Chapter 43

'Is that the elf?'

Her eyes were devoid of any whiteness and entirely stained with darkness. Her appearance was eerie enough to send chills down her spine.

'Indeed… she looks quite unordinary.'

She still looked just as beautiful as the other elves in the audience, though.

"Let's see…"

JiHan aimed his Phoenix Arrow at the massive barrier separating the audience from the arena.

Even though he was in Bronze, JiHan had reached the pinnacle during his last life and was well aware of how robust the barrier was.

'It's on par with the sort of barrier a Platinum… no, a Diamond Support could make.'

Diamond was the highest-ranking League, and the Supports participating in the match he saw televised earlier belonged to it.

No matter how dominant JiHan was, the Diamond League was four ranks above him. It was just too much of a difference.

'That's why it's worth challenging.' JiHan made a delighted smile as he faced the formidable obstacle.

He gathered the ki of his three elixir fields into the Phoenix Arrow.

Fwoosh-!

Then, a pure white flame erupted from the tip of the arrowhead.

Just like when the conqueror's statue drew back its bowstring, the Phoenix Arrow absorbed JiHan's power and unleashed a tremendous amount of force.

'I would definitely be able to pierce the barrier if I shot this.'

The Phoenix Arrow had a limit of five uses. Given such conditions, it contained an overwhelming amount of power.

Even if the barrier boasted Diamond-level defensive capabilities, the Phoenix Arrow's flames should've been enough to pierce it.

However…

'For now, I'll use it as a spear.'

Nameless Divine Arts Three Talents Technique: Sage's Guidance.

He used the ultimate thrusting technique, Sage's Guidance.

His techniques were originally meant for swordplay, but they could be adapted for use with any weapon when you reached the zenith. Such was the case for the Phoenix Arrow in his hands. Although it was primarily intended to be used as an arrow, it was large enough to be used as a spear.

BOOM!

Engulfed in flames, the Phoenix Arrow collided with the barrier.

Tssss-

A smoky aura rose from the tip of the arrowhead, and a struggle between powers ensued. As expected, piercing a Diamond-level barrier was too much.

- Hahaha. As expected, it didn't work.

- It would've proven he's too overpowered if he'd pierced it.

- He's already way too OP~

- Still, isn't piercing the barrier too much?

- Yeah. It makes no sense, even if it's a game with a shitty balance.

When they saw the barrier block his spear, the viewers thought Battle Net had at least some level of conscience.

JiHan had defeated the flesh golem with a single stroke and was recognized by the conqueror's statue, but those were still just bosses within the game. The barrier had been set by the system to ensure they couldn't escape, so someone being able to break it would have made no sense.

The viewers thought JiHan was trying a different challenge for them since the survival map was a bit dull by then.

- Come on, it won't break.

- He'll get bored soon.

Believing he'd done it on a whim, everyone thought that JiHan would give up soon, but contrary to their expectations…

'I think it's possible.'

JiHan summoned the Phoenix Arrow again and used Sage's Guidance.

Tsss-!

Flames rose from the barrier again as he targeted the exact same spot he did on the first try. Compared to when he had started, the barrier seemed a bit indented.

'It's working.'

Boom! Boom! Bang! Boom!

He used Sage's Guidance and repeatedly stabbed the barrier.

The ki from all three of his elixir fields quickly depleted, but JiHan's attacks continued to speed up.

- ???

- What? How many stabs is that already? Why's his speed increasing?

- 10 times…?

- Why did you count that?

- 13 times! What crazy speed!

With the 14th use of Sage's Guidance…

'This is my last bit of ki.'

He gathered every bit of strength remaining within his elixir fields and…

STAB-!

Unable to endure any longer, the barrier was pierced by the Phoenix Arrow.

Of course, even if it was pierced, it's not like the entire barrier shattered. There was only a small hole where the Phoenix Arrow had repeatedly struck, but that alone was enough to surprise the viewers.

- Woah…

- Did he really pierce it?

- He should go to Silver as quickly as possible.

- Silver? I think he'd do well in Gold.

How could a Bronze break a barrier the game's system had put in place? The viewers were both impressed and disappointed.

JiHan, on the other hand, made a bitter smile.

'I guess this much isn't enough to provoke them.'

The dark elf with black eyes looked no different from before and continued to just stare at him with her ominous eyes.

'Hmm…'

JiHan looked at the hole in the barrier. It was probably large enough for him to be able to look directly at the dark elf.

He'd used all of his ki, so there was nothing else he could do.

Slide-

The barrier tried to fix itself as he pulled the Phoenix Arrow out, but he managed to see through the hole and into the stands before it fully closed.

'This…!'

JiHan felt chills for the first time since regressing.

The space beyond the barrier… was completely dark.

An ominous darkness that was similar to the dark elf's eyes wavered within.

'So… this is the truth behind the barrier?'

