After Regressing, I Gained the Power of the Demonic Dragon - Chapter 3

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 3
「Warning. Tutorial structure has been damaged.」
As Sang Hyuk withdrew his hand from the Stone Gate, the last of the black sand spilled away.
A palm-sized groove remained in the Stone Gate’s surface.
Whoom.
White light swept across the Stone Gate.
Moments later, fresh stone surged up to fill the carved hollow.
The Stone Gate returned to its original form, but the black sand on the floor did not vanish.
‘My God. The one thing no one could even scratch, and it actually shattered?’
Sang Hyuk’s eyes changed.
This Power was far stronger than he’d imagined.
He immediately opened the Power’s information.
[Power Name] <Extinction>
[Power Stage] Stage 1
[Current State] <Seed of Extinction>
[Effect] Erodes the essence that maintains an entity’s form.
[Completely eroded sections cannot be restored.]
[At this stage, the rank and scope of corrosion-capable targets are limited.]
[Mana and stamina consumption increase with higher target rank.]
Sang Hyuk fixed his gaze on the last two lines.
Powers developed from Stage 1 through Stage 10.
Beyond that lay the Transcendence stage—an order entirely removed from the standard progression.
His current Extinction was merely a seed, not yet even at full Stage 1.
And that nascent power had erased the Tower’s structure.
Boom!
Something crashed down behind Sang Hyuk.
The white floor shuddered, scattering light particles in all directions.
Sang Hyuk turned his head toward the sound.
A golden scarecrow in human form stood before him.
Nearly three meters tall, its thick arms and torso were smooth as if carved from solid metal.
[Adamant Scarecrow]
[Property: Indestructible]
「First Power awakening confirmed.」
「Training Construct summoned.」
「Freely use your Power and acclimate your body to it.」
This was the adaptation training of the early Tutorial.
The Adamant Scarecrow would not attack the player; instead, it served as a target designed to allow unrestricted testing of the first Power.
During his time frequenting the Awakening Institute, Sang Hyuk had read the records on this scarecrow multiple times.
Over the past four years, countless players had slashed it with blades, burned it, frozen it—but the result was always the same.
[No damage recorded.]
‘The Stone Gate broke. Maybe I can break this thing too.’
Sang Hyuk approached the scarecrow and pressed his palm, wreathed in black energy, against its right shoulder.
Screeeech.
From the point of contact, the golden shoulder transformed into black sand.
Thud.
The right arm fell to the floor.
A notification appeared with a hesitant delay.
「The Adamant Scarecrow’s right arm has… been damaged.」
Sang Hyuk stared at the unusually long ellipsis.
‘The Tower didn’t expect this thing to break either.’
Sang Hyuk’s eyes gleamed.
This time, he stepped back three paces and extended his hand toward the opposite shoulder.
Whoosh!
Black energy erupted from his fingertips.
As the energy streaking through the air made contact with the shoulder, the golden surface carved out a shallow groove.
Screeeech…!
The erosion was noticeably slower than with direct contact.
Sang Hyuk increased the distance further.
From five paces away, he aimed at the torso.
Black energy drifted through the air like smoke.
The time it took to reach his torso was brief, but it was slow enough that a moving opponent could easily evade it.
Crackle…!!
A black mark appeared across the center of his chest.
The surface had crumbled slightly, but the damage hadn’t penetrated deep.
Sang Hyuk stepped back further.
Then he used Extinction on the scarecrow again.
This time, however, the black aura lost its force before reaching the scarecrow and scattered into empty air.
‘Effective range is about five meters.’
The limitation was clear.
The farther the distance, the shallower the erosion.
The projectile speed wasn’t particularly fast either.
Most of all, the mana consumption was enormous.
After only a few attempts, his chest felt hollowed out with alarming speed.
‘This is my limit for now.’
Sang Hyuk was currently at Lv.1.
Regardless of the Authority’s grade, the mana to wield it was woefully insufficient.
