The Extraordinary Outbreak

Location: Detoxification Camp.

The [Void Obelisk] that had just risen from the ground was currently emitting a faint blue light. At the very top of the monument, a massive digital progress bar hovered, leaving all players feeling both desperate and exhilarated:

[Server-wide Titan Armory donation progress: 8.55 million / 1 billion]

"One billion..." A passing casual player tilted his head back until his neck grew sore. "Are the developers insane? There are only one hundred thousand of us on the entire server; everyone would have to donate ten thousand just to meet the goal! It costs me 800 points just to repair my gear once right now; where am I supposed to find the spare cash to donate to this?"

This was the economic recovery system designed by Gu Yuan. Although monster drops had increased, the consumption rate for players had risen exponentially alongside the difficulty of the maps. In particular, the durability loss of equipment and the wide variety of consumables meant that the vast majority of players could not keep any liquid assets on hand.

Within the crowd, Data Maniac hurried past with several logistics personnel, their backpacks stuffed with supplies just transported from the front lines.

In the management channel of the Dawn Guild, Data Maniac made a calm assessment: "Feng, if we rely on casual players scrimping and saving, this progress bar won't be finished in half a year. The system is forcing us to start a war."

He pointed to a coordinate on the map that was glowing a deep, purplish red—Hub H-124.

"There are no other large-scale battles at the moment; it would be best if we commit our entire force to attacking H-124 to speed things up."

"According to the reconnaissance team's research, we have already obtained the detailed production coordinates for H-124's specialty, [High-Purity Bile Salt Crystal]. A single crystal can offset a significant amount of Bio-Energy. This is the only shortcut." "If we don't take H-124, I'm afraid we'll never be able to unlock the Mecha Tech Tree." Feng Xing Tian Xia stood on the high ground of the front line, watching the assembled army. "Pass the word down: Dawn Guild main force, prepare for the assault."

Location: Liver - H-124 Sarcoma Fortress.

This was currently the largest meat grinder in the Liver region. A massive fortress constructed from dead liver cells, hardened nodules, and countless vascular remains stood squarely in front of all the players.

The city walls were crowded with [Crystallized Gallstone Guard] units, and every throw of the crystal spears in their hands claimed the lives of a group of squishy players. Around the fortress, a moat of toxic bile made countless melee players shrink back in hesitation.

"Dragon War Guild! Fill in the road!"

A roar echoed across the flank of the battlefield. Dragon Fighting in the Wild wore a set of top-tier armor—premium materials, high-level reinforcement, and top-tier enchantments; he was truly obscenely wealthy.

A brilliant golden light suddenly erupted from his body.

[Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Dragon Fighting in the Wild" for reaching LV.20!][Genetic Lock released! Titan Sequence activated!]

"Hahahaha! I've finally reached the threshold too!" Dragon Fighting in the Wild laughed wildly. LV.20 was the watershed between mortals and the transcendent! From this point on, every bit of improvement in the game would have a massive impact on reality!

He opened his Talent Tree right there on the battlefield. He had only one precious cornerstone talent point. As a wealthy guild leader who loved to charge into the fray and show off, his greatest fear was death. Without any hesitation, he spent it on the first tier of the [Flesh Sequence (Red)].

[Talent Selection: [Basic · Keratinized Skin]] Reality Mapping: Increased resistance to physical impact!

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

Clang! Sparks flew everywhere. The spear, which was powerful enough to instantly kill a LV.15 player, was deflected by him, and only a pitifully small damage number floated above his head!

"Is this the defense of level 20?" Dragon Fighting in the Wild looked at his armor, which had only slightly dented, and felt the illusion that his skin had become as tough as a tire.

"Gah-gah-gah-gah!"

He laughed wantonly, abandoning all pretense of dignity, and waved his hand. "Brothers! Your guild leader will tank the monsters for you! Even if we have to throw money at it, smash this wall down for me!"

Morale soared. Thousands of Dragon War Guild members charged forward with wild shouts. Given Dragon Fighting in the Wild's reputation among the player base, his word was law. As long as he was charging at the front, even the casual players were willing to follow and pick up the scraps.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield.

An army clad in black battle robes was cutting into the flank like a scalpel. It was the leader of another top-tier guild—the "Imperial Dynasty" Guild, ID Tian Ce.

This man was a typical strategic player; in reality, he was a doctoral student in mathematics at a prestigious university. He usually kept a low profile, but he had remained firmly in the first tier during the leveling craze.

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

Golden light shone. Tian Ce stood on high ground and likewise opened his Talent Tree. He chose the [Psionic Sequence (Purple)].

[Talent Selection: [Basic · Cerebral Overclocking]] Reality Mapping: Increased logical thinking and calculation speed.

