Whoa... let me catch my breath..."
Ethan stared at his status bar, eyes wide.
The two new permanent buffs—Merchant Jin's Blessing and Boss Slayer (Domain Master)—stacked to give him +200% drop rate and +2 drop quality forever.
Drop quality +2 meant even trash mobs dropped like lords. Normal monsters now equaled lord-tier loot.
"This... is straight-up broken!"
Forget the drop rate bonus—the quality jump alone turned every kill into a boss-level payday.
Killing anything felt like farming lords. Outrageous.
Ethan exhaled slowly. "In this life, my growth curve is about to explode."
The Unlimited Buff talent had handed him an immeasurable edge.
Without it, first-kill buffs lasted only an hour. Most players would rush to farm elites or normals, maybe snag a few Black Iron/Bronze pieces in that window.
But with permanent duration? Everything changed.
Temporary became eternal.
"I can't let anyone know about this talent. It would bring endless trouble."
Ethan's expression turned serious. He recalled the original "Inner Peace" from his past life—posts analyzed the talent as something like "10x attack speed," not infinite buffs.
How had it shifted to him?
Still SSS-grade, though.
"Maybe the name only determines talent level, while specifics randomize?"
He could only guess for now.
"Time to head back—sell gear, buy login helmets, create alts and test talent rolls. I know tons of top-tier name combos from the future!"
His eyes heated up. Rebirth knowledge was his trump card.
He planned to build a pro team long-term. Snagging high-talent alts early was smart—sell them for profit if needed.
Double insurance.
"Can't delay—dreams turn to nightmares fast."
Ethan gathered the boss loot from the ground, checking each item.
"Huge haul! First-kill + mutant status paid off big."
The boss had raged, then mutated—0.1% chance for rage advance, 0.001% (1 in 100,000) for mutation.
Mutant bosses were legends in his old life—every one sparked server-wide madness.
Why? Insane drops.
Mutants had a shot at Universal Skill Books (learnable by any class, usually OP effects).
They also dropped rare gems, including the ultra-precious Limit-Breaking Crystal—broke skill level caps.
Normal skills capped at Lv.5. Limit-Breaking Crystals forced them to Lv.6—massive power spikes.
In the old timeline, Lv.6+ "limit-break" skills were endgame meta.
This mutant kill? Jackpot—he got one Limit-Breaking Crystal!
[Limit-Breaking Crystal: Breaks skill level cap, raising Lv.5 skills to Lv.6.]
Ethan opened his skill panel and targeted Smite without hesitation.
[Limit-Breaking Crystal used successfully! "Smite" upgraded! Effects greatly enhanced!]
—————
Smite (Lv.6, Limit-Break)
Deals 500% holy Judgment damage (true damage, ignores defense).
Range: 60m
Cooldown: 5s (effective 0.5s with 90% reduction from Elena's Prayer)
Mana Cost: 70
—————
"Terrifying..."
Ethan took a deep breath. 500% base Judgment + 100% holy bonus from Elena's Prayer = 1000% effective true damage.
0.5-second effective cooldown.
Range doubled.
Flaws? Single-target only, high mana drain (140/sec at full spam—outpaced his 25/sec regen).
"Need an Intermediate Combat Mana Potion ASAP. Otherwise, long fights burn me out."
He could buy one back in the village—plenty of players selling on Nova Realm already.
"Also got a Universal Skill Book and five pieces of gear!"
[Mutated Blood (Lv.1, Universal Skill)]
Consume 1 bottle of monster blood to apply Mutation to target (mutation level = blood level).
Uses per charge: 1 (+1/lv)
Range: 100m (+50/lv)
Cooldown: 24 hours (-3 hours/lv)
Cost: 1 bottle monster blood
"This skill is insane!"
Ethan grinned ear-to-ear. He could now create mutant bosses on demand.
The 1-in-100,000 mutation rate? Irrelevant.
As long as he had boss blood, he could mutate targets.
Long cooldown? Fine—levels would shorten it and add charges. A future Limit-Breaking Crystal would make it god-tier.
Right now? One mutant boss per day, easy.
Across all servers in his old life, fewer than ten people had limit-break skills this early.
He was already farming mutants daily.
Pure happiness.
"Five gear pieces: 1 Platinum, 2 Gold, 2 Silver!"
Ethan's mouth curved up as he inspected them.
Platinum-grade this early? Unheard of.
While Ethan looted in peace, the major guilds raced toward the Venomous Mire deep in Shadowed Grove.
