Thumbs Up, Level Up

In response to Jung Ji-Byeok’s question, Ji-Han picked up the remote control and turned off the lights in the room. The wall in front of him turned into a projector screen.

“The dungeon we are going to this time is called [Forest of the Twisted God].”

‘[Forest of the Twisted God]? I’ve never heard of it…’

«I just searched the Internet, but I could not find any information about that dungeon, Master.»

‘That means it’s an exclusive dungeon that only people who already know about can enter.’

«Or it could be a dungeon discovered through Ji-Han’s divination skills, or maybe through his deal with a God.»

“I’m sure not everyone has heard of this place. It is a dungeon that only a select few know about, and it’s not even located in Korea. Also, the minimum level for this place is level 80, but in order to properly clear it, you need ten elite level 100 Hunters,” Ji-Han said.

It was definitely a dangerous dungeon. Ji-Han continued to talk.

“Nevertheless, we have to enter this dungeon. We need to clear this dungeon.”

“Wait, you don’t mean…”

It seemed Ha-Na had noticed something.

“Yes. As some of you may already know, dungeons that can accommodate Hunters level 80 and above are so big that you have to spend a long time in there. However, since we have Hunter Um Ji-Cheok, we have an advantage in terms of supply.”

With the recent expansion of Ji-Cheok’s Shadow Pouch, he could now fit a massive amount of materials. It was true that this pouch was an incredible advantage. Ji-Cheok knew how useful it was to him.

“If the Director says so, I believe him.”

Ji-Byeok’s voice exuded full trust. Ha-Na thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

“I trust you too.”

“I also believe in you, Brother Ji-Han.”

Seong Kwang also agreed. When Ji-Cheok glanced at his brother, his eyes were telling him, ‘I’ll follow your choice.’.

‘Well, if that’s the case. I’ll have to go with the team.’

“I also agree with you. So when are we going?”

“We will be leaving in seven days. A private plane will be ready for us, so please come with all your equipment by then. Now, I am going to start the briefing on the dungeon.”

Ji-Han started explaining about the dungeon. The more they listened to his briefing, the more their facial expressions worsened.

‘I’m with you guys on this one.’

“This dungeon… Is it even possible to clear it?” Mu-Cheok asked in a very quiet voice.

“It’s possible,” Ji-Han said.

“You are not hiding something like last time, are you?”

“No, I’m not. I even set up a barrier in this meeting room to block the gaze of the Gods.”

Everyone was surprised at his statement.

‘When did you install things like that?’

“That is why I’m explaining the situation to you guys without hesitation.”

“Next question. Is that person our new team member? That weird person.”

Ha-Na pointed at Reable. Reable was smirking, with the kind of expression that generally offended people, but since he was so handsome, everyone seemed to be okay with it.

“Yes, he is our new team member. His job is Necromancer. Normally, Um Ji-Cheok acts as our main damage dealer while Jung Ji-Byeok protects the team as a Tank, but I recruited Reable because unexpected situations can occur, like what happened back at the Temple of [He_who_denies_death],” Ji-Han said.

“Hello, all! I’m Jung Reable! Nice to meet you~”

Reable got up and made a show out of introducing himself. Ji-Byeok seemed to be evaluating Reable with a serious face, and Ha-Na had an expression saying ‘This is going to be fun’. Seong Kwang didn’t have much to say since he had already met Reable, and Mu-Cheok was expressionless as usual. Mu-Cheok knew about the true identity of Reable, so he wasn’t a big fan of him.

“Regarding Reable’s ability, it is written in the documents I gave you, so please refer to it. I would’ve liked to work a bit on our chemistry as a team, but because of the tight schedule, we’re not going to be doing that,” Ji-Han said.

“Got it!”

“Then, please familiarize yourself with all the contents of the briefing, and do not take the materials outside. It can be observed by the eyes of the Gods or by Hunters with unusual abilities.”

Ji-Han adjusted his glasses, then continued with the most nightmarish statement possible.

“You must memorize every single detail of the briefing. You may start now.”

The room was silent, but everyone was screaming inside.

* * *

As Ji-Cheok returned home, he kept thinking about the meeting.

‘This dungeon…. Can we really clear it? From the briefing, Ji-Han made it sound possible, but realistically, isn’t it kinda crazy to even try?’

«Jung Ji-Han is probably hiding something again, Master.»

‘Yeah, but still, this is too much.’

According to the briefing, the boss monster of this [Forest of the Twisted God] was a [Fragment of a God]. In other words, the boss monster was something like debris that fell off when a certain God died. And it was said that the monsters of the forest had become twisted beings because of it. Ji-Cheok had to kill these monsters and destroy the [Fragment of a God]. On top of that, the dungeon had some unique conditions and settings, so it boasted a brutal level of difficulty.