Sang Hyuk examined the severed arm and the black mark on the torso in turn.
At range, it was only good for harassment.
To truly annihilate a target, he had to make direct contact.
Having reached his conclusion, Sang Hyuk walked toward the scarecrow again.
[Indestructible]
The words remained on the severed right arm as well, now masterless.
Sang Hyuk smiled quietly and placed his hand on the scarecrow’s chest.
This time, he intended to erase the entire torso.
The black aura of Extinction gathered in his hand.
Crackle-crackle.
Simultaneously, the scarecrow’s chest turned black.
The golden surface crumbled into black sand from the point where his palm made contact.
Sang Hyuk didn’t remove his hand.
As the black light spread across the entire chest, mana drained rapidly, and his right arm grew heavier by the moment.
‘Just a little more.’
Sang Hyuk pushed the last of his mana into it.
Crack.
A rift appeared in the blackened chest.
The rift split along the neck and waist, extending to the remaining left arm and both legs.
Crack-crack-crack!
The golden body fractured along the fissures.
Boom-crash!
The torso, head, remaining left arm, and both legs of the golden scarecrow tumbled to the floor all at once.
Every fragment that touched the ground transformed into black sand and scattered away.
Sang Hyuk lowered his hand.
The black aura lingering at his fingertips faded rapidly.
Destroying even a single scarecrow with Lv.1 mana was no simple task.
Yet the destructive power itself was “genuine.”
Just then, he noticed text remaining on the floor.
[Indestructible]
It was the right arm that had fallen off first.
Despite the torso vanishing, the golden arm retained its form.
‘I’ll need to erase this too.’
Sang Hyuk crouched before the severed arm.
He placed his palm over it and gathered what mana remained.
The black aura rose faintly from his fingertips.
Crackle.
The erosion was slower than before.
It was because Sang Hyuk’s mana was nearly exhausted.
Still, it did not stop.
The black spread across the entire arm.
The wrist crumbled, and the fingers turned to black sand one after another.
The moment the last finger vanished.
[Indestructible]
The text hanging in the void vanished.
“Phew.”
Sang Hyuk pushed himself up from the ground.
His body swayed for a moment, but he quickly steadied himself.
The white space held nothing but black sand.
The system remained silent for a time.
「……」
Only ellipsis marks appeared in place of words.
Even those faded shortly after.
A new notification emerged moments later.
「A notifiable Achievement has been recorded.」
「Please set a public name to display on the Achievement notification.」
‘A public name,’ he thought.
Sang Hyuk recalled the promising young players from South Korea who had revealed their names too early before his regression, only to become targets.
At that time, Korea’s national strength had been gravely weakened by successive rifts.
As talent drained away, the government and domestic guilds’ player support systems had become mere formality.
Player-strong nations like China and Russia had exploited the opening.
State-backed megagilds and brokers dangled enormous contracts and citizenship to any prospect who showed promise.
Refusal turned enticement into coercion.
They monitored every move, dug into families’ personal information, and did not hesitate to kidnap.
Among the sixty-four official member nations, Korea ranked sixty-fourth.
In the Eastern Channel, it ranked last among thirty-two nations.
Even when the Association and government lodged protests, the other nations feigned ignorance, and Korea could only watch as its promising players slipped away.
Some players, of course, had left of their own accord, seeking better conditions elsewhere.
But many others, threatened with harm to their families or realizing they could not protect themselves by staying in Korea, had changed their nationality.
The records showed voluntary emigration, but it had been a choice made under duress.
The current Sang Hyuk was Lv.1.
He did not yet have the strength to protect his family from the powerful nations targeting him.
Most of all, he did not want to lose Kim Do Hyun, Kim Sang Jun, and Kim Seo Yun a second time.
There was no need to paint targets on their backs.
Not until Korea became a nation capable of protecting its own players.
Or until he became strong enough to face player superpowers like China and Russia alone.
It was better that his name remained hidden.
