Ascension Through Skills

Chapter 128

Clash.

Their swords collided.

Taesan’s arm wavered.

The second sword of the Stormscar Sword, the Dance of the Sword, unfolded.

The trajectory was smoother and harder to read than before. Kang Junhyeok couldn’t block it for even two seconds and got his arm sliced.

“Ugh, I can’t block it now.”

Kang Junhyeok grimaced as he shook his arm. Taesan, on the other hand, had a satisfied look on his face.

His movements had completely changed. It was like the first time he had learned swordsmanship, a significant transformation. Movements he didn’t understand or couldn’t follow before were now effortlessly replicable.

He had become incomparably stronger in terms of combat, especially in close quarters.

It was a change worthy of being called God’s Blessing.

“I received it, too, but I don’t see any change. In fact, it seems easier for me to lose now.”

“But you’ve become stronger, haven’t you?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Kang Junhyeok felt that he had become stronger as he looked at Taesan with awe.

“To have defeated such a monster.”

The B-grade monster had released its power.

Kang Junhyeok was overwhelmed by it. His confidence was shattered, and he was scared.

But Taesan won against that monster.

He received the recognition of a god from that dreadful labyrinth, leading to the bestowal of a blessing to all of humanity.

Now, it was embarrassing even to compare them.

“Really… you’re amazing.”

“That’s enough.”

Taesan swung his sword.

“We don’t have much time left, so come on.”

The God’s Blessing bestowed by Lakiratas was not only for Taesan but for all of humanity.

After resting and recovering, people sparred with each other to understand the changes. And they were amazed. They couldn’t help but be in awe and excited about how strong they had become.

For them, about to descend into the labyrinth once more, becoming stronger literally meant their survival rate had increased. They expressed their infinite gratitude to Taesan.

“Thank you!”

“Taesan! There you are!”

Annoyed by the people flocking to him, Taesan climbed up to the rooftop of a building.

“This is burdensome.”

He had not received such positive feelings very often. Taesan received their greetings and went to find Kim Hwiyeon.

“How are the damages?”

“A lot died.”

Kim Hwiyeon grimaced, but there was no despair on her face.

“We’ve become stronger. Thanks to you, Taesan.”

She also tried light sparring. Just that was enough to feel the difference from before.

“Next time I come back… I will be much stronger.”

She clenched her fist.

This was not a bad result for Taesan either.

Not only the majority of average players but also the last surviving Hard Mode players had been enhanced.

No matter how strong he was, he couldn’t handle all the enemies alone.

In the end, the more people survived, the more they could do, and the higher their survival rate would be.

“It’s a good thing.”

The effort to defeat the monster was worth it.

Above all, he received not only the blessing of God but also other skills.

And it was time to return to the labyrinth.

“Then don’t die, and see you next time.”

After saying farewell, Taesan closed his eyes. The spreading cracks of the labyrinth swallowed him up.

When he opened his eyes again, he was inside the labyrinth.

[Monster elimination bonus + 383]

[First wave bonus + 53]

[Second wave bonus + 45]

[Third wave bonus + 50]

[Fourth wave bonus + 8]

[Secret quest bonus + 525]

[Suppression bonus + 104]

[Victory bonus + 112]

[Settlement complete]

[12,800 points will be paid.]

“Ha.”

12,800 points. A number that naturally brought a smile to his face.

It took Taesan a lot of effort to get this number. He sat down in his seat with pleasure.

“Let’s take it easy and think about it.”

[Gold is converted at a 1:10 ratio.]

[Stats are converted at a 5:1 ratio.]

[The proficiency of skills is converted at a 10:1 ratio.]

The conversion rates were like this. Taesan prioritized them in order. It was a very pleasant worry.

‘Just like before, gold is useless.’

Converting 12,800 points only yielded 12,800 gold. Stats were similar.

He could become significantly stronger with his current stats, but the value dropped compared to the proficiency.

“Is it proficiency again this time?”

A total of 128% could be increased.

