Fiireee-.
The flames inside the Eight Trigrams darkened his vision.
It was no longer hot. YuWon used his eyes to continue draining the flames of the Eight Trigrams, using their power as his own.
Crunch-.
A piece of dry meat entered his mouth.
The jerky from his inventory had burned as soon as he took it out.
[Passed the 21st trial of the Eight Trigrams]
[The 22nd trial of the Eight Trigrams begins]
[Endure the flames of the Eight Trigrams]
[24:00:00]
Another trial had begun.
It had been 22 days since he ate anything other than burnt jerky, and 22 days since he slept.
He was gradually reaching his physical limits.
"I can't believe it, man."
Son OhGong looked incredulous.
He stared silently at YuWon for a while, then repeated the same words like a parrot.
"How did you do it?"
Son OhGong's eyes reflected YuWon's own.
What he saw before him was a pair of eyes like his own, only unlike those of his alter ego, they were more real.
"I've been telling you for a long time that I have a lot of talent for this."
"Don't be arrogant."
"I'm not arrogant."
YuWon's response was always the same.
And every time, Son OhGong wondered if he had any secrets.
He had so much talent.
He was too good to be true.
But then….
'Could it be true?'
He had heard the same response so many times that he couldn't help but believe it.
When he thought about it, it wasn't unbelievable.
Players grow stronger through stats, skills, and items by leveling up. And how you get stronger through those three things, and how you use them to fight, all falls under the category of "talent."
And in that sense, YuWon's talent was unquestionable.
Even if he used the Clock Movement to go back in time.
"Just have a little faith."
What Son OhGong still couldn't believe was nothing special to YuWon.
"It's because of that talent that I was chosen."
It was embarrassing to hear himself say it, but it was true.
The reason for his return.
It was because he was strong enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with them, even though he was the last one to enter the Tower among the High Ranks gathered at the table.
"If I had to choose one, it would be Kim YuWon."
Odin.
He recommended YuWon above all others for a reason.
"That guy will quickly learn whatever he learns."
Son OhGong was definitely stronger.
In combat, he was naturally more gifted than YuWon.
In fact, YuWon rarely won against Son OhGong, so naturally, many people favored Son OhGong.
But in the end, YuWon was the chosen one.
'Son OhGong wasn't… good at learning things.'
Son OhGong only had a handful of skills.
Of course, he was able to use those few abilities with almost 100% skill, but still, he wasn't a complete talent.
"But it's definitely difficult, this."
Kak-.
YuWon rubbed his eyes as his vision became increasingly blurred.
[Golden Cinder Eyes resist the Eight Trigrams]
[Resistance was successful]
[Golden Cinder Eyes control the Eight Trigrams]
[Your competence is insufficient]
[Competence of Golden Cinder Eyes increases by 0.01%]
While using the Golden Cinder Eyes to control the Eight Trigrams, YuWon felt that he was reaching his limits.
His Mana was at its limit, and so was his concentration.
He hadn't slept for so long that his fatigue was at its peak.
"That's it."
There was nothing more to gain from the Eight Trigrams.
He just needed to learn how to use the Golden Cinder Eyes. There was no need to insist on the Eight Trigrams trial.
If he lost his mind here and died in the Flames of the Eight Trigrams without being able to use the Golden Cinder Eyes, then everything would be for nothing.
Kirik-.
YuWon finally exited Day 22, satisfied.
He wanted to surpass Son OhGong's achievement if he could, but…
Surpassing 100 days was impossible for him.
[You have passed the twenty-first trial of the Eight Trigrams]
[You have acquired the Power/Mana of the Eight Trigrams]
[Your Arcane Power increases by 2]
[Your Fire Resistance increases significantly]
A reward for enduring 22 days in the Eight Trigrams.
It wasn't a bad reward. It took a long time, but it was worth it for the two increases in his Arcane Power statistic.
No.
In fact, it wasn't just two.
"Three points of Arcane Power from the Eight Trigrams Cauldron and two more points as the final reward."
The Arcane Power of the Eight Trigrams he had obtained through the Golden Cinder Eyes was as much as the final reward.
Thus, the total amount of Arcane Power obtained from the Eight Trigrams Trial was five.
Additionally, there was another highlighted message.
"Significant increase in resistance…"
He couldn't believe it when he saw it.
Not just an increase, but a "significant" increase.
He had never seen a message like this before.
Attribute resistance was a statistic that was not visible to the naked eye, and it was not usually easy to increase the resistance of these attributes.
But it wasn't just an increase; it was a "significant" (enormous) increase.
He thought, "Perhaps this is a better reward than the Arcane Power statistic."
There were many ways to increase Arcane Power. He would have to fight the Outer Gods in the future and then devour them.
There were many other ways to level up and increase his statistics in his mind.
However, it wasn't attribute resistance. Furthermore, Fire resistance was a statistic that would be very useful to YuWon in the future.
