Ascension Through Skills
Chapter 416: 82nd Floor, Lemegeton (5)

He had gained everything there was to gain here.

With that judgment, Taesan moved swiftly.

Crunch.

He swung his arm. The small beings swarming like locusts were crushed effortlessly.

There was no need to use magic or dark arts. His physical strength alone was enough to break through.

As Taesan advanced, the ghost asked him,

[By the way, you said this wasn’t a skill from your past life. Have you collected everything worth having now?]

“No, not yet. There are still some truly powerful skills left.”

Multiply, Temporary Time Stop, and Designated Skill Reset.

Although improving proficiency would make Direct Hit possible, he couldn’t even guess when he might acquire those three.

The conditions to obtain these three skills were incredibly strict—more difficult and twisted than any skill Taesan had acquired so far.

Even after conquering over 80 floors, he hadn’t found a floor where the conditions were met.

‘Will a floor with the right conditions appear before I clear this place?’

He wasn’t sure. Though he had no intention of giving up, the chances didn’t look promising.

And even if such a floor appeared, there was no guarantee he’d be able to acquire the skills.

Most of the skills Taesan had obtained required more than experience and judgment—they demanded something simpler.

Luck.

No matter how perfect the plan, no matter how prepared he was for every variable, without luck, acquiring those skills was impossible. Even if he could go back in time and try again, he wasn’t sure he’d succeed.

‘What should I do?’

He wasn’t going to give up. The value of those skills was simply too great.

But unlike the others, these skills wouldn’t come just by meeting conditions and trying hard.

As Taesan sorted through his thoughts and moved forward, he grew tired of the small creatures blocking his way and waved his hand.

[You have activated Frozen World.]

Crack! Crackle!

Magic engulfed the demon world. A servant of Belial hurriedly shielded himself with power.

Crunch.

“Argh!”

The surging cold shattered his protection. The servant desperately gathered more strength, barely managing to withstand it.

His eyes trembled with fear.

Taesan had used the skill casually, as if brushing off an annoyance.

But the servant had to use all his power just to defend against it.

“…Who are you?”

The servant asked in a trembling voice. By this point, it was impossible not to know. Taesan was an immortal, like his master.

“An adventurer.”

Taesan replied nonchalantly.

“By the way, I’d really like an answer now. When you said other contractors were qualified, you secretly laughed at them inside, didn’t you?”

The servant flinched. Shock spread across his face.

“How did you…?”

“That’s not important.”

The servant thought he had hidden his emotions perfectly.

But with the Will of All Things skill, Taesan could read even the emotions buried deep inside.

It was scorn and mockery.

Contempt for those who arrogantly strutted about, unaware of their own insignificance.

“You acted as if they weren’t qualified at all.”

The demons had allowed contractors into the domain through Lemegeton, essentially acknowledging their qualifications.

But Belial’s servant was convinced.

They weren’t worthy.

“You don’t need to know. They are not qualified.”

The servant glared at Taesan with fierce eyes.

“And neither are you. I admit your strength, but that’s a different matter.”

“Don’t be like that. When I become the master of this place, you’ll be my servant, right? You could at least tell me a few things.”

Taesan spoke playfully. The servant’s face twisted with anger, and he lunged forward, clearly done with the conversation.

“Gone, huh.”

Taesan could have chased him but didn’t bother.

“I have some guesses.”

Since Baal himself acknowledged that the domain could be claimed, it should be possible.

But he never said it would be done through normal means.

The castle wasn’t far. Taesan continued walking.

---

“Damn it!”

The old man stomped his foot, gritting his teeth. The ground quaked, and twisted spikes erupted, striking the tiny creatures.

But they didn’t disappear. Knocked back and rolling across the ground, they staggered to their feet and charged again.

“What the hell are these things?!”

The old man clenched his jaw.

After barely breaking through a field of thorns, countless tiny minions of Belial had swarmed them.

There were too many to count, and each one was incredibly strong.

Even using all their power, they struggled to bring them down.

A gloomy man raised his trembling hand. A fierce wind blasted the minions away.

The old man summoned roots to form a path.

They quickly ran along the newly created path.

Only after running for a long time did they manage to escape the minions.

“Huff… Huff…”

The four contractors gasped for breath, drenched in sweat. The old man glared at Halid, grinding his teeth.

“You bastard!”

“What’s wrong?”

Khalid spoke calmly, clearly more composed than the others.

The old man exploded in rage.

“Because of your idiocy, one of us died! Why the hell did you do that?!”

When they were fighting off Belial’s minions, Khalid had done something inexplicable.

He had targeted the succubus with his dark magic.

The succubus, caught off guard, was pushed into the horde and disappeared.

Khalid smiled quietly.

“Is that what you’re upset about? Shouldn’t you be thanking me instead?”

“What…?”

“We’re all competitors here. Only one of us can become a demon. I just reduced the competition. You should be grateful.”

“You insane bastard.”

Khalid wasn’t wrong. They were all rivals. Eventually, they’d turn on each other.

But at the very least, they had promised to work together while breaking through this place.

