**[Special Quest Initiated]**
**[Return to Earth.]**
**[One week from now, you will return to the land you abandoned. Survive there, and return once more. Your reward will be based on your performance.]**
**[This quest cannot be declined.]**
The quest for returning to Earth had begun.
Taesan closed the message calmly.
When he opened the community board, players' reactions were varied. Korean, Chinese, and Japanese players accepted the news readily and began preparing. For them, returning to Earth now was in line with the natural progression of events, as they had quickly made their way back to the labyrinth after their last return.
However, the response from other countries was different.
**[Oliver Khan [Hard]: This feels too sudden... I’m not fully prepared yet.]**
**[Daniel Darmont [Hard]: Yeah, we’re not mentally prepared for this. It’s unsettling.]**
For players from other regions, clearing the Earth quest had taken longer, so they felt the return was happening too soon. However, they too ultimately accepted it and began preparations. These players were seasoned veterans, accustomed to unexpected twists.
Players exchanged information on the community board as they prepared for the return.
**[Oliver Khan [Hard]: So what will the scope of this return be? Will it cover the whole world?]**
**[Kang Taesan [Alone]: It won’t be worldwide.]**
**[Amelia Erin [Alone]: Oh.]**
**[Lee Taeyeon [Alone]: Ah, Taesan’s here.]**
The community grew momentarily lively at Taesan’s appearance. Once the commotion died down, Taesan posted again.
**[Kang Taesan [Alone]: It’s too early to connect the whole world.]**
**[Oliver Khan [Hard]: You’re right. This will likely be an expanded connection.]**
They could easily deduce this from their last return, where players from different countries had already encountered each other.
**[Kim Huiyeon [Hard]: Probably divided by continents—Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas, perhaps?]**
**[Daniel Darmont [Hard]: That seems likely. The issue is that communication between nations is still shaky...]**
They continued to discuss, sharing information with other countries and trying to establish a plan. With preparations likely to take some time, Taesan closed the community board and set off once more.
“Oh! You’ve come!” Ainzhar greeted him with a laugh.
“Here for another sparring session?”
Taesan nodded, drawing his sword. Ainzhar, amused, took up his weapon as well.
Taesan regularly sought out Ainzhar for sparring. Levienoff’s episodes were infrequent, so they could train undisturbed. Each time, Jorge would complain, muttering about the inconvenience, but this didn’t bother Taesan.
*Clang!*
Their swords clashed, and Ainzhar laughed heartily as he brought his sword down forcefully.
*Clang! Clang!*
The heavy blows bore down on Taesan, who twisted his blade to deflect the strikes.
**[Your Mastery of Deflection has increased by 1%.]**
Ainzhar was a monster.
He was a being that Taesan, even now, couldn’t hope to defeat.
And sparring with such an opponent allowed Taesan to improve his skills rapidly.
Various combat skills advanced.
His **Sense Synchronization** reached 20% mastery, enhancing his perception so that he could feel his surroundings as if they were an extension of his body.
Buff skills like **Despise the Mighty** also leveled up, granting higher bonus stats.
Unable to counter Ainzhar’s attacks with swordsmanship alone, Taesan incorporated both magic and dark magic into his strategy. His mastery of numerous skills, including **Magic Layering** and **Magic Release**, increased.
New magic and dark magic spells acquired from the Library of All Things became second nature.
---
**[Intermediate Magic: The Eternal Flame Phoenix]**
**[Mana Cost: 400]**
**[Mastery: 4%]**
**[Summons the Phoenix, an eternal bird of fire, to attack enemies. The summoned Phoenix’s power is restricted.]**
This fire-based magic was as powerful as his **Frozen World** spell, emitting intense heat. It would prove useful in certain situations.
---
**[Intermediate Magic: Forceful Expulsion]**
**[Mana Cost: 500]**
**[Mastery: 5%]**
**[Pushes opponents within a certain range away from the caster. This skill cannot be used again for 10 minutes.]**
Even Ainzhar was momentarily stunned by its force. The skill’s lack of warning impressed him.
---
**[Intermediate Dark Magic: Gaph’s Sturdy Boulder]**
**[Mana Cost: 800 | Dark Energy Cost: 350]**
**[Mastery: 3%]**
**[Summons a massive, indestructible boulder from Gaph’s realm to drop on enemies. Though weakened during summoning, it remains incredibly tough.]**
A straightforward but powerful skill, this spell summoned a massive boulder that would crush opponents beneath its weight. Its simplicity and strength made it likely to see frequent use.
---
**[Intermediate Dark Magic: Astaroth’s Veil of Darkness]**
**[Mana Cost: 400 | Dark Energy Cost: 300]**
**[Mastery: 3%]**
**[Cloaks the user in darkness from Astaroth’s realm, significantly reducing incoming damage.]**
This defensive dark magic reduced damage by half. Though the duration was brief, the skill was highly versatile in certain scenarios.
These were all highly practical skills. Typically, they would require extensive combat practice to master, but thanks to Ainzhar, Taesan quickly reached a level of proficiency suitable for actual combat.
The most notable progress, however, was in his **Ailak Weaponry** skill.
