Chapter 57

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 57: The Heaven and Earth Net (1)

[Warning!]

[The clear objective remains incomplete!]

[Continued refusal to proceed may result in a significant increase in difficulty!]

Plunging deeper into the arms of the Sado Alliance warriors, they moved alongside Seo Yerim.

“Out of our way!”

The one who had claimed first place in the exam and walked the red carpet as the successor, led the charge.

The warriors obediently followed their orders as they ran through the path, parting like the Red Sea.

A potion was swiftly tossed to Seo Yerim.

Without hesitation, she gulped it down, mirroring the action.

[Wind Walk Potion consumed!]

[Movement speed increased by 30% for one hour!]

Bolstered by the wind attribute from Whitey and fully equipped with items to enhance their movement speed, they pressed on.

‘Did it work?’

At least, it seemed the three veterans were preoccupied.

The Sado Alliance Leader’s reaction to the orb was indiscernible; it was impossible to determine its authenticity from the outside.

Of course, the truth about the orb’s authenticity would surface eventually.

The urgency drove them to run as swiftly as their feet could carry them.

They fled the battlefield alongside Seo Yerim.

The warriors paid little attention, preoccupied as they were.

Or rather, they were too preoccupied to pay them any heed, with forces from the Murim Alliance and the Demonic Cult bearing down on them from both flanks.

Then.

[Sado Alliance Lord Baek Hakseong notices the anomaly!]

A message flashed.

‘How did he find out?’

“The appearance will be quite similar. Since you’ve never seen it before, it’s impossible to distinguish it with that.”

‘Is it designed in a way that I can tell if it’s fake if I hold it in my hand?’

The thought lingered.

“Let’s run! Faster!”

Seo Yerim seemed to have spotted the message too, her determination evident as she matched pace.

‘If it’s designed that way…’

What would the Sado Alliance leader do?

Would he declare it fake and hand it over to the enemy to verify?

Certainly, Heavenly Demon and the Murim Alliance Leader would question his intentions.

Offering a fake, especially when he was the son of the Sect Leader, would raise suspicion.

Wouldn’t they perceive it as a trap to lure them in?

The hope lingered that the two would persevere.

Having distanced themselves from the battlefield.

A pair of shoes was retrieved from their inventory.

“Let’s wear these.”

The shoes were slipped on with Seo Yerim. They matched the type worn by the skeletons, even in size. Subsequently, nearly 2,000 skeletons were summoned.

Items from the subspace ring were retrieved.

Ordinary normal-rank leather bags.

Each bag, labeled with a number, was filled with stones and junk, weighing dozens of kilograms.

“Take the assigned bags and follow our lead!”

Clang!

The skeletons acknowledged.

They had drilled their movements dozens of times for this moment.

Thanks to the title effects of Death Lord and Cedric, the skeletons’ learning had surged.

It wasn’t challenging for them to execute as rehearsed.

The skeletons encircled them, their footprints obliterating the ones previously imprinted on the ground.

Skeletons, consisting solely of bones, were inherently light. Yet, when clad in heavy armor and laden with junk bags, they matched the weight of a person within seconds.

The bags were prepared to match Seo Yerim’s and their weight precisely.

Even a grandmaster would struggle to identify them based on weight and footprints alone.

“Disperse! Execute!”

Clang!

The two thousand skeletons split into forty groups of fifty.

Skeletons spread out in all directions.

The once-clear footprints were now obscured by the skeletons’ procession.

Footprints became an indiscernible mess. The final group of skeletons caught their gaze.

“Follow our lead and trample our footprints.”

Clang!

Leaving the saluting skeletons behind, they dashed off with Seo Yerim.

40 directions, the same traces.

‘They’ll have a hard time tracking us.’

The duo vanished into the forest.

* * *

Baek Hakseong erupted in fury.

No matter how vehemently he denounced it as fake, the two elders paid him no heed.

‘Damn it!’

Tossing the orb far away would be the easiest option.

But he couldn’t.

There was a glimmer of hope.

