Chapter 174: The Conflict!

The darkness enveloped him, layer upon layer—only darkness, thick and absolute.

Within the well of the abyss, there was no liquid, only an overwhelming void, a blackness that stretched in all directions. And then came the unmistakable sensation of falling, sinking deeper into the abyss.

After all, he had no intention of entering any other part of the abyss by ordinary means. He was being pulled into something far more sinister.

That raspy voice echoed in his ears once more:

[Abyss Trial Begins!]

[All of the tester's statuses have been restored to peak condition. All items and equipment have been fully repaired. All personal skills, talent abilities, and equipment-related cooldowns have been reset to 0. This effect takes absolute priority!]

[Trial Details: Under specific conditions, you must defeat the projection avatars of the abyssal demon lords from each floor, all at level 10! Between battles, you are allowed a rest period ranging from 1 minute to 1 hour.]

[Note: If no current demon lord occupies a given floor, a phantom of a past abyss lord will rise to fight in their place.]

"FUCK!"

Novak's pupils dilated as he read through the trial's conditions. 

What did this mean?

The will of the abyss had laid it out clearly enough, but he still stared at the trial instructions multiple times, just to make sure.

His face went pale.

On the surface, the trial seemed simple and straightforward, the instructions easy to understand. But Novak knew exactly where the difficulty lay.

Now he understood why no one had ever passed this trial, not even those divine beings.

Novak had great confidence in his strength. But as with all things, it depended on the situation.

And what was the situation now?

If all the enemies were truly level 10, he wouldn't fear any of them, not even the demon lords. Even if he had to face the projections of those demon lords at level 10, he wouldn't back down. In fact, the thought filled him with fighting spirit.

However, there was a critical difference between one level 10 and another.

The trial involved facing beings who had once reigned as demon lords and demon princes, creatures whose talents and professions were anything but ordinary. Even when reduced to level 10, they couldn't be compared to typical creatures of that level.

And the worst part? He wouldn't fully recover after each battle. He'd have to push forward in a relentless series of grueling challenges.

How many floors did the abyss even have?

Not even gods knew that answer. But how many abyssal lords occupied its depths?

In his previous life, through sheer luck, Novak had overheard the dark mother goddess, Hell Rose, mention one of her greatest adversaries—a lord of the abyss from the 437th floor.

The name of that lord escaped him now, and he had no desire to recall it.

Novak pursed his lips, but quickly steadied himself. His pale expression faded, and his eyes grew determined.

He knew why he had entered the abyss in the first place. The trial had begun.

Besides, he wasn't without his advantages.

'Abyss lords?' He smirked inwardly. He truly wanted to see how powerful these lords were if they were reduced to level 10—or perhaps even just one class above him.

He adjusted his mindset quickly. After all, at this point, surrendering or giving up wasn't an option. That wasn't who he was.

Even though he fully understood the gravity of this trial, knowing that it could very well claim his life—again—Novak wasn't one to lie down and accept death without a fight.

No, he wouldn't wait for his end passively.

As that thought solidified in his mind, a tendril of darkness coiled around him, wrapping him in its embrace, drawing him deeper into the abyss.

Novak understood that this was the will and power of the abyss at work.

Under its influence, his vitality and energy were fully restored, and all of his skill cooldowns were reset in an instant, bringing him back to his peak condition.

But then, something completely unexpected happened, even for Novak.

A strange, hoarse voice echoed again. This time, however, it carried a new emotional undertone—something unusual, something different from before.

Was that... surprise?

[Error! The state of the tester cannot be fully restored to the peak!]

[Error! The state of the tester cannot be fully restored to the peak!]

Novak blinked, taken aback by the astonishing feedback from the will of the abyss. 

'What's going on?'

He clearly saw his three flying swords—damaged from previous battles—being slowly restored to their pristine condition under the abyss's power. His own injuries were healing as well. 

So, what hadn't been restored?

His skills?

No—'even Hell Flame,' which had just been used, had its cooldown reset.

Everything seemed fine. 

'Wait!' 

A sudden thought flashed through Novak's mind.

Deep within his soul, something stirred—something glimmered in his sea of consciousness.

A familiar object appeared in his mind's eye, and a phantom manifested before him: a small hourglass, no larger than his palm.

Inside, crystalline grains of sand, glittering like diamonds, flowed steadily. 

The soft 'tick-tick' of the falling grains echoed like a river, unrelenting, reminding him of how time slips away, irretrievable—like quicksand through the hourglass.

'The Hourglass of Time!'

Novak's greatest secret.

He still didn't fully understand its nature, but he knew it was deeply connected to his rebirth. Perhaps it even played a role in how the flow of time had altered when he previously entered Secret Realms.

In fact, if it hadn't been for the hourglass's time-rewinding ability, Novak might have already perished during his first SSS-level mission when Zogwort concealed the real dangers of the Cooling Incinerator. He would have fallen to the biochemical demon crafted by that device.

It was because of the Hourglass of Time that Novak had enough confidence to even consider taking on the Abyss Trial.

It was his ultimate trump card.

But now, amidst the warnings from the will of the abyss, Novak sensed something was off.

His eyes shifted back to the hourglass, which was bound to his very soul.

He rarely paid attention to its changes, but at this moment, there seemed to be only one explanation.

In the next instant, an ability of the Hourglass of Time—one Novak had previously ignored—appeared before his mind's eye:

[Rewind Time: Return to any point in the past. All items and progress acquired during the erased timeline will disappear. (Cooldown: 72 years)]

(Note: The cooldown for this ability cannot be reduced or removed by any skill or equipment effect. This ability has absolute priority.)

'Absolute priority?'

Novak's pupils contracted as he realized the implications.

The hourglass's 'absolute priority' conflicted with the abyss's own 'absolute priority' to reset his condition!

For a moment, the sands within the hourglass began to glow faintly.

Then, the hourglass trembled. It seemed as if it had reached a compromise with the will of the abyss.

In the blink of an eye, the text changed.

[Rewind Time: Return to any point in the past (except before entering the Abyss Well). All items and progress acquired during the erased timeline will disappear. (Cooldown: None)]