SPOILER ALERT. Information beyond this point is a reference to be used DURING NOT BEFORE reading.

Items:
1. Cargo Crates
• Small Standard Crate = 1 cubic meter (1x1x1, cube Shaped)
• Medium Standard Crate = 8 cubic meters (2x2x2, cube shaped)
• Large Standard Crate = 27 Cubic meters (3x3x3, cube shaped)
• Small Long Crate = 2 cubic meters (1x1x2, rectangular shaped)
• Medium Long Crate = 16 cubic meters (2x2x4, rectangular shaped)
• Large Long Crate = 54 cubic meters (3x3x6, rectangular shaped)
2. Rare materials
• Erethrium crystals = main component of shield generators, found only on magma planets that orbit close to type G stars
• Inanisite = primary material of stealth armor, main component of stealth components, only found on asteroids in a binary star system where the two stars are different types
• Diatitanite = primary material of grade 1-2 armors, only found on planets orbiting type O stars
• Hydroclaric gas = material that is refined into self-oxidizing ship grade fuel used for the propulsion of space craft, can be found on gas giants orbiting type K and M stars (rarely on planets orbiting type G stars)
• Hyper-Conducting Qualite crystal = main component in F.T.L. drives, only found on frozen planets orbiting White Dwarf Stars, Neutron Stars, and Pulsar Stars
• Mallacalite = primary material of grade 3-5 armors, only found on asteroids and planets orbiting Supergiant Stars
3. Clothing
• Under suit = skin tight "underwear" that covers the entire person except the hands, feet, and head
• Outer suit = loos fitting, air tight suit designed to keep the wearer alive in the void of space
• Armored suit = a modified Outer Suit with strategically placed armor plates so as to provide protection from the dangers of space while still allowing unrestrained movement
• Exoskeleton suit = light weight framework with motorized joints and fully covered with armor plating, air tightness varies with models
• Utility backpack = standard backpack woven from high durability synthetic fibers
• Armored backpack = standard backpack made fully out of metal plating


Tools:
• Standard multy tool = hand held (single hand) multy tool capable of material composition scanning, mining, and sealing/unsealing of crates
• Engineers multy tool = handheld (single hand) multy tool capable of damage scanning, welding, cutting, and general repair tasks 
• Medical multy tool = hand held (two hands) multy tool capable of injury scanning, closing of wounds, removal of toxins, and administering medication
• Military multy tool = arm mounted (both arms) multy tool capable of all action other multy tools are capable of


Weapons:
1. Weapon types
• Hand gun = small weapon that can fit in one hand, semi-automatic, clip size 2, can be laser
• Sub-machine gun = small weapon that can fit in one hand (recommended to use two), fully-automatic, clip size 3, can't be laser
• Shotgun = medium weapon held by two hands, semi-automatic, unique clip size (varies by weapon), can't be laser
• Standard rifle = medium weapon held by two hands, semi-automatic, clip size 3(can be swapped for clip size 4), can be laser
• Assault rifle = upgrade to the standard rifle to make it fully-automatic, can't be laser
• Light machine gun = large weapon held in two hands, fully-automatic, clip size 5, can't be laser
• Sniper rifle = large weapon held by two hands (possible use of bipod in prone position), semi-automatic, clip size 1, can be laser
• "Launcher" = large weapon held on the shoulder, fires one shot before each reload, projectiles do not explode, projectile size = ship size 1, can be laser (clip size 5)
2. Ammunition types
• Ballistic = Physical projectiles fired from an Electromagnetic Rail Gun, long range, high accuracy, low damage, clip size 1 = 5 projectiles, clip size 2 = 9 projectiles, clip size 3 = 15 projectiles, clip size 4 = 50 projectiles, clip size 5 = 100 projectiles
• Energy = Bolts of condensed energy fired from an energy weapon, medium range, medium accuracy, high damage, clip size 1 = 10 projectiles, clip size 2 = 20 projectiles, clip size 3 = 50 projectiles, clip size 4 = 100 projectiles, clip size 5 = 200 projectiles
• Laser = Sustained (will persist if the trigger is held down) laser beam fired from a laser weapon, short range, perfect accuracy (no drop), medium damage, clip size 1 = 10 seconds, clip size 2 = 30 seconds, clip size 3 = 60 seconds, clip size 4 = 120 seconds, clip size 5 = 300 seconds


Components:
1. Base components = consists of the crafts frame, wiring, piping, internal hull, active scanners (weaker scanner component that is always active), crew surfaces (anything the crew will directly interact with)
2. Size
• The size of components ranges from 1 to 10, 1 being the smallest, 10 being the largest, components follow the rule of three (three size 1 equals one size 2, three size 2 equals one size 3, etcetera…)
3. Types
• Engine = consumes uranium to generate power for the craft
• Shield generator = consumes power to surround the craft in an invisible one way barrier
• F.T.L. drive = consumes power to propel the craft at a speed faster than the speed of light in a single direction, range limited by size, must enter a cooldown sycle after every use, must be spooled for (sixe 1-2 = 3 seconds, size 3-4 = 5 seconds, size 5-7 = 7 seconds, size 8-10 = 10 seconds)
• Armor = the outer hull of the crat, size equals thickness ( size 1-3 X 2cm = thickness) (size 4-6 X 3cm = thickness) (size 7-10 X 4cm = thickness)
• Primary thrusters = thrusters on the craft that point towards the rear in order to propel the craft forwards, consumes ship grade fuel to provide propulsion
• Maneuvering thrusters = thrusters placed strategically in the hull of the craft that control the pitch, yaw, and roll of the craft, consumes ship grade fuel to provide propulsion, will always be at least one size smaller than the primary thrusters
• Scanner = a component that when used (not always active) will give information about the crafts surroundings, consumes power on use,  range and depth of detail of the scan determined by size of component
• Targeting system = multy function system with different functions depending on the type of weapons on the craft, if weapons are fixed = shows aim assist reticle that leads the selected target, if weapons are gimbaled = auto aims the weapons at selected target, it weapons are turreted = controls auto turrets to fire at selected target
• Battery = stores power equal to one fourth of the total output of an equivalent sized engine
• Stealth system = consumes power to constantly mask the emissions of the craft making it harder for systems no notice the crafts presence
• Stealth armor = modified standard armor by adding Inanisite during the armors production there by reducing its durability but greatly reducing the crafts ability to be detected
• Fixed weapons = weapons attached to the craft directly, the on way to aim the weapons is to move the ship accordingly, will match the crafts weapon size
• Gimbaled weapons = weapons attached to the craft through moving joints, can move in a fixed arc (depending on the craft and placement on said craft), will be one size lower than the crafts weapon size 
• Turreted weapons = weapons mounted on a turret, comes in two variants = maned, auto, auto turrets require Targeting system to function
• S.S.C.N.H. = Sub-Space Communications Network Hub allows for long range coms use in non-controlled star systems and during F.T.L. travel, only available in sizes 3,5,7,10
3. Grades
• Basic = the base components that come equipped to a ship, can be purchased after market, three needed to equal one larger size component, average price equivalent to $10,000 X size
• Advanced = aftermarket parts created with higher grade processes, two needed to equal one larger size component, average price equivalent to $20,000 X size
• Military = parts recovered from old humanity military ships, sold only by players, one needed to equal one larger size component, average price equivalent to $30,000 X size
• Stealth = upgrade to a Basic part to mask its emissions making it harder to detect, can be purchased after market, three needed to equal one larger size component, average price equivalent to $15,000 X size
• Advanced stealth = upgrade to a Military part to mask its emissions making it harder to detect, only sold by players, one needed to equal one larger size component, average price equivalent to $35,000 X size
4. Weapons
• "Gun" = standard weapon mounted on a craft, can use any ammo type, average fire rate of 60-120 rounds per minute (1-1.5 rounds per second)
• Cannon = high powered version of the Standard Gun, ballistic and energy only, average fire rate of 30-60 rounds per minute (.5-1 rounds per second)
• Mini-gun = multy barreled version of the Standard Gun, ballistic and energy only, average fire rate of 180-300 rounds per minute (3-5 rounds per second)


Ship Types:
Size 1:
1. Fighters
• Light = Single person, enters cockpit from exterior of craft (cockpit opens like a hatch), no interior space, components accessed from craft exterior, size 1-2 components (size 2 thrusters occasionally), size 1 weapons, price = $30,000-$50,000
• Medium = 1-2 Persons, enters cockpit from exterior of craft (cockpit opens like a hatch), no interior space, components accessed from craft exterior, size 1-2 components, size 1-3 weapons, price = $50,000-$75,000
• Heavy = 1-2 persons, enters cockpit from exterior of craft (cockpit opens like a hatch), no interior space, components accessed from craft exterior, size 1-2 components (size 3 occasionally), size 2-3 weapons,  price = $80,000-$110,000
Size 2:
1. "Ships"
• Small = 1-3 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew not required), components accessed from interior/exterior of ship, size 1-3 components, size 2-3 weapons, price = $100,000-$400,000
• Medium = 1-5 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew not required), components accessed from interior/exterior of ship, size 2-3 components, size 2-3 weapons, price = $500,000-$800,000
• Large = 3-5 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew not required), components accessed from interior/exterior of ship, size 2-4 components, size 2-3 weapons, price = $750,000-$1,200,000
Size 3:
1. Corvettes
• 5-12 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew not required but common), components accessed from interior of ship, size 3-5 components, size 2-4 weapons, price = $1,000,000-$10,000,000
Size 4:
1. Frigates
• 10-25 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew required), components accessed from interior of ship, size 4-6 components, size 3-6 weapons (size 5 maximum for turrets), price = $7,000,000-$30,000,000
Size 5:
1. Cruisers
• 15-50 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew required), components accessed from interior of ship, size 4-7 components, size 4-7 weapons, price = $20,000,000-$90,000,000
Size 6:
1. Capital Ships
• 30-100 persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew required), components accessed from interior of ship, size 5-9 components, size 3-9 weapons, price = $50,000,000-$500,000,000
Size 7:
1. Dreadnaughts
• 100+ persons, interior space for crew (living quarters for crew required), components accessed from interior of ship, size 7-10 components, size 5-10 weapons, price = $500,000,000-$10,000,000,000

Elves and magic, fancy swords and shiny armor, and the most over used tropes seem to make up every MMO game on the market today. Humanities Homecoming: Retaking Earth is not like all those games. Terrans are on the brink of extinction and Kevin Yore, just like all the other VRMMO players out there, are diving in to do their best to reverse this fate and save their kind. 

Kevin might not be the smartest, strongest, fastest, or even luckiest person. In fact, he might just be an average person. No System. No Fortunate encounter. No memories of a past life. Just an average guy making a mark on the world with the only thing he believes himself to be good at, video games. 

Will you join him in his adventures of the Milky Way Galaxy? Will you curse him when he makes a stupid mistake? Will you cheer for him when he survives that harrowing brush with death? Or as Kevin would say “will you sit on your pampered a** and watch a great experience pass you by?”


