Chapter 1012

Chapter 1012

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Minhyuk reduced his sleep to quickly finish all the work he needed in Beyond the Heavens Empire.

‘I can’t even eat delicious food because I’m swamped with work.’

Minhyuk thought finishing his work as quickly as possible before eating something delicious would be better. Minhyuk stretched his body, sighing as he logged out of the game.

Minhyuk met Jinhwan in the living room when he went out after logging out. He greeted, “Hello, Doc Jinhwan.”

Jinhwan returned his greeting but with a bitter smile. “Would you like to have a cup of tea with me?”

Sensing the unusual atmosphere, Minhyuk sat face-to-face with his doctor.

Then Jinhwan said, “The chairman told me not to tell you, but I think you should know. The chairman passed out recently because of a cold. It was caused by fatigue and exhaustion.”

“A cold caused by fatigue?” Minhyuk asked, his heart sinking by the moment.

Lee Jinhwan sipped his tea and continued, “We were worried that he had contracted some kind of special disease since he was already getting on with age. But fortunately, the tests showed that he was very healthy. However, the fact that he fainted meant that it was not simply because he had a cold caused by fatigue.”

It was rare for someone to faint just because of a simple cold caused by fatigue and exhaustion.

“The overworking from the past to the present had caught up with him. I have told the chairman to take a rest. But it’s impossible to make him listen to me.” Jinhwan smiled bitterly. “He has dedicated his entire life to Ilhwa Group and you. The chairman’s average sleeping time is only four hours.”

“...”

Minhyuk was rendered speechless. It was said that a person had to have an average of eight hours of sleep. Of course, as someone who slept for a little less than six hours per day, Minhyuk could also be considered sleeping less than ordinary people. However, it was still astounding that his father remained healthy despite only sleeping for an average of four hours.

“I didn’t know that.”

Minhyuk could not help but reflect on himself. However, Jinhwan did not mean to scold him. He asked Minhyuk to have tea with him because he wanted to say something to the boy.

“Minhyuk, do you have any intentions of leading the Ilhwa Group?

Then, Jinhwan told Minhyuk what Kang Minhoo had told him before. He told Minhyuk about how his father felt guilty about being too greedy, that he felt he would take away his son’s happiness and all the concerns of being a chairman.

Jinhwan wanted to talk with Chairman Kang Minhoo after obtaining Minhyuk’s response. He did not intend to curse or criticize Minhyuk even if he chose not to inherit his father’s position and business.

‘With his eating addiction, it is already tough for him to play Athenae like this.’

It did not make sense to ask someone already carrying a heavy weight to carry another. Jinhwan even planned to recommend recruiting a professional manager to help with the company’s operations if ever Minhyuk said,

‘I don’t like it.’

Finally, Jinhwan heard Minhyuk’s response.

‘I see. Neither I nor the chairman know that he thought that way.’

Jinhwan looked very satisfied with Minhyuk’s answer. Then, he saw Minhyuk stand up. He asked, “Weren’t you just about to go to sleep?”

“I was going to. But I think it’s better to give my father a present. So, I’m going back to get it for him.”

The information that Abel had given him concerned the Dragon Emperor ruling the Dragon Land. Minhyuk immediately ran back and connected to Athenae to meet with this Dragon Emperor.

***

After hunting the Great King Sky Bulls, Black Dragon excitedly returned to Dragon Land. However, he was rendered speechless by the terrible devastation that greeted him.

Even if this was nothing but a game, the dragons could still be considered living creatures in this world. Besides, these beings were very kind and viewed humans favorably. But the beings that they treated kindly, the humans, held whips in their hands and tortured them so that they could get something from them.

Everything was because of human greed. Black Dragon made a vow when he saw the Qingdao Kingdom’s king giggling while his dear friend, the Dragon Emperor, screamed in pain.

‘You bastards...’

Even if he had to put his name as the chairman of Ilhwa Group on the line, he would punish these bastards. As if he wanted to prove his conviction, he said, “I won’t let a single one of you live. You f*cking bastards.”

“...”

“...”

The troops of the Qingdao Kingdom were shocked. They seemed to have witnessed the true wrath of a beast standing at the top of the food chain. The troops of the Qingdao Kingdom felt highly overwhelmed by Black Dragon’s momentum and murderous glare. This was especially true for those who knew him as Chairman Kang Minhoo. After all, they knew he was very kind from the news they had seen on the TV.

“Black Dragon...?”

Xu Jiaqi was the one who was most surprised by this. She knew the man's true worth, hidden behind such a ridiculous character name.

