Lord Of The Lost

'Paths to Power: The Art of Job Changing'

In the 'Sequence Game Lord Of The Lost', players have three ways to transition into becoming 'extraordinary' individuals, each with its own risks and rewards:

1. 'Take a Magic Potion'

A shortcut to transcendence. By consuming the potion, players bypass the constraints of level and talent, instantly becoming extraordinary. It's fast, effective, and reliable, but often expensive or difficult to obtain.

2. 'Reach Level 10 and Obtain a Transfer Token'

The classic and safest method. Upon reaching level 10, players earn the right to interact with the mysterious 'Token of Job Transfer', allowing them to ascend to the extraordinary ranks.

3. 'Directly Integrate Extraordinary Characteristics'

The most perilous path. Players must absorb a complete set of extraordinary characteristics, awakening them within their own body. This method ignores level requirements, but it comes with a catch: survival is not guaranteed.

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Most players aim for the first method, as it is both efficient and predictable.

'But William chose the third.'

Unlike the potion's instant transformation or the structured progression of level 10, integrating extraordinary characteristics was fraught with danger. One wrong step, and the player could die or worse.

When 'Forum Master' asked William how he achieved this, William only gave a vague response.

"I'm still exploring the Demon Wolf Path's abilities," he said, brushing off the question.

Instead, William shifted the conversation, revealing updates about the Sequence Game that affected all players after their job change.

"Turns out I'm just the first to do it," William said. "But now everyone's got a shot."

The foundation of any extraordinary individual lies in their 'complete extraordinary characteristics'. Without this, players remain in a transitional state, able to access limited abilities but unable to unleash their full potential.

Take 'Alex', for instance, a standout player in the first sequence queue. At level 8, he was stuck as an '"Assassin's Apprentice"' a prelude to becoming a full-fledged assassin. His extraordinary characteristics were incomplete, granting him only passive benefits like enhanced agility and stealth.

He would need to fully awaken his characteristics, either by reaching level 10 or finding another way to complete them. Until then, his abilities were limited.

This was no different from William's previous state as a '"Son of the Wolf."' The passive effects had been useful, but the true potential of the Demon Wolf Path only awakened after he integrated complete extraordinary characteristics.

The 'Forum Master', a skilled and determined player, had led countless battles, earning experience points from level 1 to 8 without much trouble. But the closer he got to level 10, the slower progress became.

Now, stuck at level 8, he couldn't help but grumble.

"It's going to take forever to change my job!" he exclaimed, frustrated.

William raised an eyebrow. "Do you really want to change your job that badly?"

"Of course!" snapped the Forum Master. His frustration turned to resolve. William's success as the first extraordinary player among them had lit a fire under everyone. No one wanted to fall behind.

Seeing the Forum Master's determination, William made an unexpected offer.

"I've got a complete set of pure thief's extraordinary characteristics," he said casually. "If you want it, I'll give it to you."

The Forum Master hesitated. "If it's a thief's potion, I might consider it."

William's lips curled into a smirk. "You'd settle for a thief potion?"

The Forum Master rolled his eyes. "Listen, Lord Wallace, even a low-level thief is still a transcendent. A single bottle of magic potion can create an extraordinary being. Bloodline potions may be more advanced, but they're shared among five of us, I'm not exactly first in line."

William shook his head. "No potion. Just the complete extraordinary characteristics of a thief."

The Forum Master's confusion was evident. Using a thief potion to change jobs came with a near-certain success rate. But directly integrating extraordinary characteristics? That was a gamble with far higher stakes.

The 'thief's route', while alluring, was also notorious for its risks. Its contagious nature made it unique: ordinary individuals taken hostage by thieves could develop rudimentary thief characteristics in a short time, becoming what players referred to as '"preparatory thieves."'

Yet even this was no guarantee of success. Not everyone who walked the thief's path could become an 'extraordinary thief'.

The Forum Master weighed his options. On the one hand, the thief potion offered a safer, more controlled transition. On the other, William's offer was unprecedented, an opportunity to integrate complete extraordinary characteristics.

"If you're going to gamble," William said with a sly grin, "might as well go all in."

The Forum Master didn't reply immediately, his mind churning with possibilities. Around him, the other players were beginning to feel the pressure. William's achievements had sent ripples through the group, creating a sense of urgency.

The race for transcendence was on, and no one wanted to be left behind.

Becoming a supernatural being in the Sequence Game wasn't as simple as inheriting extraordinary characteristics. The process demanded more than courage, it required compatibility, talent, and an iron will.

