『Cain! Cain!』 Kahn and Victoria beat on the door, but it didn’t budge. They tried the iron door, but it also didn’t move. They tried using skills and magic, but nothing worked. Messages only popped up.

[You have moved out of the quest area.]

[You cannot enter because you are not qualified for the quest.]

『Shit!』 Boom! Kahn slammed his fist against the door. He knew it wouldn’t open, but he felt like he would go crazy if he didn’t do something. He was always failing people—his mother, Doyle, and now Yeon-woo. He’d trained so hard not to be a burden to anyone, and now he even had the Seventy-Two Bian. But why hadn’t anything changed? Why was he still so pathetic?

The thoughts that crowded his head began to grow overdramatic, and he even thought that he would be better off dying in the dungeon and not having to deal with anything anymore. However, he shook his head, refusing to let his emotions overwhelm him. He had to grow a spine.

First, he had to trust that Yeon-woo would solve things like he always did. The only thing he had to worry about was his and Victoria’s safety. 『Victoria.』 He cleared his mind and turned to Victoria, who looked exhausted. Everything that had happened today—Rebecca’s death, Kindred’s manipulation, and even Yeon-woo’s actions—had taken a toll. By now, Kahn knew her well, and although she seemed frivolous, she was a patient and warmhearted person who never got angry even though he teased her about her age all the time. 『Kindred is probably waiting for us outside.』

Victoria’s empty stare suddenly focused as she understood what Kahn meant. Kindred—and likely his reinforcements—were lying in wait for them. Although she had the magicians of the Magic Tower behind her, it wouldn’t be enough of a deterrent. However, they didn’t have enough time to do anything. 『Then…?』

The expression in Kahn’s eyes changed. 『I have an idea. Do you want to hear it?』

***

[Territory of the Dragon, ‘Binah’, has been announced. You can apply your power within the specified territory.]

[The 1st step of the power has been activated.]

[Power: Draconic Blood.]

[Within a limited time, all stats increase.]

[Within a limited time, all physical defenses increase.]

[Within a limited time, all element defenses increase.]

....

[Dragon’s Energy has been awakened.]

Blue magic circles spread under his feet as Yeon-woo’s territory was created. The constraints of the fifth mountain washed away like sand on a beach, and Yeon-woo was now standing in the territory of a dragon. He could now pull out everything he had as his five senses returned, boosting his Extrasensory Perception.

It was a new world of experience, and Yeon-woo felt a rush of euphoria. The time he’d spent training had borne fruit, and he was incomparably stronger. He could sense every little detail in his territory, from the different wavelengths to the mana stream, and he could even affect them. Consciousness opened the pathway for it.

Blue scales flipped over on his torso all the way to his neck, bumping against each other, and he felt a strange sensation as his Draconic Eyes opened. Three sets of wings made of Holy Fire spread high enough to reach the ceiling. Yeon-woo didn’t hide any of his power.

As he pulled Vigrid out from Intrenian, he saw that it had changed as well. It had grown as long as a spear, and the rune letters on its blade glowed brightly. It had reverted to a holy white sword again that took in holy power.

[Vigrid]

[Category: Longsword]

[Rank: ??]

[*Sword Purification

Vigrid’s existence has been full of battle, and so it contains the blood, sweat, and tears of those it has fought. The profound vestiges of heroes always reveal themselves in battle. The more it fights and the more murderous intent it absorbs, the more it buffs its user. The stronger the enemy, the stronger the sword’s fighting force grows.]

[* Blessing of the Sword

The dense grudge left by the heroes slain by Vigrid has turned the blessing of the holy sword into a curse. When facing against a great number of enemies or more powerful enemies, the sword will unleash demonic energy. The chance of inflicting critical damage increases in proportion to the demonic energy.]

[*Contagious Factor

When dealing a final blow to an enemy, the sword will spread its curse to other enemies near the target. Targets under the effect of the curse will be inflicted with the status ‘Infection’, significantly decreasing targets’ defensive skills and movement speed.]

[*Life of Fighting

As the opponents’ animosity increases, the vestiges of the heroes slain by Vigrid can be used. Attack speed increases by a maximum of 30% and attack power increases by a maximum of 1,500%. Defensive skills and properties decrease by a maximum of 50%.]

[*???

Ability locked. (Sealed)]

[** This is a unique artifact. No other artifact like this exists in the Tower, and it will be bound to its owner. It cannot be transferred or traded between players.