The fluorescent light of the computer was shining upon Pi's face, and its clip-on glasses were glowing from the metal, made of an unknown material.
It lightly pressed on the keys one after another on the keyboard, out of fear of disturbing the other's rest. Since its typing speed couldn't keep up with the speed of its thinking, the progress of its writing had inevitably been slowed down. But it had no other choice. 
In the dead of night, even the fan sound from the laptop was particularly harsh. From time to time, Pi tilted its head to look around the bedroom and see if it had disturbed Zhang Zian or the other elves.
After Zhang Zian and Snowy Lionet finished their argument, silence returned to the room. Because of its night blindness, Richard, who had always been nosey, couldn't participate in their conversation. 
Old Time Tea always slept soundly, like it could stay asleep even if Mount Tai were to collapse over its head. 
Galaxy looked at Pi once and closed its eyes again, lying in the crib safely and covered by the soft moonlight.
Pi and Fina looked each other in the eyes but quickly looked away.
Fina, who had slept enough during the day, didn't feel drowsy at all in the evening, and its majestic green eyes were glancing around the room.
Famous was still awake. Turning and tossing restlessly on its blanket, it was still looking forward to the grand premiere of the movie. A small night light at its spot provided a little dim light for it. 
After arriving at the pet shop, Pi had gradually become accustomed to such evenings. Almost every night before going to sleep, a certain elfin, usually Snowy Lionet or Richard, would make a scene, as if it were some kind of ritual before sleeping. 
Pi tried to ignore Fina's awe-inspiring gaze and focused on the screen in front of it, thinking about the following storyline of its novel. 
After a while, the lower right corner of the screen indicated that it was 11 pm.
Pi suddenly felt relieved. Firstly, it had almost finished writing that day's chapters. And secondly, Fina's gaze was finally gone.
Snowy Lionet started to smack its lips. Old Time Tea snored from time to time. Famous kicked like it was having a nightmare, but it didn't wake up. 
From this time on, the night had truly overtaken the pet shop.
As the only awake elfin on the second floor, Pi was extremely pleased.
It yawned, took off its clip-on glasses and rubbed its aching and sore eyes before putting the glasses back on its nose. The words on the screen looked the same because the glasses did not actually have any degrees. It wore the glasses just to clearly read the words in the untitled book. 
In fact, Pi didn't want to stay up late, but for some reason, in the dead of night, its thinking was always exceptionally smoother, and the plots that baffled it during the day made sense to it during the night. As a famous saying goes, inspiration was just like a ghost; they both liked haunting in the night.
When Pi yawned for the second time, it finished writing that day's chapters and uploaded them.
When uploading the new chapters, it was inevitable for Pi to see the number of people who had added the novel to their libraries. 58 people had. The excitement of being immersed in its past stories was suddenly wiped away, after seeing such a number. 
Some authors liked to write something and communicate with the readers at the end of the chapters, but Pi had never done so because it didn't know if anyone was actually reading its novel. Although 58 readers had added the novel to their libraries, Pi felt that these people hadn't really read it. The empty comment section was the most obvious proof.
It moved the mouse to the "Publish" button but didn't press it yet. As if it had suddenly thought of something, Pi wrote in the "Message from Author" section at the end of a chapter: I don't know if anyone is reading this novel. Can anyone who has read this message please say something in the comment section?
After writing the message, it pressed the "Publish" button quickly, as if it would regret its decision if it hesitated. 
Would anyone say anything tomorrow?
It didn't hold any hope for this. It felt like its heart had become a cold stone and was constantly falling into an endless void.
Pi closed the Word document, turned off the computer, removed its glasses, and placed it on the untitled book. Then, it jumped onto the hammock chair. 
Although it had tried to move as quiet as possible, the chair still squeaked lightly, and slightly swayed back and forth. That was how the chair was designed. 
Pi held its breath nervously, cocked its ears, and listened to the sounds of the room.
Old Time Tea's snoring paused a little bit and resumed, while the sleep of other elves seemed not to have been affected.
Pi felt relieved. Finally, it could go to sleep, and it wished it could at least have sweet dreams. 
However, reality was not what it expected. 
As soon as it closed its eyes, the Word document and the stories that it had written earlier appeared before its eyes. The events that took place before it arrived at the pet shop projected in its mind, one by one. 
How interesting!
Eyes still closed, it smiled. How nice if I could come here a little earlier.
After a while, about at 11:30 or so, Pi, who had not yet fallen asleep, suddenly heard some slight rubbing sounds from the bedroom.
Was Snowy Lionet teasing Zhang Zian again? No matter what, it was too late at this point. If they were too loud and woke Fina up, Fina would surely be furious.
Pi opened its eyes to look around the room. To its surprise, what it saw was not Snowy Lionet's blue eyes, but was the light from Zhang Zian's cell phone screen. 
Was he not asleep so late in the night? Or was he just looking at the time?
He did look at the time and then turned his neck as if looking to in the direction of the desk. Pi quickly leaned its head back into the hammock chair.
After a moment, it quietly stuck its head back out and saw that Zhang Zian was still holding his cell phone. His cell phone screen had become the main light source in the room, so he probably didn't notice that Pi was watching him in the darkness.
Zhang Zian had not fallen back asleep after lying down. On one hand, he was guarding himself against an attack from Snowy Lionet. On the other hand, he wanted to go to sleep only after Pi had fallen asleep. When he heard that the sound of the computer fan disappeared, he wanted to go to sleep, but his drowsiness had already vanished. After staying in bed for a while, he picked up his cell phone. 
He opened up the Qidian app and found some novels with 100,000 to 200,000 words, ones with better performance on the website, and quickly began to browse the beginning parts of those books. 
Honestly, he could barely immerse himself into the stories, ones where the storylines were too straightforward and had no logic. Maybe he'd passed the age of reading for these kinds of books, but he knew that if he wanted progress and success, he must focus on learning the merits from others rather than criticizing other people's defects. Therefore, he tried his best to keep reading the books with patience and perseverance.
The room was quiet, except for the breathing of the elves all around. This made Zhang Zian feel at ease.
His drowsiness came back while he was reading these books. Several times, he unknowingly started to fall asleep, and his hand that was holding the phone lowered down. Then, he would wake up abruptly and continue reading. 
The time passed slowly, and it was past one in the night.
He knew that he should go to sleep now, or he else he would be very sleepy during the day tomorrow. He repeatedly told himself that he would go to sleep after reading the next book. However, he kept reading one after the other.
He only browsed the first 100,000 words, which were the first 40 or 50 chapters of each novel, at a very rapid speed. He didn't need to interpret the plots of the books, he was just looking for the best parts among the choices of words and sentences. 
Compared to the text, he actually preferred reading the messages from the authors. Whether they were expressing gratitude or complaining, these messages documented the thoughts of the authors in the process of their writing. Although he had never met the authors whose novels didn't do well on the website, he particularly empathized with them. 
After reading another book, he was extremely sleepy. When he looked at the time on his mobile phone, it was already past two in the morning and he was only four hours away from getting up. He would be exhausted during the day. Should he go to sleep then?
But there was only one book left in his library. He hesitated for half a second and decided to sleep after reading this final book. It was probably his OCD causing himself trouble. 
This was an urban novel named Diplomats of the Underworld. The tags of the novel were hilarious, rebirth, and ghosts. Honestly speaking, this novel had nothing in common with the book written by Pi. But it was published half a month earlier than Pi's novel and had currently uploaded less than 200,000 words, but nearly 10,000 readers had added it into their libraries. It must have some perks making it so attractive. 
Since there was only one book left, he motivated himself to stay focused and opened the novel.
The plot of the novel was roughly about the protagonist being reborn for some reason. Not only had he been reborn, but he had also gained an extra system in his head that enabled him to communicate with ghosts. The system assigned him to kill the evil spirits and wicked people, and he would be rewarded with equipment if he fulfilled his tasks.
The novel's word choices and expressions were somewhat awkward and there were many typos, but at least it wasn't boring. He read the novel chapter by chapter, and when it was nearly three in the morning, he'd already read 50 chapters and about 100,000 words. Normally, he would have switched and read the next novel by the time he'd reached these many words. However, this was the only novel left in his library, so he decided to read ten more chapters. Besides, he hadn't found the highlights of the novel yet. If it had no great parts, how did it become successful?
If he still couldn't find any highlights after reading ten more chapters, he would go to sleep. He decided that he could stay up no longer.
When he read Chapter 57, the finger that had been swiping the screen to turn pages abruptly froze. 
At the end of Chapter 57, the author complained that he'd been writing the novel for a month, but the performance of his book wasn't good. One part among the writing had deeply touched Zhang Zian. 
I've been preparing this book for a long time. Having no sense of shame at all, I want to say that I have been hoping to rock the web novel community with this novel. I feel so upset that my novel has not gained any recognition or opportunities.
Zhang Zian could feel the author's resentment from this. Meanwhile, he still was curious. When the author wrote Chapter 57 of this novel, its performance was doing poorly, but currently, it was doing quite well. What had happened during this period?
He continued reading the book.
The answer was revealed two chapters later.
At the end of Chapter 59, the author wrote this:
I'm not sure how to say it, but my mood has been on a rollercoaster the whole day. To be exact, this began early in the morning yesterday. After talking with Morning Gorilla Star in the comment section, he included my novel in his reading list. Since he has so many friends, there are many people who follow his reading list. More readers have begun to notice my books. Thanks to those who have included my novel in their reading lists.
What was going on?
Zhang Zian had a flicker of interest. This was the second time he saw the term reading list. The first time he saw it was on the Wang Haige Forum. At that time, someone responded to a post and said that it was useless to advertise in the comment section, but it was useful to advertise in reading lists. 
The situation of the novel had gotten better after only two chapters?
He wasn't in the mood to read plots he wasn't interested in. He quickly scrolled to the later parts of the novel. In Chapter 84, he saw that 5,000 readers had put this novel into their libraries, while at Chapter 59, that number was less than 1,000.
Things had changed tremendously in only 25 chapters.
That was how it happened then. Reading lists could really turn something bad to good and make more people notice their novel. However, if the authors of novels wanted the creators of reading lists to notice their novels and include them in the reading lists, the authors must advertise their books in reading lists first. 
What exactly was a reading list and why was it so powerful?
So the person named Morning Gorilla Star was probably a creator of a reading list?
Zhang Zian's brain was weakened by extreme drowsiness. He stared at the dark ceiling and thought for a while, but he had no clue in the end. It would be better for him to think about the matter when he woke up in the morning.
Scared that he would forget about it when he woke up, he added a bookmark to Chapter 59. After that, he put his cell phone under his pillow, closed his eyes, and quickly fell asleep.
After the light of the mobile phone's screen went out, the room was once again filled with darkness. The only light source was the dim night light near Famous.
Zhang Zian had been very careful while reading the books, thinking that he'd better not make any noises to disturb the sleep of the elves. Still, some elves had woken up once and a certain elfin had never slept.
For a few hours, Pi watched him in the dark. Unlike Galaxy, Fina, Old Time Tea or Snowy Lionet, its eyes did not glow in the dark because it did not have tapetum lucidum behind its retinas. But it also wasn't as blind as Richard in the dark. No one had noticed its open eyes. 
From the side of the hammock chair, Pi exposed half of its head and saw that the glows of several pairs of eyes appeared and disappeared. Zhang Zian's brow furrowed and stretched in front of his cell phone screen, and the moonlight quietly changed its angle as time passed.
It's time to sleep. Many times, Pi wanted to remind Zhang Zian to go to sleep. You have to get up so early in the morning, and then you need to carry out the heavy cleaning work, apply for loans from the bank, discuss the decoration of the shoe store with the construction team, and deal with all kinds of difficult customers. If you don't sleep well, you'll be very sleepy.
But Pi didn't tell Zhang Zian this because it couldn't speak. Since the computer was turned off, it couldn't type either. But the most important reason that it did not remind Zhang Zian was because it needed to bite on its wrist to stop from crying out loud.
Why?
Why not just tell me to give up? Isn't that simpler?
There are so many more important things than my novel that you need to attend to. For example, Galaxy is still afraid of human beings, Fina is keeping its thoughts to itself, Old Time Tea is getting old, Snowy Lionet always likes to pull pranks on you, Richard doesn't want to love anymore, and Famous is still stuck in another world.
Why did you spend time on my novel that is bound to fail?
Why...did you spend time on me?
Pi's canine teeth had already left four deep teeth marks on its arm. It pulled back its head and pulled up the blanket to cover itself, crouching in the chair like a baby in the arms of its mother. 
As the chair slightly squeaked, several pairs of eyes opened and glowed. Then, the glows went out as the cat elves closed their eyes.
The dead of night.


