Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant

Chapter 106

As soon as the System appeared, countless Gates began to emerge, prompting people to analyze them and offer various opinions, eventually contemplating a definition.

By the later stages of the Great Cataclysm, humanity finally managed to define what Gates were.

‘A Gate is essentially a kind of “theme dungeon” created by the System.’

Even just the types of Gates revealed in the world numbered in the hundreds.

Counting duplicated instances like the Iron Valley, the total grew to the thousands, and one thing was certain: everything within a Gate was provided by the System as an instance dungeon for the player’s growth.

That’s why it was defined as a theme dungeon.

‘Because each Gate had its own unique concept.’

For example, one Gate might resemble a typical otherworldly dungeon, while another showcased martial arts, and yet another portrayed an unheard-of alien civilization.

Of course, numerous Gates also drew on the unique cultures that only existed on Earth.

A prime example was the Iron Valley, modeled after the Hercules myth.

In that sense, the “Library of Martial Arts” was a Gate with a classic martial arts theme.

China argued that Gates with martial arts themes reflected their own culture…

‘So what?’

No one particularly cared.

Suho continued ascending the stone tower.

In fact, it was more accurate to call it a tall stone mountain rather than a stone tower.

Nevertheless, it was referred to as a tower because it resembled the sky-reaching Tower of Heaven.

‘They said climbing this was the first trial.’

In his past life, he didn’t have a bad relationship with the Martial King, Goo Taeksu.

In fact, they were close, even if you could call it that.

Goo Taeksu was a man who purely pursued martial arts and, true to his title of Martial King, held great interest in swordsmanship.

Naturally, he showed keen interest in Suho’s swordsmanship, who was known as the Sword God.

‘Among the people I’ve met, he was among the top five in swordsmanship skills.’

However, no matter how strong the Martial King was, Suho ultimately never lost to him.

When it came to swordsmanship alone, Suho, who was hailed as the Sword God, had a significant edge over Goo Taeksu.

Ironically, perhaps that was why they were able to maintain a friendly relationship.

Whenever they met, a swordsmanship duel was customary, followed by lengthy discussions on swordsmanship.

‘It was around that time I learned about the Library of Martial Arts.’

How much further did he climb the stone tower?

Eventually, after ascending for a considerable time, Suho finally caught sight of the end of the stone tower, spreading out like an island.

Upon reaching the tower’s end, Suho moved by clinging to the ceiling, like climbing a ladder of clouds, until he could finally set foot on the topmost edge.

“It took a while.”

It was true.

It had indeed taken a while.

Had it not been for his Red-grade stamina stat and S-rank Leap skill, he would have likely collapsed much earlier.

But he had prepared everything he needed, so he boldly took on this challenge.

The Library of Martial Arts had been auctioned shortly after its creation.

Why was it put up for auction?

No particular reason.

Despite its reputation, the Library of Martial Arts wasn’t considered a highly dangerous Gate, primarily because entry was unrestricted, and most people gave up climbing the tower.

‘Then Goo Taeksu took it on.’

For a long time, no one had successfully conquered the Library of Martial Arts.

The tower’s height was far too daunting compared to the level restriction of the Gate, leading many to abandon the attempt midway.

But Goo Taeksu was different.

Even at a low level, he had pursued martial arts since before the Great Cataclysm, which allowed him to conquer the tower for the first time.

So Suho needed to clear the Gate quickly, before it went back up for external auction and Goo Taeksu conquered it once again.

‘In that regard, being with the Korean Hunter Association is ideal for exclusive growth.’

Suho hadn’t returned to the harsh environment of public servant Hunter for no reason.

Here, he had the chance to seize power sources that couldn’t be obtained for any amount of money, faster than anyone else.

Suho raised his head and looked around.

This wide-open space, resembling a training ground, somewhat reminded him of the Banshees’ training grounds in Kunlun. However, the key difference was the towering Library situated on top of the stone tower.

‘That must be the famous Library of Martial Arts.’

The Library of Martial Arts, shaped like a U, was lined with bookshelves filled with various texts.

Goo Taeksu had said that, looking back, the books in the Library were likely martial arts manuals.

Without hesitation, Suho approached the Library.

At that moment.

Crrrck—

A sound of something turning.

At the unfamiliar sound, Suho halted his steps.

‘So that’s the mechanism, huh?’

He had plenty of data on the Library of Martial Arts.

The Martial King, surprisingly, was a talkative person.

According to him, the real test began the moment you approached the Library after reaching the peak, known as the ‘Library Terrace.’

And that test began with activating the mechanism hidden within the Library Terrace.

In an instant.

Whiz!

The sound of wind slicing.

Suho instinctively ducked at the sound.

As soon as he lowered his head, a massive spear whizzed past overhead.

“Quite the warm welcome.”

The spear flew across the Library Terrace, disappearing into the distance.

And with that, it began.

Crrrck—

Whiz! Whiz!

Two sounds erupted almost simultaneously, and Suho once again instinctively dodged just half a beat quicker.

Bang! Bang!

This time, massive hammers came crashing down.

