“Congratulations.”
As soon as he returned to the labyrinth, a voice greeted Taesan. He immediately recognized who it was.
"The Witch."
It was the Green Witch speaking to him.
“To think you've reached the same realm as me already... You really are fast. It's not necessarily bad news for me, but it does feel a bit bittersweet.”
Through their contract, the Witch shared Taesan’s vision. With every new power Taesan gained and each stronger enemy he faced, he brought her closer to her own goals. His strength benefited her.
Yet, she had been stalled as an immortal for an unimaginable amount of time. Taesan, on the other hand, had achieved immortality in what, to her, seemed like a mere blink. It was hard for her to feel purely happy about it.
“Still... it’s not a bad thing. The stronger you become, the greater the chances you’ll uncover the path to transcendence.”
The Witch’s voice held a tinge of excitement.
“I wonder what you’ll become. Will you stop at immortality as I did? Or will you continue onward, advancing like the gods and ultimately reach transcendence? I’ll keep watching you.”
With those words, her voice faded.
The Witch desired to find the path to becoming a transcendent. That was why she had formed a contract with Taesan.
But he was walking a path unlike that of ordinary immortals or even transcendent beings.
Whether he would prove helpful to the Witch’s goals was something Taesan couldn’t yet determine.
He opened the community. Survivors who had returned to the labyrinth were chattering away.
---
**Oliver Khan [Hard]: What's the situation in Asia and Europe?**
**Daniel Darmon [Hard]: We’re fine. It was a bit tough joining up with the Africa team, but no major issues.**
**Kim Hwiyeon [Hard]: We’re all good too. There were a few problems... but having Taesan with us solved those.**
**Amelia Erin [Alone]: I could feel something horrifying across the sea. Are you sure everything was okay?**
**Lee Taeyeon [Alone]: It’s fine. We did lose a fair number of people, but it was within the expected range. No major problems.**
---
Lee Taeyeon left a calm message. Amelia, finding her tone unusual, asked curiously.
---
**Amelia Erin [Alone]: Your tone seems different. Did something happen?**
**Kang Junho [Alone]: After the quests, something changed. Did Taesan say something to you?**
---
Amelia, Kang Junho, and Lee Taeyeon, all playing in Alone mode, frequently shared information. So, they quickly noticed any change in each other.
---
**Lee Taeyeon [Alone]: Well, something like that.**
---
Lee Taeyeon brushed it off. Amelia seemed curious but didn’t press further.
Having regained memories of her past life, Lee Taeyeon would be moving through the labyrinth with newfound speed and method.
Taesan looked at the community briefly before turning to check his points.
He had 5,800 points—a substantial amount. He considered how best to spend them. Naturally, he thought about using them to improve his skill proficiency, but the exact allocation required thought.
"Not usable on soul skills, I see."
The points couldn’t be used on certain high-level skills.
He also considered applying them to magic or dark magic, but with his broad skill set, he realized the efficiency might diminish.
After a moment of thought, he made a decision.
"I’ll save them for later."
There was no immediate need to spend the points. He could hold onto them and invest in future skills as he acquired them.
There were still plenty of advanced skills he planned to obtain. High-level magic, for instance. And with the Lemegeton, he’d soon be able to make direct contracts with demons, too. It made sense to save the points for skills he would gain from those contracts.
Having decided, Taesan moved on.
He was still on the 78th floor, within the Library of All.
He ventured deeper into the library.
---
The first to notice him was the library’s caretaker, Jorge. Sensing Taesan’s presence, Jorge closed the book he was reading.
"You’ve been away for quite some time. Where have you been?"
He looked at Taesan as he spoke, then fell silent.
Staring at Taesan, Jorge’s expression changed.
"...You’ve reached it?"
"It seems so."
“What on earth...”
Cracks appeared across Jorge’s face.
“How did you reach it so quickly...?”
He groaned.
Even as the caretaker of the Library of All, possessing boundless knowledge, he was taken aback by Taesan’s newfound power.
“This is absurd.”
That was all he could say. Briefly, greed and desire flashed in Jorge’s eyes.
As the library’s caretaker and an apostle of the god of knowledge, he was eternally devoted to the pursuit of wisdom.
Taesan’s existence stirred his hunger for knowledge.
But Jorge could do nothing more than observe. His authority did not permit him to take any further action.
In the end, all he could do was swallow his envy.
“This is one of those rare times I feel a bit of resentment toward Lady Metis. What will you do? Are you going to continue downward, or linger here for a while?”
“I’ll stay a bit longer.”
“Suit yourself.”
Jorge’s eyes never left Taesan, as if he intended to observe his every move. Taesan, unbothered, went to find Ainzhar.
“Oho!”
Ainzhar gasped as soon as he saw Taesan.
“You have reached it. I sensed the possibility, but how did you do it so swiftly...?”
“I used a bit of a shortcut.”
It was a place he had reached through faith rather than his own strength, a kind of shortcut. Ainzhar understood and chuckled.
“Is there such a thing as a shortcut to achieving power? It’s merely a difference in paths. You obtained your strength fairly. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
After offering his gratitude, Taesan drew his sword.
