The far northern reaches of Snezhnaya were a desolate realm where even the wind and snow seemed frozen solid.
There were no patrolling soldiers here, no roaring automaton mechs, only starving monsters expelled from the civilized world clinging to survival.
This was Snezhnaya’s harshest “natural prison,” as well as the fast-farming route mapped out by Daigan.
…
Amid the howling blizzard, a shadow moved against the wind.
Every step sank deep into the snow drifts, yet it didn’t slow his speed in the slightest.
“Twenty-fifth monster…”
Daigan’s form darted between jagged ice cliffs.
Every stride covered several times the distance of an ordinary man, leaving twin trench-like tracks behind him like a speeding train in the snow.
The blade in his hand cut monotone arcs through the gale—no fancy flourishes, only the purest slashes and thrusts.
Yet these utterly basic strikes were the living nightmare of any monster.
Stepping once more into a monster-marked territory…
“Roar—!”
A massive Frost Wolf King caught the scent of a living human.
Ferocious light glinted in its eyes as it lunged out of the snowdrifts with a pack of a dozen wolves.
*Finally, food!*
“—Awoo!?”
Yet the moment they caught sight of the outline whose shadow was barely visible in the snowstorm, their bloodthirsty eyes instantly filled with pure terror.
*It’s that monster again!*
During their last encounter, their packmates’ flesh and bones had been sliced like tofu beneath that unimposing scrap of iron before they could even wail.
The image of their former alpha being chopped to death in two hits was still fresh in their minds.
“Awoo!
Awoo!!”
Though lacking human speech, raw survival instinct impelled them to scatter and bolt, moving several times faster than when they had charged in.
Daigan’s face remained blank, his eyes not even focused on them.
In his field of vision, there were only a few faint red flickering tags labeled “Monster.”
“Double-tap dash!”
Displaying his mechanics, Daigan blurred forward, overshooting the fastest fleeing frost wolf, and executed a backhand slash.
[CRIT -1588!] [CRIT -1588!]
Two damage numbers floated up.
The Frost Wolf King and an adjacent regular frost wolf froze instantly before slumping limply, dissolving into two tiny specks of EXP light that absorbed into Daigan’s body.
[EXP + 36] [EXP + 48] [Mora + 100]
The remaining monsters had already fled without a trace.
Daigan didn’t spare a glance for the corpses on the ground, turning directly toward the next “farm spot.” To him, these monsters were no different from training dummies at spawn nodes; when the timer hit, they would respawn.
…
Several hundred meters behind Daigan, a figure blended seamlessly into the wind and snow came to a halt.
Columbina stood silently on a jutting ledge of ice, like a ragdoll abandoned by its owner.
Watching Daigan “dispose” of the two monsters and turn to leave, a child-like curiosity and confusion crossed her delicate face.
“Why did he only kill two?”
She tilted her head and gave a light tap with her finger.
Ripples disturbed the air.
The dozen-odd snow wolves that had barely managed to escape this killing god were teleported back out of thin air, piled up like dumplings right where Daigan had been standing.
“Awoo—!?”
The wolf pack panicked, completely at a loss.
Standing on the ice rock, Columbina gazed expectantly at Daigan’s back, eager to see if this strange man would turn around to claim these “gifts.”
Yet Daigan’s stride did not hesitate for even a fraction of a second.
In his game-mechanic HUD view, those terrified monsters no longer possessed “interactive” indicators or even health bars.
Naturally, they didn’t exist in his world.
Harmless wild beasts were no different from background scenery props.
“Sigh…”
Columbina let out a disappointed sigh and snapped her fingers.
The monsters were carelessly dumped back into the storm.
…
Time trickled away amid boring pursuits and escapes.
Daigan was like an untiring lion, endlessly patrolling the snowy plains.
From Columbina’s perspective, he chased the monsters of this area from east to west, then slaughtered his way back from west to east.
The monsters’ desperate howls rang out continuously.
However…
In ten hours, he had killed fewer than a hundred monsters.
From Columbina’s viewpoint, his efficiency was shockingly low!
“Hmm…
not quite like the rumors,” she murmured, resting her chin on her hand in confusion.
Meanwhile, from Daigan’s perspective—less than ten minutes had passed!
For Daigan, who was farming EXP, this was already the optimal routine he could manage.
Nearly a hundred elite mobs killed in under ten minutes!
His efficiency was staggeringly high!
Bored, Columbina trailed aimlessly after Daigan.
Every step he took sank deep into snow yet thundered forward like an unstoppable train, and Columbina followed him at an unhurried pace.
Until night fell, the storm intensified, and visibility dropped to absolute pitch black.
…
As dawn broke, a stroke of cool white skimmed across the snowfield before auroras suddenly streamed across the heavens.
