Return to Reality

Combining his experience with online games from his past life, Xiao Fan could imagine far too many weapons he could create.

"What type of weapon should I choose?"

In Cloud Sea, the weapons one created generally corresponded to the skills one had developed.

Xiao Fan's current skills were all auxiliary spells and did not rely on weapons.

What he needed now was a weapon that could protect him and allow him to deal damage.

The first thing that came to Xiao Fan's mind was a pistol.

Simple, brutal, and capable of ranged attacks.

It fit his requirements perfectly.

It was strange, though; Blue Star and the Real World had firearms, but for some reason, he had never seen anyone use any kind of firearm in Cloud Sea.

Logically, compared to cold weapons like swords and blades, firearms should be simpler and more popular.

"Could it be that you can't create firearms in Cloud Sea?"

At this moment, Xiao Fan noticed a simulation function in the equipment creation tab.

After checking the instructions and seeing that it didn't cost any money, Xiao Fan clicked on the weapon simulation function.

"Please enter the weapon type."

"Pistol."

"Please visualize the appearance of the weapon in your mind."

"This is easy, no description needed, already visualized."

"Please select your weapon attributes: physical damage, magic damage, healing intensity."

"All of them."

"Would you like to add extra attribute points to the weapon? (You may only choose two)"

"Strength, Agility."

"Would you like to create an exclusive special effect for the weapon?"

"Yes."

"Please create the weapon special effect."

Xiao Fan thought for a moment: "Increase critical hit rate by ten percent."

"Would you like to create an exclusive skill for the weapon?"

"Yes."

"Please create the weapon skill."

"Splash: Attacks will simultaneously deal damage to the primary target and all enemies within a small radius around them."

"Please select the weapon level."

"Level 5."

"Creation complete. Please name your weapon."

"Azure Dragon."

Ding, weapon creation complete. Would you like to view it?

View.

Immediately, a 3D image of a pistol floated before Xiao Fan.

The highly streamlined body of the gun emitted a faint purple glow, as if it were composed of pure energy, exuding a strong sense of technology.

Except for the color, it was exactly the same as the weapon he had imagined.

Weapon Name: Azure Dragon (Purple Tier)
Weapon Type: Pistol
Weapon Level: Level 5
Weapon Attributes: Physical Damage +40, Magic Damage +30, Healing Intensity +15
Weapon Extra Attributes: Strength +5, Agility +5
Weapon Special Effect: Physical Critical Hit +10%
Weapon Skill: Splash - Lasts 15 seconds, cooldown 120 seconds.

"Purple Tier? Does equipment come in different grades?"

Seeing the words "Purple Tier" after the weapon name Azure Dragon, Xiao Fan suddenly understood something.

Weapons in Cloud Sea were graded by color.

He had previously seen other Players in Zone 18 holding white weapons and had assumed that was just the color of weapons in the game; it turned out that was a weapon grade.

"I just don't know what level this purple color corresponds to."

"Weapon simulation complete. Choose to extract the weapon directly, save the weapon simulation data, or exit."

"Huh? I can extract the simulated weapon directly? That's great!" Xiao Fan gave the game a thumbs up.

"Although this weapon isn't top-tier, it's enough for me for now."

Xiao Fan rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, and chose to extract it.

"Extracting this weapon will consume 267,890 Core Power. Confirm?"

Xiao Fan: Σ(°△°|||)︴!!!

"No! No! No!"

"267,000 Core Power for one weapon! Why don't you just go rob someone!"

Although Xiao Fan currently had over 500,000 Core Power, asking him to spend 267,000 on a weapon right now was worse than death.

"Damn it, it really is that game where even breathing costs money."

Xiao Fan couldn't help but complain. He finally understood why everyone in Zone 18 used Novice weapons, and he finally realized how cheap the 30,000-point Novice weapons at school really were.

Regrettably, there were no regrets.

"Since it's the first weapon I've simulated, I'll save the data."

Xiao Fan clicked "Save weapon simulation data."

Immediately after, he simulated clothes, pants, and accessories.

The prices were more expensive than the last.

Can't afford it! Absolutely can't afford it!

"Actually, things are fine the way they are now," Xiao Fan consoled himself.

Over the next few days, Xiao Fan Team went to grind the Mist Forest as usual.

"Brother Chen hasn't been possessed by something, has he?" Garfield Without Fat leaned over to Swift as Wind and whispered, his gaze cautiously fixed on Xiao Fan, who was looking up at the sun ahead.

Swift as Wind nodded, his expression serious: "Be more confident, remove the 'hasn't been'."

"With such a blinding sun, how does Brother Chen manage to stare at it every day?" Zai Zai looked up at the sun and immediately felt his eyes ache from the glare.

Han the Person frowned: "Don't talk about Brother Chen behind his back. He's so powerful, what's wrong with him looking at the sun during the day and the moon at night?"

Garfield Without Fat: ...You didn't spare him either.

Although the four of them didn't understand, they respected his choices.

Xiao Fan heard the discussion behind him and looked at them with disdain.

Hmph! They didn't understand this game at all!

That said, Xiao Fan decided that if he could really farm a trait this time, he would find a way to help Garfield Without Fat and the others farm traits as well and help them design a Skill Chain.

They were his teammates, after all; they couldn't be too trashy.