---
**[Advanced Skill: Ailak Weaponry]**
**[Mastery: 60%]**
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**[A skill for mastering weapons and one’s own body. With improved control, there is now no loss in the transmission of force, allowing slight variations in attack and defense. Even unfamiliar weapons can be wielded as if they were extensions of your body.]**
At 60% mastery, Taesan could now wield weapons as naturally as his own limbs.
He tested it by pulling out the scythe he had acquired as a hidden reward and could hold his ground against Ainzhar’s attacks. This would certainly be useful in live combat.
“You’ve reached 60% already? Remarkable.”
Ainzhar chuckled as he praised Taesan.
“At this rate, you may reach 100% one day. Are you satisfied?”
“More than enough.”
Ailak Weaponry, the advanced skill that consolidated the power of all his equipment, was one of the most valuable abilities he had acquired. It had helped him overcome countless challenges.
At the time, he’d marveled at having such a skill, but he now understood. **Ailak Weaponry** was a technique crafted by none other than Ainzhar. As an immortal, creating such a skill would not have been difficult for him.
After their sparring session, Taesan informed Ainzhar of the upcoming return to Earth, explaining that he might be away for some time.
He also mentioned the descent of gods onto Earth. Ainzhar raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“That’s intriguing. Gods and elder gods striking a deal? That’s exceedingly rare.”
“Is that so?”
“Fundamentally, they’re polar opposites. They inherently despise one another. For them to negotiate... it means there’s something on Earth valuable enough to justify it.”
Ainzhar looked at Taesan.
“And that something is probably you.”
Taesan didn’t deny it; he sensed it too.
Ainzhar absentmindedly touched the hilt of his sword.
“I’m truly grateful to you, Taesan. Thanks to you, I dared to hope for something I thought impossible. But... I have many questions.”
The look in Ainzhar’s eyes was filled with curiosity.
“What exactly is that power?”
Taesan explained the source of his powers, including his **Spiritual Ascension**. Ainzhar, as one of the strongest among immortals, might hold some insights.
Yet even Ainzhar could not explain **Spiritual Ascension**.
“I scoured countless worlds to find my goddess. Hundreds, even thousands of realms. I encountered countless powers, but none like yours.”
An elder god’s power could not be wielded by a being bound to the laws of existence. It was a force that transcended those laws.
**Spiritual Ascension** allowed Taesan to steal that power.
Moreover, he could blend it with divinity to create a new power and even control it.
While even gods could not harness such abilities, Taesan, not yet a true immortal, had managed to achieve it as a mortal.
“With power like that... why haven’t you transcended yet? Why are you still confined within a physical form?”
Ainzhar’s questions were mostly rhetorical, musings that sought no answers.
“Taesan.”
Ainzhar gazed at him steadily.
“What level have you truly reached?”
---
After his conversation with Ainzhar, Taesan continued exploring the Library of All Things. With a week left, he didn’t plan to waste any time.
“I think I’ve nearly exhausted the places to search.”
He had discovered a total of twenty-five secret rooms, matching exactly the number Lee Taeyeon had found. He’d attempted to uncover any rooms she might have missed, but without success.
The secret rooms required a combination of intuition and luck. If he couldn’t find
any more, he wouldn’t be able to gain the floor's complete rewards. So he consulted Jorge.
“You only need to find one secret room to get the reward. Finding as many as you have is already unusual.”
Jorge had looked at him with an exasperated expression, remarking that it was unusual to find so many. Even Ghost hadn’t known about the existence of these rooms, so it wasn’t unexpected.
Since he would still receive the reward, Taesan saw no reason to spend more time looking for additional secret rooms.
Yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that something remained, something significant. His instincts nudged him forward, so he resumed his search through the bookshelves.
With this kind of work being mindless and straightforward, Taesan had room to contemplate Ainzhar’s parting words.
**‘Level of mastery, huh.’**
Taesan knew he was an anomaly.
He wielded power that gods could not, the force of an elder god. And though he felt mental strain, he hadn’t succumbed to the corruption that had overtaken the goddess.
**Spiritual Ascension** had even allowed him to steal abilities from the highest tier of immortals.
But he was still mortal. Even as he became stronger, skirting the line of immortality, he had achieved everything while still bound by mortality.
What level had he truly reached?
This was a mystery even he could not answer.
Reflecting on the memories he had absorbed from gods’ mortal lives in the Library of All Things, Taesan noted that each had been driven by a single, all-consuming obsession. This was how they had achieved their domains and become gods in their own right.
If that was the case, what was his own obsession?
The answer eluded him.
Pondering this, Taesan continued his search through the library. At last, he found what he was seeking.
*Click.*
*Rumble...*
He had found a shelf filled with magical tomes. As he removed a few, the shelf shifted.
**[You’ve found another one... You really are something else.]**
Ghost muttered in awe.
Taesan reached out toward the passageway.
An energy spread subtly from the room, and he felt a watchful presence.
Sensing the energy, Taesan identified the room’s owner.
**‘The God of Magic, Jervand.’**
**[Secret Room of the God of Magic.]**
**[Entry requires divine permission.]**
Jervand observed him in silence. After a brief chuckle, the restrictive energy dissipated.
Taesan stepped inside.
The vast room contained only a single floating book.
He reached out and grasped it, expecting to find another intermediate spell.
But the system message took him by surprise.
**[You have acquired an advanced spell: The Tome of Grand Collapse.]**