Chapter 72

72. Break through the supply route

“Grow a tree. You mean?” Gobung asked with an expression of ignorance. Ko Byeong-gap just smiled and moved his fingers.

[Do you want to purchase ‘Seed of Enlightenment’?]

A hologram asked if he wanted to buy it, and he said yes without hesitation. After a while, the space distorted, and a kidney bean size seed smaller than a fingernail fell.

Although it was shabby in size, it was unique in its appearance. The seed glowed subtly in iridescent light and radiated with colors.

“Oh, oh!”

“That… How… What is it?”

The frightened Goblins backed away. Ko Byeong-gap handled the seed with care as if he were serving royalty.

“I don’t know, but good things will happen to us if it sprouts.”

“Good… Good things. What kind of…?”

“I don’t know. Do you want to be a little more handsome?”

Ko Byeong-gap said playfully and moved his body.

“You, go get a shovel.”

“Ah, I got it!”

A normal Goblin rushed to bring a shovel, and then, Ko Byeong-gap moved to the sunniest place among the fields and started digging.

He dug a deep hole, placed the seed in the moist ground, and covered it with soil again. He spoke as he put a shovel in the place where he had planted the seed.

“Gobung, build a fence around here. You don’t have to hit too wide, and make sure no one gets inside the fence.”

“Put a fence. No one can get in… Yep! Alright.”

“Yes, and mix a potion in water once a day and spray it here. Just like growing potatoes in a field.”

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“I will. I will.”

“There’s still a lot of potion left, right?”

“Yes, we have enough.”

“That’s a relief.”

‘Cause I’m broke…’

Ko Byeong-gap bought it with a whopping 10 million crystals. The crystals he had left were about 90,000. For the time being, he was in economy mode.

“Ah, by the way. Lord.”

“Hmm? Why?”

“What you planted on the ground… I mean, something precious. Isn’t it?”

“Oh, right. It’s terribly expensive.”

Gobung hesitated. Ko Byeong-gap waited patiently and wondered what he was going to say, and soon he opened his mouth.

“I… To me. Well, leaving it to me. Is that okay?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

Ko Byeong-gap smiled.

“Why? Do you think you can’t do it?”

“A little. I’m worried. Just in case it goes wrong…”

“What can go wrong?”

“What?”

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“It doesn’t matter if something goes wrong while you’re raising it. We can work hard to fix it and raise it again.”

Gobung pursed his lips. Ko Byeong-gap continued, patting his shoulder.

“Don’t worry about that. There’s a lot of time, and I’m leaving it to you because I think you’re better than me when it comes to raising things.”

A precious seed of enlightenment. There were two reasons why he kept it in Somnium. The first was safety, and the second was the environment. He was exposed to many dangers being in Valtadren. Also, he didn’t forget what Ea said about ‘the Grugle the size of a mountain.’

It might be peaceful now, but they would never know when or how a disaster would hit. In that sense, it was right to leave the seed in Somnium, the ‘last bastion.’

In the environment, no matter how much they did, they were merely improving the soil’s quality. However, the reality was that it lacked in many ways.

When trees grow, they take root deep in the ground, and if the soil were in poor condition, it would be hard for a tree to grow. For that reason, Ko Byeong-gap decided to raise it in Somnium.

“It’s already time. Anyway, Gobung, don’t feel too pressured and just do what you’ve been doing.”

“Oh, I see! I’ll do my best! By the way. Are you leaving already?”

“Yes. I have to go and work.”

When he spoke firmly, the expressions of the Goblins, including Gobung, became sullen. Ko Byeong-gap spoke brightly on purpose to evoke the atmosphere.

“From today on, we’re going to work on drilling roads in the mountains. When the construction is completed, it will be easier to go back and forth. So, I can go back and forth three or four times a day.”

“Are… Are you serious?”

“Yeah, I’ll have to get it done as soon as possible because I have to supply you with this and that.”

Ko Byeong-gap said goodbye briefly and left Somnium in a hurry. It was time for the workforce to arrive. Sure enough, more than 500 workers were waiting for him as he reached the entrance of the mountain, panting.

