Barney scrambled to his feet. "Sterling, I’m sure Liam was only watching the trailer to get a better handle on the game."
"Look, I managed to loot two Silver Shillings today. I’ll give one to Liam, alright? Just let this slide."
"No."
Harvey Sterling’s voice was like ice. "In this game, if you’re one step behind, you’re always behind. How is he supposed to keep up with the pace if he’s slacking off now?"
Barney opened his mouth to argue further, but Liam raised a hand, stopping him.
"Forget it, Barney."
"But your sister still needs surgery money! If you lose this job..."
"Don't worry. I’ll find a way to get the money."
Liam stood up and turned to leave, walking straight out of the Dream-Chaser Club.
As he stepped into the fresh air, he felt a massive weight lift off his shoulders. In his past life, he had wasted far too much time here, pouring all his energy into being a mere "gold farmer" for someone else.
Barney came sprinting out after him. "Liam! Wait! Look, there’s twenty thousand credits on this card. Take it for the emergency. Once I earn more, I’ll give you the rest. We’ll get enough for Chloe’s surgery, I promise."
A wave of warmth surged through Liam's chest. Barney, Monty, and Specs—these were his three best friends. They were the ones who had stuck by him through thick and thin in his previous life, even when he was at his absolute lowest.
"Barney, quit Dream-Chaser. Come work with me. We’ll start our own studio. We’ll be our own bosses."
Barney blinked, stunned. "Liam, if you’re asking, I’m in. No questions asked. But your sister..."
"I know what you're worried about. Give me three days. Just three days, and I’ll earn enough from the game to cover the surgery."
Liam’s gaze was unwavering. Even without his Beyond God-Tier talent, his memories of the future were more than enough to turn the game into a gold mine.
"Alright." Barney didn't doubt him for a second. "I’ll call Monty and Specs. We’re all in."
"Good."
Barney marched back into the Dream-Chaser Club and quit on the spot. No notice, no severance. He walked away with nothing.
But he didn't care. He trusted Liam. That’s what brothers did.
Monty and Specs weren't in Shoreline City at the moment, but as soon as Barney messaged them, they replied instantly. They were down for whatever Liam had planned.
The two of them headed to a Twilight of the Gods hardware outlet and dropped twenty thousand credits on two high-end Gaming Pods.
Back at the rental apartment, Liam didn't go to the hospital to see his sister. It wasn't that he didn't care; it was because he knew that right now, every second spent earning money was a second closer to saving her life.
"Barney, once you’re in, focus on leveling. When you hit Level 10, stay put. Don’t rush to the Capital City yet."
"Got it."
Liam climbed into the pod. Twilight of the Gods used retina and DNA scanning for authentication, so switching hardware didn't mean a new account—he was right back where he left off.
Liam returned to the fields and resumed the slaughter of Crimson-Eye Rabbits.
Five hours blurred past in a flash of rhythmic combat.
"9,998."
"9,999."
"10,000!!"
"Finally."
With ten thousand Crimson Eyes sitting in his inventory, it was time to turn it in.
He hurried back to the Novice Village and tracked down the Village Chief. He officially accepted the collection quest first, then immediately turned in the mountain of eyes.
"Great adventurer, your perseverance is truly extraordinary," the Elder Mayor said, beaming with satisfaction. "I shall grant you a special reward for your dedication."
Ding! You have completed the 'Crimson Eye' quest.
Rewards: +1,000 EXP, +5 Silver Shillings, Skill: [Basic Reach] +1.
"Learn skill."
Liam didn't hesitate.
Basic Reach (Passive): 1-Star Rank.
Effect: Increases your Basic Attack range by 5%.
Cooldown: None.
Cost: None.
Mastery: 0/1,000.
Just as I thought!
"Brave adventurer," the Elder Mayor continued, his expression turning solemn. "Your grit is unlike anything I have ever seen. If you can slay ten BOSSES, I shall bestow upon you a reward beyond your wildest imagination."
Liam froze. Ten BOSSES? What kind of insane follow-up quest was this? He had expected a chain quest, but this was ridiculous for a starter zone.
Ding! Elder Mayor has issued a new quest: Slay 10 BOSSES in the Novice Village.
Penalty for Failure: Loss of skill [Basic Reach].
Reward: Unknown.
Do you accept?
"Accept!"
