Level 4 Human in a Ruined World

Chapter 230

Chapter 230: The Imjin War (2)

Sleep.

Even Yeongwoo, with all his superhuman abilities, couldn’t stay awake indefinitely.

Whether it was a remnant habit from his “pure human” days or a necessity for recovery despite his high capabilities, he couldn’t say.

After all, Yeongwoo was already free from the need for nutrition thanks to his alien stomach.

So it wouldn’t have been surprising if he were immune to the need for sleep as well.

‘Surely, there aren’t any devices related to sleep, are there?’

Even if such a device existed, he didn’t want to be free from sleep.

In this insane world, sleep was the only way to escape, even briefly.

“Ugh.”

As soon as Yeongwoo arrived at his quarters, he was overwhelmed by sleepiness and headed straight for his private room.

He was so sleepy that he forgot to acknowledge his father who had opened the door for him. Consequently, Jeonggu followed his son, who had just returned from the dungeon, without saying a word.

“You survived again, I see.”

“Yes. Today’s dungeon was quite dangerous.”

“…What?”

Jeonggu flinched at Yeongwoo’s unexpected response.

“What was it like?”

“It was no joke.”

“No, I mean…….”

While Jeonggu was asking for more details, Yeongwoo was already scattering his equipment on the floor of his private room.

“I don’t have the energy to explain right now. I really need to sleep.”

Thump!

Yeongwoo collapsed onto the bed as if he was sucked in.

Jeonggu wanted to say more, but instead, he said something else.

“You know it’s Pangaea today, right?”

According to the system announcement, the third phase of the reset procedure, “Pangaea,” would start at exactly 8 AM today.

It meant that all continents and islands would merge into one.

Jeonggu thought Yeongwoo might have a plan for this situation and wanted to check before he fell asleep.

Then, just as Yeongwoo was about to fall into a deep sleep, he bolted upright.

“Oh, right! Pangaea!”

“You absent-minded fool. You must be really tired.”

“If it weren’t for you, I might have missed an achievement. You really saved the day this time.”

For the first time, Yeongwoo sincerely praised his father.

If he had fallen asleep just now, he would have slept through the morning call announcing the end of the event.

Naturally, he wouldn’t have witnessed the moment when the lands merged at 8 o’clock.

‘The Pangaea achievement would have been useless.’

[Pangaea]

|Witness the movement of continents at the time of tectonic shifts.

Yeongwoo shuddered at the thought.

Then he spoke to his father, who was leaning against the door of the private room.

“Wake me up at 7:30.”

“Huh?”

“Give me a morning call.”

“7:30? That’s roughly three hours from now. When am I supposed to sleep?”

“You’re sacrificing a day for your son. Isn’t my little bit of sleep more valuable than your rest?”

“…?”

Jeonggu looked exasperated, but Yeongwoo had already fallen asleep.

He needed to get as much sleep as he could in the limited time, but more importantly, he was genuinely exhausted.

“….”

Yeongwoo fell asleep immediately, with his father watching over him for three straight hours.

And Jeonggu,

“Damn brat.”

muttered curses under his breath, staying awake with his eyes wide open.

After all, the value of his three hours of sleep was different from that of Korea’s greatest Strongest Sword’s three hours, so the request for a morning call was somewhat understandable.

Moreover, he didn’t want to disappoint Yeongwoo.

Even though he was a crazy son, he was still his son, a relationship bestowed by the universe.

‘Parent-child relationships are heavenly bonds. If that’s true, the heavens are truly harsh. Such a brat… my son.’

Jeonggu’s gaze fell on Yeongwoo’s sleeping face.

From the first time he met him, Yeongwoo was so strong it seemed like the entire universe was helping him.

Even an ambush while he slept was impossible.

So it was somewhat reassuring.

No matter what heinous acts he committed, he wouldn’t violate the natural order of parents dying before their children.

“….”

Jeonggu checked the clock on the wall of the private room and pulled a crimson coin from his pocket, throwing it towards Yeongwoo’s chest.

Swish!

“Hey, it’s time.”

Creepily enough,

Tap!

Yeongwoo, still with his eyes closed, reached out and caught the coin, then slowly opened his eyes.

“Is it 7:30 already?”

“Feels like a dream, doesn’t it?”

“……”

This time, Yeongwoo didn’t respond and started putting on his equipment.

