Leveling Up Through Eating

Chapter 1140

The Absolute Gods were all left shocked.

The Battle God’s Statue was not only a symbol but also an existence that helped the current generation’s Battle God whenever he was left at a difficult crossroads or had to make a big decision.

Aside from that, it also gave missions and rewards that the previous Battle Gods had gathered and left behind. Not all of the Battle Gods could receive something from the statue.

Right now, the statue put the golden crown of the most extraordinary Battle God in history on Minhyuk’s head. And it did not stop there; it even knelt on one knee and showed courtesy toward him.

Obren, who had been watching everything unfold silently, opened his mouth.

“Didn’t I say that everything is correct?” Obren said as he looked at the Battle God.

Obren had remained largely silent even after the other Absolute Gods said that Minhyuk had to break a more difficult trial to obtain the Battle God’s power and that only someone who had received that power was worthy of leading them.

The reason for that was finally revealed.

“No way. Are you saying that Minhyuk has truly gone to Pandemonium before?”

Only at this moment did they realize why Obren had remained silent. By keeping his mouth shut and accepting everything they said, he opened a better path for Minhyuk.

What would have happened if Obren said that Minhyuk had already visited Pandemonium? Then, the other Absolute Gods would have demanded that they take back the mission and change it immediately to increase the difficulty level even further.

While everyone was shocked by Obren’s shrewdness, the Battle God’s Statue, kneeling on one knee, used the voice of all of the Battle Gods.

[May my name, the greatest of all, be with you.]

[May you, with your tens of millions of soldiers, run the same path I took.]

[May you stand at the vanguard of your army and lead them in front of any fear and terror.]

[You…]

The kneeling Battle God’s Statue looked up at Minhyuk and asked…

[Can you do it?]

[There will be times when your enemies will try to take away the greatest name from you.]

[There will be times when you’ll lose tens of millions of your soldiers and leave you in despair.]

[There will be times when fear and terror will get the best of you and leave you frustrated.]

[Even so, will you still be able to hold on tightly to the greatest name?]

Everyone held their breath. Everything was so silent that someone gulping dryly could be heard clearly in everyone’s ears.

Minhyuk, who was nothing more than a child in the form of the next-generation Battle God, responded to the statue's words.

“I will do my best to be worthy of the greatest name.

“I will run alongside my tens of millions of soldiers and become the monarch leading them when they tire.

“I will stand up and step forward in the face of frustration, fear, and terror.”

[I have seen it through the mission I gave you…]

Minhyuk smiled faintly at the words of the faceless Battle God’s Statue.

[...the figure of the greatest Battle God.]

[This crown will now be yours.]

Ring!

[You have successfully unsealed the Battle God’s second power.]

[The reward for unsealing the Battle God’s second power is the Battle God’s Armor.]

Ring!

[The reward for unsealing the Battle God’s second power will be changed.]

[You have acquired the Most Radiant Crown.]

It was not yet over. The statue asked.

[Is there something that you wish for?]

“...!”

“...!”

All of the Absolute Gods were left in shock. They hurriedly winked and gestured at the Battle God. But the Battle God could not say anything. The words of the statue were the words of the souls of his ancestors. How dare he refute their words? 𐍂ÅΝȮꞖЁᶊ

As mentioned before, the statue, which housed the souls of all of the Battle Gods, was the being that gave out missions to other Battle Gods. This was because the statue knew everything related to every Battle God, including what they possessed.

Besides, the Battle God and the other Absolute Gods had already set what they wanted in the statue. It was set so that Minhyuk could do another mission once he finished it in Pandemonium.

Right now, the statue was trying to follow their plan and give Minhyuk a mission to earn him the reward he wanted.

A glow appeared in Minhyuk’s eyes. This was because there was a reason why he had come to carry out the quest to unseal the power of the Battle God, which he had been putting off for quite a while now.

“I want to have a territory.”

[A territory?]

“I am the Battle God, but I am also the emperor of my empire.”

[...?!]

Despite having no face, it was apparent that the Battle God’s Statue was in shock.

