Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 803

God’s Children were once the object of admiration by many in Athenae. Yet, Rex, one of God’s Children, was brutally forced to log out by the blade of Minhyuk’s sword. As for Henry and the rest of their party, it was a simple matter for Minhyuk to deal with them.

“Kihyeeeeeeee…! Kihyeeeeeee…!” Luna cried out, breathing a sigh of relief as she flew into the arms of the injured Beanie.

Once everything was sorted out, Minhyuk approached Beanie.

“Oiiiiink…”

Beanie, covered with injuries of varying degrees, truly did his best to protect Luna. Minhyuk gently placed his hand on the baby piggy’s head and said, “You have to tell me next time, okay?”

“Oiiiiiiiink…”

Minhyuk fed the injured Beanie a potion. In no time at all, the baby piggy was back to his usual cheerful self. Beanie patted his chest and showed off his usual arrogant expression.

“Oink, oink. Oiiiiiiiiink! (You saw it right?! You saw how great of a pig I am, right? Oink!)”

A sigh of relief escaped Minhyuk’s lips when he saw Beanie back to his usual self. Fortunately, no one died. At the same time, it also made him realize that he should pay more attention to Beanie and Luna.

[I’m quite curious. I wonder how weak the dregs of the continent are.]

Then, at that moment, an unknown voice resonated all over the world through a world message.

“…”

Minhyuk could tell that something unusual was about to happen.

***

Joy Co. Ltd. was busy, as each and every team’s members stared anxiously at their own monitors. Meanwhile, President Kang Taehoon sat together with all of the board members, team leaders, and executives inside the conference room.

“The story related to the Land of the Forgotten Heroes should have started with the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong directly crossing through continents to ask for help in liberating Edea that was ruled by Rumacar.”

“The players that accepted the requests of the four kingdoms would then do quests that will drive out the Jade Emperor’s envoy, Commander Rumacar. The Episode Quest: ‘Edea’s Peace’ should have been a fun and interesting event for the players.”

“But now, the entire situation has changed. Originally, the kingdoms, including the Kingdom of Eden and the Kingdom of Rama, should have been under Rumacar’s rule. The players would have to work together to save Edea from Rumacar’s tyrannic rule.”

“However, due to Food God Minhyuk killing Rumacar, he brought peace to Edea. It’s fine if this peace could be maintained. However, the current situation is that the Jade Emperor and his other envoys have chosen to go on a different approach regarding this matter.”

The flapping of a butterfly’s wings could be felt on the other side of the world. The butterfly effect not only could happen in reality, but also in Athenae. The fate of the Land of the Forgotten Heroes, Edea, had been completely changed. It was fine if the people of Edea could maintain their peace. If so, then there would not be any unpredictable quests or big episodes that would be created.

However, the monitor in front of them was displaying the serious conversation that was being held between the Jade Emperor and his envoys.

‘How will the episode change…?’

President Kang Taehoon felt his head throb. They initially planned for the current players to experience something and fresh as they bring peace to Edea by driving out Commander Rumacar and the Heavenly Army. However, things have changed now.

They watched on the TV screen as the Jade Emperor spoke.

***

In the world above the clouds.

The Jade Emperor sat on his golden seat as he watched his envoys speak and argue.

The Jade Emperor had a total of four envoys. Rumacar, the commander that was excellent in swordsmanship. Heron, the daoist envoy that was well-versed in wide-area daoist magic. Ferro, the envoy with a huge build and was a master of the woldo. And finally, Viel, the envoy that wielded the greatsword.

“There is no longer any person in Edea that worships the Jade Emperor.”

“Rumacar tried to become the king of the Kingdom of Eden but he failed in the end. During the process, a god from another continent called the Food God intervened and helped the humans of Edea. Because of that, they started to deny the Jade Emperor.”

“The Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal, the king of the Kingdom of Rama, is rallying the four kingdoms and gathering forces.”

“We have to hurry! Shouldn’t we make a move and kill all those uncivilized and dirty humans?! Please give us your orders and we will immediately descend.” Viel said.

However, the Jade Emperor shook his head. Just like what Viel had said, the residents of Edea, which they viewed as nothing but insignificant and uncivilized bugs, no longer worshipped and served him. On the other hand, their faith and trust toward the Food God had reached an all-time high.

The Jade Emperor could not forget what happened back then. The Food God had taken advantage of his need for the jade seal and transferred Rumacar’s authority over the Heavenly Army to the Bull Demon King. It would be quite refreshing if he could just beat that bug and kill him right away. However, it would be a problem if he sent all of his envoys down to Edea.