1. Download a suspicious game
2. Catch a few magical pets as partners
3. Go through interesting daily routines and lead the pet shop to a whole new level

After a few minutes of waiting, a man wearing a pair of sunglasses, a hat, a dark green coat, and a scarf covering the lower half of his face came into the cafe and sat opposite Han Xiao. He placed the metal suitcase that he was carrying on the table, looked at Han Xiao, and did not say a word.
The seller knew that the buyer was Black Phantom, but Han Xiao was using a different face.
Han Xiao and the seller stared at each other for a while and confirmed the other party's identity in silence—strangers would not have stared at each other for this long without saying a word. The seller entered the passcode and turned the open suitcase toward Han Xiao.
Inside the suitcase was a doughnut-shaped small device with its wires exposed outside. The exterior was coated in metal, with an intruding cylinder in the cross section and dim red lights flashing through the gaps. This was the Mini Bonfire Reaction Furnace, an energy core that was able to generate electricity automatically from solar and condensed fuel. It was also a piece of superhuman equipment as energy could be turned into fuel as a power source.
A rechargeable battery was a core material for mechanical suits; it eliminated the need and trouble of battery supplies.
Just imagine having to change batteries in the middle of a fight.
Han Xiao confirmed it was the real thing with his hands, took out his laptop, sent the money to the seller in a flash, and immediately said, "Run!"
Without waiting for the seller's reaction, Han Xiao shoved the Mini Bonfire Reaction Furnace into his backpack and stood up suddenly, he took out his Berserk Eagle and shot many times at the people that he had previously confirmed to be monitoring him.
Ordina agents took action as soon as the deal was completed, but Han Xiao was a second quicker, he had the upper hand!
The firepower within ten meters from a gun with such high caliber was comparable to a sniper, so all the monitoring agents who got shot flew backwards.
Although the agents were well trained and wore bulletproof vests, they were just normal soldiers. On the other hand, Han Xiao was a LV 55 Mechanic, so his guns were strengthened, and he had all kinds of skills that further increased their power. One shot was enough to make the agents lose their fighting ability and put them in a critically injured state.
Without any hesitation, the seller broke through the floor-to-ceiling window and ran with all his might. He was a superhuman, too, as he covered a few meters each step he took.
To divert the numbers of the enemy, Han Xiao ran in another direction.
"Damn it, who is this buyer!" The Ordina mission commander burst into a rage as he did not expect the buyer to be strong enough to notice the danger beforehand. This had caused the plan to be interrupted. He ordered the agents and the soldiers to split up to chase them separately. 
Han Xiao splashed water across the streets as he dashed across the puddles with high speed.
As countless footsteps closed in on Han Xiao, agents appeared from the streets around and started shooting at him. The people on the street ran away screaming.
The magnetically-controlled retractable armor that Han Xiao had just equipped reflected the bullets away. He slid across the battlefield with a gun in both hands and shot at any agent who exposed their head. Naturally, he did not miss a single shot.
Suddenly, Han Xiao felt a pull on his feet. He looked down and saw something water-like wrapping around his calf, slowing down his speed.
Glancing at the information of the enemy on the interface, Han Xiao saw that it was an Esper around LV 30.
As Han Xiao's speed slowed down, two Pugilist agents used the opportunity to dash out from the roadside and started attacking him with energy covered fists and legs.
The flames vaporized the rain and created a white fog, which obstructed the view of the agents.
Han Xiao has no intention of fighting in Ordina against their own agents, so he tore apart the water wrapped around his calves by turning his Electromagnetic Hover-boots to full capacity and backed away from the enemy Esper controlled area as quickly as he could.
It was at this moment that he heard the sound of engines as two enormous black police vehicles dashed out from the intersection. The vehicles splashed the water in an arc with a drift and stopped in front of Han Xiao, facing him sideways and blocking the path.
High caliber guns extended out from inside the windows as they rolled down and shot Han Xiao at the same time. The firepower was so strong that it created sparkles out of the muzzle for an astonishing half meter.
As the bullets expanded in his sight, Han Xiao got hit head-on. These guns were high caliber assault rifles, and some of them were shotguns that had knock-back effects. Although he had armor on, he still stumbled from the bullets.
Information of the enemies appeared on the interface; they were Ordina's Special Operations Unit.
Han Xiao made a sharp change in direction and slid over the roofs of the two vehicles with his Electromagnetic Hover-boots. The soldiers in the vehicles alighted hastily to fire at him, but the bullets could not catch up to him and left a trail of holes on the walls of the building. Han Xiao took out a sonic grenade, pulled out the pin with his teeth, and threw it in between the vehicles.
The soldiers split out hurriedly, trying to find cover, but the sound waves from the sonic boom were not obstructed by their cover. The force spread out, and the entire special units fainted immediately. Han Xiao burst their tires and left at a stroll.
Ordina had a lot of men around the area. No matter how Han Xiao tried to get rid of the pursuit, there will always be another car at the front of his path. He shot down the traffic cams, took detours, used his Electromagnetic Hover-boots to climb over walls and buildings, outran the soldiers time and time again, but there were always cars stopping him.
How were they able to always find me? Han Xiao thought, then suddenly, he realized something. As he turned back to look up the sky while sliding, he discovered three drones that were following him. No wonder they knew where he was!
He took out Red Falcon and shot them down with one bullet each.
Ordina's mission commander bashed the table in anger. The other team had already lost the seller. Han Xiao was the only target left, but he was too difficult for his men to catch.
"Mag, take him down!"
…
Having successfully escaped from the last few cars, Han Xiao jumped across the gaps between buildings and looked for a hidden place to change his face and clothes. Suddenly, bullets from a shotgun exploded on his back as smoke and flames broke out.
Han Xiao got knocked straight into the wall, and shattered bricks fell to the floor.
The close range explosion had made Han Xiao lose his hearing for a little. He got rid of the dust on his head and looked up with a frown. A man was standing at the top of a building. He had all kinds of equipment on him—a bulletproof vest, waterproof clip belts, four handguns around his waist and thighs, a sniper rifle and two different assault rifles hanging behind his back, and a shotgun in his hands with smoke coming out of the muzzle.
The damage from one shot exceeded the damage of common firearms. Han Xiao looked at the interface, and surprise appeared on his face.
A Cannon Master?
_____________________
You have entered combat. You have received the following information.
_____________________
Mag · Lesley
Level: 56
Class: [Agent Lv10], [Elite Agent Lv9], [Eagle-Eye Shooter Lv11], [Novice Mechanic Lv10], [Cannon Master Apprentice Lv10], [Cannon Master Trainee Lv6]
Attributes: 54 STR, 131 DEX, 65 END, 146 INT, 17 MYS, 11 CHA, 13 LUK.
Health: 1900/1900
Stamina: 940
Energy: 1230
Abilities:
- Well Trained: +100 Health
- Strengthened Body: +400 Heath, +4% Abnormality Resistance
- Sharp Eyesight: Increased field of vision, +20% Accuracy, +13% Ranged Critical Chance
- Mechanical Professional: +18% Damage When Using Mechanical Weapon
- Gun Master: +1% Ranged Damage per 5 Dexterity
Skills:
[Explosive Shooting Lv5]
[Moving Snipe Lv4]
[Cannons and Flames Lv2]
[Pouring Ammunition Lv3]
[Basic Shooting Lv10]
[Accurate Shooting Lv8]
[Suppressed fire Lv5]
[Eagle-Eye Target Lock Lv1]
[Intermediate Machinery Affinity Lv8]
[Extra Clip Capacity Lv5]
Equipment:
[RX-108 Assault Rifle]
Grade: White
Damage: 41 – 48
Fire Rate: 5.6/s
Active Range: 380m
Clip Capacity: 30
Power Output: 41
["Butcher" Assault Rifle]
Grade: Green
Damage: 71 – 85
Fire Rate: 3.4/s
Maximum Fire Rate: 5.7/s
Active Range: 350m
Clip Capacity: 24
Power Output: 49
["Tiger Claw" Shotgun]
Grade: Green
Damage: 20 – 187
Fire Rate: 1.5/s
Maximum Damage Range: 10m, damage decreases as range increases
Clip Capacity: 8
Power Output: 48
[Synthetic Ceramic Bulletproof Vest]
Grade: Green
Ranged Defense: 24 – 26
Durability: 560
[Pox Handgun]
Grade: While
Damage: 34 – 40
Fire Rate: 2.5/s
Active Range: 80m
Clip Capacity: 12
Power Output: 28
[Grappling Hook Gun]
Description: Shoots a grappling hook
Range: 20m


What do you do when you wake up and find yourself inside the very game that you love? 
What do you do when you realize you that you have not only become an NPC - you have even been thrown back in time to before the game even launched! 
What will happen when our protagonist's two realities coincide? 
Han Xiao was a professional power leveler before his transmigration. Using his past life's knowledge, Han Xiao sweeps through the universe as he prepares for the arrival of the players. This is definitely not your typical transmigration novel.