Killing bosses was already part of his plan. If he wanted to make real money, hunting bosses was the only way.
Liam left the Novice Village and headed straight for the territory of the Level 10 Twisted Treants. He needed to level up immediately; otherwise, his attack speed wouldn't be high enough to take down a boss.
Twisted Treant (Common): Level 10
HP: 1,900 / 1,900
Attack: 32
Skills: [Vine Whirl], [Resurgence]
Whiz!
Liam let fly a feathered arrow the moment he saw his target.
-424!
After the hours spent grinding rabbits, Liam’s health pool had bloated to over 21,200 points. Even though his raw attack power couldn't pierce a Treant’s defense, the true damage from Hand of Heavenly Punishment was terrifying.
With 1,900 HP, a Treant could only survive five arrows.
Ding! You have slain a Twisted Treant. +90 EXP.
A satisfied smile played on Liam's lips. The experience bonus for killing mobs so far above his level was massive. A normal kill on a Treant usually gave 10 EXP, but he was pulling in 90.
Combined with the 1,000 EXP from the quest, he only needed to kill twenty more Treants to level up. Plus, the drop rate for higher-level mobs was significantly better.
Ding! You have slain a Twisted Treant. +90 EXP.
Ding! You have slain a Twisted Treant. +90 EXP.
...
Ding! You have reached Level 3. +5 Attribute Points (AP).
Without a second thought, he dumped all his points into Attack Velocity. His speed increased from 0.73 to 0.83.
After twenty kills, a flash of light finally erupted from a fallen Treant.
Ring of Resurgence (Common)
Level Requirement: 10
Effect: Restores 2 HP per second.
Durability: 100
A ring? Liam’s eyebrows shot up. Rings were notoriously difficult to find in Twilight of the Gods.
However, the effect was useless to him. Two HP per second was a drop in the bucket compared to his massive health pool. But while it was junk to him, it was a godsend for anyone else this early in the game.
He immediately listed it on the Auction House. He set it to a bidding format: 500 credit starting price, five-minute duration. If he were in one of the higher-traffic Novice Villages, he would have asked for ten thousand flat. The top guilds were desperate for any advantage.
Five minutes later...
Ding! Player 'Bulwark Pagoda' has purchased your item.
Ding! Player 'Bulwark Pagoda' has sent you a friend request.
Someone from the Pagoda Guild?
The prefix caught Liam by surprise. Pagoda was a top-ten guild in the Dragon Empire. Usually, their core members would have been ahead of the curve.
Bulwark Pagoda: "Frost Monarch, mind if I add you? I have to ask—did that Ring of Resurgence come from a quest? I'm willing to pay for the info."
"It was a drop from grinding."
Liam sent the reply just as a notification popped up: 9,000 credits had been deposited into his account.
Bulwark Pagoda: "Holy sht! Frost Monarch, do you know a safe spot? How the hell are you farming Level 10 mobs without taking damage?"
It was a fair question. Liam was only Level 3. He shouldn't have been able to stand his ground against a Level 10 mob.
"I don't," Liam replied curtly, closing the chat to resume his grind.
Bulwark Pagoda stared at the ring in his hand, a grin spreading across his face. "Won't tell me, huh? Fine. I’ll find you."
Level 10 mobs in this area were Twisted Treants—the Pagoda Guild’s scouting team had mapped that out early on. It didn't take long for Bulwark to track Liam down to the Treant grove.
He stopped in his tracks, watching the archer ahead of him work.
-426!
-426!
Bulwark’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. Who the hell was hitting for 426 damage this early? Even the elite members of his guild, geared to the teeth, were barely breaking 100.
Liam was doing four times that while fighting seven levels up.
"Frost Monarch!"
Bulwark almost dropped to his knees. He had started the game late due to some real-life issues, and the feeling of being left behind was driving him crazy. For a guy used to being at the top of the leaderboards, this was unacceptable.
"Frost Monarch! Hey! Team up with me? Power-level me, and I’ll make it worth your while."
Liam initially planned to ignore him. He didn't have time to waste. But then he thought of Chloe, lying in that hospital bed.
"Sure. But it’ll cost you three hundred thousand."
"Three hundred thousand?!" Bulwark nearly choked. "To get me to Level 10? I could hire a gold-farming syndicate for twenty thousand, max."