The Yellow Rank Skill Chain they learned in school would probably be useless once they left the Novice Village.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

This morning, none of the novice players in Zone 18 went out to hunt.

Players in the Cloud Sea Novice Zone could only return home once a month, so everyone planned to go home to report that they were safe, and Xiao Fan was no exception.

"I wonder how Uncle's illness is doing," Xiao Fan thought as he clicked to exit the game.

Ding, detected that the player is temporarily exiting Cloud Sea. Do you wish to manifest attribute points?

"Yes!"

"Detected that the player has obtained a total of 63 attribute points in Cloud Sea. Manifestation requires 63,000 Core Power points. Confirm payment?"

"Why does it want money again!" Xiao Fan's face darkened.

"No for now!"

Ding, detected that the player is temporarily exiting Cloud Sea. Do you wish to manifest skills?

Xiao Fan: ...

Should he say yes or no?

"No for now."

No need to ask; manifesting skills would definitely cost even more.

Xiao Fan had originally thought he was quite wealthy, but now...

He couldn't even bear to look.

Xiao Fan chose not to manifest anything mainly because he felt he should focus on the game for now.

Only by improving his strength in the game could he earn more Core Power.

Manifesting now would be like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs; it would affect his development in the game and do more harm than good.

Next, the system prompted him about equipment manifestation and item manifestation.

Xiao Fan decisively chose "No" for the items he did not possess.

Immediately after, darkness fell before his eyes, and when he opened them again, Xiao Fan was already at the Cloud Sea Login Administration Bureau.

Players could log into the game from anywhere, but they would always return to the Login Administration Bureau upon exiting.

When Xiao Fan appeared, the area was already packed with people, most of whom were novice players who had just entered the game this year.

He squeezed through the crowd and arrived at the Core Power Exchange window.

Beside the window stood a notice board.

Today's exchange rate: 1 Core Power = 1000 Dragon Nation Currency.

There was not a single person queuing at the window, only a staff member looking at the computer in front of her, bored out of her mind.

"Hello, I would like to exchange for Dragon Nation Currency. I'm not sure how to proceed," Xiao Fan said politely.

The staff member was a young woman with a delicate, girl-next-door appearance. Hearing Xiao Fan's voice, she turned around and, upon discovering he was a very handsome young man, her cheeks instantly flushed slightly.

This boy was very young; he was clearly a new player from this year.

Remembering she was still at work, the girl quickly straightened her expression.

"Student, are you sure you want to exchange Core Power for Dragon Nation Currency?"

Seeing the girl's expression suddenly turn serious, Xiao Fan thought there might be some restriction, so he asked, "Is it not allowed?"

"No, no." The girl quickly waved her hands, anxiously explaining, "It's just that it's very difficult for novice players in the early stages; it's better to save Core Power to improve your strength."

In fact, it wasn't just novices; even veterans wouldn't use Core Power to exchange for Dragon Nation Currency.

Only those players who had no future in the game and were in urgent need of money would use Core Power for such an exchange.

Seeing how young and handsome Xiao Fan was, she didn't want him to be that kind of person.

Xiao Fan knew the girl meant well and smiled as he said, "Thank you, I'm only exchanging 100 Core Power."

100 Core Power was equal to 100,000 Dragon Nation Currency. This money was enough to pay off the debts incurred from Uncle's illness and could also improve their family's situation, making life less arduous for Uncle and Aunt.

Moreover, 100 Core Power really didn't amount to much for him right now.

Seeing Xiao Fan insist on exchanging for Dragon Nation Currency, the small amount of goodwill she had felt for him instantly vanished.

Someone who didn't want to become a powerhouse in the game didn't deserve her favor.

"Hand over your Login Device." The girl's tone had cooled by several degrees.

Baffled by the girl's sudden change in attitude, Xiao Fan handed over the Login Device.

The girl took the Login Device, placed it into a metal slot, tapped the screen a few times, and then asked for Xiao Fan's bank card number.

"The money has been deposited."

Xiao Fan nodded; the girl changed her expression quickly, but she was also efficient at her job.

"Brother Fan!"

Just as Xiao Fan stepped out of the Login Administration Bureau, a familiar and urgent voice came from behind him.

He didn't need to turn around to know it was his deskmate, Little Fatty.

Xiao Fan stopped and turned around. He saw the fatty running out of the hall, panting heavily.

"Bro... Brother Fan, why are you walking so fast? I almost didn't catch up to you." The fatty ran up to him, braced his hands on his knees, and gasped for air.

Seeing the fatty like this, Xiao Fan found it somewhat amusing. He hadn't seen him for a month, and he was still so...

"Huh?"

Xiao Fan looked the fatty up and down, only then noticing that he had lost a lot of weight compared to a month ago. His originally round belly was clearly a circle smaller, and his double chin had also receded significantly.

Xiao Fan: "Fatty, did you go on a diet?"

Hearing this, the fatty straightened up and smiled bitterly: "Don't even mention it, Brother Fan. Do you know what I've been through this past month? If I had known, I would have gone to Zone 18 with you. This Zone 2 is really not a place for humans."

"Stop joking, you'll get beaten up if people hear you say that." Xiao Fan patted the fatty on the shoulder and asked curiously: "What's wrong with Zone 2?"

While Novice Village Zone 1 was invitation-only, Zone 2 could be considered the novice zone that all players dreamed of; its status was equivalent to Qingbei on Earth.