What if the centuries-old tale was false? Or if it had been distorted over time?

It wasn’t entirely implausible. Losing the thread after gaining it would be an immense blow. That slight possibility couldn’t be ignored.

The thread of ascension was too valuable.

Then.

One of the elders dispatched to locate Baek Socheon arrived in a frenzy.

“Sect Leader! Socheon has fled the battlefield!”

Ugh!

He bit his lip.

Hiding behind the main force could be rationalized, but outright fleeing…

This signaled the end of the slight hope that it might not be fake.

Why would he flee if he possessed the genuine item?

Wealth and honor awaited him.

“Damn it!”

The Sado Alliance Leader hurled the orb, swathed in cloth. The two masters, their eyes glazed over, lunged for it.

Fortunately, it landed within Heavenly Demon’s reach, allowing him to snatch it.

As his fingers closed around it.

Heavenly Demon Cheon Guyang’s expression hardened.

“It’s fake!”

“…What?”

The Murim Alliance Leader froze.

Something had felt off since the Sado Alliance Lord hurled the orb.

But even the Heavenly Demon?

It suggested a high likelihood of falsehood.

Very high.

“Take it!”

Cheon Guyang, extracting the orb from its cloth wrapping, tossed it at the Murim Alliance Leader with a smirk. The latter’s face contorted in a demonic grimace as he caught it.

Then, he let it fall to the ground.

Crack!

The orb shattered ineffectually.

It was merely a counterfeit.

The two men’s gazes turned to Baek Hakseong.

How had he failed to detect his son’s deception?

Mockery tinged their glances.

Silence fell.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

―That’s enough! Cease fighting, everyone!

Cheon Guyang’s command momentarily silenced the battlefield.

Warriors with weapons lowered, stared dumbfoundedly at the three grandmasters.

In one way or another, the trio exchanged glances.

It was evident that they had to pursue Baek Socheon first.

The quandary lay in whether to collaborate or act independently.

Should they unite, they could swiftly apprehend him.

Yet, the issue of thread ownership loomed.

Alternatively, what if they acted autonomously?

Efficiency might suffer, but the prospect of a significant prize was tempting.

Then.

An unusual sight materialized before their eyes.

[Warning!]

[‘Baek Socheon’ and ‘Choi Ang-ang’ are attempting to flee!]

[If they enter a specific area, they will escape this stage!]

The trio’s expressions hardened.

The phrase was all too familiar.

It was among the messages incessantly relayed to the leaders of each faction.

They had been informed that upon obtaining the Thread of Ascension, a similar enigmatic message would manifest.

“Let’s table the ownership debate for now. It seems we must join forces first.”

“…Agreed. We cannot allow those scoundrels to escape.”

“…Very well.”

Soon, the three groups mobilized.

Baek Socheon and Choi Ang-ang.

They had to apprehend those two rascals.

* * *

[Heavenly Demon Cheon Guyang notices an anomaly!]

[Murim Alliance Leader Yang Jeonghak notices an anomaly!]

[The difficulty of the gate is changed to A+, ‘Heaven and Earth Net’.]

[Advance toward the destination!]

A map materialized before their eyes.

A green dot indicated the distant destination.

‘Is that our target?’

Judging by the distance, they’d need to run for at least five days.

They exchanged glances.

A clear message had appeared, yet Seo Yerim remained by their side instead of departing.

The difficulty had shifted.

This meant they couldn’t leave until achieving the new objective.

They couldn’t fathom why she lingered, but her presence undoubtedly increased their odds of survival.

“I’ll express my gratitude later.”

“No need. I’m here because I, too, seek the clear reward.”

A nod ensued.

Heaven and Earth Net.

It promised to be challenging.

Without delay, an elixir was consumed.

[Consuming Black Elixir!]

[All abilities increase by 10%!]

“Let’s proceed. Before they catch up.”

They had gained some distance, but it wasn’t significant. It was time to focus solely on their forward trajectory and run.

* * *

Kim Minwoo and Seo Yerim.

They were awakened individuals who had recognition not only in Korea but also overseas.

