Fervor

Higher-Dimensional Space: Titan Divine Body.

Gu Yuan's consciousness swept across the vast territory within his body like a king inspecting his domain.

At the edge of the Liver Nebula, only a few insignificant points of light had appeared in the formerly pitch-black, lifeless Poisonous Labyrinth.

They were Dawn's H-103 camp, Dragon War's H-109 outpost, and the independent players' Mushroom Village.

Compared to the countless hexagonal-column hepatic lobules and the boundless ocean of toxins in the Liver, the players' current exploration progress had not even reached one ten-thousandth. They were like drilling platforms that had just been built on a few isolated islands in an endless sea. They had footholds, but purifying the entire Liver was still a distant dream.

"Though progress is slow, the spark has been planted."

Gu Yuan was not impatient. Purifying the Liver was a long, grinding task. As long as the players kept killing monsters and breaking down toxins there, the burden on his body would continue to lessen.

But the alarm coming from another direction made it impossible for him to remain composed.

[Warning: Stomach acid reflux is intensifying!]

[The Cardia sphincter, where the Stomach connects to the esophagus, has relaxed. Highly corrosive gastric acid is eroding the Lower Esophagus and approaching the base of the lungs!]

Gu Yuan felt an unbearable, searing pain in his chest.

If that gastric acid, which could digest metal and stone, surged upward, fortresses like Black Stone Fortress, which the players had only recently established in the lungs, would be reduced to nothing. The defensive line would be burned through in an instant. This was dissolution on a physical level, even more terrifying than a virus.

"Though I'd like to restore the detoxification function in one go, the situation over there is too urgent. We have to build a breakwater first."

Gu Yuan glanced at his Bio-Energy reserves. After accumulating it for some time, the balance had once again surpassed one hundred million.

"With the players' current mortal bodies alone, they can't withstand an environment filled with strong acid. We need to improve their survival capabilities, or... give them enough temptation to die for it."

Gu Yuan's gaze sharpened, and his fingers flew across the system backend.

"Convert supplies: [Titan Blood (Diluted Version)] x 2000."

"Set deployment rules: Bind to the new campaign—[Battle of the Cardia]."

Blue Star, real world.

For Blue Star's population of several billion, two thousand players who had obtained Titan Blood were like a handful of sand scattered into the desert. But every grain of that sand was gold.

In this age of information overload, secrets could not be kept.

Even the lavish and horrifying private lives of the wealthiest tycoons could be exposed, with at least a few clues leaking out. Not to mention ordinary people who already loved to show off.

Especially when the secret concerned health, lifespan, and transcendent power, countless people flocked to it, and countless others grew arrogant over their talents.

Location: A late-night food stall in a second-tier city in southern Dragon Kingdom.

"Boss! Two more cases of beer! Make it quick!"

A group of tattooed young men with fleshy faces sat around a table, shouting noisily.

The one leading them was a crew-cut man. He was an early player of the Titan Game, with the ID Hot-tempered Bro. Normally, he was an idle street punk. Since getting the Titan Game, he had spent long hours immersed in it. His luck was exceptionally good, making him one of the thousand lucky players who had grabbed the potion in the first round. Though he was merely a thug in reality, in the game, he was an LV.11 Divine Guard who had changed class into a Berserk Behemoth.

At that moment, his face was flushed from drinking. With one foot planted on a stool, he boasted loudly, spittle flying everywhere.

"I'm telling you, in that Liver dungeon, I soloed two Sludge Monsters by myself! Those moves, damn..."

"Come on, bro, stop bragging." A young student at the next table could not help muttering, "I play Titan too. An LV.11 Divine Guard taking on two LV.16 monsters alone? You wouldn't even break their defense."

Smack!

Hot-tempered Bro slammed the table.

The corner of the solid wood table actually snapped off with a crisp crack! Wood chips flew everywhere.

The surrounding diners instantly fell silent, staring at the broken table corner in horror. How much strength did that take?

