Chapter 149: Gather Around, Forest of Beasts! (1)

“Do you have a death wish?”

I am an emperor and a supreme god, who reigns over the continents! How dare this insect treat me this way!

Anger surged in me like an active volcano. Meanwhile, in the back of my mind, a lingering voice of reason wondered uncomfortably.

...Uh, why am I the emperor?

At first, Gal Joong-Hyuk was puzzled by my threats, but then grew amused and smirked. He thought I was acting.

“You’ve got some nerve. You’re the first to say something like this to me—

Cough!

”

Soon, I wiped that smirk off his face by delivering a punch to his guts.

“

Haa! Haa!

” Gal Joong-Hyuk clutched his abdomen. He regained his composure in no time and swung his fist at me in return.

“You punk!”

Wooong!

His fist, the size of my head, instantly flew toward my face, ripping the air. His punch was much faster and stronger than S-rank Reinforce-type Hunter Choi Kang-San’s.

Baaam!

A loud bang ensued, as if a truck had crashed into a wall.

“Impossible! H-how? Aren’t you a Creation-type Hunter? How did you manage to stop my fist with just one finger!”

I had blocked his blow with my outstretched index finger. His arm quivered, yet his fist wouldn’t budge. His eyes were bloodshot, showing how much strength he had packed into his punch.

“What the hell did you do?!”

Instead of giving him a reply, I sneered.

Look, only the domineering, strong one could mock their opponents—like me!

“You bastard!” Gal Joong-Hyuk gritted his teeth and swung another fist at me, but my foot was faster. I stopped him before he could hit me.

Crack!

With the sound of bones cracking, his huge body spun around like a squirrel’s wheel, and he fell headfirst to the ground.

Slam!

Now that I was both a Mid-tier Malevolent and Benevolent God, my divine power gave me the physical strength above an S-rank Reinforce-type Hunter, even without equipping a title.

“

Koff! Koff!

”

Gal Joong-Hyuk coughed as he caught his breath, stunned by my actions. Seeing that, my heart suddenly ached.

Riiiip!

The heavyweight man had ruined the floor of my beloved suite room! This tragedy happened because he ate too much when he was younger, resulting in a bigger build than others!

Gal Joong-Hyuk coughed and spat blood, before muttering, “...Come, Soul Mecha Lazenca.”

Flash! Baaam!

With a white beam of light, a booming sound echoed through the air.

Shiver!

I felt an indescribable terror swept over me, and slowly looked up.

Swoosh!

In the chilly, clear sky was an iron-clad giant looking down at me with flickering crimson eyes.

Crack crack!

A black aura rose from the giant, distorting the surrounding space in its wake.

“To force me to put on my soul armor... I’ll admit your strength! But it won’t last for long!”

I groaned in despair.

Another tragedy!

“...The ceiling. Again.”

The word bankruptcy flew in my head like the wings of my Angel Soldiers.

“Let me show you, the full power of the strongest man in South Korea! Now, unsheathe your weapon!”

Instead of answering him, I stretched my hand out.

Clunk! Swoosh!

Demon Lord, which I had kept in my desk drawer, flew into my grip. I read Demon Lord’s memory, then slowly raised my foot into the air.

My feet moved in the air step by step, as if climbing an invisible staircase. This was Void Steps, a technique exclusive to martial artists in Demon Lord’s world.

“H-how did you...?! ...Without any equipment?!” Gal Joong-Hyuk was filled with astonishment.

I laughed menacingly.

Just you wait. You’re dead meat today.

***

Meanwhile, Il-Ho took on the Forty-Third Floor of the Tower of Warriors alone.

[The Forty-Third Floor of Tower of Warriors: Trial of Space and Time.]

[Clear conditions: Save as many Divine Beasts of Eden as possible from the brink of destruction.]

Since the Forty-First Floor, the difficulties of the trials had spiked, even involving god themselves. Nevertheless, it didn’t discourage Il-Ho from braving them alone. However, his determination didn’t go far, as the current trial, the world of Eden...

The bald Il-Ho sat on a boulder with his hand under his chin, reminiscent of Rodin’s statue,

The Thinker.

He agonized over his current situation.

Just then, a plump duck waddled by in front of him, wildly twitching its huge butt. A bamboo fishing pole was slung over its shoulder. Its eyes lit up upon seeing Il-Ho.

“

Quack quack!

Il-Ho, I’m going fishing, do you want to join me?”

“...No, I’m good.”

“

Quack quack!

Come, go with me~”

“I’m fine. I have things I need to do.”

“What a pity. I’ll see you later during the banquet then, Il-Ho.”

“I hope you catch plenty, Waddley.”

“

Quack quack!

Will do! I’ll share them with you!” the duck then went on its way, waddling away.

Il-Ho closed his eyes and went back to contemplating deeply.

Suddenly, a ball of thorns whizzed past Il-Ho at breakneck speed.

Screech!

It stopped a short distance further up, before rolling backward to where Il-Ho sat. It shuddered briefly before unfolding itself, revealing its petite limbs and face, with a pointed nose and bright eyes.

“Il-Ho, what are you doing?”

Il-Ho opened his eyes. “Rollie, it was you! I wondered who it was... I’ve been thinking about the task my great god has given me.”

The hedgehog, Rollie, tilted its head. “What’s a task?”

“It’s something that I, a warrior and a god’s apostle, must fulfill.” Il-Ho glanced around for a few moments, making sure that no one was around, before whispering to Rollie, “Have you perhaps seen anything suspicious or strange here in Eden lately?”