‘At the end of the day, this is nothing but a game. The strong will be the victor.’

Would the Beyond the Heavens Empire retaliate and confront them because of Black Dragon? That was a possibility. However, if they truly did that, many Beyond the Heavens Empire players might be disappointed in Minhyuk. After all, who would want an emperor who would order his army to move for such a simple matter, no?

Black Dragon might be the father of Emperor Minhyuk. However, he would just be forced to log out. Yet they would attack and destroy the Qingdao Kingdom just to vent this anger, a personal one at that, too?

‘If that truly happens, then the 1.3 billion Chinese will lash out and criticize the Beyond the Heavens Empire.’

In the past decade, China achieved faster economic growth than other countries. The main reason for this was their population. And if something like that happened, the entire country would turn into a mad dog and bite the Beyond the Heavens Empire like crazy.

So, Xu Jiaqi concluded that Black Dragon could not move the Beyond the Heavens Empire.

“Are you filming a video?”

“Of course.”

In the end, the one that attacked the Qingdao Kingdom first was Black Dragon.

“It’s just a single high ranker with the backing of an emerging emperor, nothing more and nothing less,” Xu Jiaqi said, a nonchalant expression on her face as she looked at Black Dragon. However, Xu Jiaqi would be forced to correct that statement.

The four dragons that soared to the skies before immediately surrounded Black Dragon. Then, he ran forward with his spear held tightly in his hands.

Black Dragon swept dozens of the Qingdao Kingdom’s troops away while the dragons following right behind him trampled on them with their massive bodies.

“...Were those dragons always that strong?”

“Black Dragon’s amazing too. I heard that his level is over Level 600, too.”

The Qingdao Kingdom might not know this, but when Black Dragon achieved Level 600, the four legendary dragons experienced a 30% increase in their powers. Not only that, his stats and abilities had also witnessed an explosive rise. He was also able to obtain several new skills.

‘So, he came to save us.’

Black Dragon had promised the Dragon Emperor that he would protect the dragons of this land.

“Murderous Spear.”

Slash–!

The figure of a dragon shot out of Black Dragon’s spear and devoured everything within a 700-meter radius, leaving the path in front of him clear of enemies.

Black Dragon, who ran along this clear path, was bombarded with countless arrows and magical attacks. But it was fine because he had the four legendary dragons beside him. Under the protection of the four dragons, Black Dragon swept the soldiers away non-stop.

“...He can deal with three players at Level 600 by himself.”

This was very surprising. The skills and powers that Black Dragon had were enough for anyone to covet him. However, Xu Jiaqi was not afraid. This was because the rankers of the Qingdao Kingdom had yet to make a move.

But then, Black Dragon released a power he had never shown anyone before once he reached a particular range.

“Ascending the Heavens.”

At that moment, Black Dragon’s body floated around thirty centimeters. As for the four legendary dragons? They immediately gathered around him. Then, black energy exploded from within his body while the four dragons released energy with color corresponding to their attributes. Then,

five

dragons began to ascend to the heavens.

Ascending the Heavens was a one-shot kill skill that Black Dragon possessed. It was a skill with a penalty of -1 in all stats.

Boom–!

The five dragons ascending to the heavens slaughtered all the soldiers blocking their path in just a blink of an eye. The number of troops that they had killed in one go? It reached 20,000... 30,000... until it reached a total of 50,000.

Xu Jiaqi, Sima Qian, and the rankers of the Qingdao Kingdom all stared wide-eyed at the scene. In just a blink, around 50,000 of their troops melted and disappeared into nothingness. It was truly as if dragons were ascending to the heavens.

When Sima Qian saw them fly straight toward the walls, he ordered, “Protect Her Majesty!!!”

What Black Dragon was aiming for was Xu Jiaqi’s neck. This was the only way for him to deal with them alone.

The elites of the Qingdao Kingdom immediately charged toward the ascending Black Dragon and the four legendary dragons. However, the power of Ascending the Heavens granted Black Dragon and the four legendary dragons a 92% damage reduction. Not only that, it also had the power to deal tremendous damage to anyone who dared to brush against them.

“Ugh!”

“Keuhaaaaaaack!”

“Aaaaaaack!”

The ones who attacked Black Dragon and the four legendary dragons were sent flying away. Some were even left clutching their hands or legs as they rolled around on the ground.

Black Dragon looked at the Dragon Emperor as he approached the walls. He planned to release the Dragon Emperor the moment he killed Xu Jiaqi. The odds would favor him if he could release the Dragon Emperor.