The conditions and settings were nasty. Those who died in the dungeon became twisted monsters and had to live in the forest. In other words, those who had died trying to clear the dungeon were very much still lively moving about, under a mutated and corrupted form…. In a way, they had become Undead. Many Hunters who had entered in the early days of the dungeon, before there was enough information about it, were now among the dungeon monsters—including some top-tier ones.

It was located on a remote island in the Philippines, and the Philippine government always stationed navy units around the island. Since the dungeon couldn’t be destroyed, if a Dungeon Break occurred and monsters poured out, those navy units were to kill them with high-powered weapons.

Fortunately, all the monsters that popped out during a Dungeon Break were land-based monsters. If not, it would have been a catastrophe to the nearby islands. Some monsters weren’t even affected by physical attacks, so the Hunters and the navy stationed there were instructed to just destroy the entire island from a distance if necessary.

After acquiring this information, Ji-Cheok wondered whether he and his teammates were fit for the job. In a way, it was a better idea for him to go there by himself—Ji-Cheok was good at hit-and-run tactics. If he could ride his bike and use Wall Drive, those monsters would have a hard time catching him. Then, he could slaughter those monsters with his overflowing Mana and Cultivation.

«Still, just to make sure, you should prepare as much as possible before going, Master.»

‘Of course. That place is more terrifying than you can imagine.’

«Yes, Master. Just thinking that those mutated Hunters are just living there… That alone confirms that it is a hellish place.»

We are bit.ly/3iBfjkV, find us on google.

There were no videos or photos of the dungeon. However, the text sufficiently explained it. Ji-Han had told them everything in detail this time, so he had to prepare a lot. First, he had to buy skills with his Likes and he had to buy items using the money he had earned.

«I will prepare the equipment and potions. It is a dangerous place, so I will spend around fifty billion won.»

‘I have that much cash at my disposal?’

«Yes, Master. Currently, you have close to eighty billion won in cash. Several times that if you add stocks, real estate, and other profits.»

‘Wow, I guess I’ve been making money like crazy. Then, I’ll start looking at the skills.’

«Yes, Master.»

‘It’s good to split the workload.’

Cheok-Liang sat on Ji-Cheok’s shoulder and closed his eyes. It seemed like he was connecting to the Internet. Ji-Cheok opened up the Likes Shop. Currently, he had 10,210,913 Likes, and the count kept increasing.

‘Come to think of it, when will the Gold Button be delivered? I have to record the unboxing video for that. Well for now… I should open up to see the skills that I have and then think about the skills I need to buy.’

“Open up the skill window.”

Combat Skills

[Fleeing Shadow] [Shadow Stealer] [Telekinetic Arrow] [The Dark Spirit’s Call] [Soul Telekinesis] [Indestructible Toy Summon] [Sleep Time] [Cthugha’s Steps]

Recovery Skills

[Double Core] [Arcane Circle of Mana Recovery] [Silph’s Recovery] [Massage]

Support Skills

[Silph’s Blessing] [Roar of the Wild] [Mono Bike G] [Wall Drive] [Class 1 Magic Spells — Mana Shield, Strength Boost, Mana Boost, Jump Boost, Area Lubrication, Telekinesis, Low-level Illusion, Spell Detection, Telepathy, Sphere of Light] [Class 2 Magic Spells — Fire-type Spell Boost, Lightning-type Spell Boost, Wind-type Spell Boost, Poison-type Spell Boost, Ice-type Spell Boost, Improved Telepathy] [Training Space of the God of War] [Machine Production] [Print Information] [Shadow Pouch] [Penetration Boost] [Aura of Projectile Damage] [Protection of God of Archery] [Mass Increase] [Inertia Force Increase]

Passive Skills

[Beginner’s Skill: Sword and Shield] [Beginner’s Skill: Steady Heart] [Shadow] [Spontaneous Absorption] [Troll’s Body] [Blessing of Harmony] [Heaven and Earth Chaotic Divine Art] [Class Magic System — Class 1] [Class Magic System — Class 2] [High-speed Spell Cast] [Silent Spell Cast] [Dual Spell Cast] [Double Attack] [Sword of Illusion] [Second Chance] [Remnant of the Sword] [Veins of the Fire Spirit] [Will of Fire] [Fire’s Awakening] [Fire Attribute Specialist Wizard] [Heart of Hope] [Human] [Heaven Martial Body] [Immunity Passive] [All Status Passive] [Skill Master Passive] [Beginner Arcane Engineering] [Zentel’s Arcane Engineering] [Soul of Machinery] [Mad Inventor] [Master of Chemistry] [Summoning Limit Increase] [Summoner’s Talent] [Dimensional Echo] [Holy Spirit of Compensation] [Dimensional Power] [Soul of Sympathy] [Spirit Invitation] [Gesture of Vigilance] [Mind Relaxation] [Distant Call] [Restful Voice] [Scent of Comfort] [Enchanting Spirit] [Heart of a Gardner] [True Human] [Riding]

