The 31st Piece Turns the Tables
chapter-267

The 31st Piece Turns the Tables

Chapter 267

Seol had just been sent flying by the iron pillar.

“Did you figure out the rules to the tiles?” asked Chi Woo.

“Were you able to learn something about it?” asked Hye Myeong.

The two asked simultaneously.

Seol shook his head in response.

“What, then…”

Seol then continued.

“There aren’t any rules.”

“...There aren’t any rules?”

“They’re all tricks.”

“How are you so sure?”

“I just have a feeling.”

“What? If it’s just a feeling, then…”

A feeling.

While Chi Woo was confused, Hye Myeong’s jaw dropped after hearing ‘feeling’.

“Ah, then… Was that feeling from earlier...?”

“What the hell is this ‘feeling’ you guys keep talking about?”

Seol stood up, choosing to show it through his actions instead.

Fwip!

Seol leaped in.

‘It doesn’t matter what tile you step on first.’

Step.

Seol then stepped on the turtle tile.

Fwoooosh!

An iron pillar shot up from the ground.

Fwirl!

Seol spun midair before striking the pillar away.

Baaaam!

“Urgh…”

Chi Woo was in awe of Seol’s powers to brute force his way through.

That was something only possible for those on another level of strength.

Seol had felt something strange after stepping onto the first tile. It was as if a part of his body that he couldn't reach was itching.

‘And I definitely felt it when I stepped on that last tile earlier.’

It was as if an electrical signal had flowed through his body.

This led Seol to believe that the patterned tiles were a trick, concealing the true rules behind the trial.

And now, it was time to test it.

Step, step, step!

Pine tree, egret, lotus flower.

Click…

Woosh!

Baaam!

Seol detected something from the pine tree tile.

A sharp spear and thin needle shot out at where Seol stood, but they failed to land.

Seol had already leaped over to an egret tile.

Click….

This time, he picked the right tile.

Balancing on one leg, Seol smiled as he looked back. There wasn’t any special reason why he had managed to find the next tile.

After all, the stinging sensation that tickled the tips of his feet was guiding him to the correct tiles. Still, immediately finding the right tile was a challenge, even for someone as sensitive as Seol.

A bit of luck was on his side.

“I’m sure of it.”

Seol continued forward.

Click…

Baaam!

Fwoooosh!

Rumble, rumble!

Craaaack!

Seol deflected an incoming spear before also completely crushing an iron pillar.

‘I see what he meant by testing the body.’

Even if you could sense the sensation at the tips of your feet, it was extremely difficult to determine which tile it connected to.

Not only was it hard to pinpoint the exact direction, but doing so also took time.

And even when you finally figured out where it led, the sensation didn’t account for your current stance or distance, forcing you to step on multiple, separate tiles just to reach it.

‘In other words, these tiles and traps will keep activating, meaning you’ll need a sturdy body to endure it all.’

Before Seol realized it, he was already close to reaching the platform on the other side.

Just when they thought it was almost over, Hye Myeong and Chi Woo were shocked by Seol’s next words.

“This isn’t the exit!” shouted Seol. “I think we have to step on all of the tiles!”

Chi Woo and Hye Myeong exchanged glances.

They then immediately leaped in.

Fwip!

Seol did not say anything more to them.

There was clearly a reason Watala had given them this trial.

If Seol had explained everything to them, the two of them wouldn’t have been able to learn anything from this.

‘I have to focus on myself.’

Seol resolved to focus on his task and ignore the others. With this determination, he stepped onto the next tile.

Woosh!

He deflected an incoming iron ball.

Click…

And stepped on the next tile.

Fwooooosh…

Fwip!

Seol leaped onto an incoming iron pillar to propel himself farther.

Click…

Then, he landed on the tile he had aimed for.

The patterns were merely decorative, and Seol saw no need to rely on his vision to dodge the incoming traps.

Instead, he closed his eyes to focus on his other senses.

Fwooosh!

Asura’s Sixth Sense was more than enough for Seol to sense and avoid the incoming traps, all he had to do was choose whether to dodge it or use it for his benefit.

And with his eyes closed, he was able to focus more intently on the feeling pricking his feet.

Twitch…

Twitch…

Over there.

Then there next.

It was as if the tiles were calling to him.

Baaam!

Baaaam!

The rumblings grew quieter, likely because the other two had also grown accustomed to the feeling.

The traps they were triggering were probably ones they had no choice but to activate.

Seol Hong and Mi Ah gulped as they took another step back. Seol Hong tightly held onto the trembling Mi Ah for support.

“They’re all… amazing…”

To them, it was as if they were watching a performance. Their movements were quick and precise, like a rehearsed dance.

The smiles on their faces made it feel even more like such.

Seol found himself honestly chuckling as well.

‘Is this… Watala’s power?’

Despite just being a small portion of the Golden Divine Statue’s powers, Seol was filled with energy and vitality he had never felt before.

This was not a power intrinsic to his body

It was a power he hadn't known existed, a completely new power.

Seol felt as if he was being drawn into another world.

He had slipped into a trance.

