Extraordinary Awakening

Coordinates: Detoxification Camp.

The Void Obelisk that had just risen from the ground was now emitting a faint blue glow. At the very top of the monument floated a massive progress bar that filled every player with both despair and excitement:

[Server Announcement: Titan Armory Donation Progress: 8,550,000 / 1,000,000,000]

"One billion..." A passing solo player craned his neck until it ached. "Have the devs lost their minds? There are a hundred thousand players on the whole server. Everyone would have to donate ten thousand to reach that! It costs me 800 points just to repair my gear now. Where am I supposed to get money to donate?"

This was the economic recycling system Gu Yuan had designed. Although monster drops had increased, player expenses had risen exponentially as map difficulty increased. Equipment durability loss and the wide variety of consumables made it impossible for most players to save any liquid funds.

Amid the crowd, Data Maniac hurried past with several logistics personnel. Their backpacks were stuffed with supplies that had just been transported back from the front lines.

In Dawn Guild's management channel, Data Maniac gave a calm assessment. "Brother Feng, if we rely on solo players pinching pennies, this progress bar won't be filled in half a year. The system is forcing us to start a war."

He pointed at the purplish-red coordinate on the map—H-124 Hub.

"There are no other large-scale battles at the moment. We should mobilize everyone to attack H-124 and speed things up."

"According to the reconnaissance team's investigation, we've already obtained the precise production coordinates for H-124's specialty, High-Purity Bile Salt Crystals. A single crystal can offset quite a bit of Bio-Energy. This is the only shortcut."

"If we don't take H-124, we may never unlock the Mecha Tech Tree." Vanguard Across the Realm stood on high ground at the front lines, looking at the assembled army. "Pass the order down. Dawn Guild's main regiment is preparing to breach the fortress."

Coordinates: Liver - H-124 Sarcoma Fortress.

This was currently the largest meat grinder in the liver region. A colossal fortress built from dead liver cells, hardened nodules, and countless remnants of blood vessels stood in the path of all players.

The walls were lined with Crystallized Gallstone Guards. Every throw of their crystal spears took down swathes of squishy players. Meanwhile, the poisonous bile moat surrounding the fortress made countless melee players balk.

"Dragon War Guild! Fill in the path!"

A furious roar echoed across the flank battlefield. Dragon Fighting in the Wild wore a dazzling set of top-tier armor—premium materials, heavy enhancements, and top-grade enchantments. It was extravagance beyond reason.

A brilliant golden light suddenly erupted from his body.

[Server Announcement: Congratulations to player "Dragon Fighting in the Wild" for reaching LV.20!]

[Gene Lock Released! Titan Sequence Unlocked!]

"Hahahaha! I've reached the threshold too!" Dragon Fighting in the Wild laughed maniacally. LV.20 was the dividing line between mortals and the extraordinary! From then on, every improvement in the game would have a tremendous impact on reality!

He opened the Talent Tree directly on the battlefield. He had only one precious Cornerstone Talent point. As a rich guild leader who loved charging into the fray to show off, what he feared most was death. Without any hesitation, he placed it into the first tier of Flesh Sequence (Red).

[Talent Selection: Primary Keratinized Skin]

Reality Projection: Increased resistance to physical damage!

"Bring it on!" Dragon Fighting in the Wild roared. Rather than dodge the incoming crystal spear, he puffed out his chest and took it head-on with his premium plate armor.

Clang! Sparks flew. The spear, which could instantly kill an LV.15 player, was forcefully deflected. Only a pitifully small damage number floated above his head!

"So this is LV.20 defense?" Dragon Fighting in the Wild looked at his armor, which had only dented slightly, and felt as if his skin had somehow become as tough as a tire.

"Gahahahahaha!"

He laughed wildly without a shred of dignity and swept out a hand. "Brothers! Your guild leader will tank the monsters for you! Even if I have to bury it in money, I'll smash this section of wall down!"

Morale soared. Thousands of Dragon War Guild members howled as they charged forward. With Dragon Fighting in the Wild's reputation among players, one call from him drew countless responses. As long as he charged at the front, even solo players were willing to follow him for a share of the spoils.

At the same time, on the other side of the battlefield.

An army clad in black battle robes sliced into the flank like a scalpel. It was led by Tian Ce, the president of another top guild—the Imperial Dynasty Guild.

He was a typical strategy-focused player. In reality, he was a PhD from the mathematics department of a renowned university. He usually kept a low profile, but throughout the leveling frenzy, he had stayed close on the heels of the first echelon.

[Server Announcement: Congratulations to player "Tian Ce" for reaching LV.20!]

Golden light flashed. Tian Ce stood on high ground and opened his Talent Tree as well. He chose Psionic Sequence (Purple).

[Talent Selection: Primary Cerebral Overclocking]

Reality Projection: Increased logical thinking and calculation speed.

Tian Ce could not help frowning. The sudden surge in data-processing ability made his head swell painfully. It took several deep breaths before he recovered.