It means that the proficiency of a skill could be fully leveled up to 100%, and there would still be some left.

During the previous return, he had leveled up the proficiency of magic. Everything, including damage and activation speed, was enhanced, and he had been using it effectively until now.

‘What will happen if it reaches 100%?’

[Magic]

[Proficiency: 48%]

[You can handle magic properly. You can handle fire, control cold, and manipulate wind.]

Previously, he had increased the proficiency to 44% with points; after all that usage, it had only increased by 4%.

It was a rule of thumb to use points for proficiency in skills that were hard to improve. However, just as Taesan was about to use his points.

[Note: The ratio of points to proficiency may change when the proficiency of a skill exceeds a certain level.]

“Huh?”

Taesan frowned.

“I didn’t see this last time.”

Even before his regression, he had used points to reach 100% a few times, but there had been no problems. This was the first time he had heard of a change in ratio like this.

After pondering for a moment, Taesan realized the answer.

‘It must be because it’s magic.’

Lilis had said that the proficiency of magic rose very slowly. There were even those who would cut off their fingers to increase it by 1%.

It was evident from the fact that the proficiency of magic had risen slower than any other skill he had obtained so far.

And as the proficiency got higher, it would get worse. The balance would be broken if one could reach 100% proficiency with just one point dump.

This was likely some kind of balance patch that had been judged necessary.

“Does this mean other skills will be the same?”

Airak Martial Arts. Sword of the Stormscar. Black Magic. And so on.

There would be restrictions like magic on all the valuable skills obtained in the labyrinth.

“That’s a shame.”

Although Taesan understood, it was a disappointing story for him. The path to increasing proficiency in magic was blocked. After contemplating, he made a decision.

“I should strengthen everything overall this time.”

He decided to distribute 75%, investing a little bit into meaningful skills.

It wasn’t a bad decision to do so. Combat engagement skills. If the proficiency of all those skills increased by 5%, they would become that much stronger.

Investing all in one skill was to see the potential of that skill.

However, there was no skill worth doing that for at the moment. Divine power was a skill he didn’t know how to use, and it was ambiguous whether black magic had that much value yet. So, the right answer was overall investment.

Having made his decision, Taesan began distributing the points.

If he distributed 5% each, he could strengthen a total of 25 skills. He started investing in skills that could change their content as the proficiency increased.

As a result, the content of many skills changed.

[The proficiency of 'Field of Vision' has reached 100%. 'Field of Vision' has evolved into the special permanent activation skill 'Synchronized Eyes'.]

Finally, the Field of Vision reached 100% and evolved into Synchronized Eyes.

[Special permanent activation skill: Synchronized Eyes]

[Proficiency: 1%]

[A field of vision that resonates with everything. You can see beyond the field of vision and even see things that are not visible.]

Taesan immediately experimented with it.

[You have activated Blazing Sphere.]

With a whoosh, flames erupted along with the system window that, indicated the skill’s activation. Taesan admired the process he had observed.

“So this is how it works.”

He saw the mana gathering in the brief moment when the Blazing Sphere was activated. Until now, he could only feel the wavelength, but now he could see it in his field of vision.

This would be a great help in combat. The difference between feeling and actually seeing was significant. Confirming with eyes and taking counteraction was more accurate than just evading based on sensation.

[You have activated 'Walking the Wind Path of the Deer'.]

It became even clearer when he checked the elemental skill. He could see the wind gathering, swirling, and moving forward, with the accompanying power visible to his eyes.

This would be a big help when fighting with spirits on the 29th floor.

[Special permanent activation skill: Sustained Combat]

[Proficiency: 60%]

[You can sustain combat for a long time. You don't get tired easily. The time you can fight in the best condition has increased. The time to reach the limit of physical strength has greatly increased.]

The added part was that the time to reach the limit of physical strength had increased.

This was a good change. Literally, he could fight for days without getting tired. In the previous world, he had defeated S-grade monsters through endless repetition, thanks to this skill.

