Chapter 280

Chapter 280

This event stirred the entire universe.

“I heard that the Earth Players got a Level increase of 20.”

“Earth? Where’s that?”

Many still had never heard of the Earth Server.

“You know, the Kim Chul-Soo Server.”

“Ah...! Chul-Soo’s hometown?”

“That was Earth? I’ll have to remember that.”

When Earth was referred to as the Kim Chul-Soo Server, the number of people who recognized it began to increase.

“Chul-Soo is fortunate. Such Server-level benefits are rare.”

“Rare? Only five Servers in the entire universe have this benefit, including the Arvis Server!”

Players affiliated with the Earth Server gained a 20-Level increase simply for belonging to Earth. However, that was not the end.

“There is a country called Korea on the Earth Server.”

“Korea?”

“Yes, Kim Chul-Soo’s country.”

The name Korea became more well-known than Earth, recognized as Kim Chul-Soo’s country.

“The Players there get a 30-Level increase.”

“30? Really?”

A Server-level benefit of a 30-Level increase was enjoyed by only three Servers in the universe.

“And then there’s Seoul.”

“By any chance, is that Kim Chul-Soo’s city?”

“Yes, Chul-Soo’s city. The Players who Awakened there get a 40-Level increase.”

The 40-Level increase benefit was enjoyed by only two Servers in the entire universe.

“Wait, isn’t Earth a new Server?”

“That’s the surprising thing. What other Servers took hundreds of years to achieve or could not achieve even in hundreds of years, the Earth Server accomplished in less than a year.”

“Who could have possibly nurtured such an unbelievable Guardian Tree?”

“Don’t be shocked. A disciple of Trituri nurtured the Guardian Tree.”

“Don’t tell me the Arvis Server marked the Earth Server as its successor Server?”

The consensus was that an Arvis-born disciple of Trituri had nurtured the Guardian Tree on Earth.

“But it turns out Chul-Soo was Trituri’s disciple.”

“Eh? But Chul-Soo is a Streamer, isn’t he?”

Those hearing Chul-Soo’s name for the first time were puzzled. The idea of a Streamer nurturing a Guardian Tree was too foreign for them.

“Rumor has it that Chul-Soo possesses the Munchkin Trait.”

“No, that’s impossible! That’s a legendary Trait that only one person in the entire universe obtained, and even that’s just a legend.”

“But you know what the real shocker is?”

All these events were already astonishing, yet the most surprising part was still to come.

“Chul-Soo declined the Server-level benefit.”

Chul-Soo had given up the chance for a 50-Level increase.

***

Cha Jin-Hyeok turned on his livestream to communicate with his countless viewers. Today was a historic day. It was the first day of him just communicating with his subscribers, without any content on his Play.

-Wow, we can chat on his livestream?

-This is crazy!

-Chul-Soo is God!

“Korea is...” It was hard for him to describe what he was seeing. “A country of madmen...!”

He fundamentally questioned if he could ever surpass Chul-Soo. His motivation, which used to be fiery, had changed recently.

‘Probably not, right? I don’t think so...’ To surpass Chul-Soo, one had to be especially mad among those madmen. Egan lacked confidence. ‘I should just maintain being number one in the United States...’

The insurmountable wall had dampened his desire for growth.

‘I will just accept the level-up benefit.’ Egan fully understood what Jin-Hyeok was talking about in his livestream. Egan knew that to reach higher, he should reject this benefit. ‘But what’s the use? I can’t beat Chul-Soo anyway...’

He thought it would not be bad to aim for modest success. Accepting the level-up benefit would make even a modest success easier to achieve. It was a somewhat bitter night for Egan.

***

-“I have become the greatest!”

The Guardian Tree’s boastfulness was not mere pretense. The name of the Guardian Tree had changed.

[Spirited Great Golden Guardian Tree]

The title Great was now officially recognized by the System.

-“I now have the capability to cover all of Korea, ahem!”

‘Wait, all of Korea?’ Jin-Hyeok felt a sense of crisis. ‘If it became this powerful, wouldn’t it rob Korean Players of their opportunity to grow?’

-“I can perfectly protect Korea and even bring the entire Earth under my influence! Did you see how I helped people level up?”

The Guardian Tree bragged about its greatness, shaking its branches and causing golden dust to flutter down like snowflakes. In any case, according to the Guardian Tree, it had acquired the power to protect the entire Earth. This was a disaster for the GMs.

A whirlwind of layoffs swept through the GMs managing Earth. The emergence of such an absurd Guardian Tree on Earth, which had been integrated as an official Server for less than a year, was a problem on a universal scale. Complaints about balance and fairness were endless. Controversies regarding the System’s fairness erupted.

Kihael, the former GM for Seodaemun-gu, visited Jin-Hyeok’s home, laughing hysterically. “Ah...Now I finally feel relieved! I got fired! Just like that, without any severance. Can you believe it?”

“...”

“Anyway, you’re going to get me a job at the MK Foundation, right? You remember what you promised me?”

“Yes.”

“Hahahaha! I am finally free from that madman!”

“Free from the madman? Who are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about Serchan, my senior!”

Serchan, a passionate man, was the complete opposite of Kihael, who pursued work-life balance.

“What do you mean?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“Huh?”

“I heard that Serchan got fired too.”

“And?”

“Wouldn’t it be a waste to just let go of someone who works as hard as Serchan?”

“So?”

“I heard Serchan gets along well with you.”

“Where is this going?” Kihael became incredibly anxious.

“The MK Foundation has decided to hire a bunch of the recently fired GMs. It is not easy to hire such high-quality personnel all at once, so it worked out well.”

“...”

“Serchan said he likes you and wants to work with you, so I told him to go for it.”

“Serchan came to you?” Kihael asked.

“He’s got spirit and passion. He came to me even before getting his termination notice.”

Indeed, people should have that kind of intensity. Jin-Hyeok liked that aspect of Serchan.

“No...! You never said anything about working with Serchan!”

“Well, I also never said I wouldn’t,” Jin-Hyeok replied.

The contract had merely stated that the MK Foundation would employ Kihael... That was it.

“AAAAHHHH!” Kihael cried his eyes out, but it was all in vain.