Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 833

[Special rewards will be given to all of the players that sided with Edea’s Allied Forces!]

The residents of Edea were delighted. They cheered loudly and there was a widespread happiness and joy from obtaining this hard-fought victory. In the center of it all was Obren, who declared that he would become the Beyond the Heavens Empire’s Guardian God, and Minhyuk, who was silently looking at him.

Meanwhile, the viewership ratings of the Korean broadcasting station, ATV Broadcasting Station, remained fixed at 60% and had not yet dropped. In fact, it was not only ATV Broadcasting Station that recorded such high ratings, all of the broadcasting stations all over the world had enjoyed some success at over 40%.

With the war already over, the question remained. Why were people still tuned in? The answer to this question was explained by the commentators.

[Edea’s residents might have won but they are still left in a devastated state. Only 1.3 million of their troops had survived this war.]

[A lot of things had been destroyed during the war between Edea and the Jade Emperor.]

[The residents of Edea are in a situation where they desperately need a spiritual pillar to lean on.]

[The people of Edea had witnessed everything with their own eyes. Obren, the man who had personally killed the Jade Emperor in Heaven, had promised to become the Guardian God of the Beyond the Heavens Empire that Minhyuk establishes. He’s the Edea’s Commander that led them to victory after all.]

[But that’s not all. Minhyuk has definitely built up a high level of favor with the people of Edea. And the people of Edea need another Absolute Being that they could trust.]

After that, the commentators promptly shut their mouths and focused their attention on Minhyuk. They had already given the viewers a good indication of what was to come. As long as one was not a fool, they would definitely not leave. Why would they miss the incredible sight that would happen for the first time in Athenae?

Guardian God Obren, a handsome man with white hair reaching his shoulders, took a step back from Minhyuk.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

“Food God! We’re forever grateful!”

“Food Goooooood!”

“With your help, we were able to protect Edea!”

They had thought that they would not be able to protect their lands, especially with all of the foreigners abandoning them. However, Minhyuk stood alone by their side and fought with them. The more surprising fact was the fact that Minhyuk’s own kingdom was at war. The Luvien Empire had already marched in front of the walls of the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom and were currently pressuring them. But he had still come to their aid.

Then, Minhyuk looked at Edea’s kings—Sun Wukong, Master Xuanzang, Zhu Bajie and Aaron. All four were outstanding and great kings. These kings were also looking at Minhyuk.

Minhyuk did not say anything and only asked them with his gaze. The one that stepped forward first to answer the unasked question was the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal, Sun Wukong.

“Beyond the Heavens’ King, the people of our dearly beloved Edea are left with devastation and are now impoverished. We have long been tired of the Jade Emperor’s tyrannical rule and the constant pressure of war. The people of Edea and even us, the kings, need a place to lean on. A safe haven.” Sun Wukong knelt on one knee. “There’s no one else but you. Please allow us the honor to take the first steps with your Beyond the Heavens Empire. I, the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong, pledge my eternal allegiance and loyalty to you.”

This was different from before. Minhyuk might have accepted quite a lot of vassals and subordinates before. But this time, the kings represented their kingdoms.

[The Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal Sun Wukong has pledged his eternal allegiance and loyalty to you.]

[Sun Wukong is the king of the Kingdom of Rama!]

[The Kingdom of Rama was left devastated by the war. But with their brilliant and outstanding ruler, Sun Wukong, they will be able to rise quickly once again.]

[There are 935,311 residents of the Kingdom of Rama that are eligible to move to Beyond the Heavens Kingdom!]

[There are 434,689 soldiers of the Kingdom of Rama that are eligible to move to Beyond the Heavens Kingdom!]

[You have acquired the 194,131 platinum owned by the Kingdom of Rama.]

[Everything that is owned by the Kingdom of Rama will now be transferred to the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom!]

[The Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal, Sun Wukong, is a Named NPC beyond Level 650. You have met some of the requirements for establishing an empire.]

The three kings, who were standing right behind Sun Wukong, immediately knelt down. As he looked at them, Minhyuk recalled the requirements needed for establishing an empire that had been released to him before.

[To build an empire, you must secure at least thrice your current territory size, population and military forces.]

[To build an empire, you must secure at least 15 players beyond Level 580.]

[To build an empire, you must secure at least 20 NPCs beyond Level 650. Even if the NPC does not go over Level 650, as long as the system recognizes them as NPCs with special power, then they will meet the conditions.]

Prior, whether it was the number of people, the military force or the size of the territory, the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom had fallen short of meeting all of the requirements mentioned above.

Since then, Minhyuk had made continuous efforts to expand his territory to accommodate more people and soldiers that would come to their side. Because of that, he was able to have enough territory to fulfill the requirements.

Over the course of time, the number of players by their side that have exceeded Level 580 had also grown to more than fifteen. As for the twenty NPC beyond Level 650, it was indeed a tricky requirement to deal with. Of course, the NPCs that they were looking for also included the NPCs recognized by the system as NPCs with special power even though they were not over Level 650.

Then, Buddhist Monk Xuanzang turned the beads in his hands and said, “Namo Amitabha Buddha... I believe this is the will of the Great Buddha.”

The truth was, the one that Master Xuanzang believed in was Obren. He clearly recalled how Obren ran around the Demon World and went to Heaven to kill the Jade Emperor. He also could not forget the mysterious fate between the cool yet eccentric Obren and Minhyuk. He could also tell that the place, the Beyond the Heavens Empire, that the new Guardian God and the emperor that cared for each other lived in would be a place where the people would live happily in.

[The Buddhist Monk, Master Xuanzang has pledged his eternal allegiance and loyalty to you.]

[Xuanzang is the king of the Kingdom of Abeldo!]

[The Kingdom of Abeldo was left devastated by the war...]

