Chapter 160
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: The World Tree's Embrace
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The World Tree's third growth.
The byproducts and various effects it yielded were already game-breaking, but the most prominent feature was this.
* The World Tree's buffs and debuffs are applied to all entities and objects within a 1,000 KM radius.
An overwhelming range of 1,000 kilometers, spreading out from the World Tree as its center.
This meant it not only affected the entirety of South Korea but also extended to adjacent foreign countries.
The implications of this were obvious.
[Korea/You Can Do It Too: I was hunting today when I suddenly got a notification about a new buff. Is it just me?]
[Korea/ExtraordinaryJ: That's the buff from the World Tree. The effects are stronger, too. Looks like it grew again.]
[Korea/Watsol: FR, it definitely grew. I was hunting nearby and felt something like an earthquake. I was startled, but then I saw the World Tree had gotten huge.]
[Korea/Aurelian Soli: It's big enough to pierce the sky. A little more growth and it might just reach outer space.]
The World Tree's existence was a display of overwhelming power, both in size and effect.
The greatest impact brought about by its third growth?
It was the rise in the Korean server's value.
[Korea/AttentionSeeker NO.1: I've noticed players from China and Japan sneaking over to hunt lately. Should we let them?]
[Korea/Jigeonchung: lol, no way. If they don't like it, they should've been born in Korea. Maybe if they paid a toll, it'd be a different story.]
[Korea/AttentionSeeker NO.2: But if we took their money, shouldn't we give it to Honeybee?]
Land value always rises with the surrounding infrastructure.
So, what would happen if a country offered buffs directly tied to survival?
And on top of that, debuffs that weakened monsters?
Word spread, and numerous players from other countries began flocking to Korea.
But as the saying goes, wherever people gather, there are bound to be a few lunatics.
Some of them adopted aggressive stances, trying to drive out the native Korean players, but their tyranny didn't last long.
[Jeongrichung: Here's the information and images of the troublemakers. They seem to be pretty high-ranking players in their own countries.]
[Mom's Home Cooking: Oh my, thank you as always.]
[Jeongrichung: Hahaha. Not at all. Compared to Ms. Su-hee's home cooking, this is nothing.]
The World Tree's buffs, after all, only benefited allies.
For those recognized as enemies, it didn't just withhold buffs; it actively applied debuffs.
[The World Tree's Pressure is applied.]
[While within the World Tree's domain, the attack power and movement speed of those deemed enemies are reduced by 25%.]
The pressure effect caused a significant drop in attack power and movement speed, two crucial factors in combat.
And that wasn't the extent of Seong-hyeok's measures.
[Korea/Honeybee: A warning to all trespassers.]
- The Republic of Korea is my homeland, the place where I was born and raised. I welcome contact for trade or other special reasons, but those who trespass without permission and commit acts of violence will be clearly defined as enemies.
Furthermore, this warning is not just for those individuals.
I expect the nations to which these enemies belong to take action. Otherwise, I will no longer sell my honey to them.
Whether due to his processed honey products or his military might, Honeybee's name had become so well-known globally that not knowing it would make one a spy.
Do they say that some things are more terrifying than force?
Seong-hyeok's pressure regarding the sale of his processed honey products.
In a way, it was an abuse of his unique premium rights, but so what?
“They need to clean up their own mess.”
The pressure from foreign rankers coming to Korea was, in its own way, a kind of brute force.
Besides, anyone who was a high-ranker likely already had a support base in their home country.
[Comment Thread (999+)]
- China/Emperor Jeongri's Turf: Th-this… We will handle this swiftly.
- Korea/Choi Seung-hyeok: Wow, I think this is the first time I've seen the mainland apologize like that ;;
- Korea/Chimaek Man: FR, Honeybee's honey is seriously scary.
- Korea/AttentionSeeker NO.5: Just Honey-men.
It was a two-for-one deal: keeping foreign powers in check while simultaneously solidifying his position in Korea.
But all this was merely a speck of the power the World Tree had yet to unveil.
______________________________
[Tree of Life]
* Classification: Special Condition
* Area of Effect: All allies within the World Tree's domain
* Effect: All stats +10. Attracts forest-related creatures and earns their favor.
* Effect - Overflowing Abundance: The yield from all gathering actions within the domain increases by 1%.
______________________________
Just 1%.
But hadn't they said that the impact of such a benefit varied wildly depending on who received it?
Considering the tens of millions of bees and dozens of hives…
And all the honey they were filling.
“I lost a lot of honey because of you, so I'll be sure to make good use of this effect.”
For Seong-hyeok, the 'Overflowing Abundance' power granted by the Tree of Life was a perfect match.
* * * * *
Dungeons, created with the advent of this topsy-turvy world.
Some were openly accessible, but others were like ancient ruins, hidden away and only discoverable once certain conditions were met.
Most of these were Disaster-class dungeons, invariably home to high-tier entities that were difficult to face.
But right now, the boss monster of such a place had been reduced to a single meal without even getting to use its full power.
Crunch! Crack!
Snap-!
“Tough and foul. The taste is dreadful.”