‘Private.’
「Your public name has been set to private.」
「The Achievement notification will display only the achiever’s nation of origin.」
The next instant.
An alert filled Sang Hyuk’s entire field of vision.
[World Achievement Unlocked]
[First destruction in Infinite Tower of a Tutorial Training Construct bearing the Indestructible attribute.]
[Achievement Title: Breaking the Impossible]
[The achiever’s name will remain private.]
[Achievement Points will be credited to the achiever’s nation of origin.]
[South Korea Achievement Points +20,000]
Sang Hyuk’s eyes fixed on that final number.
The projected shortfall for this quarter was approximately 150,000 points.
Subtracting the points he had just earned left 130,000 points remaining.
He had not yet escaped the period of large-scale rift occurrences.
Yet the future had unmistakably changed.
He had barely entered the Tutorial.
In that brief span, he had filled 20,000 of the points his nation needed to survive.
At first, newly returned as he was, Sang Hyuk had not known how he could resolve the Achievement Points issue.
But now.
Looking at the Achievement panel hovering before him, he saw a path.
‘I simply make more impossible records.’
Repeat the same feat moving forward.
Bring home points others cannot obtain.
If he filled all 130,000 points that way, this quarter’s rifts could be sealed.
That would be the first step toward South Korea’s recovery.
It would mean holding back the promising young players who had been preparing to emigrate, believing the nation was doomed.
It was a snowball effect—South Korea’s points would gradually accumulate through its own efforts.
And if Sang Hyuk grew stronger than he was now, the points they’d earn going forward would only multiply.
The world achievement reward notification came next.
「World achievement reward is being distributed.」
「The trait Apocalypse Dragon’s Heart reacts with the reward.」
「Partial Authority of Dragon’s Eye: Weak Point Discernment is unlocked.」
Heat bloomed behind Sang Hyuk’s eyes.
A thin current of dark energy traced along his optic nerve before dissipating.
[Authority Unlocked]
[Authority Name] Dragon’s Eye: Weak Point Discernment
[Current Status] Partially Opened
[Effect] You borrow a portion of the dragon’s sight.
[You can perceive structural weak points, rifts, and gaps in mana flow of targets.]
Sang Hyuk read through the authority information slowly.
Extinction was a force that erased existence itself.
Now he had eyes that could show him where to erase.
A deep hum resonated through the air.
The reconstructed black Stone Gate split open to the left and right.
Beyond the doorway came the sound of metal scraping against stone.
Scritch-scritch-scritch.
Sang Hyuk peered into the darkness beyond the opened gate.
His next test awaited him inside.
* * *
At that same moment.
Atop the global PlayerNet channels, a world achievement notification blazed.
[For the first time in Infinite Tower, a Tutorial Construct bearing the Indestructible attribute has been destroyed.]
[Achiever: Undisclosed]
[Nation: South Korea]
The channel, which had held its breath, erupted.
[USA/Lv.52] Raven: An Indestructible Tutorial Construct? You mean the one, right?
[Japan/Lv.64] Tsubaki: There’s no other entity that fits that description besides the Diamond Scarecrow.
[UK/Lv.58] Grey: What, they destroyed it? That doesn’t make sense. Not even the Sixteen Heavens have a record of such a thing in their Tutorial history, do they?
[China/Lv.63] Yun Ryu: The name’s hidden. The nation is South Korea… that South Korea? The one ranked last among the sixty-four nations in the ranking?
[Korea/Lv.41] Iron Sword: It’s our country! Really Korea!
[Korea/Lv.48] White Tiger: For real, the national achievement points jumped by +20,000. Not a glitch ㄷㄷ
[USA/Lv.52] Raven: Wait. If they destroyed the Diamond Scarecrow, shouldn’t they be facing the Guardian of Indestructibility by now? Don’t tell me they’re going to destroy that too?
[Germany/Lv.61] Eisen: Those two are different. That’s not the kind of entity you can destroy.
