Only By Giving Up Can You Reach the End

A sharp pain shot through his head.

After finally adjusting to the light, the familiar gray-white walls of his rental room came into view again.

What just happened?

Zhou Ming tried hard to recall. He only remembered that after he had struck down two of Li Shouzhen's loyal and wicked servants with a cleaver, a group of people surrounded him, and then he couldn't remember anything else...

He clicked open the familiar game panel.

Mission Map: Zhang Ergou's Counterattack Life

Game Character: Zhang Ergou

Game Status: Ended

Property: 5 (You have five mu of barren land and one bamboo and wood house)

Status: 0 (Bottom tier, the very bottom)

Reputation: 4 (You were once somewhat famous; your final double kill left a legend in Niu Family Village)

Partner: 0 (You had a beautiful marriage, but it also brewed a bitter tragedy)

Descendants: 1 (Congratulations, you are gone, but you left behind a trace of your bloodline [+10 Achievement Points])

Lifespan: 16 (Your lifespan exceeded 23% of the villagers)

Achievements Gained: 36

Game Evaluation: E (Your short life also had moments of brilliance, but they flashed by)

Highest Achievement: 36 (Reach 500 Achievement Points to unlock the next level)

"Descendant, I still have a descendant?"

Could it be?

Zhou Ming suddenly remembered that in the game, in order to quickly win over Wang Xiucai's daughter, Wang Xiumei, he had adopted the strategy of "getting on the bus first, then buying the ticket." He had several intimate encounters in private, and he didn't expect the effect to be so significant.

Li Wenhao, oh Li Wenhao, so what if you stole my woman? You still ended up being my scapegoat, wearing the hat I dyed for you.

But...

No matter how Zhou Ming cursed, he couldn't change the tragic outcome of his family being ruined and his loved ones dead. Compared to the bit of green on Li Wenhao's head, he had absolutely nothing.

Anger, grievance, and frustration all surged into his heart at once.

Why, why does this situation always arise later on? Why does someone always come out to obstruct and destroy my happiness? Did I provoke them?

"System, I ask you, how can Zhang Ergou counterattack and completely eliminate the Li family!" Zhou Ming asked the system.

"The system cannot answer. Please find a solution yourself, Host."

"Are there any skill cards or martial arts manuals that can increase the player's combat power?"

"Please search in the system store, Host." The system opened the store interface.

The items in the system store were dazzling, numbering in the thousands. They were divided into six major categories: [Items], [Characters], [Skills], [Technology], [Cultivation Methods], and [Opportunities]. Among these, only the [Items], [Characters], [Skills], and [Technology] sections were open. [Cultivation Methods] and [Opportunities] were still locked and grayed out, and would only open after a high-energy map was unlocked.

Due to the limitations of the system's laws, apart from a small number of items in the [Items] column, all items in other merchandise columns cannot be extracted in a materialized form. For example, various [Character Cards] in the [Characters] column, various [Skill Cards] in the [Skills] column, various [Engineering Blueprints] in the [Technology] column, etc., all belong to skill/knowledge information and can only be brought into the game after exchange.

After browsing all the items in the [Skills] column, Zhou Ming found several skill cards that could increase the game character's combat power.

"[Beginner Hunting Skill], after use, you can obtain all the hunting skills of a beginner hunter. Exchange requirement: 1000 achievement points."

"[Beginner Fighting Skill], after use, you can obtain all the fighting skills of a beginner boxer. Exchange requirement: 1000 achievement points."

"[Beginner Body Tempering Skill], after use, you can obtain all the body tempering skills of a beginner martial artist. Exchange requirement: 1500 achievement points."

Apart from these three beginner skill cards that can strengthen the body and defeat ordinary opponents, other skill cards are basically useless.

"System, after using these skill cards, under normal circumstances, can I fight ten people alone?"

Facing the numerous and powerful Li family, fighting ten people alone was the minimum standard.

"No, only after using intermediate skill cards such as [Intermediate Hunting Skill] and [Intermediate Fighting Skill] is it possible to fight one against ten."

"[Intermediate Hunting Skill]?"

Zhou Ming flipped to the intermediate skill card list page and was stunned when he saw [Intermediate Hunting Skill]. It actually required 5000 achievement points to exchange, and [Intermediate Body Tempering Skill] was even more exaggerated, requiring 8000 achievement points.

Looking at the account balance of only 57 achievement points, let alone intermediate skill cards, he couldn't even afford the beginner ones.

He was so poor now that he couldn't even afford a single item in the system mall. How could he talk about revenge and successful counterattack?

