The Tower's Last Chronicle

Seo-Jun kept his gaze steady.

Not on the sky.

Not on the endless meadow.

But on the invisible layer hidden behind reality itself.

By now, he understood one thing.

The Tower was no longer just a place he climbed.

It had begun drawing him into its own system.

The titles were claimed.

The rewards were collected.

His level had risen.

Only one thing remained.

The Shop.

Seo-Jun let out a quiet breath.

His expression didn't change.

Calm.

Steady.

"...Open the Shop."

Silence lingered for a moment.

Then Seo-Jun spoke again, his voice as calm as before.

"...The last thing left before this trial ends."

Krix didn't hesitate.

He let out a quiet breath and raised his stick.

"Finally."

A faint smile crossed his face.

"I've been waiting to see what you'll buy."

Golden light spread through the air.

This time, it felt different.

Not like something was being activated.

More like something was responding.

As if the Tower had been waiting for this moment.

The meadow didn't disappear.

It simply changed.

The space around them shifted, like a curtain quietly being pulled aside.

Everything fell silent.

Not empty.

Just... waiting.

Then...

the system opened.

A large blue screen unfolded before Seo-Jun.

It didn't appear suddenly.

It descended slowly, as if the Tower wanted him to read every word.

✦ ✦ ✦

[TOWER TUTORIAL EXCLUSIVE SHOP]

Welcome to the Tutorial Exclusive Shop. Once you leave the tutorial, this shop will never open again. The Survival Points earned during the tutorial can only be spent here. They cannot be used on higher floors.

✦ ✦ ✦

For that reason, every Survival Point earned during the tutorial was far more valuable than it first appeared.

Most items here were sold at a much lower price than they would be on the Tower's upper floors.

Some items could only be obtained from this shop.

Once the tutorial ended...

They would never appear again.

Seo-Jun read every line in silence.

His expression remained calm.

None of this was new to him.

He had experienced it before.

The Tutorial Shop was a one-time opportunity.

A final reward for those who prepared before beginning the real climb.

Once he left the tutorial...

This chance would be gone forever.

The screen expanded.

Rows of categories appeared one after another, stretching farther than Seo-Jun could see.

For a moment, it felt as though an endless sea of choices had opened before him.

Weapons.

Armor.

Accessories.

Consumables.

Skill Books.

Traits.

Summons.

Relics.

And countless others.

Each category branched into even more subcategories, creating a system vast enough to overwhelm any newcomer.

A first-time climber would spend hours staring at the screen.

Seo-Jun didn't.

His eyes moved across the countless items with practiced ease.

Many of them looked impressive.

Their names alone were enough to tempt inexperienced climbers.

Dragon Sword.

Heavenbreaker Spear.

Phoenix Robe.

Powerful names.

Ordinary items.

The so-called Dragon Sword wasn't forged from a dragon or blessed with its power.

It simply had a dragon engraved on its blade.

Nothing more.

The Tower loved selling dreams to those who couldn't tell appearance from value.

Countless people had wasted their hard-earned Survival Points chasing flashy names.

Only to regret it after entering the real Tower.

Seo-Jun had no intention of making the same mistake.

Without a second thought, he closed the Weapon category.

He already possessed Dawn's Edge.

No weapon in the Tutorial Shop could compare to it.

Buying another would be nothing more than a waste of points.

His attention shifted to the next category.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Armor.

He wasn't looking for something heavy or extravagant.

He needed an armor that was light enough to move freely...

Yet sturdy enough to withstand the battles ahead.

He didn't rush.

There was no reason to.

One lesson from his previous life had never been wrong.

The Tower never rewarded haste.

It rewarded precision.

And punished every reckless choice.

Seo-Jun slowly closed his eyes.

Not to shut out the world.

But to sharpen his focus.

He went deeper into the Archive of the Fallen Epoch.

The mental space expanded quietly, like an endless library stretching beyond perception.

Now that the exclusive skill had grown in level, the burden on his mind had eased.

Thoughts connected faster.

Information settled more naturally.

Understanding no longer felt like effort.

Seo-Jun shifted his focus to the skill he had acquired on the upper floors.

✦ ✦ ✦

[Eye of Insight]

Rank: Legendary

Level: 4

Description:

A perception-type skill derived from fragments of a higher mythological authority once associated with the being known as the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Sun Wukong. Only a diluted reflection of his ability to pierce illusion and recognize the truth beneath form. The skill allows the user to perceive what is hidden beneath reality. Intent behind actions. Truth behind lies. Emotions beneath expression. It does not reveal absolute certainty. But it strips away deception until only readable fragments remain. The world is not fully exposed. But lies become difficult to maintain within it.

