Gourmet Gaming

High ranking players only accounted for 5% of the tens of millions of high-leveled players of Athenae. Hence, twenty platinum was important to the majority of these players.

The difference in level between the high rankers and the ordinary high-leveled players was quite huge. High rankers could solo a boss mob, while ordinary high-leveled players would need to team up with at least five or six other players.

Because of that, most of them would only be able to earn around one or two platinum per day. But now, these ordinary players were given the opportunity to earn platinum that was worth a hundred million in cash, just by killing anyone siding with the Jade Emperor.

Everyone had many points of interest when they saw the notifications. First, they were shocked that Minhyuk had the financial power to pull this off. Second, they were very surprised to know that they would also have the chance to gain hundreds of millions in cash.

Everything was at a standstill despite the non-stop bombings of magical attacks sent by Edea’s Allied Forces. Even the arrows fell continuously, piercing through the bodies of the players that stood there in a daze. However, there was a strange sense of tension that buzzed in the air amidst the battlefield.

Then, at that moment, a person’s voice rang out.

“Hey. Let’s split the money fifty-fifty. I’ll give you fifty million won.”

Staaaaaaab—

One of the players stabbed the heart of his friend that logged in the game together with him.

“Hey. Don’t you think that’s a bit too much… you f*cker.”

An ugly expression flashed on the face of the player that got stabbed in the heart.

“It’s just a game anyway.”

That spark gave way to a rapidly devolving situation.

“Haren, I’m sorry.”

Staaaaaaaab—

“Keuaaaaaaaaack! You m*therf*cker…”

Slaaaaaaaash!

“Aaaaaaaack!”

“Keuaaaaaack!”

The screams of players being killed by their own comrades rang loudly in the battlefield. The commotion grew gradually like the cracks created by an earthquake, as greedy players killed their own allies one after another.

The wavering players were thinking, ‘It should be fine, right?’ This was particularly the case for the mages. They were considered the most threatening existence during this moment. After all, they were capable of casting AOE magic attacks from afar. These kinds of skills would be most effective since the coalition army were all gathered together.

The close combat players were at the vanguard while the archers and the mages were at the rear. In other words, the mages were gathered together. All of them used their AOE magic at the same time, as if they had been waiting for this moment.

“Explosion!”

“Fire Storm!”

“Fire Wall!”

“Wind Cutter!”

Their targets were the archers that had significantly lower HP and defenses compared to the close combat players.

Slash, slash, slash, slash, slash—!

“Keuaaaaaaaack!”

“Aaaack! This damn bastard mages!!!”

“Keuaaaaaack!”

The archers began to shoot their arrows to retaliate against the mages’ offensive.

“Yes! I killed three people!”

“I got two!!!”

However, the mages, who could cast AOE magic attacks, were at a more advantageous position.

This indiscriminate bombings and attacks between the mages and the archers was enough to make the players who were sitting over the fence, come to a decision.

“This f*cking bastard! Want to try me, huh?!!”

“Shut up, f*cker!”

“You morons! Are you going to kill your comrades just for a hundred million won?!”

“Yeah! I can kill for a hundred million won!”

The thing that could make people do the scariest things in the world was money.

[A terrible catastrophe is unfolding right in front of our very eyes.]

[The ones that have gathered to deal with Edea’s Allied Forces have been taken advantage of and are now killing each other.]

[In the first place, the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army is a group of people that have gathered only for the benefits. For people like them, the Fairy Tears have a very sweet allure.]

[This is definitely Player Minhyuk’s idea. It’s amazing. Some might say that Player Minhyuk’s method is a common chaebol behavior where they show off their money. But if we look at the reality, we can’t say that it’s something that he should not do.]

[Player Minhyuk is in a very unfavorable situation after all. He has to protect the entire Edea by himself.]

[Because of the situation, the viewers will most likely say that he’s a truly amazing person instead of criticizing Player Minhyuk.]

[As we speak, the turtle ships have once again fired their dragon cannons.]

[Edea’s Allied Forces are also helping with their magic attacks and arrows.]

[The Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army is decreasing in numbers at a truly fast pace.]

The notifications also rang at the same time.

[Edea’s Allied Forces have defeated 450,000 of the Jade Emperor Coalition Army!]

[According to the agreement made between the Battle God and the Jade Emperor, special privileges and benefits will be given to Player Minhyuk, the commander of Edea’s Allied Forces.]

The Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army was in a much superior position. Because of that, the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army would not receive any benefits. On the other hand, those that would stand on Edea’s side would receive all the benefits. Alas, none of those that sided with the Jade Emperor knew about the rewards that the Allied Forces would receive.

“You bastards! Aren’t you going to stop?!!”

“Enough!!!”

The top rankers that had sat on the throne as kings during the Battle of Thrones, tried to stop the other players but none of their words worked.