"You little brat, who are you calling a liar?"

Hot-tempered Bro stood up and staggered over. Alcohol, combined with the sudden transcendent power he had gained, had completely thrown his already inflated ego out of control. He felt like Superman now. The law? What the hell was that?

"Y-you... what are you trying to do?" The student's face turned pale with fright. He regretted speaking up. His luck was terrible. He had actually run into a thug who had taken Titan Blood!

"What am I doing? I'm showing you the power of a Berserk Behemoth!"

Hot-tempered Bro grinned viciously and reached for the student's collar, moving so fast that his hand cut through the air with a gust of wind.

However, before his hand could touch the student, a long, powerful hand suddenly reached out from the side and clamped around his wrist like iron pliers.

It belonged to a man in a black jacket and baseball cap who had been quietly eating noodles in the corner.

"Let go." The man's voice was low, but it carried unquestionable authority.

"Who the hell are you? Looking to die?"

Hot-tempered Bro flew into a rage and instinctively tried to use the exertion techniques from the game. He violently swung his arm, a force sufficient to dislocate an ordinary person's joints.

But to his horror, no matter how hard he struggled, the man's hand seemed welded to his wrist. It did not move in the slightest.

"An LV.11 Divine Guard. Your base strength has indeed improved considerably."

The man in the baseball cap raised his head, revealing sharp eyes. "But you have strength without discipline. Is this how you use the power Titan granted you?"

"You're a player who took Titan Blood too?!" Hot-tempered Bro sobered up halfway.

"I'm here to teach you the rules."

The man flicked his wrist. He did not make any large movement; it was merely a variation of a grappling technique.

"Aah—!"

Hot-tempered Bro screamed. It was as if all the bones had been pulled from his body. He was instantly pinned to the ground, his face pressed against the greasy floor, unable to move.

Woo—woo—!

Before his lackeys could react, two black special police vehicles came roaring in.

Several fully armed special agents swiftly got out and efficiently handcuffed Hot-tempered Bro before dragging him into a vehicle.

"Take him away. The twelfth loss-of-control incident."

The man in the baseball cap took out a walkie-talkie, his tone calm. "The target has been secured. I recommend a mandatory cooling-off period for this player and an assessment of the risk of reclaiming his account."

The Titan Game was bound to the individual, and no one else could use another person's account. But keeping unstable people like these away from game pods was easy enough.

The surrounding diners held up their phones, staring in shock as they watched and recorded the scene.

Though the authorities quickly suppressed online discussion, similar "urban legends" had already begun spreading among the public.

Dragon Kingdom Security Bureau, Wall Breaker Task Force Office.

Ban Jianguo frowned as he looked over the reports gathered from various regions.

"Of the thousand enhanced individuals, most are behaving themselves for now. But there are quite a few people with the same nouveau riche mentality as that one."

He looked at Lei Zhen, who stood nearby after logging off to report on his work.

"Lei, power came too quickly, and their mindset can't keep up. That will cause major trouble. We can't merely suppress them without guiding them."

"Vanguard Across the Realm has already started addressing it," Lei Zhen reported. "Dawn Guild has implemented the Transcendentalist Covenant internally. Members are strictly forbidden from abusing force in reality. Violators will not only be kicked from the guild, but blacklisted across the entire server. We may even... assist the authorities in locating them in the real world."

"Mm. Vanguard Across the Realm is a smart man, and a qualified leader." Ban Jianguo nodded. "Tell him the authorities support what he's doing. Also, according to the latest intelligence report, the second round of potion deployment has begun."

"This time, more people are watching. Overseas conglomerates, mercenaries, and even certain extremist organizations are all trying to get accounts, control account holders, or intercept Titan Blood." Old Ban pointed at the screen. "This is a war without smoke. In the game, you must hold the line."

In the game, the server-wide announcement screen.