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun activated it.

The change was immediate.

His vision sharpened.

And his eyes shifted slightly.

A faint golden hue settled into his pupils, deep and restrained, as if something ancient had briefly echoed inside his perception.

The world itself did not change.

But everything within it felt thinner.

Easier to read.

Harder to hide.

A pause in speech became meaning.

A glance became intention.

Even silence carried structure.

From the outside, Krix noticed it instantly.

His relaxed expression faded.

His gaze sharpened with quiet interest.

"…That perception."

He studied Seo-Jun more closely now.

Not as a simple trainee.

But as something unfamiliar.

A climber in the tutorial.

Yet already touching concepts tied to myth-level beings that should not be accessible here.

Krix's eyes narrowed slightly.

A faint smile returned.

But it was no longer casual.

It was intrigued.

"…You are not normal."

Krix's voice was quiet.

Careful.

But Seo-Jun had already stopped listening to tone.

The Eye of Insight was fully active.

And the world changed.

Color lost its meaning as emotion.

Light was no longer light.

It became data layered over reality.

Everything unfolded into structure.

Weight values.

Stability readings.

Existence density.

Interference resistance.

The Shop was no longer something designed to impress.

It was something stripped of lies.

Something honest.

Seo-Jun didn't hesitate.

He began scanning.

Slowly.

Methodically.

Each item was not seen as an object.

But as a system.

A function.

A set of conditions.

He did not search for power.

He searched for survivability.

Armors appeared across his vision.

Radiant plate sets that tried to dominate through presence.

Dragon-scale armors that relied on intimidation.

Cloaks woven from celestial thread meant to look divine.

To an ordinary eye, they would seem exceptional.

To his eye, they were all the same.

Appearance-driven constructs.

Designed for perception.

Not endurance.

Not stability.

Not survival.

One after another, they were dismissed.

Without emotion.

Without hesitation.

The Eye of Insight broke them down instantly.

Load distribution.

Impact resistance.

Energy diffusion paths.

Structural integrity under stress.

Every flaw was visible.

Every weakness, unavoidable.

His thoughts became simple.

Not what looks strong.

What remains functional when everything breaks.

Not rarity.

Not prestige.

Stability under collapse conditions.

That single principle cut through everything else.

Until the list narrowed.

Drastically.

Then he saw it.

A black coat.

No glow.

No effect.

No visual declaration of power.

It did not try to stand out.

In fact, it barely registered within normal perception.

At first glance, it felt like something the system had forgotten to highlight.

But the Eye of Insight caught it immediately.

Not as an item.

But as a contradiction in valuation.

A piece that existed outside normal grading layers.

Hidden in a mid-depth structure where only deeper perception could confirm its reality.

Seo-Jun focused on it.

For the first time.

The system responded instantly.

He didn't move yet.

He kept reading.

Slow.

Carefully.

The Eye of Insight quietly stripped away layers of information hidden within the item.

Then the system responded.

✦ ✦ ✦

[???'s Coat((Tutorial Exclusive)]

Type: Armor

Rank: Normal (Sealed)

Durability: Indestructible

Defense: 30

Description:

A coat forged by an unknown existence known as Final ??. It was not created through any known crafting system of the Tower. No records exist of its method. No blueprint exists of its formation. It is not listed in any era of the Tower's history. A "last armor," completed only when all conditions of its intended owner are fulfilled. Because of that, the Tower judged it as an anomaly and forcibly sealed it. Only a fraction of its structure is currently active. At its present state, it passively adjusts to the wearer's body, correcting damage flow and stabilizing physical collapse during injury. But its true functions do not respond.

Seal Status: Active

Full Output: Restricted

True Function: Unavailable

Original Price: 10,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun's eyes stayed on the final line.

Then he looked at the coat again.

This was not a normal item.

He exhaled faintly.

Restricted.

Not broken.

Not flawed.

Just sealed.

Everything in the Tower was like that.

Even power.

Even people.

No hesitation followed.

No unnecessary thought.

Only conclusion.

"…Purchase using 10% rights."

[1,000,000 Points Deducted]

The coat appeared.

Not with light.

Not with ceremony.

Just presence.

Heavy in meaning, not weight.

Like something that had already survived collapse before it ever existed.

Seo-Jun reached out and put it on.

The moment it touched his shoulders...

it adjusted.

Not to his body.

But to his existence pattern.

A faint shift passed through the space around him.

Not visible.

But real.

Seo-Jun moved slightly.

