The Judge’s Hammer Yama had exchanged back and forth in the Demon Realm.

On the outside, it looked like an ordinary wooden mallet.

Of course, the wood itself was anything but ordinary.

Considering it had struck a Sand Dragon and come out without even a scratch.

If this hammer had come from the Tower, he would at least be able to see its item information.

But that was impossible.

Anyway, the effects of the Judge’s Hammer.

First.

It bound the target and forced them to vomit out their sins.

In truth, this was the core of the core.

It would not be an exaggeration to call it the fundamental function.

Any judge would want this.

Not only to ensure fair trials, but also to prevent innocent people from being wronged, and even to peer directly into the minds of criminals.

Sometimes there were criminals like that, right?

The kind where you could not even begin to understand what they had been thinking when they committed the crime.

Whether they knew exactly what they were doing, were just idiots, or had been ordered by someone else.

If you smacked them on the head with the hammer and shouted, “Confess your crimes yourself!” everything would be laid bare.

And the second function.

Because it bore Yama’s touch, it was an outstanding weapon in its own right.

You designated a target.

WHIRRR!

Then threw it.

SCREEEECH!

It flew like a bolt.

THUD! KWA-BOOOOM!

It delivered a tremendous impact.

In terms of pure physical force, even a Sand Dragon—a lesser dragon said to be stronger than an adult dragon—was reduced to a near-death state in a single hit.

And then again.

WHIRRR!

It flew back into Juhyeok’s hand.

CLACK!

Fun.

Even more so because it was ranged rather than close combat.

Take another hit, you bastard!

WHIRRR!

SCREEEECH!

THUD! KWA-BOOOOM!

The Sand Dragon disintegrated.

The hammer returned once more.

WHIRRR!

CLACK!

Two-hit clear.

[Lesser Dragon Sand Dragon defeated 1/1.]

[You have succeeded in the 88th-floor mission.]

Guess I worried for nothing.

When all it took was tossing the hammer from afar.

CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP!

The blood-summoned entities applauded thunderously, gazing at Juhyeok with satisfaction.

“You threw it. How wise you are, Young Master.”

“Throwing it keeps you safe.”

“He threw it. Nothing to worry about now.”

“Oh, please. Would the greatest genius summoner ever fight up close?”

“Huh? When did you get here?”

“Saw the hammer flying and came right over.”

“Is that so? Hahaha.”

Watching the blood-summoned entities chat and laugh, Juhyeok smiled as well.

No need to eat the great demon heart, right?

Just five more floors to go for a complete clear.

From the 96th to the 100th floor, all in one go.

Who knew what kind of tricks the Black Tower might pull next?

That was why preparations had to be thorough.

The three members of the Magic Research Workshop gathered to begin studying combat equipment.

Rajix sorted out the supplies needed for the strategy and organized the subspace.

Meanwhile, the blood-summoned entities consumed the Elixirs of Enhancement made from the great demon hearts.

Cossack, Meatshield, Bardin, and Diamat.

Jepetto would do so later, after finishing his dispatch duty in the world of souls.

Juhyeok also had work to do.

Going back and forth to the auction house to secure top-grade Magic Stones.

Top-grade Magic Stones had countless uses.

They were needed immediately as materials for magic research, and also for permanent Residency Rights.

Items usually listed at auction were electronics, vehicles, media devices—things that existed uniquely on Earth.

Because he listed them so often, the bidding prices gradually dropped.

Should he space them out a bit?

But he decided not to.

People wanted Earth items this badly.

So what if the price dropped a little?

Then even those without top-grade Magic Stones might get a chance to buy them.

In the midst of that, one auction item caught Juhyeok’s eye.

One of the most expensive items on display.

Namely—

Divine Artifact: Long Spear of the Godslayer

Current bid: 2,500,000,000 kg of top-grade Magic Stones

Wow.

Two and a half billion.

Five hundred million more than a World Tree sapling.

In the past, he would not have spared it a glance, but—

This might actually be more urgent than a World Tree sapling.

Because he might have to face a god.

“...Wait a second.”

The Long Spear of the Godslayer was a divine artifact.

Meaning an item of god-tier.

In fact, Juhyeok already owned something similar.

A divine artifact.

“What’s its value?”

Let’s try listing it.

He could always cancel afterward.

