Chapter 95 (2/2)
“Let’s make a deal with the experience points.”
Experience points were usually used to bypass and evade existing structures and laws.
For example:
Once opened, Gates became unstable over time, a concept that prevented them from returning to their previous state.
However, paying experience points not only regressed the status back to the previous level but also slowed the degradation rate for a certain period.
There was also a principle that the information of an Awakened couldn’t be obtained through [Analysis] magic or [Atlas] items, and only the person himself or herself could check it.
However, if one were to pay with experience points, they could obtain the appearance, current location, and species’ information on the condition that the being had completed the tutorial.
‘In the previously unusual deal, Seo Jin-Wook only acquired the disguised appearance and location of aliens.’
He concluded that the system could only hand out that much.
‘He’s missing the rather important species information.’
Adam was about to spend the experience points that Seo Jin-Wook couldn’t even attempt to do.
He thought of the list he showed him in his head.
“I want the race information about an Awakened.”
A total of 30 million experience points were needed to see all of the information of more than 50 aliens.
Instead of revealing them all at once, Adam decided to point them out one by one and buy information about each of them.
He was thinking about stopping when he saw a suspicious one.
In a way, that was like a gamble where he had to spend points until he hit the jackpot.
Adam started a work that Seo Jin-Wook postponed because he couldn’t handle it even with [The Successor’s Eyes].
“First of all, this guy!”
Each time he read an alien’s information, it consumed 580,000 points.
He read the information carefully.
He then clicked his tongue.
“Tsk, what a bummer. Next!”
In that manner, race information was released to Adam one by one.
“Again, next!”
Perhaps of bad luck, no unusual being was spotted after looking at more than 10 of them.
5.8 million points had already been consumed.
Even for the species working on the main quest, that amount made their hands tremble when they would try to spend it all at once.
But Adam thought those were points that he could earn again.
He said determinedly, thinking that that was also an investment.
“The next is…”
He pointed his finger as he sensed a hunch.
“This one!”
– The price is 580,000 experience points. Would you like to purchase it?
“I’m purchasing it!”
He continued to put 580,000 points in stakes as the gamble of 50 options continued, and the target is reduced one by one.
Adam’s point decreased quickly, but he didn’t seem to care.
He kept pointing at each of them without hesitation.
And while doing so…
“Next, this one!”
Another alien species information was revealed.
“…!”
After checking the information, he smiled as if he had finally found what he was looking for.
“Yes, this is him!”
He had already consumed more than 10 million experience points.
*
The day when a brilliant aurora covered the entire South Korean territory, there was a great sensation all over the country.
– Breaking news! An unprecedented phenomenon has been observed throughout the current domestic Gates!
“No way, am I dreaming?”
“All the dungeon conditions have stabilized to the previous level?”
The dungeon state is the most important factor in determining the order of Clear.
If the ‘very unstable’ dungeon is left unattended, it will lead to a dungeon break.
In particular, on the day that the rank was high, the government often tried to Clear it with all its might.
Siheung 8 Dungeon was the representative case.
“Oh, my God… The dungeons that used to be ‘very unstable’ have all changed to ‘slightly unstable’!”
Thanks to that, the expedition teams, which were scrambling to stop a dungeon break, could take a breather.
“I was nervous about when this dungeon would go off, but now it makes me feel like I’m living again.”
“The question is how long this will last. No, let’s say that’s the case…. Why did this happen all of a sudden?”
Causality was easy to find.
Everything started at the moment when the aurora covered the sky, after all.
Many people used their [Analysis] skill towards it.
Awakened who saw the results dropped their jaws.
[Aurora of Stability (Rank: System)]
– Item description: Stabilizes all gates in the range to the previous level and suppresses the rate of change in status for a certain period.
From the item’s rank to the detailed description, none of it was a concept that humankind had ever imagined before.
There was a burst of exclamations among the Awakened.
“The item rank is… ‘System?!'”
It was a rank that was unheard of.
The explanation was unusual as well.
For the people, systems, gates, and dungeons were like unpredictable natural disasters.
For the Awakened that had to move only within the set boundaries, there was only the concept of Clearing the dungeon to close it if it seemed like it would collapse, just as it was natural to mobilize a fire brigade to extinguish a forest fire immediately.
On the other hand, there was no means to slow down the spread of fire until the fire brigade was ready.
They only became aware of the new concept that day.
There was no immediate way to verify how much slower the rate leading up to the dungeon break sequence would be. However, it was clear that it would be effective, as although the system might have hidden the truth, it didn’t lie.
Only time could prove it.
At first, citizens worried that Aurora might be an ominous sign, but they soon began to cheer after understanding the situation.
“What, so we don’t have to be worried about the dungeon break for the time being?”
“We don’t know that. The key is how long that item will last. There are also instantaneous dungeons…”
“But it’s surely better than before!”
Foreign governments had flipped.
“Does this make sense? Why did that happen only in Korean territory?”
With the identity of the item [Aurora of Stability] revealed, the next question was who and how it was obtained…. And in what ways it could be obtained in the future.
While the world quickly exchanged communication.
From a certain point, one name began to be mentioned by those who focused on that phenomenon.
*
“Okay, it’s as rowdy as I expected.”
I mumbled as I watched the news continuously broadcasting about the Aurora and presenting their analysis.
There were two reasons why the 1.6 million experience points I spent were worth it.
One was to make it easier for the Celestial Dragon Guild to operate in Korea, its home base.
Guild members swept through the area. As I pointed out like a shaman, they continuously discovered the Gates, causing the number of dungeons being Cleared by Celestial Dragon to increase tremendously, causing the number of exploration team members to become insufficient.
Among them were ‘very unstable’ dungeons that couldn’t be found in my previous life and led to break sequences.
If the dungeon that nobody found and collapsed in my past life were found by the Celestial Dragon and still collapsed in this life, it would’ve been extremely meaningless.
‘I had bought time for enough hunters to be supplied.’
And the second reason.
I saw the breaking news on the T.V. that followed.
It was news of the arrival of notorious foreign Guild Masters who were famous all over the world.
– … In the midst of this, it was revealed that leadership and top-level hunters representing Britain’s “Matap” guild arrived at the Incheon International Airport yesterday.
– The Matap Guild is notorious for practically monopolizing magic skill cards of S-Class or higher. Their secret is due to the uncommon dungeon in the U.K., which repeatedly expanded despite being Cleared.
– The British government prohibits anyone outside the Matap Guild from entering the mentioned dungeon…
In the midst of the reporter’s explanation, the bad blood of my past life passed by one by one on the screen.
They were the aces of the Matap Guild.
They must have flown after hearing what happened in Korea like their ass was on fire.
Instead of closing the dungeon that’s about to collapse, they’re looking for a secret to keeping the door open and prolonging its life!
‘Okay, they took the bait.’
Now it’s time to take the next step.