"Welcome to the trial of Floor 1!" exclaimed an enthusiastic woman, who seem to be the one in charge of the trial site, a Moderator.

"Guild Master, do we really have to attempt this now? We're only at level 1," one of the members questioned hesitantly.

MasterAhn responded confidently, his voice resonating with clarity, "I will do this trial alone, no need to worry. I am curious to discover what is beyond Floor 1. Furthermore, I'm doing this so we can familiarize ourselves with the trials we will face from now on, so that the rest of you can prepare accordingly."

"But we only have seven revives before we must create new characters," another member voiced their concerns.

"It's a risk I am willing to take. Besides, even if I were to die here, I still have six revives remaining," MasterAhn reassured them.

"But we'll be going through two hundred floors..."

"Just place your trust in your guild leader, will you?" MasterAhn urged.

One of the members spoke up, their voice filled with unwavering faith, "I place my complete trust in you, Guild Master."

MasterAhn chuckled, appreciating their faith, and replied, "Thank you for your trust. Alright then, I'll be going."

MasterAhn approached the woman who appeared to be the announcer, positioned in a prominent spot.

As she caught sight of the approaching man, the woman arched an eyebrow and remarked, "Oh, an eager participant this early in the climbing process?"

"Yes, please allow me to take part. What are the requirements?" MasterAhn inquired.

A mischievous smile played on the woman's lips as she responded, "It's simple. Just defeat your opponent. Luckily, there's already someone waiting here since earlier, eager to ascend the floors."

"I'm ready. Let's begin immediately," MasterAhn declared confidently.

At this moment, MasterAhn felt assured in his abilities. He and his guild members had pooled their resources to purchase top-tier equipment from the starting town, and after establishing a favorable relationship with the Mayor, who provided them with valuable information about the trial sites scattered across Floor 1, they had arrived directly at this location, enjoying discounts and referral letters for their future visits to cities on the floor.

The woman gestured with her hand, signaling MasterAhn to move toward the raised platform made of earth, which presumably served as the stage for the duel trial. Meanwhile, she headed toward a nearby tent to summon the opponent.

Soon after she exited, a crack of lightning resonated, and MasterAhn's opponent arrived before him.

This man possessed striking features—majestically long, black hair, fair white skin, and an elegant white robe adorned with a pattern depicting a blue dragon. The few lingering sparks of lightning that danced around him, coupled with his indifferent expression, gave him a menacing aura. He also carried a Jian sword in his left hand.

Once again, the woman spoke nonchalantly, "There is only one rule: defeat your opponent. Killing is not illegal, but I strongly discourage it. Try your best to overcome your opponent without taking their life. However, even if death occurs, I cannot resurrect the dead... So, do your best to survive. I want someone to have a decisive win."

MasterAhn accessed his [Inventory] and retrieved a bow, while a large quiver appeared on his back after equipping it from the interface.

"What's your name?" MasterAhn asked.

"I am Namgoong Yun. I appreciate having someone willing to engage in the trial at this early stage. I am happy knowing I'm now able to proceed to Floor 2 right away," Namgoong Yun responded with a small smile.

"I wouldn't get too ahead of yourself. I happen to be quite skilled, you know," MasterAhn remarked confidently.

"In that case, I eagerly anticipate our duel," Yun bowed lightly.

"Likewise."

The woman once again raised her voice, shouting, "Prepare yourselves! Begin!"

As soon as her words echoed through the air, lightning crackled vigorously from the other side of the platform, and in an instant, MasterAhn's opponent, Yun, vanished.

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[Sync Rate: 160%]

MasterAhn's gaze briefly flickered to the words displayed on his HUD as the world around him seemed to slow down. He swiftly scanned his surroundings, but his opponent moved with remarkable speed.

In that split second, he pondered, What level is this guy? The Mayor mentioned that all climbers start at level 1. Could that information be inaccurate?

Reacting swiftly, MasterAhn retrieved a dagger from his [Inventory] and deftly blocked a lightning-fast strike from his opponent's right side. Despite the incredible speed at which his opponent moved, MasterAhn relied on his instincts to sense and counter the attacks.

With a swift motion, he propelled himself off the ground, leaping five meters into the air. In one fluid motion, he withdrew five arrows from behind his back and loaded them onto his bow.

I can see him, MasterAhn thought to himself. From his elevated vantage point, he easily spotted Yun, who was looking up at him from below. Drawing the string of his bow, he released the arrows, infusing a small amount of mana into it, enhancing its damage.

Although close-quarters combat wasn't his preferred style, MasterAhn possessed considerable skill in that aspect as well. In the previous game, he specialized in an archetype known as Ballistae, relying on positioning, strategic thinking, and sniping abilities to eliminate high-value targets during guild wars, using longbows and mortars.