An Chouchou faced the mirror, looking at the figure in it. A look of satisfaction flashed across his face.
He had come forward personally, not hesitating to take risks, in order to express his sincerity. To form an alliance with Central Pine Valley was, for Newlight City, a game of chess, of life and death. To date, despite Newlight City’s development, it was unable to get rid of its status as a big but powerless city. It had the most people but lacked powerful players. It had the most craftsmen, but they weren’t highly skilled.
Everything was related to new citizens. In the past, in Avalon of Five Elements, new citizens were of lower-middle class. While they had a great number, they lacked accumulation. Aristocrats were the exact opposite. They were small in number but wealthy, had inheritance and profound accumulation.
And Central Pine Valley was like an enormous treasure chest!
Be it pagoda cannons, snow lava, or the Pinwheel Sword, they all had An Chouchou drooling with desire.
Especially snow lava. If he could just get its recipe, Newlight City would undergo a complete transformation and it would be able to make up for its biggest weakness.
As long as Central Pine Valley became Newlight City’s ally, the latter would be in control of the situation. Central Pine Valley was powerful indeed, but they had too few people. In time, Ai Hui and gang would find themselves being outnumbered, ultimately needing to join Newlight City to become new citizens or lose their controlling power.
It was an open conspiracy.
Because Newlight City was Ai Hui’s only choice.
Forming an alliance with Skyheart City? The disparity in abilities of both parties was simply too huge, such that Skyheart City could effortlessly swallow up Central Pine Valley. An Chouchou was even convinced that if Master’s Glory was a success, the first batch of Masters would be ordered by Madam Ye to first target Central Pine Valley and not Newlight City.
Destroying Central Pine Valley and gaining ownership of snow lava would mean that whether she threw it aside or used it, Madam Ye would be able to sleep peacefully at night.
An Chouchou had even more inside information. He knew that Master’s Glory was Madam Ye’s real foundation. For it, she had even put her own son inside. Anything that could threaten Master’s Glory in the slightest was a thorn in her flesh.
Ai Hui, who was able to create snow lava, should be buried in the loess.
An Chouchou studied Ai Hui before. No matter the time, Ai Hui was able to recognize the state of affairs. It seemed that he was especially able to seek opportunities amid despair. He never pinned his faith on luck and his hope on others.
This was an intelligent and pragmatic young man.
An Chouchou pushed open the windows and saw a descending Pinwheel Sword.
He walked out, full of confidence.
Those in the Pinwheel Sword, which had just landed, were absorbing the sights of Fishback City. In all honesty, Fishback City was small and ugly, but there was only respect on their faces.
Because this city was built single-handedly by an earth elementalist.
Just this fact alone was sufficient to evoke veneration and admiration.
Wen Yongmin and the other reporters started recording. They hadn’t forgotten about their job and definitely weren’t going to waste such a rare opportunity. No one knew what was up with Ai Hui and why he would actually invite them over.
Some adaptable reporters were already wondering if they could get a chance to apply for a tour around Central Pine Valley.
In Beyond Avalon, Central Pine Valley was simply too mysterious, and it was said that even Qiao Meiqi hasn’t been inside. It was a restricted area.
Some people were admiring the galaxy of talent within Central Pine Valley and the fact that yet another earth elementalist Master had been born. Central Pine Valley was like a treasure land with good feng shui, consistently producing capable talents.
"I heard that they’re all survivors from Central Pine City."
"Sometimes we really gotta admit that marvelous things do happen. Look at them. Survivors of Central Pine City uniting to form a pool of great talents."
"Yeah. Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, Qian Dai, Wang Xiaoshan, and Lu Mingxiu. Five Masters… heaven really is spoiling the Central Pine Faction."
"One is bound for good fortune upon surviving a great disaster."
...
Ai Hui heard people gasping from afar, and in that instant it was as if he’d been isolated from the world. To those people, they were already being regarded as talents. In the past, who would have thought that Fatty, who was lazy, unreliable, and needed Lou Lan to supervise his daily training, would’ve accomplished this much. Also, other than playing with mud, Wang Xiaoshan had no other skills, and he even felt guilty for not being able to contribute to the team.
Iron Lady had always been that brilliant and lofty Iron Lady.
And himself? He was a pauper who had to clean up the training hall and even owed his mistress a large sum of money. He made daily visits to the Suspending Golden Pagoda to temper his body and would be very happy whenever he managed to earn a little bit of money. At that time he hadn’t known Lou Lan for long and Teacher and Mistress were still alive…
His thoughts grew further and further away into the olden days of the gentle and warm sunshine.
"Boss, the people are here."
Gu Xuan’s words pulled him back to reality. Behind that fresh, red crystallic sheet, a faint trace of tenderness and sorrow flashed across his eyes before he regained calmness.
Qiao Meiqi came over, asking, "What happened exactly, my boy? Why such a big troop?"
Ai Hui smiled slightly. "You’ll know soon."
Coincidentally, An Chouchou came over and called out with a smile, "Mayor Qiao!"
Somewhat puzzled, Qiao Meiqi asked, "This is?"
Ai Hui introduced, "Newlight City, An Chouchou."
Qiao Meiqi’s face changed. He was overwhelmed with shock, countless thoughts rolling within his mind. Even though he had been doing business for a long time and was extremely experienced, his mind went black and he actually forgot to greet An Chouchou.
An Chouchou chuckled without getting angry. He was somewhat pleased.
He raised his head slightly, a confident smile appearing on his face.
An Chouchou’s identity was quickly revealed to the rest, and those present cried out in surprise. They looked doubtfully at An Chouchou and Ai Hui, wondering to themselves what was going to happen that day.
Wen Yongmin and the other reporters were busy recording. They had a feeling that a piece of sensational news was about to arrive!
Central Pine Valley, a few miles away from Fishback City, was in a frenzy at that moment.
The members of Sword of Lightning and all the children had been mobilized. They were working hard under the command of mini Lou Lans, who covered the mountains and plains. Mini Lou Lans waved their little flags, running here and there and occasionally shouting in their high voices.
"Go, go! Everyone go!"
Some had stern faces as they stood at the end of a moat, gesturing and instructing in a serious tone.
"Here, here, not aligned!"
"Not deep enough, a foot short!"
Others floated in the sky, forming different words made of sand.
"Work harder, everyone, we’re about to finish!"
"Thanks for the hard work, everybody!"
A white light ray, unique to White Cluster Flames, illuminated Blind He’s expressionless face. The eye on his palm emitted a golden light that shot onto the materials that were piled like a mountain. By his feet lied a freshly casted component. Its red glow had yet to fade and it was emitting hot steam.
Su Qingye asked in a low voice, while burying his head in work, "Know what this is for?"
Hua Xiaoyun bit her lips, answering softly, "No idea. Teacher Dou refused to answer! You got news?"
Among the many children, Teacher Dou doted on the sensible and adorable Hua Xiaoyun the most and was much more strict toward boys. Mischievous ones would definitely get caned, but when Hua Xiaoyun made a mistake, he would just laugh it off.
Zhou Wen added, "Why do you ask so much? Just do what you’re told."
Su Qingye knew Zhou Wen’s character well. Without getting angry, he said, "From what I see, something big’s about to happen! What do you say, Little An?"
Wei An was brought back by Ai Hui and could be considered his student. Wei An was naturally cautious, different from the three kids who had been following Ai Hui for many years. Ai Hui didn’t have time to guide him, so Wei An felt slightly lost. "I… I don’t know."
"Don’t bully Little An!" Hua Xiaoyun glared at Su Qingye. Wei An’s awkwardness and uneasiness had evoked the kind-hearted Hua Xiaoyun’s sympathy. She added, "Only Skyheart City would dare to find trouble with us."
Su Qingye rolled up his sleeves and rubbed his fists. "Skyheart City’s looking for death!"
The kids had already gotten used to the valley’s power. To them, Central Pine Valley was the world’s most powerful and safest place.
"Everyone, have a break! Elemental soup is here!"
When Lou Lan’s voice was heard, cheers followed. All problems and doubts were thrown to the back of their minds.
There wasn’t anything Lou Lan’s elemental soup couldn’t solve. If there was, then it was a sign that another bowl must be served!
He Min had been out of it for the past few days as the gory scenes from the mirage bean pod appeared in his mind from time to time. Not only him, his classmates were in a worse state. Quite a few timid students had been absent from training. Even the teacher had been feeling slightly depressed these few days.
The weather that day was pretty good, the bright sunlight providing them with much needed heat. The atmosphere had lightened up a little. For the past few days, even the sunlight couldn’t warm their cold bodies up.
It was a pity the Spear of Heavy Cloud never recruited members here, or else He Min would definitely apply.
On second thought, He Min felt he was indulging in fantasy. Countless people were trying to squeeze their way into the Spear of Heavy Cloud, so he would never get his turn.
As he was passing by the mirage bean pod shop, He Min stopped.
He had very little change with him, but he still ran over to ask, "Do you have the latest mirage bean pod of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Boss?"
"There are some Masters’ analyses of that battle, do you want it?"
He Min clenched his teeth. "Yes!"
Surprisingly, He Min didn’t feel much of a heartache for having spent money on it.
He was very curious as to what the Masters had to say about the battle.
He looked at the time. It was still early, so he found himself a remote place to enjoy the clip.
"In that battle, it can be said that the Spear of Heavy Cloud’s performance was perfect. There were a few key areas. First would be the disposition constructed by Master Wang Xiaoshan. In past battles, while earth elementalistal masters were of significant use, Master Wang Xiaoshan was completely different from them. According to our materials, he used to be very good at building camps. And constructing battlefields is a new discovery and development for earth elementalists. Master Wang Xiaoshan’s quicksand paste played a huge role in delaying the enemies’ attacks. Second would be Shi Xueman’s outstanding performance. On fighting Xing Shan one on one, she didn’t fall into a disadvantageous position at all. Plus, after a few crucial collisions, she had greatly boosted the team’s morale. But the most crucial parts would be the pagoda cannons’ execution and Qian Dai’s breakthrough. It’s no doubt that him becoming a Master was a chance occurrence, but pagoda cannons are undoubtedly the most powerful weapons to deal with the blood elementalists!"
He Min continued viewing only to find more promotion about the pagoda cannon. He was somewhat disappointed.
He wasn’t a fire elementalist, so he couldn’t become a pagoda cannoneer.
He shut the clip off and jogged toward the training hall.


The tens of thousands of universes have merged. The disintegration of Spiritual Force led to the momentous collapse of the great Cultivation World, a mighty era that had endured through millions of years of history. In the wake of the large-scale invasion of the Wilderness, the Avalon of Five Elements has become the practitioners’ last stand.
 
After a thousand years, a lowly youth, who hailed from the Old Territory, toiled as a laborer for three years in the depths of the Wilderness. He then became an exception and obtained the opportunity to enter the Avalon Of Five Elements for further studies.
Bearing beast-like fighting capabilities and driven by the desire to take control of his life, the youth strived for greater strength and power. Little did he know that he would set off a majestic upheaval.

