaking efficiency.

Phantom, however, had no guild. He was a solitary predator. Having spent his entire career as a lone wolf, the path of a sovereign was closed to him.

Furthermore, was Randolph truly on the level of a transcendent being?

‘Not a chance.’

It hadn’t been long since his arrival in this world as a player. Even if he had used his veteran knowledge to breeze through the first four quests, obtaining a high-level mystery was a feat of a different magnitude.

“And even if he somehow managed to become a lord…”

“Right. He’d never touch Master’s score.”

Master led the most formidable coalition of players in existence. Having operated in the shadows for three years, he now commanded the “Interdimensional Community,” a group that drew global focus. While they officially claimed to have fifty members, rumors suggested their true strength exceeded a hundred.

While a group like Gracia at least maintained a facade of heroism and public service, Master was notorious for his cold-blooded efficiency, purging anyone who didn’t align with his interests. He even maintained a specialized hit squad to protect his assets.

“Despite the rumors, Master remains the sovereign of ‘Lundella’…”

“Why is his mystery so different from other city lords, anyway?”

“Because Lundella is a city of ruins. It exists on a completely different plane of power than a standard city.”

The mystery Master claimed upon seizing Lundella was unique, far surpassing the standard rewards. This was the reason he held an untouchable lead in Main Quest 5. His performance was so lopsided that it remained the benchmark for excellence.

“He beat the runner-up by 50 points. It wasn’t even close.”

The room fell into agreement. No matter how legendary Phantom’s past was, topping this specific leaderboard seemed an impossible task.

“Maybe he should just focus on clearing the quest quickly.”

“Knowing him, he’ll still end up on the rankings somewhere.”

It was at that moment the atmosphere shifted.

“What is going on? The Golden Rule Shop won’t trigger,” a member muttered, staring at their interface with a scowl.

The Golden Rule Shop failing to open? It sounded like a glitch.

“Wait… mine is down too.”

“Is it broken? Why isn’t it responding?”

“The secret auction house is inaccessible as well!”

“What about the minor shops?”

“None of them… everything is locked.”

It wasn’t just the primary trade hubs. Every specialized shop unlocked through various interests had been shuttered simultaneously, as if by a master override. If it were one person, it could be a local error, but every alliance member in the room was facing the same lockout.

“Check with the players in the other sectors.”

“I’m trying, but the communication lines are dark.”

“Check the international forums.”

“Same thing everywhere.”

“This makes no sense. We’ve seen lag before, but a total blackout of all commerce…”

A heavy sense of foreboding filled the room. Something monumental was occurring in a corner of the world they couldn’t see.

“…What in the world is happening right now?”

—

**[Every constellation involved in the Citizen War has their eyes fixed on you.]**

I was currently the center of attention.

The celestial beings of the Citizen War were watching my every move. Since they were the ones responsible for scaling quest rewards, their interest was usually a good sign, but currently, they looked more like spectators at a blood sport, enjoying my predicament.

Every single one of them.

“Curse it, caw! It’s the Void type, caw!”

I was currently in a desperate sprint. Ten thousand skeletal warriors were at my heels. On the surface, it looked like a repeat of the initial trial, but the reality was far more lethal.

Every single bone soldier possessed the “Void” quality—that hidden variable that generated perfect counter-attributes.

*Shiiiii!*
*Chrrrrrr!*

Imagine a downpour of luminous bolts from the heavens. Thousands upon thousands of arrows were raining down, all focused on a single target: me. It was absurd—skeleton soldiers utilizing high-tier light-element techniques.

**[The ‘Skeleton Soldier’ matches the challenger’s current level.]**
**[The ‘Skeleton Soldier’ manifests a counter-element via ‘Void’.]**

This was the penalty for progressing to the next tier. Ten thousand enemies now held the Void trait. It might have seemed like a minor buff, but it was a catastrophic shift in the battlefield dynamics.

Void nullified weaknesses. My own corpse crows utilized curse-based powers. Even though I possessed the Void trait myself, my summoned minions did not inherit that protection. My crows were being decimated instantly by the barrage of light.

‘Hold on. Why am I still running?’

In the midst of the chaos, a realization struck me. Didn’t I possess Giant’s Magic Resistance? Shouldn’t that mitigate the incoming spell damage? Even if there were tens of thousands of them, these were just basic “Light Arrow” spells fired by level 4 mobs with minimal mana pools.

‘…Giant’s Magic Resistance filters mana-based energy, but it doesn’t stop the physical momentum generated by the spell.’

The logic clicked into place. If I stood still and let those thousands of bolts hit me, the sheer kinetic energy would shred my physical form. A skill isn’t just energy; it’s mana translated into physical force. My resistance could cancel the magical burn, but it couldn’t stop the air pressure and impact of twenty thousand projectiles.

So, how do I win this?

‘Skeletons are predictable. Their only directive is to terminate the target.’

