Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 63

“Wow… We survived…” Ha-Na said as she fell to the ground.

“Ahh… Thank God…” Seong Kwang knelt down and prayed.

“Whew, it’s been a while since I last sweat this much.”

Ji-Byeok wiped the sweat from her forehead and laid Ji-Cheok down. Ji-Cheok couldn’t count how many times he had been saved thanks to her well-developed biceps and deltoid muscles. This was why all the top-tier tanks were always in the gym. If tank Hunters didn’t have enough mana, the only thing they could trust was their passive skills, which were directly related to their muscle power.

“Hyung, are you crazy? Wait… I guess I have to thank you for saving our lives,” Mu-Cheok said.

“I didn’t know it would be this powerful,” Ji-Cheok replied.

Among the crafting blueprints Ji-Cheok had obtained together with his alchemy and arcane engineering skills, there were also a few bomb blueprints. This particular blueprint was one of the things Ji-Cheok had received when he made the Mono Bike, and it allowed him to turn the motorcycle into a bomb. The magic circle that Ji-Cheok had drawn earlier was precisely for this purpose. However, because it was still just a bomb with a somewhat stronger explosion, Ji-Cheok had decided to go all-out and use Mu-Cheok’s skill on the bomb as well.

“Ha… It’s been a long time since I’ve felt a chill down my back like this. Ji-Cheok, you did a great job.”

“It wasn’t just me. Mu-Cheok played an important role. I didn’t know his Power of Words would be this strong.”

The Power of Words was one of Mu-Cheok’s skills to write any words and force the meaning of the words into reality. With his skill, Ji-Cheok thought that he could forcefully fuse various powers into the bomb.

“But how did you know that fusing mana, qi, and divine power would make such an explosion?”

“The repelling force that appears between divine power and mana is pretty well-known, isn’t it?”

The fusion of divine power and mana, and the inevitable explosion that occurred when they were fused together, were famous in the Hunters’ world. There were very few people in the world who could actually make this happen, but it was a well-known formula, nevertheless, thanks to GodTube.

“I was inspired by the videos on GodTube. Besides, I’ve always wondered what would happen if I mixed mana and qi. Fortunately, the result was successful. By the way, it seems like the temple was not destroyed. Probably because it’s a temple-type dungeon,” Ji-Cheok said.

The facilities inside a temple-type dungeon would never be destroyed, except under very special conditions. Perhaps the God who owned the temple was interfering?

Ji-Cheok’s team members started exclaiming all at once.

“Wow! I’ve leveled up!”

.

“Me too! It went up by 5!”

Everyone looked shocked and surprised. Ji-Cheok was envious that they had gained 5 levels. However, just as he was feeling down, messages started to pop up.

[The Gods have shown interest in you!]

[You have received 5,000 Likes!]

[You have received 5,000 Likes!]

[You have received 10,000 Likes!]

[You have received 8,000 Likes!]

[You have received 50,000 Likes!]

[You have received 500…]

The messages continued to pop up. The number of messages reached well into the dozens.

‘So many Gods are watching me!’

[You have earned the title [One who is watched over by one hundred Gods]!]

[One who is watched over by one hundred Gods]

[Class: Legendary

A title given to mortals watched by one hundred Gods. Receiving the patronage of the Gods becomes easier, and the number of Likes received increases by 10%.]

‘What? What is happening? The number of Likes I get is going to be increased by 10%? Is this for real?’

Just as Ji-Cheok was wondering what was going on, a new message popped up.

[You have received 100,000 Likes from [He_who_denies_death].]

[[He_who_denies_death] used the power of the temple!]

It was an unusual message.

‘Did the God of this temple send the most Likes to me? And he used the power of the temple? What does that mean?’

[[He_who_denies_death] has invited you over.]

‘An invite? Wait! What does that—’

Just as Ji-Cheok was going to respond to that message, a light exploded in front of Ji-Cheok. His vision became white, and soon everything around him turned gray.

“What…What the hell is this?”

The world stood still around Ji-Cheok. When he looked down at his hands, only his hands had colors. He had no idea what was going on.

[Mortal…I am here…]

A spiritual sound seemed to resonate throughout Ji-Cheok’s body—not just his eardrums, but also his veins, blood, bones, and flesh. The sound made Ji-Cheok’s innards vibrate in a way that was both bizarre and wonderful.

When he turned his head toward the source of the sound, he saw something painted in dark purple in the gray world. It didn’t seem like a human—rather, it didn’t look like any living creature. It was a metallic obelisk. It was about three meters tall and soared to the top of the ceiling. The moment Ji-Cheok saw it, his instincts whispered.

‘That is a God.’

[He_who_denies_death] was before Ji-Cheok. His body tensed up, but he felt no fear. He knew that the Gods could not harm humans directly. He knew that was the [rule] of this world, and that it was [absolute].

[Mortal…Seeing your admirable performance…I have come to you with a proposal…]

‘Huh, a proposal? Maybe I should greet him first.’

“It is an honor to meet you, great God.”

The obelisk made a humming sound. Instinctively, Ji-Cheok could feel that the God’s mood had improved.

“I, a lowly human being, cannot help but wonder about the proposal you have for me.”

[Accept my power… and you, too, will refuse death…]

[[He_who_denies_death] wants to appoint you as his [Apostle].]

[Would you like to accept the offer? Or will you reject it?]

‘Holy shit, an Apostle?’

Ji-Cheok was speechless. Apostles were beings who directly wielded the power of their chosen God. These people had a completely different level of power from ordinary Awakened. Considering that most of the top-tier Hunters were a God’s apostles, it was clear that this power was no joke.