He placed Yama’s Judge’s Hammer into the locker registration slot.

Ding!

[You have applied for an auction.]

[Please set the initial bid price.]

[If you do not set a bid price, the auction house will assess the value at its discretion. Do you agree?]

Auction house discretionary valuation.

The starting bid varied depending on the item.

So how much would this be valued at?

Slide—

[The auction item has been registered.]

“Check auction status.”

He summoned the menu and tapped to confirm.

Divine Artifact: Judgment Hammer of the King of Hell

Starting bid: 5,000,000,000 kg of top-grade Magic Stones

“...What the hell.”

A full five billion.

Twice the price of the Long Spear of the Godslayer.

Who would even buy this?

Still, just in case some insane senior decided to bid, he quickly canceled the listing.

[The Judgment Hammer of the King of Hell has been canceled. Since it was canceled within one hour of registration, no cancellation fee has been applied.]

Slide.

The hammer reappeared in the locker.

He quickly tucked it into his arms.

Thank you.

King Yama.

All I gave you were a few packs of cigarettes and some shoddy Earth items, yet you so readily bestowed such an incredible divine artifact.

Juhyeok returned to the White Tower.

Now it was time to open his privileges.

128 Platinum Badges obtained from the simultaneous Demon Realm.

A total of 442 accumulated, 269 in hand.

Including the existing ones, that made 26 privilege activations.

The privilege system was probably also under the influence of the White Tower’s “Whitey.”

Then give me something good.

The Black Tower broke the rules, so let’s strike back properly.

“Confirm!”

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

Countless privilege messages popped up.

He ignored the trivial ones.

What he needed now were things essential to himself.

Items absolutely necessary for the upcoming movement.

Then—

Ding!

[Blood-Summoned Penalty Removal Ticket has been delivered to the Tower-exclusive inventory.]

“...Huh?”

What’s this?

Ding!

Again.

[Blood-Summoned Penalty Removal Ticket has been delivered to the Tower-exclusive inventory.]

They came consecutively.

Ding! Ding! Ding.

Two, three, four...

A total of five.

<Blood-Summoned Penalty Removal Ticket>

Effect: Immediately removes penalties and abnormal status effects applied to one blood-summoned entity.

Limitation: Death penalties cannot be removed.

“Why five of these... Ah!”

He got it.

There was only one purpose for these tickets.

To compensate for the drawbacks of items obtained through achievements.

The Blood-Summoned Potential Explosion Whistle.

An item that exploded the abilities of one blood-summoned entity for ten minutes.

After use, the summoned entity was forcibly dismissed after ten minutes, and a penalty prevented Designated Summon for ten days.

But ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) with this ticket, the penalty could be removed immediately.

“Well done, our dear Whitey.”

He should use honorifics.

After all this effort.

Let’s keep working well together from now on.

Time passed quickly.

Then an incident erupted that would shock the entire world.

A video was suddenly released.

On the Korean Awakening Administration’s YouTube channel.

It was the footage Juhyeok had handed over to Commissioner Jeon Gwangil.

It was a compilation, multiple clips edited into one.

Cut what needed cutting, include what needed including.

The scenes featuring the Sword Immortal and the Golden Monkey clone of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven were excluded.

Naturally, so was Yama.

Immortals had portrait rights.

You could not just upload them without permission.

Of course, the Sword Immortal seemed to enjoy filming with an Earphone device, but filming and distribution were separate matters.

The video was spectacular from the very beginning.

Enough to devour most blockbuster movies whole.

Look at this.

This kind of thing happened in the Tower.

Not just giant monsters—five ultra-colossal ones showed up.

└ What are those things?

└ Why are five giant monsters appearing together?

└ The subtitles say “Extreme Hell Mode.”

└ There were difficulty modes for the Tower?

└ Is it related to S+++ or EX ranks?

└ How are you supposed to kill five at once?

Don’t worry.

We melted them all with nukes.

Gigant Unit No. 1 deployed.

A mushroom cloud rose.

KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-BOOOOM!

└ A nuclear explosion?

└ Ha! A Gigant walking around with nukes and self-destructing—what is this?

└ Running around with nuclear warheads in both hands looks absurdly innocent.

└ Seriously, nukes going off inside the Tower?

└ The only one who can move a Gigant is Bong Juhyeok.

└ So that’s why the “nuclear fission prohibited world” notice went up.

