The Regressed EX-Class Martial God Decided to Become a Thousand-Star Hunter - Chapter 3

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 3
Episode 3.
After the Day of Great Upheaval.
On Earth, anyone could become an Awakened One.
The method was simple.
Anywhere, anytime—all you had to do was speak the words “Dungeon entry” aloud.
Once you did, unless you specified a destination, you’d be placed in a Random Dungeon and assigned a Job Class.
Your Awakening would be complete.
Ju Do-gyeom was no exception.
『User Ju Do-gyeom, first Dungeon entry confirmed.』
『Job Class assignment completed.』
『Please check your Status Window for details.』
However, the Cannibal Demon’s Mansion that Ju Do-gyeom had chosen was not a Dungeon for newcomers.
To be more precise, it was a dungeon that proudly occupied a spot in the Hunter Community’s list of fifty worst Dungeons?
The Cannibal Demon’s Mansion was a troublesome dungeon that even veterans with years of experience avoided.
The reason Ju Do-gyeom chose the Cannibal Demon’s Mansion as his first entry Dungeon was because this was the pinpoint location to obtain the Heavenly Killing Star.
Even as a Regressor, he wasn’t invincible, so naturally he had something to rely on.
Specifically, the Dungeon’s Tutorial Mode.
Sure enough.
The moment Ju Do-gyeom opened his eyes, system messages flooded his mind one after another.
『System Authority Protection activated. Tutorial Mode engaged.』
『Enemy levels will be adjusted to match the user’s power.』
『For 10 minutes after the start, the Cannibal Demon will be unable to see you.』
Beginner’s special privilege.
Tutorial Mode for the first-entry Dungeon.
This was well-known knowledge, not just in the future but in the present as well.
Thanks to this, the otherwise excessively high difficulty of the Dungeon would have been significantly adjusted.
To a level even a newcomer fresh from entering the Dungeon could clear.
Of course, even with that, it wouldn’t be easy given that it ranked among the fifty worst Dungeons.
But from Ju Do-gyeom’s perspective as a Regressor?
‘A simple clear isn’t even a problem.’
Having confirmed this, Ju Do-gyeom’s eyes gleamed, and he first checked his condition.
He was naked.
Considering he was clearly wearing clothes when he shouted his Dungeon entry from home, it was startling—but this was a natural consequence of the Dungeon’s basic rules.
The Eight Commandments of Dungeons, the third one.
‘Nothing from the real world can be brought into the Dungeon.’
For reference, the fourth commandment is the opposite.
‘Items from the Dungeon can be taken into the real world. If they are Dungeon-generated items, they can be brought back into the Dungeon again.’
In short, Hunters playing Dungeons could only use items found within the Dungeon.
The saving grace was that somewhere near the starting point, there would be a Basic Supply Box.
This too was part of the Tutorial Mode beginner care system.
……
Without a word, Ju Do-gyeom sought it out.
In one corner of the Central Hall of the grand mansion, a small wooden box that looked somewhat out of place came into view.
He drew closer and opened it.
Inside were a dull gray short-sleeved shirt and shorts.
Ju Do-gyeom put them on immediately.
They likely had no special Stats or defensive effects, but they were better than wandering around naked.
After that, he checked his Status Window.
『Name: Ju Do-gyeom
Age: 26
Job Class: Universal Chef
Stats
Strength: E- Endurance: E Agility: F+』
Ju Do-gyeom’s eyebrows twitched as he stared at it.
Only three base Stats.
The pathetic Stat allocation compared to before his Regression, and so on.
The rest was without issue.
But the Job Class……
‘Universal Chef?’
A flicker of doubt took hold.
Before the Regression, when Ju Do-gyeom first entered the Dungeon, the Job Class he obtained was Martial Artist.
He had since developed his abilities, even evolving into a Martial God through his experience.
He had naturally assumed things would be no different after the Regression.