Human greed was truly a scary thing. It could sometimes make others betray their lovers, friends, and even their family. Since this happened in the game, people would easily reveal their greed.

Bastien, who watched everything unfold in front of him, bit his lips tightly. ‘He’s willing to spend hundreds of billions of won for this?’

The Food God was a great man. However, no matter how great or amazing he was, would Minhyuk truly be willing to spend hundreds of billions of won? No, perhaps he had spent far more than that. Even if Minhyuk won this battle, his worth would not be worth hundreds of billions of won.

Then, Bastien’s eyes grew wide in realization, “This— This is a trap…!”

“What?” Xu Jiaqi looked at him in confusion when she heard those words.

“Minhyuk has no intention of spending a single penny!!!”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Xu Jiaqi, the king of Qingdao Kingdom, was confused. Minhyuk had obviously used his position as a god to send a large-scale quest to the players. Even if he was a god, he would receive sanctions if he could not fulfill the rewards that he had listed in the quest. But Bastien was saying that Minhyuk did not have any intention of spending a single penny.

“Take a good look at the quest window, Xu Jiaqi. What do you think is wrong with it?”

In fact, if one looked closely, they would realize that it was impossible to complete this quest. Xu Jiaqi’s eyes grew wide after she carefully perused the contents of the quest.

“This is crazy…”

They felt terrified, yet at the same time, in awe of Minhyuk’s brilliant idea. Bastien looked at the battlefield once again.

Before crossing the passageway, the players had to choose whether they would stand on the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal’s side or the Jade Emperor’s side. If they were not here, then they were not on the Jade Emperor’s side.

However, what if they attacked their own allies? What would happen next was simple.

[You have decided to help Edea’s Allied Forces!]

Those who had not moved to kill any of Edea’s Allied Forces were automatically recognized as the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal’s allies. That was why their nicknames, which were initially written in blue, had turned to red by themselves. In other words, they had turned into enemies.

What would happen if someone with a red name appeared amidst the ranks of the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army? If one looked closely at the contents of the quest, they would see something like this:

[If you can successfully reach Edea’s Allied Forces’ fortress.]

However, it was impossible for them to reach that fortress. The rest of the Coalition Army would kill those that betrayed their allies.

Bastien tore a Megaphone Parchment and shouted, “Everyone! Stop!!!”

The deep and loud voice rang heavily, shaking everyone’s eardrums. Some of the players stopped, while others kept on killing their allies. However, after Bastien had explained the current situation, an awkward air began to wrap around the players.

“Damn it…”

“Shit, we’re f*cked…”

As mentioned before, the names of the players’ characters, who had killed their allies, had already turned red. However, they were still amidst the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army.

These people, who had been blinded by greed and failed to see the reality of the matter, could not stop the ugly expression that flashed on their faces.

“C— can’t you just spare us?”

“Spare us and allow us to reach Edea’s Allied Forces, please!!!”

There were around 500,000 players with red names amidst their troops. These players no longer wished to attack the people around them. All they wanted was to receive the corresponding Fairy Tears for those that they have killed before.

However, Bastien and the other top rankers that participated in the Battle of Thrones looked at each other. Each and every single one of them shook their heads.

Then, Bastien said, “Kill all of the players that have become a part of Edea’s Allied Forces.”

With his orders, the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army sent concentrated attacks to the places where these players had gathered.

There were many reasons why they had to kill these 500,000 players on their own. The first reason was they had betrayed their allies. Second, if they decided to spare them and take them along, they would not know when these players would turn around and hit the back of their heads. As for the third reason, there was no real need to carry them after all.

“Aaaaaaaaaack!!!”

“P-please spare me!!!”

“I can get 300 million, it’s within my reach. Please just spare me this once. Just let me stay, please. Keuaaaaaack!!!”

The players’ desperate screams rang loudly in the battlefield. However, the expressions on the faces of the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army were complicated as they meted out the punishment on those that betrayed their allies.

[The Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army’s morale has dramatically decreased.]

[All of your stats will decrease by 5%.]

“Retreat! Everyone, retreat!!!” The Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong gave his orders.

At the same time, the Allied Forces’ turtle ships began to back away from the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army, even though the Coalition Army had taken a huge blow to their morale.

Kentaro, the Japanese Server’s top ranker, smiled while thinking about how great and amazing Minhyuk truly was. Meanwhile, Bastien and Xu Jiaqi assessed the situation with ugly faces.

Among these rankers, there was one high ranker that watched Edea’s Allied Forces back away and retreat. The ranker was wearing a robe with a hood that covered most of his face and a mask. If others saw him, they would immediately think that he was an assassin.

‘I…’

This ranker was none other than Alexander, who became the first Eight Pillars’ Class, the Weapon Master not too long ago.

‘…will lead Edea’s Allied Forces to victory.’

***

[You have harvested 50,000 potatoes!]