“Endure it. We must eat to regain our strength quickly.”
Two colossal figures were devouring a massive corpse.
Needless to say, the beings who had so easily dispatched a Disaster-class boss monster were far from ordinary.
[Red Dragon Cassiseider Lv. 75 (★★★★★+) - ???]
[Gold Dragon Telairn Lv. 75 (★★★★★+) - ???]
Boasting a ??? grade, they were 'Dragons' of a different caliber.
And who were dragons?
A single one of their kind had possessed enough destructive power to annihilate the entire Russian server.
Though calling them the epitome of arrogance wouldn't be an exaggeration, dragons were by no means thoughtless lizards.
“Why don't we just go tear them apart together instead of eating this stuff? They're nothing but lowly creatures, after all.”
“They were skilled enough to kill Forleirn. We cannot be careless.”
“If it weren't for this damned penalty, they wouldn't even be a side dish!”
[Due to a power disparity, some abilities have been downgraded. -> Level has been reduced. A penalty is imposed on the use of certain skills and authorities.]
A penalty on their abilities, incurred from forcibly breaking through a dimension unsuited to their tier.
For dragons, who were born with a fundamentally different standing from other life forms, a level drop wasn't a significant problem.
“We just have to hold out until we can fully use the Dragon Tongue.”
“This is for the clan's revenge. For now, let's use the item we got from this vermin to lure some prey.”
The Dragon Tongue, the source of all a dragon's power.
To restore it, the two dragons began to lure human prey, gradually shedding the shackles of their penalty.
* * * * *
The World Tree, having achieved its third growth.
Perhaps thanks to the greater energy emanating from its even more majestic form?
Even amidst the arduous labor that began the day, not a single bee tired, each one working diligently.
But the true beauty of the World Tree revealed itself when it met the bees.
Bzzzz~
Bzzzzzz~
Proportional to its increased size, the World Tree had bloomed with even more flowers.
The bees, its regular customers, rushed toward the blossoms, greatly pleased.
Shudder- Shudder-shudder-
The legs of the bees trembled incessantly as they buried their heads inside.
Undoubtedly, within the flowers they had become one with, the bees were relentlessly indulging in nectar.
“Hahaha. You've all become like little honey pot bees.”
The bees had become plump and round after their hearty meal.
But was it because bees were cute no matter what?
The charm of their plump little behinds.
Then, as they returned to their hives, the ensuing notifications brought a smile to his face.
[The honey status of the Guardian's Extra-Large Draconian World Tree Auto-Honey Extractor Hive (★★★★★-) has reached 81.2%.]
[Honey is ready for harvest!]
[Honey is ready for harvest!]
[Honey is ready for harvest!]
…….
As expected, the abundance of World Tree honey showed its effects immediately.
For a beekeeper, there was no greater happiness than the moment of harvesting honey.
[Great Success in Gathering!]
[The Authority of Bountiful Mind is activated.]
[The effect of Overflowing Abundance is applied.]
[You have obtained 176 Garnet Gem Honey (★★+).]
[You have obtained 28 Garnet Gem Predatory Venus Flytrap Honey (★★★).]
[You have obtained 50 Garnet Gem World Tree Honey (★★★+).]
[You have obtained 69 Garnet Gem Beeswax (★★+).]
[You have obtained 26 Garnet Gem Royal Jelly (★★★-).]
[You have obtained 13 Garnet Gem Propolis (★★★).]
[Peridot…….
The authority that added a bonus to the gathering amount, plus the subtle effect from the Hidden Piece, created the perfect combination!
And was that all?
Thanks to the Honeybee Guardian's Divine Beekeeping skill and the much larger hives, he could now obtain nearly 300 byproducts from a single harvest.
What would happen when this wasn't just one hive, but dozens?
“Ahh, this is why I love beekeeping.”
It was like raking in coins with a pitchfork.
If he put his mind to it, he could gather enough in just a few harvests a day to distribute processed goods to 10,000 residents.
His joy from the harvest was short-lived.
[Player detected!]
[Player detected!]
[Player detected!]
…….
His scout bees and Ssing-ssing-i spotted players during their work.
“They're here again, huh?”
Was having such a high profile a problem in itself?
As his territory gained a reputation as the safest place, a steady stream of players arrived, hoping to become residents.
It was such a common occurrence that he often ignored it, but sometimes, a Golden Goblin would appear.
[Due to the opponent's high level, most information cannot be displayed.]
[Mark Thomas Lv. 60 (Unknown)]
[Jack Malone Lv. 58 (Unknown)]
[Rachel Lv. 58 (Unknown)]
“...Level 60s?”
They were the highest-level players Seong-hyeok had ever seen.
In this topsy-turvy world, level was synonymous with power.
“Well, this is keeping me from my work.”
Whether they wanted to become residents or were enemies…
The visit from these big shots was overflowing with potential value.
“They must have a lot of good stuff, right?”
If they were decent, he'd accept them. If they were a nuisance, he'd just get rid of them.
For Seong-hyeok, whose might had been proven to the entire world, he welcomed their appearance with open arms.