Tian Ce couldn't help but frown; the surge in data processing capacity made his head throb. It took several deep breaths for him to recover.

"Everyone, listen up." Tian Ce's voice rang out in the guild channel, terrifyingly calm. At this moment, in his field of vision, the chaotic situation on the battlefield was instantly deconstructed into countless clear lines of data. The aggro range of the monsters, the trajectory of the catapults, and even the mana regeneration speed of his own healers... everything was as clear as a chessboard! As a commander, his decisions were more precise, and the team's efficiency in pushing forward increased significantly.

Under his micro-managed command, the Imperial Dynasty Guild's progress was not a bit inferior to the Dawn and Dragon War guilds.

Blue Star, the real world.

As the big shots of the first tier broke through to LV.20 one after another, the real world was shaken once again.

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

Having just logged off, Dragon Fighting in the Wild climbed out of his life-support pod.

Dragon Fighting in the Wild, real name Zhao Kuo, was a super-rich heir. To play this game well, he had already invested tens of millions in the early stages to acquire equipment and materials, buying Bio-Energy and various items from many players, paying salaries to full-time players, and converting all game resources into combat power. Online rumors claimed this rich brother had invested as much as five hundred million; while reality wasn't quite that exaggerated, he was definitely the server's number one financier.

Gu Yuan was happy to see this. The existence of such wealthy players actually promoted the circulation and consumption of currency within the game, significantly increasing the rate at which he acquired Bio-Energy.

Zhao Kuo stood shirtless in front of the mirror. He picked up a delicate small knife he usually used to cut cigars, hesitated for a moment, and then lightly sliced his arm.

No blood. Only a white mark remained on his skin, as if he had sliced into cowhide. It wasn't until he pressed down hard that a bead of blood seeped out.

"Keratinized Skin..." A flash of ambitious fanaticism crossed Zhao Kuo's eyes. "This money was well spent. If I max out this talent tree, could I even withstand bullets?" He picked up the phone: "Hello, Finance Department? Add another ten million to my budget!... What? What for? I'll explain it to my old man myself; just transfer it to me first!"

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

Li Zihan had also reached LV.20 at this moment. He had just assisted Feng Xing Tian Xia in completing a precise tactical deployment within the game.

Now, he was forced to log off to handle work. "Brother Li, this algorithm model is stuck; the server load is too high."

Li Zihan looked at the dense lines of code on the screen. He closed his eyes. [Talent Mapping: Cerebral Overclocking]

Synchronization rate: 4.9%.

When he opened his eyes again, those dull symbols seemed to come alive. His brain became faster, as if he had upgraded his CPU; the calculations that were previously lagging were now completed in an instant.

"There's a logic conflict; optimize the redundant data." Li Zihan's fingers tapped rapidly on the keyboard. "Done."

"What the hell? That's it?" The supervisor stared in disbelief. "Is your brain made of a quantum computer?"

Li Zihan pushed up his glasses, the corners of his mouth curling slightly. "No, it's just... a version update."

Inside the game, the H-124 Fortress siege had reached a stalemate.

Although the three major guilds already had LV.20 leaders and the player army was vast in number, H-124 was, after all, one of the core hubs of the Liver.

The monsters here were endless. In addition to the guards on the city walls, a large number of level 21 elite units, [Venomous Aberration], poured out from inside the fortress. They would explode upon death, releasing a wide-range poisonous mist that made advancing exceptionally difficult.

"We can't push forward!" Dali Chu Qiji retreated to the defensive line, his shield's durability already in the red. "The monsters inside are too dense, and they self-destruct; the melee units can't hold their ground at all."

Feng Xing Tian Xia wiped the poison off his dagger, looking at the fortress that still stood imposingly ahead.

"Tsk, another war of attrition." Even with his calm personality, Feng Xing Tian Xia couldn't help but curl his lip. This scene felt familiar; he was reminded of several previous campaigns.

"We aren't just fighting monsters; we are competing for resources. Even if we can't push in, the crystals dropped by killing monsters on the periphery are enough for us to slowly fill that one-billion progress bar."

He turned to look at the Dawn Guild members behind him. "Rotate in batches! Group One logs off to rest, Group Two moves up! Remember, our main goal is the crystals! The front line is too hard to hold, so we'll fight while maneuvering!"

High-Dimensional Perspective: Titan Divine Body.

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

[Server-wide donation progress: 12,500,000 / 1,000,000,000]

Although the progress bar was still slow, it was growing steadily.

"Very good." The players still needed time to settle. They needed to hone their skills, upgrade their equipment, and get more people to reach LV.20 during this long siege.

"The lord of H-124 is still sleeping." Gu Yuan glanced at the massive reactor deep within the fortress. "Wait until you have cleared the periphery and raised your levels before you go to face that big guy."