After finishing the last round of Supreme Sacrifice on the snake corpses, Miguel stood still for a moment, letting the forest quiet settle around him. The soft rustle of leaves and distant bird calls were the only sounds that remained. His eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to picture the map he remembered from his past life. The forest was tricky—full of undergrowth, fallen logs, and towering trees that made navigation a nightmare. But somewhere within this maze lay his next objective.
Ten minutes of careful, winding exploration later, Miguel finally locked onto his route. Without hesitation, he picked up his pace, weaving between tree trunks like a shadow on the move. Another twenty minutes passed, his boots silent on the soft earth, until he came to a stop. There it was—nestled in the shadow of a massive boulder, barely visible unless you were searching for it—a silver treasure chest glowing faintly, as though it held a piece of the stars within.
Miguel's lips curved upward in a rare smile. But before he could take another step forward, two shapes blurred out of the bushes to his right, a flash of pale green fur lunging straight for him. Forest wolves—camouflaged so well they were almost invisible until they attacked.
Miguel reacted instantly, body moving with practiced ease. He slid a half-step back, twisting his frame to avoid the first snapping jaw, then pivoted with a dancer's grace as the second wolf missed by inches. Before they could recover, his blade was already singing through the air.
Swish! Swish!
Two clean arcs, two damage values floating bright red in the air.
-1080!
-1080!
Ding! You have slain [Forest Wolf (Normal)] and gained +8 EXP.
Ding! You have slain [Forest Wolf (Normal)] and gained +9 EXP.
Not a single creature in this newbie zone could withstand a single strike from Miguel's sword—not even elite monsters over level 10 had more than a thousand HP. They were lambs before a slaughterer.
"Supreme Sacrifice," he commanded softly, his tone casual, as though feeding corpses to his mysterious power had become second nature. The two wolves dissolved into twin streams of white light, absorbed between his brows, adding seventeen free attribute points to his already ridiculous total.
Miguel waited, senses sharp, scanning the trees for more ambushes. Only when he was satisfied the forest was quiet again did he step toward the chest.
Treasure chests in Godmaking Online were anomalies, gifts from the very will of the universe. Inside them could be anything—from a handful of copper coins to artifacts that could change a player's destiny. The higher the chest's rank, the rarer its contents. This one was silver-tier, meaning its treasures wouldn't be groundbreaking but still well worth claiming.
He remembered all too well the lore behind these chests. Before players descended into this world, the universe's will had seeded maps with these treasures, scattered in hidden corners, silently awaiting their chosen finder. In his previous life, this very chest had been discovered by Miguel himself—pure chance leading him here. And once a chest was claimed, it disappeared forever, never respawning, preventing opportunistic campers from farming infinite loot.
This time, however, there was no chance involved. This time, Miguel knew exactly where to look.
[You have opened a Silver Chest.]
[Rewards Obtained: +200,000 EXP, Steel Sword x1.]
The chest dissolved into motes of light, vanishing as though it had never existed. A heartbeat later, golden beams rained down on Miguel, washing over his figure as the system chimed repeatedly in his head.
Ding! Your level has increased to Lv.1. All attributes +1, Free Points +2.
Ding! Your level has increased to Lv.2. All attributes +1, Free Points +2.
…
Ding! Your level has increased to Lv.5. All attributes +1, Free Points +2.
In a single instant, Miguel rocketed from level 0 to level 5, the golden glow around him slowly fading as his new strength settled in. He glanced at his experience bar—it was nearly full, just shy of the 10,000 points needed for level 6.
"Two hundred thousand experience points in one go…" he muttered, a flash of excitement in his eyes. "This just saved me hours of grinding. Reaching level 10 and getting to the main city will be a walk in the park."
The joy in his voice was undeniable. Anyone would feel the same. Outside the starter village, countless players were still hacking away at low-level beasts for scraps of EXP, grinding day and night for a fraction of what Miguel had just gained. He remembered vividly how, a year after launch, the game's cosmic will had intervened. A Treasure Chest Dungeon had opened up in newbie villages, a welfare instance where players could speed-run their way to level 10 in under thirty minutes.
At the time, news of this change had enraged veteran players like Miguel, who had spent months clawing for every level. Now, reliving this life, the memory only made him chuckle. "A pity that dungeon won't open for another year. But who cares? This time, I have countless ways to outpace the rest."
Turning his attention to the second reward, Miguel pulled out the Steel Sword and inspected it.
[Steel Sword]
Tier: None
Requirements: None
Base Attribute: +25 Strength
Additional Attribute: +10 Physical Penetration
Description: A sword forged entirely of steel. Its defining feature? Razor-sharp lethality.
Miguel's eyes gleamed with delight. Compared to the crude machete he'd gotten earlier, this weapon was a godsend for early players. The +10 physical penetration alone was a beastly attribute for the opening stages of the game. Later on, when enemies had thousands or tens of thousands of defense points, a percentage-based penetration was king. But now? Most monsters had zero defense. Flat penetration of ten points meant every single strike would deal ten extra damage—stacking perfectly with the weapon's base bonus of twenty-five strength.
Equipping this sword could easily boost a newbie's damage output by thirty-five points instantly, enough for a level 0 player to challenge level 10 monsters without fear.
Miguel tightened his grip on the sword, running a finger along its sharp edge with an appreciative smile. "This is a god-tier beginner weapon. Selling it would easily net me ten thousand credits."
He laughed quietly to himself, the sound low and genuine. In his past life, he'd made sums that dwarfed such petty amounts. Millions, billions of credits—all meaningless now. Yet here he was, thrilled over a five-thousand-credit trade and giddy over this new weapon.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, he allowed himself to whisper softly, almost in awe, "I'd forgotten what it feels like… to start from nothing… and to climb back up."
The Steel Sword shimmered faintly in his hands, as though answering his vow. This life would not be like the last. This time, Miguel would rise beyond all limits.