Chapter 81
The Martial Emperor.
He was a man utterly obsessed with martial arts.
No—“obsessed” was too light a word. He was completely, irredeemably mad about it.
Sitting or standing, waking or sleeping, he devoted every breath to the study of the martial path.
All his emotions—joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure—bloomed and withered only within it.
Every trajectory of his life revolved around a single axis—the Way of Martiality (武).
Even his conquest beyond the Great Wall was for one purpose:
to gather and unify every martial art under heaven.
And so—
Even when he was forcibly resurrected by the System,
bound to pass down the [Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless] to whoever passed his trial,
he felt not resentment, but joy.
Indeed, he was even eager—
for after 3,000 years, he had finally met a worthy successor to whom he could share his enlightenment.
For him, that was the very purpose and joy of existence.
He even lamented that he was granted only one hour of time to do so.
But then—
“……”
When asked about the Limitless (無極),
he fell silent.
For a long time.
Not even the sound of breathing could be heard.
The Martial Emperor glared at Doyun with eyes as sharp as needles.
And at last—his tightly shut lips parted.
“Did you hear it from the Fist King?”
“What?”
The corner of the emperor’s eye trembled.
Even he, who had transcended the world itself, had only ever gazed upon it from afar.
“…The realm beyond martial arts.”
“You’re saying the Fist King told me that?”
“I never told him myself.”
Doyun tilted his head slightly.
“Then there’s no way he could’ve known.”
“The Fist King’s talent was remarkable—one of the greatest of his age. And you, who defeated him, clearly possess no lesser gift.”
“That’s flattering.”
“But—”
The Martial Emperor’s tone hardened.
“Even if Mount Tai is taller than Mount Song, from heaven’s view, the difference is but dust.”
“So you’re saying we’re just acorns comparing height—what a poetic way to put it.”
“I do not mean to belittle you.”
“I know. You mean—”
Doyun understood immediately.
“—That whether it’s the Fist King or me, neither of us can reach the heavens without stealing a glimpse of them first.”
The Martial Emperor’s silence confirmed it.
“How amusing.”
“…?”
At Doyun’s scoff, the emperor’s brow twitched.
He had tolerated the young man’s casual tone until now,
but this time was different.
Because behind that smirk—
he could feel it.
That look down from above.
A faint thread of irritation flared within the emperor’s chest.
“You’re no different yourself, are you? You’re just another one peeking at the heavens.”
“…Insolent!”
KWA-AAAAA!
An overwhelming aura exploded from the Martial Emperor’s body—
a force that could crush an ordinary man’s heart into dust on sight.
But standing in the eye of that storm, Doyun remained perfectly calm.
Instead, he spoke softly, almost like reciting scripture.
“Formless and infinite. Neither beginning nor end.
The primal state of the universe, the source that births yin and yang.
The root from which the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji) arises.”
“…!?”
His tranquil voice suppressed the emperor’s raging aura.
“The tower you’ve built your entire life—‘martiality’ itself—
the foundation that upholds it all. That is the Limitless.”
“Y–You… how could you possibly…”
The emperor’s mind reeled in disbelief.
Since attaining the ultimate mastery of martial arts,
his heart had never once been shaken—until now.
After a lifetime of struggle,
he had only barely touched upon the concept—
and that too, with the aid of an ancient scripture.
He had perceived only its vague outline.
And yet—
this youth before him was speaking of the Limitless
as if describing his own living room.
‘Twenty? Twenty-five at most?
How could one so young… understand this!?’
As the Martial Emperor stood frozen in shock,
Doyun smirked faintly.
‘You would dare to measure the divine?’
Though trapped now in a mortal body,
he had once ruled nations and understood the laws of heaven and earth.
Even if his direct enlightenment of the Limitless had faded,
its memory remained.
“…Forgive me.”
The Martial Emperor bowed his head.
Barely a few degrees—
a subtle inclination at best.
But if the Fist King, Jung Mintae, had witnessed this,
he would’ve doubted his own eyes.
Anyone who knew the Martial Emperor
would have been utterly stunned—
for such humility was unthinkable.
It was the utmost respect he could show.
“…I hope you understand.
It’s hard to believe that someone so young has grasped a truth
I only reached in my twilight years.”
“You accept it fast.”
He had no choice.
With only limited time remaining,
there was no luxury to doubt the reality before him.
‘This is my last chance.’
[Dungeon Closure in 00:41:18]
‘The final opportunity given to me…’
Determination hardened in the emperor’s expression.
It was a strange feeling.
‘I meant to teach my successor a few tricks…
but it seems I’m the one gaining fortune today.’
He spoke.
“You are correct. The [Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless]—
it is my life’s incomplete record,
my attempt to reach the state of the Limitless (無極).”
“I thought so.”
At Doyun’s curt reply,
the Martial Emperor’s heart burned hotter.
He himself had failed to reach it,
but perhaps this youth before him… could.
That faint hope moved him to a decision.
“I will propose a trade.”
“A trade?”
Doyun raised an eyebrow.
“The [Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless] alone is but one wing.
To truly soar, you need both.”
He took a slow breath,
as if to give weight to what he was about to say.
“I shall pass on to you the key to the other wing—
the Formula of the Limitless Scripture (無經).”