Rollie nodded vigorously. “Yes! I did!”

“

Ooh!

Where is that?” Il-Ho beamed, delighted to finally have found a lead to his mission.

Sss—

However, contrary to his expectations, Rollie pointed at Il-Ho with his short hands. “You! You’re strange!”

With eyes shining, Rollie rolled around Il-Ho, who let out a sigh while clutching his bald, shiny head.

Well, this was a given, since the Divine Beasts of Eden found him fascinating when he first arrived.

“Mbeee. This is my first time seeing such an animal. Did we have someone like this in Eden before?”

“Quack quack! Never, and there are weird feelers on his head!”

“Meow! His body is as hard as rock!”

The Divine Beasts swarmed around him, touching him, full of fascination.

Il-Ho yelled at them, “I am Warrior Il-Ho! Where is the enemy that I have to defeat! I shall let any formidable foes taste the power of my muscles!”

But the response he received was just puzzlement from the Divine Beasts.

“Enemy? But we don't have anyone like that.”

After that day, many Divine Beasts followed around Il-Ho all day. it was as if they were gathered around to see this new animal at the zoo. The stalkerish actions continued for an entire week, when he was eating, showering, and even when he went to the toilet to do his business!

As he recalled the time he first stepped into Eden, Il-Ho shook his head. Nowadays, the stalkers had lessened, as they seemed to have grown bored or tired of him.

“

Haa

, I'm not talking about myself.”

“Aside from you, I haven't seen any anomalies, though.”

“You really haven't seen anything strange? Or maybe, any signs of destruction...”

Rollie looked at Il-Ho with another question apparent on its face. “What's destruction?”

“The world turns into shambles and disappears.”

Rollie’s eyes grew wide in shock, and its body stiffened like a statue.

“I-I’m not saying that this world is being destroyed, so don’t be scared!”

Light returned to Rollie's eyes, and it clapped its tiny hands to its chest. “You surprised me! I thought I wouldn't be able to roll anymore!”

“I-I'm sorry.”

“Il-Ho, if you're bored, why don't you roll with me?”

“I'm good. I'm not in the mood for that.”

“Then I'll do a few laps around the island first! See you at the banquet later!” Rollie rolled off again and left at tremendous speed.

Il-Ho watched Rollie roll away in the distance and let out another sigh. He was about to fall into deep thoughts again when...

“Il-Ho~”

“Warrior Il-Ho~!”

There was Tohsoon, the rabbit who’d gone to harvest carrots from the farm; Masoori, the eagle who invited Il-Ho for a ride together in the skies; and even Groundie, the mole who invited Il-Ho to the opening ceremony of the underground tunnel.

None of these Divine Beasts would give him a moment to himself.

“

Haaa..

.”

Despite being a small island barely 20 km wide, Eden was a heavenly place abundant with nature. Its dense forest, full of vitality, was abundant with fruits. Its soil was so fertile, crops could be harvested within a day. According to Il-Ho’s investigation, Eden housed a total of 665 Divine Beasts.

Il-Ho even tried to look for signs of destruction amongst its habitants but...

Growl—

He heard a low, bleak cry of a beast. Il-Ho turned around in a hurry and saw a huge white sheep with cotton-like wool. It whimpered as it struggled along with a huge basket. Following behind her was a wolf the size of a house, salivating as it stared at her intently. The wolf swung its sharp claws at her.

It was clearly a flashpoint, but Il-Ho didn’t care.

Pounce!

“Mongsil,

peekaboo!

”

“

Kyaaa! Gosh!

You surprised me, Wolfie!”

A sheep and wolf was certainly an unusual pair, but they were in fact a couple, and the most cringy one at that!

“You seem to struggle carrying this basket. What's in it?

Sniff sniff

— Oh? Isn't this the cabbage from your parent’s farm?”

“I'm going to use it at the banquet. Do you want to have a taste?”

“

Grr!

Sure!”

“Here,

aaah~

”

“

Aaah~

”

The wolf took a bite of the cabbage that the sheep fed him.

Crunch crunch!

Unlike his appearance, the wolf was a vegan like the rest of the beasts living on this island.

Wolfie raised a thumb. “Your cabbage is always the best!”

“

Hoho,

really...?

Eep!

Stop licking me, Wolfie!”

“I love you, Mongsil~!”

Watching the couple walk away in the distance while doing public displays of affection, Il-Ho felt a part in his heart grow numb. He missed Anty more than ever that day.

Then, he wondered to himself. Eden was an island full of peace and blessings, where carnivores and herbivores lived in harmony. The word destruction didn’t suit that heavenly place in the slightest.

“

Geez!

I should stop overthinking it! I should just train my muscles! God Yu Il-Shin said it before, good muscles make it easier for the mind!”

Dismissing all thoughts, Il-Ho began doing raises with the dumbbell sword slung over his back.

“Muscles! Muscles!”

As a warm-up, he completed about 3,000 lifts of the 100-ton dumbbell sword. Now, it was time for muscle squats!

Ding ding ding!

Just then, a clear, silvery sound of bell ringing came from the center of the island.

“It's the banquet!”

“Already? Let's hurry!”

The Divine Beasts all across the island stopped everything they were doing and rushed to the source of the sound.

“Il-Ho, what are you doing there! Come over quickly!”

Even Rollie came to rush to Il-Ho. He must’ve finished rolling a lap around the island.

“Alright...” Il-Ho stopped and followed after Rollie, muttering to himself, “I haven't even started proper muscle training yet.”