Apparently, they were securely fastened somewhere, for they swung with fierce rebound power, striking the ground with explosive force instead of Suho.

“Well, it’s been a while since I’ve had a proper warm-up.”

Crrrck—

Once more, the mechanism beneath the Library Terrace began to turn.

And then.

Whiz! Whiz! Whiz!

This time, three attacks came from different directions.

But once again, Suho dodged smoothly.

And with that, the true trial of the Library Terrace commenced.

A torrential assault of mechanical traps.

***

How much time had passed?

“Phew…”

Sweat dripped down.

His stamina stat was Red-grade, yet here he was, drenched.

It wasn’t due to a lack of stamina.

Although it had been a while since his sense stat reached Red-grade, even with such high stamina and sense stats, the trial of the Library Terrace proved to be a formidable challenge.

“Goo Taeksu said he came here without even reaching Red-grade…”

What a monstrous lunatic.

Even with an Orange-grade stat, it would be barely manageable here; how could he conquer this place with ungraded stats?

‘Well, that guy was certainly exceptional.’

So Suho had no intention of giving up or failing.

Someone had conquered it with ungraded stats; it made no sense for him, with far better conditions, to fail.

However, the trial of the Library Terrace, seemingly just a series of dodges, offered more than that.

Crrrck—

The sound of the mechanism turning.

At the same time, Suho activated his sensory perception.

[ Mana Detection activated. ]

The skill he used was Mana Detection.

Why use Mana Detection?

No particular reason.

Though the place had a martial arts theme, its fundamental origin lay with the System.

In other words, the Gate operated on mana rather than internal energy.

Thus, he used Mana Detection.

‘It’s just a concept. Whether it’s internal energy or whatever, everything operates under mana as a single power.’

At least, that was the concept the System that overtook Earth pursued.

While some called it internal energy, force, or ether depending on the person or Gate, it was fundamentally mana.

So by using Mana Detection, he could anticipate the movements of the mechanism, and through repeated use, he upgraded his B-grade Mana Detection to A-grade.

‘Mana Detection is one of the hardest skills to upgrade, so this is definitely a gain!’

In that moment.

Crrck! Whiz-whiz-whiz!

Weapons rained down.

But Suho moved faster.

Using Mana Detection, he moved two steps ahead, successfully evading the ful onslaught of the Library Terrace’s trial once again.

At that moment.

Crrck— Crash!

A strange sound.

It was the sound of something breaking, different from anything he’d heard so far.

But hearing that sound, Suho finally allowed himself a smile.

‘Finally!’

Suho knew what that sound was.

It was the sound that marked the end of the cursed first trial of the Library Terrace.

As proof, a new System notification appeared in front of Suho’s eyes.

[ A Boss Monster has appeared. ]

The Boss Monster, signaling the end of the trial, had arrived.

Suho wiped the sweat off his chin with the back of his hand and caught his breath.

Just then, the center floor of the Library split open, and a single iron pillar rose from within.

Or rather.

It was not an ordinary iron pillar.

What appeared to be a pillar grew arms and legs like a wooden puppet, soon taking on a human form.

“So, you’re Mokuzan, the Library’s guardian.”

Mokuzan.

It was the nickname Goo Taeksu had given the Library of Martial Arts’ guardian.

‘He said it resembled the training dummies from classic old games, so he called it Mokuzan.’

That character was also called Mokuzan.

Of course, it had a different official name.

Suho looked at the name card above the guardian’s head.

– Library Guardian Lv.???

The Library Guardian.

That was its true name.

But since it didn’t sound like much of a name, Goo Taeksu gave it the name Mokuzan.

So Suho decided to call it Mokuzan as well.

The name Mokuzan felt more familiar to him.

It cracked its non-existent joints as it stepped forward.

‘They said it was similar to the Sword Emperor.’

The Sword Emperor was the nickname for the nameless swordsman, the boss monster of the Nameless Sword Gate.

So it was true to its title.

According to Goo Taeksu, Mokuzan, like the Sword Emperor, possessed the same status screen as its opponent.

Perhaps for that reason?

Mokuzan activated its unique skill as soon as it appeared.

[ The Library Guardian activates the Battlefield of Conviction. ]

[ While Battlefield of Conviction is active, the Library Guardian’s status screen mirrors that of the challenger. ]

[ While Battlefield of Conviction is active, all combatants within the area are restricted from using any weapons other than those designated by the Library Guardian. ]

A copied status screen.

And restricted weapon usage.

This meant equal conditions, which implied that the battle would rely solely on one’s accumulated pure technique.

This was why only Goo Taeksu, the Martial King, had been able to conquer this place.

Before the Great Cataclysm, he was one of the few masters of martial arts who pursued all forms of martial prowess.

But Suho, too, felt confident in this realm.

“Even the Martial King, Goo Taeksu, couldn’t best the Sword Emperor.”

The moment Suho took a step forward.

[ The Library Guardian has designated the weapon. ]

[ The designated weapon is ‘sword.’ ]

[ Battle begins. ]

A sword appeared in the guardian’s grasp.