Swoosh-

As soon as the barrier finished fixing itself, he just saw the audience in the stands again. The dark elves continued to serve the regular elves, and the dark elf with black eyes continued to stare at JiHan.

JiHan felt a nervous sweat running down his spine as he looked at her.

'She's more powerful than I imagined…'

Even compared to his previous life's standards, the darkness he'd seen beyond the barrier contained immense power.

Was that what it took to be considered a constellation?

- What happened?

- It's my first time seeing JiHan surprised.

- What?! What did you see?!!

- He peeked at the elf after breaking the barrier, but all we saw…

- Shh!

JiHan's viewers were confused. All they'd seen was JiHan's reaction of surprise upon peeking through the hole. They hadn't seen the darkness. He'd been the only one to witness that unparalleled power.

[There are 50 survivors left.]

[Survival game 'Colosseum' is ending.]

JiHan's eyes sank when he read the message.

'I'll have to test the other directions as well, but…'

Anyone would think he should also test the north and south areas, but JiHan was already half-convinced that the dark elf with black eyes and the darkness itself was the 'Shadow Queen' constellation.

[You finished 1st in a survival game.]

[As a bonus for finishing 1st, experience and GP gained will be increased by 50%.]

[Your level has increased by 1.]

[You've earned 1,500 GP]

JiHan dismissed the system message.

'A level-up after three games…'

He'd already reached level 20, so his leveling speed had decreased.

'This isn't enough.'

He increased his Martial Power before clenching his fists and sighing. It was his first time feeling dissatisfied with how quickly he was growing.

If he wanted to face that intense darkness and provoke the Shadow Queen, he would need more power.

In the end, JiHan decided to use the achievement points he'd been saving.

'I've accumulated 75,200 points so far.'

He'd already completed every major in-game achievement he could.

[You've obtained 50,000 subscribers.]

[You've cleared the normal achievement 'Subscriber Recruitment (2).']

[You've earned 3,000 achievement points.]

He'd also completed some normal achievements as he went from levels 16 to 22, including the subscribers one. Thanks to that, he'd been able to accumulate a bit more achievement points.

'It's time to upgrade the shop.'

JiHan opened the Achievement Shop and spent 50,000 points to upgrade it.

[The Achievement Shop has been upgraded to LV.5]

[The limit for lower-tier upgrade items has increased to LV.2]

['Extra Constellation Slot' item has been added.]

JiHan nodded in satisfaction at the system messages.

'I knew it would appear someday, but it appeared earlier than I thought it would.'

Another system message popped up.

[Earth is still in the Tutorial Season. Even if you purchase the 'Extra Constellation Slot', it won't appear in your status window.]

'Well, the concept of constellations isn't known yet.'

JiHan looked at the upgraded Achievement Shop.

[Achievement Shop LV.5]

- Achievement Shop Upgrade - 100,000P

- Status Window Expansion LV.1 - 10,000P

- Extra Class Slot LV.2 - 50,000P

- Inventory Expansion LV.1 - 10,000P

- Extra Title Slot LV.1 - 10,000P

- Emergency Recovery (Item) - 10,000P

- Extra Constellation Slot LV.1 - 50,000P

He frowned at the steep prices.

'How expensive…

Since the shop had been upgraded to level five, the number of points required had also greatly increased.

Adding an extra class or an extra constellation each cost a hefty 50,000 points.

'Well, I guess paying at least this much for such extraordinary effects makes sense.'

The Achievement Shop had effects that could distort the system's very foundation.

After he convinced himself that the prices weren't that bad, JiHan began thinking about how he would provoke the Shadow Queen.

'First of all, an extra class is out of the question.'

He had 25,200 achievement points. Since another class would cost him 50,000 points, he probably wouldn't be able to earn enough in time.

'Expanding my inventory or status window is also useless.'

Both were great options, but neither would directly make him stronger.

The only useful upgrade for the time being was…

'That's it.'

JiHan checked his equipped title.

[The One Who Conquered the Tutorial - Bronze]

[A title given to a player who came 1st in the tutorial. While in Bronze, all of your stats will be increased by 1, and your experience will be increased by 20%.]

Although it was a basic title, the effects were quite useful.

'Once I reach level 25… I can obtain one more title.'

Level 25 was the highest level achievable in Bronze and also the level one could qualify for promotion at.

'I'm different because my Martial Power will increase to 30 by then.'

His Martial Power reaching 30 was a condition for obtaining Nameless Divine Arts, and if he successfully obtained it…

'I'll get the 'Martial God's Successor' title.'

That was the title JiHan used in his previous life until his death. Having it would be of great help, so he decided to purchase a title slot.

[You've purchased Extra Title Slot LV.1]

[10,000 achievement points have been deducted.]

Just after he made his purchase…

Knock, knock-!

Someone knocked on the door.