Tanaka having remembered that alcohol could be used as a disinfectant, something he had learned on TV shows about doctors, he decided to apply the sky vodka filled can on his wounds. He took the paper towels on the cutlery section of the store, poured alcohol on them and applied the papers on his bruises. The sting of alcohol was new to him and made the whole process troublesome as he wiped the sores. The last thing Tanaka wanted was getting an infection, something that had often scared him ever sense he was at Parinyenatwa hospital. The country had quite a few amazing hospitals, but in his experience, Parinyenatwa had earned the title of death hospital. Other hospitals such as Saint Anne's, West End and so forth, were to him, decent alternatives. Family members he knew who had gone there had always died, being unable to be saved by the medical staff there. In addition, the number of gaunt people waiting in line to be treated was always disturbing. The fear of getting sick made him a hygiene freak, even overshadowing his bum life persona. After applying the alcohol, Tanaka got a hold of a stack of magazines. He decided to pass the time by reading the content of the old world; binge reading through people magazine, men's fitness, Glamour and FHM. The stories of celebrities, particularly the Kardashans, and other teen star dramas in Hollywood revolted him. He skipped those sections and read on about movie releases, real life stories, fitness advice, and random articles. Tanaka was a border line close to average Joe guy, had an interest in reading books, but only books that were given to him. He wasn't the type to search or look for them passionately, but had no problem digesting the content. In the end, it was all entertainment to him. 2hours had passed as he munched through a packet of lays, browsing the content in hand. The sounds outside were still faint, almost as if they were a kilometre away from where he was. He could not hear any crawling obscenities and was happy that he was not being taunted by anything yet. The torch was mounted on top of a bread holder shelf to direct the light directly at the book. Due to its intensity, Tanaka had to place it on the shelf so that he could read properly without being blinded by the light. The women's section talked about women's periods, desires, sex stories, and so forth. The hygiene stories were gross. The stuff that women liked and their daily biological problems made them seem more human and less superficial as how some portrayed themselves in their vanity. Tanaka's comfort and reading began to make him dose off. His body was now giving in to a state of comfort and security, a dangerous complacency that was not needed in a world of darkness and despair. This was showing as he was losing his mobility, suddenly closing his eyes and dosing off. In that moment a deformed creature which had been moving in the infinite void passed by the mini supermarket. It noticed the broken glass door and saw the light. It began to sniff, smelling Tanaka's blood and natural musk. It sneaked into the store, slithering and making unusual movements as it approached the boy. The light was on the shelf and he had knocked out. The creature was planning on getting rid of the shelf and devouring the young lad. It drew nearer and nearer to its meal, going all ecstatic over the idea of relishing his flesh like early morning road kill. The boy's body was in full view and what this creature intended to do to Tanaka was something nasty. It wanted to violate him before eating him. Sowing its seed and reaping what it had sowed was its fetish. It stretched out its serrated claw like tentacles to nudge the shelf that had the torch. The small nudges which seemed like effortless exuded energy was actually moving the shelf. The first nudge made Tanaka's body fall sideways. He was still asleep, but the kind of dosing he was in was a deep lucid state that only came when someone was deprived of sleep for far too long. Tanaka had knocked out and he was at the mercy of this thing. The creature began to grin, drooling in the dark, waiting to ravish its meal. It nudged the shelf again and again, making the torch light become farther away from him. Its victory was moments away and the more it pushed the shelf the more Tanaka became reachable. One push and it would be all over. The monster mustered its final nudge, preparing to finally end Tanaka's life in a flash, but then suddenly his watch's morning alarm which had always rang to wake him up for school began to cry. The sudden noise woke Tanaka up and immediately made him rise. Upon this happening, the creature hammered all its might into the shelf, knocking it far from Tanaka's reach. Tanaka instantly reacted seeing the darkness quickly engulf his field of vision. The torch and the furniture holding it had flown ahead, leaving him stranded in the pitch black. Tanaka heard a crash and destruction of wood, which give him great distress. All that crossed his mind was whether the torch had been destroyed or not. He then sprinted forwards, chasing the white dot he could see in his now darkness engrossed field of vision, but what prompted him to run faster was the sound of a diabolical depravity pursuing him from behind, gnashing its teeth as it lusted for his flesh. Tanaka was going to die; this was going to be the end of the young man's life.

 

 

Tanaka ran in the dark, blind as a mole, but without any excellent hearing to compensate for his disadvantage. His feet bumped into a lot of things, things that grazed his legs, but did not slow down his determination. The creature behind him was breathing heavily like an asthma attack victim, shrilling its voice in the formless night. Tanaka dived into the debris, getting stabbed by a piece of wood, which lodged onto his left forearm, causing him to ooze lots of blood. His right hand's fingers struggled through the debris of what was left of the shelf and managed to get hold of his torch. Upon getting hold of it, he quickly turned to face the bizarre monstrosity on top of him. He pointed the torch directly at it and took in the very thing that accentuated ugliness with his eyes. The abomination had erected its corrosive, anvil like, frothing phallus to violate him. Its tip and shaft were like a bleeding drill, dripping pus and tiny bloody miniscule foetuses that were speaking an unknown language, something similar to how candle wax melted upon contact with a flame. Its abdomen was that of an amphibian with pimple like mumps, the ones you would find on an ebola victim. Its head was that of an encapsulated ball of putrid flesh, straight out of the frying pan of hell. It was a despicable entity that scared the shit out of Tanaka. It even had the audacity to wiggle its abscess like mouth to utter its intentions.

 

"CHILD LET ME FUCK YOU!!!!"

 

Tanaka screamed out loud, devoured by fear, which had regurgitated his body, restoring him back to the reality that had crippled his mind. The creature, which was on top of him suddenly exploded. It turned into liquid ash and ended up spoiling his entire body. Tanaka cried and panted at the fact that the creature had died, but he had no time to celebrate, the death of this being had attracted a lot of its friends. The horde of demons and unintelligent voices began to shatter the air waves. Tanaka who was stricken in fear also remembered the pain of his left forearm. He rose up from his position and ran towards the cutlery section. Seeing his own blood was scaring him and the fear of bleeding to death was dawning on him. He took the table cloth, plucked out the wood lodged in his left forearm and began to scream. The pain was excruciating indeed, it felt like the pain of a groin being repeatedly shot at by a nail gun. Tanaka removed the wood and felt the warmth of his own blood trickle down his fingers and torch. He applied the paper towel and opened the fridge to grab more vodka. He poured loads of it onto his wound and then wrapped a dish towel onto his wound. The pain made him cry, but what made him evoke more tears was the realisation that there was something inside the ceiling. The very thought of what was coming gave him hyper tension. It was now time to abandon ship and Tanaka did not waste time. His exhaustion was overpowered by his will to live, making him jump out via the glass door he had broken. He sprinted aimlessly, using his torch to direct him in the darkness. Every area he pointed at reviewed disturbing imagery of unspeakable proportions. Tanaka ended up turning right; passing the travel plaza mini-mall that was adjacent to the mini supermarket that he came from. In his sudden burst of speed, Tanaka only had one thing in mind, to survive. He ran and ran until he took a regretful step. Tanaka who was in the heat of the moment had not directed his torch to the ground soon enough to save himself from the impending doom. He simply ran blindly into a pit, which had many horrors lying before him. Tanaka tumbled down an inclined heap of bloody and mutilated corpses, all stacked up to portray a twisted version of the human stair case. Regardless of his fall, he held his torch tightly, but fortunately, the bruises he got from the tumble didn't give him much pain. He quickly picked himself up and assessed the situation. What he realised was that he was in a valley like field of dead bodies, all mutilated and pruned like crushed hazel nuts. At the centre of this pit were demons dragging and mounting the dead bodies in a pile, like a coliseum of corpses all viewing the young Tanaka in distress. The creatures doing their gathering job soon took notice of Tanaka and began to draw near him. The fiends all crawled and marched slowly, closing in on the child and destroying all form of hope in him. Tanaka stood there, baffled in utter stupefication. This was the end, it was a good ride, or rather a nightmare, but he had tried his best to survive. The acceptance of death had flooded Tanaka's mind, an inundation of surrender and loss of will power, but somehow his fear surprisingly turned into rage, a hatred of what was giving him fear. Driven mad, the boy could no longer handle his despair anymore. He picked up a femur on the ground that still had its tendons and began to glance at his surrounding adversaries. They were all uglier than their next of kin. Tanaka glared like a mad dog, waving the bone violently as if he was intending to kill one of them. The world had gone to shit, but he was not going to go down without swinging.

"Come at me you bastards! Come you bastards! Come on, come!!!"

Tanaka Manyika was a Zimbabwean form 4 student in his 2nd term of study, and  like every other kid his age, he wanted to pass his end of year exams and move on with his life. However on one particular night his parents and his sister were brutally murdered by two strange men. This was only the beginning to a horrific nightmare; the coming of the apocalypse of infinite darkness was upon him. In that despondent world where everyone in the dark is subjected to despicable mutilation by the creatures of the unknown, Tanaka only has a torch as his arsenal, the only tangible form of light in a world consumed by darkness. Can he survive the end of the world and be the haven of others in despair or will he eventually fall prey to the hopelessness of the world?

