The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 294
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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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The Maxed-Out Player’s 100th Return – Episode 294
294. Eternal Equipment
Back at home, Ryu Min lay quietly on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
So much had transpired.
He’d killed Michael and suddenly become a god.
When he visited the Demon King’s Castle for testing, Artaros suddenly appeared.
Then a Quest appeared demanding he kill four Divine Beings.
‘I can simply ignore the Quest if I choose….’
The real problem was that the gods would never leave him alone.
Hadn’t he already been marked by a god named Nyx?
‘I’ll accept any challenge directed at me. Just don’t touch my family with such cowardly tactics.’
They might target his Younger Brother again, just like before.
They could even extend their reach to those close to him.
‘No matter how strong I become, I’m alone. I can’t protect everything.’
Then there was only one solution.
Eliminate the source.
Evil seeds must be uprooted from the beginning, after all.
‘I haven’t met the other gods yet, so I can’t say… but next time we meet, will I be able to defeat Artaros?’
Even after halving his stats with the aura of death, that creature had maintained superiority over him.
Moreover, it possessed an immortal body that wouldn’t die no matter how many times he killed it.
‘It’s definitely the strongest enemy I’ve faced so far.’
Despite gathering runes, collecting titles, and growing stronger repeatedly, the world was vast and strong opponents were plentiful.
‘Phlunikthos is formidable in his own right. For creatures of that caliber.’
Compared to Ryu Min, Phlunikthos was easily worthy of reigning as the Demon King of the Demon Realm.
Yet this creature posed no real concern.
He was simply too easy an opponent.
‘Next time we meet, I’ll end him decisively.’
In truth, Artaros wasn’t a major concern either.
In terms of combat alone, he had confidence in victory.
In fact, after escaping the Space of Nothingness, Ryu Min had slain the Celestial Tribe members and accumulated nearly one hundred million stat points.
In terms of stats alone, he’d become nearly twice as strong.
Therefore, the Ryu Min who faced Artaros and the current Ryu Min were completely different.
His stats had doubled.
‘I have a chance. But I mustn’t be careless. I must prepare.’
Time manipulation, his immortality ability, the Space of Nothingness, and more.
There were still many aspects he hadn’t overcome.
‘First, I need to accumulate more stats. I must grow stronger than I am now.’
The real problem wasn’t Artaros.
Other gods might be equally strong as Artaros.
There was no telling when or what kind of battle would erupt next.
‘One thing’s certain—Artaros will come after me soon enough.’
He would have witnessed it all.
My merciless slaughter of the Celestial Tribe and Demon Tribe—there’s no way he’d think I’d lost my memories.
‘If he knows my memories are intact, he won’t just sit idle.’
He’ll definitely return to finish what he started, and the most likely timing would be Round 19.
‘He probably won’t show up in reality. Once Round 19 begins, I’ll be summoned to the Other World anyway.’
Still, I can’t just sit back and wait to be caught off guard.
I need a strategy for when we meet again.
‘Come to think of it, I did receive a title.’
Ryu Min suddenly remembered and opened his information window.
[Title – Max Level]
-Acquisition Condition: Obtained upon being the first to reach Level 99.
-Effect: Increase all stats by your level.
I have a title from being the first to reach max level, but those stats alone won’t cut it.
I need to grow stronger, and there’s only one way to do that.
Synthesis.
I have no choice but to create Eternal-grade equipment by any means necessary.
So before opening the material pouch, Ryu Min prayed.
For condensed ether to appear.
[You have used the Infinite Material Pouch.]
[Congratulations! 5 material items have been obtained!]
[Items have been added to your inventory!]
Ryu Min jolted upright in shock after checking the materials in his inventory.
‘Two condensed ethers? Is this real?’
The other three materials were unfamiliar, so they must be items needed for Eternal crafting.
‘Since I have two refined ethers, I can make at least two Eternal pieces of equipment.’
Ryu Min began synthesizing materials, planning to craft gauntlets and boots.
Though he had no blueprint, he knew that refined ether and condensed ether each needed to go into the secondary materials.
He placed them accordingly, filled the remaining three slots with the unknown materials, and initiated the rotation.
Without knowing the formula, he had no choice but to guess.
His luck held, and finally an item materialized.
[Synthesizing Eternal-grade item.]
[The item’s grade is high, so synthesis will take time. Please wait patiently.]
[Combining materials….]
[Analyzing user’s soul….]
[Synchronizing resonance….]
[Synthesis successful!]
[You have created ‘Gauntlets of the Soul’.]
[Gauntlets of the Soul]
-Classification: Gloves
-Grade: Eternal
-Defense: 5,000
-Effect: All Stats +200. When killing Divine Beings, steal their souls and use the stolen souls’ abilities.
-Durability: Infinite
-Usage Restriction: Black Scythe (Soul-Bound)
-Description: A soul-bound item that exerts its influence by overlaying the user’s soul rather than their physical body. Cannot be transferred to others. Can be equipped simultaneously with other equipment items.
Ryu Min was dumbfounded upon seeing the options.
‘What is this? Steal the souls of Divine Beings?’
The options were explicitly telling him to kill gods.
‘…Well, the effects are good regardless.’
The advantage of Eternal-grade equipment was that it could be worn simultaneously with God-grade items.
