Episode 161
161. Episode 161
Before returning, Seun had climbed the tower and seen various elixirs. Thanks to the guide map on the journey, it was easier to find the elixirs than others.
Of course, the number of elixirs I took directly was not that many.
At that time, it was more important for Seun to survive the ordeal by purchasing good items rather than increasing his abilities by a small amount.
The flower blooming in front of me now was also one of the elixirs that Se-woon knew.
‘Seolsam.’
The elixir known to bloom only in extreme snowy mountains was this snow ginseng.
Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the flower wasn’t very big.
It doesn’t seem like it will last as long as ten thousand years, but it is still at a level that can be consumed sufficiently.
Se-un began to harvest ginseng with his familiar skills.
Thanks to his experience before returning and his knowledge of the ‘Inas Plant Encyclopedia’ he had used before, his harvesting skills were no less than those of an expert.
Knock knock-
As I dug into the ground, a cold air rose up through the blade.
This is precisely what makes it difficult to harvest ginseng. The land around which ginseng grows is colder than anywhere else.
If you just hold the sword still like this, your hand will stick to the handle and you will get frostbite.
However, Seun was protected from the cold by the ‘Yeti’s skin’.
Before the return, I had to dig while somehow blocking the cold with thick gloves, but now I could dig up the dirt without worrying about that.
I concentrated all my energy into making sure not to damage even a single root.
And finally.
“phew.”
We were able to perfectly harvest the ginseng that had taken root deeper than expected.
– Completed the hidden quest, ‘Millennium Snow Ginseng’.
– Additional points are awarded for the trial ‘Snowfield Gathering’.
– You have obtained ‘Millennium Ginseng’ as a reward.
[ Millennium Snow Ginseng ]
Category: Elixir
Grade: B+
Description: Ginseng that grows only in extremely cold regions, it has absorbed cold air for a thousand years and retains pure cold energy.
Ability: 1. Essence of Cold – When consumed, greatly absorbs the energy of cold.
As Se-un had expected, it was not the Millennium Seol-sam. However, the Millennium Seol-sam was one of the best elixirs that could compete with the best elixirs.
In addition, I received public service points through a hidden quest, so it was killing two birds with one stone.
“That’s good.”
Se-Woon, who had recently been building up his yang energy through Jaha Shin Gong, was thinking that he would soon have to build up his yin energy to balance his danjeon.
But then, I happened to find the elixir of life, the Millennium Seol-sam. It felt like someone was helping Se-un grow.
Se-Woon, who was planning to use the elixir leisurely at the next shelter, changed his mind after checking the surroundings.
‘If it’s here… … .’
A cold chill rises through the soles of my feet.
Not only was it filled with cold energy that could grow thousand-year-old ginseng, but its mana density was also surprisingly high.
It was the best place to build up internal energy and mana.
But what if you also take millennium ginseng here?
You will be able to achieve training results that are better than you think.
However, there was one problem.
[ Time remaining: 47 hours 02 minutes ]
We are in the midst of trials right now.
There is a time limit, and the longer it takes to pass the trial, the lower the public service reward.
Even if the reward for training here was greater than the public service reward, there was one more problem.
Usually, when absorbing internal energy or mana, you forget that time is passing.
In fact, when Seun used the mana training method in the ‘Sparkling Garden’ of the first shelter, he absorbed mana without realizing the passage of time.
When I came to my senses, the sun had already risen.
It may have ended in one night, but who knows what will happen this time.
If I were not careful and used up all of the remaining 47 hours, there was a chance that I would not be able to pass the ordeal.
While Seun was pondering this, Mamon, who had materialized into a physical form, appeared with small wings spread out.
“What are you worried about?”
“that is…….”
“Aren’t I here?”
“yes?”
“I can help you wake up before the ordeal is over.”
It was Mammon’s unexpected help.
Of course, I thought about asking Mamon, but I didn’t care because I didn’t think the snobby Mashin would do something like a wake-up call.
I never thought that Mamon would be the first to step forward and do charity.
But, there was still one more problem.
That’s right, mana reflux.
If you are forcibly awakened while you are in a state of trance while gathering internal energy or mana, the mana will flow back and your body will be ruined.
“Even if I can barely exert any power in this form, I am still a demon after all. Suppressing the backflow of mana is easy.”
“……thank you.”
Well, there’s no way Mamon didn’t think of this too.
Se-woon expressed his gratitude with a relaxed face.
I had no worries as long as she was watching over me.
He sat down cross-legged on the spot where the thousand-year-old ginseng was growing, and immediately swallowed the thousand-year-old ginseng.
– The constellation, the ‘hungry prince’, envies you.
I swallowed the root, the stem, and even the flower in one bite.
Since I hadn’t washed the roots, I could feel the rough dirt and ice chips, but I didn’t care.
– The Treasure Trove of Greed has been opened.
[Ice White Divine Skill]
– A secret passed down from generation to generation in the North Sea Ice Palace, which has never once lost its supremacy over the North Sea as the absolute powerhouse of the North Sea.
A cold wind blew around Seun and his yin energy began to be absorbed.
* * *
[ Time remaining: 1 hour 12 minutes ]
“Mr. Se-un, why aren’t you coming?”
An open space that can only be reached after passing through numerous crevasses in the snowfield.
Dozens of people were waiting around the empty space where the ‘frozen giant’, the target guided by the ordeal, stood.
That’s right, the Diablo Clan.
Thanks to the winter gear prepared in advance and the existence of the crevasses that Seun had told us about, not a single person was left behind this time either.
No, just one.
