Regression is Too Much - Chapter 39

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 039

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The Earth is changing rapidly (4)

My plan to infinitely monopolize elixirs has failed, but that's okay.

The pill isn't gone. It might be a good idea to give this to a ranker later to get on their good side.

Or if not, I can just give it to Ji-won.

I haven't suffered any immediate loss. My pill is safe, and my strength stat has increased by a whole 10 points.

If you start thinking of not gaining as much as you could have as a loss, there's no end to it.

“Hmm… then, the next thing to test is…”

The initial plan failed, but I had a Plan B ready.

A plan that uses the convenience of the 1st floor.

Floor 1 can literally become anything, and you can be provided with anything.

The drawback is that created items don't persist outside Floor 1, but what about an item that you don't need to take outside?

“The Great Rejuvenation Pill of the Shaolin Temple.”

I imagine it, the greatest elixir of martial art stories that increases your internal energy just by eating it, the Great Rejuvenation Pill of the Shaolin Temple.

“…”

But no matter how hard I imagined, nothing appeared on my palm. It's not like I really thought it would work, but it's a bit disappointing.

Then what about a book instead of an elixir?

“…The secret manual for the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.”

I imagined the strongest martial arts manual I know of. Whenever I read martial art novels, the Heavenly Demon always comes out as the strongest.

“Oh?!”

Then, an old book materializes in my hand.

This is… the ultimate martial art that lets you place the world at your feet once you learn it. The supreme martial art that can destroy the Tower and everything else!

“…What is this?”

But after reading it, the contents were literally nothing more than kindling.

There was no information about martial arts, just a bunch of profound-looking enlightenments, but upon reading it again carefully, it was just a crude patchwork of phrases I had read in webnovels.

“…Is it because the god is from a Christian background that it doesn't handle martial arts?”

So this time, I imagined a 'legendary sword manual that only the direct imperial family can learn', but the contents, just like the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, were nothing but a jumble of text.

Right, getting things for free like this is impossible.

“Hmm… this time, organize the swordsmanship that Choi Ji-won taught me into a book.”

However, when I imagined 'Choi Ji-won's swordsmanship', which I know in relative detail, a proper book popped out this time.

Everything I had learned about swordsmanship from Ji-won was neatly organized, to the point where even a layman could understand the basics of the sword just by reading this book.

It seemed that when creating things like secret manuals, they were made based on what I already knew.

Of course, since it was information I already knew, there was no need to read the manual again, and since I couldn't show it to others, I thought it was useless.

"Huh?"

Wait, if this is the case, then surely…

“…Berserker's Pill.”

I imagined the pill I was holding in my right hand multiplying into two.

Then, a second Berserker's Pill appeared in my left hand.

“…Aha.”

The reason unique items were blocked from being consumed multiple times was likely out of caution regarding Floor 1's creation ability.

Because it was possible to create Tower items, not just things that exist in reality.

Then again, it didn't make sense to keep regressors in check. It's not like there are any other regressors besides me.

“There are two main possibilities…”

First. I can create items that I have 'seen' in person once.

Second. I can create items that I possess.

“Berserker's Axe.”

But seeing as the axe the angel showed me didn't appear, it seems I can only copy items that I currently possess.

I'll have to experiment more to know for sure, but just this much is a significant gain.

If I can just get my hands on a doping item that gives buffs, I can enter every floor fully buffed right from the start.

“Well, that's enough about items for now…”

The space around me, which had been in the form of my studio apartment, wavered and gradually changed into the appearance of a white laboratory.

This is the training space I imagined.

Thanks to the 1st floor's trait of being able to realize anything that seems plausible with modern technology, this space is designed to allow for various kinds of practical training.

What I have to do here is simple.

It's to practice cutting well, dodging well, and always being cautious.

At first, I thought about asking for help from outside experts, but I soon reached the conclusion that it would be meaningless.

My combat style, where even a scratch causes a regression, has to be different from others.

I must aim to defeat my opponent without getting hit even once.

On top of that, my strength stat had increased by 10.