Ethereal green light intertwined with pale violet, softly blanketing the awakening sky, casting a gentle glow over the snow treads below.
Daigan stopped in his tracks.
He glanced at the EXP counter on his status panel—which had only gained a few thousand points—and then at the seemingly endless Level 86 EXP bar.
He let out a rare sigh.
“Sigh…
Back then, I could at least see the bar move.
Now with this trickle of EXP, if I covered the screen with my hand all night, I wouldn’t even notice the progress bar budge a pixel.
Not even a splash.
I’m losing all motivation.”
He sheathed his sword and questioned the system in his mind.
“System, don’t I have any skills?
Relying strictly on basic attacks is way too slow and painfully boring.”
[Host, your stats are already overwhelmingly powerful.
You have no need for fancy frills such as active skills.] The system’s voice carried a hint of mechanical coldness.
“No, come on.
Is there really no AOE monster-clearing skill?
Basic attacks are way too slow!” Daigan pressed, exasperated.
[Host, you average three sword swings per second, and normal monsters require merely two strikes to be slain.
Utilizing crowd-control skills would instead prove more time-consuming and strain your vision.
It is not recommended.]
Daigan fell silent.
He actually had no counterargument for such logic.
And so, Daigan dismissed the map interface.
Leaning against an ice wall, he lowered his head and suddenly asked, “System, do you know how long a person deprived of all five senses can function before going insane?”
[?]
“I don’t think I’ve died yet.
Since this is a game…
you should have a respawn feature, right?”
Daigan said, gazing toward the snow-capped peak beneath the aurora.
“Someone once said that the view from a mountain peak is so breathtaking it makes you want to jump.”
[That was made up by acrophobes to fool you!]
The system keenly sensed that Daigan’s psychological state seemed to be deteriorating.
It immediately switched its tone, becoming urgent and gentle.
[In truth, when you first transmigrated, to prevent you from failing to adapt to the locals’ way of life and being unable to rapidly raise your combat power—which would result in a poor user experience—the system disabled sensory synchronization and reduced graphics quality.]
[And as Host’s level increases and you possess sufficient self-defense capability, the system will gradually unlock sensory synchronization step by step.
Once you reach Level 90, full transmigration will occur, allowing Host to experience all the delights of living in another world!]
[By the way, upon reaching Level 85, certain Main Quests have unlocked.
In specific quest segments, Host can perceive every subtle movement and sound of the outside world.
Host’s Dialogue Choice feature is also crucial.
Please familiarize yourself with this function promptly during Marionette’s tea party in fifteen minutes!]
Overwhelmed by the system’s barrage of explanations, Daigan finally looked down at his quest log.
[Quest: Sandrone’s Farewell Tea Party] [Time: Tomorrow Afternoon (15 minutes from now)] [Location: Marionette’s Factory]
“No wonder I felt cold back in the Snezhnayan Palace.
Was that sensory synchronization starting?” Daigan rubbed his hands together thoughtfully, recalling the eerie chill in the palace.
[Actually, about that…] The system seemed on the verge of saying something.
It had previously discovered that the energy entity above Level 90 was already capable of partially influencing Daigan’s cognitive layer.
The gods of this world seemed to possess powers that surpassed the world itself.
That Level 90 energy entity following them had caught up to Daigan merely by taking a casual stroll.
Even when the system quietly boosted Daigan’s speed to the absolute limit of Level 86, it hadn’t widened the distance between them at all.
One could only imagine what would happen if a Level 90 energy entity specialized in soul or cognitive manipulation targeted him…
Ultimately, the system swallowed those words and fell silent.
Daigan put away his stray thoughts and stood up.
“Since you put it that way, I’ll stop farming monsters for today…
Oh, I forgot to ask—what is that Dialogue Choice feature you unlocked earlier?
Is there an option for ‘Obliterate’?”
[You do not have that option.]
He turned around and began retracing his steps.
In the blizzard, his silhouette gradually faded into the distance.
And right beside him, Columbina had progressed from trailing at a distance to observing him up close.
Throughout all of it, no matter what she did, Daigan hadn’t acknowledged her once.
She watched the direction Daigan was heading, a flicker of curiosity in her eyes.
“Going back already?”
She looked at the snowy wilderness that Daigan had flipped upside down, then at Daigan’s back.
Then, taking long strides that belied her petite frame, she trailed after him once more like a true phantom, utterly soundless.
In this unforgiving waste where even the blizzard froze into ice, one human and one god walked, one behind the other.
…
[Status Update] – Daigan: Level 86 — Stats: Highest among same level Current Quest: Preparing to return for “Tea Party” Quest
– Columbina: Currently “stalking” Daigan — A very fast girl
[Note: All gods are threats]