I Gave Up Being Stronger - Chapter 471
Chapter 471
‘What does he want from me so urgently?’ Cha Jin-Hyeok thought.
Since Gap-Soo was a long-time fan, Jin-Hyeok rushed over to his workshop in no time.
He saw that the entire building was swaying strangely. Gap-Soo, Jang Michelle, Lilia, and the staff had already evacuated outside. Gap-Soo was trembling all over, covering his face with his hands.
‘I know there’s a lot of treasures in his workshop. Did he have to leave all of them inside?’ Jin-Hyeok wondered.
“My… my media room!!!” Gap-Soo shouted.
Fortunately, it didn’t seem like there were as many precious treasures as Jin-Hyeok thought.
“No!! My media room!” Gap-Soo cried once more.
“You can make one again. You have the ability and power to do so.” Lilia comforted Gap-Soo.
“But then I will miss Chul-Soo’s livestreams!!! No, this is unacceptable!”
“Can’t you make one quickly?”“No matter how fast, it’s going to take two weeks…”
To properly watch Kim Chul-Soo’s broadcasts, one needed a state-of-the-art media room. Watching it on an ordinary device felt unbearable. Just enduring a few seconds of it was tough—two weeks felt like torture.
“What’s going on?” Jin-Hyeok asked.
“The place where you said there was a rift—a strange black space formed there. It’s slowly swallowing everything around it, like a tiny black hole,” Michelle quickly explained.
Elines’s previous words resurfaced in his memory. She had said it felt similar to the Fire Monster—a fire that devoured fire. Now, perhaps, what had emerged was something capable of devouring worlds.
‘That might be the Final Abyss,’ Jin-Hyeok thought.
Then, news started pouring out across the Earth Server.
[Earth Server GMs, mass exodus.]
[GMs spotted evacuating Earth.]
People saw GMs packing their things, fleeing to other Servers. Soon after, Kihael, a former GM who was now working for the MK Foundation, hurried over and tapped Jin-Hyeok on the shoulder. “Hey, Chul-Soo!”
“Are you going camping?”
“This is no time for jokes. We need to get out of here now. Code Black has been issued.”
“Code Black?”
“It means the System is withdrawing from this Server. It’s been abandoned.”
Jin-Hyeok understood why Kihael, who was obsessed with work-life balance, wanted to leave, but even Serchan, a workaholic with unrelenting passion, was seen with a backpack slung over his shoulder.
“Chul-Soo, can you still communicate with the Guardian Tree?” Serchan asked.
That was when Jin-Hyeok realized the gravity of the situation. He said telepathically, ‘Hey, Guardian Tree? You there?’
He couldn’t sense the Guardian Tree’s presence.
***
The Guardian Tree was locked in battle with the rift of the newly emerged world.
-“You crazy rift!”
However, the problem was not just the rift. Beyond the rift lay another world, another abyss. It was a vast universe, and battling something of such scale wasn’t easy. The Guardian Tree put all its will into fighting the rift.
-“I will protect this newlywed Server of mine!” the Guardian Tree shouted.
The universe beyond the rift spoke.
-“Why do you call Earth your newlywed Server? Are you married to it?”
-“Of course, I… haven’t married yet, but I will soon!”
-“And who is your partner?”
-“Obviously, it’s Chul-Soo!”
Boom!
An explosion resounded inside the opposing universe. A massive destructive force surged out from the rift, and the Guardian Tree struggled to hold it back. During its desperate efforts, it lost its mental connection with Chul-Soo.
-“You damned universe! I won’t let you ruin my newlywed Server!”
-“That place isn’t your newlywed Server.”
-“What?”
The leaves of the Guardian Tree trembled. The universe’s unyielding intent was palpable.
-“This place is the universe of my marriage,” the rift said.
-“Are you completely out of your mind? The universe is getting married? Get a grip, you crazy universe!”
The Guardian Tree was becoming angrier.
***
As the Guardian Tree poured all its strength into fighting the rift, monsters grew rampant across the Earth Server.
“Graaah!”
Dungeon Breaks were occurring everywhere, and suddenly, monsters grew stronger and attacked humans.
~
-Haha, they kept babbling about how strong their new Server was. Look at them now.
-Yep, it’s over. The Guardian Tree’s power is done for.
-Fast growth always means a fast collapse.
-They should’ve grown steadily like Arvis, building a solid foundation.
~
Some members from other Servers, jealous of Earth, were thrilled about its current crisis.
~
-But if this keeps up, isn’t the Server doomed?
-I heard their GMs have all fled to other Servers.
-Rose to the top, only to fall harder than ever.
-You idiots, do you think this is just about the Earth Server? What happens next? And after that?
~
Many warned that their Server could be next after Earth, but it didn’t feel imminent. Encyclopedia repeatedly banged himself against the bookshelf, venting his frustration. “Idiots! Why are they laughing like morons about Earth’s destruction?”
No one knew which Server would be the next target. Instead of mocking Earth, the entire universe should be praying for Earth to overcome this crisis. It pained Encyclopedia to share the same air with such fools.
~
[…Therefore, we must mobilize all possible resources to prevent the Final Abyss from growing any larger. This isn’t just Earth’s crisis but a crisis for the entire universe…]
└Said a Chul-Soo Lander.
└Yeah, sure, not like it’s gonna happen tomorrow.
└Earth is acting above its situation, pretending to be an upper-tier Server. That’s what happens. ^^
~
Numerous experts weighed in on the Earth Server’s situation.