Seun didn’t arrive.
Even though there’s only an hour left.
“Don’t worry. There’s no way you’d fall into a crevasse or anything like that.”
“I know that too, but… … there’s only an hour left.”
Despite Kang Han-cheol’s words, Yoo Seo-ah couldn’t shake off her anxiety.
When we arrived at our destination, I thought Se-woon would be the first to arrive, but 47 hours had already passed and there was only one hour left, but he was nowhere to be seen.
At that moment, Park Jeong-pil, who had been loitering nearby, approached her.
“Didn’t you just get there first and move on to the next ordeal? That’s what you would do, hyung.”
“No, that’s not true. The next trial is a group trial.”
“But… … Brother, you’re not the type of person who would be hit there, right? Or did you come first and hide?”
As the name of the trial, ‘Snowfield Gathering’ suggests, the next floor was a trial that the gathered players proceeded with together.
Naturally, the system allowed Diablo clans to come together for this trial as well.
So, no matter how much you set out, you won’t be able to move on to the next ordeal alone.
“I told you not to worry. Rather, shouldn’t you be thinking about what the next ordeal will be? If we’re going to get everyone together, it’s going to be an incredibly difficult ordeal.”
“Yes, just in case, everyone please finish preparing for battle.”
I was worried, but I couldn’t just bite my fingernails like this.
I had to prepare in advance so as not to look flustered when Se-woon arrived.
So that we can get through to the 17th floor even without him.
Although she was not the clan leader, Yu Seo-ah had a sense of responsibility as a leader.
“Don’t worry. Just like in the tutorial, it’ll appear somewhere.”
“I guess so?”
An empty lot in the snowy field.
While the entire Diablo clan prepared for battle, a very small change was occurring in the middle of it all.
Booths.
The ‘Frozen Giant’ was the target of the 16th floor trial. The ice that had bound the giant was cracking apart little by little.
* * *
– I accumulated this gapja’s internal energy in my danjeon through the Bingbaek Shingong.
– The effectiveness of all martial arts used increases according to the level of internal energy increased.
– The martial arts used according to the secret of the Ice Baek Shingong will be imbued with the energy of extreme yin.
– You have achieved amazing feats.
– You have earned 200,000 points as a reward.
As expected, the synergy effect of the training ground full of yin energy and the thousand-year-old snow ginseng was enormous.
I have gathered not just one year of internal energy while sitting, but two years of internal energy.
Because of that, I had to break out in a cold sweat at the end trying to balance the yin and yang energy.
If the yin and yang are not balanced, the original meaning of practicing Bingbaek Shingong will fade away.
Anyway, the goal was achieved perfectly.
However, there was one problem.
[ Time remaining: 6 minutes 12 seconds ]
The fact was that there were less than ten minutes left until the ordeal ended.
“Mamon, I told you I would wake you up before the trial was over!”
“Hmm? Isn’t there still time left?”
“There are only 6 minutes left!”
“Isn’t six minutes enough? If you hadn’t woken up now, I would have tried to wake you up when there were about five minutes left, so you have more time than Jim expected.”
It took us nearly an hour to get here, running quickly through the portrait booth.
Considering that this huge crevasse is located exactly halfway between the 16th floors, it would logically take close to an hour to reach our destination.
However, you must complete that distance in 6 minutes.
Even if Se-woon hadn’t come to his senses on his own, he would have woken up three minutes later.
‘shit!’
It was a difference of opinion rather than Mammon’s fault.
If she were a drinker, it would only take a few seconds to cross this snowy field… … .
Anyway, right now, it’s more important to leave as soon as possible rather than complaining.
Flutter.
Icarus’ wings spread wide.
Perhaps because he had just performed the Ice Bing Shin Gong, ice pellets fell between his feathers.
Taat!
Seun flew through the broken ice wall into the blizzard.
The cold blizzard blocked Seun’s body, but it was unable to inflict any damage on Seun’s strengthened body, which had gained two generations of internal energy, bringing his total to four generations of internal energy.
He flapped his wings widely and poured out his mana without sparing anything.
Kwaaaaah!
A sharp sound of wind passed by my ears.
Seun quickly broke through the crevasse and flew straight to his destination.
He used his internal energy to its maximum and moved his wings even faster.
He was flying so fast that it was hard to keep his eyes open, but Mamon muttered quietly enough for Seun to not hear.
“… … It’s slower than I thought.”
– The constellation, ‘The Serpent Surrounding Time’, shakes its head at the crow’s lack of a sense of reality.
The circle quickly overheated due to the rapidly draining mana.
Still, there was no way to slow down.
5 minutes, 3 minutes, 1 minute.
The remaining time was ticking down to the seconds.
A moment when you flap your wings as wide as possible without even having time to breathe.
– You have successfully completed the 16th floor trial, ‘Snowfield Gathering’.
– Calculating public figures… … .
– Time remaining: 3 seconds
– Number of monsters hunted: 13.
– Complete the hidden quest ‘Millennium Snow Ginseng’.
…
– Total accumulated merit points: 60,300 points
The 16th floor trial ended with a score that felt infinitely shabby compared to the scores I had earned so far.
Well, I barely passed the ordeal with only 3 seconds left out of 48 hours. Even if I had cleared the hidden quest, there was nothing I could do about it.
But I had no regrets.
Although you need to accumulate merit for the future, it is much more important to have a dantian filled with the internal energy of the four seasons.
The moment Seun arrives at the gathering place.
“Kuaaaah!”
The frozen giant roared, shattering the ice that bound him.
fantasy,
