In the Origins Illusion Hall
The hall was packed beyond reason. It wasn't just players or customers anymore—it was a coliseum.
"MOVE! I can't see the screen!"
"Why are you standing on my shoulder?!"
"If I fall, I'm dragging you into the Abyss with me!"
Inside the hall, the four public thrones were occupied, but for once, no one was watching the players. Every pair of eyes was locked onto the main counter. Locked onto the Boss Throne.
Min Luan had climbed onto a stool, waving his arms like a frantic street vendor. "QUIET! Everyone shut up! Shopkeeper Yuan is about to fight something massive!"
Lu Dong folded his arms, his expression skeptical. "Last time you said that, it was just two Hunters."
"This time..." Min Luan swallowed hard, pointing at the flickering projection. "...it's a much bigger death."
At the front of the crowd, Wu Feng stood like a statue. Cold. Still.
"He changed his route," Wu Feng whispered. "He isn't clearing mobs anymore. He's going deeper. He's hunting."
Inside the Dungeon
The corridor stretched into an infinite, rotting maw. The air tasted of copper and ancient dust. The walls pulsed with a rhythmic, organic thrum—as if the dungeon itself were breathing.
A zombie lunged from the gloom—Slash.
Its head spun into the darkness before the body hit the floor.
A Hunter leapt from a ceiling crack—CLANG.
Yuan Bi blocked mid-air, twisted his wrist, and countered in one fluid motion. CRACK. The Hunter crumpled.
Every movement was a masterpiece of cold efficiency. He didn't stop to farm. He didn't linger for loot. He walked forward with the steady, terrifying gait of an executioner.
He stopped in a wide, vaulted chamber and spoke to the shadows.
"Come out."
Silence. Then, the world broke.
Boss: The Boneclad Titan
It wasn't a sound; it was pressure. The air became heavy enough to bruise lungs.
BOOM!
A massive hand, pale as moonlight and hard as granite, slammed into the corridor wall. Stone shattered. Dust exploded in a choking cloud. Slowly, a towering nightmare pulled itself into the light.
> [Boneclad Titan – Level 15]
> Elite Mutation | Threat Level: Extreme
>
Three meters of jagged bone armor, layered like overlapping shields. Its arms were tree trunks wrapped in bulging, purple veins. Its head was a horrific fusion of a bleached skull and necrotized flesh.
It didn't roar. It just watched him with burning, intelligent eyes.
Outside: Absolute Chaos
"WHAT IS THAT?!"
"That's illegal! Who allowed that to spawn?!"
Min Luan gripped Lu Dong's robe so hard the fabric groaned. "If that thing appears in my run, I'm deleting my cultivation!"
Lu Dong didn't look away. "You don't have that option. In there... there is no logout."
The First Clash
The Titan moved. No roar, no warning—just a blur of white bone.
BOOM!
A claw descended, obliterating the floor where Yuan Bi had stood a millisecond prior. The shockwave sent debris whistling through the air like shrapnel. Before Yuan Bi could stabilize, the Titan vanished from his line of sight.
Too fast.
CLANG!
A second strike came from the flank. Yuan Bi blocked with his dagger, but the sheer kinetic force sent him skidding across the stone, his boots smoking from the friction.
"Pattern incomplete," Yuan Bi muttered, his eyes narrowing.
The Titan roared then, a sound that vibrated in the marrow of the spectators' bones. It stomped. The floor erupted. Yuan Bi leapt, twisted mid-air, and performed the impossible—he kicked off the vertical wall, diving straight back into the Titan's reach.
Direct Engagement
"HE'S GOING BACK IN?!" Min Luan's voice cracked.
Yuan Bi slipped past a claw, entering the "Dead Zone"—the space too close for the Titan to swing effectively.
CLANG!
The dagger struck the Titan's ribs and bounced off the bone plating with a shower of sparks.
"Defense confirmed. External penetration: Impossible."
The Titan tried to grab him, a hand the size of a torso closing in. Yuan Bi ducked, rolled, and felt a claw graze his shoulder. Blood sprayed, painting the white bone red.
Yuan Bi stood up, his breathing steady, a faint, dangerous smile playing on his lips.
"Joints insufficient. Internal... is the only way."
The Titan charged with the force of a falling mountain. Yuan Bi didn't dodge. He stepped forward.
At the last possible second, he slipped under the primary strike, used the Titan's own forearm as a ramp, and climbed.
"HE'S CLIMBING IT?!"
Yuan Bi ran up the creature's arm, defying gravity. The Titan thrashed, trying to swat him like an insect, but he was too small, too fast. He reached the shoulder. He leapt.
Time slowed. The Titan's massive, glowing eye was inches away. Exposed.
"End."
He drove the dagger home. CRACK. The blade buried itself to the hilt. The Titan froze, its massive body trembling as the light in its eyes flickered and died.
BOOM.
The giant fell.
Aftermath
Inside: Stillness.
Outside: A silence so thick you could hear a heart beat.
Then—"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
The hall exploded. People were jumping, screaming, and hugging strangers.
"HE SOLOED IT!"
"WHAT ARE WE EVEN PLAYING?!"
Min Luan fell to his knees. "I've been farming pebbles while he's out here slaying gods..."
Inside the dungeon, a flood of golden energy washed over Yuan Bi.
A faint breeze began to swirl around his feet. He felt lighter. Sharper. But then, the dungeon turned a deep, bruised purple.
> [Hard Mode Unlocked]
> Zombies: Speed +50%
> Hunters: Ambush Frequency +100%
> Titans: Evolution Unlocked
Yuan Bi removed the helm and looked at the terrified, ecstatic crowd.
"Shopkeeper!" Min Luan wailed. "You created a monster mode! That's just death!"
Yuan Bi wiped a stray drop of sweat from his brow. "You asked for a challenge."
"WE DIDN'T ASK TO DIE!"
"In this world," Yuan Bi said calmly, "they are the same thing."
Breakthrough
As the shop closed and the crowd drifted out into the night—addicted and shaken—the System chimed.
> [Quest Completed: 50 Unique Players]
> [Rewarding: 6 New Thrones]
Six new seats shimmered into existence. Ten total.
But more importantly, the energy from the day's battles surged into Yuan Bi's core. It compressed, refined, and snapped.
First Rate Fighter.
His aura grew heavy. Lethal. He sat back down in the dark, empty shop and put the helm back on.
"Stronger," he whispered.
Because now, the monsters would have to evolve just to survive him.