Chapter 160 – Hall of Fame

[Hall of Fame Ranking – TOP5]

1st – 147,442,400 points (Korea)

2nd – 98,242,400 points (USA)

3rd – 81,642,400 points (USA)

4th – 78,552,400 points (India)

5th – 75,842,400 points (China)

‘I’m ranked 1st?’

Though no name was displayed, judging by the points and nationality, he could tell it was his record.

Sure enough.

[With a final accumulated score of 147,442,400 points, you have reached 1st place in the Hall of Fame! Congratulations!]

The message that appeared confirmed that he had indeed achieved 1st place.

‘1st in the Hall of Fame.’

This was a record he hadn’t achieved even before his regression.

That’s because his final score then was only 30 million.

‘But now it’s around 150 million.’

Looking at the points, he finally realized how much stronger he had become compared to his past life.

[Achievement unlocked!]

[Achievement – Hall of Fame 1st Place!]

-Condition: Maintain 1st place in the Tower of Infinity on Hard difficulty (Achievement will be removed if you fall from 1st place)

-Reward: Monster experience increased by 1.25 times

[Achievement (Hidden) – Tower of Infinity Climber!]

-Condition: Be the first to reach the 100th floor of the Tower of Infinity on Hard difficulty

-Reward: Legendary Armament Exchange Ticket

Two achievements had been unlocked.

‘One increases experience.’

It was an achievement that amplified experience by 1.25 times.

‘So the experience I was receiving at 2.4 times will now increase to 3 times.’

However, this benefit would only apply as long as he maintained 1st place in the Hall of Fame.

‘My first place won’t be broken for a while.’

Judging by the overwhelming point difference with 2nd place, he could maintain the top position for quite some time.

‘No, not just for a while. It might never be broken in my lifetime.’

When the hidden dungeon Tower of Infinity became known in his past life, the Hall of Fame rankings always attracted attention.

‘Even then, 1st place was around 100 million points. No one had close to 150 million like me.’

Even right before his regression, 1st place remained at 100 million points.

In other words, no hunter would be able to surpass Min Do-jun’s record for the next 9 years.

‘Unless it’s someone who has grown stronger by consuming dozens of characteristics like me, it would be impossible to accumulate this many points.’

Even if someone attempted the challenge at a higher level, it would be nearly impossible to accumulate over 100 million points.

‘As your level increases, the points you earn decrease accordingly.’

To earn many points, one must be strong while at a low level.

In short, without overwhelming characteristics and talent, it would be impossible to break this record.

‘And the second achievement that came in. Reaching the 100th floor of the Tower of Infinity.’

Although he couldn’t clear it, he fortunately earned this achievement by stepping foot on the 100th floor.

‘It’s a hidden achievement, no less. One that’s only given to the very first person.’

Reaching the 100th floor must be exceptionally difficult.

Perhaps that’s why the reward was incredibly good.

[Legendary Armament Exchange Ticket]

-Classification: Consumable

-Grade: S

-Effect: Can obtain 1 of 3 types of Legendary Armaments

-Usage Restriction: Level 3,000 or higher (Bound)

-Description: An exchange ticket for obtaining a Legendary Armament, which is difficult to acquire. Cannot be transferred.

Legendary Armaments refer to weapons, armor, and helmets.

‘I already have a weapon.’

He had Excalibur, an EX-grade weapon, but couldn’t use it yet due to his low level.

‘Amidst all this, to have another opportunity to obtain a Legendary Armament… It will be worth seeing when I reach level 3,000.’

He couldn’t even imagine how much stronger he would become when he reached S-rank at level 3,000.

‘This isn’t the end.’

The rewards weren’t over yet.

[Your accumulated points are being converted to experience.]

[Experience +147,442,400]

[Your level has increased!]

[Your level has increased!]

[Your level has increased!]

……

…

A cascade of level-up messages filled his vision.

This phenomenon occurred because nearly 150 million points had been converted to experience.

‘It’s not for nothing that people say you can power level in the Tower of Infinity.’

Due to the enormous amount of experience gained, Min Do-jun’s level instantly increased by 120.