Take the 'werewolf's characteristics' as an example. Only players with suitable talents could inherit even the 'incomplete characteristics' after killing one. But for those who lacked the innate compatibility and still sought the werewolf's 'complete extraordinary qualities', the path was treacherous.

The danger wasn't just physical; it was psychological.

Even if the extraordinary qualities were pure, they could wreak havoc on a player's sense of self.

What happens when a thief's characteristics are integrated into an unprepared mind?

Thieves, by their nature, embody chaos:

- 'Disregard for life'

- 'Lawlessness'

- 'A lust for destruction'

- 'An unrelenting hunger for power'

If a player couldn't maintain their own will during the awakening process, these characteristics would take over, twisting their personality into something unrecognizable.

And that's the 'good' outcome.

For players whose talents were incompatible, the result was far worse: awakening would fail entirely, and the extraordinary characteristics would spiral out of control, often destroying the player from the inside out.

This is why 'potions' were so coveted. They provided a controlled transformation, ensuring the player could retain their will while the potion's ingredients helped digest the extraordinary characteristics.

But potions were 'scarce and expensive'.

In the border town, there were no master alchemists, only '"pharmacist apprentices"' tinkering with incomplete recipes. The only known source of Thief's Potions was the 'witches in the Misty Wood' reclusive figures with their own priorities. Attempting to visit them uninvited was a sure way to get yourself kicked out, or worse.

The 'Forum Master', after much deliberation, made his decision.

"Alright," he said firmly. "I'll take the extraordinary characteristics."

It was no small feat. Stripping extraordinary characteristics from a source required complex magical rituals. Pure, untainted qualities like those William was offering were even harder to come by.

Curious, the Forum Master asked, "How much do you want for it?"

William shrugged, his tone casual. "Give me whatever you think it's worth."

The Forum Master raised an eyebrow, skeptical. Potions for apothecaries, blacksmiths, or thieves typically cost around '20 magic coins' at the 'Magic House', though they were nearly impossible to find in the border town.

"Twenty magic coins?" he muttered. "Ridiculous."

Even William agreed. "If I had a Thief's Potion, I wouldn't sell it for that price. But this isn't a potion, it's the real deal, pure extraordinary characteristics."

After some back-and-forth, they finally settled on a price of '5 magic gold coins', an exorbitant sum no ordinary player could afford.

The Forum Master, short on cash, resorted to buying on credit, borrowing against future earnings from Shadow Castle. He emptied his savings, took out advances, and left the deal completely broke.

"When are you going to change jobs?" William asked.

The Forum Master paused, his gaze thoughtful. "Not yet. I'll wait until I hit level 10."

His goal wasn't just to awaken extraordinary characteristics, he wanted to build a stable foundation, creating an initial template that could support further development.

"The initial template doesn't have to be powerful," he explained. "But it must be stable. Once that's done, I can refine it and improve."

Every path to transcendence had its own unique abilities, challenges, and progression.

For example, the 'Demon Wolf Path', which William followed, started with 'six ability characteristics'. But to reach higher levels of transcendence, players needed to expand their abilities, gain new traits, and deepen their understanding of their chosen path.

"It's like learning to walk as a baby," William said. "The first steps are messy, but you can't skip them."

He smirked. "And let's be real, when you're just starting out as a transcendent, you're basically like a reincarnated baby, trying not to embarrass yourself."

This metaphor struck a chord. A transcendent's early abilities were notoriously hard to control, leading to frequent mishaps.

William knew this all too well. He'd experienced it firsthand when he first integrated the Demon Wolf's extraordinary characteristics.

If not for his 'incredibly high mental resilience', the magic wolf's characteristics would have overwhelmed him, turning him into little more than a feral beast. Instead, he'd managed to suppress the out-of-control abilities, imprisoning them within his body until he could properly master them.

But it hadn't been easy.

"For most players, it's a nightmare," William said with a wry smile. "If you're lucky, you'll survive without metaphorically splashing your own shit in your face."

The Forum Master winced. "That's… graphic."

"Graphic, but accurate," William replied. "Trust me, you don't want to know what happens if you lose control."

Despite the dangers, the Forum Master was determined. The first steps toward transcendence were fraught with uncertainty, but the promise of power made it all worthwhile.

And for players like William and the Forum Master, risk was simply part of the game.

"Just don't lose yourself along the way," William said.

The Forum Master nodded, a steely resolve in his eyes. "Don't worry. I'll blaze my own trail."

"Good," William replied, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "Because in this world, only the strong survive and the strongest make their own paths."