Jiang Bai didn't have time to check the world chat right now—he was too busy sorting through his loot. After all, the game was going to force logout in ten minutes.
And the loot this time… was richer than anything he'd ever seen.
The +3 Agility from [Plunder] went without saying, but the real prize was his fourth title:
[Demon Hunter] (Ancient)
HP: +300
Attack: +50
Defense: +30
Critical Chance: +1%
Attack +1%
Movement Speed +5%
The stats were ridiculously strong—comparable to an ancient-grade piece of equipment. And that 1% bonus to attack? A scalable stat with infinite growth potential.
The 10 gold from the system reward had already been added to his inventory.
As for the loot dropped by the Cerberus boss, there was a Boss Soul Crystal, two [Skill Enhancement Scrolls], and the Head of the Hellhound, which Jiang Bai needed to turn in for a quest.
The equipment was the biggest surprise. Two epic-grade items, one rare, and one uncommon.
There was also an A-rank warrior skill book: [Bladestorm], a top-tier AoE skill for warriors.
Jiang Bai immediately listed the blue and green equipment on the trading market. Those items were becoming more common now and not particularly valuable, so he didn't bother sending them to Datang Wuzui.
But the warrior skill and the [Bladestorm] book? He packaged them up and mailed them to Datang Wuzui directly.
The combined value of those two items was at least 50 gold—basically repaying the favor he owed.
As for the remaining epic item, it just so happened to be usable by Jiang Bai himself, so he replaced his old level 2 ring.
[Ring of the Empire's Lethality] (Epic)
Physical Attack: +25
Agility: +8
Strength: +6
[Lethality]: +2% Critical Chance
Required Level: 10
The old synthesized equipment couldn't be sold, and Jiang Bai wasn't willing to throw them away, so he stored them in his warehouse.
"Bro, what's this about?"
Datang Wuzui must've seen the mail and messaged him.
"Just take it and use it."
Jiang Bai replied, then used a teleportation scroll without a second thought.
Back in town, he finally noticed the screen exploding with messages.
Everyone was discussing the [Demonic Invasion] event and the upcoming Chapter 2 features.
Every change in the system's progression and every new chapter launch was a huge shift for players—and a massive opportunity for pro guilds and big corporations.
In the few minutes before the server shut down, nearly every guild was already preparing for the [Demonic Invasion] event.
China National Team — Longyan Guild
Longyan01: "Still haven't found anything on this 'Empty Dream of the Past' guy?"
Longyan02: "Nothing yet. As you know, the actual game servers don't follow Earth's rules. Unless the system allows it, it's practically impossible to trace a player's real identity."
Longyan01: "We have to find him. Genesis will reshape the world order, and this 'Empty Dream of the Past' is crucial to China's position. We cannot let foreign forces reach him first."
Sakura Nation National Team — Great Sun Guild
GreatSun Leader: "Baka! That damned Chinese pig again? He's always ahead of us!"
Sano Nakanao: "The Sakura Squad is looking into him, but… it's proving difficult."
GreatSun Leader: "Baka!! Keep digging! If we can't use him, we destroy him!"
Everyone: "Hai!"
Back in Jiang Bai's starter village, the leaders of two major guilds—Cloud City and Xiaoyao—even met up in secret.
Cloud City Emperor scowled. "Damn it, this kid's getting too cocky. If we don't act now, we might not be able to control him later."
Xiaoyao Qingfeng whispered, "I've got a plan." And then leaned in to share it.
Jiang Bai, of course, knew none of this. He was staring at the five Skill Enhancement Scrolls in his inventory, hesitating. After a long moment, he opened the marketplace.
There were scrolls for sale—but they weren't cheap. Five gold each. And it was clear someone was controlling the market. Anything listed below 5 gold was snatched up instantly.
With only 11 gold in his bag, Jiang Bai gritted his teeth and bought one more scroll.
He just needed six total to upgrade [Explosive Shot].
Once the mail arrived, Jiang Bai opened the Skill Enhancement interface, selected [Explosive Shot], and added six scrolls.
Skill [Explosive Shot]Current Level: 0Next Level: 1Success Rate: 100%Proceed?
"Enhance!"
The guaranteed success made it a bit less thrilling, but after the enhancement succeeded, Jiang Bai stared at the updated skill info and felt it was worth every gold coin.
[Explosive Shot] (S-Rank)
Enhancement Level: 1
Description: Fires 3 consecutive arrows, dealing 125%, 135%, and 160% physical damage. If the final shot crits, it triggers a guaranteed follow-up attack dealing 180% damage.
Cooldown: 14.5 seconds
Passive: +1% Critical Chance
"Cooldown reduction? Nice. But still no increase in crit chance. That's a bit annoying."
Jiang Bai had a hunch: in the mid-to-late stages of Genesis, skill enhancement would become the core of character progression.
After finishing the upgrade, he logged out. Back in the real world, he handled some basic needs—food, hygiene, etc.—then logged into the game's forums.
The Genesis forum was on fire. Since everyone had been forcibly logged out, they flooded to the forums.
Most of the threads on the front page were decent quality:
"Some Theories on the Demonic Invasion Event…"
"Things Players Should Know After Chapter 2 Unlocks…"
"Now That Chapter 2's Out, Are Hidden Classes Still Out of Reach?"
"Analyzing the Clues: Who Really Is 'Empty Dream of the Past'?"
Jiang Bai clicked into the last thread, expecting some actual insight—but it was full of wild guesses and pointless speculation.
1st Floor: "OP you nmsl, posting trash with no evidence."
2nd Floor: "Shut up, I'm 'Empty Dream of the Past.' Bow before me."
3rd Floor: "If you're him, then I'm his dad."
4th Floor: "Then I'm his granddad…"
Jiang Bai: "…"