‘In just one day, I’ve gone from 2,250 to 2,370.’

Of course, since this opportunity was a one-time thing, he couldn’t hope for more such windfalls, but this was already significant.

‘There’s no other way to gain 120 levels in a single day anywhere.’

Therefore, Min Do-jun naturally expected that such rapid growth would become known to the world.

If someone was monitoring his ranking, they couldn’t miss it.

‘Though they wouldn’t be able to guess how I leveled up.’

Those who knew about the Tower of Infinity might understand, but those who didn’t would be curious about his method.

‘I don’t have to tell them anything.’

Even if someone were to ask, he had no intention of revealing the location of the Tower of Infinity.

‘I can’t easily disclose the location of a hidden dungeon.’

Unless, of course, it wasn’t for free.

* * *

There’s a saying that population is national power.

This saying held true even in the hunter era.

Simply put, the more population, the more awakened individuals there would be.

Because of this, it was expected that India and China, which compete for 1st and 2nd place in population, would dominate the upper ranks of the world rankings, but surprisingly, the United States occupied the majority of the top spots.

The first two countries had fewer dungeons relative to their population.

In contrast, the United States had many dungeons due to its vast territory, and with an appropriate population size, it provided favorable conditions for hunters to concentrate on growth.

This was why the United States was known as a hunter powerhouse.

Of course, the biggest reason was that the world’s top-ranked hunter was American.

Justin Walker.

The guild he belonged to, Overlord, was recognized worldwide as the strongest guild in the United States.

It boasted tremendous power, with 20 of the world’s top 100 rankers being members of Overlord.

Clank- Creeeeak-

A dilapidated warehouse in New Orleans, USA.

Charlie Willer, who visited this place, was also a member of Overlord.

Although he barely ranked around 400th in the United States, let alone the world’s top 100, surprisingly, his level was quite high at 2,250.

Even more surprising was the fact that he was the youngest among the more than 200 Overlord guild members.

“Is the hidden dungeon here?”

“Yes. You’ve been briefed about the Tower of Infinity, right?”

“Yes.”

Charlie came here to enter the Tower of Infinity.

The Overlord guild had specially given him, a promising rookie, the opportunity to enter.

“There’s only 1 entry remaining here. Once you enter, it will probably disappear.”

“Th-then what should we do?”

“Don’t worry. We’ve found another one in Houston.”

As Charlie sighed in relief, his colleague Norman lifted a board in the warehouse.

This revealed the hidden dungeon portal that had been concealed.

“This is the Tower of Infinity.”

“Ah.”

Charlie’s eyes gleamed with anticipation.

“Only those in the know are aware, but the Tower of Infinity is a dungeon where you can gain a massive amount of experience in one go. It’s common knowledge that the lower your level, the more points you receive.”

Charlie looked at the hunter who had just explained.

“Norman, have you also challenged the Tower of Infinity?”

“Yes. I was around level 2,500 when I tried and got eliminated at the 60th floor.”

“Ah, then I probably won’t be able to go beyond that?”

“That’s uncertain. Being at a higher level doesn’t necessarily mean being stronger. Even our guild’s pride, Justin Walker, only cleared up to the 89th floor, and that was at the same level as you.”

“At level 2,250, he reached the 89th floor?”

“Yes. You’ll understand how difficult that is once you try it yourself. Just for reference, I’m talking about Hard difficulty. Keep in mind that if you choose another difficulty, your points will drastically decrease.”

“Ah, I understand.”

Charlie equipped his gear with a tense expression.

Although he had received training from the guild beforehand, he couldn’t help feeling nervous about entering a dungeon for the first time.

“Don’t be nervous. It’s not as big a deal as it seems once you start.”

“Ah, yes. But just hypothetically, if I were to clear up to the 90th floor, what would happen to Justin Walker?”

“What? You clearing the 90th floor? Wake up.”

“You never know, right? I also have an S-grade characteristic like Justin Walker.”

Charlie was a promising rookie despite his low level.

That’s why the guild was supporting him by providing access to a hidden dungeon.