[You have acquired Sin’s Potato.]

[You have acquired God of Farming Hella’s Noble and Lofty Zucchini.]

Minhyuk safely completed the harvest of the third Sin’s Ingredient. While he was in the middle of his harvest frenzy, he received notifications about how they had defeated 1.2 million troops of the Coalition Army and how he had gained special privileges and rewards for achieving such a feat.

However, these notifications did not lighten the burden that he had to carry. In fact, it even put more pressure on him to return as fast as possible.

“Urk! Cough!”

After finishing the harvest of the third Sin’s Ingredient, Hella collapsed on the ground and coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. Her blood soaked the ground as her body turned translucent for a moment before returning back to her original appearance.

[Hella’s soul is nearing its demise!]

[Hurry up! Harvest the final Sin’s Ingredient and allow Hella to reincarnate safely!]

Minhyuk knew that there was no time for him to rest, especially after hearing the notifications.

“Now… you know that I wouldn’t believe that all of this is just because you’re tired, right?”

“…” Hella smiled bitterly as she struggled to get up. “Soon, my soul might be gone forever. That’s why…”

Hella held the hoe in her hand tightly.

“…for Hell to thrive and bloom.”

‘And for the dark and brooding you.’

“Let’s go and harvest the fourth and final ingredient.”

Minhyuk hurriedly approached the last Sin’s Ingredient and stretched his hand out. The final Sin’s Ingredient was cabbage.

[You have started the harvest of the Fourth Sin’s Ingredient, the Sin’s Cabbage.]

[You need to harvest the Sin’s Cabbage in three days.]

Crackleeeeeeee—

Blazing flames that seemed like they could burn anything and everything in their path burst out of the cabbage. It seemed like one had to endure the blazing flames to successfully harvest the cabbage. Minhyuk and Hella walked toward the cluster of blazing flames together.

Meanwhile, Minhyuk thought, ‘The Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army will face Hanwoo for the second round.’

***

Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army.

The high rankers were discussing their next steps.

“That guy will probably send Hanwoo out next,” Xu Jiaqi said.

Hanwoo was a being that could grow several tens of meters in height and was someone that boasted a powerful attack. He was a very terrifying being that had trampled tens of thousands of enemies in the countless battles that he had participated in with his Hanwoo Charge.

However, the Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army was fully prepared to face him. Once Hanwoo used his Charge skill, the global number one tanker, Valentino, would summon his Shield Wall along with the other tankers.

Valentino’s Shield Wall could only be activated after taking the MP of the other tankers around him. However, Valentino’s Shield Wall was the best shield. In fact, it could stop anyone’s charge and they were confident it could even block Hanwoo.

At that moment, terrifying sounds rang out.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud—

The thundering footsteps made the entire Jade Emperor’s Coalition Army nervous.

“Valentinooooooo!!!”

“I know!!!”

Valentino, one of the kings in the Battle of the Thrones and the global number one tanker, stepped forward with tens of thousands of rankers at the cry of the other high rankers.

[To activate Shield’s Wall, you need to use the MP of other tankers.]

[Player Ronsi has given his power to your shield.]

[Player Kenya…to your shield.]

[Player Ero…to your shield.]

Tens of thousands of rankers channeled their MP to power Valentino’s Shield Wall. Then, a flash of bright and blinding light appeared as Valentino slammed his square shield into the ground.

Crack—

At the same time, a transparent shield appeared as his shield grew several tens of meters in height. This Shield Wall would definitely be able to neutralize Hanwoo’s Charge.

At that moment, Sun Wukong suddenly appeared in the skies above them on his Flying Nimbus. Then, he threw a bottle filled with white sloshing liquid in the air.

Pop—

Piiiing—

The bottle burst, creating what seemed like a flash bang that instantly made everyone’s vision turn white, while a piercing sound rang in their ears. Even Valentino’s vision had turned white.

However, Valentino grinned. Why? Because he has a skill called God’s Aggro, a skill that could drag the target toward his shield without fail. Before the flash bang burst out, he had seen Hanwoo growing and charging at them from a distance. So, he triggered God’s Aggro.

[God’s Aggro.]

[Please choose your target!]

“Hanwoo.”

[Your chosen target will collide with your Shield’s Wall!]

The enemy was trying to blind them for a moment and bring chaos and confusion? Bullshit. That was nothing.

Beeeeeeep—

At that moment, their vision and hearing started to return. The grinning Valentino could not help but breathe out in disbelief after looking beyond his powerful and transparent shield.

“Keheoook!”

A commotion broke out among the players.

“Wh— What the hell?!”

“This is crazy!!!”

“I— I never expected something like this!!!”

The scene that greeted them when their vision returned was the terrifying charge of not one, but more than a hundred, fifty-meter-high Hanwoos.

“Mooooooo!!!”

“Moooooooooooo!!!”

“Moooooooo!!!”