"Private soldiers…" Baili Changcheng's eyes lit up as he spoke. "I know what you mean, these people will be absolutely loyal… no, that's not the right word! I should say, this internal team will be like Savage Blade but with the nature of an organization."
Lin Jie nodded. "Yes, in the succeeding period of time, I will prepare a series of mercenary missions, including treasure-hunting, exploration, monster-slaying, etc. Those that are able to pass these missions will enter the selection phase. As to the details, I will settle them. Bu Yi, I will hand the member selection process to you. As a girl, I believe that you are more scrupulous and precise than me. If anyone shows contempt towards you or the team, kick them out."
Bu Yi hugged her wand and nodded cautiously. She bit her bottom lip gently and asked, "What about you? Where are you going?"
"I… I am going to enhance my strength. I thought that I had been powerful enough to lead our Brotherhood to the peak, but it seems that I was just being narrow-minded." Lin Jie heaved a deep sigh and said, "The New Age is an enormous world, and everyone will have their own interesting experiences, many developments are beyond my presumptions. If I continue to be in my comfort zone, I will be taken over by others sooner or later. It will be impossible for me to kill Character Z, and even harder if we are talking about Baili Xuanyuan. However, if I leave…"
Baili Changcheng pondered for a moment and said earnestly, "Pass your Hermit Helmet to Dumb Fox. He is an intelligent one and has stood on our side after this battle. With his control behind the scenes, our Brotherhood will be able to progress smoothly. Supreme Tribe and I will aid you and go against Baili Xuanyuan as well."
Baili Changcheng's Supreme Tribe was only in at its beginning phase, and it was crazy for them to go up against Baili Changcheng's Three Alliances! However, he had to be the one to volunteer. Otherwise, Baili Xuanyuan would concentrate all his resources on the Brotherhood. 
Lin Jie stared at Baili Changcheng for a long while before lowering his head. "Baili, I am sorry. I had been too selfish in the past. If I had been willing to open up the Brotherhood to you, the Supreme Tribe would have advanced much more."
"I'm from a business background, so I understand your considerations and the ways of the world," Baili Changcheng replied nonchalantly. "Alright, focus on the things you have on hand. Besides, don't keep thinking as though the Brotherhood cannot do without you. Who isn't an expert here? Even if you were to go into isolation for an entire year, we will do just fine, go forth!" 
Everyone exchanged glances and smiled. "That's right, go on, you have us here."
Lin Jie closed his eyes and saluted with his fist. "Okay, I will leave now! When I am back, it will be the return of a king!"
......…
The news of Baili Xuanyuan's return with his Three Alliances spread throughout the City of Light like a storm. Someone even uploaded a clip of Baili Xuanyuan's fight where he used Needfire Red Lotus to counter Lone Wolf's ultimate move, followed by his Red Lotus Descend that killed countless players.
Red Lotus Knight! A cool title, with an aggressive style and powerful attacks. The grandeur of creating a sky full of red lotuses had pushed Baili Xuanyuan's status to the top. Additionally, with An Xiaoran stirring and hyping up in order to please him, the entire forum was discussing the 'Return of the King'!
—'System Announcement (Player Baili Xuanyuan Calling): Brothers, I am Baili Xuanyuan, Mage Heavens' Guild Leader. I am sincerely inviting the solo players from the City of Light to join Mage Heavens' sub-guild as Three Alliances will soon raid the City of Light. Those that join the sub-guild will enjoy many benefits. Furthermore, let's play a mini-game. Those that have already joined the Brotherhood or those that are planning to, you will receive a small reward of 1 gold coin if you film a video of you leaving Brotherhood in a high profile and joining Mage Heavens. I hope that everyone participates actively.'
—'System Announcement (Player Baili Xuanyuan Calling): …'
Baili Xuanyuan's announcement was played a total of 10 times! The entire City of Light was pumped as Baili Xuanyuan was planning to raid the city again. The only difference was that he seemed much more confident than the previous time, seeing how he dared to call out! It was obvious that he was edging the Brotherhood out. Do not underestimate the 1 gold coin reward, it would equate to 100 dollars worth of cash! If quitting Brotherhood and joining Mage Heavens could get them 100 dollars of cold, hard cash while enjoying the benefits of raiding the city, who wouldn't do it?
"Ahah, another one that's here to confront the Brotherhood, I really pity you."
"Pity? The one that you should pity is the Brotherhood, you haven't been to the game's official website, right? Baili Xuanyuan's fighting clip has gone viral, a single move of his managed to instakill hundreds and break Lone Wolf's skill. The humiliation of letting Baili Xuanyuan obtain one of Lone Wolf's ultra-rare items had led the Brotherhood is in a ditch this time."
"It's just a small battle, how can you be sure that the Brotherhood is done for? Can't you see that there weren't many Brotherhood experts there? Even the Savage Blade team wasn't present. In my opinion, the Three Alliances are despicable for launching a sneak attack!"
"Shameless your head, I've been sick and tired of the Brotherhood for a long time now. I support Three Alliances! I am going to join the Brotherhood, then quit and join Mage Heavens."
Countless players held mixed feelings towards both organizations and were unable to reach a conclusion.
Baili Xuanyuan had already declared war, but Lin Jie had yet to accept it. He had handed over the Hermit Helmet, which represented 'Codename Lone Wolf', over to Dumb Fox, and the latter had promised to be low-profile. However, he would still react at crucial times.
"I am experienced in guild battles, Ghost Eyes and Heaven's guilds will be on our side. We are all on the same boat and are bound together for good. Don't worry, the Brotherhood is in safe hands." Dumb Fox said earnestly, "However, you have to understand that pillars of support exist for every guild or organization. Unlike our guild, our pillar is the team and guild welfare. However, the Brotherhood's pillar is you guys, Savage Blade. If you guys fall, the Brotherhood will be a mess, do you understand what I say?"
Lin Jie smiled and said, "I will not fall."
News had arrived from The Heavenly Shield, the men from Ironwall Empire's cities had begun gathering at the City of Light to fight against the Three Alliances. Instantly, there were frequent scuffles in the wilderness training areas as the Three Alliances started to eliminate anomalies by inviting those that performed exemplary in training. If they refused, death would await them! Within a few hours, there were over 100 PKs in the wild.
After making the necessary arrangements at Sky Provisions Shop and Central Auction House, Lin Jie teleported to Miradaka's Land of Dusk.
Upon entering the map, he was welcomed by the dusk.
The dull sunset hung faintly in the sky as it emitted gentle warmth. The razor-sharp mountain peaks stood in the distance. The sunshine seemed to be reflecting razor tips instead of mountain peaks.
This was how Miradaka's sun had always been. Never rising and setting, forever set in the dusk. Lin Jie struggled to remove his right leg from the failed teleportation circle as he glanced silently at the village.
The village had waned and was filled with debris. In actual fact, it was Miradaka's odd weather that had resulted in a lack of vegetation on this piece of land.
Miradaka's villagers relied on the meat-based soil here for food. However, after the War of Light, the ground cracked open, and all the soil had sunk to the bottom. Thus, the villagers had lost their source of food. After all the deaths and escapes, this land had finally become the Land of Dusk.
There laid the Blade Peak Canyon a distance away.
Lin Jie rode on his Tiger King and went towards his destination. He made full use of his Tiger King's [Flounce] and used it once the CD arrived. Although it seemed to be a short distance away, it would take him 2 hours.
During the ride, Lin Jie began his analysis.
Lin Jie's current stats were as followed:
Fu Sheng: [Human Berserker]
Level: 45
Health Points: 5,840
Mana: 200
Rage: 0
Attack: 1,383- 1,753
Defence: 1,193
Strength: 854
Endurance: 395
Agility: 83
Wisdom: 28
Spirit: 15
Resistance: 41 (12% decrease during abnormal state)
Grit: 15 (The chances of an attacking skill being interrupted is decreased by 1.5%)
Block: 15 (Equipping a shield allows you to gain 10% initial Block effects)
Parry: 48 (Parry chances 13%)
His attributes were powerful, and with 1,700 Attack Points, he was able to instakill weaklings. Coupled with Dragon Armor Removal, even Shield Specialists would be instakilled. His health bar was also insane, and he had Defense higher than a Shield Specialist. All he lacked was the special damage reduction skill that they had.
Currently, there were 3 methods to enhance his strength:
One, level up! After reaching Level 50, he could activate God of War, Clomaros' special skill that was in the City of Light Corporal's mansion. This would allow him to search for Clomaros to boost his strength.
Two, equipment! Based on the treasure map obtained after the leveling up mission, the next blade would be in the final War of Light Dungeon, making it unavailable for now. However, with his current equipment, if he collected a full set, his attributes would be greatly increased! Furthermore, Lin Jie knew the locations where a Dark Gold Set would spawn, and he could probably collect the full set after a few months.
Three, technique! Currently, this arbitrary word was what Lin Jie yearned for the most. He had already learned two out of the Nine Great Techniques of Berserkers. The first would be Berserker's 100 Consecutive Strikes and second, the Seven Spinning Slash. The latter was a technique that Character Z wielded with experience.
Combo moves were extremely powerful! If it were to reach 100 consecutive strikes, he would definitely improve.
'Nine Great Techniques…' Lin Jie thought over his words as resolution filled his eyes. 'I will grasp all Nine Great Techniques. Berserker's 100 Consecutive Strikes, only 100 strikes! I can do it!'
The battle with Baili Xuanyuan did not wear away his will, but instead, it sparked his passion!
'Learn Berserker's 100 Consecutive Strikes and kill Character Z and Baili Xuanyuan!' Lin Jie made up his mind as he let out a howl and bolted towards the Blade Peak Canyon.


Battle Emperor Fu Sheng is the most popular player in the game, The New Age. Everyone believes that only he will become the champion in the final battle! His real name—Lin Jie. The reason for his participation in the battle is to win the Capsule of Revitalization for his injured mother and sister. With the Broken Blade, a Heritage weapon, in hand, he finally makes it to the final battle! Only then does he realize that his best friend had betrayed him! After his devastating defeat, Lin Jie is shocked to realize that he had time-travelled all the way back to a few years ago when the beta version of The New Age was just about to launch! 

With all my knowledge of the game...
Pros on the leaderboard? All of them my underlings!
First kill of a BOSS? Mine!
First clear of the exclusive dungeon? Still mine!

Whatever I lost in the past, I’ll get them all back!
Whoever brought me trouble, you’re as good as dead!
When I have the chance to do it all over again, I WILL BE EMPEROR!

I am Fu Sheng, the STRONGEST warrior in The New Age. No one, absolutely no one, can stand before me!

It is just that he couldn't believe that his Brina once lived such a luxurious life. 
Harry remained calm for few minutes, before parting Louis's shoulder. 
"She haven't even stepped into this house since few years. This villa is emotionally connected to Brina." Harry said. 
"Was this home of Brina with her ex fiancé?" Louis asked. 
Emotionally connected… 
Haven't been here after her fall out… 
These reasons made Louis ask. 
There are high chances that she didn't come back here because she hates ger ex fiancé and doesn't want to remember his fake love. 

While coming in chopper, Harry breifly shared about Nickolas and how he betrayed Brina. However, the info he gave was very brief and hadn't even touched the tip of the iceberg, Louis understood what a scum Nickolas is. 

How could be betray someone as sweet and caring as Brina? Until unless they are animals with no emotions they wouldn't betray someone like Brina. 

Harry didn't even tell Louis how Nickolas and Brina met nor how many years they had been together before he betrayed her. He just told that Nickolas betrayed Brina by siding up with her enemies. But that was enough for Louis to feel that urge to kill Nickolas  

However, Louis couldnt help felt little sad that he isnt Brina's first. But, it didn't last long when he remembered her confession. 

 What matters is that she loves him now, but not that scumbag Nickolas. Everyone has their own past and no one has right to judge her. 

In meanwhile, when Harry heard Louis's questions, he sighed. 

"No. Nickolas and Brina never had a house together. They didn't live together. This villa is special to Brina not because of Nickolas but because of her elder brother Seth. This siblings had shared many memories in here and after he died she never set her foot on this island." Harry said. 

Louis pursed his lips. 

He knew how torturous it will be to lose someone very beloved. 
He felt it when he lost his mother. 

"I brought you here because Brina and Seth used to have this habit of securing all their memories here. I may not tell you everything but I can at least show you how past Brina used to be" Harry said and led Louis to the downstairs. 

There is a mini theatre situated in the third floor and Harry took Louis there to show some video clips. 
After settling down, Harry started the first video. 
...

It was taken in this island itself and Brina is laughing happily. She is wearing the scuba diving gear and Seth, her brother is making funny faces from behind. 
Whereas, Harry and Rhianna are standing in the other side of the boat with the other woman who is Seth's wife Lillian. They made fun of both Seth and Brina. 

When Seth laughed at his sister, intentionally provoking her, Brina gave a challenging look to everyone and jumped into the ocean. She seems so reckless and daring. 

After the end of the short video clip, Louis is having his mouth slightly open with shock. He almost gasped looking at his girlfriend. 


This Brina is looking totally different. Unlike her current long hair, she was having a short hair that has just reached her shoulders. It was perfectly styled in layers and has most of her hair swept to one side.

Unlike her current warm and light shaded lipstick which eludes innocent and adorable vibes, she used feminine and captivating dark lipstick. 

She looked a lot more dashing and dangerous, making her look more intoxicating and sexy. The glow in her face is totally different than now. 
It was very feminine and badass type. 

Louis absolutely loved this shade of Brina. She is a lot energetic and playful. 

Harry saw the expression on Louis's face and smiled. He could see that Louis loved this 'Brina' in the video. 