[Special permanent activation skill: Enhanced Senses]

[Proficiency: 61%]

[Senses are enhanced. You can feel things like killing intent. You can also feel blind spots. You can feel invisible things even better.]

With Synchronized Eyes, if an attack came from an awkward place, it wouldn’t even reach Taesan.

The skill Mark of Struggle given by Lakiratas had also changed its content. Still, it was disappointing because although the word ‘decent’ was added, there were no significant changes.

[Special activation skill: Breathless Attack]

[Mana Consumption: 2]

[Proficiency: 62%]

[You can move, ignoring breath during combat. It lasts for about 30 seconds, and you can move at full power.]

The Breathless Attack that he had always used without even realizing had also changed.

Firstly, the duration became 30 seconds. Additionally, the content that he could move with full power was added.

Literally, even if he moved his body with all his heart, his muscles would hardly get fatigued. This change had a significant impact on the battle.

[Special Activation Skill: Acceleration]

[Mana Consumption: 5]

[Proficiency: 21%]

[Accelerates faster towards the target.]

Acceleration also had the faster part added.

As it was a skill that allowed him to reach the enemy quickly, this was also a meaningful change.

[Basic Magic: Frost Arrow]

[Mana Consumption: 6]

[Proficiency: 22%]

[Fires a frost arrow. The enemy takes more damage the less immune it is. Tries to afflict the target with the abnormal status [Freeze]. The strong cold can freeze the air.]

The Frost Arrow he always enjoyed using was also enhanced. Considering how often he used it, the speed was very slow. As expected, the proficiency in magic skills increased slowly.

He activated Frost Arrow. The cold was much stronger. Now, just being next to it, his breath turned into frost.

If it was a low-grade enemy, they would take damage even if they avoided it. He was satisfied.

Besides that, Craving for Battle, Righteous Duel, Proof of Limit, Annihilation of the Strong, and Half-belief, etc.

He had increased the proficiency of most of the skills that affected battle. Although the content was not changed, it was definitely a reinforcement.

He was satisfied. There was also a new skill he had acquired.

[Special Activation Skill: Apostle Transformation [Lakiratas]]

[For 10 minutes, you gain some of the power of Lakiratas's apostles since the god of struggle and death first bestowed his power after his birth. This skill cannot be used for a day after activation.]

Until now, he had always been receiving the apostle’s contract.

It was a skill that allowed him to draw out some of the power he could get when he accepted that contract.

[Apostle Transformation... I've seen many who received the apostle's contract, but I didn't know there was a skill that could be given like this. It's really interesting. Interesting.]

Listening to the excited ghost’s words, it seemed like he was the first to have obtained this power as a skill.

If what the ghost had said until now was true, it was a skill that could change the course of events.

“A B-grade monster’s reward is enough.”

While Taesan was happily checking the skills, two skills caught his eye.

“What are these? How do you use them?”

[Divine Power]

[Proficiency: 2%]

[The grace given when someone believes and follows a god. It seems meaningless for now.]

He had obtained it when defeating Harmon’s angel, but there was no change. The ghost mumbled in a vague tone.

[I've never heard that I learned it like this. Maybe it's a skill that you can use when you obtain divinity or godhood?]

“I don’t know.”

For now, it was a meaningless skill that just increased in proficiency digits.

But it was easy to understand. As it was a power related to god, Taesan, who was not a god, could not use it. That was how he accepted it.

There was a truly unknown skill separately.

[Concept Skill: ???]

[Proficiency: 12%]

[The ??? of will descends.]

“What kind of skill is this?”

[...I don't know?]

It seemed that the ghost also didn’t know.

“…When I defeated the monster, Soul Ascension was activated.”

The proficiency increased by 8%, and the content descriptor of descending will was added.

But it was still an unknown skill. He had obtained it when defeating the native monster in the world of blacksmith Hafran. After that, proficiency increased when defeating the high god’s monster. There was no consistency.

“I should check it with the blacksmith.”

Taesan headed to the blacksmith.