Vale sprints toward the Abyssal Forest outside the city.
Due to his level 0 status, his movement speed is extremely slow—even at full speed, he can only manage 10 meters per second, roughly the pace of a human 100-meter sprint.
The journey takes about 10 minutes. Along the way, he crosses the level 0-10 outer suburbs and then reaches the Plains River Zone, where level 10-20 monsters gather.
Vale carefully skirts these creatures; in his current state, attracting even a single mob's aggro could mean instant death if he takes a single hit.
"The essence of the Curse Flow lies in speed, which means allocating all attribute points to Agility. Because Agility not only boosts movement speed but also provides substantial advanced evade stats."
As he sprints at full speed, Vale continues to mutter, "Each level-up grants 5 attribute points. Since I've chosen the Curse Flow, I should go for the extreme five-Agility allocation. This way, I can fully unleash the Curse Flow's potential—so long as I stay alive, I can keep dealing damage."
Just as Vale is running and contemplating his next leveling strategy, several gorgeous lightning bolts whistle through the sky and strike the forest ahead.
Vale recognizes these mounts at a glance. "These are sky mounts unlocked at level 70. Wait, this is a private server— it just opened a few days ago. How is someone already level 70+?"
Immediately, just as Vale is about to enter the forest, his pupils contract sharply.
He sees an extremely massive figure—a Dragonflame Behemoth, level 60, a boss that should only appear on the 60th floor of the game's Sky Castle.
And now, this boss is actually in the level 10-20 leveling zone!
A chill runs down Vale's spine. In just 20 minutes, he's witnessed two eerie scenarios.
"Is this still the Chaotic Realm I used to know?" As Vale marvels, a cluster of white figures ahead catches his eye—they're nuns in white robes bound by chains.
His brows furrow as he quickly realizes the horrifying truth: these white-robed nuns aren't NPCs… they're players.
Vale dashes to the group of nun players and quickly spots his sister, Victoria, among the crowd.
The nun players stare blankly, oblivious to Vale's arrival, as they intone strange verses like a religious ritual.
Vale grabs his sister's hand and pulls her from the crowd, shouting, "Victoria, wake up!" But she seems hypnotized, still murmuring the verses in a daze.
Vale knows she's trapped in some passive state; for now, he must find a safe zone to secure her before confronting Alice.
"Let me see what's going on with these players. My leveling speed is already extreme—could there really be someone leveling faster than me?" Vale hides under a thicket, observing the group of high-level players.
Soon, a red-haired player wielding a high-grade Adamantite Sword points to the lake ahead and says,
"Right here. We just got word from our guild brothers that Alice appeared here and killed a level 20 swordsman."
"Level 20? The server has only been up for three days—how is someone already level 20? What's this player's ID? I want him to join our God's Hand guild," says another sexy female player wielding a red-flamed spear.
"You call that impossible? The server's been up three days, and you're already level 72. That guy's only level 20—you're the real monstrous genius,"
sneers another silver-haired man wielding twin daggers.
The female player isn't offended; instead, she laughs. "Exactly. We're the gods of this new order, so of course we enjoy some privileges. Whatever— in this game, dying resets your character anyway."
The silver-haired player continues to retort, "No, in 20 minutes, the entire game world will merge with the real world, and there will be no resets. Dying in the game will mean real death, with no chance of revival."
The red-haired swordsman interrupts sternly, "That's enough—let's focus on taking down Alice first. Her drops are overpowered, and we can't let that gear fall into regular players' hands."
Upon hearing their conversation, Vale is visibly shocked—he never imagined the game could hide such a massive conspiracy.
Just then, a crimson light flashes across the sky. Vale feels an intense pressure, his chest wound throbbing violently. "Is she finally here? One of the strongest bosses—Alice!"
The dark sky ripples with crimson light, and soon, a blood moon rises slowly, bathing the land in a gory hue.
A loli floats in the air, wielding pure white wings, two bullhorn-like horns atop her head, clad in a black Gothic dress.
She flaps her wings, licks her lips, and a crystal-clear strand of drool slides down. Her alluring red pupils fix on a spot in the thicket.