Everyone geared up, eyes locked on one goal: lord boss first-kill.
SharkStrike Dynasty rallied hardest.
"Everyone, pump it up! We have the strongest lineup in SharkStrike for this run! Secure the Radiant Hollow Village lord first-kill—no excuses!"
Flying Dragon In The Sky roared at the front: "Our target is the village boss first-kill! Server-wide? Give it our best—no pressure!"
"Yes sir!"
"Boss, we've got numbers, but Stormwind Guild has pros."
Big Bro Ji sounded worried.
"Pros? Pfft! Only twenty of them—rest are trash! And pros come in tiers. If they were WWL globals, sure. But Stormwind? NWL mid-tier scrubs—50k+ global ranking. Numbers beat skill at this stage. 300 of us vs. their squad? We zerg if they contest. Relax—they won't touch our boss!"
Flying Dragon sneered.
He wasn't underestimating—NWL was the lowest pro tier. Worldwide, over 100,000 NWL teams existed. Entry was cheap: 20 members + fee.
Stormwind was mid-pack NWL—no threat.
"Boss is wise! Stormwind bullies casuals. Against our dynasty? No chance!"
Flattery rolled in.
"Damn right."
Flying Dragon grinned.
Then—a system announcement crashed down like thunder.
[Server Announcement: Player "Anonymous" has successfully slain "Explosive Thunder Kano (Lv.7 → Lv.10 Domain Master, Mutated)"! First Domain Master boss kill on Nova Realm achieved! First-kill rewards granted!]
[Server Announcement: Player "Anonymous" has achieved the server-first boss kill! Full-server rewards applied for 1 hour!]
The three guilds froze.
"Assassins—stealth and sprint! Find whoever killed it! Don't let them escape! Sniping our boss under my nose? I'm furious!"
Flying Dragon bellowed.
Over twenty assassins vanished into stealth.
…
In Stormwind Guild's squad (already in Venomous Mire), Stormwind Matchless stared blankly.
"Killed faster than us... and a Domain Master mutant? Other pros rushed the new server?"
"Has to be. Announcement says Domain Master in novice zone—impossible without a top team. SWL? Maybe even WWL wasteland squad."
"WWL slumming here? Abusing noobs?"
"Who knows—maybe claiming early resources. MMO gear matters."
Debate erupted.
Stormwind Matchless raised a hand. "We go look. Remember—no conflict unless necessary. SWL or WWL squad—even low-level—is not something we handle right now!"
"Understood, Captain!"
…
In Azure Jade Guild, Azure Zijin was stunned.
Boss refresh announced minutes ago.
Already dead?
A Domain Master?
She'd prepped hard for Eternal Realm, but this...
The server was already on fire—and Ethan was just getting started.
Ethan stood amid the scattered corpses of the SharkStrike assassins, golden light rising around him.
[You have leveled up! You are now Level 7!]
All free points dumped into Spirit again. Magic Attack surged.
He quickly stowed the Gremlin Bow and scanned the loot pile. His eyes lit up at a glowing blue vial.
Intermediate Combat Mana Potion
Restores 100 mana per second for 10 seconds (combat-usable).
"Perfect timing—exactly what I needed!"
He chugged it without hesitation.
[Intermediate Combat Mana Recovery applied! +100 mana/sec regen. Duration: ∞ (permanent via Unlimited Buff).]
Combined with his base 25/sec and other minor regen buffs, his effective mana recovery now exceeded 125/sec—enough to spam Lv.6 Smite indefinitely without burning out.
He looted the assassins: five Black Iron pieces (trash at this point) and the rest copper credits. No big loss.
Ethan's gaze shifted to the nearby bushes. A faint rustle.
"Friend, still hiding? Come out."
The foliage parted. A petite female Assassin (Level 5, decent gear) stepped forward cautiously.
"I was just passing by—no malice intended."
"Oh? Stormwind Guild?"
"Uh… yes."
Ethan waved dismissively. "Go on, then."
Her face brightened. She turned to leave.
Whoosh!
-280! (Weak-point Crit!)
[You have killed "I Love Lychees" (Lv.5 Assassin)! +160 EXP!]
Ethan shook his head. "I believe you're a ghost. Passing by my ass."
Killing players in Eternal Realm granted roughly double the EXP of same-level elites—four times normal mobs. At his level, it was efficient farming if they came looking for trouble.
But he wasn't here to PK for fun. His +2 drop quality made even trash mobs drop like lords. These idiots had forced his hand.
