The July summer wind in Jiang City was hot and dry, rattling the old security bars on the windows of the aging residential complex.
Shen Xing quickly washed up and straightened his appearance before wheeling himself out of his rented apartment.
He lived on the thirteenth floor. Fortunately, the old complex had retrofitted elevators, so at least getting downstairs wasn’t a problem.
He entered the elevator, went down to the first floor, and turned onto the street.
The morning sun spilled over his frail figure, so bright he could barely keep his eyes open.
Across the road, a group of students in school uniforms zipped past on shared bikes, their crisp laughter echoing in his ears.
Shen Xing looked away, a vague sense of melancholy filling his heart.
Once upon a time, he had been one of them. Now, he could only sit in a wheelchair, forced to plan his routes in advance just to go out.
He shook his head and continued pushing his wheelchair along the sidewalk.
Passersby occasionally shot him a glance, their eyes filled with a hint of surprise as they moved out of his way.
"So young, why is he in a wheelchair?"
"He probably had some kind of accident. What a pity."
"Yeah, he’s got a clean-cut look. Just the type my daughter likes. Such a shame."
Shen Xing had heard such comments countless times over the years; he was practically immune to them by now.
He headed straight for the subway station.
In today’s society, getting around was extremely inconvenient for people with disabilities like him.
Whether it was hailing a cab or taking the bus, it was always a huge hassle, and he felt like he was burdening society.
This was why, even though the disabled population in Hua Country reached 85 million, accounting for 6.4% of the total population, you rarely saw them on the streets.
They mostly stayed home, and Shen Xing was no different.
A few hundred meters from the subway station, he stopped.
’Damn it... when did they build a curb here?’
Shen Xing frowned, staring at the nearly ten-centimeter-high curb at the intersection ahead.
He tried several times to get over it but failed, only managing to exhaust himself.
"We’ll help you."
A clear, pleasant voice came from behind him, accompanied by the light patter of two pairs of sneakers on the pavement.
A moment later, two pairs of fair hands rested on the handles of his wheelchair.
Working together, the two of them lifted both Shen Xing and his wheelchair up onto the sidewalk.
Only then did he turn to look back.
It was two girls with ponytails. They looked like students from the nearby university town, out for a day of shopping.
"Thank you," Shen Xing said, nodding at them.
"You’re welcome."
The girl on the left, wearing denim shorts, turned her head and met Shen Xing’s clean-featured face. She froze for a second.
Then, embarrassed, she pulled the other girl away and they quickly left.
Shen Xing continued pushing his wheelchair, moving slowly along the edge of the subway plaza.
He had experienced this kind of kindness from strangers many times over the years and had gradually learned to accept it gracefully.
Soon, he turned into a more secluded side street.
It looked like a construction site, fenced off on both sides with blue metal sheets.
Just then, Shen Xing suddenly heard a sharp whistling sound from above.
Looking up, he saw a steel rebar that had fallen from some unknown floor high above.
And directly below the falling rebar were the two girls from before!
They were still walking arm in arm, chatting and laughing, completely unaware of the danger overhead.
"Look out!" Shen Xing shouted frantically.
But it was too late. The rebar was falling too fast.
A normal person’s reaction time wouldn’t be enough to dodge it.
He could almost see the image of one of them being impaled by the rebar, blood splattering everywhere.
In that moment of crisis, he subconsciously stretched out his right hand, fingers splayed, and clenched it in mid-air, following some deep instinct.
A formless mass of Spiritual Power surged from his palm, forming a giant, invisible hand in the air!
The giant hand met the falling rebar and slapped it away!
"CLANG—"
The rebar was sent flying sideways in a trajectory that defied the laws of physics, crashing against the blue metal sheets.
The loud noise from behind startled the two girls. They spun around in confusion, and upon realizing what had happened, their faces turned deathly pale.
One of the girls put her hands on her hips, looked up, and started yelling at the construction floors above, even taking out her phone to take pictures.
But at that moment, Shen Xing was staring blankly at his outstretched right hand, completely bewildered.
’What happened?’
’That feeling just now... was that the Void Hand?’
’Isn’t that a skill from the game?’
His first instinct was to think he was dreaming, but he had just clearly seen an invisible hand materialize out of thin air.
Otherwise, there was no explaining why that rebar had suddenly flown sideways.
Also, he felt a slight dizziness deep in his mind—a sign of Spiritual Power consumption.
All signs pointed to one conclusion: this was all real!
’Could it be... that abilities from the game can really be brought into the real world?’
The thought surfaced, first bringing confusion, then an overwhelming, suppressed desire that grew wildly from the depths of his heart!
