Episode 65
065. You’re Telling Me to Die
“Tia!”
Tia, having finished her work, climbed back onto Geumson’s shoulder. Simultaneously, a message appeared.
[The trap has been disarmed.]
With the system message confirmed, Geumson felt as if Tia’s shoulders were squared with pride.
“Good job, Tia. I’ll make you something delicious later.”
Patting her head, Geumson smiled at Tia’s satisfied expression. Then, swallowing hard, he carefully opened the box.
Creeeeak—
The grating sound of the hinges echoed eerily through the silent throne room. Inside, resting on red silk, was a thick book bound in black leather. A faint, pulsating energy, almost like a living thing, throbbed from its surface.
[You have acquired the secret manual, ‘Infinite Chain Strike.’]
Finally, he had it.
The very source of power that had elevated Gwangkwon, Seo Joo-won—that ruthless survivalist—to the ranks of the strongest humanity had to offer.
With trembling hands, Geumson picked up the manual. The moment he opened it, what poured forth was not mere text or images.
It was the ultimate realm attained after thousands, tens of thousands of consecutive strikes.
The flow of everything in combat—breath, footwork, rotation of the waist, and finally, the destructive force channeled into a weapon—flooded into golden hand’s mind as a torrent of light, a massive influx of information.
[Do you wish to learn the hidden skill ‘Infinite Chain Strike’?]
“Of course.”
The moment golden hand answered, an electrifying thrill swept through his entire body. It was a sensation as if a new way of fighting was being imprinted into every single one of his muscles and nerves. When the mysterious feeling subsided, a new message appeared.
[Infinite Chain Strike Lv. 1]
[Passive Skill]
– Description: An ancient martial art that exponentially amplifies the destructive power of subsequent attacks by consecutively striking an opponent’s weaknesses. Its potential for amplification is limitless, depending on the user’s focus and precision.
[Effects]
1. [Chain Amplification]: Each successful strike on a weak point increases the final damage of the next weak point strike by 5%. (Stacks up to 100 times)
2. [Chain Sustain]: If another weak point strike is not landed within 10 seconds, all accumulated amplification effects vanish.
3. [Ultimate Strike]: Upon activating the skill at max stacks (100), all accumulated energy is released, dealing catastrophic damage to a single target.
‘Focus and precision? Can I amplify the skill’s effects even further with these?’
Geumson quickly checked his remaining stat points.
[Player Details]
[Basic Stats]
Strength: 77 (+20)
Agility: 67
Stamina: 67 (+20)
Magic Power: 67
[Unlocked Stats]Luck: 92
Precision: 74
Divinity: 46
Leadership: 50
Concentration: 45
[Remaining Stat Points: 171]
The stat points he had diligently saved since level 31.
While other players gained 4 points per level, golden hand now gained 9 points per level. Thanks to his unlocked stats, his remaining points were more than double. Looking at the heart-warmingly high number, Geumson began pondering where to invest them.
However.
Grrrrrrooooom—
The entire throne room—no, the entire dungeon—began to shake violently as if struck by an earthquake. Massive stones rained down from the ceiling, and the floor cracked open in places, revealing unfathomable chasms.
“What the…? Did I break the castle too much?”
Geumson frantically scanned his surroundings. But contrary to his expectation, the collapse wasn’t due to physical destruction.
Fwoooooosh—!
A gigantic magic circle began to form across the entire floor of the throne room. From the cracks in the earth and the fragments of shattered pillars, hundreds of millions of blue lines of light appeared, weaving together into one enormous pattern.
The precursor to a magical manifestation.
And it was on a scale Geumson had never seen before—overwhelming in its magnitude.
[Warning: An unknown entity is forcibly intervening.]
[Hidden Boss ‘The Forgotten Ancient Giant King’ is being forcibly summoned.]
[Warning: Abnormal appearance. Death by the Hidden Boss will result in the loss of all gains from this dungeon.]
[Warning: Fleeing will result in the loss of all gains from this dungeon.]
[TIP: In 《Lepyon》, you can resurrect even after death.]
[TIP: Destroying the dungeon core will allow escape.]
“Intervention? Hidden Boss?”
golden hand’s brow furrowed. The situation was turning strange. He’d never heard of a case where something ‘intervened.’ Not even in his past life.
And the sudden messages labeled as TIPS. It felt like a blatant warning to run away. But golden hand’s absolutely could not.
‘You lose everything if you die, and you lose everything if you run? That’s bullshit, really.’
Just after learning Infinite Chain Strike, they were trying to take it away. The messages reeked of blatant intent.
‘Who’s behind this…?’
