Su Ming felt as if his skull had been flung into a drum washing machine; everything spun so violently his senses were on the verge of collapse.
The air was soaked in the cheap, acrid smoke of the internet cafe, mingled with the scents of braised beef noodles and athlete's foot. He forced his eyelids open. A 27-inch monitor glowed with a ghostly blue light, and on it sat the familiar login screen of The God Realm—a majestic castle floating amidst clouds.
"So I didn't get hit by a car? Didn't die from overwork either?"
He instinctively pressed his palm to his chest; his heart was racing like a drum. One moment he had been burning the midnight oil at the office for that damned PPT, the next he was back to eighteen years old—the day The God Realm's official servers opened?
He glanced down at his hands. Slim, dry, free of the calluses from long hours on a keyboard, free of the greasy sheen from sleepless nights.
"Holy crap, I've been reborn?"
He shot up from the worn internet cafe chair with such force that he rammed the desk corner, sending a cola bottle crashing to the floor. Brown liquid splattered everywhere.
"Hey, hey, watch it! That machine just got a new graphics card!" The cafe owner's balding head peeked over the counter, a Red Pagoda cigarette clamped between his lips.
Su Ming ignored the complaint. His chest thudded so hard it was painful. As a veteran of The God Realm with over a decade of experience, he knew precisely what today meant.
The God Realm was humanity's first and only "Second World" level full-dive MMORPG. It had reshaped the global economy and become millions' second lifeline.
And today was the first day full-dive login was available…the only day you could randomly draw a "Primordial Talent" and a "Hidden Class."
He remembered clearly that in his previous life he couldn't afford the expensive full-dive helmet. He had to use the regular keyboard mode, getting slaughtered in every skirmish, destined to be nothing but cannon fodder.
Not this time.
He reached for the sleek silver helmet on the desk. He had camped out overnight to snatch this limited edition, preloaded with five thousand yuan worth of cards—the savings of countless nights.
"God, if you're letting me live again, don't screw with me."
He took a deep breath and slammed the helmet onto his head.
His vision plunged into darkness before a flood of colorful data streams cascaded across his retinas like a waterfall.
[System Notification: Identity confirmed—Su Ming]
[System Notification: Iris binding successful]
[System Notification: Scanning player soul fluctuations...]
[System Notification: Scan complete. Extremely high soul intensity detected. Eligibility for the sole hidden class confirmed.]
Su Ming's breath hitched. Extremely high soul intensity? The one hidden class?
In The God Realm, billions of players vied for the few hidden classes, each becoming a major powerhouse. Dragon Knight, Nightfall Magus—classes you couldn't buy with money alone.
[System Notification: Randomly selecting the sole hidden class for you...]
The mechanical female voice sounded so pleasant that Su Ming had already started imagining himself wielding artifacts, cloaked in dragon armor, slicing through waves of enemies.
The virtual space erupted in golden light, so blinding he had to squint.
[System Notification: Congratulations, player Su Ming! You have awakened the server's only hidden class—the Abyssal Bubble Lobster King!]
Su Ming's grin froze.
Before the absurdity of the name registered, a golden beam shot through the virtual ceiling and stabbed skyward.
[Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Su Ming" for awakening the server's only hidden class! Let's send him our sincerest blessings!]
[Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Su Ming" for awakening the server's only hidden class! Let's send him our sincerest blessings!]
Three consecutive golden scrolls flashed across every player's interface, blinding anyone still logging in or creating a character.
The World Channel exploded.
"Holy—so the hidden class is already out?"
"Talk about being born lucky! Who is this guy? I'm queuing for him!"
"Damn! This is the only one! If this account were boosted or sold, the down payment for a place would be covered!"
"Su Ming? Never heard of him. Which guild's little alt is this?"
Su Ming looked at the floating class panel in front of him and felt helpless.
**Class: Abyssal Bubble Lobster King**
**Level: 1**
**Race: Crustacean Beast (Mutated)**
**HP: 150/150**
**Attack: 10**
**Defense: 50**
**Passive Talents:**
1. **[Thickened Shell]** (Passive): Your shell is as hard as iron, reducing incoming physical damage by 90%.
2. **[Deadly Scissor Claws]** (Passive): Your pincers have been corroded by abyssal currents. Attacks inflict 500 fixed true damage and have a 10% chance to sever the opponent's limbs (ineffective against players but devastating to equipment durability).
