Thumbs Up, Level Up

Originally, the dungeons should have been destroyed, but Team Alpha decided to just clear them and come out. According to the schedule that Ji-Han had carefully put together for Team Alpha, they were planning on going back in and leveling up again.

Now, Mu-Cheok was taking a break after clearing the dungeon. The Portal to the cleared dungeon was open and Hunter Assistants were going in and out with the loot.

In the resting area in front of the Portal, Mu-Cheok was lying down, watching videos on his smartphone. He saw his older brother doing relief work in Spain. Even though Mu-Cheok was fighting his ass off, he was worried that the gap between him and Ji-Cheok was not only not closing, but actually widening every day.

“I need to train even harder to improve my skills…” Mu-Cheok muttered as he gently rubbed his stomach. He had taken a lot of elixirs, so he was in a state of Qi overload.

In fact, the reason why he could defeat other top-tier Hunters was because of his Qi. His actual level was irrelevant—thanks to the elixirs he consumed, his Qi was far superior to what his cultivation could have provided.

“You’re right. Brother Ji-Cheok is now miles ahead of us.”

“Ji-Cheok said there is less than a year left. He must be busy too.”

Byul Ha-Na was also lying down next to them. Seeing how they were not using honorifics anymore, they had clearly become quite close during their time in the dungeon. It was understandable, since they had fought on the battlefield many times with their lives on the line.

“By the way, where is Ji-Byeok? She still hasn’t come back... Oh, a new video?”

The alarm on their phones went off, interrupting their rest. It was a new video from Ji-Cheok, and all three of them were speechless as they watched it.

“Hyung… What are you doing…”

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

“Everyone! This is not a conspiracy theory! This is a real situation!”

Ji-Cheok’s livestream had started. The fight against the apostle of [World_devouring_Serpent] was not streamed live, as it was deemed too horrific to air. However, based on Cheok-Liang’s opinion, the recorded footage was edited appropriately to only show the important scenes. After airing the short video, Ji-Cheok stepped forward in front of the camera.

With the camera pointed at him, Ji-Cheok shouted, “Ladies and gentlemen, viewers from around the world. The terrible disaster that occurred in Spain was not a natural disaster like a dungeon, but something caused by humans.”

Ji-Cheok did his best to keep his composure.

“The man named Jose Mendoza was a well-known businessman in Spain and had great political power. He firmly believed that the citizens’ lives belonged to him, and he slaughtered them, using them as items for trade!”

It was a speech written by Cheok-Liang, but his sincerity was also included.

‘Well, it’s true. If you think about it, do I really need to show any consideration for these people who want to grab someone and burn them as a sacrifice to the God in order to cause the end of the world?’

“That’s right! Those who have power and privilege traded with the Gods for their sole benefit, and they were the ones who caused this mayhem! Who allowed such a thing to happen? Who allowed them to commit mass murder and hold such a festival of blood?!”

This was not only a PR campaign, but also a declaration of war.

“Does it sound like a conspiracy theory? I tell you, it is not! In this world, there are many people who trade with the evil Gods and sacrifice people to increase their own power. Secret societies! Cultists! Trash that trample over dead bodies on their way to success!”

Secret societies were just stories that existed as conspiracy theories. However, Ji-Cheok could now tell the world that they existed, and bring the recent event as proof. Massacres had already occurred in Malaga, Spain.

In the movies, the protagonists would never tell the world about secret societies. They would just fight evil in the dark. However, those were just movies and those guys were ideal heroes. Ji-Cheok was a real human being, and he had no reason to help the bad guys keep their secrets.

“These people hold wealth and power, and they might well be in cahoots with the government! We need to stop this! And I have already started to do my share!”

Ji-Cheok projected an image of the Arctic. The very center of the ice shelf looked like a grand construction site in the middle of a major city.

“This is a large-scale dimensional barrier that I am working on with my own money! Let’s join together, all of us, and complete it even one day sooner! For us! For all of you!” Ji-Cheok shouted so enthusiastically that he wondered if it was too much.

“I will end today’s livestream here. Everyone, I hope to see you again tomorrow.”

This was a slightly different ending message than usual. With that, Ji-Cheok concluded his livestream.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The livestream by Ji-Cheok was so powerful that it had a ripple effect like that of a nuclear bomb. It exploded like steam rising from lava, spreading rapidly across the world. It was faster than the news of the Cyclops Dungeon Break in New Jersey, and even more powerful than the video of saving people from the terror in Malaga, Spain.

In no time at all, the video had over ten billion views, and it was clear that pretty much everyone on Earth had seen it. People watched the video and were outraged.

-Is it true that Jose Mendoza sacrificed Malaga citizens to a God?

-The rich are trying to kill us and live forever!

-Investigate what happened! Anyone who refuses to investigate must be a demon worshiper!

-Crazy bastards! Kill them all!

-What has the government done? Is this the price we pay for trusting the government?

-How do I immigrate to Korea?

-Is America safe? What if another New Jersey Incident happens?

-We need the dimensional barrier! We cannot trust the government!

-We need bunkers! I’m just gonna stay in a big bunker with a dimensional barrier generator.

-What are they doing with our taxes?

-What if something like this happens in New York?