The coat responded.

Not like a tool.

Not like equipment.

But like something that had recognized a valid form of existence.

It did not protect him.

It defined a boundary.

A thin layer separating him from everything that could erase him.

Not armor.

Not defense.

Something closer to a rule applied around his presence.

Seo-Jun lowered his gaze briefly.

No surprise.

No satisfaction.

Only acceptance.

He adjusted the coat once.

It settled perfectly.

Then he moved on.

Remaining points: 4,000,000

Next priority.

Not attack.

Not defense.

Correction under instability.

He scanned again.

The shop shifted subtly, as if adjusting to his intent.

Then the next item appeared.

✦ ✦ ✦

[Hermes' Boots((Tutorial Exclusive)]

Type: Armor

Rank: Normal (Sealed)

Durability: Indestructible

Description:

Boots attributed to Hermes, the Olympian god of travel, movement, and boundary crossing. They are not designed to increase speed directly. They govern the correctness of motion itself. Every step taken with them is automatically adjusted before completion. Speed deviation is corrected in real time. Momentum is redistributed to prevent loss of balance or wasted force. Errors in movement are not punished. They are corrected. Unstable motion is realigned into the most efficient path during action. However, the boots are currently sealed. Their higher authority over movement law has been suppressed by the Tower. Only a fraction of their function is active.

Basic Effect (Active):

Slight correction of foot placement, reducing minor movement errors and improving balance during motion. Increases overall movement speed by 5%. The boots can subtly adjust their shape to match the wearer's body, ensuring stable adaptation during motion.

Seal Status: Active

Full Output: Restricted

True Function: Locked (Requires Unsealing)

Original Price: 10,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun read it once.

Then he looked at the item in silence.

He understood its value immediately.

Not as something strong.

But as something that would only grow more dangerous once its seal was removed.

A tool whose true worth lay ahead, not in the present.

Then he decided.

"…Purchase at 10% of final price."

[1,000,000 Survival Points Deducted]

The system did not hesitate.

The price recalculated without resistance.

The boots remained in place for a brief moment.

As if confirming the transaction.

Then...

they shifted.

A quiet transfer of ownership.

Remaining points: 3,000,000

Seo-Jun didn't react.

He had already moved on.

The basic items he needed were already secured.

Now, there was only one thing left to check.

Breathing techniques.

They were not new to him.

He already knew most of the foundational methods.

But foundations were not about what he knew.

They were about what he could refine.

Seo-Jun shifted his focus and scanned the skill section using the Eye of Insight.

Information unfolded in layers.

Most of it was predictable.

Low-grade breathing methods meant for beginners.

Techniques that only worked on the lower floors.

Methods that focused on survival, not evolution.

From a long-term perspective, none of them mattered.

He kept scanning.

Slowly.

Carefully.

Then he paused.

Something felt different.

An old skill book.

Worn edges.

Quiet presence.

No glow.

No system highlight trying to attract attention.

Just existence.

His intuition sharpened.

And for a brief moment, the Eye of Insight reacted on its own.

Notifying him not of value.

But of connection.

It felt linked.

To the Voidless Breath of the Nameless Origin.

The breathing method he had been using the most.

Seo-Jun focused on it.

The system responded.

✦ ✦ ✦

[True Heavenly Demon Divine Breathing Art]

Type: Qi Breathing Art

Rank: Mythical

Description

A supreme martial breathing art born from the principle of absolute domination.

Unlike cultivation methods that seek harmony with the surrounding world, the True Heavenly Demon Divine Breathing Art follows a different path.

It does not adapt.

It does not submit.

It conquers.

Every inhale draws energy into the body through overwhelming authority, forcing even the most violent and unstable forces into submission.

Every exhale releases a pressure that carries the user's will, creating an invisible domain where weaker energies naturally lose their ability to resist.

This breathing art transforms destructive forces into weapons.

It turns chaos into order.

It turns resistance into obedience.

Rather than purifying power or removing its violent nature, it tempers that violence until it becomes a blade perfectly controlled by its master.

The stronger the opposing force, the greater the potential power gained from conquering it.

The path of the Heavenly Demon is not the path of destruction.

It is the path of standing above destruction itself.

A true wielder of this art does not fear overwhelming power.

They make overwhelming power kneel.

"All things possess strength. The difference between a ruler and the ruled is who commands it."

Original Price: 10,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun read it once.

Then again.

It was not a technique for learning.

It was a statement of dominance.

Then he made his decision.

"…Purchase at 10% of final price."

[1,000,000 Survival Points Deducted]

Remaining points: 2,000,000