Scratching his chin, Jeonggu looked out the window and asked.

“So, what’s the plan? What happens when the land merges?”

“Well, first I need to complete the achievement, so I guess I should head to the nearest coast.”

“Where would that be?”

“I think it’s Incheon.”

Incheon.

A port city with a high probability of connecting with a part of the Chinese mainland across the way.

And it was the closest coast to Seoul in a straight line.

“Incheon… Are you sure about that?”

“Why?”

“They say it’s pretty rough over there.”

“Really? Then that’s even better.”

“What?”

“Incheon is now the western border. And with China right across, only the toughest people can hold their ground.”

“Really? That makes sense, now that you mention it.”

True, Yeongwoo wouldn’t have to worry about getting beaten by Incheon’s best fighters. Considering the power struggle with China, it might be better if there were strong people in Incheon.

“So, are you planning to say hello to Incheon’s Strongest Sword?”

“Yes, if possible. The Chinese might try to get to me through Incheon.”

One must not forget the territorial mark that came with China.

Even now, Chinese martial artists were probably receiving real-time updates on Yeongwoo’s location.

Clack.

Having finished putting on his equipment, Yeongwoo exited the private room and walked across the living room.

Jeonggu, with a slightly worried tone, asked his son’s back.

“So, should we stay in Gangnam for now?”

“Yes. I’ll be back before any mutants appear. I’m only going to Incheon for the achievement.”

Of course, China wasn’t the only country that would border Korea after Pangaea.

Japan, with which Korea had the worst relations, was also a concern.

However, letting mutants run rampant in Seoul was not an option, so it was best to just check out Incheon’s situation for now.

‘If it’s Japan… Busan will be the first to face them. I hope it’ll be okay.’

Busan.

The largest city in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula.

At this point, Yeongwoo could only hope that there would be someone as strong as him there.

Having a strong competitor within the country could be problematic, but it was still better than being overwhelmed by Japan.

“Well, I’m off. See you around lunchtime.”

As Yeongwoo waved his hand and left the room, Jeonggu gave half-joking advice.

“Don’t kill too many people, you’ll get divine punishment…!”

* * *

7:52 AM.

Eight minutes left until the end of the abnormal weather and the official start of day 6.

Yeongwoo had already arrived near Incheon after running west from the hotel without stopping.

Thanks to the abnormal weather, there were no people outside, allowing him to run freely.

‘Well… It doesn’t look any different. The city is clean.’

Looking around the metal-dust-covered, desolate landscape of Incheon, Yeongwoo headed towards the port.

The deserted city of Incheon looked no different from Seoul, making Yeongwoo think his father’s words were unfounded.

Most of the buildings in sight were intact, without any signs of destruction.

This meant that not only had no monsters rampaged here, but there also hadn’t been many mutants.

‘So… in some ways, it is rough?’

Yeongwoo thought that Incheon might be a harsh city for monsters and mutants to survive in.

Anyway, Yeongwoo, visiting Incheon for the first time, found it a strange city where, despite the reset, the buildings remained completely intact.

‘What’s this place? Is it really okay…?’

Just as he began recalling his father’s worries, he finally saw the towering silhouettes of cranes beyond the gray landscape.

They were the cranes scattered throughout Incheon Port.

He had finally arrived at the port.

Thud, thud!

Current time: 7:57 AM.

Despite the loud clattering of Negwig’s hooves, there was no sign of life nearby, and Yeongwoo entered Incheon Port.

Soon, he saw a large cargo ship docked at the end of the pier.

‘To witness the movement of the continents… I guess I should stay near the pier.’

Yeongwoo steered Negwig in the opposite direction of the cargo ship, towards another empty pier stretching out towards the sea.

‘So I just wait here? This feels weird.’

But there was no other option.

Besides, “Pangaea” was unprecedented in human history, so it was natural not to feel it even when standing at the pier.

Would the lands really merge?

If the continents were to connect as predicted, wouldn’t there be massive tsunamis and earthquakes accompanying the event?

“……”

Although Yeongwoo had signed an interstellar document, he still found himself thinking like an Earthling at moments like this.

After all, he was still more of an Earthling than an interstellar being.

And then, finally.

Beep-beep.

His wristwatch beeped, signaling that it was 8 AM.

“Oh.”

