The cold wind of the Slumber Realm hit Min-ho's face as he manifested back onto the black sand. This time, there was no fear. His heart beat with a steady, predatory rhythm.
'Every time I'm here, it feels more like home than the real world,' he thought, glancing at the shattered remains of the Scavenger Hound he had killed earlier.
Suddenly, a series of transparent blue windows expanded in front of him, glowing with an ethereal light that didn't exist in the physical world.
[Status Window]
Name: Min-ho
Level: 2 (Exp: 10/200)
Title: None
Strength: 12 (+5)
Agility: 10 (+3)
Intelligence: 8
Mana: 5
Unallocated Stat Points: 10
Slumber Credits: 500
Min-ho stared at the numbers. 'Stat points? Just like those old RPG games.'
He experimented, mentally pushing five points into Strength and five into Mana.
[Warning: Physical body will undergo rapid reconstruction upon waking.]
A surge of warmth flooded his dream-self. He felt his muscles tighten and his mind sharpen. But it was the Slumber Credits that caught his eye. He swiped the screen, revealing a separate menu: [The Archive of Lost Arts].
'Magic... and Martial Scriptures,' he whispered, his eyes widening.
The list was endless. Techniques like Flash Step, Mana Manipulation Circle, and Iron Skin were listed, each with a cost.
'I get credits for killing monsters here,' he realized. 'The more I clear this realm, the more I can buy from the system. If I can learn magic here, can I bring it back to reality?'
He looked out at the horizon. Beyond the black pillars, more white fires were flickering in the dark. Hundreds of them.
"System," he said, his voice echoing. "What exactly is this place? Is it a simulation? A different dimension?"
[Notice: The Slumber Realm is a remnant of the Final Era.]
[Information Locked: Successor must reach Level 50 to access World History.]
'The Final Era? Does that mean the future or the past?' Min-ho wondered. 'And why am I the only one who can enter it?'
He didn't have time to ponder. A pack of three Scavenger Hounds emerged from the shadows, their white eyes locked onto him. They were faster than the first one, snarling as they circled him.
'Ten thousand years of history were lost when the Gates opened,' he thought, his gaze turning cold. 'If this realm is the graveyard of that power, then I'll take it all.'
He didn't wait for them to lunge. He pushed off the ground, his increased Agility making him move like a streak of shadow. He reached a hound in a split second, his fist glowing with a faint, raw mana he hadn't possessed an hour ago.
CRACK.
The first hound exploded in a shower of purple sparks.
[+150 Slumber Credits]
'I don't just need to sleep,' he thought, dodging a snap of jaws from the second beast and delivering a brutal kick to its ribs. 'I need to conquer.'
As he fought, he felt the 110x time dilation working. Every punch he threw felt like it had been practiced a thousand times. Every dodge refined his instincts.
By the time the third hound dissolved into mist, Min-ho wasn't even breathing hard. He looked at his credits. He had enough for his first skill: [Basic Mana Circulation].
'If Min-ah thinks her sparks are impressive,' he thought, clicking the "Purchase" button as a flood of information poured into his brain. 'She's going to lose her mind when she sees what real magic looks like.'