The dark vortex yawned open like a bloodstained maw, as if waiting to devour anything—or anyone—who dared step inside.
Darkness.
It is the birthplace of fear.
The endless night, the suffocating silence—it all coalesces into terror itself.
For Crow, whose abilities were an incarnation of fear, even he couldn't suppress the chill crawling up his spine.
The vortex swallowed them whole.
And everything was consumed by blackness.
[You have entered the Black Tower.]
[This strange and eerie structure follows its own set of rules!]
[Detected: Three individuals have entered. Three common rules will be generated.]
[Main Rule: Death's Law.]
The message didn't come from the Cosmic Will.
Instead, blood-red text appeared on a dusty blackboard in the dimly lit corridor, as if scrawled in fresh blood.
In this oppressive darkness, the enemies weren't the only threat.
The rules were the true nightmare.
Crow's face paled.
The more people, the more rules?!
Novak, however, remained composed.
Then—
A sound echoed through the suffocating silence.
A scraping noise, like unseen nails raking across the blackboard, sending a sickening screech through the air.
And then—
The rules appeared before their eyes.
[Common Rules]
1️⃣ To ascend to the next floor, all current residents of the floor must grant their approval.
Current floor: 4F
2️⃣ No light is permitted inside the Black Tower.
The residents detest all forms of light.Any illumination will provoke their wrath.
3️⃣ No sound may be made within the Black Tower.
The residents loathe noise.Any sound will attract their hostility.
(PS: Building positive relationships with the residents can significantly reduce the difficulty of clearing the dungeon!)
Before the trio could even digest these ominous rules, new text surfaced at the bottom of the blackboard.
But this time—
The letters were drenched in crimson, as if written in fresh, dripping blood.
☠ [Rules of Immediate Death] ☠
1️⃣ Failing a resident's test or using extraordinary power will erase part of your memory.
If you lose all memory, you die.(PS: Remember your name. It is the core of your existence in this world!)
2️⃣ Do not attempt to escape.
After moving upstairs, you cannot leave in any form.If you leave, you die.
3️⃣ Clear the Black Tower within 4 hours.
Gain approval from the floor leader residing in room B A C D on the fourth floor.If time runs out, you die.
[Countdown begins: 3:59:59...]
Each rule bled crimson on the blackboard.
But their terrifying implications overshadowed even their grotesque appearance.
A time limit.
The risk of memory loss.
No way to escape.
It was as if, lurking within the depths of the endless void, the Reaper himself had already unsheathed his Scythe of Death, waiting patiently for his next victims.
Novak took a deep breath and turned toward the narrow staircase leading downward.
"Before we go in," he said, his voice steady, "remember this—you can still communicate through private messages in the System Chat group. Just don't use force unnecessarily."
But the moment Novak attempted to send a private message—
His eyes widened.
[Special Secret Map Detected: Chat function disabled.]
Glancing at the others, their expressions made it clear—
They had just realized the same thing.
"Alright, then we'll use gestures to communicate! Also, take out something—engrave your name and purpose on it, then put it in your backpack so you don't forget. Every time you act, confirm your identity!
And most importantly—try to resolve things peacefully. Avoid using force unless absolutely necessary. Build a good relationship with the neighbors!"
Crow and Meimei nodded and immediately followed his instructions. Meanwhile, Novak's gaze had already shifted to the stairs, his attention drawn to the ominous presence looming above and the unseen depths below.
As they completed their preparations, neither Crow nor Meimei dared to make a sound. The darkness itself felt alive, an overwhelming pressure suffocating the air around them.
Even their breathing became restrained, held in instinctive fear.
But just as Novak stepped onto the first stair, the already oppressive darkness suddenly deepened into absolute void.
It was the kind of darkness that didn't just blind—it erased.
Not only was sight stripped away, but even spiritual perception became murky and disoriented.
This wasn't just darkness. This was an abyss.
Novak had felt this sensation only once before.
During his trial in the Abyss, on the 500th floor, when he faced Aga Reiss, Monarch of Eternal Night—the moment the monarch moved, the entire world had drowned in darkness.
That same pitch-black nothingness now surrounded them, swallowing not just sight but even the senses.
Crow and Meimei stiffened in shock, their bodies tensing.
But Novak had anticipated this.
He reached out and grasped their hands, his grip firm and steady.
A moment later, he heard them both let out soft sighs of relief—the tension in their bodies easing slightly.
To them, Novak's presence was their only anchor.
The staircase itself was short—barely a dozen steps, less than two meters high.
Yet each step felt like a descent into an unfathomable abyss.
Despite the void surrounding them, Novak's spiritual power and the heat perception granted by the Black Light Virus allowed him to faintly map his surroundings.
As soon as they reached the landing, a system prompt echoed in their minds:
[You must complete the trials of all four residents on the first floor before you can proceed to the second floor.]
Four trials.
Novak licked the corner of his lips, then tightened his grip on the two beside him before leading them toward their first challenge.
From left to right, he mentally marked each door in sequence.
And now, standing before door 101, the first trial awaited.
Remembering his own advice about building good neighborly relationships, Novak knocked politely.
But the moment his knuckles touched the door—
It swung open.
And from within the pitch-black room, a blood-red eyeball emerged from the darkness.
It was large. Unblinking. Malicious.
The eye locked onto him, its insane gaze drilling into his very soul.
Then, an oppressively deep voice rasped from the void—
"Get lost."
Novak's brow furrowed.
In that instant, he realized he had already broken a rule.
—No unnecessary noise.
But if they couldn't speak, how were they supposed to gain recognition?
Would they be expected to silently step into the residents' homes?
Instead of hesitating, Novak made his choice.
Before the door could fully close, he stepped inside.
The scarlet eye twitched in shock as he crossed the threshold without hesitation.
The moment the door shut behind him, Novak let out a slow breath.
This way, the sound wouldn't disturb the other neighbors, right?
His gaze swept over the room. Still pitch black.
But within the darkness, he could make out faint outlines—furniture, chairs...
Without waiting for an invitation, Novak walked forward and sat down on the sofa, crossing one leg over the other.
Then, in a voice steady and unshaken, he spoke:
"So, what exactly do I need to do to pass your test?"
Crow and Meimei, still by the door, stared in stunned silence.
For a moment, even the blood-red eye seemed momentarily baffled.
But one thing was certain—
With Novak here, their fear had been replaced with something else entirely.
Confidence.