[Does that mean that you’re not a pure God?]

“That’s right.”

The Battle God’s Statue seemed left in an even greater shock. Even so, he did not disregard Minhyuk.

[That makes you even more remarkable.]

A human has walked the path of the Battle God.

“I wish for a vast territory. I want a territory that is not only fertile but also good—a place where anyone can live in peace.”

The Battle God was surprised.

‘There is indeed a territory like that…’

Based on the information that the Battle God had in his hands, there was indeed a territory that fit that bill. Nevertheless, even the current Battle God did not dare to take it.

And just like that, the Battle God’s Statue accepted the request.

[I know about a territory like that.]

[Coincidentally, it is in Pandemonium. You will still have to visit Pandemonium in the end.]

“Pandemonium?” Minhyuk asked, his face visibly flustered.

He never wished to step foot in Pandemonium ever again. Back then, he felt that it was fine to enter Pandemonium. This was because Rundalk and the other Pillar Candidates were with him. But now…? It was a place that he was terrified to enter alone.

[I believe the place you have entered is considered taboo. Strictly speaking, it’s a place where you should not step foot.]

[And you should have seen it too. There’s another world in that vast universe.]

That was the truth. Minhyuk had seen a new world in the vast universe-like space in Pandemonium.

[Go to that world and meet ‘Gardin.’ You can get a hint about what you want from him.]

Ring!

At that moment, a quest window popped out in front of Minhyuk.

[Class Quest: Meet Gardin.]

Rank: Class

Requirements: The one who unsealed the Battle God’s second power.

Rewards: ???

Penalty for Failure: Unable to proceed with the quest.

Description: You have obtained an extraordinary hint about a territory from the Battle God’s Statue. Meet Gardin, who is living inside Pandemonium.

Meeting Gardin was just the beginning of the quest. As the Absolute Gods were the ones who first suggested this level of difficulty, none of them spoke up. Besides, they knew that the Battle God and the Battle God’s Statue would have given a reasonable level of difficulty for that reward.

The Battle God’s Statue stood up and said…

[My descendant who will walk the greatest path.]

[Keep this in mind.]

[Pandemonium is a land with no limits and restrictions.]

“No limits and restrictions?”

Minhyuk was very curious about what these words meant. Alas, the statue had already climbed the stairs and solidified into the position that it had before he came here.

“Sir Statue?”

Despite Minhyuk’s question, the Battle God’s Statue remained still. It no longer answered him.

At the same time, the Battle Gods breathed in sharply. All of them stared at Minhyuk with gazes filled with shock and disbelief.

At that moment, the Battle God asked, “How many Supremes did you kill in Pandemonium?”

The Battle God was the one who killed the Supreme Monarch with Minhyuk. That was why he knew how terrifying the existence of the Supremes was. Of course, the Battle God was unaware that Minhyuk had entered Pandemonium with Rundalk and the other Pillar Candidates. And in fact, Minhyuk believed that he did not need to mention this fact.

“I think I’ve killed at least tens of thousands of them?”

Only then did the Absolute Gods understand why the Battle God’s Statue reacted that way. It was not just hundreds, it was tens of thousands. It was a feat that was beyond phenomenal.

Meanwhile, Minhyuk checked the Most Radiant Crown that he had obtained.

(Most Radiant Crown)

Rank: Absolute God

Requirements: The one who received the Battle God’s Statue recognition.

Durability: 60,000 / 60,000

Defensive Power: 304

Special Abilities:

•All of your stats will increase by 34%.

•Your CHA will increase by 1.3x.

•Active Skill: Absolute Monarch

•Can be worn over other helmets. Additional overlapping is possible.

•When equipped, skill performance of all items worn on the head, including helmets and hats, will increase by 20%~30%.

Description: This crown was worn by the greatest Battle God in history.

If someone were to look at the special abilities of the item itself, they would wonder if this was truly the crown worn by the greatest Battle God in existence. However, if they thought about it, they would realize that no emperor had ever worn a crown in battle.

So, what was the reason why the Most Radiant Crown was considered a cheat-like item?