~
[A disaster of this magnitude, happening all at once, would overwhelm even Arvis.]
[Earth is on the brink of destruction.]
~
Provocative statements like these spread everywhere.
~
But they seem to be handling it better than expected.
-The monster wave in the American Region is over.
-Europe managed to survive too.
-Africa’s contained.
-Asia handled it way easier than anyone thought.
~
Those closest to the chaos bore the brunt of the disaster. The Players on Earth responded flexibly to the sudden calamities.
~
-Hey, isn’t that monster the Ancient Island-Destroying Giant?
-No way, such a rare monster just appeared on the Earth Server?
-It normally takes Level 300+ Players months to raid that thing properly.
~
That was the common belief, but Earth’s Players were a little different.
~
-Why is there a Level 250 Player in that raid?
-Are they trying to get themselves killed?
-There is even a Player in the early Level 200s!
~
The Ancient Island-Destroying Giant was taken down in just six minutes.
~
-No way… how did they do that?
-I mean, even if they have Shin Yu-Ri’s Babylon Cannon, that’s impossible!
~
Similar incidents happened everywhere.
~
-How are they doing this?
-It should be practically illegal to fight monsters at such low Levels.
~
Despite their lower Levels, Earth’s Players used their unique wit and intensity to respond to the crisis. It was a sight rarely seen on other Servers.
~
-Earth is truly the birthplace of intensity…
-Skills and techniques always overpower physical prowess.
└Said the weakling consoling himself.
└Nah, physical strength still reigns supreme.
~
Earth’s Players, especially those from the Korean Region, were often seen hunting monsters far stronger than themselves. The battles looked oddly effortless.
~
-Did the monsters get debuffed somehow?
-Do they have top-tier Debuff Mages stationed in Korea?
~
However, that wasn’t the case.
~ -Characteristics of veterans: they make everything look easy.
-Whoa, why are there so many Spirit Mages?
~
A massive number of Spirit Mages emerged on Earth, instantly becoming formidable forces. While they alone had limitations, they teamed up with the K-Force, rooted across the globe, each more than pulling their weight.
~
-Not that I want to admit it, but isn’t this deserving of being called a rising Server?
-Their population is small, but maybe they can even stand against Arvis.
-Stop saying ridiculous things. Arvis is overwhelmingly the strongest.
-But if something like this happened in Arvis, could they handle it as well as the Earth Server?
-Arvis couldn’t. They wouldn’t be nearly as peaceful.
~
Even though chaos was everywhere. Earth remained relatively stable.
~
-Is this… what intensity looks like?
-Have we forgotten what it means to be intense?
~
Slowly but surely, the whole universe began to realize the importance of being intense.
***
Jin-Hyeok let out a sigh of relief. ‘I can leave the chaos to them.’
Earth’s Players were more intense than he had imagined, and they had enough potential to overcome the chaos happening now.
‘I will focus on the Final Abyss.’
Jin-Hyeok approached the rift. Only then did he begin to sense the energy of the Guardian Tree.
‘The Guardian Tree is fighting intensely too.’
It was protecting against the explosion of the Final Abyss, being so intense that even its mental link with Jin-Hyeok had been severed. It was like a barrier swallowing the universe.
Without giving anyone time to stop him, Jin-Hyeok jumped into the rift.
“Chul-Soo!!”
“Chul-Soo, no!!”
Jin-Hyeok was the only one who could stop this rift. At least the good thing was that Dimensional Synchronization was possible.
‘A void without air, without anything…’
Nothing could be seen in this space; there was no light here. If he didn’t possess the ability to synchronize with the dimension, entering this world with just physical capabilities might have ended terribly for him.
“It’s not as openly hostile as the Spirit Realm of Fire, but…”
After synchronizing with the dimension, he could roughly feel it—a twisted obsession, an overwhelming desire for possession of something. Yet, he also felt a vivid affection.
“Wait… Are you Kim Min-Ji?” Jin-Hyeok whispered.
For a moment, it felt as if the universe was expanding. The voice of the Guardian Tree echoed.
-“How dare you try to grow stronger here! Not while I’m around!”
The Guardian Tree seemed unaware of Jin-Hyeok’s presence.
‘That just means it’s fighting intensely too.’
Jin-Hyeok took out Miri. It was fortunate, truly fortunate, that he had experience using Taming (Physical) on another dimension. If he could properly commune with this world, perhaps he could prevent the expansion of the Final Abyss.
‘But…’ Jin-Hyeok involuntarily let his arm, which held Miri, drop. Upon coming here, he could vividly sense Min-Ji. Though it was twisted, he could feel her intense love.
“This world is less hostile than the Spirit Realm of Fire but more powerful.”
He couldn’t wield Miri recklessly here. If Jin-Hyeok were an ordinary Player, he would have swung Miri instantly, but being Chul-Soo the Eltuber, he couldn’t make himself tame Chul-Soo Land No.1.
“Min-Ji, can you hear me?” Jin-Hyeok said. No reply came, but he realized a few more things. “You can’t stop yourself, can you?”
It was just like how an infant breathed and their heart beat naturally. Min-Ji was like a being born to carry this fate. Jin-Hyeok’s gaze swept across the universe. He decided to pierce through the depths of this empty void. He didn’t like probing into the depths of a Chul-Soo Lander’s heart, but he had no choice.
“I’m sorry, Min-Ji.” He used Broadcaster’s Insight.