Bang–!

Accompanied by a loud bang, Black Dragon’s black spear shot toward Xu Jiaqi’s heart.

Xu Jiaqi was extremely flustered. She thought,

‘If this is a 1:1 fight, then I will lose.’

The Master Reflector class could be considered an overpowered class. However, with the combination of Black Dragon’s battle prowess and the four legendary dragons, he could exert tremendous power that not even she could fight alone.

But Xu Jiaqi was not alone. Because of that, she could use a wide range of skills freely and without any hesitation. She immediately used one of the skills that she had absorbed and saved.

“Disarm.”

Flash–!

The energy wrapped around Black Dragon and the four legendary dragons disappeared simultaneously. Black Dragon, who crashed on the ground, looked highly flustered.

Bang–!

Of course, the rankers did not waste this opportunity. They immediately bombarded him with attacks. They forced Black Dragon down on the ground before overpowering the four dragons and subduing them.

“Kihyeeeeeeck!”

“Graaaaa!”

“Kyaaahhaaaaaack!”

“Restrain the four dragons,” Xu Jiaqi said as she stretched her hand out toward the dragons.

[Space Restriction]

[Your dragons cannot be returned to the summoning room temporarily.]

Xu Jiaqi smiled viciously and said, “With this, we also have the four legendary dragons in our hands. This is a cause for celebration. Hoho.”

The greed in Xu Jiaqi’s eyes grew deeper.

“Kihyeeeeeeck!”

“Graaaaaa!”

Even though the four dragons were bound tightly with rope, they struggled like crazy to get to where Black Dragon was. Because of that, the soldiers began to beat them up. However, the four legendary dragons ignored them. All they wanted was to remain by Black Dragon’s side.

Bang–!

The moment Black Dragon tried to stand up, the rankers immediately beat him up and forced him back to the ground.

“My dear friend...” the Dragon Emperor cried, tears dripping down his chin again.

Black Dragon saw the four dragons, who had been with him for a long time, crying loudly as if begging for their father as they got dragged somewhere. It seemed like what they were trying to do here was to sever the link between him and the dragons and torture them so they could collect their tears.

“NO!!!” Black Dragon screamed. He then turned to look at the Dragon Emperor, his pupils trembling fiercely after witnessing his four dragons get dragged away.

Xu Jiaqi clicked her tongue and said, “You should be busy working as a chairman. Why do you even have to play games like this? Your greed knows no bounds.”

For the first time in his life, Black Dragon felt very helpless. Listening to Xu Jiaqi’s words, he finally felt like the burden that he was carrying was far too heavy.

‘I have walked this path alone.’

He had been fighting alone for the longest time to protect and support the Ilhwa Group. When their stock prices fell, he personally met with the shareholders about to sell their stocks and even obtained revised agreements from them.

Whenever they faced a crisis, he stood up as the chairman, acted courageously, and led them by example. In his spare time, he cared for his son, Minhyuk, who was suffering from eating addiction, and studied everything about the disease.

He was responsible for tens of millions of employees and had a son to raise and lead. He also had the mission to keep and protect Ilhwa Group's name as the best company in the world. And his job was to protect the dragons and Dragon Land.

These were the burdens that Black Dragon carried. However, it became an overwhelming weight that threatened to crush him.

“So, the chairman of Ilhwa Group is such a shabby person. Ama...”

But Xu Jiaqi could not finish her sentence.

Black Dragon, who heard the abrupt end in her sentence, slowly looked up. That was when he saw a tall young man with broad shoulders in front of him.

When this young man was born, he was small, barely fitting in Black Dragon’s hands. Then, he grew older. He became old enough to learn how to walk and ride his first four-wheeled bike.

When this young man became a student and entered kindergarten, Black Dragon, who looked at his son wearing his school uniform for the first time, laughed and said,

‘My son has grown up now, hoho!’

The young man grew up just like that. Now, his back has grown wider. He has also grown more dependable.

Many fathers used to say that they would often feel shabby when they saw how their bodies slowly started to wither away while their children grew bigger and bigger. This was because they felt like they could no longer protect their child.

But at this moment, Black Dragon felt differently from them.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” the young man said after grabbing Xu Jiaqi by the neck and slamming her down on the ground. Despite the millions of soldiers standing before him, he stood tall and unwavering as he said, “Let’s do this together.”

Only one person could share the burden that Black Dragon carried. This person, whose back had grown wide enough to shield him from harm, was the only one who could stand by his side. And this person was none other than his son.