SSS grade material

The golden orb emitted a tempting glow. 

[A skull of Cerberus, but it's chicken-flavored] 

Mike reached out, and as the golden light slowly faded, a skull the size of a soccer ball floated in mid-air, crystal clear like amber, except it was colored in red, yellow, and blue.

"Special material, huh?" The skull landed in Mike's palm, sending a warm sensation throughout his body.

"Special Material: Cerberus Skull (SSS grade)

Effects: Can be used in crafting equipment, items, etc.

When carried, Strength +100, Constitution +100, Mana Recovery Speed +500%."

"An SSS-grade material!" Mike hadn't expected that just carrying this material would bring such a huge boost to his attributes!

"If I could turn it into a staff, it would be at least SS-grade equipment!" Mike stashed the skull in his backpack. This was probably the biggest score of the trip.

The supreme being [Morpheus] had once slain Cerberus, earning an SSS-grade rating in the newbie instance, causing quite a stir at the time. Thinking of this, Mike felt a surge of pride. He had done the same thing as Morpheus!

Supreme being—those two words carried a lot of weight. No, wait! Mike turned and looked towards the opening in the central stone wall, his eyes burning with fervor. He could do even more than a supreme being!

The hidden level of the newbie instance!

"Although I don't know what lies ahead, I've come this far already." Mike walked back to the opening, ready to continue exploring. But first, there were some minor nuisances to deal with.

Due to that bolt of lightning was so shocking, the bats were literally petrified, clinging to the wall, too scared to move.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh— Bats kept falling from the sky, struggling for a moment after hitting the ground before dying. They were scared to death.

Ten vampire bats, plus one mutant bat, in front of Mike, were as fragile as paper mache! Since Mike had already reached level 10, and the vampire bats were only levels 2-4, they couldn't provide him with any experience.

Thus, Mike only collected a bunch of copper coins.

He glanced at his attribute panel, and compared to when he first entered the Tower of Truth, Mike's stats had nearly sextupled! His health points had also shot up to 1800! 

Of course, this included the extra 100 Constitution from the Cerberus skull, which added 1000 points to his life. You gotta know, leveling up and boosting attributes inside the Tower of Truth is no walk in the park!

The stats Mike now boasted were something many level 20 or 30 participants could only dream of! Plus, any boost he got here would sync up with the real world! 

For Mike, it was just one night's work, but his physical condition had improved six to seven times over! It was almost too wild to believe, yet it was happening right before his eyes!

Mike closed his attribute panel and started tallying up his loot. 

He had taken down 20 Cave Giant Rats, netting 60 copper coins, and 10 vampire bats, bagging another 90 copper coins, plus 2 silver coins from the mutant bat. All in all, Mike had 3 silver coins and 50 copper coins.

In the Tower of Truth, there were three types of currency: gold, silver, and copper, all in a decimal system. 

10,000 copper coins equal 100 silver coins, which equal 1 gold coin. And 1 gold coin is worth $1,000. 

So, after a hard day's monster slaying, Mike had made a grand total of... 35 bucks. In today's pricey America, 35 dollars might only buy a box of condoms..

After counting his current spoils, Mike once again stood at the entrance to the hidden level. He hadn't been slacking off in the meantime; he had started stacking up [Charge Up] again! 

Judging from his one-hit wonder with Cerberus, [Charge Up] was nothing short of a miracle move. Once stacked high enough, it was unstoppable!

The passage of the hidden level was pitch black, impossible to see anything. Mike tore a torch from the wall of the previous passage and lit up the area in front of him. 

[No danger ahead, scan complete!] 

With the reassurance from [Eye of Truth], Mike felt a bit more at ease, but he remained on high alert.

In the dark corridor, Mike cautiously moved forward. "Feels like I'm heading downward!" 

He realized that the passage he was in was sloping downwards. 

"The newbie instance is at the bottom of the Tower of Truth." 

"If I'm going down, could it be... there's a Level Zero?!"

The idea nagged at Mike, unshakable. The Tower of Truth was shrouded in mystery, and despite three centuries of human research, its secrets remained largely undeciphered.

Guided by the flickering torch, Mike had trekked a considerable distance, stacking up his Charge Up so many times he'd lost count. Suddenly, a pungent smell assaulted his nostrils.

"What the—?!"

"Sulfur? Have I stumbled into an underground lava pit?!" Mike wondered aloud, his guess seemingly confirmed as a wave of heat slammed into him.

Whoosh—

The sudden blast of hot air was so fierce it snuffed out the torch in Mike's hand.

Snap—

The sole source of light vanished, leaving only faint sparks that cast a very weak glow. Darkness enveloped Mike.

The corridor fell into an eerie silence...

But the darkness lasted less than a second.

Mike's vision brightened again.

[How could an SSS-tier talent not include night vision?]

Mike couldn't help but roll his eyes.

You could've mentioned the night vision earlier, instead of letting me wander around with a torch for ages. This talent isn't so shabby after all!

[Say that one more time, why don't you?!]

Clearly, the Eye of Truth wasn't pleased with Mike's underestimation.

With the Eye of Truth activated, Mike sped up considerably. His vision was crystal clear, missing no detail. Moreover, the Eye of Truth helpfully displayed a distance: [Remaining: 5.6 miles]

"The corridor is this long?" Mike was astonished. He had already walked a great distance, yet nearly 6 miles still lay ahead.

"Better pick up the pace!" Mike started to run, his movements as fluid as a cheetah's, speeding through the corridor.

His physical condition was already top-notch among his peers, and after the enhancements from the Tower of Truth, his running speed was phenomenal. Moreover, the previous battles had helped Mike adapt even better to his new physical capabilities.

What was more astonishing was that after running nearly 5 miles, Mike wasn't out of breath, nor did he break a sweat.

"This is incredible!"

Mike's understanding of the Tower of Truth had always been purely academic, something he'd describe as textbook-level. Only now, feeling the changes firsthand, did he truly appreciate the magic of the Tower of Truth.

Most importantly, all the enhancements Mike was enjoying could be synced 100% with reality!

200 meters from the endpoint, Mike slowed down, gripping his staff, ready for battle.

150 meters... 100 meters... 50 meters...

Closer, ever closer!

Finally, Mike stopped in front of a massive bronze door.