Guan Ren’s exploits in the game had the community buzzing with excitement.
"Who on Earth is Officer Guan? How can someone be so fiercely competent? Racking up first kills on bosses, and it's insanely thrilling!"
"The stakes are even higher this time! A Gold-class Boss, and it's only been a day since the server launch! How did he do it?"
Players toiling away at their grind were thoroughly befuddled by the system announcement.
"This fellow Officer Guan is indeed hogging the limelight in the game!"
In an unassuming town, a man dressed in a white robe waved his folding fan and remarked casually to Elder Feng, a hunched figure in gray, "Tell me, Elder Feng, between this person and me, who is the stronger?"
"In the real world, you'd win hands down. In the game... it's hard to say!"
Elder Feng frowned deeply and responded in a somber tone.
The man's eyes twinkled with interest. "Well, now I am quite looking forward to it."
His gaming adventure was a mere consequence of Elder Feng's encouragement.
As per Elder Feng's claims, the holographic game "Heaven's Arrival" could considerably bolster his actual strength. Yet, he found the monsters in Newcomer's Village utterly unengaging, which had him skipping about the game simply for casual amusement rather than leveling up, a pursuit that scarcely piqued his interest.
"I'm off to level up," the man in white announced, making a firm decision.
"You’ve finally seen the light?" Elder Feng asked, chuckling.
"I caught a clip of that Officer Guan soloing a siege boss... and, well... it's rather impressive."
The man smiled slightly, swapping his fan for a long sword, and strode towards the village outskirts.
Elder Feng watched the man's retreating figure, feeling a weight lift from his shoulders. The young prodigy was finally taking a shine to the game, sparing the real world from his usual upheaval.
"This is for the best, two birds with one stone."
Elder Feng smirked to himself and followed suit.
…
[Ding, you have new messages. Would you like to check them?]
[Ding, you have new messages. Would you like to check them?]
[Ding...]
The continuous system notifications were giving Guan Ren a headache – they were even more relentless than the Gold Boss.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
Blocking all messages from strangers, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
To promote his studio, Guan Ren needed to make a name for himself; thus, he didn't typically hide his character name, except for special reasons.
However, his first kill on the Gold Boss had ignited a maelstrom of messages, rocketing his private inbox to 999+ within a minute of the announcement.
Agencies offered collaborations, guilds sent out invitations, streaming platforms pitched contracts…
A plethora of messages came flooding in.
Fluttering Snow: Congratulations!
Light Crimson Feifei: Amazing, little brother Guan Ren!
Delicate Luoyun: You were splendid, big brother!
Amid the flood of congratulations filling the studio’s chat, Guan Ren felt slightly overwhelmed.
Honestly, he hadn't anticipated defeating the boss so swiftly.
After sending out a red packet, he pushed open the door and stepped back into the vast space.
A thick cloud of smoke assaulted his senses.
"Cough, cough... it's suffocating."
Guan Ren frowned, waiting for the smoke to dissipate before stepping back onto the battlefield.
What the... everything’s gone??
Staring blankly at the barren ground, Guan Ren couldn't grasp what had happened.
What a rip-off! The loot's been destroyed by that last explosion!
He felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
This was the first kill on a Gold Boss, which should've meant a treasure trove of a haul!
Now, two Bronze Tinders later, all was lost.
To make matters worse, since he used items to beat the boss, the Ultimate Acceleration System's plunder feature didn't kick in. Hence, aside from the first-kill rewards, Guan Ren got zilch!
"What’s the sense in all this?"
He felt a desire to weep.
Those spoils, even if not for his use, could have netted him a tidy sum, especially given his high luck stat. He was certain to have missed out significantly!
Regrets aside, there was nothing Guan Ren could do but ruefully assess the additional hundred gold coins and the solitary suit of Gold Armor that now glimmered inside his bag.
[Gold Armor: Luxurious and high-status armor crafted with Gold enchantments. Quality: Gold, Attributes: Health +2000, Stamina +1000, Defense +200, Base Attributes +30, Gold War Song: Active skill that enhances state, increasing attack by +500, defense by +500, duration 60 seconds, cooldown 5 hours, Equipment level: 20]
Excellent equipment, indeed, but he'd have to reach level 20 before equipping it. Despite the Expertise skill lowering the equipment level requirement by five, it would still be a wait until level 15.
Recollecting his composure, Guan Ren walked deeper into the space he's come to collect the Heavenly Mystery Essence.
Looking up at the three strands of faint yellow essence hovering midair, Guan Ren reached out and grasped.
Whoosh!
The touch sent a warm sensation coursing up his arm before spreading throughout his body.
The Heavenly Mystery Essence slowly infused into Guan Ren's body, and after half an hour passed…
[Ding, Congratulations to the player for successfully refining the Heavenly Mystery Essence, unlocking the first rune of The Heart of Heaven's Punishment and temporarily lifting the level lock!]
[Ding, Health +1000, Stamina +1000, Base Attributes +100, Fixed Attributes +10!]
A surge of inexplicable power passed over him, prompting an involuntary groan of satisfaction.
[Ding, Congratulations on reaching Level 10!]
[World Announcement: Player Officer Guan has reached Level 10! As the first player in the Jiuzhou region to do so, rewarded with 3000 Reputation points, 10 free attribute points, 100 gold coins, and the talent: Ambidexterity!]
Once again, the world announcement shook the forum – yet another piece of breaking news featuring Officer Guan.
In less than a day since the server went live, the entire narrative of Heaven's Arrival in the Jiuzhou region had been monopolized by Officer Guan's explosive actions.
Four world announcements in a day, all about Officer Guan!
This drove many players ecstatic.
"Don't anyone dare stop me! Starting today, Officer Guan is my idol!"
"Does anybody know which guild Officer Guan is with? I gotta join him. He's too awesome!"
...