And the one who suggested that first was Khalid.

The gloomy man spoke quietly.

“…For now, it’s a cooperative relationship. If you break that, I can’t trust you.”

“Then don’t.”

Khalid replied nonchalantly, flashing a twisted smile.

“But if you try to push me out, at least one of you is going to die. I’ve got enough power for that.”

“Hah.”

It was an obvious threat, but none of them could deny it.

Khalid was definitely stronger than the others.

The difference wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either.

Moreover, Khalid had conserved a significant amount of strength, giving him an edge over the others. If they decided to fight him head-on, even if the three joined forces, they would likely suffer losses.

In the end, they had no choice but to move forward together while waiting for the right opportunity.

“A snake hiding in our midst, huh.”

“Say whatever you want.”

Khalid chuckled.

He would become a demon.

Ascend to a lofty, eternal position, transcending mortality.

For that, he would do anything.

They continued toward the castle.

Meanwhile, Taesan had already arrived at the castle.

---

Taesan placed his hand on the massive pitch-black gate.

The final gateway guarding Belial’s castle.

The gate was incredibly sturdy, packed with immense power, making it nearly impossible for challengers to break through.

But that didn’t matter to Taesan.

He applied pressure with his hand.

Screeeeech!

With a grinding metallic sound, the gate crumpled like thin foil.

Taesan swung his arm.

Boom!

The mangled gate shattered and flew away.

Taesan stepped inside the castle.

At that moment, the entire structure trembled.

The floors, decorations, and walls began to move. They twisted, swirled, and emanated killing intent.

Taesan, unfazed, drew his weapon.

Belial’s remnants lingered throughout the domain.

Those remnants rejected intruders, and the place where they were most concentrated was this castle.

The castle itself was moving to eliminate Taesan. Decorations hanging on the walls lunged at him as if alive.

Boom!

Taesan swung his sword, slicing the attacking objects apart.

A pillar detached and hurtled toward him. Taesan raised his sword to block it, feeling its heavy weight pressing down. His body was pushed backward.

Rumble!

The floor collapsed, and the remaining fragments gathered into a swirling mass.

The vortex charged toward Taesan.

‘Strong.’

Taesan was impressed.

The force rushing at him was merely the remnants of the deceased Belial.

Even so, the power contained within was monstrous.

In terms of raw strength, it surpassed even Taesan.

‘So this is a demon.’

It surpassed even Ainzhar’s power.

‘But still…’

In the end, it was just the residue of something long dead. Only fragments remained—there was no living will or essence.

Taesan imbued his sword with his own will and strength.

Then he swung it toward the surging remnants.

Boom!

A massive concentration of force collided with the thin blade. Taesan felt the crushing pressure but didn’t retreat. Instead, he poured more will into his sword and stepped forward.

Crash!

The remnants of the castle shattered and scattered.

But they quickly reformed into a single mass and attacked again. Taesan declared with firm resolve,

“Collapse, crumble, and shatter.”

[You have activated the Declaration of Collapse, Crumbling, and Shaking.]

Boom!

The concentrated remnants quivered violently. Though they tried to hold together, Taesan’s following declaration broke them apart.

“Explode.”

[You have activated the Declaration of Explosion.]

Boom!

The remnants burst apart, scattering in all directions.

Yet Belial’s remains had not vanished. The shattered fragments of the castle creaked and once again surged toward Taesan.

[You have activated Internal World.]

Taesan’s power and will consumed Belial’s domain.

Normally, Belial’s strength would have blocked the expansion of Taesan’s Internal World.

But as ownerless remnants, they couldn’t resist.

As Taesan’s domain spread over the castle, the power within the remnants visibly weakened, and their movements slowed.

Pure strength alone wasn’t enough to win.

In battles beyond mortality, will and essence were more important than raw power.

[You have activated Grand Collapse.]

Vrrrrrrr…

The Grand Collapse, a force that disintegrated all things, manifested in the world.

[You have activated Magic Separation.]

The black sphere of Grand Collapse split apart, scattering across the space.

The fragmented spheres spread out, filling the area.

Rumble!

The separated forces collided with the castle fragments, causing them to disintegrate.

Taesan clenched his fist.

[You have activated Magic Explosion.]

The dispersed Grand Collapse exploded.

A powerful force engulfed everything.

As the power subsided, nothing remained.

The once-grand castle had been completely obliterated without leaving a single piece behind.

[Is this all effective even against a demon...?]

“It was just the remnants of a dead demon. If it were still alive, things might have been different, but now it’s no problem.”

[Fair point. But after all that destruction, is the throne still intact?]

“It is.”

Even with the castle gone, the overwhelming presence remained unchanged.

Taesan walked in the direction of the energy.

[Oh...]

The ghost let out an involuntary gasp.

Amidst the desolate wasteland stood a pitch-black throne, faintly pulsating.

From the throne emanated a complete will.

The essence of Belial himself.

Taesan instinctively knew. If he sat on that throne, he would gain Belial’s power and domain.

The master of primordial dark magic.

The demon’s dominion.

Taesan continued walking forward.