CHAPTER 173: THE SECOND ZONE, REACHING THE TOWER OF FATE

Slash! Slash!

Sam cut through the incoming powers with ease, his body moving almost on instinct.

These monsters, strong as they seemed, were nothing compared to the enemy he had already faced.

He had defeated the level 80 Forsaken Lord, so what chance did level 75 beasts have against him?

None at all.

They couldn’t even hit him before his blade cut through them..

Around him, the battlefield painted a very different picture.

Some awakeners were clearly struggling to hold their ground, their movements sloppy and desperate as they barely avoided the attacks aimed at them.

Others, much like him, cut through the monsters with calm precision, their confidence unshaken as they pressed forward.

Sam’s eyes scanned it all, his thoughts quiet but sharp.

’The overall strength really has gone up since the moment we entered this realm,’ he thought, ’I guess they weren’t exaggerating when they said that if we reached the peak of our ranks and levels, we could become beings like gods.’

And as for himself... who could say where he stood on that path?

He didn’t waste more time on the monsters.

Sam dashed ahead, leaving behind the fading cries of beasts and the struggles of the weaker awakeners.

The [Second Zone] blurred around him, its strange landscape shifting by as he rushed forward.

And always, his eyes were drawn to the massive structure in the distance, its peak lost in the sky, towering above everything else.

The [Tower of Fate].

In less than fifteen minutes, his feet carried him to its base, and he now stood before the colossal tower that loomed like a monument of inevitability.

Dozens of awakeners gathered around the entrance.

Some stood in small groups, whispering hurried plans to one another.

Others leaned silently on their weapons, their gazes sharp and filled with the hunger for the rewards waiting within.

Each one of them carried the same desire: to clear the second mission, to claim the rewards, and also maybe to gather more forsaken coins.

Sam’s eyes drifted across the crowd, and he noticed the mix of races present.

Dragons with their proud scales glinting faintly in the light.

Angels whose wings folded neatly against their backs as they radiated an almost unnatural aura of divinity.

Celestials who stood still, their glowing eyes fixed on the tower as if nothing else existed, their halos floating over their heads.

Elves with sharp features, their expressions unreadable as they prepared to enter.

But among all these powerful races, Sam noticed something strange.

’I barely see any humans here,’ he thought, his brows furrowing slightly, ’And what about Oliver, Evans, and David? Where the hell are they?’

The kingdom was vast.

Hundreds of thousands of awakeners from countless worlds all converged here.

It wasn’t impossible that he simply hadn’t run into them.

But not seeing them even once? It left a faint unease in the back of his mind.

’Maybe they’re already dead,’ Sam thought.

And with that, he shrugged inwardly.

Surprisingly, the thought didn’t stir much in him.

He felt no anger, no grief, no frustration.

All he wanted was the truth about his own "kind" and the power to reach it.

Everything else, everyone else... was secondary.

Besides, in a kingdom where dozens died every single day, it wasn’t shocking.

Humans were notorious for being the weakest race, so it was natural that most of them wouldn’t survive long.

In fact, Sam almost hoped that Lily, Alicia, and Chloe hadn’t even tried to push forward.

They were his friends, yes, but they weren’t strong enough for this place.

If they attempted to take on these missions, the outcome would almost certainly be their deaths.

’I wonder what happened to them,’ Sam thought.

And then he let the thought go.

"Oh well," he muttered under his breath.

He stepped toward the gate at the base of the [Tower of Fate].

Behind the tower stretched the [Second Barrier], a massive wall of white flames that burned endlessly, sealing the way forward.

No one who hadn’t cleared the mission would ever pass through those flames.

Sam reached out for the gate, ready to enter and face whatever awaited inside.

But the moment he tried to step forward—

Bump!

His body collided with something unseen, halting his movement instantly.

"Huh?" Sam frowned, his gaze fixed on the towering gate.

And then, before his eyes, a panel appeared.

Ding!

[You need to form a team with "7" awakeners to be able to enter.]

"Seriously?" Sam muttered aloud.

It was the first time something like this had happened.

Everywhere else, whether through layers or missions, he had always been able to act alone.

But now?

Now the system itself demanded that he join a group.

The implication was clear, and Sam knew it without needing an explanation.

Whatever mission awaited inside this tower, it wasn’t something that could be survived alone.

The system forcing people into groups meant only one thing: there would be fights.

Not just with monsters.

Sam’s gaze sharpened.

The conversations of other awakeners drifted to his ears.

"Did you hear? The [Eternal] group split up for this mission. They thought they’d have to fight each other."

"Yeah, I heard. Apparently, they all went into separate teams and still came out alive."

"No one knows what happened inside though. Damn it, why is all the information being kept secret?"

Sam paid them little attention.

They were only voicing what he already understood.

What interested him was the [Eternal] group itself.

They had figured it out quickly, and they had been the first to clear the mission.

’But wait,’ Sam thought, ’if they split up, how did they clear it together?’

[Hell-Mode Analysis: Victory might be assigned to the group as a whole, not just the individual.]

Sam scratched his chin.

"This... might actually make sense," he murmured.

Back in the [Lower Realm], when he cleared the fifth and sixth layers for the first time, the announcements had credited the [Primordial] guild.

The only reason his personal name had appeared at all was because he defeated the Forsaken Lord.

Otherwise, only his guild name would have been recorded.

And when he killed Zareth, the seventh Forsaken Lord, the global panel had announced that the [Primordial] completed it, not his name.

It was clear enough now.

’I guess that makes sense,’ Sam thought, ’Makes things simpler.’

A grin tugged at his lips.

All he needed now was a group willing to accept him.

He took a single step back to scan the crowd.

[Behind you.]

Bump!

Sam’s back collided with someone, and he turned quickly.

Standing behind him was a massive figure, towering close to two meters tall.

The man’s aura pressed heavily against the air, thick and oppressive in a way that separated him from the average awakener.

’Another big shot, huh,’ Sam thought, studying him.

The man’s voice rumbled out, deep and rough.

"You..." His eyes narrowed as he looked at Sam.

Sam noticed the scales along his arms and the faint ridges along his head. Dragon race.

"...Do you wish to join us?"

"Huh?"

The weight of the man’s presence bore down like a storm, his aura screaming warning to anyone foolish enough to cross him.

Even restrained in humanoid form, his power was undeniable.

"Me and a few others from different races have gathered to enter the [Tower of Fate]," the dragon said.

"We’ll clear it together."

Sam tilted his head, glancing past the man.

In the distance, he saw a small group of five awakeners watching them closely.

Adding the dragon and himself would make seven.

But even as he observed them, something flickered in his eyes.

’These people...’

[They are inviting us only because we are human.]

[They assume we are weak, easy to sacrifice when the time comes.]

[How foolish =)]

A laugh almost slipped from Sam’s lips, though only inwardly.

If they thought he was a disposable pawn, then let them.

All he needed was the ticket inside the tower.

"Alright," Sam said, his tone measured, "though I’ll admit, I’m a little nervous about it all."

"Really?" The dragon extended a scaled hand, his rough voice steady.

"It’s fine. We’ll do our best to protect you."

[Void Watcher: He will kill you the moment he thinks it necessary. There is no mercy.]

Sam already knew it, but seeing [Void Watcher] confirm it brought a sharp edge to his grin.

"Deal."

Sam reached out, clasping the dragon’s massive scaled hand in his own.

The handshake sealed it.

He now had the team he needed to step into the [Tower of Fate].