This gaze sends a shudder through Vale—he knows that with his current injuries, one more hit will mean instant, permanent death with no revival.
But soon, Alice turns her attention to the high-level players. "Fresh blood—draining you all should be quite the tonic," she mocks, laughing cruelly.
The red-haired warrior isn't provoked; instead, he dashes forward instantly, unleashing the A-rank talent skill Dragon Tamer.
Soon, a swarm of golden dragons descends from the sky, surrounding Alice. Vale's pupils contract sharply as he mutters,
"That's a rare boss-taunting skill that confuses monsters' minds. udging by this, these guys aren't ordinary. When the battle intensifies, I'll cast Curse and escape before Alice switches aggro to me."
Alice's pupils glow golden, and her attack trajectory instantly shifts from the female player to the male swordsman.
The silver-haired man licks his dagger, which suddenly shines brightly as purple flames coalesce into a powerful corrosive cyclone.
He activates the S-rank special skill [Teleport], reappearing instantly behind Alice.
The cyclone on his dagger splits into two cyan cobras, hissing as they strike for her pale collarbone.
Alice can't parry in time—a massive cyan flame hole erupts in her torso.
Seeing Alice poisoned, Vale immediately channels his SSS-rank talent skill, Bone Erosion.
A pitch-black void of death materializes in the sky, and a violet lightning bolt strikes straight at Alice.
She lets out a shriek, her body engulfed by the dark, flaming void.
The three high-level players stare in shock, their gazes quickly dropping to the ground as they spot Vale.
The red-haired swordsman gasps in horror, "How is this possible? I've never seen an SSS-rank Curse spell before! Didn't the GM delete these ages ago? How is this bug skill still in the game?!"
Alice, now blood-crazed, hurls curses while summoning shadow clones to attack all three players at once. "Damned humans! How dare you ambush a goddess! I'll make you suffer!"
"Shit! Alice has entered her second phase! Bob, use your Dragon Tamer to pull her aggro now!"
Before the silver-haired man finishes speaking, a red dagger pierces his chest, leaving him on the verge of death.
Seeing this, Bob the red-haired swordsman immediately activates Dragon Tamer again, and Alice's attack target shifts instantly toward him!
Bob calls out to the female player, "Sophia, cast Golden Shield on us now—we can't hold on much longer!"
Sophia immediately raises her spear to channel the spell, and two golden greatshields materialize around the trio.
She tosses two vials of [Superior Wound Recovery Potion] to the silver-haired man, shouting, "Philip, drink these now! I'll cover your damage!"
Philip nods, but Alice suddenly spits blood, her expression incredulous.
"This can't be—how do you have SSS-rank talents? Such sacred arts are beyond human grasp! Only the Great One can wield them! Who are you?!"
Her words instantly draw the trio's attention. Bob exclaims triumphantly, "Push harder—Alice has less than 20% health left!"
With that, the trio quickly unleashes a combined attack, and soon Alice is on the verge of death.
Her face contorted in rage, she roars at the sky—then her clothes shred apart, her body rapidly engulfed in a thick, crimson blood.
Her pure white wings disintegrate into skeletal wing frames woven from bloody void patterns!
Vale, sprinting at full speed, glances at Alice in the sky and realizes she's entered her third phase. Cold sweat streams down his face as his heart pounds—he knows something catastrophic is imminent.
"Run! She's going to self-destruct!"
Bob roars, but it's too late—a massive red fireball crashes from the sky, melting half the forest in an instant.
Sophia is hurled aside by Bob's brute strength, while Philip seizes the moment, yanking Bob behind him to shield them with the swordsman's bulky frame from the blast wave.
Vale stops in the suburban area, but before he can even feel a moment of relief, his face darkens—because he sees the two remaining high-level players soaring toward him.
Alice's tattered spirit clings fiercely to their heels.
"It was you who poisoned me! So it's you!" Alice screeches hysterically as she lunges at Vale. She seems to have realized who unleashed the Bone Erosion curse.
Cold sweat pours down Vale's face. In this moment, he realizes his injuries have reached 99%, leaving him with only 30 seconds before death!
"I'm really going to die!" Vale howls in despair.