Even though Job Classes were randomly assigned, future Hunter researchers had determined that individual personality and capability influenced the outcome to some degree.
Yet somehow, the Martial Artist Job Class had suddenly transformed into Chef.
A light laugh had escaped him without his meaning it, but he soon nodded to himself.
Hadn’t he already learned this lesson with O Jin-seok?
That small actions could trigger unforeseen consequences.
Besides, he’d become a Hunter five years earlier than in his previous life.
A change in Job Class was hardly cause for alarm under such circumstances.
More than that—
‘My plan has no flaws regardless.’
From experience, he also knew that a Hunter’s Job Class couldn’t be judged by name alone.
‘This Chef role might prove surprisingly useful.’
Or perhaps there was some hidden piece waiting to be discovered.
The work would proceed as scheduled.
The decision was made.
Another system message materialized before him.
『Nine minutes remain before the Cannibal Demon detects your presence.』
A countdown.
Upon reading it, Ju Do-gyeom began moving with swift purpose.
First, he exited the Central Hall—whose ceiling soared impossibly high—and sought out the Kitchen.
The Mansion contained multiple kitchens.
Ju Do-gyeom chose the largest among them.
『Six minutes remain before the Cannibal Demon detects your presence.』
The ceiling here was equally lofty, though not beyond reach.
Ju Do-gyeom swept his gaze across the Kitchen once, taking in every detail.
Finding what he sought, his eyes gleamed with recognition.
He approached the spot and scaled the wall using both hands and feet.
『Three minutes remain before the Cannibal Demon detects your presence.』
Upon reaching the ceiling, he lifted a section of it.
Creak—!
A hidden hollow space above the ceiling was revealed.
Without hesitation, Ju Do-gyeom slipped inside, then replaced the ceiling panels behind him.
Darkness swallowed the light, yet the space above the ceiling was surprisingly vast—befitting such a sprawling, towering estate.
Ju Do-gyeom found a place to settle within.
More precisely, he crossed his legs into a meditation pose.
By then—
『Sixty seconds remain before the Cannibal Demon detects your presence.』
The protection time was drawing to a close.
Ju Do-gyeom paid the message little mind as he centered his consciousness and fell into the rhythm of breathing—in and out, in and out.
The operation of an Inner Energy Cultivation Method.
How much time passed in this manner?
Long after the safety period had completely expired—
The Inner Energy that had entered Ju Do-gyeom’s body through his breath completed its Full Circuit and settled at his Dantian, below his navel.
Once he had clearly registered this sensation—
Ju Do-gyeom opened his eyes.
A system message greeted him.
『Mana has been added to your System Stats. Current Rank: F-.』
『You have acquired the Skill: Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method (1-Star).』
‘Perfect.’
Seeing this, Ju Do-gyeom smiled and nodded.
* * *
Hunters, upon obtaining a Job Class, acquire Skills.
However, unlike in the web novels and light novels one might casually encounter, these Skills cannot be simply activated with a click and used effortlessly.
In this world, the acquisition of a Skill is—
To be precise, the knowledge of that Skill entering one’s mind.
Thus, the manner in which one employs a Skill must be mastered through one’s own effort.
And should one train in its use?
Your skill level rises.
Oh, and by the way, it’s possible to teach these skills to others.
You have to extract the knowledge from your mind and instruct them step by step with your own hands, and the talent of the person receiving it matters too, but still.
Before his Regression, Ju Do-gyeom had actually taught martial arts to quite a few people around him.
He’d even learned magic from Vivien.
Unfortunately, their level capped out at Class 1.
‘They simply had no aptitude for it.’
Still, he recalled being quite satisfied that they could at least manage to start fires in a pinch and create water to drink.
In any case.
Skills had a minimum level of 1 and a maximum of 10.
When a skill reached level 10, it was also called a Master Skill.
Martial arts skills were sometimes expressed with the character for “achievement” rather than level, though this distinction carried little real weight.