“With that said, may I ask for a spar?”
“Gladly!”
Ainzhar laughed heartily as he drew his own sword.
The duel began once more.
Taesan had sparred with Ainzhar many times before, but Ainzhar had never fought him with full force.
Ainzhar had only shown predictable, basic movements. Even so, Taesan hadn’t been able to land a single strike. The gap between them had been that vast.
But not anymore.
Clang!
Swords clashed. Faced with Ainzhar’s overwhelming strength, Taesan didn’t take a single step back.
---
**[You have activated Decarabia's Distorted Vegetation.]**
It was dark magic he had often used.
But now, its power was on another level.
Boom!
Roots emerged, shaking the library. If Jorge hadn’t erected a barrier, part of the library might have been destroyed.
Roots penetrating through space summoned everything they could grasp.
In response, Ainzhar, clad in a golden aura, swung his sword.
Crack!
The roots were sliced by the golden sword’s light.
But the golden aura surrounding Ainzhar was visibly thinning.
“This is fun!”
Ainzhar’s eyes sparkled.
“No need to hold back my strength!”
He stomped his foot.
In an instant, he appeared before Taesan. Even with Taesan’s current abilities, he could barely follow Ainzhar’s speed.
But it wasn’t beyond his ability to respond.
Taesan swung his sword.
---
**[You activated Power Strike.]**
Clang!
Taesan was pushed back, sliding across the floor.
But he had managed to block the blow. He had withstood Ainzhar’s full strength.
‘He’s strong as ever.’
Ainzhar was a monster.
Now that Taesan had reached immortality, he could clearly see it. Out of a hundred fights, he would likely lose ninety-nine times.
But there was still that one chance.
Taesan had reached a level that put him on par with Ainzhar.
With his skills like Boundary Line, Divinity, and his main skills, victory wasn’t impossible.
Taesan stomped forward, his sword slicing toward Ainzhar with precision.
Boom!
The duel lasted for half a day. When it finally ended, Ainzhar looked incredibly satisfied.
“Good. I haven’t had a workout like this in a long time.”
After a brief rest, Taesan sought out Levinenov. Now that he had attained immortality, it might be possible to influence him.
However, it remained impossible. Ainzhar clicked his tongue in disappointment.
“It seems you’ll need to reach the 84th floor first. I leave it in your hands, Taesan.”
“I understand.”
With Ainzhar’s confirmation, Taesan felt he had acquired sufficient knowledge. There was no longer any reason to remain in the Library of All.
He headed toward the passage to the 79th floor. Jorge was waiting there.
“Ready to go down, are you?”
Taesan nodded. Jorge activated his power.
---
**[Cleared Floor 78.]**
**[Your level has increased.]**
**[Your level has increased.]**
**[Your level has increased.]**
**[Obtained: Book of Knowledge.]**
**[Obtained: ???]**
---
“Status screen.”
---
**[Level: 161]**
**[Shield: 19,100/19,100]**
**[HP: 200,277/200,277]**
**[Mana: 20,341/20,341]**
**[Dark Energy: 2,218/2,218]**
**[Strength:
37,845]**
**[Agility: 37,985]**
**[Intelligence: 33,941]**
**[Attack +10,125]**
**[Defense +6,752]**
**[Status: Optimal]**
---
The ghost let out a hollow laugh.
His stats were staggering, even compared to those who had cleared the labyrinth under normal conditions.
Taesan checked his rewards.
---
Read 𝓁at𝙚st chapters at ƒrēewebnovel.com Only.
**[Book of Knowledge]**
**[Contains a fragment of the knowledge within the Library of All.]**
---
“A mini Library of All?”
Flipping through the pages, he found they seemed endless. Even using reconnaissance and focused detection, he couldn’t find the last page.
The Library of All was, after all, an infinite library. Jorge himself hadn’t read every book within it. It made sense that even a fragment of its knowledge would be endless.
He planned to read it in his spare time.
---
**[You used ???]**
**[Obtained: Sword of All Things.]**
---
**[Sword of All Things]**
**[Strength +300]**
**[Agility +300]**
**[Intelligence +300]**
**[Mana +200]**
**[Dark Energy +75]**
**[Attack +750]**
**[Dark Magic +10]**
**[Magic +10]**
**[A sword crafted with elements of the universe itself. The power within the sword exceeds the wielder's full control.]**
---
It was a weapon that boosted nearly all of his stats. Fortunately, Taesan was proficient in both magic and dark magic, making it an ideal fit.
After organizing everything, Taesan descended the stairs.
---
**[Floor 79 Quest Initiated.]**
**[Prove your strength in the Realm of Struggle.]**
**[Reward: Ring of the Victorious One.]**
**[Hidden Reward: ???]**
---
The 79th floor.
The 80th floor was now in sight. Just as Taesan prepared to descend further, the labyrinth’s floor trembled.
Having experienced this multiple times, he waited calmly.
Soon, Balbabamba appeared.
Balbabamba said nothing.
He simply stood there in silence. Taesan did not speak either.
After a moment, Balbabamba finally opened his mouth.
“You...”
The voice was filled with a profound weariness.
“You are truly a headache to me.”