‘It can be worn and overlapped with other items…?’

Minhyuk already possessed the Forgotten Monarch’s Crown, but this crown could be worn over another helmet. That meant he could wear the Most Radiant Crown over the Forgotten Monarch’s Crown.

What was more shocking was that the skill performance of all items worn on the head would improve by 20%~30%. Take the Absolute Defense skill attached to the Forgotten Monarch’s Crown. With the Most Radiant Crown, its eight seconds would become ten seconds.

When Minhyuk checked the active skill Absolute Monarch, he found that it was also extraordinary.

‘Regardless of the opponent's strength, will they always kneel in front of me?’

That was what it meant. Even if the opponents were leagues beyond Minhyuk's power, they would still be forced to kneel before him.

‘For two seconds, without any exceptions.’

And if they were on par or weaker than Minhyuk, the duration of their kneeling would extend.

God of Cooking Arlene approached Minhyuk.

“Forgive me for saying that you have become too arrogant.” She looked at the other Absolute Gods. “We have judged you as we pleased and made assumptions about you. Perhaps the arrogant one is us.”

Nevertheless, Minhyuk shook his head. “It’s fine. I’m sure it’s because you’re thinking about me. More importantly, I have to go back to Pandemonium…”

Pandemonium was not a hunting ground conveniently placed in front of his house. It was not a place that Minhyuk could go to just because he wanted to.

The Battle God handed Minhyuk a scroll. “This is a Pandemonium Transfer Scroll that we have kept for future use.”

After accepting the scroll, Minhyuk bowed to everyone and said, “I’ll be back.”

With a flash of light, Minhyuk disappeared. And the Absolute Gods? They stared at where Minhyuk had disappeared from for a very long time. They were reflecting on themselves because of Minhyuk.

***

Gardin was a writer who lived in Pandemonium. However, his stories were boring, and he did not gain much from them. This meant that he often went hungry. Thankfully, he could give tasks to those who had fallen into Pandemonium and buy what they had gained so he could fill his stomach.

Gardin looked bitterly at Country of Chaos, the new work that he was writing. He thought, ‘Will the Country of Chaos end up as a tragedy?’

The Country of Chaos was written based on a true story. He had been writing it for so long. However, there were many parts that he kept on writing and rewriting repeatedly. This was probably because he wanted the ending to be happy.

Rumble–

Gardin’s stomach rumbled as he erased yet another part of the story.

‘Inspiration never comes when your stomach is rumbling. Ha… This hunger will also pass.’

Just as the thought passed his head, a tantalizing and mouth-watering smell wafted over from somewhere.

‘What the hell is that? Where’s that smell coming from?’

The smell distracted Gardin immensely, making his already rumbling stomach rumble even more. Drunk on the smell, Gardin followed it and went outside. That was when he saw a young man crouching while flipping something. It was none other than a kimchi pancake.

Gardin should have been angry at the man when he saw him fry kimchi pancakes with squid in front of his cabin, but he did not.

‘Why is this man making pancakes in front of someone else’s house?!’

First, it was a very ridiculous situation. Gardin was so skeptical that he was rendered speechless.

‘What kind of situation is he in for him to cook and eat pancakes on the street…?’

Second, Gardin was so hungry that he could only watch the man in a daze. The kimchi pancake, already golden brown on one side, cracked as its other side cooked.

Gardin looked up at the sky. The weather was overcast, and it seemed like it would rain any minute.

“Teehee. As expected, kimchi pancakes taste best on a rainy day,” the man remarked.

“...?”

At this moment, Gardin realized, ‘No way. Are you telling me he’s making pancakes because he feels it’s about to rain? What the hell is up with this guy?’

The man flipped the kimchi pancake just as the oil was about to sizzle loudly. It was perfect timing.

Shwaaaa.

At that moment…

“Kghhk! I flipped it well…”

“That’s amazing!”

“...?”

“...?”

Gardin, who had shouted impulsively, immediately shut his mouth as he made brief eye contact with the man. At the same time, the man moved stealthily and hid the kimchi pancakes behind him.