"All personnel, heed my orders." Tian Ce's voice rang through the guild channel, terrifyingly calm. At that moment, the chaotic battlefield in his vision instantly broke down into countless clear streams of data. The monsters' aggro ranges, the trajectories of the catapults, even the mana recovery speed of his own healers... everything was as clear as a chessboard! As commander, his decisions became more precise, and his team's advance efficiency improved dramatically.

Under his meticulous command, the Imperial Dynasty Guild's advance was no less efficient than that of Dawn Guild and Dragon War Guild.

Blue Star, the real world.

As the big shots of the first echelon successively broke through to LV.20, the real world was once again shaken.

Coordinates: Dragon Kingdom, a top-tier private gym.

Dragon Fighting in the Wild, who had just logged out, climbed out of his gaming pod.

Dragon Fighting in the Wild's real name was Zhao Kuo, and he was the son of an ultra-wealthy family. To play this game well, he had already invested tens of millions in the early stages to purchase equipment and materials, buy Bio-Energy and various materials from other players, pay salaries to full-time players, and convert all those game resources into combat power. Rumors online claimed that this rich young man had invested as much as five hundred million. Reality was not quite that exaggerated, but he was undoubtedly the server's biggest spender.

Gu Yuan was more than happy to see it. The existence of players like him had, in fact, promoted currency circulation and consumption in the game, significantly increasing the rate at which he acquired Bio-Energy.

Zhao Kuo stood bare-chested before a mirror. He picked up an exquisite little knife he usually used to cut cigars, hesitated for a moment, then lightly sliced his arm.

There was no blood. Only a pale mark remained on his skin, as if he had cut into cowhide. Only after pressing down hard did a tiny bead of blood seep out.

"Keratinized Skin..." A feverish ambition flashed through Zhao Kuo's eyes. "This money was so damn worth it. If I max out this Talent Tree, will I be able to tank bullets too?" He picked up his phone. "Hello, Finance? Add another ten million to my budget!... What? What for? I'll explain it to my dad myself. Transfer it first!"

Coordinates: Dragon Kingdom, Shen City, a cybersecurity center.

Li Zihan had also reached LV.20. He had just helped Vanguard Across the Realm complete a precise tactical adjustment in the game.

Now, he was forced to log out and handle work. "Brother Li, this algorithm model is stuck. Server load is too high."

Li Zihan looked at the densely packed code on the screen. He closed his eyes.

[Talent Mapping: Cerebral Overclocking]

Synchronization Rate: 4.9%.

When he opened his eyes again, the dull symbols seemed to come alive. His brain had become faster, as if his CPU had been upgraded. Calculations that had once lagged now completed instantly.

"There's a logical conflict. Optimize the redundant data." Li Zihan rapidly tapped the keyboard a few times. "Done."

"Holy shit? That worked?" The supervisor stared in disbelief. "Is your brain powered by a quantum computer?"

Li Zihan adjusted his glasses, the corners of his lips lifting slightly. "No, it's just... been updated to a new version."

Back in the game, the battle to breach H-124 Fortress had reached a stalemate.

Although the three major guilds now had LV.20 leaders, and although the player army was enormous, H-124 was still one of the liver's core hubs.

The monsters here poured out endlessly. Besides the guards on the walls, large numbers of LV.21 elite Venomous Aberrations emerged from inside the fortress. They exploded upon death, releasing vast clouds of poison mist that made advancing exceptionally difficult.

"We can't push forward!" Brute Force Yields Miracles retreated to the position, his shield durability already in the red. "The monsters inside are packed too tightly, and they self-destruct. Melee fighters can't hold their ground at all."

Vanguard Across the Realm wiped the venom from his dagger and looked at the fortress still standing tall ahead of them.

"Tch, another war of attrition." Even someone as calm as Vanguard Across the Realm could not help curling his lip. The scene felt familiar, reminding him of several previous campaigns.

"We're not just fighting monsters. We're fighting for resources. Even if we can't push inside, the crystals dropped by monsters on the outskirts will be enough to slowly fill that one-billion progress bar."

He turned to the Dawn Guild members behind him. "Rotate in batches! First Regiment logs out to rest, Second Regiment takes over!"

"Remember, crystals are our main objective! The frontal battlefield is too hard to hold. Keep moving while you fight!"

High-Dimensional Perspective: Titan Divine Body.

Gu Yuan watched the meat-grinder-like battlefield surrounding H-124 Fortress. Players died every second, and monsters were dismantled every second. Countless amounts of Bio-Energy and supplies were flowing back into his system through this brutal process.

[Server Donation Progress: 12,500,000 / 1,000,000,000]

Although the progress bar was still moving slowly, it was steadily increasing.

"Good." The players still needed time to develop. They needed to sharpen their skills during this prolonged siege, upgrade their equipment, and allow more people to reach LV.20.

"The lord of H-124 is still sleeping." Gu Yuan glanced at the massive reactor deep within the fortress. "When you've cleared out the perimeter and raised your levels, then you can face that big guy."