[There are 630,411 residents of the Kingdom of Abeldo...]

[There are 350, 309 soldiers of the Kingdom of Abeldo...]

[You have acquired the 143,100 platinum owned by the Kingdom of Abeldo...]

[Everything that is owned by the Kingdom of Abeldo...]

[The Buddhist Monk, Master Xuanzang, is a Named NPC beyond Level 650. You have met some of the requirements for establishing an empire.]

“Of course, I am willing to serve you, the Beyond the Heavens’ King.”

“As do I.”

Just like the rest of them, King Aaron of the Kingdom of Eden also pledged his allegiance to Minhyuk. As for Zhu Bajie, the king of the Runt Kingdom, he had already pledged his allegiance to Minhyuk before. However, he had yet to hand over the right to rule over his kingdom to him.

[Zhu Bajie is the king of the Runt Kingdom!]

[The Runt Kingdom was left devastated by the war...]

[There are 560,145 residents of the Runt Kingdom...]

[There are 310, 509 soldiers of the Runt Kingdom...]

[You have acquired the 120,100 platinum owned by the Runt Kingdom...]

[Everything that is owned by the Runt Kingdom...]

[Zhu Bajie, is a Named NPC beyond Level 650. You have met some of the requirements for establishing an empire.]

[Aaron has pledged his eternal allegiance and loyalty to you...]

[Aaron is the king of the Kingdom of Eden!]

[The Kingdom of Eden was left devastated by the war...]

[There are 660,145 residents of the Kingdom of Eden...]

[There are 350,509 soldiers of the Kingdom of Eden...]

[You have acquired the 130,500 platinum owned by the Kingdom of Eden...]

[Everything that is owned by the Kingdom of Eden...]

[Aaron, is a Named NPC beyond Level 650. You have met some of the requirements for establishing an empire.]

The scene where the four kings of Edea knelt on one knee and pledged their allegiance to Minhyuk was enough to make the hearts of everyone watching thump wildly. Even Minhyuk could feel his heart thumping wildly in his chest. He had never felt this nervous since he started playing Athenae.

Then, another set of notifications rang.

[You have met the Empire Establishment requirement of having twenty NPCs beyond Level 650!]

[You have met the Empire Establishment requirement for the number of people, the size of your territories and your military force!]

The millions of people in Edea all held their breath as the notifications paused for a brief moment.

[Congratulations!]

[You are the first player to have met the requirements for establishing an empire!]

[You can now establish your own empire! For the name of your empire, you can either choose to have a new empire name or keep your kingdom’s current name, Beyond the Heavens Kingdom, and name it as ‘Beyond the Heavens Empire’.]

[You can now appoint a Guardian or a Guardian God for the empire that you will establish!]

[You have acquired the rewards for being the first player to establish an empire.]

ATV Broadcasting Station’s PD Kim Daeguk stared at Minhyuk with a small smile on his face.

“Finally...”

The birth of the very first empire established by a player in Athenae was a historic event.

“P— PD... the ratings...”

“What’s the matter with the ratings?”

A viewership rating of 60% meant that more than half of the TVs that were currently switched on in Korea, were tuned in on their station watching Minhyuk. This meant that Minhyuk’s face was also flashing in countless electronic billboards all over the country. Perhaps there were also countless office workers, students, and even those that dreamt of becoming dark gamers watching this scene.

However, it seemed like PD Kim Daeguk still underestimated the influence and hold that Athenae had over South Korea.

“We have reached a new record! Our viewership ratings have exceeded 63%!”

“...”

PD Kim’s breath hitched. In fact, the ratings continued to climb after reaching 63%, a rating record that Food God Minhyuk had set himself before.

“It’s at 64%, 65%, 66%... It— It climbed to 68%!”

This meant that two out of three people in Korea were watching Minhyuk.

At that moment, all of the cameras in the surrounding area zoomed in on Minhyuk’s face. Everyone was curious about the rewards that the first player that established an empire would receive as well as what their newly established empire would obtain. After all, none of these had been revealed to the world yet.

Then, Minhyuk declared, “I will establish my empire here and now. My empire will be hailed as the Beyond the Heavens Empire.”

Along with Minhyuk’s declarations, another set of notifications rang.

[You are the first player to have successfully founded and established an empire!]

[The name of the first player’s empire is Beyond the Heavens Empire.]

[You have obtained the Title: First Emperor.]

[You have acquired 1,000,000 platinum as a reward for being the first player to establish an empire.]

[You have gained 20,000 REP.]

[You have gained 10,000 CHA.]

[You have obtained the Emperor’s Authority!]

[All of the abilities of all of the Named NPCs, knights and soldiers of your empire will increase by 15%!]

[A video for the first emperor has been made! If you say, ‘Play Video’ all of the NPCs and players will be able to watch the first emperor’s great steps.]

[The video is a reward prepared by Joy. Co. Ltd. You can showcase the majesty and dignity of the first emperor through this video!]

[The video will disappear if you do not play it within three days!]

[With the birth of the Beyond the Heavens Empire in Athenae, many will tell the tales, sing praises and recite poems about you, the emperor, and the empire that you have established.]

[The First Emperor’s Effect has been activated.]

The notifications constantly rang. However, most of these notifications rang only in Minhyuk’s ears.

At that moment, a golden crown slowly fell down from the sky and landed gently on Minhyuk’s head. The moment the crown was secured on his head, all of the unpleasantness left on the battlefield disappeared. Then, the bloody-red Slaughterer’s Armor slowly transformed and turned into a golden armor as a golden throne appeared behind Minhyuk.

Thud, thud—

Minhyuk slowly walked toward the throne. At the same time, the image of Minhyuk sitting on his throne appeared in the form of an illusion all over the skies of Athenae.

[The new emperor of the new era has been born!]