Chapter 1029

Chapter 1029

Locke, one of the executives of Beyond the Heavens Empire, was a man with a face and a personality(?). And there was one thing in the Beyond the Heavens Empire that he could say he was the best in and was most proud of—it was none other than his body.

Locke was very proud that no one in the Beyond the Heavens Empire had a body that was fitter than his own. He was a man who only had working out and exercising in his mind.

He had been dumped by a woman recently. Usually, men would look for soju and get drunk on alcohol when they got dumped. As for Locke, in his sorrow, he ran to the gym. He whipped out his protein shakes and lifted weights, trying heavier ones than usual. Funnily enough, the sadness and frustration of that day allowed him to lift much heavier weights.

Simply put, Locke was a gym-loving guy who only knew one pattern: game, gym, sleep.

After finishing his workout, Locke logged back inside Athenae.

“Hoo. I wonder if anyone would like to work out with me?”

Unfortunately, no one around Locke wanted to join him in his healthy workout routine.

‘If I can find people to come and work out with me, then I think I can break down Level 600’s third wall.’

Sometimes, having a competitor would allow a person’s motivation to burn brightly.

While pondering this matter, Locke went to where Balaman, the slaves, and the prisoners lived. The Beyond the Heavens’ executives would always take turns patrolling and supervising Balaman, his men, and the rest of the people they had brought in.

Locke looked around the area where the prisoners from the Qingdao Kingdom were and listened to their conversations.

‘They’re all working very hard.

All of them were doing their best in their work and studies. And from what he could tell, they were all very grateful for the grace and kindness that the Beyond the Heavens Empire had bestowed upon them. They were all pleased since they were given comfortable and warm homes to live in. They even went so far as to praise the Beyond the Heavens Empire when they saw Locke doing his patrols.

After checking where the Qingdao Kingdom prisoners were, Locke went to where Balaman and his men were. Of course, they were still being exploited by the Beyond the Heavens Empire.

‘Tsk, tsk. These bad bastards.’

Minhyuk had ordered his men to give at least the bare minimum of support to Balaman and his men. It was because he said they might have a place to be of good use. In the first place, Minhyuk did not pay much attention to them. Of course, the same was true for the rest of the Beyond the Heavens’ executives.

When Locke arrived, he saw Balaman and his almost a hundred thousand men exercising. Shockingly enough, even Balaman, who had now become the living dead, was exercising.

“Take advantage of the break time... continue... exercising... If... you stop... your muscles... will be lost...!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Yes, sir!”

Locke was in awe when he saw the muscles rippling on their bare chests. When he saw one of the guards approaching him, he asked, “What are they doing?”

“The Exploited Ones are only given a short break. But every time, they will rush out of the mines and exercise. They said they will lose their muscles if they slack off or something...”

“What about their food?”

“Their three meals daily consist of chicken breasts, salad without sauce, and some fruit. To be honest, it has helped us cut a huge amount from our food costs.”

Locke was completely overcome with emotion. Many people did not understand him, but he finally found people who shared his views and values.

“Soon... muscles... strength...!”

“Uwaaaaaaah!”

“Uwooooooh!”

Then, he heard their roars.

Locke had a long-time dream. There was this war movie, 301, that was a huge sensation overseas.

‘This is Spwarta!’

It was a film set in ancient times in which strong, muscular, and healthy bare-chested soldiers go off to war.

Locke could not help but shudder in excitement at the thought of running bare-chested at the vanguard with these people and shouting, ‘This is Spwarta!’ It would be a spectacle.

Locke walked toward Balaman, whose muscles were bulging. When Balaman saw Locke and his bulging muscles, he seemed to recognize him as someone of the same kind as them.

However, Locke did not intend to show them any warmth and care. So, he asked coldly, “Bench press, squats and deadlifts. How many can you do?”

***

Minhyuk, who received a new quest related to the Battle God from The Teacher Beradon, could not help but shudder. He was sure that the “???” written in the rewards had something to do with the gods inside the God’s Prison. So, just as it was written in the quest description, he had to go to the Land of the Gods and meet Erach, the God’s Prison’s warden.

But before that, Minhyuk had to fulfill his promise to Beradon.

“You bastard. My stomach is going to stick to my back now!”

Minhyuk had promised Beradon that he would cook a dish using the ingredients protected by the Lord of the Mountains. He even said he should give him proper recognition if the old man were satisfied with his dish. Simply put, he just used a few words, but he was able to obtain an opportunity to increase his level once more. Because of that, Minhyuk wanted to put his heart and soul into cooking this dish.