"The preparations for Ragnarok have become much easier."
Indeed, it was known that Son OhGong had a resistance that could be called almost invincible when it came to the Fire attribute.
YuWon had thought that it was resistance obtained solely through the Golden Cinder Eyes, but apparently, that wasn't the case.
And this resistance would be useful to him later, in the great war of Asgard, Ragnarok.
Whirring-.
When he emerged from the Eight Trigrams Cauldron, a hot wind blew from the outside.
It was hot enough to make even the Rankers feel the heat from the earth around them.
However, this heat felt like a breeze to YuWon.
"…pleasant."
YuWon burst into laughter even after saying that.
The resistance to the fire element had increased dramatically, and now that he was out of the scorching fire, the hot air felt cool.
YuWon turned to Son OhGong, who was still waiting outside the Eight Trigrams.
"Do me a favor."
"Sure."
Pap-.
A pure white cloud appeared in front of him.
As soon as he saw it, his body relaxed into it.
***
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***
It was quite a deep sleep.
YuWon, who always kept his eyes half-open for any possible situation, fell asleep for the first time in a long time, unaware of the passing time.
Time passed like that.
"Are you awake?"
Tak-tak-.
YuWon woke up and fixed his gaze on the Bull Demon King, who was preparing tea in his room.
"How are you feeling?" YuWon asked.
"I should be asking you that."
Nodding, YuWon stretched the upper part of his body and nodded.
He wanted to ask how the Bull Demon King's body had recovered, but it was him who had fainted and woke up after all.
"I'm fine, not hurt much."
"I know. You've been in that fire for over twenty days without sleep, and you deserved it."
Dulcak-.
Leaving the teapot, the Bull Demon King offered YuWon a cup of tea.
"Drink it. It will clear your mind and refresh you."
"Thank you."
As YuWon received the tea cup and drank it, the Bull Demon King began preparing another cup of tea.
"My body is fine. I'm almost recovered."
"Almost, but not entirely, right?"
"Not for long."
Dud, dud, dud-.
The tea cup in YuWon's hand trembled.
The Bull Demon King's Arcane Power had begun to go out of control and fill the room. Not only the room where the two of them were, but the Arcane Power seeped into the floor and shook the atmosphere.
Bam-.
"Aren't you getting too excited?"
YuWon asked, looking at the cracked tea cup, and the Bull Demon King startled and withdrew his Arcane Power.
"…I'm sorry."
"No need to apologize."
Tak-.
The tea seeped through the cracks in the tea cup. YuWon drank the hot tea in one gulp and left the broken cup on the nightstand.
"Be careful not to rush out immediately. I've told you before, you'll need to be at your best to win this battle."
"I know. I'm not the youngest, don't worry too much."
YuWon nodded at the Bull Demon King's response.
He had only brought it up just in case, but he wasn't too worried.
"I'm glad he's not like Son OhGong in that aspect."
Relieved by the Bull Demon King's answer, YuWon got up from the bed.
"Is it okay if I move right away?"
"It doesn't matter, I feel like I'm about to fly after a good night's sleep."
"Really?"
The Bull Demon King turned his head to look out the window.
"It seems like he's still waiting for you."
"I see."
Gee-ing-.
In the same way, a golden stream of air moved through YuWon's pupils as he followed the Bull Demon King's gaze.
[Golden Cinder Eyes activated]
[Golden Cinder Eyes resonating]
"Me too."
"I've heard the stories, but… it's amazing to see those eyes like that."
The Bull Demon King wore an expression of curiosity as he looked at YuWon, who had the Golden Cinder Eyes.
Outside, YuWon could feel the gazes of the many Son OhGongs. And among them, there was one that stood out especially towards YuWon.
"Are you going to fight him?"
"I believe so."
"Sounds interesting. Take care of him."
With that, the Bull Demon King patted YuWon on the shoulder.
YuWon opened the door and stepped out of the cabin.
And then…
Jak, jak, jak-.
In line with YuWon's steps, a Son OhGong walked towards him.
"You said you knew my main body, right?"
Perhaps he found out about YuWon through the twelfth alter ego.
YuWon nodded. Although the eyes he had gained this time were not clairvoyant, somehow he could see what the alter ego in front of him was going to say.
"Then you already know my personality, and… I don't need to say much."
The corners of Son OhGong's lips twisted.
He couldn't stay still, his shoulders, hands, and feet were trembling.
This was a reaction of not being able to bear it anymore and wanting to have fun.
"They do look alike."
YuWon had seen Son OhGong with that expression many times.
Whirligig-.
Son OhGong pulled his staff from behind his back and twirled it in his hand.
"I want to fight you."
With excitement in his voice, he pointed the tip of his staff at YuWon.
"Fight me."
Hwareuk-.
Son OhGong's first alter ego.
His strongest alter ego challenged YuWon to a fight.