└ How did they even bring nukes into the Tower in the first place?

The 86th-floor firefighting.

A phoenix approached.

Fire trucks lined up in a crane-wing formation to face it.

└ Wait, is something wrong with my eyes? There are fire trucks inside the Tower.

└ It’s not the Tower. Look at the writing on the trucks—Seoul Fire Department.

└ You’re right. So it’s not the Tower.

└ A phoenix just showed up.

└ We’ve decided to call that CG.

The screen zoomed in.

People came into view.

People with strange appearances and outfits, climbing onto fire trucks and aiming chemical sprayers.

Firefighting agents sprayed all at once toward the phoenix.

And the reaction?

Not to the phoenix raid, but to impressions of the people themselves.

└ Sigh, I knew it. Fake. Totally fake.

└ They hired actors and shot a movie.

└ CG? I focused for nothing.

└ Why would they even film something like this?

└ So they’re saying Bong Juhyeok beat the phoenix like that?

└ Fire truck raid, my ass. No way that’s real.

The blood-summoned entities began to appear clearly on screen.

└ Look at that—obvious costumes. They’re all actors.

└ Rookie actors maybe?

└ Huh? Cute hamster!

└ No way that’s real. Cosplay? CG?

└ Cute hamsters are super popular, so of course they’d include one.

└ That giant’s copying the hotel terror guy.

└ But who’s the actor with wings and a tail?

└ I didn’t say it earlier, but did you see that sniper girl pulling aggro on the phoenix?

└ Damn, I’m not sleeping tonight.

└ Screenshot. New wallpaper.

└ Same here.

Honestly, who would believe this video was real?

At the very least, it definitely was not a Tower raid video.

Why?

Because only one player was allowed to enter each Tower floor.

That was a basic rule and common knowledge of Tower climbing.

So the video had to be a deepfake.

Or an AI-generated video.

Either way, it was fabricated.

That was how people watched it.

So no matter how bizarre the content was, it was just entertaining and novel, not something to truly be shocked by.

Even when a pyramid-shaped dimensional energy storage facility appeared.

Even when grotesque monsters guarding it showed up.

As the video reached the later half—

When the Demon Realm raid appeared.

When dragons flew and spewed breath attacks.

When dazzling flame magic poured down.

When the Demon Realm army was annihilated.

“Well made.”

“It’s fun.”

“They must have spent a ton of money filming this.”

That was all.

Even when another Earth from a parallel universe appeared, people just accepted it.

Even though subtitles explaining Earth No. 675 scrolled by in detail.

They just assumed it was a typical movie plot.

Then came the administrator.

His true identity.

As he was subdued, a video appeared behind him—

showing the destruction of Earth No. 675.

The Black Tower’s purpose.

Dimensional energy.

Archangels.

Gods.

└ This came out of nowhere.

└ Did they hire a web-novel writer for the script?

└ What’s with this ending?

└ Anyone actually understand the story?

└ So the Black Tower exists because of gods, and the world’s doomed?

└ The plot coherence is trash.

└ They keep saying they’ll kill the summoner. Are they talking about Bong Juhyeok?

The video ended.

The ending credits rolled.

Names and photos of specific individuals appeared.

Presumably the actors who had appeared so far.

Civil-and-military genius Cossack, Meatshield, Guardian Mad Demon, Holy Knight Bardin, Chief Gunner Gyeon Dallae, Dimensional Farmhand Rajix, Filming Director MacMillan, Baekdana, Mannyeon, Diamat, Crackers.

└ Wait—hold on! Rajix? The hamster’s name is Rajix?

└ That Rajix from Rajix Trading?

└ Why slap a company name onto our cutie?

└ The giant’s name was Meatshield. I remember. During the hotel terror incident, one of them was called Meatshield.

└ That old man who disciplined the anti-Korean protesters in Japan is the Mad Demon.

└ Wait. What if they aren’t actors, but real people?

└ And the movie’s setting is actually inside the Tower?

└ I seriously don’t know what to think anymore.

The credits finished rolling.

All that remained was the post-credits scene.

Commissioner Jeon Gwangil appeared.

With a very serious expression.

The video you have just watched was filmed directly inside the Tower, without any fabrication or manipulation.

It was provided by the world’s top player, Bong Juhyeok, and is guaranteed by the Korean Awakening Administration. Everything is true.

