On the Colorful Mist Coast.
Dusk resembled an oil painting blurred by water. A seemingly half-melted sun hung at the edge of the sky, dyeing the clouds a blend of pink and grape purple.
Flecks of gold floated across the sea. Whenever a wave curled, phosphorescence spilled down its crest.
It was as though stars beneath the sea were pouring toward the surface with the rise and fall of the waves.
Amid this breathtaking dusk scenery, a figure sat curled up on a crescent-shaped seashell, hugging her knees.
Above her head hovered a game ID that only players could see.
Up close, the player's shoulders trembled slightly. A few strands of pale purple hair clung to her tear-streaked face.
"Boohoo, it's all gone. I worked so hard for so long."
"And I even lost 10 points of sacrificial power. You bastard."
Grief was like the surging waves beside her, endlessly battering her fragile inner world.
Her sorrow now matched how much she had looked forward to it before.
She had spent three months preparing to pass the Death Space trial.
Reading forum guides, calculating how best to spend Elysium Points on enhancements, learning how to balance team classes, scrambling to buy Death Space entry slots every midnight... all her preliminary efforts had finally paid off.
She had successfully passed the Death Space trial, becoming an outstanding graduate certified by the Lord of Benefits.
From that moment on, she had begun looking forward to her return rewards.
She had even planned how to spend that enormous sum of sacrificial power once she returned.
First, she would buy Experience Pills to raise her life soul level, then upgrade her armed vehicles and design a better-looking template...
But now, all those beautiful plans had vanished like bubbles.
The return rewards that should have