Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 37

?Hm…Hm…? Cheok-Liang nodded.

?It says Scrooge was banned for violating the sales terms of service, since the advertisement did not meet the sales form code of conduct, and also for illegal promotion of the skill book. It even says that Scrooge promoted products by using illegal spam advertisements on GodTube.?

“What?” Ji-Cheok asked while remembering an unusual comment on his GodTube videos.

Look ↗Low?Investment?High Profit ?You too can be like ?Um Ji-Cheok?↗In the Hunter Store★You can purchase now? Special Discount now 15% off ☆Buy the services of the ◆Scrooge Company!

?What’s this? Why does this account have no username lololol. How did something like this get through the spam filters haha. GodTube? More like SpamTube!

“Wait, that comment was a spam ad from Scrooge? Can gods and heroes go on GodTube like us?” Ji-Cheok asked, surprised.

?I don’t know how, but it seems like gods and heroes have access to GodTube. Thanks to the immediate ban, no skill books from Scrooge were sold in the Hunter Store, and only one was sold in the Likes Shop.? Cheok-Liang frowned.

Ji-Cheok realized that he was the only one who had bought the skill book. Hunters in general used points obtained through hunting as a currency, and Hunters acquired these points by risking their lives and killing monsters. In addition to that, specific alchemy stats were required to perform alchemy, not to mention there were countless excellent skill books in the world other than Scrooge’s. Logically speaking, no Hunter in their right mind would buy such a suspicious skill book with Points they had obtained by risking their lives.

‘I guess I’m that crazy Hunter who bought the suspicious skill book.’?

“Do you think Scrooge could get unbanned?” Ji-Cheok said.

?Maybe, if it was his first offense. After the ban period, he can start selling his products again at the Shop. However, he wouldn’t be able to sell the same skill book again. The System is not as tolerant as you think.?

“I?I guess you are right. If Scrooge starts selling things again, please let me know.

?Just the skill books??

“Skill books, items, weapons… Anything he sells, you tell me.”

?Understood, Master!?

Ji-Cheok went back to enchanting his items. This time, he started working on his armor, [Jacket of the Unknown Craftsman].

Ding

[Enchantment successful!]

[[Jacket of the Unknown Craftsman] has been changed to [Flaming Jacket of the Unknown Craftsman].]

Ji-Cheok knew that fire attributes on his items were crucial for his future expeditions.

Ding

[Second Enchantment successful!]

[Due to successful consecutive enchantments, bonus stats will be added to your item.]

Woooong.

[Black Flaming Jacket]

[Class: B

Type: Armor (Artifact)

Jacket enchanted by Um Ji-Cheok using alchemy. The power of pure fire remains in the Jacket with the second enchantment. Agility and fire resistance are greatly increased. Resistance against poison and cold are slightly increased.

Skills: Blaze Walk, Divine Protection of the Dark Flames

Maker: Unknown Craftsman

Enchanter: Um Ji-Cheok

*This armor can only be used by Um Ji-Cheok.]

[Blaze Walk: Black flames appear in the user’s footsteps. The user’s agility slightly increases and all attacks contain fire attributes.

Consumes mana.]

[Divine Protection of the Dark Flames: Slight increase in resistance to elemental attacks, such as cold, poison, wood, and insects. It is a passive skill that is automatically activated when wearing the Jacket.

Does not consume mana.]

Both skills were appealing to Ji-Cheok, but he was more fascinated by [Divine Protection of the Dark Flames]. Unlike [Blaze Walk], this skill didn’t require any mana to activate.

‘The resistance increase is not that high, but the fact that I don’t need to use mana is really great.’

After spending many days making various potions and food using alchemy, as well as enchanting shoes, pants, and shirts, and cultivating, the day had come for Ji-Cheok to go on his first expedition.

“I think we are ready for the first dungeon, right?” Ji-Cheok asked.

?Yes, Master. From your stats, we can safely say that lower-level dungeons are no match for you.?

“If there were no surprises, that would be the case. But…”

?You were thinking about the Dungeon Expansion, Master??