I have to make sure I don't get hurt prematurely because I can't control my own strength.

“…Hoo.”

Shall I begin?

After finishing a satisfying amount of training, I opened the 'guide booklet' for the first time in a while.

Because I had only read the initial part and hadn't touched the rest.

In the first place, my life for the past two months consisted of watching YouToob, playing games, and eating chicken, pizza, and jjajangmyeon while watching the news, so I didn't pay much attention to the Tower's rules.

But now I'm in a position where I have to climb to Floor 2. It's only right to read the rules carefully once.

I opened the guide booklet and flipped through the pages to the 'basic rules of the Tower' part that I wanted to read.

3. I'm curious about the basic rules of the Tower!

The Tower is a miraculous product created by the combined power of several archangels! We angels believe in the potential of you humans. We sincerely pray that you climbers will prove the value of humanity and receive god's recognition. From now on, you climbers will challenge the limits of humanity. Sometimes it may be easy, and other times it may be difficult. Perhaps you may even have doubts. Thoughts like, ‘Is this really the right way to judge humanity?’ For all of you, I, the author, will now explain in detail! And accurately! I will lay bare the design intentions of the Tower! First…

“It's so long.”

This part of the guide booklet was seriously the longest. Even just skimming through it, the pages seemed endless.

Cutting out the useless chatter and summarizing the important points…

1. The archangel in charge of the Tower is different for every 5 floors. Accordingly, the atmosphere is different, and the stage concepts are also slightly different. The angel in charge changes like, from floor 1 to 5, then floor 6 to 10, and so on.

2. When you clear each floor, you return to the 1st floor. However, if multiple floors are connected, you can only return after clearing all of them.

3. Some floors, like Floor 1, can be entered at any time.

4. It's literally a floor-by-floor basis, so adapt accordingly.

That was the gist of it.

In truth, this was all the core information, and the rest was just reasonably packaged excuses. It seems the one who wrote the guide booklet also thought this Tower was quite arbitrary.

God must be very lazy. He wants to destroy humanity, but he dumped the work of creating the means on the angels.

“…Hmm.”

I pressed my brow once and reread the contents of the guide booklet.

The point to note here is the fact that you return to Floor 1 after clearing each floor.

Why? Because my regression point is 'the moment of entering each floor'.

Even if I clear the 2nd floor and return to the 1st floor, if I regress, I'll start again on the 2nd floor.

It means I have to manage my timeline carefully. It also means that once I enter the 2nd floor, I have to plan my movements in advance until the moment I enter the 3rd floor.

“Alright, then…”

All preparations are more or less finished.

It's now time to enter Floor 2.

Gnash.

I bit down hard on the inside of my cheek.

Overcoming the revulsion was quite difficult, but after repeating it, it became quite manageable.

Someday, a situation will arise where I need to regress urgently. This is my hidden ace, prepared for that moment.

[You have taken damage.]

[Returning to the moment of first entry on Floor 1.]

“Alright…”

Right before entering the 2nd floor, I took all the money from my bank account, except for basic living expenses, and put it into crypto. The leverage was a full 10x.

The name of the coin I invested my entire fortune in was 'Mighty Coin'. This coin was set to skyrocket in two months, and the reason was simple.

The nickname of the president of the American Player Association was 'Mighty Michael', and the coin shot up like crazy simply because the modifier was the same.

It was a truly stupid reason, but I decided to just accept it since they say that's how the crypto market is.

The important thing is that I can grow my money in the real world.

I didn't need money urgently right now, but there was no guarantee that would be the case in the future.

Knowing the future and not using it is a crime, isn't it?

“Physical condition… is good. Mental state is also good. Not much time has passed.”

Probably because I bought the coin so quickly, not much time had passed since I regressed. This is pretty much the same as entering right away.

After checking my condition once, I imagined a portal to Floor 2.

Whoosh.

A portal immediately revealed itself in the empty air.

“…Let’s go.”

I took a deep breath and pushed my body into the portal.

They say the survival rate is high but… let's see for ourselves.