Chapter 20 : Free ticket to trouble
The warping did not stop this time.
Layer One had dissolved like brittle glass under a hammer—fractured, collapsing inward, dragged into a point of white distortion. Li Chen had expected another open stretch of stone, perhaps harsher terrain, heavier gravity.
Instead—
The world unfolded upward.
He stood at the base of something colossal.
A castle.
Not the fairytale kind from cheap illustrations. Not the glossy structures from modern theme parks. This was something older. Broader. Carved from dark stone that seemed to drink the faint light around it.
Its towers speared into a sky that didn't quite resemble a sky. Thick clouds churned in slow spirals overhead, like ink stirred into water. The entire structure carried a presence that pressed against his senses , not physically ,but historically. As if it had witnessed wars he could not comprehend.
Massive buttresses reinforced its outer walls. Narrow windows slit the stone like watchful eyes. Weathered gargoyles crouched along the edges of the highest towers, their features sharp and cruel.
Li Chen forgot to breathe.
He had seen tall buildings that belonged to the court officials before. Even office towers.
But this?
This felt alive.
He stepped forward unconsciously.
"Whoa…"
His voice echoed faintly across the vast stone courtyard that separated him from the main gates.
The gates themselves were easily thirty meters tall. Forged from black metal veined with dull silver patterns. Strange symbols spiraled across their surface, etched so deeply they seemed burned rather than carved.
He craned his neck higher.
"People actually built stuff like this?"
He stood there for a full five seconds.
Maybe Ten.
"…Right."
Li Chen blinked rapidly and straightened.
He coughed once, as if someone had caught him fangirling over architecture.
"Get it together."
He scanned the area again, this time with sharper focus.
Something was different.
The pressure.
He paused.
Layer One had felt like an invisible mountain pressing against his back. Every breath had been deliberate. Every movement measured.
Now?
He rotated his shoulders experimentally.
Moved his neck.
Took a step.
Another.
The weight was still there—but distant. Muted. Like background noise he'd finally tuned out.
A slow grin spread across his face.
"So this is what getting used to it feels like."
Not stronger.
Not lighter.
Just… normal.
He laughed under his breath.
A translucent blue panel shimmered into existence before him.
---
[Trial Space: Layer Two]
Arrival Confirmed.
Enter the structure and begin progression quest.
---
He stared at it for a moment.
"That's it? No dramatic speech? No ominous warning?"
The panel flickered once.
Then disappeared.
"…You've gotten stingy."
Another thought hit him.
His expression shifted.
"Wait."
He looked down at his hands.
At his body.
If he was here… then what about his actual body?
The pressure chambers.
His dorm.
Earth.
The question had barely fully formed when another panel surfaced.
---
[Clarification Requested: Host Physical Status]
This Trial Space exists within an isolated dimensional construct.
Temporal Conversion Ratio:
1 Day (Trial Space) = 1 Hour (Earth Standard Time)
Host physical body remains in stabilized stasis during trial immersion.
---
Li Chen blinked slowly.
"…One day equals one hour."
He did the math instinctively.
If he spent a week in here—
That was just seven hours outside.
His amazement rose first.
"That's broken."
Then something colder crept in.
"…That's terrifying."
Separate dimension.
Time distortion.
Body stabilization.
The system didn't just track stats and throw monsters at him.
It also seemed like it controlled physics.
He looked at the castle again, and for the first time, it felt less like a dungeon and more like a laboratory.
"What exactly did I sign up for…"
The thought lingered—but didn't root.
He shook his head.
Later.
Survive first. Question omnipotent mysterious entities later.
He approached the massive gates.
Up close, the details were even more intricate. Silver lines formed layered circular patterns at the center—an array. Symbols rotated faintly within its rings, glowing dimly.
Another panel surfaced without prompting.
---
[Access Restriction: Blood Imprint Required]
User authentication required for entry.
---
Li Chen raised an eyebrow.