“Yes, I was. But I guess with this kind of preparation, we are good to go.”

After the last Dungeon Expansion, many other dungeons had started to show signs of expanding. There was no confirmed way to know which dungeons were undergoing Dungeon Expansion. Stopping expeditions would destroy that region because the area would be overwhelmed by monsters. It just meant that the survival rate of the Hunters had decreased even further.

Wearing black jeans and the Jacket, Ji-Cheok looked rather handsome.

?Even without a stylist, you don’t look half bad, Master.?

“It’s not me, it’s the expensive items.”

‘I guess all the new items, the beauty skills, and the constant skincare really did not go to waste.’?

“Alright, let’s do a skill check first. The party should already be in the dungeon. Oh, and from now on, you should be in your materialized fennec form.”

?Is it because of the camera??

It would be a waste of Cheok-Liang’s cuteness if he didn’t appear on camera. After a moment's hesitation, Cheok-Liang spoke resolutely as if he had made a big decision.

?Understood, Master! I, Cheok-Liang, am ready to sacrifice myself for the sake of my Master’s wishes.?

“Wait, what?”

?If Master wants to pull on my cheeks, hug me, kiss me, or even bite me, I will happily endure it with all my heart…?

“Just forget about it…”

* * *

Before leaving for the dungeon, Ji-Cheok checked his current condition. He looked at his skills list first before the items he had prepared, as he knew that skills determined what combat methods and tactics he could use in battles. Ji-Cheok started to review his skills for this expedition.

Combat Skills

[Beginner Skill: Sword and Shield] [Mysterious Sword: White Night, Dark Night] [Fleeing Shadow] [Shadow Stealer] [Wind and Cloud Steps] [Telekinetic Arrow] [The Dark Spirit's Call] [Heaven and Earth Divine Arts]

Recovery Skills

[Mana Heart of the Ark Dragon] [Mana Ring of the Ark Dragon] [Arcane Circle of Mana Recovery] [Silph’s Recovery] [Massage]

Support Skills

[Silph’s Blessing] [Roar of the Wild] [Spontaneous Absorption]

Crafting Skills

[☆★◇◆ Scrooge's alchemy ◇◆☆★] [☆★◇◆Scrooge’s Alchemist Survival Camp◇◆☆★]

Non-combat Support Skills

[Eye of Insight] [360° Video Shooting] [Steady Heart] [Advisor of the Twisted Underworld] [Prince Charming]

Item Skills

[Monoblade]

[Skills: Dark Blade, Light Blade, Mono Blade]

[Black Flaming Jacket]

[Skills: Blaze Walk,?Divine Protection of the Dark Flames]

Ji-Cheok was surprised at the sheer number of miscellaneous skills he had learned, besides the fact that they were well-categorized for his viewing.

?I have neatly organized the skills for you, Master. I was thinking of adding two categories, for defense skills and crowd control skills, but I thought this was easier on the eyes.?

“Wow, this is amazing. This is exactly what I wanted, Cheok-Liang.”

?Thank you, Master.? Cheok-Liang smiled.

As Ji-Cheok stroked Cheok-Liang’s fur, he howled in happiness.

‘It feels like Cheok-Liang is starting to act like a real fennec. Anyways, one thing is for certain.’

“ So, I am a pure dealer.” Ji-Cheok realized.

?Indeed so.?

A Hunter who invested everything into damage dealing stats and skills was termed “pure dealer”—just like Ji-Cheok. His B-Class strength, qi of the [Heaven and Earth Divine Arts], [Mono Blade], and even [Mysterious Sword: White Night, Dark Night], all of his skills were meant for a Carry Dealer.

“In other words… I’m a basic attack meta,” Ji-Cheok said.

?Basic attack meta, hmm. It is a trendy name for using basic attacks to deal damage to enemies, right??

“Yes, that’s exactly it. When one’s basic attacks get too overpowering, we call that a basic attack meta.” Ji-Cheok explained.

