The system had entered manual mode.
Could it be…?
Links eyes narrowed. He slowly reached out and touched the nearest module, the Talent Module.
"A fatal strike… true luck… thousandfold return… boundless offspring…"
Fragments of different colors flashed rapidly before his eyes.
Because of the system restart, talents of all levels were mixed together with no order at all.
"Huh… a Unique-tier talent."
Link paused for a moment. A fragment glowing with seven-colored light drifted past.
Casanova (Unique): All members of the opposite sex will unconsciously develop affection for you and remain drawn to you.
Description: Allows you to attract partners far wealthier and more powerful than yourself.
Note: Love transcends race.
"…Yeah, that's strong."
Link dismissed it immediately.
Not because it was bad, but because it was useless here.
A Unique-tier talent meant Overlord-level difficulty, and even if the enemy qualified, there was no way to manipulate emotions fast enough to break the rules of the Thousand Realms.
He knew his limits.
No one in history had ever cleared an Overlord-level trial.
There was no point gambling on something unrealistic.
He continued moving through the fragments quickly.
Resurrection… Scavenger… Aura of Dominion…
Time kept ticking.
Link sped up, his movements becoming faster.
The system could return to normal at any moment.
He had to find a usable SS-tier talent before that happened.
"Got it!"
His eyes lit up as a red fragment appeared.
Final Awakening (SS-tier): Allows one type of unit or ability to advance by one tier. Each type can only be used once. Cooldown: 1 hour.
Not perfect… but good enough.
There was no time to search for the best option.
Now came the real test.
Link's heartbeat quickened as he reached out and grabbed the fragment.
A mechanical voice sounded:
"Manual selection successful. Talent loaded: Final Awakening (SS-tier)."
It worked.
Link let out a quiet breath of relief.
Then he immediately turned toward the Dungeon Module.
Now he needed to Find the Wrath of the Dragon King series.
From everything he knew in his previous life, this was one of the only high-level trials with a possible shortcut.
Unlike the talent module, dungeon panels had no color distinction. Each one was like a sealed screen, and you had to open it to see the difficulty.
Fortunately, faint patterns were carved into their surfaces.
With his past-life memory, Link could roughly recognize them.
Gray panels floated endlessly in the void.
He scanned them quickly.
The first one showed a man standing in a massive crater, surrounded by countless buried figures reaching upward in fear.
He didn't even need to open it.
That was the Siege of Drakemire series.
A Hell-level trial that had crushed countless geniuses.
He skipped it instantly.
Next. Undead catastrophes… endless zombie tides…
Then..
"Beep… System self-check nearing completion…"
"5… 4…"
Not good.
No time left.
Link's focus sharpened. Both hands moved at once as panels flew past him faster and faster.
As if by fate, a panel marked with a giant dragon appeared.
The image showed a massive dragon soaring through the sky, flames pouring from its mouth as if it would burn the world.
Wrath of the Dragon King.
Link's eyes sharpened.
He grabbed it instantly.
At the same moment, light returned to the space.
The Guide reappeared.
"Beginner Trial Dungeon loaded successfully…"
"System self-check complete. Timeline synchronized."
The two notifications overlapped.
Link let out a breath.
Just in time.
Now… please don't be below Hard-level.
And hopefully… the talent doesn't conflict with the dungeon.
Without wasting a second, he opened the panel.
⸻
Quest Name: Fall of the Radiant Dragon King (Overlord Level)
Description:
The Radiant Dragon King was once a ruler of the Holy Light faction. However, due to his obsession with treasure, he was corrupted by dark forces and fell into madness. Now, he exists in a state of constant rage, destroying all life within his domain.
Objective:
You will be transported to the Isle of Exile. Use all available resources to grow stronger within ten days. After ten days, the barrier sealing the Radiant Dragon King will collapse. You must survive against it until the barrier is restored.
Special Note:
At Overlord-level difficulty, the Radiant Dragon King retains full strength at Diamond Tier 10.
⸻
Overlord-level… Diamond Tier 10…
Link went silent for a moment.
The Thousand Realms used a unified power system.
For humans of the Astryx Federation, all began at Level 1.
At Level 50, one advanced to Bronze Tier.
Then came Silver, Gold, and finally Diamond.
Only at Diamond Tier 10 could one begin forming a divine kingdom.
That was the threshold of godhood.
The Guide's form fully solidified.
"Challenger, please select your temporary familiar. You may change it after completing the trial. Maximum selection corresponds to Hell-level trials. Highest available familiars are Epic-tier."
Thousands of options appeared.
Fire wyrms. Behemoths. Storm titans.
Even basic creatures like slimes.
"I choose goblins," Link said without hesitation.
The Guide paused.
"Challenger, are you certain?" she asked again. "Goblins rank near the bottom in combat strength and have extremely low potential."
"I'm sure."
Link was completely calm now.
The Radiant Dragon King was a top-tier creature. At Diamond Tier 10, it was nearly equal to a demigod.
Even epic-level armies wouldn't start strong enough.
To threaten it in ten days, you would need tens of thousands of Bronze-tier warriors.
It was Impossible.
On an isolated island, even raising ten Bronze-tier units would be a miracle.
So it didn't matter.
Fire wyrm or goblin, the result was the same.
Instant death.
So the only option…Was to take a different path.
From past records, temporary recruitment points could appear in this dungeon.
And goblins…
Specialized in wealth.
This was his only chance.
Link had never been one to complain.
Being able to exploit the system once was already incredible luck.
The only regret…
If he had known this would be an Overlord-level dungeon, he would have chosen a Unique-tier talent instead.
Now It was all or nothing.
⸻
"In that case, challenger… good luck."
The Guide raised her staff.
A familiar voice echoed:
"Trial teleportation beginning. Synchronizing timelines…"
"Timeline aligned. Detected mismatch between talent and dungeon difficulty…"
"Replacing with compatible talent…"
"Talent updated: Ultimate Ascension (Unique-tier)."
"Teleportation in progress…"
"The trial begins."