‘It’s so hard I’m going to die. This isn’t training, so what am I doing…’

He felt like he was going to be hard as iron if he ran more. In order not to suffer this hardship further, they had to pave the way quickly. He led the workforce, soothing his beating heart.

“Come on, let’s get to work!”

***

The road construction was in full swing. They were making a long road from the beginning of the mountain up to midway. It was certainly hard to cut down trees and remove rocks, but none were lazy. They were very much engaged in their work.

With everyone working together, the progress of the work was terrifying. When the workforce did their duties, Doran and the infantry guarded the area. Several battles took place for several days. Fortunately, they dealt no damage since all the enemies were weak.

“Today, I have to go to a subjugation, so you have to take care of the kids and lead them. Can you do it?”

“No problem!”

“Trust me. Leave it to me!”

“You’re all very confident. Then I’ll trust you.”

Once the framework was established, it proceeded smoothly on its own.

‘They should be able to live without me.’

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The Goblins were doing their own things so actively, and that was the ultimate goal of Ko Byeong-gap. He would leave more and more things to them in the future. One day, without their Lord’s help, they could stand on their own feet.

‘Because I can’t be with you forever.’

It was part of a hunter’s life to know that they didn’t know what might happen tomorrow. Ko Byeong-gap hoped that the responsibility he had to take on as the Goblin Lord would be relieved soon.

He went around on Earth that day. It was around 2 pm when he finished going through a B and C-rank crack.

As usual, he would’ve gone straight to Ashvilam, but that day he had something to do.

“Yes, sir. I’ll see you around five o’clock.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll be waiting.”

After the subjugation, he headed to a pig farm in Yeoncheon-gun. Of course, he didn’t go there to grill pork belly.

‘Ashvilam’s second domestic animal has been chosen.’

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He had been thinking of raising pigs for a long time. Now that Valtadren was stabilized, it was time to bring in livestock and crops. He visited the pig farm by renting a trailer for transporting livestock. The sound of pig grunts from the pasture was intense.

“Oh, welcome.”

“Nice to meet you, haha.”

The farmer simply said hello and went straight to the point.

“Come over here.”

The farmer led Ko Byeong-gap to the cage where young pigs stayed.

“They’re a Yorkshire breed, and they’re 8 or 9 months old, so they’re fertile. I’ve got their vaccinations all set. Go in and take a look.”

“Can I?”

“Of course.”

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Ko Byeong-gap went inside the cage. Their skin was clean, and their bodies were strong. There was a sow that seemed to breed well.

“Okay, I’ll take 30 of them.”

“Yes, you made a good choice. Let’s go see the sow.”

“Good.”

Ko Byeong-gap bought eight healthy sows and 30 pigs.

“Squeak! Squeak!”

“Keeek!”

“Oh my God, you bastards! You’re not going to the slaughterhouse! Please cooperate!”

When they tried to put them in the trailer, they went crazy. After a lot of hard work, he loaded all the pigs and then drove the car. Of course, after he left the farm, all of them were handed over to Ashvilam. Well, that went well.

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“Squeak!”

“Kook! Kook!”

‘Oh my God, what a mess!’

The pigs who stepped on the land of Valtadren scattered all over the place.

Ko Byeong-gap hurriedly grabbed the pigs.

“Goblins! We’re in trouble!”

“L-Lord?”

It just so happened that a group of Goblins passed by. Ko Byeong-gap shouted out of the blue.

“Hey, hey, hey! Get them! Get them! Get one each!”

“If we catch these animals. Will they fight?”

“No, don’t talk to me. Grab them!”

“Yes, yes! I understand!”

“Kereuk! Kereuk!”

“… Huh?”

Something surprising happened. The pigs froze when a Beast Goblin shouted furiously. Like a mouse in front of a cat. The Beast Goblin kept growling.

“Kerreuk!”

“Squeak… Squeak…”

The pigs gathered in a stride. They stuck together like puppies who had to poop. The Beast Goblin asked leisurely.

“Lord, where do we take them? Where?”

“You guys have a lot of talent, don’t you?”

“Hehe. Talented. I’m not sure…”

“Anyway, you did a great job! Come with me.”

He led the pigs to the cage he had made the day before. It was too wide to trap only 38 animals, but it was no problem. The number of heads would increase soon.