After that, Harry played another video. 
Brina is still in in her gym shots and she is having a combat fighting with Seth. Her brother.

"I can't fight with her guys. You know that I can't hurt my sister right" Seth complained. 

Harry laughed and Brina rolled her eyes. 

"All right big B get off. Harry will fight" Brina said as she laughed again. 

Harry smirked. "Don't expect me to show you mercy, Brina" he challenged as he entered the arena that has rubber floor. 

"Lets see who will say that at the end of the competition" Brina said and suddenly charged, making her first move. 

Harry skillfully evaded and tried to make his move but Brina swiftly escaped. "What's your bet, Harry" she asked in midst of their heated fight. 

"You can try my new edition, limited sports car" Harry said not getting distracted. 

Brina raised her eyebrow as she flipped him on to the ground using her signature move.

"Forget about that car Harry. I already crashed it yesterday night" she said making everyone laugh. 

Meanwhile..

After the video clip got completed, Louis couldbt help but smile. So, his Brina is good in self defense and also attacking in others. 

Moreover, she was super hot when she said the last sentence. 

Harry smiled too, remembering thise days. She infact crashed many of his cars!!

"The old Brina used to be like that. If I keep on showing the clips it will take days to complete Louis, yet, we can't gauze her nature." Harry said chuckling. 

"I will send you some clips so you could see them when she wasn't there. Not that I want to hide it from her but I don't want her to remember her past and feel down casted" Harry said. 

Then she turned on the picture mode. 
Brina in her night shorts and camisole, still looking sleepy. 

Brina in her racer outfit. 

Brina wearing bunny mask in amusement park. 

Brina dressed in a beautiful and expensive gown, looking just like a princess in Disney World. 

So many pictures that have made Louis see the different angles of Brina.  

But the next pic totally caught his attention. 
Brina is holding a tiny baby who was not even month old. It was taken from close up, that she is kissing the tip of his nose while he had his tiny hand on Brina's cheek. 

They looked so cute together that Louis felt overwhelmed. He couldn't help but think how their baby will look like. 

Will it be a boy or girl? 
Those thoughts made Louis smile warmly. He prefer girl anyway. 

"Who is he, Harry?"  Louis asked. 

That baby boy has many features resembling Brina's. 

If anyone who doesn't know Brina will see this pic, they might surely assume that they are mother and son. 

"He is Brina's nephew. Seth and Lillian's son. Brina loves him a lot" Harry said. 

There are many pictures in which both are sleeping curled up in same way. With one look, it is very evident that Brina adores this baby boy. 

"Is that boy alive? Or-?" Louis asked. 
But his words stuck when the next picture lightened up the screen. 

Brina and the other man!!

And....

Louis knows him very well.

She was a simple girl who was brought up in a simple household, or at least that was what others thought about her. 


She is full of mysteries and secrets but was always seen as naïve and innocent girl. Or, simply…it is more precise to tell that she keeps that facade for her own good. 


But why?? 


Only she knows the answer. 


However, unlike other girls of her age, who dreamt of getting married to rich and famous guys, she preferred to find someone who has simple life and easy going family. 


In short, she just wanted to lead a happy and ordinary life. However, she uses to believe that it would only be possible if her life partner was an common, uncomplicated guy.


But why?? 

Was the reason behind her beliefs had something to do with her past? 


Or, was she vexed with her life to the extent of sticking by her self-made rules?


On the other hand, he was the CEO of one of the most prestigious companies across the world. 


He was cold and aloof, someone who despised any sort of intimacy with women, be it physical or emotional. His world revolved around his work and his family business. 


Though he has complicated family, he love them to his core….and, apart from them and his friends , no one matter to him. 


But, for the first time in his life, he fell for a woman just with a glance. It all happened when she was turning down her Boss's love proposal. 


Despite of her simple attire, he found her enchantingly beautiful. He could tell that she had so much more to herself than she let others see. He wanted to be the only person before whom she could be her true self.


The very moment he laid his eyes on her, he knew deep down in his heart that only she could be his soul mate. And, he was willing to go any lengths just to make her his. Even if it meant working as an employee in his own company.


Just like he wanted, she fell for him. But would happen when she ends up catching his lies? 


Even if she agrees to accept him, what will be awaiting for her in the life she opted to live with him?


Moreover, who exactly is she? Why does she prefer to be low-key? And why is she being so secretive about her past? 


What and all troubles she might have to face because of his complicated background? 
What would welcome her when she stumbles back into the very life she wanted to run away from?


More importantly, will their love be strong enough to face all those odds that are waiting for them?

.........

No misunderstandings between couple. 
Lovely and understanding couple with mature communication skills. 
.......

#Comedy #Love #Friendship #Mystery #Thriller #Family #Revenge 
This book is perfect blend of 
everything. I hope you will give it a try. 
.......

I am also author of 

Ms. attractive and inciting CEO 
The devil's little Villainess. 

Please do check out the books
.....

Discord sever 

https://discord.gg/3CC6KgK

Please feel free to contact me....

