Return Of The Strongest Player

[Level 21 has been cleared.]

Arthur let out a sigh of relief, chuckling as he fell to the ground, squirming in pain. The stone of mana stopped pumping energy into Arthur's body, dimming before assuming the appearance of a regular rock.

Arthur coughed, cracking a smile as he stared at the ashen sky up above. His first step was on par with the Divine Rankers. If he could conquer the 22nd level, he would achieve the impossible.

[56. Arthur Solace: Level 21]

'One more level… The wall that obstructed the path of all the other prodigies,' Arthur mused. His talent was ordinary, and his main strength in his former life was [Sin Toll], which only bloomed later in his life.

At this point, during his former life, Arthur was but a regular player.

However, in this life, he surpassed all bounds and was second to none in the rankings of the first floor. 

He was equal, perhaps even stronger than the Divine Rankers were when they challenged the first floor. Zeus, who?

'But this is only the beginning,' said Arthur internally. Many talents bloomed during their initial stages, but fell victim to either the suppression of the Divine Rankers or the natural events of the tower.

Many talents were not able to unfurl their wings and soar.

Now, the 22nd level.

It was entirely unexplored, with only a few hundred people ever having witnessed the mysterious beast. However, as if they were all cooperating, none of the witnesses had ever revealed information about the beast.

All information about the beast was heavily restricted.

Arthur took a few minutes to regenerate his body and allow the stone of mana to recover. The tiny rock in his breast pocket would be the deciding factor, determining whether Arthur achieved victory or was humiliated with a loss.

Escaping the floor was definitely possible, as it was only the first floor.

However, if one couldn't react in time, the possibility of death still existed. Leaving the floor was not instant, and required at least a few seconds of undivided attention. A strong beast could easily devour its prey in a few seconds.

Arthur glanced at the rankings again, his gaze locked on the position Zeus defended.

The crimson-eyed man sneered at Zeus's name, imagining a scenario with his name printed at the top, in bold print. Arthur wondered whether there was a 23rd level, but quickly confined such preposterous thoughts away.

Once recovery was complete, Arthur let out a sigh, stepping forward.

[Level 22: Corrupted Beast.]

Silence.

The determination piled up on Arthur's face deflated in mere seconds, while his expression crumpled. The excitement dimmed, and his toes curled. His eyes widened, revealing the traces of crimson streaks running across his sclera.

Arthur's body turned stiff like a tree bark as he stared at the translucent, blue window before his eyes.

'Corrupted… Beast?'

Arthur's expression darkened.

Corrupted Beasts were mysterious, and rarely appeared in Heaven's Spire. The ones that appeared usually possessed 15,000 to 25,000 Beast Marks, and were normally high Myriad Beast Kings or low Spiritual Beast Emperors.

However, despite that, no regular Ranker or High Ranker could even hold a candle to their absurd power. The Corrupted Beasts could evenly battle with a level above them, which seemed to be an accurate display of the chaotic nature of their existence.

Guardians never acknowledged their presence, while high-rank clans immediately killed any that appeared.

Arthur had engaged in battle with a high Spiritual Beast Emperor Corrupted Beast–the only one of its kind, and fought continuously for days, perhaps weeks in order to secure victory. Even him at his peak couldn't hold a candle to a Beast God Corrupted Beast.

Not that they even existed.

However, that was besides the point.

The crux of the matter was that their mere existence was a catastrophe. Arthur suddenly understood the reason behind the unconquerable 22nd floor. The fact that a Corrupted Beast was placed on the first floor was insane.

'Who the fuck created this floor like this?'

Arthur shook his head. Suddenly, he considered simply leaving the floor and accepting his position on par with the Divine Rankers. However, as he stared at the rankings, a mysterious sense of irritation arose in his chest.

The smug faces of his enemies lingered in his mind, haunting his thoughts.

So what if it was a Corrupted Beast?

So what if there was a possibility of instant death?

If one did not take risks, the rewards were undeserved. 

Arthur steeled his resolve again, rebuilding his collapsed determination. A Corrupted Beast couldn't threaten him.

At least, that was what he repeated internally in order to stabilize his erratic breathing.

From the darkness on the opposite side of the arena, a tiny humanoid entity slowly walked out. He did not possess eyes, while his ears were an unusual, pentagon shape. With a gray, naked body without any genitals, and deformed arm/tentacles sprouting from its body, the Corrupted Beast was a mess.

Arthur instantly knew that [Judgment Regeneration] would be useless.

[Sin Toll] might have worked, but with such a meager amount of life aura, it was practically impossible to contest with such heavy pressure. Arthur couldn't discern the property of the aura the Corrupted Beast emanated.

It wasn't life or death, darkness or light.

It wasn't one of Plato's elements.

It was either Everything or Nothing.

[A/N: Reference to my previous book.]

Arthur's mind couldn't comprehend such an abstract element, as it did not possess a physical form. 

It was a proper example of a metaphysical element.

Everything or Nothing.

"I fought one of your superiors once," said Arthur, approaching the Corrupted Beast as he feigned a calm expression. The Corrupted Beast was silent, refusing to rush towards his enemy. It simply stood stationary.

Once Arthur reached within 40 steps of the Corrupted Beast, it let out a low growl.

"To be honest, all of you are but a bunch of mindless monkeys."

At that moment, the Corrupted Beast let out a mighty roar.

'So it has enough intelligence to understand language… that only makes it more difficult to trick it.'