3. **[Deliciously Juicy]** (Passive): Your scent is irresistible. All beast-type mobs gain 200% extra hatred towards you, and killing them doubles the chance of dropping top-grade ingredients.
Su Ming went black.
What the heck was this?
A lobster? Like the ones you bought for twenty yuan a jin at the market?
And "Deliciously Juicy"? Drop top-grade ingredients? Was he playing the wrong game? He was supposed to be a player, not dinner.
Worse, with the class awakening came a complete physical transformation.
The handsome young man resembling himself was suddenly turning red, his body hunching, limbs drawing together. With a puff, he became a one-meter-long…giant lobster.
Large and scarlet, impressive to look at, sure—but standing upright, he barely reached the knees of onlookers.
"Help! Can I get a refund? I wanted to be human!"
He flailed his massive pincers, searching the interface for a "respec" button, but the machine voice interrupted.
[System Notification: Class binding complete. Changes impossible. Enjoy your journey in The God Realm. To celebrate your acquisition of the only hidden class, you have been granted a Newbie Gift Pack.]
Su Ming was crushed.
He was born in a corner of Clearwind Village, the new player hub.
Around him clustered players in linen clothes wielding wooden sticks, happily poking the level-one slimes at the gate.
Someone suddenly spotted the crimson lobster in the corner, seemingly pondering life.
"Look! What's that monster?"
"No clue, but it looks like an elite. Red name!"
"Whoa, it's an Easter egg! Come on—kill it and loot gear!"
Su Ming's heart sank. Players now went straight for the kill, eyes turning red.
Before he could shuffle away on his eight wobbly legs, a warrior named "Cool Brutally Flashy" charged in with a rusty iron sword.
"Guys, the kill's mine!"
He swung at Su Ming's head.
Clang!
Metal rang, sparks flew.
Su Ming felt a slight jolt on his head, like someone tapping his skull with chopsticks.
[System Notification: Player "Cool Brutally Flashy" dealt 1 forced damage to you (Original damage 58, 57 absorbed by [Thickened Shell]).]
One hit point?
Su Ming stared. The warrior froze too, sword trembling in his grip.
"W-what? This boss has crazy defense! Everyone, come! It's a tanky shell monster—grind it down!"
The shout drew seven or eight players. Fireballs, pierces, heavy strikes—skills rained down on Su Ming.
He panicked and scrambled in a drunken zigzag. Those lobster legs weren't built for sprinting.
Clang-clang-clang!
Sounds of metal hitting shell rang out.
His HP barely budged. Apart from the tiny forced damage, he might as well have been an impregnable fortress.
"This is a level-one mob? Is the defense for real?" Cool Brutally Flashy shouted. "Where's a mage? Blast it!"
A robed player squeezed through, chanted for ages, and flung a ping-pong-sized fireball that smacked Su Ming in the face.
[System Notification: Magic damage received—5 points.]
The mage stared at the meager damage and questioned his life choices.
Su Ming glared at his own HP and realization dawned.
Hang on.
Sure, he looked like a lobster, but this defense stat…was over the top.
At level one, mobs had like five to ten defense. Players without constitution even had negative values. But his panel defense was 50, plus ninety percent damage reduction.
This was the hidden class's worth?
He stopped his ridiculous running, turned to face Cool Brutally Flashy, and his black eyes locked onto the warrior.
"Seriously, I'm a player. Quit hitting me!"
The voice sounded like it was echoing from inside a vat.
Silence fell for a heartbeat.
"Wait, that monster can talk?"
"That's the guy with the hidden class!"
"So the hidden class…is a lobster?"
Somewhere, laughter broke out. The World Channel exploded again, this time with scathing mockery.
Someone had filmed Su Ming being swarmed and stumbling around like a headless fly, posting it to the forums with the title: "The server's only hidden class? Should we braise it or steam it?"
"Hahaha! Did the devs lose their minds?"
"So that's Su Ming? Thought he'd be amazing, turns out he's seafood."
"Bro, if you get hungry, head to Clearwind Village. That lobster looks meaty."
"What use is this class? High defense means nothing when attack speed and movement are slow. He's just a meatbag."
The mocking words boiled him inside.
Shame? Anger?
No.
He watched Cool Brutally Flashy keep hacking at his shell. The corner of his mouth—if lobsters had mouths—curled coldly.