Rumble…

That wasn’t the sound of a trap triggering. It was as if the heightened sense Seol had cultivated was emitting a trembling scream.

Seol felt as though his consciousness was being pulled elsewhere.

However, because his mind was firmly anchored in his body, he managed to keep hold of his focus.

Rumble…

Rumble…

Rumble…

Click…

When Seol came to, he realized that he had just stepped on the same lotus flower tile as Hye Myeong and Chi Woo.

The three all leaped, spinning midair to strike the incoming iron pillar.

Baaaaaam!

Baaam!

Baaaam!

With that their performance had come to an end.

- 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

- That’s so cool! That was insane!

- They’re soaked with sweat, haha

“Wow…”

Seol Hong and Mi Ah were both in awe.

Their movements just now were essentially the truth behind the ‘feelings’ they were getting.

And then…

Clatter, clatter…

The tiles beneath their feet all began to flip.

Watching from a distance, Mi Ah and Seol Hong saw the entire event unfold and were left in awe.

“A drawing…”

The tiles beneath them transformed into a large drawing, depicting a scene with fluttering petals.

Rumble, rumble…

The air around them began to shake.

Sensing something strange, Seol immediately returned to Seol Hong.

Grab.

“Ah…”

After picking up Seol Hong and Mi Ah over his shoulders, he leaped away.

And at the exact same time, the ground beneath them began to descend.

“Wh-what the hell?”

- It was an elevator?

- We’re going down, hold on~!

- What the hell, LOOOL Then why did they make the platform on the other end?

- That was a trick, too? Not bad, Watala.

They descended at a slow pace.

Chi Woo was the first to talk.

“I wasn’t the only one who felt that sensation, right?”

Hye Myeong nodded in response.

“Maybe that was the power Watala was referring to? It felt… different.”

Seol agreed.

‘But it disappeared the moment the trial was over. I guess I haven’t fully acquired it for myself yet?’

Just as people often struggle to recall dreams they’ve just woken up from, Seol found it difficult to sense the ‘feeling’ he had experienced earlier.

Clatter…

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - Karane

* * *

After a bit of time, Seol’s party arrived at a new location.

Looking up, they saw an extremely tall ceiling—the place they had just been.

Step…

Step…

Continuing ahead, they arrived at another open area.

“What are these statues…”

Each holding a weapon, human-sized stone statues were arranged uniformly apart and stared directly at them.

“Why do I get the feeling they’ll come charging at us the moment we cross over some line?” laughed Chi Woo.

“More importantly, what are those chains dangling from the ceiling?”

“Huh? You’re right.”

The party then looked up, spotting chains hanging from the ceiling.

They also noticed strange letters written on the walls in front of them.

And just like the first trial, the Golden Divine Statue opened its mouth once more.

- Realize the weakness of your body.

“...What?”

Watala had just been stressing the importance of the body. Why was it now trying to teach its weakness?

Just as everyone was questioning the two contradictory lessons…

- A body unsupported by the mind is no different from a lump of flesh.

It then began repeating itself, like a broken record.

- Realize your ignorance. Realize your ignorance. Realize your ignorance. Realize your ignorance…

“Kyaaaa!”

“Wh-what is it saying?!”

The Golden Divine Statue then finished after stammering one last line.

- Realize that it is not everything.

Then, it returned to silence.

Chi Woo looked at the statues for a second before giving a proposal.

“What if we all jump in at the same time this time?"

Nod…

Hye Myeong and Seol nodded in response.

“Then…”

Turn…

“Now!”

Seol, Chi Woo, and Hye Myeong lunged ahead, beyond the line, toward the statues.

Fwip!

Fwip, fwip!

Rumble…

The statues immediately reacted.

“I knew it!”

They began swinging their weapons at Seol and the others.

Fwooosh…

Slaaaaaash!

The stone statue quickly swung its spear, deceptively fast for its stiff appearance.

However, each of the three facing the statues was incredibly strong in their own right. They were not so weak to be caught off guard by their attacks.

Duck!

Seol ducked to dodge the spear.

Fssss…

He then began to feel something strange.

‘What? Its movements… it was like…’

Seol began to sense something strange from the stone statue swinging its spear.

It was as if the attack he saw with his eyes… was not the one that it had done.

‘This is… the feeling I got from the first trial!’

In other words, the stone statues were yet another trick.

Baaam!

“...Urgh!”

Baaaaam!

“Ahhhh!”

Hye Myeong and Chi Woo were sent flying away like a kite with its string cut off.

They landed, right next to where Seol Hong and Mi Ah were.

“I was sure I dodged it…”

“Look at this…”

Hye Myeong pulled back the robe near his chest, revealing a swollen, red mark.

While it was certainly strange, Seol had no attention to spare for it as he faced the stone statues.

Fwoosh!

Fast, but not for Seol.

Seol then spotted a stone statue to his side, charging at him with a shield up.

It was a simple attack that could be dodged, however…

Seol could not move, as if he was entangled.

‘...My body!’

Baaaaaam!

Helplessly, Seol was also sent flying back from the attack.