**You have removed 90% of the curse. You must have a new attribute or qualification to complete the removal.]

Vigrid had changed so much from when Yeon-woo first acquired it. As it grew closer to its original form, the hidden options revealed themselves one by one, and Yeon-woo was pleased to see that they were all ones that he could use.

Yeon-woo looked at the twelve statues as his power increased in proportion to their murderous intent. His Draconic Eyes turned red, and he found the imperfections in the statues. Shring! Seven of Aegis’ layers floated over him, his Dragon’s Knowledge giving him the ability to increase the number of shields he could control—and one bonus.

Athena, the owner of Aegis, was the goddess of war, and with this, Yeon-woo’s fighting abilities increased. As if they didn’t want to appear any way inferior, figures rose from his shadow as though they were protecting him: Shanon, Hanryeong, and Boo.

Shanon and Hanryeong drew their swords, while Boo flew above them, casting curses. A black hole opened up in space, his undead subordinates creeping out of it. The hall was suddenly filled with a dragon’s aura that mingled with the energy of death.

This was Yeon-woo’s greatest show of power yet. As though the stone statues had noticed, they paused and rolled their eyes around to observe Yeon-woo, as though they were looking for something. A loud voice suddenly boomed, 『Prove your qualification to be the successor!』

The statues suddenly emanated a huge burst of vestiges and ran towards Yeon-woo. It was starting.

「You’re dealing with things like this? Dang, there’s never a boring moment with you.」

「Isn’t an opportunity, though? We can test things out now.」

「Guess so.」

The Guai army spread out, and Shanon and Hanryeong each took on one statue, excited to try out the Heaven Bracket that Yeon-woo had observed. Although they weren’t expecting to have comprehended everything, just looking at it had already been a big help to them. Shanon even seemed to have improved to the point of reaching expert level. He and Hanryeong moved around easily, completely in their element now that they could use their full strength.

Boom! The hall was in chaos, filled with the undead, dragon energy, and Guai. The statue of the Monkey King shook as though it would fall over.

『Do not disturb the king’s slumber!』

Three of the large statues attacked Yeon-woo at the same time, and he had to use Blink to escape as spears lunged towards him. However, the statues continued tracking him. Swoosh! Yeon-woo could hear the wind as they moved.

He was extremely wary of them and tried to avoid face-to-face combat. Just one of them already managed to kill a high ranker like Rebecca. Although she didn’t have her full powers, it was still proof of the statues’ strength.

Yeon-woo avoided their attacks using his Fire Wings and Blink. By now, Yeon-woo could predict their movements using Draconic Eyes, Time Difference, and Extrasensory Perception, and he attacked them at their blind spots.

Whenever they turned their heads in one direction, he would attack them from the opposite one. If they lifted their spears, he would try to knock their legs out from under them. Fire began to rage through the hall, making the walls collapse and charring the ground.

Yeon-woo moved in a quick and focused manner, not straying too far from the statues as he escaped and using quick, relentless attacks to make the statues fall. Whenever he occasionally sent out Fire Rain, it burned the surface of the statues, but since they were running on vestiges, they would never grow tired. In fact, it was Yeon-woo who would be at a disadvantage if the fight were prolonged.

Yeon-woo knew that he wouldn’t be able to last long, and he continued to think about how he could finish the quest. Now that he could read the statues’ movements, he began to think carefully about the conditions of the quest. There hadn’t been any orders to destroy the stone statues, which meant that all he had to do was prove that he’d learned the Seventy-Two Bian to them.

He wasn’t sure what would happen exactly, but once he learned Bian, they would probably fall back. But how were you supposed to learn something as you fought? Yeon-woo decided that using Time Difference now would be the best choice. With faster thinking and assessment, anything was possible.

He already had the legacy of the Monkey King, and it was even more incredible than the Seventy-Two Bian. Although he’d only comprehended a bit of the legacy, with it, the Seventy-Two Bian didn’t seem too hard. Also, he’d realized that the movements of the statues were examples of Bian.

Each statue used six different types of a specific movement. With twelve statues, that meant a total of seventy-two—the Seventy-Two Bian. Yeon-woo had read their movements already with his Extrasensory Perception, and whenever he didn’t understand something, he would just go over the legacy of the Monkey King once more.

It was a painstaking process that made him feel like his brain would explode, but as soon as he began to grasp it, the first of the Seventy-Two Bian opened. ‘Jeol.’

Yeon-woo slashed Vigrid down powerfully, and Fire Rain poured in its wake. It was an organic connection of two skills, and together, they severed one of a statue’s arms.