Clenching his teeth at the absurdity, Geumson prepared for battle. Complaining was useless. He had to defeat whoever it was.
The magic circle, pointing toward what must be the dungeon core. And at its center…
The space there tore open, revealing a massive humanoid silhouette. A giant that looked like a fiend clawing its way up from the deepest abyss.
It stood easily over 10 meters tall. Its entire body was a stony, ashen grey like an ancient statue, covered in deep fissures and moss. One of its arms was severed, and a massive hole was torn through its chest. Yet, the oppressive aura emanating from it was incomparable to any monster he had faced before.
[The Forgotten Ancient Giant King, Kronos Lv. 381]
The message appeared above its head as if the summoning was complete. golden hand’s face twisted.
“Ah, damn… You’re telling me to die.”
This was an overwhelming, insurmountable gap. Even for Geumson, this level of disparity was enough to break one’s will to fight. But the system seemed unwilling to tolerate such unfairness.
[Unfair intervention detected.]
[System implementing emergency measures.]
[System forcibly restricting the entity’s power.]
[Clearing the Hidden Boss ‘The Forgotten Ancient Giant King’ now promises greater rewards.]
The moment the messages ended.
Charrrrrrrk—!
As the giant appeared, thousands of blue chains extending from the magic circle began to bind its entire body. The chains dug into its stony skin, suppressing its power, and the giant let out a low, pained groan.
[The Forgotten Ancient Giant King, Kronos Lv. 120] (Sealed)]
Seeing the changed level, the corner of golden hand’s mouth lifted.
“At this level… It might be worth a shot.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, golden hand’s charged toward the giant.
Kwaaaaaaaaah-!
A beast-like roar. A thunderous sound crashed through the throne room. The sheer pressure made his legs feel like they might buckle. But even before that overwhelming roar, Geumson swiftly manipulated his stats.
[Strength: 77 → 100]
[Agility: 67 → 89]
[Stamina: 67 → 90]
[Magic Power: 67 → 89]
[Precision: 74 → 100]
[Concentration: 45 → 100]
[Remaining Stat Points: 0]
There was no time for deliberation. golden hand’s invested all 171 points. Simultaneously, another message appeared.
[The ‘Chain Amplification’ effect of Infinite Chain Strike has been enhanced.]
[Damage Increase: 5% → 10%]
A spark of hope ignited. golden hand’s heart pounded fiercely.
Infinite Chain Strike was the final key that would bind all of his abilities together. He would use Determined Intuition and Insight of the Meridians to see the weaknesses, Divine Handicraft and Precision stat to strike accurately, and this skill to infinitely amplify that destructive force.
‘If it were in its original state, there’d be nothing I could do… but a level 120 giant? The perfect test subject for Infinite Chain Strike.’
Geumson swallowed dryly. But at the same time, something hot began to boil in his chest.
“Walker, Tia! I’m going in first!”
“Woooorker! Wooorker!”
“Tiaat! Tii-ti-ti-ti!”
Kroooooooah-!
The giant roared again. Even with its power sealed, the air vibrated, and space itself seemed to warp under the pressure. golden hand’s faced that overwhelming force, drawing upon all his abilities.
‘Determined Intuition, Insight of the Meridians!’
Dozens of red and blue points simultaneously appeared over the giant’s massive body. Ironically, its huge size made it an easier target for golden hand’s.
“We’ll start with the ankles!”
Following golden hand’s shout, Iron Walker charged first toward the giant’s ankle. The giant lifted its foot, attempting to crush Iron Walker as if swatting a nuisance.
“Walker, evade!”
Koo-woong-!
As Iron Walker narrowly dodged the attack, the giant’s foot slammed into the ground, causing a massive tremor. Seizing that opening, golden hand’s leapt onto the top of the giant’s foot. In his eyes, a small red point on the instep was clearly visible.
‘First!’
Kwa-jik!
[Weak point strike successful.]
[‘Infinite Chain Strike’ activated. (1st consecutive hit)]
[Final damage increased by 10%.]
[Achievement ‘The One Who Beat a Troll to Death’ effect activated.]
[Damage to large monsters increased by 15%.]
[Achievement ‘Overcoming Level Difference’ effect activated.]
[Final damage to enemies with a higher level increased by 10%.]
[…]
A single strike.
Messages about damage accumulation flooded in madly. But the giant merely shook its foot as if tickled. It wasn’t enough yet. golden hand’s had no intention of being satisfied with just one hit.
He was already airborne, moving toward the next weakness. Scaling the giant’s leg, he relentlessly struck the red points shown by Determined Intuition.
