As soon as Raon stepped onto the next floor, he tilted his head. Spread out before him was a massive coastal city infused with the scent of the sea. Many people were gathered on the beach, and a refreshing vitality filled the city itself. But there was a problem. Time seemed to have stopped. The people were frozen like statues, the waves crashing onto the sand were motionless, and even the clouds in the sky didn’t move. ‘What kind of trick is this now… huh?’ While walking through the city, Raon widened his eyes. As he looked around, buildings and people that felt oddly familiar began to appear. The city before him was Montiro, where he had lived for nearly two months. “What the hell! Why is Montiro here!” Burren, Martha, and Runaan also gaped in shock at the sudden sight of Montiro. “This is definitely Montiro. I lived in that inn.” Trevin pointed to the inn on the right and let out a hollow breath. “It’s probably not the real Montiro, but it looks like a perfect replica of the surface.” Jaina, who had seen Montiro on the map, nodded, saying it looked exactly the same. “Why is time stopped…” Mark Gorton reached out toward a seagull perched on a vacant chair. As if the time axis had shifted, his finger passed right through the seagull without touching it. “Damn it! Why do these disgusting riddles keep popping up!” Martha ground her teeth in frustration. “It clearly means they want to waste our time.” Burren bit his lip, looking equally irritated. “W-What kind of magic are they preparing…?” Dorian looked up and swallowed dryly. “Let’s go inside first.” Raon let out a short sigh and entered the replica of Montiro. Walking through the frozen city while observing his surroundings, he eventually arrived near the fountain. He stopped the swordsmen heading for the fountain and looked at the ice cream shop on the right. “Did you find something?” Burren and Martha quickly turned to him, waiting for his answer. Raon raised his finger and pointed at a man inside the bead ice cream shop. “Yeah. Today, in fact.” He had been watching the surroundings while caring for Rensia, so he remembered clearly. That man had been buying ice cream midway through the operation. Raon left the ice cream shop and ran to the fountain. Just as he expected, Rensia stood alone and frozen in front of the fountain. She had her eyes closed as if bearing pain. It really did seem to be the time right after the operation was executed. “That family next to the fountain! I saw them earlier today too!” Martha pointed with her chin, saying those people were also ones she saw earlier. Runaan lowered her head, saying she had protected the child playing by the fountain. Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the frozen sky. “This is the moment just before the demons launched their attack after we executed the operation.” This frozen world seemed to represent the moment when the demons detected something wrong with the barrier and moved toward the place where they had planted the artifact of the pentagram. Everyone in this place remained frozen, except for them. “Wait here for a moment.” Raon exhaled sharply and leapt. He moved to the upper left side, where Dorian and Krein had stood guard in front of the Five Heroes’ statues. Dorian and Krein were nowhere to be seen, but he could feel the presence of the artifact beneath the statue and the approach of the dark sorcerer Foresen. Raon slashed at Foresen’s neck with Heavenly Drive, but the man didn’t die. His sword simply passed through as if the man were in another dimension. – “Seems they’re stalling for time since they can’t stop you physically.” Wrath shook his head, saying it looked would take a while. Raon smacked his lips and moved to the opposite upper-right section. ‘Morel Kazan is here.’ Unlike Dorian and Krein, Morel Kazan and his subordinates, who had left with Karoon, were present in this space. ‘That’s the answer, then.’ Raon looked at the frozen Morel Kazan with calm eyes. – “You’ve got the answer? You already solved the riddle?” He nodded and returned to the fountain. “Did you figure something out?” Burren stepped forward and bowed slightly. “Just as I said earlier…” Raon reached into the frozen water of the fountain and clicked his tongue. “This is the moment about thirty minutes after we started the operation. The demons were just beginning to move to destroy the artifact.” Jaina widened her eyes as if she finally understood. “Right. We need to recreate that scene exactly.” Raon nodded and gestured for Runaan and Martha to return to the fountain. “Everyone else, same thing. Go to the spot you were in originally.” He reached out and told them to go to their original positions during the operation. “But what about Morel Kazan?” Trevin tilted his head, asking what they should do about him. “He’s already here. We just need to take our places.” Having confirmed that Morel Kazan was present, he could confidently provide the answer. Once the Light Wind Palace swordsmen returned to their positions, this world would move again. “Move at full speed!” Raon shouted for them to act quickly and waved to the Light Wind Palace swordsmen. “W-What should we do…?” Jaina and the mages looked lost, unsure of their role. “You were at headquarters back then, so stay here.” After telling them to remain where they were, Raon sat next to Rensia. A few minutes passed, and then a black crack tore through the air. The frozen world began to move again. The mystery of this floor seemed solved as all the Light Wind Palace swordsmen returned to their positions. – “So that really was the answer.” Wrath clapped in surprise. Runaan clenched her fist tightly. “I told you, our leader’s brain works damn well!” Martha raised her finger with a grin. – “Truly. If nothing else, he’s got the best scheming brain in the whole dimension.” Wrath nodded in agreement. Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked around. The riddle might be solved, but they hadn’t defeated this floor’s floor master yet. They would need to kill the floor master to go up. Just as he was about to expand his aura to search for the floor master, a portal rose from beneath the fountain, allowing access to the next floor. “Do we not need to kill the floor master?” Runaan and Martha approached curiously, but they bounced off before reaching the fountain. It was like they were in a different dimension, just like when time was stopped. Raon reached out toward Runaan and Martha, but he couldn’t touch them. Yet Jaina, standing beside him, could be touched with no interference. As Raon furrowed his brow in confusion, Kalop and Felix—whom they had already killed—burst out from below and charged at Runaan and Martha. “Why are those dead bastards here!” Martha and Runaan furrowed their brows as they blocked Kalop and Felix’s attacks. They seemed to possess the same strength as when they fought below. – “It’s not just here.” Wrath turned his gaze to the right and left, shaking his head. – “The others who went different ways are also being attacked by the same guys.” He nodded, saying the demons were attacking again just like during the operation. ‘I need to find the floor master…’ Raon expanded his aura, but he couldn’t sense the floor master’s presence. It seemed to be hiding somewhere invisible. Just as he was trying to extend his aura even further, Runaan raised her voice. “We’ll take care of this.” She nodded, telling him to go ahead first. “That’s the first good thing you’ve said today!” Martha shoved Felix’s spear aside and grinned. “We don’t have time to wait around! Go on! We’ll drag that mole out by the neck!” She also raised her finger, telling him to go up to the next floor. Unlike outside, this was inside the Black Tower. The floor master of this place could pull anything, and Raon hesitated, unable to move easily. “This is exactly why you made us go through all that insane training!” The Light Wind Palace swordsmen thumped their chests, as if they knew what he was thinking. Massive sword energies shot into the sky from the direction of the artifact, as if the others shared the same resolve. Raon looked at the Light Wind Palace swordsmen with eyes filled with trust. “Don’t be late following after me.” Leaving behind that message to catch up no matter what, he stepped into the next floor. “A-Are you really going?” Jaina followed behind him, swallowing dryly. “If the floor master on the upper floor is empowered by the strengthened Demonic Energy, he could kill all of them!” She looked back repeatedly, clearly worried about their separation. “That’s exactly what the enemy wants—to stall me by making me stay.” If they wanted to tie down even a Transcendent like himself, it would cost too much Demonic Energy. The floor master must have given him a choice and opened a path out. “I know that too, but the ones left behind…” “Just like you, the enemy has no idea about the conviction and will of the swordsmen I’ve raised.” He chuckled as he continued climbing without looking back. “They will never betray my trust. And I won’t either.” For the sake of the subordinates who believed in him, Raon ascended the stairs without hesitation. Chamber narrowed her eyes as she stared at the dark, glistening Black Tower. ‘They’re doing well, right?’ Both Raon and Karoon had stepped beyond the threshold of transcendence. Even within this Demonic Energy-laden tower, they should be able to reach the top floor without much trouble. ‘Though it will take some time.’ The Black Tower was infamous not just for brute strength, but for its filthy tricks. Even for Transcendents, time was bound to be consumed. ‘Still, I never expected Raon to grow this much.’ The first time she saw Raon was during the Six Kings Conference. Back then, she had dismissed him as a handsome brat, but now he had reached transcendence and stood at the forefront of the Black Tower extermination campaign. It still felt unreal. ‘What’s more amazing is…’ Not the present, but the future. Raon was still growing even in this very moment. Even Chamber, who stood above Transcendents, couldn’t predict how strong Raon might become. ‘If he survives this… he might really be able to face the Thespian Emperor or the Lord of the Martial Society.’ Chamber smiled faintly at the thought of Raon after the war. Thinking of the future reminded her of the Black Tower Lord, and unease welled up in her chest. ‘I have no idea what that bastard is planning.’ Even as she suppressed the flow, the Demonic Energy of this dimension rushed toward the top floor like water through a broken dam. The more it condensed, the more suffocating her chest felt. Chamber cut away the massive influx of Demonic Energy into another dimension and bit her lip. “Please. Reach him as soon as possible.” After parting from the Light Wind Palace swordsmen, Raon had cleared five more floors. He fought a winged floor master in the sky with no footholds, battled a silent assassin in pitch-black darkness, and more. Even though he was a Transcendent, fighting inside the enemy’s domain should have been difficult. Yet, thanks to the amplified power, he was able to quickly slay the upper floor masters and ascend. “I knew Transcendents were strong, but this is overwhelming…” Jaina shook her head in disbelief at the power that cut down floor masters one after another. “That’s not the only reason.” Raon calmly lowered his hand. The higher he went, the more his aura continued to amplify. He had grown stronger than even the demons, allowing him to move up without delay. ‘What’s more important is what I’ve learned.’ To ascend, he needed to either kill the floor master or receive the floor master’s permission. Even in a seemingly empty floor, the floor master was always hidden somewhere, observing. He had to find them. Though the situation remained unfavorable in many ways, with the amplified strength and accumulated intel, he had managed to rise without major issues. ‘It must be close to the end now…’ According to his calculations, there weren’t many floors left until the top. Hoping for the end, he climbed the last set of stairs—only to find, unlike the floors before, a narrow space like a training arena. ‘What is this place?’ To the left of the entrance he came through was another entrance. On the opposite wall was the portal to go higher, but it was sealed shut, impossible to open. It seemed this floor’s master was also hidden, just like before. Judging by his past experience, this floor master would only appear when it was time to kill him. Raon narrowed his eyes and slashed at the portal with Heavenly Drive. Even while channeling his fully amplified power, not even a scratch appeared on the door. He tried the wall just in case, but it was the same. Unlike a maze, this place seemed made of condensed Demonic Energy—it couldn’t be destroyed. “Then what the hell am I supposed to…” Just as Raon crossed his arms and furrowed his brows, he heard footsteps beside the entrance he had used. The familiar sound of footsteps made him turn his head, and Karoon stepped out from the left entrance. As befitting a Transcendent, not a single part of his robe was ruffled. He nodded at Raon. “Light Wind Palace Lord?” Karoon raised his brow, surprised to see Raon also here. “Typical behavior for demons…” Raon let out a deep sigh as he looked at the sealed portal and the training arena. “Such a rotten personality.”