Various colorful vegetables were among the ingredients he had on hand. So, what should he make? The same bibimbap that he had eaten earlier?

‘That’s delicious too. But right now, I think something else suits him better.’

The temperature in the mountains was quite chilly. Parts of the mountains had snow, too, which seemed to bring a greater and more penetrating chill to the body. There was a dish that used such colorful vegetables while simultaneously warming the body. It was none other than shabu-shabu.

And immediately after that, Minhyuk’s level increased again. In just one day, Minhyuk could raise his level by three. At this point, Minhyuk realized he was at least 5% stronger than yesterday.

“You’re quite the chef, huh?”

But there was still something left. Beradon had made a promise before Minhyuk went out to fetch the ingredients.

“Now, please tell me who your two most outstanding disciples are?”

Beradon frowned when he heard the question. It was the beginning of a story that he did not want to reminisce about, but a promise was a promise.

Soon, Beradon said, “Helenia.”

“...!”

Minhyuk’s eyes grew wide. Helenia, who wanted to destroy the entire world, was Beradon’s disciple. He jumped up from his seat and could not help but look at Beradon with an indescribable expression on his face.

“She has killed a lot of people and tried to take away a lot of things. Were you shocked and disappointed at the fact that I taught her?”

Minhyuk did not know how to answer the question. Perhaps Beradon helped her grow stronger like that, no?

“I do not discriminate. There is no good or evil in my eyes. I teach anyone qualified to receive my teachings. I may not be evil, but does that mean I only have to teach good people? Who set up that logic?”

Minhyuk could not bring himself to deny the old man. Also, he already knew that nothing good would come out even if he argued over this.

“What about your other disciple?”

Beradon smiled faintly as he looked up to the sky. Then, he said, “Athenae.”

“...?!”

The shock that Minhyuk experienced was far more than the shock he received when he heard Helenia’s name.

Athenae was the Greatest God and was also one of the Eight Pillars. She was the one who ruled everything in this world. That alone was enough to prove how much of a big shot she was. It was surprising to find out she had also been Beradon’s disciple.

“Can you tell me more about them?”

“You damn brat! You asked me about the two, but I believe we never agreed on that.”

Beradon has no reason to tell Minhyuk their story.

“Do you think my mouth is so loose, huh?”

Minhyuk shook his head. Beradon’s mouth was indeed a tough one to crack. If he could easily hear the story about Athenae and Helenia, then the entire world could listen to their story just as easily.

“Enough. You should go. If you’re unable to complete this, don’t even think about coming to see me again,” Beradon said as he walked away with his hands behind his back.

“I will do my best so that I can come to see you again,” Minhyuk said, greeting Beradon politely before disappearing on the spot.

Beradon, who continued on his walk around the mountains, had a severe look on his face. He thought, ‘I know. Many have died because I did not distinguish between good and evil.’

Thinking that it was the last time, he had accepted another disciple. At that time, he felt this disciple of his was stronger than Helenia and wiser than Athenae.

Beradon looked up to the sky and recalled the disciple he loved and hated most.

***

Team Leader Park Minggyu discussed this with Lee Minhwa on the Special Players Management Team.

“The players are in a very festive mood. After all, they have received a 3x increase in EXP Acquisition Rate for an entire month. Even the players who have achieved Level 600 are working hard to reach Level 650.”

“How many players do you think will reach Level 650 by the end of this month?” Team Leader Park mumbled. He already knew the answer to this question. He just wanted to voice it out.

Lee Minhwa smiled bitterly. She said, “Maybe around two hundred?”

“Right.”

But would those two hundred players and Player Minhyuk, the bastion of who President Kang spoke, be able to stop what would happen?

Of course, just as Minggyu discussed with Taehoon in the car, Minhyuk had received a foothold that would allow him to grow even further. But according to their calculations, even if Minhyuk became more muscular, it would still be difficult for them to beat Helenia. Team Leader Park could not help but think they still had a long way to go after considering the upcoming disaster.

Minggyu stared blankly at the screen, which showed Beradon’s situation. There was a sad smile on Beradon’s face as he looked up to the sky.

[Crunch– crunch–]

The sound of someone walking through the snow of the snowy mountains rang. Team Leader Park jumped to his feet when he saw the face of the man who appeared on the screen in front of him not long after.

In shock, he could not help but murmur, “Is this another bastion...?”

***

Beradon, with a sad smile, looked at the man walking up the mountain path. The man looked very handsome, with fair skin and black hair. He was also one of the Eight Pillars and his third disciple, who left him.

“It’s been a long time, Obren.”