[China/Lv.69] Blade Breaker: Impossible. Unless they had a Tier 10 trait from the start, there’s no way they could beat it in the early stages.
[Korea/Lv.41] Iron Sword: Who knows. Everyone said the Diamond Scarecrow was absolutely indestructible too.
[China/Lv.69] Blade Breaker: I’ll bet my entire fortune they can’t beat it.
[Japan/Lv.51] Haru: I’ll bet something precious too. One of the two.
[Korea/Lv.41] Iron Sword: Everyone bet. No backing out later.
The shock of destroying the Diamond Scarecrow didn’t last long.
The conversation quickly shifted to the final boss of the Tutorial.
The Guardian of Indestructibility.
Even the current Sixteen Heavens had bypassed it during their own Tutorial, never daring to confront it.
Its level, defense, and regeneration were all beyond what a freshly Awakened player could overcome.
A consensus formed across the PlayerNet channels.
The Diamond Scarecrow might have been destroyed by a fortunate matchup of circumstances.
But the Guardian of Indestructibility was different.
That was impossible—or so they said.
* * *
While wagers were being placed on PlayerNet.
Sang Hyuk stepped through the opened Stone Gate.
The moment his foot crossed the threshold, the air itself changed.
Unlike the warm white space he’d left behind, the interior was cold and heavy.
A grey expanse with no visible ceiling.
Broken blades and dented armor lay scattered across the floor.
Scritch-scritch-scritch.
The sound of metal dragging across stone echoed again.
In the center of the space, something massive crouched in the darkness.
Its back, plated with black steel, rose higher than Sang Hyuk’s head.
A system notification appeared.
「You have entered the final gate of the Tutorial.」
「The final gate will begin shortly.」
[Objective: Survive for 10 minutes against the Guardian of Indestructibility.]
[Warning: This entity is not a defeat target.]
Information materialized above the crouching creature’s head.
[Guardian of Indestructibility]
[Lv. 25]
Sang Hyuk stared up at the numbers.
He was Lv. 1.
His opponent was Lv. 25.
Before his return, no player had ever brought down the Guardian of Indestructibility.
No strategy guide for it existed.
It had never been meant as something to defeat in the first place.
Surviving for ten minutes by running was the only orthodox approach.
「Tutorial Adjustment is being applied.」
[Health recovery rate has increased significantly.]
[Mana recovery rate has increased significantly.]
[Movement speed has increased.]
Whoosh.
Warmth flooded through his body.
The mana he’d depleted destroying the Diamond Scarecrow surged back with speed.
Strength returned to his heavy arms.
His feet felt lighter than before.
Sang Hyuk reviewed the adjustment details again.
Health and mana recovery.
Increased movement speed.
All of it was designed to help him flee from the guardian.
Thud.
The Guardian of Indestructibility planted its hand against the ground.
Its crouched upper body began to rise slowly.
Steel-plated legs extended, and the massive head lifted upward.
Two eyes ignited with crimson fire.
Boom!
As the guardian stood fully upright, the gray floor trembled beneath it.
A single foot was larger than Sang Hyuk’s entire torso.
Sang Hyuk activated his newly acquired Power.
‘Dragon’s Eye: Weak Point Discernment.’
Heat bloomed behind his eyes.
The gray space blurred and shifted in hue.
Crimson mana emerged beyond the guardian’s steel carapace.
The energy flowed from its torso through its limbs, pooling thick and dense at the knees and ankles.
An even fiercer red light gathered deep within its forehead.
The moment Sang Hyuk’s gaze fixed on that light—
「The final gate begins now.」
[Time remaining: 10:00]
Rumble.
The guardian’s right foot lifted slowly.
Its massive sole rose to shadow Sang Hyuk’s head.
But.
Sang Hyuk did not retreat.
For Extinction to work reliably, he had to make direct contact.
And so.
Crack!
Sang Hyuk lunged instead straight beneath the guardian’s descending foot.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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