"For now, I can only slowly accumulate in the game. When I have more achievement points, I'll play a big one..."

Zhou Ming decided to adjust his strategy, deciding not to have a head-on conflict with the Li family for the time being, to endure for a while, bypass those minefields, and accumulate more achievement points first.

Entering the game again!

It was still the same beginning, from speaking at three months old, to saving his older brother at three years old, saving his younger sister at six years old, then working in the fields, burning forests to clear land, solving the problem of food and clothing before the age of fifteen, and even building a two-courtyard bamboo and wood house for his family. After his older brother Zhang Da Gou got married, it was soon his turn for his lifelong event.

Sitting on the dirt slope by the small river at the entrance of the village, looking at the group of laughing girls washing clothes by the river, all in the prime of their youth, fifteen or sixteen years old.

Who should his future wife be?

His gaze fell on the beautiful woman surrounded by several girls, like a peony set off by green leaves, and his heart couldn't help but ache.

"Xiumei, I can't choose her. Li Wenhao already gave the betrothal gift to Wang Xiucai yesterday, and he will marry her in three days. She no longer belongs to me."

Although Wang Xiumei herself was unwilling to marry Li Wenhao as a concubine, Zhou Ming had also thought about eloping with her and flying far away. But once he did that, with the personalities of Li Wenhao and the Li family, they would definitely not let it go. Would he have to take his parents, siblings, and the whole family to elope?

This was definitely not a realistic thing.

"Forget it, let's choose Xiumei's best friend, Li Er Ya. Although this girl is not as good-looking as Xiumei, her figure is not bad, and her skin is not as fair as Xiumei's. Her wheat-colored skin represents health, and her buttocks, even my mother praised them. Choosing her is not bad..."

Temporarily putting aside his longing for Xiumei, and settling for the next best thing, Zhou Ming began his crazy pursuit of Li Er Ya. There was no technical difficulty, and in just three or five days, this girl was so infatuated with him that she would only marry him.

After giving the betrothal gift and settling the in-laws, he chose an auspicious day, and without any accidents in between, he married his wife.

After getting married, Li Er Ya's belly was also cooperative, and she was soon going to add a new member to the family.

His older brother Zhang Da Gou already had a son, and his sister-in-law was pregnant again not long ago. The family was going to have four or five more people at once, and the already not-so-spacious family conditions became tight again.

In order to support this large family, Zhou Ming and his older brother Zhang Da Gou had to get up early and work late every day. In addition to farming, during the slack season, they also had to go hunting in the mountains, fishing in the river, and doing odd jobs for wealthy families. Zhou Ming also taught himself a little carpentry, but his talent was insufficient, and the tables, chairs, and benches he made could only be used at home.

The cold came and went, summer arrived and departed, spring passed and winter returned. In the blink of an eye, over thirty years had gone by. Zhou Ming, who had accidentally caught a cold while working in the fields, now lay in bed unable to move, his end clearly approaching.

After drinking a bowl of bitter medicine, and taking advantage of a brief moment of clarity before death, Zhou Ming asked his wife to gather all their children and descendants together and counted them one by one.

"One, two, three, four... four. If you hadn't taken Chun'er with you when you went up the mountain to cut firewood that year, Chun'er wouldn't have been carried away by the wolf," Zhou Ming sighed to his wife.

"Yes, yes, my dear, it's all my fault, I didn't look after Chun'er properly..." Li Er Ya's tears fell like broken threads, and she said remorsefully.

"My precious grandchildren, come here, let Grandpa see you. Grandpa is leaving, you must all be well... live well..."

The smile on his face gradually stiffened, the last breath in his chest slowly dissipated, and his blurry vision became even more indistinct. In the final darkness, he could only faintly hear the heartbroken wailing filling the room...

"System, open the game panel."

"Okay, Host."

Mission Map: Zhang Ergou's Counterattack Life

Game Character: Zhang Ergou

Game Status: Ended

Assets: 12 (You own 10 mu of barren land and one bamboo and wood house)

Status: 1 (Bottom tier, but gained some respect [+10 Achievement Points])

Reputation: 6 (You are somewhat famous, and for a period of time, you will be remembered)

Partner: 1 (You had a beautiful marriage, and you accompanied her until the end [+50 Achievement Points])

Descendants: 12 (Congratulations, you have left a considerable number of descendants, and your family will prosper for a long time)

Lifespan: 48 (Your lifespan exceeded 78% of the villagers, making you a representative of longevity in the village)

Achievements Gained: 246

Game Evaluation: C (Your life may have been ordinary, but you created much value)

Highest Achievement: 246 (Reach 500 Achievement Points to unlock the next level)