They weren’t tactical geniuses. They were simply spamming their strongest long-range option to kill me as quickly as possible. A few grazing shots had landed, but nothing fatal yet.

Then the solution presented itself.

‘I just need to bleed them dry of mana.’

Void or not, their energy reserves were finite.

‘They are only level 4.’

How much mana could a basic skeleton hold? Even with a perfect stat distribution, they might have 40 mana points, allowing for maybe twenty shots each.

‘200,000 light arrows.’

If I could force them to fire 200,000 times, they would revert to being harmless piles of bone. However, simple flight wouldn’t work; I’d be shot out of the sky before they ran dry.

‘The entire legion is locked onto me. They won’t use skills within a 10.45m radius, but once I cross that threshold, the barrage begins.’

I had already calculated their aggro parameters. Exactly 10 meters and 45 centimeters. If I stayed closer than that, they’d try to use melee. If I moved beyond it, the arrows started flying. Furthermore, their effective range ended at 50 meters.

To force a simultaneous volley from all ten thousand, I needed to keep them all within that 40-meter sweet spot while maintaining my safety distance. But the ground was too uneven to manage that perfectly.

‘They operate on logic.’

Like a rigid game engine. I just had to exploit the mechanics.

‘The eye of the storm.’

The only place to control the entire formation was from the center. If I dove into the very heart of the killing zone, I could trigger their exhaustion. It was a suicidal thought for most.

But I had a different plan. I wasn’t going in on foot.

“Lift me, caw!”

Seven fresh corpse crows dove down, sinking their claws into my shoulders and hauling me into the air. My feet left the ground as I ascended. Now, I just had to play with the numbers I’d gathered.

“Halt, caw!”

I glided directly over the center of the skeletal mass and hovered at precisely 49.8 meters. Below me, the legion looked up and took aim.

*Shik!*
*Shishishishishik!*

“Higher, caw!”

The moment they fired, I pulled up past the 50-meter mark. The bolts lost their structural integrity just inches below my boots and dissolved into harmless sparks.

This was the rhythm. This was the distance.

I engaged in a high-stakes game of aerial tag, bobbing in and out of their range. One by one, the skeletons below began to go slack, their eyes dimming as their mana pools hit zero.

‘If they were higher level, this trick wouldn’t work.’

A higher level meant more mana and better skill scaling. Their range would have been hundreds of meters, and their projectiles would have been far more sophisticated.

‘This trial wasn’t designed to be beaten.’

To claim the Crown of Mysteries, you needed two impossible things. First, you needed to be like me—someone with capped talents whose experience requirements were so high that they couldn’t level up, effectively freezing their level while their skill mastery grew. Second, you had to be exponentially more powerful than your level suggested.

Combine that with perfect nerves, instant tactical analysis, and a deep understanding of the world’s “source code,” and you had a clearable path. But who else could check all those boxes?

‘Only me.’

If I had tried this at level 7 or 8, I would have failed. This was a confluence of perfect timing and luck.

“Time for the second phase, caw!”

Looking down at the thousands of mana-depleted husks, I dove into the fray.

—

*Caw!*
*Caaaaw!*

The murder of crows tore through the ranks of the skeletons. They merged, grew, and evolved, becoming a tide of black feathers that overwhelmed the bone warriors.

I didn’t rush. I took my time systematically dismantling the army. I had a specific goal in mind.

‘I need to max these skills now.’

Before I moved to the next phase, I needed to push my abilities to their absolute limit.

**[The ‘Art of Corpses’ skill has reached level 10 (MAX).]**
**[The ‘Art of Corpses’ skill transcends into ‘Master of Corpse Art (Lv.1)’.]**
**[The ‘Corpse Crow Summoning’ skill has reached level 10 (MAX).]**
**[The ‘Corpse Crow Summoning’ skill transcends into ‘Advanced Corpse Crow Summoning (Lv.1)’.]**

Skill Transcendence!

Beyond simple mastery, certain skills evolved into new forms upon hitting level 10. For a normal crow, this was impossible, but as the King of the flock, it was my birthright.

**《You have successfully overcome the ‘Wall of Species (2)’ trial.》**
**《As a reward, you may claim the Ultimate Mythic-grade mystery: ‘Pinnacle of Void’.》**
**《Will you accept this mystery?》**
**《If declined, you will proceed to a more difficult trial.》**

Fighting ten thousand Void-infused enemies had triggered a specific reward. After Overlord, the Pinnacle of Void had manifested. Ultimate Mythic-grade—a tier I had never even heard of. It was clearly a step above Overlord.

However, I wasn’t finished yet.

**《Acquisition of ‘Pinnacle of Void’ has been declined.》**

I finally understood the rhythm of this place.

**《The challenger seeks a higher trial.》**
**《The Crown of Mysteries trembles with anticipation.》**
**《Feat Achieved: ‘Indomitable Challenger Who Defies Mythic Completion’.》**
**《The constellations of the Citizen War are now incapable of looking away.》**

…Let’s see just how deep this rabbit hole goes.