“…?”
“You have only one task.”
The emperor looked Doyun straight in the eyes.
“When I awaken again someday—
and you have finally reached the Limitless…”
His gaze gleamed with eternal longing.
“Show me the heavens that you have seen.”
* * *
[You have successfully cleared Floor 12!]
[Tower Mission Reward: “Pendant of Frost Resistance (Rare)”]
[National Ranking: 871st]
[League Ranking: 19,147th]
[World Ranking: 79,265th]
[Time remaining for ‘Longest Survival’: 03:06:14]
[Incoming hailstones now inflict explosive damage.]
The Limitless Scripture (無經).
It was a mere 300 characters long—
half a page if written on paper.
To the uninitiated, it was nothing more than cryptic nonsense.
But to one who knew of “the realm beyond,”
it was an invaluable compass.
The problem was—
‘…Not a single damn word makes sense.’
Its depth was beyond imagination.
Even after reciting the emperor’s mnemonic hundreds of times over several hours,
he hadn’t made a shred of progress.
The “Absorption of Principles” from the [Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless]
had given him glimpses of unification and the shadow of the Limitless—
but that was all.
Still, he felt no frustration.
Raw rice must boil long enough to become food.
To crave the Limitless before even reaching the peak of martial arts
would be greed.
‘I’m planting the seed. If I keep trying, someday it’ll sprout.’
The key thing was that his recent enlightenment
confirmed that he was on the right path.
KUUU-KOOOOM!
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWAANG!
Exploding hail pounded the ground,
sending shards of ice flying everywhere.
But Doyun stood motionless in the storm’s center.
‘By absorbing martial arts, I can deepen my mastery of the “Principles” related to them—
in other words, strengthen the techniques recorded in [The Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless].’
But its true worth lay beyond that—
‘It’s a manual that can integrate every martial art in existence
into a single unified system—
and thus approach the Limitless itself.’
Half a year had passed since the Martial Emperor’s tomb.
And Doyun had now experienced it firsthand.
The emperor’s words were beyond doubt.
‘The Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless is real.’
[Heavenly Scripture of the Limitless]—
and its counterpart, The Limitless Scripture (無經).
Resolved to decipher the 300-character riddle,
Doyun’s eyes burned with determination.
And while he was lost in that focus—
[You’ve broken the National ‘Longest Survival’ record.]
[You’ve broken the League ‘Longest Survival’ record.]
[You’ve broken the World ‘Longest Survival’ record.]
All records for Floor 12 fell one after another—
and Doyun’s name replaced them all.
The consecutive record bonuses piled up—
adding a total of 61,250 points.
[Total Tower Points: 408,750P]
[Achievement Unlocked: “Cumulative Ranking No. 1”]
“…What?”
The message snapped him back to reality.
Doyun’s eyebrows shot up.
The Limitless? Enlightenment? Transcendence?
All those lofty thoughts vanished instantly.
He was still far from the top floor—
and yet he had surpassed the top-ranked climbers.
‘So the consecutive record bonuses pushed me past their totals, huh.’
And the reward for that was—
[Achievement Reward Granted]
-
+100,000 Points
-
New Title Acquired
[Point Duplicator (A)]
Effect: +3% points gained in the Tower of Transcendence.
“…?!”
He sucked in a sharp breath.
Then the corners of his lips twitched—
“…Khh, khh…”
Until finally, he burst out laughing.
“Hahahahahahaha!”
Philosophical musings?
Profound enlightenment?
All of it shattered beneath his triumphant laughter.
“…Kahahahaha!”
Three percent.
It might seem trivial—
but considering the astronomical points he would earn from now on,
it was anything but small.
As the floors climbed higher,
the points would grow exponentially.
[Continue climbing? Y/N]
“Of course.”
The ground trembled at his answer.
A deep rumble spread beneath his feet.
The Frostlands began expanding once more.
GUUUU-GUUU-GU-GUNG!
Mountains of ice surged skyward,
their peaks piercing the clouds.
Jagged cliffs.
Frozen ridges.
A new landscape took form in an instant.
[You have entered Floor 13 of the Tower of Transcendence.]
[Tower Mission Initiated.]
[Mission Name: “Assault of the Ice Wyverns”]
[Mission Objective: The Ice Wyverns’ nesting grounds have merged with the Tower.
Survive the furious retaliation of the invading wyverns for 1 hour 30 minutes.]
[Remaining Time: 01:29:59]
[Longest Survival Record: Yun Seha (02:53:40) – East Asia League]
Kyaaaaaaaak!
A piercing screech split the sky.
The source—Ice Wyverns.
The dragons of the frost mountains
burst out from their nests in a storm of wings.
The Frostlands now threatened him not only with brutal cold,
but with the beasts themselves.
Kyaak! Kyaak! Kyaak! Kyaak!
The sky darkened—
blotted out by countless wings.
As Doyun looked up at the breathtaking sight,
a name crossed his mind.
‘Yun Seha—the world record holder, huh.’
He could see why.
Her signature technique, [Moonlight Phantom Sword]—
a sword art that filled the air with hundreds of moonlit blades,
erasing every blind spot—
would indeed be effective here.
“But…”
A faint grin tugged at Doyun’s lips.
“…I think I can use it better than she can.”