’If this is real, does that mean I can raise my level in the game, strengthen my body, and find more treasures?’
’And maybe, someday in the future, even stand up again?’
Modern medical technology couldn’t repair the completely necrotic nerves in his legs.
But that was a game world!
The abilities in there were bizarre and varied; they could even resurrect the dead and regenerate severed limbs.
Compared to that, what was restoring the ability to walk?
At this thought, the flames of hope ignited in his eyes.
’Should I tell Qin Lang and the others about this?’
Shen Xing mulled it over for a moment before shaking his head. ’I’m not sure if I’m the only one who can do this, or if all players can bring their game abilities into reality.’
’I’ll test their reactions first, then decide based on the situation.’
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them, but the matter was simply too shocking.
If it got out, it would be all over the news and could bring him endless trouble.
So, until he fully understood the situation, he couldn’t reveal it rashly.
Shen Xing suppressed his turbulent thoughts and continued to wheel himself down the ramp into the subway station.
The rest of the way was unobstructed.
Soon, he arrived at a food street in the suburbs of Jiang City.
On the west side of the street stood a rather old building with a sign that read: Sichuan Pavilion.
It was a restaurant they had frequented during their university days.
It was now the dinner rush, and people were coming and going through the main entrance.
Even before going inside, he could smell the pungent, spicy aroma.
"Shen Xing, over here, over here!"
Three familiar figures were standing at the entrance. Seeing him, they hurried over.
Two men and one woman.
The man on the left was over 180 centimeters tall with a burly build. It was Qin Lang, the one who had sent them the glasses, also known as ’Loves Playing with Coriander’.
The man on the right was around 160-something centimeters tall with sunken eyes, looking like an internet addict who had just pulled an all-nighter at a net cafe.
This was Lu Xiang, or ’Lend Alone for Ten Thousand Generations’ from the group chat. He was addicted to various online loans and shoe flipping, and was up to his ears in debt.
The three of them had once been roommates, living together for four full years, and were extremely close.
The last one, a girl, was plain-looking and sloppily dressed, even wearing pink pajamas to go out.
Her name was Xu Jiayi, a classic gamer girl. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be hanging out with them.
The three men hadn’t seen each other in a long time and started catching up right at the entrance.
However, it was mostly just shooting the breeze about random topics, like how much debt Lu Xiang had racked up from online loans, the difficulty of finding a job after graduation, and the flower language of steel wool.
"Hurry up, I’m starving to death."
Xu Jiayi, standing beside them, couldn’t take it anymore. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.
The three men laughed, then pushed Shen Xing’s wheelchair through the entrance and up to a private room on the second floor.
Many hot dishes were already set on the round table: spicy diced chicken, fish in chili oil, duck blood in chili sauce, and more.
A thick layer of bright red chili peppers covered everything, looking incredibly spicy.
Shen Xing, who had been living on takeout at home, couldn’t resist such temptation. His mouth started watering on the spot.
The four of them forgot all about table manners and immediately started digging in.
"I’m eating! We live to eat! I’m gonna fucking eat, eat, eat!"
Xu Jiayi, in particular, showed her true colors. She used both hands, her mouth covered in red chili oil, stopping just short of jumping onto the table.
While stuffing their faces, they started to talk.
"By the way, what Soldier Types did you guys get? How was your rating in the first battle?" Qin Lang asked first.
"Don’t even ask. I got a One-Star Necromancer’s Tomb. I can only summon the lowest-level zombies."
Lu Xiang looked completely dejected. "Those things move as slow as an old lady crossing the street. I got the worst possible D-level rating in the first battle, and more than half of my ten zombies died."
"Haha, I got a Two-Star Archer Camp." Xu Jiayi grinned smugly. "They’re a bit squishy, but their damage is insane. One volley can take down three or four Lost Ones."
"I got a B-level rating in the first battle and was even rewarded with a shortbow."
Hearing this, the other two looked at her with envy, muttering that she’d gotten lucky as hell.
A Two-Star Soldier Type! That was a huge head start over everyone else in the early game.
"Shen Xing, what did you get?" Qin Lang asked again.
At that moment, Shen Xing, who had been pondering how to subtly ask about game abilities affecting reality, snapped back to his senses.
"Oh, I got a 1-Star Beastman Barracks. I can only summon some Green-skinned Orcs," Shen Xing answered casually. "As for the rating, it was S-class."
"A One-Star Beastman, huh? That’s a pretty crappy Soldier Type," Qin Lang said with a note of pity.
Then he realized what else was said and exclaimed, "What did you say? S-class?"
The other two also stared with wide, incredulous eyes.