-I want to buy that mana-burning spiral pillar thing. It automatically kills monsters, right?

From those who criticized the government to those who worried about their own safety, various opinions poured out through the Internet and had an impact on the physical world. The common people picked up their spears, while those in countries where guns were legal picked up their firearms. Protests erupted in many countries, and people shouted for the government to conduct proper investigations.

Criticism was directed toward large corporations, their CEOs, and their owners. In fact, in the UK, chaos erupted when it was revealed that a centuries-old aristocratic family was a follower of a secret society that worshiped a God named [Deep_and_dark_abyss].

⌜The UK’s venerable McDaniels family are demon worshipers?⌟

⌜UK! Battles that rival civil war break out!⌟

⌜The secret society really existed! The secrets of the world revealed by Um Ji-Cheok!⌟

⌜Breaking News: UK enacts martial law.⌟

The situation in the UK gradually worsened, and the secret society that had seized control of the country’s upper class was exposed. It was revealed that one-third of the UK’s parliament members were members of this cult, and that one-quarter of the British military was under their control.

As other organizations associated with the McDaniels’ were exposed, civil war broke out, and the EU intervened. Hunters and military troops were dispatched, and eventually, the Lake of Dawn, a secret organization in the UK, was expelled. Their main forces fled and went into hiding, bringing the month-long ordeal to an end.

After they went into hiding, people around the world realized that evil events were happening behind their backs, with none of them being any the wiser.

Those events were bound to kill them all.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

“Hyung!”

With a sudden whoosh, Mu-Cheok rushed toward Ji-Cheok and embraced him tightly.

‘My god. This guy’s expressions are even more dramatic than before.’

“What’s wrong? Were you worried about me? I’m fine… Really.”

“How can you be fine?! You can’t possibly be okay with watching people die!”

“I know I shouldn’t get used to it, but eventually you do get used to it. By the way… you’ve gotten really strong, haven’t you?”

Mu-Cheok, who Ji-Cheok had not seen for a long time, had become unbelievably powerful. First off, his Qi was flowing through his body so naturally that it looked as if it had always been there, like an innate part of his internal systems.

The reason Ji-Cheok could see this was that he had reached the realm of Mind Sword, which naturally allowed him to see it.

‘But with that kind of natural flow of Qi, you need to be at least in the Enlightenment Realm. How did he achieve that? Does that mean he can use Augmented Qi? Damn!’

“I had a tough time in the dungeon. I was able to survive thanks to Seong Kwang, though,” Mu-Cheok said.

“What did Seong Kwang do?”

“I will explain that,” Seong Kwang said as he approached him.

“The dungeon we cleared recently was very dangerous. As a result, we had to take risks and ended up with Cultivation Deviation.”

“What?!”

‘Cultivation Deviation? You can die from that!’

“But while I was leveling up, I acquired a new skill called Resurrection. With that, it was possible to recover from Cultivation Deviation,” Seong Kwang said.

‘Is he for real? Cultivation Deviation is so bad that he had to use a resurrection skill? Well, at least the skill is effective, I guess.’

“We would get Cultivation Deviation and then use the resurrection skill to recover… We repeated that process. That’s how we did it, ” Ji-Byeok answered as she approached him.

“...Is that even possible?”

“Turns out it is, no? That’s how we became this strong.”

Ji-Cheok turned his head and saw Ha-Na standing there. She had also become stronger. All four of them had.

Their Qi was flowing incredibly freely.

It was good to have a lot of Qi, but if it was not used properly, then no matter how much it was, it was not effective.

‘Should I call it the ability to use Qi? Because such a thing actually exists. That was the first time that the God of War taught me.’

But everyone seemed very natural. It looked like they were powerful enough to use Augmented Qi.

“No, but wait… Weren’t the resurrection skills hard to use frequently?” Ji-Cheok asked.

“Seong Kwang’s resurrection skill is limited, so it’s weak in power but it can be used frequently.”

“I see what you mean…”

Ji-Cheok knew the more stringent the conditions, such as the target having a completely healthy body or having died less than an hour ago, the more frequently a resurrection skill could be used.

‘Come to think of it, should I get some resurrection skills too? I’ve been earning a lot of Likes lately, so maybe I can afford it.’

“Your abilities are too far ahead of us, so we have to catch up, right? Hey guys, c’mere for a second,” Mu-Cheok said.

“When did you stop using honorifics?”

“We went to a bunch of dungeons that Ji-Han picked out for us. A day in the real world was one year inside, and we cleared three of those dungeons. We are bound to get close.”

‘Everyone except me seems to be very close with each other…’

All the other team members came into the house and settled down in the kitchen. Mu-Cheok started making something, and Seong Kwang took out drinks from the fridge as if he was at his own home.

‘Wow. They’re using my house like their own. Not that I mind it, hehe.’

“So, you have been in the dungeons for almost three years?”

“Yeah. Five-star dungeons are freakin rough.”

Find the original at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

“He’s right. It was like a small world inside the dungeon… We already knew that, but…damn,” Ha-Na said, shaking her head in frustration.

‘A small world… Well, I knew how hardcore a five-star dungeon was. There are videos on GodTube and a bunch of other sources, after all.’