Crafting Skills

[☆★◇◆ Scrooge's alchemy ◇◆☆★ — Lizardman Godly ★ Energy ☆ Tonic, Lizardman★Emergency☆Bandage, Lizardman♥ Berserker↗Medicine, Scrooge’s Awesome★ Lesser Stamina Potion, Scrooge’s Awesome★ Lesser Detox Potion, Scrooge’s Awesome★ Lesser Abnormal Status Removal Potion, Scrooge’s Awesome ★Lesser Mana Recovery Potion] [☆★◇◆ Scrooge's alchemy ◇◆☆★] [Arcane Golem Creation] [Weapon Crafting]

Non-combat Support Skills

[Eye of Insight] [360° Video Shooting] [Twisted Underworld's Advisor] [Prince Charming] [Class 1 Lifestyle Magic Spellbook — Create Water, Insulation, Clean, Preserve] [Minor Intuition]

Item Skills

[Monoblade]

[Skills: Dark Blade, Light Blade, Mono Blade]

[Black Flaming Jacket]

[Skills: Blaze Walk, Divine Protection of the Dark Flames]

[Troll’s Body]

[Skill: Regeneration]

[Mono Bike]

[Skills: Summon / Cancel Summon, Mana Save, Acceleration, Outlaw of the Road, Mana Sync]

[Luminous Fairy Pendant]

[Skill: Fairy’s Step: Reduce enemy’s attack by 10%, increase Ally’s attack by 10%.]

[Bracelet of the Strong Arm]

[Skill: Unconditionally Increases Strength by 15% (If Strength rank is S or higher, Strength will increase by 30%).]

[Necklace of Abundant Blood]

[Skill: When not worn, it continuously produces blood at a rate of 1 liter per hour. When worn, it increases the amount of blood in the user.]

[Boots of Double Strike]

[Skill: When worn, the user has a 15% chance to hit the enemy twice.]

[The King’s Jade Belt]

[Skill: Permanent mana barrier]

[Heirloom Seal of the Realm]

[Skills: Appy ‘Abundance to the entire faction, Apply ‘Fortitude’ to the entire faction, Increase Charm by 500.]

Ji-Cheok possessed an enormous amount of skills! Also, he was only wearing The King’s Jade Belt, and the Heirloom Seal of the Realm was inside his Shadow Pouch, but the passive skill of the seal was still working. In the case of The King’s Jade Belt, the active function was disabled, but the passive function was maintained. As for the Heirloom Seal of the Realm, it was truly staggering, especially the ‘Fortitude’ effect. That one was disgustingly overpowered.

If the Strength and Stamina were below S-rank, the item had the effect of raising their rank by one unconditionally. It was a terrifying effect. Since this was also effective for the entire faction he belonged to, Ji-Han and other team members also benefited.

‘Come to think of it… Cheok-Liang.’

«Yes, Master.»

Cheok-Liang replied with his eyes closed.

‘Has the ownership of this item been resolved?’

«Ji-Han said it was resolved through backroom negotiations. It seems that the government came forward and sorted it out. He probably agreed to destroy dungeons in major areas in return.»

‘Oh? That’s a win-win situation. I was going to pay them in cash if they asked for it.’

«Since destroying dungeons cannot be bought with money and the location of some of the dungeons was not ideal, the government made a judgment call that just by eliminating them, they could restore the country to some extent.»

‘Well, if you think about it, the person who put it up for auction receives money no matter what. And it would be cheaper for the government to just pay the auction fee, instead of dealing with the dungeons by themselves.’

«Ah, and it looks like the National Pension Service will have some of Jungjin’s stock.»

‘So the National Pension Service is on the same Jungjin boat as Gumji and the apes.[1] Good thing me and Ji-Han are running that boat. My neck is getting sore with all that responsibility. I might get a cervical disc hernia from the burden. Now I have to think about how I can become stronger.’

«Yes, Master. Then, I will continue working on my part.»

After Cheok-Liang replied, Ji-Cheok thought about what he could do with ten million Likes.

‘Ten thousand Likes… That was my final goal not that long ago… Now I can really call myself a fresh Prince of Likes. Alright, let’s stop thinking about the past. What should I do to become stronger by yesterday?’

1. “Ape” is a stock trading term referring to retail investors who are usually not very experienced and only invest in the stock market minimally. ☜