As soon as Yeongwoo looked at the watch, the metallic dust that had been surrounding the area disappeared without a trace, and soon after:

「Your strength has permanently increased by 100 due to the Furious Goblin.」

「The usage count of the Amber Whistle has been replenished.」

The notifications for the refreshable items appeared.

The sixth day of the reset had officially begun.

‘So, are the lands really going to merge now?’

Yeongwoo saw a large dotted line drawn along the outer edge of the pier.

And then immediately.

「Hello, this is a notification from the Council.」

The Council’s announcement, which he had seen the previous morning, reappeared.

But this time, with a slightly different message.

「As of 8 AM on June 16, 2025, Phase 3 of the reset begins.」

Then, the ground started to shake.

Rumble, rumble…!

“These crazy bastards, they’re really going to merge the lands.”

And just as Yeongwoo finished his statement:

Swoosh!

The waters around the pier surged violently, and an incredible event began to unfold.

Yeongjongdo Island, visible across the sea from the pier, started to move closer.

“…What?”

Then, the Yeongjong Bridge, which connected Incheon’s western district to Yeongjongdo, snapped entirely, making a deafening noise.

Crash!

“No way.”

Not expecting such a brute-force method of land merging, Yeongwoo took a few steps back from the pier.

In the meantime, Yeongjongdo had come much closer than before.

‘It feels like a ship is charging at me, not land.’

There was no tsunami as Yeongwoo had anticipated, but instead:

“Slow… slow down! Yeongjongdo…!”

Yeongjongdo showed no signs of slowing down as it rushed towards Incheon Port.

The distance between the two was now only 200 meters.

‘At this rate, there’ll be a disaster.’

Even though “Pangaea” was defying most of Earth’s physical laws, there was no way the pier could withstand the impact of such a landmass charging at it at that speed.

“Retreat. Retreat, Negwig!”

Seeing Yeongjongdo pass the 100-meter mark from the pier in an instant, Yeongwoo mounted Negwig and ordered a quick retreat from the pier.

The goblin and Pofu, who had been watching Yeongjongdo with covered mouths, quickly clung to Yeongwoo’s legs and climbed onto Negwig.

And at that moment.

Crash!

The eastern edge of Yeongjongdo collided with the pier Yeongwoo had just been standing on.

Crash!

“Holy shit, don’t they understand the concept of tectonic plates?”

Yeongwoo watched as an entire pier behind him got sucked under Yeongjongdo into the seawater.

It was such an unbelievable sight that he couldn’t tell if it was a dream or reality.

Then, the part of the harbor that had been crushed beneath the sea suddenly surfaced, stopping Yeongjongdo’s inland advance.

Boom!

“Huff, huff.”

Yeongwoo, who had been fleeing on Negwig to avoid the crazy Yeongjongdo, felt the vibrations behind him cease and came to a halt.

He saw Yeongjongdo, looking as if it had been in a car accident, and the half-crushed Incheon pier.

“Is this… connected?”

It felt more like they had crashed into each other rather than merged, but it seemed that the charging Yeongjongdo had finally stopped.

However,

‘The achievement isn’t complete yet?’

[Pangaea]

|Witness the movement of the continents at the moment of tectonic shifts.

The Pangaea achievement still appeared in his achievement list.

Apparently, he had witnessed the movement of an island, not a continent, so it didn’t count.

‘Wait, hold on. If that’s the case…’

As Yeongwoo, with a troubled expression, looked towards Yeongjongdo, the ground shook violently again.

Boom!

“……!”

Then,

Rumble, rumble!

This time, the ground beneath Yeongwoo in Incheon began to move.

It was moving together with Yeongjongdo, which was now right in front of it.

“What the… where are we going?”

Sensing that something even stranger was happening, Yeongwoo quickly turned Negwig’s head and crossed the boundary where Incheon Harbor’s pier had transformed into a low mountain range along with the eastern part of Yeongjongdo.

He saw the current along Yeongjongdo’s coast moving towards Incheon.

In other words, Incheon—no, possibly the entire Korean Peninsula—was moving.

‘Are we… heading towards China?’

That seemed to be the case.

Instead of China coming to connect with this place, the Korean Peninsula was moving towards the adjacent Chinese continent.

Just like how Yeongjongdo had crashed into Incheon Harbor.