‘They will definitely kill everyone if I send them down. Well, that doesn’t really matter to me.’

Everyone in Edea, including those kings, would die. In fact, the Jade Emperor would do it if he could. He truly wanted to kill those rebellious bugs. The problem was the presence of the Absolute Gods of the other continent, in particular, the greatest god, Athenae. He knew that Athenae would not sit idly by if he truly dared to do so.

Just when the Jade Emperor was pondering over how he should solve this matter, a voice sounded out.

“Great Heavenly Father, I can see that you are very worried about this matter. Why don’t you bestow upon me the Sword of Aeon? I will use the Sword of Aeon to cut down everyone that threatens the Heavenly Father’s rule.”

The Sword of Aeon was a sword that often appeared in the myths and legends of Edea. It was a sword that could easily surpass the supreme and mythical swords in the world. However, there was a problem.

“Rumacar is the only one that knows the whereabouts of that sword.”

“…Cough.”

“Damn it, Rumacar!”

The Jade Emperor trusted Rumacar the most even though he was far behind Viel when it came to individual power and might. However, Rumacar commanded and ruled the Heavenly Army very well. He was a perfect fit for the position. The Jade Emperor bestowed the Sword of Aeon to Rumacar because he trusted him. Despite having the Sword of Aeon in his possession, Rumacar had failed to use it.

‘He hid it for me.’

The Jade Emperor might have several envoys but he never trusted anyone. Rumacar was the only exception. If Viel got the Sword of Aeon in his hands, then he might even try to use that sword against him. The truth was, the Jade Emperor knew where the Sword of Aeon was.

‘Anyway, no one will be able to find it.’

As he watched his envoys sigh in regret, the Jade Emperor said, “Let’s talk about that later.”

They had to solve the problem regarding the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong, who stirred up the public’s sentiments and was rebelling against him. The Jade Emperor pondered over the matter for a while. Not long after, a deep smile bloomed on his face.

“Then, how about leaving Sun Wukong to the foreigners from another continent? Let’s have them kill him?”

“…You mean those insignificant bugs?”

“Hmm.”

The envoys thought for a moment.

With the orders of the Jade Emperor, they would give those insignificant humans a choice. Would they side with the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal, or would they side with the Jade Emperor? Since it was technically the choice of the humans, there was a high probability that the Absolute Gods would not be able to stop them.

Viel, who was also pondering deeply about the matter, grinned and said, “Then, does that mean that only the Food God will protect the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal?”

***

President Kang Taehoon sighed.

‘So, it’s going to unfold like this?’

The Jade Emperor chose to open a passageway that would connect the other continent to Edea and drive out the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal. Basically, it meant that there would be people that would come and protect the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal, and there would be people that would stand on the side of God's Envoys.

“Who would even side with the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal?”

The Jade Emperor’s envoys would fight together. Then, who would fight for Sun Wukong?

“Of course, we would limit the number of times that the Jade Emperor’s envoys would appear. At the same time, we would also give preferential treatment and greater rewards to those that would side and protect the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal.”

“Even so, there won’t be that many people who would take the side of Sun Wukong.”

“That’s true.”

Kang Taehoon nodded in agreement. There was no one in the world that would take a quest knowing that they would eventually fail. They would definitely accept the quest that would guarantee success. In other words, Minhyuk might be the only one that would come to Sun Wukong’s aid.

Then, Team Leader Park Minggyu said, “Since the direction has been determined, we have to refine and coordinate the contents of the episode to the best of our abilities. We should make it so those that want to bring down Sun Wukong will have a hard time gaining contributions even if they hunt many enemies. On the other hand, the longer Player Minhyuk endures, the more contribution points he will gain, and the more special privileges he will receive.”

Everyone nodded. They should give at least a small window for success for Player Minhyuk, who would likely be the only one to side with Sun Wukong. Otherwise, this would not be considered an event, but a massacre.

Then, at that moment, Envoy Viel said something very unexpected.

[Then, if that’s the case, how about we show those dregs how scary we are before we let them choose?]

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

Everyone was shocked. At the same time, the notifications rang.

[Sudden Quest: The Jade Emperor’s Envoys.]

Rank: ???

Requirements: Players at Level 450 or higher that have accepted the quest.

Rewards: Acquisition of 100 platinum and permanent stat increase. If you succeed in hitting the envoy a hundred consecutive times, you will be able to randomly obtain one of the envoys’ treasure boxes.