"Of course, it just had to be blood."
He glanced around as if expecting someone to say, "Just kidding."
No one did.
With a resigned sigh, he extended his right hand.
Qi gathered along his fingertips, compressing into a thin, shimmering blade.
He hesitated.
"…This better not drain half my HP for dramatic effect."
A quick flick—
A shallow cut opened along his thumb.
It stung.
He pressed it against the center of the glowing array.
For half a second—
Nothing happened.
Then—
Light erupted outward.
The entire circular pattern ignited in violent violet luminescence. Symbols spun rapidly. Energy pulsed beneath the metal like veins filling with blood.
Li Chen jerked back instinctively.
"Whoa—!"
The ground vibrated.
A deep, ancient creaking echoed through the courtyard as unseen mechanisms awakened.
Stone shifted.
Metal groaned.
The towering gates split down the middle.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
Dust cascaded from above as centuries of stillness broke.
And beyond—
Darkness.
Not pitch-black.
But shadowed.
Inviting.
He swallowed.
"Well."
He rolled his shoulders once.
There no turning back
He stepped inside.
---
The air changed immediately.
Cooler.
Heavier.
The entrance corridor stretched forward in a long, vaulted hallway. Torches ignited along the walls one by one as he advanced, casting golden light against polished stone floors.
The hallway opened abruptly into something vast.
Li Chen stopped.
"…Okay."
The chamber before him was enormous.
A royal audience hall.
The ceiling arched high above, supported by thick stone columns carved with intricate reliefs of battles and monstrous creatures. Chandeliers made of black iron hung suspended by chains thick as tree trunks.
At the far end, a grand throne sat elevated atop a broad staircase.
It wasn't gaudy.
It was imposing.
Carved from a single slab of dark crystal-like stone. Its back rose in jagged spires, resembling a crown turned vertical.
Rows of ancient armor lined both sides of the hall—full suits standing at silent attention. Their designs were unfamiliar. Angular. Brutal. Helmets shaped like snarling beasts.
Between the armor stood statues.
Massive creatures frozen mid-roar.
A winged serpent coiled around a pillar.
A six-legged wolf with blades instead of fur.
A towering humanoid with antlers branching like a forest canopy.
Li Chen slowly turned in place.
This place surely belonged to something strong
Or rather someone
Artifacts rested atop long tables along the walls, swords humming faintly with residual energy. Shields engraved with symbols that shimmered .
But none of that held him.
Because in the center of the chamber—
Floating above a circular pedestal—
Was a sphere.
Purple.
Radiant.
It hovered without support, rotating slowly. Wisps of violent energy drifted from its surface like smoke underwater. The light it emitted was soft, but concentrated.
Beautiful.
Dangerous.
His instincts tightened immediately.
But curiosity rose stronger.
What if it's a reward?
What if it's the core of this layer?
What if leaving it alone means missing something important?
He stepped forward.
One step.
Nothing happened.
Another.
Still silent.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Too easy."
He took a third step.
The sound was subtle.
A faint whistle.
His brain registered it half a second too late.
Something sliced through the air toward him.
He twisted—but not fully.
Pain flared along his thigh as an arrow grazed him, carving a shallow line through fabric and skin.
"—Tch!"
He stumbled and rolled backward, hand slamming against the polished stone floor.
[-5HP]
The arrow embedded into a column behind where he had stood.
He looked up sharply.
Footsteps echoed.
Measured.
Heavy.
From the shadows near the throne, a figure emerged.
Tall.
Broad.
Clad in dark armor far more refined than the decorative suits lining the hall.
Its helmet bore no faceplate—only a narrow horizontal slit glowing faint violet from within.
It carried a longbow carved from bone-like material, already lowering from its firing position.
Li Chen groaned and pressed a hand against his thigh.
Li Chen sighed.
Before muttered under his breath:
"…You know, maybe robbing people doesn't sound like such a bad idea now."