[Bones of Origin consumes the impact.]

[Bones of Origin currently has an empty stomach.]

[Bones of Origin digests all of the impact.]

Thud…

Thud!

Grind…

As Seol was sent flying back past the line, the stone statues returned to their original positions.

Seol then looked back at Chi Woo and Hye Myeong.

All three of them realized the secrets behind this trial.

“This is…”

“Yeah.”

Seol nodded before saying, “There must be an invisible statue we can’t see.”

“And the way to sense it…”

The three of them could tell what it was.

After all, they had gotten a hint of it from the previous trial and Watala’s words.

“We’re supposed to hone the feeling we got earlier.”

Chi Woo clicked his tongue.

“So he’s going to teach us by beating us down? What an asshole!”

Chi Woo then began grinding his knuckles on the Golden Divine Statue’s temples, as if he was trying to hurt it.

- Watala: St-stop it, please.

- It hurts! It hurts!

“We don’t have a lot of time,” quietly muttered Hye Myeong. “We have to clear this place fast.”

Nod.

Chi Woo and Seol nodded in response, then took a stance.

“Want to make a bet to see who gets knocked out first?”

“Sounds good. Whoever’s first out has to do the dishes.”

Nod.

Chi Woo immediately accepted Hye Myeong’s bet, and Seol slowly nodded as well.

“Let’s go!”

Fwip! Leap, leap!

Regardless of the outcome, Seol planned to focus solely on the statue directly in front of him.

‘The worst case scenario is getting grabbed by the invisible statue like before. I have to keep myself moving.’

Fwooosh…

The stone statue drew an arc with the dull blade in his hands.

The statues here, as if deliberately designed to be nonlethal, all carried dulled weapons.

However, taking a direct attack was still dangerous as it could lead to bruises and broken bones.

‘I dodged the stone statue’s attack, next is…!’

There was a brief moment after dodging the stone statue’s attack. It was clear that this was the time the invisible statue would strike.

Twitch!

‘Behind!’

The invisible statue was already behind Seol. While Seol wasn’t certain how he knew, he could sense through the feeling he got from the first trial that it was.

Fwirl!

Seol awkwardly rolled forward.

However, his decision was the correct one.

‘I dodged it!’

Chi Woo then shouted from across the room.

“Hye Myeong, dodge!”

Baaam!

“Argh!”

Despite being the one giving the warning, Chi Woo was the first to be knocked out.

- ChiWoo: Dodge the breath attack! Go to the corner!

- You have died.

- Wipe… Wipe… Wiping the raid is fun!

- ChiWoo: I’m happy… that you guys can clear the raid… Don’t rez me…

“Chi Woo! Hahahahahaha! You—”

Baaam!

“Urgh…”

Hye Myeong immediately ended up like Chi Woo after letting his guard down for a second.

However, after recovering, the two immediately leaped back into the fray.

The reason? Simple.

It was because Seol hadn’t been pushed out by the stone statues yet.

Fwooosh!

Twitch!

‘I can sense it!’

Seol felt a wave of stinging sensation wash over him.

It was as if he were a dam that had been trickling water slowly, only to be overwhelmed by a fierce torrent that swept everything away.

Waver…

Seol began to see it flickering before his eyes, like a haze in a burning desert.

‘...I’m getting used to it.’

Inhale…

Twitch!

‘I have to jump up!’

Baaam!

Seol leaped off the stone statue’s arms to soar higher.

Fwip, fwip…

He got the sense that the invisible statue was swinging wildly at where he had just been.

He was gradually becoming more accustomed to it, as if he could start to make out its silhouette.

- Realize your ignorance.

That was what the Golden Divine Statue said.

Fwoosh!

Fwip!

Bam!

However, Seol had already realized it.

- Realize your ignorance.

Ignorance.

Seol hadn't known it before.

That something like this even existed.

Watala’s words were right.

Tap!

Though there was nothing in front of him, there definitely was something.

‘I can see it!’

Seol began to make out more details about the statue.

It was taller than the others and resembled a stone monkey.

- Realize that it is not everything.

Seol realized that the world he saw… wasn’t everything.

Fwoooosh…

Seol pulled his arms back before unleashing a powerful blow to the monkey statue’s face.

Baaaaaam!

The sound just now was something only Chi Woo and Hye Myeong could hear. In fact, they were so surprised by it that they immediately turned to Seol.

However, there was nothing there. It was something they still couldn’t see.

The monkey statue had flown far away, yet Seol remained standing in place.

It wasn’t just that he was growing accustomed to his new powers.

For a moment, he had glimpsed a door far away in a place he couldn’t reach.

A door covered in charms and wrapped in chains.

A human would look like a grain of rice if placed in front of that massive door.

Rumble, rumble…

[Eyes of Foresight unlocks a new skill.]

[You are able to perceive more flows of power than before.]

[You are able to project your mind into your vision.]

“I found it… the door,” muttered Seol to himself.

Seol finally found where the door was.

[A wonderful discovery! You have discovered a mysterious object.]

[You are now able to recognize the Void Door.]

The door had continuously been by his side.