The arrows soared through the air at astonishing speed. However, with a crackle of lightning, Yun intercepted them swiftly, though one arrow managed to graze his shoulder. In response, Yun leapt into the air, following his airborne opponent, and unleashed a slashing attack with his lightning-infused sword.

MasterAhn descended rapidly toward the platform, crashing into it with a cloud of dust and sustaining some damage. Fortunately, his inner layer armor mitigated the damage to a significant extent.

Swiftly recovering by rolling backwards as soon as he hit the ground, he retrieved his weapons and rose to his feet. He fired three more arrows while Yun was still airborne, yet each one was repelled by lightning-infused strikes.

Yun descended upon him with full force, initiating close-quarters combat.

"You're skilled," Yun acknowledged, maintaining his flurry of rapid strikes. Despite MasterAhn's high sync rate, he still sustained some damage. While he managed to react and block the majority of Yun's attacks, the sheer speed of his opponent occasionally surpassed his reflexes, resulting in successful strikes.

"Dammit!" MasterAhn found himself overwhelmed. Despite creating distance between them by blocking sword strikes with his dagger and shooting arrows from his bow whenever possible, Yun relentlessly pressed forward, leaving MasterAhn with limited options.

He's moving in circles... Yun contemplated internally. What is his plan...? While tirelessly striking at MasterAhn and simultaneously trying to decipher his opponent's strategy, Yun's focus wavered slightly. It wasn't until he noticed that small bombs had already been planted on the ground that he snapped back to full awareness.

"What the...?" Pillars of flame erupted from the ground, threatening to incinerate Yun had it not been for his lightning-infused body. Although his upper garment was completely charred, he sustained burns but managed to withstand the worst of the inferno.

Suppressing his anger, Yun seethed, "You...!" However, MasterAhn remained unfazed. He stood there expressionless, calmly nocking an arrow onto his bowstring and releasing it after infusing it with all a lot of mana. I let my guard down, Yun chastised himself. Is it because of my past experiences? Have I started underestimating my opponents?

The arrow came hurtling toward him with tremendous force, leaving no time to evade. Yet, Yun countered with his technique from the Namgoong Clan "Lightning Fang Sword, Thunderstrike!" infusing additional lightning into his Jian sword. He braced himself, intercepting the arrow head-on, effectively halting its momentum and splitting the mana-infused arrowhead. Seizing the opportunity, MasterAhn closed the distance, intending to finish the battle with his dagger. However, Yun swiftly overpowered the attack, intercepting MasterAhn's maneuver and leaving him no room to execute his next move.

"Shit...!" MasterAhn exclaimed, realizing that Yun was now actionable and he's now able to counter his impending attack easily. Not only was his opponent's speed far superior, but his move was also predictable. Nevertheless, MasterAhn pressed on, committed to following through with his attack and unable to halt his momentum.

As the dagger neared Yun's neck, he swiftly blocked it with his sword and forcefully kicked MasterAhn away. He cried out in pain as he watched Yun charging toward him with lightning-fast speed.

Yun once again infused his sword with lightning, closing in on his opponent. In a lightning-quick motion, he stabbed MasterAhn with tremendous force, driving him back with such impact that Yun have no choice but to give up his grip on the sword, MasterAhn was sent hurtling toward a tree trunk located outside the designated duel area, impaling him upon it.

Upon witnessing this, the guild members panicked, rushing to their fallen Guild Master's side.

The woman pondered, caressing her chin. "It seems we have a winner."

"Hey, remove the sword," one of the guild members instructed another. Once the sword was extracted, their Guild Master collapsed to the ground, covered in blood.

"Guild Master! Can you still move?!" one of the members anxiously inquired.

MasterAhn merely chuckled and replied, "I'm not dead yet... I still have 20 HP remaining. Hurry, give me a potion."

"Ah, yes! Here you go."

MasterAhn consumed the potion, and immediately, the blood ceased flowing. His wounds swiftly healed, and he regained his mobility.

Yun approached them, seemingly intent on retrieving his sword.

MasterAhn addressed him with a hint of amusement in his voice, "You intentionally spared my life, didn't you?"

Yun responded while retrieving the sword from the patch of grass where it had been discarded by the guild member, "I hold no grudge against you, so there was no reason for me to kill you. Besides, you put up a good fight. It was an enjoyable match." He offered praise before continuing, "I would have considered asking you to join me, but it appears you are a leader of some sort." Yun then tossed a red rock toward MasterAhn. "Here. If the need for each other's assistance ever arises, you can reach out to me using this." With that, he sheathed his sword and vanished in a crackle of lightning, heading back toward the Moderator.

As MasterAhn lay there, surrounded by his guild members, a realization dawned upon him. "Damn, that guy is a protagonist-class NPC."