"I’ll have you at Level 10 before the day is over."
Bulwark hesitated, looking at Liam skeptically. It was 4:00 AM. There were twenty hours left in the day. Even without eating or sleeping, hitting Level 10 in twenty hours starting from scratch was a pipe dream.
"Even so, that's a steep price." He had money, but he wasn't an idiot.
"I know. But what if I throw in a full Level 10 Elite-grade set?"
Bulwark’s breathing hitched. "Are you serious?"
"Dead serious."
Liam knew the Elite Twisted Treant dropped a full set. With enough grinding—and a bit of luck—it was guaranteed.
"Fine. I’ll give you fifty thousand as a deposit."
"No. Three hundred thousand. Upfront."
Bulwark wavered. But seeing Liam’s insane kill speed again, he made his choice. "Fine. I’m transferring it now."
Twilight of the Gods had an integrated banking system. Within seconds, the notification arrived. The money was his.
"Wait here for a moment," Liam said.
He ducked behind a massive tree and immediately logged out.
Bulwark Pagoda stood there, blinking. "What the... did I just get scammed? He took the money and ran? Motherfcker! I actually trusted him!"
Money wasn't the issue, but the feeling of being played for a fool made him feel like he’d swallowed a bucket of nails.
Liam hadn't run, of course. Now that he had the funds, his first priority was the hospital. He had to pay for Chloe’s surgery immediately.
Looking at Chloe through the glass of the ICU, Liam tightened his fists. I’m going to fix everything this time.
Once the bills were settled, he rushed back to his apartment and dove back into the pod.
Novice Village #10086.
Bulwark Pagoda was gloomily following a group of random players, paying them to help him kill Level 4 Wind Hounds. Suddenly, his friend list flashed.
Frost Monarch: "Twisted Treant grove. Get over here."
Bulwark froze. He was certain Liam had vanished with his cash, but here he was.
"Coming!"
Despite cursing Liam’s entire family tree for the last hour, Bulwark scrambled back to the Level 10 zone as fast as his legs could carry him.
Liam didn't waste words. He sent a party invite and immediately set the loot distribution to 'Leader Only'.
Bulwark opened his mouth to complain but thought better of it. Then he saw the experience distribution.
90/10.
Liam took 90%. Bulwark got 10%.
"Monarch... uh, about the EXP split. Is that a mistake?"
"No."
Liam turned back to the trees and let an arrow fly.
-426!
-426!
Five arrows. One Treant. Even with his current attack speed, Liam was dropping them in under ten seconds. That was six kills a minute. 360 an hour.
And Liam’s health was climbing with every kill.
Bulwark stood on the sidelines, watching the slaughter with a dropped jaw. If it was just high damage, he’d assume Liam had a hidden item or an S-tier talent. But the kiting... it was seamless. Fluid. The Treants couldn't even get close before they collapsed into splinters.
In a full-dive VR game, kiting wasn't easy. It required perfect synchronization of movement, drawing the bow, aiming, and firing. One slip in the rhythm and you were dead. Even the top marksmen in the Pagoda Guild were struggling to master it.
"This... this is art," Bulwark muttered. He activated his recording function. He had to show the elite marksmen in the guild what real skill looked like.
Liam didn't care. Kiting was second nature to him—hardly even a 'skill' in his eyes.
"Frost Monarch, what was your old ID? Someone with your mechanics couldn't have been a nobody."
"Kiting? It’s not that hard if you have hands."
Liam’s answer was instinctive. In the era of the Cataclysm, every marksman worth their salt could kite like this. The real challenge was 'Infinite Crits' and 'CC Chaining'.
Achieving a 100% crit rate through stats was a waste of resources. But with enough skill, you could force a Lethal Strike—hitting the Treant Core or a human's heart—to guarantee a crit every time.
But he wasn't in the mood to give a lecture. He pushed forward. Common Treants weren't enough. If he wanted to get this dead weight to Level 10 in a day, he needed Elite Twisted Treants.
While Liam moved deeper into the forest, Bulwark Pagoda sent the video file to his Guild Master.
Fenrir Pagoda.
Fenrir was busy grinding with his own team when the message pinged. "Stop slacking off, Bulwark. Why are you sending me videos?"
Bulwark Pagoda: "Boss, just watch it. Trust me. You’re going to want to see this."