Ji-Cheok didn’t have to use any specific attack skills to kill monsters. He simply had his stats and passive skills, such as B-Class strength, [Mysterious Sword: White Night, Dark Night],? [Heaven and Earth Divine Arts], [Mono Blade], and [Silph’s Blessings] to buff up his basic attacks.

He was the ideal character for mobile gamers—they tended to look for basic attack metas, because with such characters, they didn’t require a unique strategy or a flashy micro to clear the game. They would still use special skills every now and then, but they would generally look for basic attack metas in games where the AI wasn’t as well-developed.

‘I was looking for an all-out attack, one ultimate skill to slay the monsters. But instead, my basic attacks could be considered to be on the same level as an ultimate skill. I hope it’s okay.’

“If it’s a low-level monster, I think I can slash it in half with just one swing,” Ji-Cheok said.

Every basic attack with Ji-Cheok’s weapon had the damage potential of an ultimate skill. How was this even possible?

?Master, if that’s the case, isn’t forming a party a little redundant??

“Not at all, going in solo is very dangerous. We don’t know what might happen in a dungeon, and I don’t have much experience with dungeons anyway. Most of all, the government won’t give you permission to go alone,” Ji-Cheok explained.

?Wow, they are pretty strict about that.?

In the early days, some arrogant young Awakened Hunters had thought they could go into the dungeon by themselves, but not many had survived. This was when the government had intervened to lower the fatality rate of the Hunters with this law.

“Also if I go in with other members, I get more Likes, so it’s a win-win situation. Let’s talk about solo playing when the government gives us permission.”

?Yes, Master.?

“That means there is only one strategy for me.”

?Kill everything in sight. It reminds me of Zhang Fei back in the day.?

“I am not going to reenact the Battle of Changban. I am not the only one who is going to be there.”

After the preparation, Ji-Cheok called Ji-Han to find out what others were doing. Ji-Han informed him that other party members were already in the dungeon, and Mu-Cheok had gone in with them without telling his brother. Ji-Cheok wondered why he was in such a hurry. With that in mind, he set off to the dungeon.

* * *

[You have entered the [Glowing Mushroom Forest].]

Dungeons were considered to be in a different universe from Earth. There were many theories regarding the origin of the dungeons. The most prominent theory was that dungeons were a kind of ‘dimensional fragments’ that had split off from another universe. However, nobody knew why they appeared on Earth, why there were different types of dungeons, or what the System was.

[Glowing Mushroom Forest] was considered a hard dungeon among the lower-level ones. Although this dungeon was level 1, with a level limit of 20 for Hunters, it was still uncleared, because no Hunters could slay the boss monster. Hunters with levels higher than 20 could not attack this dungeon, and some people believed it would never be destroyed. Fortunately, if they wanted, Hunters could quit and leave this dungeon at any time.

‘I could never get used to this smell.’

The dungeon reeked of the smell of stagnant air, just like a library that had been sealed for a long time. Oddly enough, even outdoor-type dungeons had this kind of smell. Ji-Cheok activated his video shooting skill.

“Hello everyone, this is Um Ji-Cheok speaking. In today’s episode, I am going to challenge the dungeon with the help of my spirit animal, Cheok-Liang.”

?Meow~? Cheok-Liang growled as he hung onto Ji-Cheok’s shoulder.

“Hahaha, don’t get fooled by his appearance. This is not a real baby fennec, but a spirit, so it is possible for him to talk to humans. I guess he doesn’t want to right now.”

?Master, I need to pretend to be dumb at first so that people think I’m cute. Humans can’t easily accept beings smarter than themselves as cute.?

Cheok-Liang said this in his spirit voice. Since he was a part of Ji Cheok’s skill, only Ji-Cheok could hear his spirit voice.

‘I guess I have to edit this part out. Do you think it’s better for you to keep pretending to be just a pet fennec?’ Ji-Cheok said, in his spirit voice.

?Yes, I am glad we didn’t start our video live.?

‘I guess I don’t have enough experience to start broadcasting live on my first try.’?

1. The battle of Changban is when Zhang Fei stood in front of a bridge and fought off many enemies by himself while Liu Bei fled.