Just as undercurrents surged through the real world, a golden server-wide announcement detonated across the entire server like a nuclear bomb.

[Expansion Update: Acid Tide.]

[Background: The expedition into the Liver has only just begun, yet violent tremors have come from deeper within the Stomach. The defensive line known as the Cardia is about to fall, and highly corrosive strong acid is flowing backward, threatening the Lung Passage we depend on for survival.]

[Server-Wide Emergency Campaign: Build the Great Wall of Cardia!]

[Campaign Objectives:]

Head to the entrance of the Stomach—the Cardia—and use "Acid-Resistant Material" to build a dam that blocks gastric acid from corroding the esophagus.

Kill the [Corrosive Sludge Monsters] and [Strong Acid Spitters] surging upward with the gastric acid.

[Campaign Rewards (Key Point):]

[Gene Shop Second Restock Preview!]

[Item Available: "Titan Blood (Diluted Version)"]

[Quantity: 2000 doses.]

[Acquisition Rules: There will be no speed-based purchase this time. Purchase qualifications will be awarded to the top two thousand players based on their individual contribution rankings in the Battle of the Cardia!]

"Holy shit!!! Two thousand doses!!"

"This time, it's distributed by contribution? Awesome! We finally don't have to compete over internet speed!"

"Grind! As long as I don't grind myself to death, I'll grind like hell!"

If only a small number of people knew the truth about the first round of potions, then after more than ten days of buildup, coupled with all kinds of rumors spreading in reality, players all over the world now knew—the potion could change their fate.

They went mad.

Completely mad.

Countless players who had once painstakingly calculated every few hundred or thousand points of Bio-Energy in the Liver zone now rushed toward the teleportation arrays with bloodshot eyes. Even casual LV.5 newbies wanted to head to the front lines and move a couple of bricks. What if they made it into the top two thousand?

Location: Dawn Guild Headquarters—Analysis Camp.

Vanguard Across the Realm looked at the boiling messages in the Guild Channel, then turned to his core team behind him.

"Have you all seen it?"

"This time, it's a contest of contribution. It's the fairest rule, and also the cruelest."

Cloud Pomelo tightened her grip around her staff, her gaze resolute. "Brother Feng, my parents... they're getting old, and their health isn't good. I want to get them a dose too."

Brute Force Yields Miracles scratched his head, no longer as carefree as before. "There's a childhood friend in my village. His leg was broken in an accident at a construction site years ago... I want to get him a dose too."

Even Li Zihan, who had always been calm, had light flashing in his eyes. "I want to get one for my mentor. He has Alzheimer's disease, and his brain is atrophying. If it can cure him, it would be a blessing for the scientific community."

Watching the eager looks in his teammates' eyes, Vanguard Across the Realm fell silent for a moment. He understood their desire to give back to their loved ones, but he had to remain rational as a leader at all times.

"Of course you can."

Vanguard Across the Realm nodded, but then his tone shifted and became exceptionally grave.

"However, I need to remind everyone to remain calm. Resources must be prioritized for yourselves."

His eyes swept across the group, bright as torches. "The Titan Blood currently available is only the diluted version. It can cure illnesses, but it only provides entry-level enhancement. This game has only just begun. In the future, there may be stronger items, perhaps even complete Divine Blood that can grant immortality."

"If we spread out our resources now and cause the core team's combat strength to fall behind, then when we encounter higher-level bosses and more precious rewards in the future, all we can do is watch others take them."

Vanguard Across the Realm paused, his tone softening slightly. "Only by becoming stronger ourselves can we provide better resources to those around us. Being selfish now is for the sake of protecting them in the future. Understand?"

Everyone's hearts tightened.

Li Zihan adjusted his glasses and nodded heavily. "Brother Feng is right. We can't easily give up our current advantage."

"Then let's take it."

Vanguard Across the Realm drew Origin Fang and pointed it toward the new route leading into the Stomach.

"Move out! Target: the Cardia!"