However, the problem was that Ji-Cheok didn’t know what kind of God [He_who_denies_death] was. In fact, he was a God that Ji-Cheok had never even heard of. There was one more problem. Ji-Cheok’s current job was as a GodTube Influencer, and the God ??? had given the job to him. He wondered if he was already an apostle of the God ???.

‘Can I be a dual Apostle? Is that a thing?’

[Warning. If you choose to accept, the GodTube Influencer job will be terminated and replaced with a new job.]

[Warning. If you choose to accept, the Likes Shop will be terminated and replaced with the new Job Store.]

As soon as Ji-Cheok pondered on this problem, the answer came right out. Ji-Cheok had expected this to happen, in a way. Then, another message popped up.

[Displaying the information about the new job.]

[The Apostle of He_who_denies_death]

[Class: Legendary

An apostle of the high-tier god, He_who_denies_death.

You have the ability to use all of the God’s powers and spread his faith.

Special ability: Sacred Immortal

Special ability: Lord of Immortals

Special ability: Divine Immortal

*Sacred Immortal: You will not die until the God forsakes you, and when you revive, you will return to your perfect form.

*Lord of Immortals: You will rule over the undead and the kin of the God.

*Divine Immortal: You will be able to use all of the God’s power.]

‘This is insane.’

Just by skimming through the information, Ji-Cheok knew that this was an absurd job. The fact that Ji-Cheok could not die, and the ability to resurrect without dying until the God had forsaken him, were both incredible.

‘How crazy is this? You cannot die?! I’ve never heard of such an ability! And this skill…Lord of Immortals…’

This seemed to be the ability to control the undead, but with no restrictions. This meant that, theoretically, Ji-Cheok could create an infinite army of the undead. It was like a necromancer on steroids. Also, the [Divine Immortal] looked like it granted Ji-Cheok the power of a God that seemed to be omnipotent. Looking at the skills for this job, it seemed incredibly imbalanced.

‘Cheok-Liang was unsummoned because of that explosion, so I can’t get any advice from him.’

Ji-Cheok realized he had to make this decision all by himself. He had to think of the pros and cons.

‘First of all, my current job is still great. If there is one thing that I felt from today’s experience, is that my job as a GodTube influencer has tremendous potential. But still, becoming immortal sounds very promising…’

“You should decline the proposal.”

‘You are right… That seems like a good—’

“WHAT?!”

Ji-Cheok turned his head. There, in a gray world, Jung Ji-Han was walking toward Ji-Cheok, full of colors.

* * *

[Oh…I am amused…It is indeed the first moment of entertainment I have had in thousands of years…There is not one… but two surprises…]

The God, [He_who_denies_death], looked surprised and seemed to be enjoying himself.

Ji-Cheok had thought the God would be startled by this unexpected situation, but the God was actually enjoying it. Ji-Cheok wondered if the God was so bored that even situations like this brought them joy. In any case, Ji-Cheok didn’t like the fact that he was being played like a toy. He focused his attention on Ji-Han.

“Director Jung Ji Han, I didn’t know you could do this using your time-stopping skill.”

“I guess I was way too obvious about my skill, huh.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“I didn’t intend to fully disclose it yet… But this is an unprecedented situation, so I had to make an exception. Also, my time-stopping abilities are rather special compared to ordinary chrono-type Hunters.”

Chrono-type Hunters had the skills to control time. Ji-Cheok knew that it was known to be very rare and powerful. And Ji-Han’s skills were special even compared to them? Ji-Cheok wondered about Ji-Han’s true power.

‘So is he doing that whole ‘the youngest son of a chaebol family is hiding his secret, yet powerful power’ cliché?’

[Mortals… This, too, is your fate… Become my Apostle…]

Before the doubts about Ji-Han were sorted out, the God had already grasped Ji-Cheok in his mighty hand.

[[He_who_denies_death] is forcibly granting you his power.]

Ji-Cheok could feel the alien force engulfing him and seeping through his skin.

‘I have to resist…’

“I am going to respectfully decline your offer, so I think it’s time to go back in time,” Ji-Han said.

Ping!

Tick-tock. Tick-tock.

Ji-Cheok heard a clock ticking in his ears. The force that was rushing into his body returned to where it had been in the first place. Interestingly, it didn’t feel like the force was pushed out of Ji-Cheok’s body, but rather the force flowing backward to its source, like a videotape being rewinded. Ji-Cheok had no idea how he could feel this in the first place, but that was not the important part.

“How could you do that against a God’s power?” Ji-Cheok asked.

“That is not important, Ji-Cheok. You need to be prepared now,” Ji-Han replied.

“What?”

[Interesting… How dare you to defy me in my own temple…]

The God’s voice was grotesquely distorted, but Ji-Cheok still understood the words.

[I…Will…Make…You…Mine!]

Ji-Cheok realized that the God was mad. He then immediately understood what he had to prepare for.

Shwing!

Ji-Cheok instantly took out his dual swords and used his cultivation skills. The swords shone as if they were lightsabers. Letting his Sword Qi flow into the blades, Ji-Cheok got ready to fight.

“May the law of causality be forged into a sword! Sword of Kronos, God of Time!”

Ji-Cheok heard Ji-Han mumble something that sounded like gibberish, but impressive at the same time. Suddenly, a translucent black sword appeared in Ji-Han’s hand in an ominous manner, and he grabbed it.

‘What? He didn’t summon the sword, but actually made it?’

Ji-Cheok was somewhat concerned, but he didn’t ask anything, or rather he didn’t have time to ask. Something resembling a black, sticky shadow was coming out of the obelisk in front of him.

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