There was no need to discard the items I was currently wearing.
‘I’ve made one, so why not try crafting another?’
Ryu Min continued attempting combinations.
[This is not a valid combination.]
[This is not a valid combination.]
[This is not a valid combination.]
…
…
Failure messages appeared, but rather than feeling discouraged, I calculated the possibilities and attempted combinations methodically.
As a result.
[Combination successful!]
[You have created ‘Divine Steps’.]
I was able to craft another Eternal-grade item.
[Divine Steps]
-Classification: Footwear
-Grade: Eternal
-Defense: 5,000
-Effect: All Stats +200, Movement Speed +200%, Footsteps make no sound, and you can walk through empty air. Additionally, you can use the skill ‘Blink’.
-Durability: Infinite
-Usage Restriction: Black Scythe (Soul-Bound)
-Description: A soul-bound item that exerts its influence by overlaying the user’s soul rather than their physical body. Cannot be transferred to others. Can be equipped simultaneously with other equipment items.
I could walk through empty air even in broad daylight, and it came with an additional skill to boot.
It was an item with numerous auxiliary effects.
‘Use Blink? Let me check what that is.’
[Temporary Skill – Blink]
-Effect: Instantly teleport to a distance within a 30m radius. Has a 10-second cooldown.
As the name suggested, it was a teleportation skill.
‘Heh, as if walking through empty air wasn’t enough, now I can teleport too.’
The corners of Ryu Min’s mouth twitched upward.
There was no downside to acquiring items.
‘I’ve crafted the gloves and boots… so the only thing left is an Eternal weapon?’
There weren’t many rounds remaining either.
19, 20.
If I could just clear two more rounds, I could survive this tedious Game.
‘No, I can’t be certain of that yet.’
According to Michael, there would be a battle against Cheon Ma after the Game.
The Celestial Tribe was currently searching for long-term pieces to use in war.
‘Will I only be able to escape the Game after perfectly ending the war?’
I wasn’t sure.
The only way to know what happens next is to see it unfold.
‘I haven’t been to Round 20 and beyond, so I don’t know. But Round 19… I know that well.’
However, this time Ryu Min had no intention of sharing information with others.
It wasn’t about monopolizing it for himself, but rather minimizing the confusion that would arise from sharing the information.
‘They might be shocked if they heard the Quest details now.’
Having decided to keep quiet, Ryu Min didn’t summon the Saesin Religion followers as he usually did.
This time, he had no intention of revealing the Quest details.
* * *
Two weeks had passed since returning from Round 18.
Yet Heo Tae-sik had not received any contact from his god.
‘Why is there no word? Usually, he’d contact me within three or four days to summon the followers… Did something happen?’
Black Scythe was the one who typically summoned the followers and shared information about the next round.
But now there was complete silence, enough to stir unnecessary worry.
Heo Tae-sik picked up his phone and put it down repeatedly.
No matter what, the other party was someone he revered as a god.
The truth was, he was afraid to call first.
‘Something might have actually happened.’
Gathering his courage, Heo Tae-sik called Black Scythe.
Ring, ring—click.
Unexpectedly, the call was answered quickly, but now Heo Tae-sik found himself at a loss for words.
—Cult Leader Heo. What’s wrong? Why aren’t you saying anything?
“Ah, um, Black Scythe? You’ve been well, right? Ha ha…”
—Just tell me what you need. What is it?
“Well, the thing is… the Saesin Religion has been receiving a flood of inquiries lately.”
—What kind of inquiries?
“People are asking if we accidentally didn’t send the summons message. They say they haven’t received any contact for two weeks. So I told them too—we haven’t heard from you either, Black Scythe. There are no scheduled events.”
—…
“Did something happen to you? Are you busy or…”
—It’s not that.
“Then why aren’t you gathering people…?”
-I don’t know either.
“Pardon?”
-I have no information about Round 19. This time, I couldn’t select information from the reward box.
“Then….”
-Since I know nothing myself, I have no information to share. It seems everyone will have to navigate the next round on their own.
“Ah….”
Heo Tae-sik, momentarily at a loss for words, quickly regained his composure.
“Then, may I relay to the others exactly what I’ve just heard?”
-Yes, do that.
“Understood. Please rest well then.”
Only after confirming the call had ended did Heo Tae-sik lower his phone, exhaling a deep sigh.
“Sigh, to face the next round without any information at all.”
In truth, this was the natural state of things.
Knowing each Quest in advance and receiving strategy guides had been an absurdity from the start.
Wasn’t it essentially the same as all of them sharing the first-place reward?
“But now that’s impossible?”
They had received information smoothly every time until now—merely failing to receive it for a single round.
Yet the future felt shrouded in fog, leaving him deeply uncertain.
‘This problem is more serious than I thought….’
There was a possibility of backlash among the followers.
Losing a privilege they’d always enjoyed would naturally make them feel cheated.
‘Of course, it’s not Black Scythe’s fault. But I can’t assume others will see it that way.’
As always, when people gather, there are inevitably a few troublemakers.
I couldn’t assume all 143 were sound of mind.
‘There might be those who would suspect and slander Black Scythe.’
How could I help Black Scythe?
Deep in thought, Heo Tae-sik soon collected himself and composed a group message.
Hoping there would be no backlash from the people.
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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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