“Ha, alright. Though it’s unlikely, if you were to break through the wall of the 90th floor, you’d surpass Justin and take 1st place in the Hall of Fame.”

“Is that all?”

“What do you mean ‘is that all’? The hunter community would go crazy over a promising rookie who surpassed Justin Walker. But that won’t happen.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Charlie was confident.

Justin Walker might be an exceptional hunter, but they both had S-grade characteristics.

There was no guarantee that he couldn’t achieve the same feat that Justin had accomplished at level 2,250.

“How many points did Justin Walker have again?”

“Around 100 million. You can assume that 1st place in the Hall of Fame is definitely Justin’s.”

“I’ll try to break that record.”

“Go ahead.”

Norman’s response was lukewarm.

His face showed no expectations whatsoever.

‘Just wait, Norman. I’ll surprise you as the promising rookie of the Overlord guild.’

Charlie entered the dungeon with anticipation.

* * *

Creeeeak-

As Charlie was massacring dozens of monkeys, a message appeared before his eyes.

[You gain 1,600 points as a reward for clearing the 5th floor.]

[Current accumulated points: 6,000]

[You will move to the 6th floor after 60 seconds of rest.]

By now, the tension in Charlie’s eyes had been replaced with confidence.

“This is nothing! It’s not even worth a post-meal exercise.”

Even after clearing the 10th floor, then the 20th, and the 30th, Charlie was still brimming with confidence.

“A 1-minute rest? Can’t we just start right away?”

At this rate, it seemed like he could easily surpass the 60th floor where Norman had failed.

Charlie’s confidence began to waver when he reached the 50th floor, where A-rank monsters started to appear.

“Huff, huff, huff.”

Barely dodging the rock lizards’ spike attacks while trying to clear the floor, he began to allow more hits as he climbed higher.

Despite having an S-grade characteristic that aided in combat, his lack of experience facing multiple monsters led to an increasing number of hits taken.

To climb higher, being good at attacking alone wasn’t enough.

“Haah, haah, haah.”

Now the 1-minute rest period seemed particularly short.

[You gain 640,000 points as a reward for clearing the 55th floor.]

[Current accumulated points: 11,282,400]

[You will move to the 56th floor after 60 seconds of rest.]

He hadn’t even reached the 60th floor yet, but he already wanted to give up.

It was too exhausting, both mentally and physically.

And he still had a long way to go to reach his goal of the 90th floor.

‘How on earth did Justin Walker make it to the 89th floor?’

He gained a newfound respect for Justin Walker.

“At least I need to surpass Norman…”

Though he had drastically lowered his goal from the 90th floor to the 60th, Charlie ultimately failed to reach even that.

[The damage received has exceeded your health.]

[Your record ends at the 58th floor.]

[Final record – Difficulty: Hard]

[Tower of Infinity 58th floor cleared]

[Calculating final points……]

[Final accumulated points: 13,482,400]

Charlie sighed when he saw his points.

It was a moment of realization about how difficult it was to accumulate 100 million points.

“Justin Walker was truly a monster.”

The top-ranked hunter seemed godlike to him.

Even more so since he had never met him.

Shortly after, the Hall of Fame rankings appeared.

Although he finished with a modest score, he could still view the Hall of Fame.

“Wow… even the lowest 5th place has over 75 million points.”

He felt embarrassed for having aimed to surpass Justin Walker and reach 100 million points without knowing his own limits.

“Huh?”

Then Charlie noticed a change in the rankings.

“1st place has 150 million points? Didn’t they say it was 100 million?”

As far as he knew, Justin Walker had scored close to 100 million points and was registered as 1st place.

But now, looking at the rankings, he had been pushed down to 2nd place.

“Wait, 1st place is from Korea?”

Only after seeing the nationality next to the points did Charlie finally realize.

The unshakeable 1st place holder, Justin Walker, had been surpassed by a Korean hunter.

And by an overwhelming difference of 150 million points.

“Th-this is big news.”

With a shocked expression, Charlie was transported out of the dungeon in a flash of light.