You fools only saw a hard shell. Did you forget to check my attacks?
Stats said attack was ten, but the [Deadly Scissor Claws] passive…
500 fixed true damage!
In this level-one newbie village, players' HP barely cracked one hundred. Mages might have fifty.
Five hundred true damage meant what?
One hit, one kill. Damage that ignored defense.
"Done laughing?"
Su Ming suddenly leapt forward.
Don't underestimate slow lobster movement. Even on land, the explosive strength from contracted belly muscles was immense.
Whoosh!
He flashed like a crimson blur, closing the gap instantly.
"What—what are you doing, you—seafood—"
The warrior never finished. A massive pincer glowing with a faint black light snapped at his head with impossible speed.
Crack!
No bone-cracking sound, but armor shattered with a sharp echo.
[System Notification: Your skill [Deadly Scissor Claws] triggered the sever effect. Player "Cool Brutally Flashy"'s headgear [Coarse Linen Scarf] was destroyed! 589 true damage dealt!]
Before the warrior could scream, he burst like a punctured balloon, becoming a white silhouette returning to the respawn timer.
The field went dead silent.
The mage's hand shook so badly the fireball flew under his own foot, and he yelped as it burst there.
One shot kill?
A level-one account?
Su Ming released the pincer and watched a copper coin pop out. His grin widened.
Mockery? Garbage class?
Call this a heavily armored tank with nukes.
He turned, swinging both pincers loudly, the noise grate on players' teeth.
"Anybody else? If you think I'm dinner, come and try."
The voice wasn't loud, but everyone felt a chill down their spines.
This wasn't a lobster. It was a meat grinder in a crimson shell.
"Run! That monster's broken!"
Someone yelled. The crowd scattered like frightened birds, vanishing faster than rabbits.
Su Ming didn't chase. With eight stubby legs, straight-line speed was manageable, turning was a nightmare.
He sauntered over and picked up the copper coin.
[Gold acquired: 1]
A single coin, but the first blood was priceless.
He looked at his modest stats and felt a tide of pride.
"Call me a lobster all you want. As long as I'm strong enough, even a millipede can put on a show."
Suddenly, a translucent blue figure appeared in his vision.
A little sprite in a bikini, wings fluttering, hovered above him with a look of disdain.
"Hey, seafood. I'm your exclusive guide sprite. You can call me Sprite." The sprite pinched its nose.
Su Ming blinked. "I have a guide sprite?"
"Of course the sole hidden class does." Sprite rolled its eyes. "No idea why the system picked a lobster. Since I'm attached, I guess I'm unlucky too. Listen—Clearwind Village's chief wants to see you. Crawl over there now."
He raised an eyebrow. The NPC had an attitude.
"What does the chief want with me?"
"Beats me. Something about your shell." Sprite surveyed Su Ming. "I'm curious too—can you only be served spicy crawfish at that size?"
He ignored the taunt, brandished his pincers, and strutted toward the village center.
Players pointed and whispered. Some recorded the one-hit kill, speculating whether he was hacking.
He paid no mind.
His eyes had already shifted to the forest beyond Clearwind Village's hills.
There waited the elite boss he remembered—[Berserk Black Bear].
In his last life, that bear had terrorized the newbie village, slaughtering waves of players.
But now…
Su Ming looked at his weaponized pincers and his unbreakable shell.
"Maybe it's time the bear tasted something different."
"After all, lobsters can eat bear paw too, right?"
He grinned—no teeth, but the viciousness made several passersby drop a level from fear.
The legend of Su Ming, the Lobster King, had just begun.
Far away at The God Realm's control center, analysts in lab coats stared in disbelief at the red figure on the screen.
"Is the data…glitched?"
"Five hundred true damage? And it's level one?"
"Don't touch it. Don't adjust yet!" An elderly man with graying hair suddenly shouted, eyes burning. "Look at his soul fluctuations…that lobster is laughing! He's savoring the fight! That's what a true Abyssal Overlord looks like!"
"But…he's a lobster."
"So what if he's a lobster? You fools don't understand! This is going back to basics! Keep monitoring him. Record every data point in real time. This kid is going to flip the entire God Realm upside down!"
The old man pointed at the screen, spittle flying with excitement.
On the screen, Su Ming clumsily but steadily crawled toward the village gate. The sunset stretched his shadow long, turning him into a crimson warcart charging forward.