As you have seen, Player Bong Juhyeok is steadily advancing toward the complete conquest of the Tower together with his companions on a great journey.

We appeal to everyone around the world. Please send Player Bong Juhyeok your sincere encouragement and applause.

└ What?!

└ Huh?

└ ?

└ ??

└ Wait, what?

└ What the hell?!

└ So... it’s all real?

...

└ No way.

└ But the Commissioner himself said it.

└ This is insane.

└ My head’s spinning.

└ I need to watch it again.

Calls flooded into the Korean Awakening Administration.

Everyone asking whether the video was real.

The answer was always the same.

It was filmed directly.

Everything was real, with no CG.

Player Bong was climbing the Tower together with his companions, and parallel universes truly existed.

The world was stunned.

Turned upside down.

The Korean Awakening Administration did not upload the video only to YouTube.

They also sent more detailed explanations to governments around the world.

Along with requests.

At the White House in the United States, an emergency national security meeting was convened under President Lloyd.

“So parallel universes really exist?”

“We’ve confirmed it multiple times. They’re even willing to prove it if requested.”

“Prove it? You mean they can go directly to a parallel universe?”

“Yes.”

“This is driving me crazy.”

Another Earth that had already been destroyed.

Earth No. 675.

Just like ours, it had a Black Tower, and it collapsed in the 70th floors.

The cause was Kabalan’s Curse.

They failed to meet the average floor requirement and could not defeat the true form.

“If our Earth didn’t have Player Bong, more than a hundred Towers would have collapsed by now.”

A hundred?

It would have been practically an extinction event.

Just like Earth No. 675.

“And take a look at this.”

Secretary MacMillan placed a long steel container on the table.

“What is it?”

“In the video, there’s a dimensional energy storage facility. You saw the subtitles, right?”

“The pyramid-shaped structure?”

“Yes. This was taken from there. It’s like a battery.”

“Hm.”

“We’re researching it now. They say this rod is the reason the Black Tower exists.”

What was dimensional energy, that it could plant Black Towers across the land and doom entire worlds?

“Setting that aside, what should we do about Commissioner Jeon Gwangil’s request?”

“...The nuclear warheads?”

They were supposedly needed for the great journey.

They would be used in a completely different world, not on Earth.

Of course, they wanted to cooperate as much as possible.

It was for the complete conquest of the Tower. Why refuse?

And if what the video showed about the Black Tower, administrators, and outer gods was true...

This was something the entire world needed to respond to together.

But were nuclear weapons too precious for that?

Still—

“The White House cannot decide this unilaterally. We need congressional approval. It will take time.”

“How long?”

“At least a month or two.”

Unless the U.S. were a dictatorship, exporting strategic weapons required extremely complex procedures.

“We will hurry as much as we can. Tell them to be patient—”

That was when—

“Mr. President.”

A security advisor at the far end of the room raised a hand.

“What is it?”

“India’s prime minister just held a press conference.”

“About what?”

“Declaring full trust in Player Bong Juhyeok and offering unlimited support.”

“That’s it? They have said that before.”

“There’s more. They said they will immediately load nuclear weapons and send them to Korea.”

“...What?”

India was the world’s sixth-largest nuclear power.

It seemed they intended to repay the debt of restoring the Mumbai sinkhole by providing warheads.

“And Pakistan too.”

“Hm?”

“They released a statement supporting Player Bong Juhyeok and offering nuclear weapons as well.”

India and Pakistan.

Countries that had competed fiercely in nuclear armament for decades.

Now competing to export nuclear weapons?

“Russia’s president is also preparing a press conference.”

“......”

“They will likely announce their intention to provide nuclear weapons as well.”

“Hm.”

The situation was taking a strange turn.

If this continued, the U.S. would look like it was backing out.

That would not do.

There was national pride at stake.

In supporting Player Bong Juhyeok, the U.S. needed to take the lead.

“Prepare our own press conference. We’ll get congressional approval later.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Tell them we’ll send the biggest and flashiest ones.”

In addition, nearly every nuclear-armed nation conveyed its intent to provide warheads to the Korean Awakening Administration.

Thus, Juhyeok obtained firepower capable of destroying Earth dozens of times over.

The world’s greatest nuclear power holder.

That was Bong Juhyeok.