Rhode sat before his desk in his calm, usual self while tossing about the letter as though he were bored to death. However, everyone who entered this room felt that there was an unusually tense atmosphere.
Canary and Mini Bubble Gum sat by the side quietly. The former was focused on reading poetry while the latter was swaying her legs and admiring the scenery through the window. Like Rhode, both of them knew the developments of the current and future of the Munn Kingdom inside-out. But probably because Canary and Mini Bubble Gum weren't actual humans at this point, they seemed to be disinterested in the fate of the war that was about to start on this continent. Of course, perhaps they chose to ignore this since they knew that they were helpless in these situations.
Meanwhile, Lize sat down restlessly. She didn't know why Rhode gathered everyone because of just a mercenary. Moreover, Rhode rarely revealed such tense emotions and she had seen the wax seal on the letter. No matter what, Lize was once the Princess of the King's Party and she remembered the imprint distinctly.
Lize concluded that this matter must have something to do with the King's Party or Sister Lydia. However, there was nothing else to support her guesses.
Shauna and Walker's arrival broke the silence in the room. "Hey, Kid. You summoned me right after you came back. Can't you respect your elders a little?" Old Walker entered the room in big strides and placed the thick layer of papers on the table with a bam. "This is what you wanted and I've filtered most of them out. To be frank, I don't know what you are gonna do with these. But I can guarantee that these sources came from Shawn and my reliable network, so there are no problems at all."
"Good," Rhode nodded before gesturing to Shauna and Marlene to enter the room and close the door. Rhode began to explain after the group settled down. "I guess everyone must be wondering why I've gathered you here. Also, I think you people are smart enough to know that something has happened… As a matter of fact, there is indeed an emergency."
"What is it?" Old Walker frowned while Rhode placed the letter on the table. It was a letter written on a fine, white paper and wrapped in a flawless envelope inlaid with golden outlines that formed an eye-catching badge on the surface.
Double-sword Angels.
"Just a while ago, we've received a mission from the King's Party." Rhode picked up the letter. "And we, Starlight, are going to take over this mission."
"We?" In an instant, one could cut the air with a knife. Lize held her hands firmly while staring at the letter in Rhode's hand. Marlene's brows twitched slightly while her head was filled with complicated thoughts. Meanwhile, Gillian, Canary, and Mini Bubble Gum remained unconcerned. On the contrary, Old Walker and Shauna's eyes sparkled with passionate radiance. As senior mercenaries, they knew that the King's Party had become a strong supporter of Starlight since they had entrusted them with this mission. Although the King's Party's mission wouldn't be recorded in the Mercenary Association's books due to classified information, the guild would still receive huge remunerations in terms of wealth and political aid. The financially inferior Purple Lily and Cole Falcon were able to stand their ground against the Liberty Wings and Sky Sword all these years due to the political resources received from the King's Party. If Rhode's Starlight could receive equal treatment from the King's Party, this would be extremely advantageous for Starlight.
But one needed to work for it first because it wasn't easy to gain the trust of the King's Party… Old Walker and Shauna gazed at Rhode with much more respect. After all, the King's Party's missions were usually top secrets and unless it was one's trusted aide, one would never tell anyone. Therefore, both Walker and Shauna were more than content that Rhode was willing to let them in on this matter.
This showed that their hard work had paid off.
"Shauna." Rhode ignored their gazes and gave his orders. "We will leave the Fortress for the time being, so I hope you will manage the Stronghold on the other side well. Also, I heard that the Southerners are getting restless and this isn't a good sign. You can seek help from Canary and Mini Bubble Gum if there's anything wrong.
"Yes, Sir Rhode." Shauna nodded while Rhode shifted his attention to Old Walker. "Mr. Walker, I need you to head out personally to gather intel in the borders between the Country of Light and the Munn Kingdom. I want to know what the Country of Light is up to all this while… Remember, you need to report back to Canary immediately no matter what happens. You will take her instructions from then on; are there any issues with this?"
"The borders between the Country of Light and the Munn Kingdom? This is a huge project, Kid." Old Walker pondered for a moment. He lifted his head and gazed at Rhode sharply before shifting his attention on Canary. Then, the old man squinted his eyes and stood up. "Alright, is that all? I'll head off now and as long as you are not afraid of being crushed to death by all the lies and slanders, I don't have anything to be worried about."
Old Walker patted Shauna's shoulder as he spoke. "There's nothing left for us now; let's go."
"Alright, Mr. Walker," Shauna stood up and bowed towards Rhode respectfully before leaving the room.
Rhode paused for a few moments and turned his gaze towards the remaining people.
"The next matter will be about the mission content." Rhode pointed to the letter and knitted his brows. "This mission will be very troublesome and I will bring forth all my trustworthy aides: in other words, Marlene, Anne, and Lize. All of you must be prepared to head into Soraka Mountain with me."
"What about the Fortress?" Marlene asked anxiously as she was worried that the operations of the Fortress would be in chaos if both Rhode and herself weren't present to oversee it. However, even so, Marlene sensed that this mission must be unusual because Rhode didn't bring her along for the 5 Star Mission previously. Could it be that the enemies this time were much tougher?
"Leave the Fortress in Canary's hands for the time being. She was once…" Rhode paused and gazed at the young lady who was immersed in reading. Sensing Rhode's gaze, Canary lifted her head and smiled gently in response while nodding. "… my adjutant and she is capable of managing it."
"…" Marlene felt a tug at her heartstrings as she gazed at Canary while biting her lips subconsciously. At the same time, an unusually complicated emotion filled with frustration, hesitation, pain, joy, and guilt hit her hard. Marlene knew about Canary's past and because of this, she felt exceptionally conflicted after hearing Rhode's words. After all, no matter what, Canary and Rhode seemed much more suitable as a couple. Canary was beautiful, gentle, and extremely likable and even though she didn't have an illustrious family background, she possessed much more strength than Marlene. Judging from Canary's behavior, it seemed that she fancied Rhode a lot too. Furthermore, Rhode's words suggested that Canary had once stood by his side and assisted him greatly. But it was a pity that this young lady was only an illusion of her soul.
But this was also something worth being happy about…
Marlene shuddered. "I understand, Rhode. I will hand over the operations of the Fortress to Miss Canary after the preparations are done. But… where are we heading for this mission?"
"Soraka Mountain," replied Rhode.
"Soraka?!" Marlene stood on her feet and a look of astonishment was displayed on her face. Lize observed her reactions and asked with uncertainty. "Marlene, what kind of place is Soraka Mountain? Do you know?"
"Of course I know…" Marlene nodded and calmed herself down before explaining to Lize. "Soraka Mountain is located on a rare, stable point in the intersection between the Country of Darkness and Country of Light. That place has an abundance of minerals and is filled with magical crystal minerals. The Country of Darkness and Country of Light once broke out in a long war over it and later on, as both sides got into a deadlock, they decided to stop the war after days of negotiations. The Soraka Mountain was then entrusted to the faithful followers of the Light Dragon and at the same time, put into the safekeeping of the Munn Kingdom that maintained a good relationship with the Country of Darkness. Of course, even though the Munn Kingdom was there to safekeep the place, they were only monitoring from the sides. Therefore, both sides decided that Soraka Mountain would be preserved in the form of an independent dominion. Due to this, Soraka Mountain manages to survive between the Country of Darkness and Country of Light… Moreover, armies and officials of both countries can't enter Soraka Mountain territory without prior notice because it would be seen by the other side as the annexation of Soraka Mountain."
Marlene paused and turned her gaze towards Rhode with knitted brows. "Since the King's Party ordered us to carry out a mission in Soraka Mountain, that would mean…"
"Yes, there are signs of unrest in Soraka Mountain." Rhode nodded slightly, at the same time knocking on the letter that was on the table. "Royal Highness Lydia has explained the ongoings in this letter. Rumor has it that some people in Soraka Mountain tried to seek protection from the Dark Dragon. Therefore, Royal Highness Lydia demands an investigation and she entrusted Viktor and his Cole Falcon Guild with it."
Initially, Rhode was dissatisfied that Royal Highness Lydia didn't choose him for this mission. However, come to think of it, it went without saying that the ruler would trust their closest followers rather than a new strength that had just joined them. Furthermore, it was regarding the important Soraka Mountain and there was no room for mistakes.
"According to Mr. Viktor's investigations, there was indeed a group of people seeking protection from the Dark Dragon and they tried to put forward this proposal in the parliament of Soraka Mountain. Also, according to the treaty, the proposal will be officially effective once two-thirds of the parliament members approve it. The Chairman of the parliament is a steady and conservative person; therefore, his powerful influences have given this proposal difficulties in obtaining approvals. Coincidentally, the Chairman and his group of members encountered a raid just a few days ago," Rhode paused for a moment. "A raid from the Country of Light."
"What?!" Lize and Anne exclaimed in shock while Marlene's expression sunk. "Anne doesn't understand… Didn't that Chairman prevent the entirety of Soraka Mountain from relying on the Country of Darkness? So why did the people from the Country of Light ambush them instead?"
"Because this is beneficial to the Country of Light," Rhode shrugged his shoulders. "A long time ago, the treaty that both sides signed stated that Soraka Mountain must remain neutral. Once the Soraka Mountain Parliament decides to seek protection from the Country of Darkness, it will mean that they have violated the treaty. As a result, the bunch of idiots from the Country of Light Parliament will then be able to attack Soraka Mountain and snatch their mouthwatering meal 'rightfully'."
"B-But…" Lize stuttered in panic. Although she was a princess, she had separated herself from politics and lived as an ordinary mercenary for a long time. For her to be involved in this complicated political conflict that might escalate into a war was too much. "Since Soraka Mountain sought protection from the Country of Darkness, wouldn't the Country of Darkness protect them even if the Country of Light were to attack? In the end, both sides will start a comprehensive war… Haven't they thought of this?"
"They have definitely thought of this, but they insisted to do so," Rhode picked up the intel that Old Walker had left on the table. "Next year will be an election year for the Country of Light Parliament. All this while, frequent problems emerging in the Country of Light have weakened their nation's power to a point that they have to rely on Royal Highness Lydia of the Munn Kingdom to support them financially. Furthermore, there was the Trade Route incident that affected them considerably even though it was resolved in the end. As a result, the Country of Light's Parliament Chairman's reputation has declined greatly and his chances of continuing in office are very slim. If the news of Soraka Mountain seeking protection from the Country of Darkness leaks, he still stands a chance to regain his citizens' trust by toughening out his stance over it. Soraka Mountain contains an abundance of crystal minerals and it will, in turn, resolve the Country of Light's financial problems. Moreover, the new heir to the Country of Darkness has only stepped in for a few years and the Country of Light Parliament is confident that the new heir lacks the guts to take drastic actions against them. Back then, the signing of the treaty for Soraka Mountain between the Country of Darkness and Country of Light was done under the attention of the Judgement & Ruling Twin Dragons. Therefore, during times of necessity, the Country of Light Parliament can use the Country of Law as a trump card to establish their legitimacy."
Although this might appear only a possibility to the ordinary person, Rhode was sure that the Country of Light's Parliament plotted the scheme to use Soraka Mountain as the point of penetration. However, the Country of Light's Parliament didn't expect that the situation would develop towards a different direction entirely. On the contrary, it opened a pressure valve for the Country of Darkness that was trying to balance the old and new forces within its country. Thereafter, the Country of Law sunk into a strange silence and they didn't emerge to uphold justice as the Country of Light's Parliament had anticipated. In the end, the Country of Light's Parliament's intentions in using Soraka Mountain to ensure its political status and also crack down on the Country of Darkness and the Munn Kingdom turned into a silly scheme. As a result, the Country of Darkness dominated and the Country of Light even gave their Light Dragon Soul to their enemy… It was rare to see humans this dumb, or perhaps, it was rare for one to even be brainwashed or self-hypnotized to this point.
"So then, our mission is to…" Marlene questioned anxiously.
"Fortunately, the Country of Light's soldiers that ambushed the Chairman's group didn't reveal their identities. On the other hand, Viktor's group seized the opportunity to protect the Chairman's group. But, even so, they are still in grave trouble. Royal Highness Lydia has ordered us to rescue the Chairman's group that is trapped in Soraka Mountain and escort them back before the Soraka Mountain Parliament begins," explained Rhode.


Rhode is a legendary guild leader of the most influential guild in the VRMMO, Dragon Soul Continent. In order to cope with the death of his beloved sister, he dived into the game for seven long years. During this period, Rhode tries his best to alleviate his emotional pain through gaming, but alas, his life shatters once more when he heard his parents perish in a plane crash.

A month after the incident, he made a decision to quit the game and return to the real world. But just before that, as a final farewell, Rhode decides to fight the most powerful BOSS in the game with his guildmates. In the end, he defeats the BOSS at the expense of his avatar's life. Rhode smiles as his avatar dissipates in a beam of light. However, instead of respawning at the usual platform...

...

"W-wha...!"

Rhode shot up and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling.

And thus, a player who had been creating legends in the game for three eras disappeared just like that...

"Hello, Sis. I'm Yan, the No.1 badass and beautiful genius girl who has a big fortune, great figure, excellent abilities, marksmanship, and melee combat skills!"
Seeing the extremely arrogant self-introduction, Huo Mian smiled, feeling light-hearted.
"You must be smiling when you hear this, right? Laughing is good for pregnant women. I heard if you eat more chocolates, the baby will love laughing when it comes out." 
Huo Mian didn't speak; it was a recording, so she just listened quietly.
"I planned to say goodbye to you, but considering we'll both cry at parting, I decided not to do it. It's why I didn't say goodbye to you. I told the restaurant to prepare good food for the pregnant woman in our family. Tell them whatever you want to eat, and they'll do their best to make it for you… I'm now heading to Brazil to settle accounts with one of my enemies. Then I'll find time to go back to China and see you. I miss Pudding and Little Bean…
"Oh. By the way, Dad called and actually wasn't surprised when he heard you're fine. It seems he knew you'd be fine. Don't you think it's miraculous? Dad is old now and even told me that he'd retire after the last project and then go to your home to take care of Pudding and Little Bean. Haha! Isn't it a happy prospect?
"But you'd better not be fooled by his promise. He told me five years ago that he'd retire and go to Tibet with me to see the moon and become a shepherd in Inner Mongolia. But in the end, he is still crazily doing research in the lab… I even suspect we're not his biological daughters but gifts to him after he bought some prepaid phone cards; no… if I was a gift for buying prepaid phone cards, you'd be a gift for buying an electric rice cooker, which is even worse …"
Hearing her joke, Huo Mian giggled.
"Okay. I must stop babbling… Anyway, sis, you must take good care of yourself and the baby. I'll miss you."
Then the recording ended…
It was a funny clip, but Huo Mian still shed tears.
"What's wrong, Honey?" Qin Chu immediately handed her a tissue.
"I just feel that Yan lives a hard life running around all over the world," Huo Mian said with a choking voice.
"After Ian dies, we'll have peace. Not only we but Lu Yan and the professor will feel much freer."
"I know." Huo Mian nodded.
"Eat the congee now; it's getting cold."
"Okay."
Wiping off her tears, she lowered head and ate the lobster dumplings and seafood congee with gusto.
She felt happy after watching Lu Yan's recording and enjoying breakfast with her husband on such a beautiful morning.
What else could she ask for?
- On the private plane -
"Boss, it's time to eat. What do you want to eat? We'll get it for you. Now we have steak, caviar, foie gras, noodles with gravy, vegetable salad, and sushi."
"I don't want to eat. You guys go ahead with the meal."
"Um… When you're hungry, just call out to us."
Her subordinate walked out of the inner cabin and closed the door behind him.
Qiao Fei put down an English book he was reading and glanced at Lu Yan.
"You are not in a good mood today."
"Yeah."
"Are you missing sister Mian?"
"You know the answer."
"Okay. Forget it." Then, Qiao Fei lowered his head to continue reading.
"Hey, little bastard, you started the topic and then stopped." Lu Yan was not pleased.
"The problem is that I can't do anything for you when you miss her. I can't grab her and bring her to you anyway."
"Qiao Fei, you've left your family for a long time now. Do you miss home?" Lu Yan asked earnestly.


Original Synopsis: 
Seven years ago, after their breakup, he disappeared without a trace.
Now, he reappeared on the eve of her wedding, sparing no means in forcing her to marry him… 
With a certificate of marriage, he bound her mercilessly to his side. 
From there, this “Cinderella” began her journey as a wife of the business empire’s heir...
Mrs Huo - composed, sharp-tongued, and freakishly smart.
Mr Qin - wife-spoiler to no end and a complete “slave” to their daughter.
Quality love story, one on one. You are welcome to get hooked on this story with us. 
Stats on QQ Reader: 102 million favorites, and was voted 8.4/10 by 41 thousand readers. 
TL's Note: Probably one of the best stories I've read, and I was very tempted to translate the title to Big D Brings Spring. Girls, I hope you enjoyed it as much as my girlfriend and my female translators who binge read 4000 chapters in about a month. 
For all the guys hesitating to give it a try, you won't regret it. It's a manly book, I swear.

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