‘I’ll have to bring in the crops tomorrow. We can plant beans and corn for pig food and plant old crops for the rest of the land.’

The corners of his mouth rose slightly with excitement. The day ended, and two days had passed. Five days, eight days, and soon, ten days went by without a hitch. On the eleventh day, the road to Somnium was finally opened.

When the construction was finished, they shouted for hurray with one heart and one accord.

“Gobung, I’m going to take this one.”

“Yep!”

Two trucks parked in Somnium, and one was to be moved to Valtadren. He got on the truck and got on the road they had paved.

‘Even if it’s a little bumpy, this is enough.’

Even with two diesel drums loaded in the luggage compartment, his driving wasn’t affected at all. Since the supply route was open, it would be easier to transport meat and supplies.

‘The planted seed hasn’t yielded good news.’

Twenty days had passed since he planted a Seed of Enlightenment in Somnium, but it didn’t even sprout. He was worried if something was wrong, but he couldn’t dig it back.

‘… Don’t worry too much. I guess it takes a long time to sprout. Worrying wouldn’t make the tree grow fast.’

He hummed, drove the truck, and shook off all sorts of thoughts. Since the completion of the road, a different sight had unfolded in Ashvilam. The truck compartment was loaded with frozen meat. Ea was in the driver’s seat, and Doran was in the passenger seat.

“Then I’ll go!” Ea grabbed the steering wheel with an excited voice.

“Be careful driving. Don’t be frivolous.”

“Whoa, there’s nothing to worry about. You told me last time, didn’t you? I’m a pretty good driver. I think I have a knack for driving too!”

“Yes, yes, anyway, just deliver the meat.”

“Of course! Then, we’ll be back!”

“Lord, see you later!”

A truck full of meat left the gate. Doran was there, so if ever a Grugle appeared, they would have no problems.

“Phew, I’m going to work. Chilbong, Palbong.”

“Yes, Lord!”

“Let’s go pick corn. Bring your tools.”

“Yes!”

February went on without a hitch in Ashvilam. Spring was coming before he knew it.

***

Naju, Jeollanam-do has been famous for its wide plains and rice soup since ancient times. However, when we talk about Naju, the first keyword in mind was ‘Maseok Power Plant.’

In fact, after the advent of the new fuel called the Magic Stones, 90% of Korea’s electricity was generated by the Maseok Power Plant. Not only in Korea but all over the world.

The magic stones showed near-perfect performance in three areas: efficiency, power generation cost, and environment. Therefore, the need to burn fossil fuels had been eliminated.

Scholars even predicted that magic stones within ten years would replace all power sources. The magic stone was truly a groundbreaking material. Anyway, Naju had the largest power generation complex in Korea, but…

“Huh?! Who are you?!”

“Hah! Call the security company right now–”

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On a night in February, masked men raided the power plant. It was a group of awakeners that carried swords of a jaw-dropping size. The power they exerted was truly terrifying, and people didn’t even dare to rebel.

“Master, I’ve taken care of everything.”

A girl with a young voice said. Her feet were littered with people who had fainted. Not a single person was killed.

“You’ve worked hard.” The tall woman answered briefly.

“Now, take the people away and flee far away.”

“Yes. After we move these guys, we go to point H, right?”

“Yes.”

The woman nodded calmly, and then, another masked person opened their mouth. This time, it was a boy’s voice.

“Master, would you be alright alone? Wouldn’t it be better if we helped?”

“I’m good enough alone. It’s been a while. Go ahead.”

“… Yes, I understand.”

“See you later, Master.”

“Be careful.”

The three assailants disappeared with the fainted carried on their backs. The tall woman closed her eyes and waited until her men were far enough away.

‘I think this is enough.’

The woman raised her sword and made sure there was no one in the complex. At the tip of the sword, Karma, like a mountain, came rushing in. She drew her sword, and everything in front of her turned to dust and disappeared.

After the collapse of the command control center, the woman began to attack the power generation facilities in earnest. She was no ordinary awakener. A 15-meter-tall concrete building could be cut in half by her in just one swipe.

On that day, all 20 power plants in the Naju Power Plant collapsed.