Naturally, before his Regression, Ju Do-gyeom had acquired numerous martial arts skills all the way to Master level.
Which was precisely why he’d been called the Martial God.
The explanation grew long, but to put it simply:
‘Ultimately, even if my Job Class is Universal Cook, as long as I have the knowledge in my mind, there’s nothing preventing me from learning martial arts.’
So he began by studying the most crucial Inner Energy Cultivation Method—the Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method.
For reference, that wasn’t possible on Earth.
The distant future.
At that far-off point where it becomes unclear whether Earth is a Dungeon or if the Dungeon is Earth, none of this will matter.
But at this point in time, skills could only be acquired within Dungeons.
* * *
The Inner Energy Cultivation Method that the Regressor Ju Do-gyeom acquired first: the Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method.
This was one of two foundational techniques needed to complete the Divine Technique Mastery called the Heavenly-Earthly Supreme Divine Method—something he’d used even when slaying the Demon King of Annihilation before his Regression.
Its characteristic was that Inner Energy grew very rapidly, and it was highly effective for controlling true energy.
Its stability was also the highest compared to other martial artists in the Hunter Community he’d observed.
And the other foundational technique, the Earthly Solidification Inner Energy Method?
It had no effect on Inner Energy.
Instead, the body became extremely robust.
Wound regeneration accelerated, and fatigue recovery came as a bonus effect as well.
This was the critical part.
To harness powerful Inner Energy, you needed a body strong enough to withstand that tremendous output.
Otherwise, you’d eventually collapse under the strain and die.
Thus, combining the two martial arts created the Heavenly-Earthly Supreme Divine Method.
A Divine Technique Mastery with a high starting point but an exceptionally elevated ceiling.
So Ju Do-gyeom, having prioritized acquiring the Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method,
followed immediately by acquiring the Earthly Solidification Inner Energy Method as well.
『You have acquired the skill: Earthly Solidification Inner Energy Method (1st Achievement).』
He couldn’t yet merge the two together.
For that, both martial arts needed to reach at least 5th Achievement.
Of these, Ju Do-gyeom chose to prioritize the Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method.
His body had already been trained to a certain degree on Earth, and he could continue that training,
but what mattered most to any Hunter was always Mana.
‘From a Martial Artist’s perspective, that’s Inner Energy.’
So for now, he would hide in here, focus on the Heavenly Purification Inner Energy Method, build up his Inner Energy, and wait for his moment.
Haste would be a mistake.
‘Even if it’s been set to Tutorial Mode, that Cannibal Demon won’t be easy to handle.’
Had someone known what Ju Do-gyeom was thinking at that moment, they would have been astonished.
And with reason—it was information available only from certain Dungeons: detailed Dungeon information.
Through it, the strategy for the Dungeon called Cannibal Demon’s Mansion was as follows:
〖Dungeon: Cannibal Demon’s Mansion
A mansion inhabited by a powerful Cannibal Demon.
Hide and wait for your moment, move quietly, and escape.
Below is the detailed information.
Find the Front Door Key hidden somewhere in the mansion—in the Study.
Avoid the Cannibal Demon’s sight and make your way back to the Central Hall of the mansion.
Use the key to open the front door, and the exit will open.
Rewards are granted immediately upon escape.
※Warning: Under no circumstances……, absolutely not, absolutely not, absolutely do not fight the Cannibal Demon. You will certainly be devoured.※〗
To put it simply:
The way to clear a dungeon was to find the key and escape.
Confronting the Cannibal Demon had been set as absolutely forbidden from the start.
Yet Ju Do-gyeom was considering a fight with the creature.
More precisely,
he was planning to overwhelm and utterly crush it.
If you asked why, there was only one answer.
It was simple.
‘It’s the only way to acquire the Heavenly Killing Star.’
There were no other options.
It was just as he thought this
that a loud bang rang out.
Someone wrenched open the kitchen door where he was hiding.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————