At the Radiant Hollow resurrection point, "I Love Lychees" respawned green-faced and immediately messaged Stormwind Matchless.
"Captain, that Priest is insane! I explained I meant no harm—he still one-shot me!"
Matchless's reply came fast: "So strong? Got it. I'll find a way to talk to him later—see if he's open to joining. With that kind of skill and observation, we might push for CWL spots this year!"
"But Captain—he killed me!"
"Just one death. Low EXP loss. Respawn, apologize in person, admit fault. We need to recruit him. Once he's on the team, past grudges are water under the bridge. I'll even treat you offline if it works."
"I…"
Lychees sighed. Fine—one death wasn't the end. The Captain had a point: that Priest's mechanics and awareness were pro-level. Joining Stormwind could be huge for their promotion push.
…
"The world's finally quiet."
Ethan scanned the area—no more lurkers. He opened his backpack and turned to the real prizes: the boss drops from Explosive Thunder Kano.
First up—the star of the show.
Ultimate Staff (Lv.10, Platinum-grade)
Magic Attack: +500
Special Effects:
Magic Attack +100
Magic Attack +100
Magic Attack +100
Magic Attack +100
Magic Attack +100
Requirements: 100 Mana
"Extreme… in the best way possible."
Ethan's grin widened. +1,000 total Magic Attack once equipped at Level 10. Paired with Lv.6 Smite (500% base +100% holy bonus = 1,000% effective true damage), his nukes would be apocalyptic.
Next: two matching Gold rings.
Paralysis Ring (Left, Lv.5, Gold)
Special Effects:
Attacks apply Paralyze: -30% movement speed for 5s
Magic +10
Magic +5
Lightning Resistance +15%
Paralysis Ring (Right, Lv.5, Gold)
Special Effects:
Paralyzed targets take +30% Shock damage for 5s
Magic Crit Rate +5%
Magic Crit Rate +5%
Lightning Resistance +15%
Synergy heaven. Paralyze into Shock = massive burst windows, plus 10% total Magic Crit.
He equipped them instantly.
Then the Silver pieces:
Thunder Gauntlets (Lv.5, Silver)
Magic Crit Rate +3%
Special: 2% chance on attack to release Thunder spell (100% Magic damage)
Magic +5
Lightning Resistance +10%
Thunderbolt Robe (Lv.5, Silver)
Max Mana +500, Max HP +500
Special: 3% chance when hit to release Thunder spell (100% Magic damage)
Magic +10
Physical Defense +50
All equipped. His stats updated:
HP: 2,200
Mana: 2,250
Magic Attack: 500 (base—Ultimate Staff at Lv.10 will skyrocket it)
Physical Attack: 150
Physical/Magic Defense: 120/110
HP Regen: 315/sec
Mana Regen: 115/sec (post-potion)
Magic Crit Chance: 15%
Satisfied, he swapped to the Mithril Staff temporarily and cast on himself.
Holy Light Restoration
Restores 300 HP per second.
[Holy Light Restoration applied! +300 HP/sec regen. Duration: ∞]
Total HP regen: 415/sec. Near-immortal.
"Still got the first-kill Silver Treasure Chest to open!"
He selected it from his inventory.
[Silver Treasure Chest opened successfully!]
[Obtained: Pure White Wings (Silver-grade accessory)!]
[Obtained: Stone Knife ×3 (special item)!]
[Obtained: Contract of Holy Light (temporary Silver blessing) – Duration: 1 hour!]
Ethan's eyes sparkled. Another big win.
He inspected Pure White Wings first—likely a movement/escape/utility piece.
The Stone Knives felt mysterious—three identical primitive blades. Probably tied to a hidden quest or crafting.
And the Contract of Holy Light? A 1-hour buff window he could milk with his talent if it stacked right.
While Ethan inventoried his haul, Flying Dragon In The Sky raged in the Venomous Mire.
"Everyone, move faster! Priests, don't save mana—top everyone off! We're blocking that Priest and forcing the drops! Server-first Domain Master kill—there has to be Silver gear at least!"
He cursed the toxic fog draining HP. "This map sucks! Good thing we brought a Priest army!"
His team pushed deeper, unaware the "survivor" they hunted was already long gone—and vastly stronger.
Ethan, meanwhile, vanished toward Radiant Hollow Village.
Time to sell trash, buy more potions, and plan the next mutant farm.
The server was heating up—but he was miles ahead.