Moreover, the incident that erupted this time was extremely sensational.

A member from the same kind of big-sized chaebol family harbored malice and pushed him into the gate, and the Sword of Justice rushed in to rescue him.

It would be strange if the media didn’t catch fire.

It’s been three weeks since the two entered the gate.

Even though quite some time had passed, the interest was explosively increasing.

It had reached the point where related broadcasts were being aired even overseas.

— Where are those guys who said they would all die in two days? XD They’ve been holding out for three weeks already?

— Yeah, but it’s probably tough in the middle zone lmao

— But wouldn’t three weeks be enough time to find the middle zone earlier? The stage isn’t that big. Why aren’t they coming out…?

— Don’t know. There’s also a possibility they’re just hiding in a corner, stocking up on provisions.

— But isn’t the first gate try supposed to be unpredictable? There’s no set format, right?

— They’re showing it on TV now XD They said it’s all random? It could be a gate where you have to progress through the story or a gate where you just have to beat up monsters. That’s why they recommend a large number of people lmao

— Yeah. Just think of it like a hidden gate. The stage setup, the clear objectives, the gimmicks, it’s all random.

— How long do you think they’ll hold out?

— Don’t know. Kim Minwoo might already be dead. But it seems like the Sword of Justice is holding on for now?

— Yeah, why go through all that trouble to rescue him? Honestly, I don’t get it.

— Maybe they’re dating or something XD

— Nah, Sword of Justice really hated that guy Kim Minwoo. People in the know would all be aware, right?

— But why go rescue him lmao

— Probably because of Sword Saint. Her Grandpa broke an S-rank gate record this time, all thanks to Kim Minwoo. He’s probably milking the lip service like crazy XD

— Yeah, I think so too. The Sword of Justice really adores her grandfather. It’s kinda serious. So, it seems like she went to rescue him.

— Honestly, I shouldn’t say this kind of thing, but if they can’t hold out, wouldn’t it be better if they just died quickly? If they keep stalling like this, the gate is bound to explode.

— Isn’t it just breaking out within two months for B-rank? It hasn’t even been a month yet; this is psycho.

— Can’t lose Sword of Justice ;; Can’t lose Sword of Justice ;; Can’t lose Sword of Justice ;;

— Hyping it up, nope. It’s not even about clearing; if they can just reach the middle zone, Sword of Justice shouldn’t have any problem, right? If they send a guild raid after she comes out, it’ll be over soon.

Most of the public opinion was similar.

There’s a high chance Kim Minwoo is dead.

The Sword of Justice will likely hold out.

After about three weeks, they should have gotten used to the gate.

As genuine A-rank awakened individuals, they might be capable of escaping.

Even broadcasting experts had expressed similar opinions.

— Huh? Wait. What’s that? Could it be…?

The reporters who were broadcasting live from in front of the gate suddenly erupted into murmurs.

It was because an enormous amount of mana was flowing into the gate, which had been silent without any response.

It was a completely different reaction from when it shone upon clearing.

A reporter tremblingly grabbed the microphone and said,

— Um, according to the communication just received from the observation department, it appears that the difficulty of the gate has changed. According to the revaluation results, it has become an A-rank gate…

— ?

— ??

— ???

— ????

— What’s going on? Could they have miscalculated the observation?

— No, sometimes the difficulty changes like that. Did something go wrong inside?

— So, it changed to A+ difficulty?

— Seems like it?

— What usually happens in a situation like this?

— Difficulty changes could be intentional or just unlucky… probably the latter?

— Yeah, looks like they stepped on it. It’s unlikely that they went in and changed the difficulty themselves. This is bad.

— Guys, is the possibility of escape really gone?

— For an A+ gate, they recommend a raid team of 30 people lol It’s twice as tough as B+, you think there’s a chance? Are their brains fried? lol

— (Info) In A+ rank gates, S-rank monsters often appear.

— Even guild raid teams wouldn’t be able to reach the middle zone in such a situation; they’d all just die; no hope;;

— They are Fucked, huh?

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]