Penalty for Failure: None.

Description: The envoys of the Jade Emperor are trying to issue an order to the strong men of the continent. But before that, they want to show off their powers. Once you accept, you will be warped into the ‘Land of Fantasy’ created through illusions to fight against them. You will not receive any penalty if you are forced to log out inside the Land of Fantasy. On the other hand, you will be able to randomly receive a variety of rewards, including platinum with every damage inflicted upon the envoys.

“…”

“…”

Everyone’s faces turned ugly when they saw the notification.

When Viel opened his mouth, his voice resonated and turned into a world message.

[I’m quite curious. I wonder how weak the dregs of the continent are.]

These words would definitely set the hearts of all of the players of Athenae on fire.

“Who did we base Viel on?”

The figures from the Land of the Forgotten Heroes were mostly based on several legendary and mythical beings from the legends. One look at the Jade Emperor, the Bull Demon King and the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong was enough to see that this was the case.

The Story Team’s Leader pressed on his temple as he replied helplessly, “Lu Bu.”

***

[You have entered the Land of Fantasy!]

[There are only 50,000 players that can enter the Land of Fantasy!]

[All 50,000 players have entered.]

[The Land of Fantasy will disappear after ten minutes!]

[You will not be able to enter the Land of Fantasy after that anymore!]

The players were in a buzz. They have all heard about the Land of the Forgotten Heroes, Edea. However, the envoys of that place had called them the dregs of the continent.

Because of that, the high-leveled players’ will to fight grew wildly. After all, they were given the privilege to fight against the strong men of another world while being given surprising rewards.

“Hey, look at this! We will either get 100 platinum or a permanent stat increase if we can at least successfully land a hit and inflict damage just once.”

“Is that for real?”

“Wow. Won’t we be able to get rewards just by using our skills right from the very beginning?”

“That’s amazing!”

There were a considerable number of players that joined because of the rewards. Also, among the 50,000 players were some of the world’s best rankers.

Meanwhile, Kentaro, Japan’s top ranker, broke into a cold sweat.

‘The envoys of the Jade Emperor.’

They were transported to the Land of Fantasy, which was a dry land filled with hundreds of thousands of human corpses. Amidst this dry and terrifying land, three men appeared on a small hill. One of them was wearing a robe, while another stood at 190 centimeters tall holding a woldo.

“Guan Yu?”

The guy standing in the middle with a plain face stood imposingly with a gigantic greatsword in his hands.

“There’s quite a lot of dregs that appeared, huh?”

“…!”

The one that came forward was none other than Viel. Everyone’s expressions turned ugly when they heard his words.

Piiiiiiiiiiiiing—

An arrow flew swiftly toward Viel’s head.

Swoosh—

However, Viel only needed to turn his head to the side to evade the attack. The one that shot the arrow was none other than Master Archer Miao.

“That’s Miao’s arrow…”

“He only turned his head to the side to avoid it?”

Most of the players present had never fought against gods. God’s envoys were virtually god-like existences.

Kentaro was on edge. When he looked back, a very welcome figure greeted him. He could see a firm and determined expression on his face. However, not long after his face and body changed completely. It seemed like he had used the Great Demon Verus’ mask. This man was none other than Minhyuk. After changing his appearance using the Great Demon Verus’ mask, Minhyuk disappeared into the crowd.

Then, Viel stepped forward and said, “Come. I’m more than enough to deal with those dregs.”

Viel was immediately bombarded with a variety of lethal and one-shot kill skills the moment he stepped forward. Just one scratch and they would be able to obtain platinum and permanent stat increase as rewards.

“Let’s go!!!”

“That’s right! You f*cker!!!”

“Uwoooooooo!!!”

Tens of thousands of magic attacks, skills and arrows rained down on Viel. However, Viel only looked at them quietly and raised his hand before swinging the greatsword that was almost the size of his body.

Shwaaaaaaaaaa—

At the same time, all of the skills that were flying toward him scattered and disappeared with the wind.

“Huh…?”

“Huh?”

“What, what the?”

Only then did they realize that something was wrong. Kentaro groaned when he saw Viel fly up and swing his greatsword once again.

Slash, slash, slash, slash, slash, slash, slash—

At that moment, gigantic sword lights fell down from the sky and killed all of the players that they came in contact with.

[More than 8,000 players have been forced to log out!]

“…”

“…”

A moment of silence enveloped the entire Land of Fantasy.