Martial Destiny

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Player: Tyrant

Level: Mortal

Path: Swordsman (Common)

Physical: Divine Tyrant Physique (Absolute)

Artifact: None

Equipment: Defective Sword (Common), Light Leather Chestplate (Common), Light Leather Anklet (Common), Light Leather Bracers (Common)

Abilities: Charge, Reinforced Body, Energy Slash

Primary Attributes:

STR: 28 (+21) (2 points per core / 1 point from physique)

AGI: 25 (+21) (2 points per core / 1 point from physique)

STA: 29 (+21) (2 points per core / 1 point from physique)

Secondary Attributes:

END: 15 (+11) (1 point per core / 0.5 from physique)

SPD: 15 (+11) (1 point per core / 0.5 from physique)

Tertiary Attributes:

WIS: 7.5 (+5.1) (0.5 from core / 0.3 from physique)

VIS: 6.5 (+5.1) (0.5 from core / 0.3 from physique)

UA: 7.5 (+5.1) (0.5 from core / 0.3 from physique)

Health: 230 (END * 10)

Mana: 180 (UA * 10)

]

Even though Julius was only able to retrieve 8 of the 20 rabbits he had killed, his progress in stats was surprisingly high.

He had no idea how well he was doing compared to others, but he imagined he was already a few steps ahead. It wasn't hard to come to that conclusion.

In a hypothetical world where Julius kept each of the cores, his primary attributes would total 70 points!

It was like saying he was evolving at a rate of 7x per day.

Such an improvement rate likely wouldn't last forever, but still, he had gained an absolute advantage at the start of the game.

Maybe I shouldn't return to the village? At that moment, Julius was on the green plains and could see the village in the distance, but he was hesitant about whether he should keep going.

My health and mana are still full. I could easily handle a few wolves alone the way I am now. He felt it would be a waste to return to the village now, but the village chief's warning still echoed in his mind.

Be careful at dusk. Since the demons invaded our world, creatures become much more violent and powerful when the sun sets. Julius could sense that something had changed. The temperature had dropped by several degrees, and vapor was coming out with every breath, as a purple, black, and green miasma began to emerge from various places.

The forest was clearly where the miasma was most concentrated, with a cloud of it covering the entire area.

'I feel like something is watching me from there'. As he looked at the forest, covered in miasma, Julius had a distinct feeling that something was observing him.

Even though he had no idea what kind of creature it was, he felt every hair on his body stand on end.

I'll just return inside the village walls. I'll go back to hunting tomorrow morning. A subconscious fear made Julius walk the rest of the way with heightened awareness.

Only after passing through the gate and being safe behind the wooden walls did he feel a sense of relief.

'The unknown truly is humanity's greatest fea'r. The terrifying feeling faded once he was inside the walls, but he couldn't help reflecting for a moment.

'It won't be long before I can hunt whatever's behind that miasma!' Julius promised himself.

And now, he had his first objective in The Gates!

Almost as if reading Julius's mind, a blue screen appeared right in front of him.

[The Celestial Will Recognizes Your Will]

[A new mission has been generated for the cultivator: Julius Signus]

[Defeat the King of the Forest]

[Reward: 1x Samsara Coin // Failure: None]

Four screens appeared right in front of Julius, shocking him.' Can they read my mind!?'

The timing of the screens and Julius's thoughts were so coincidental that he didn't even consider it was just a coincidence.

'What kind of technology would be needed to read someone's mind!? 'Such a concept was so beyond Julius's understanding that he couldn't even fathom the logic behind it.

The game was increasingly resembling the conspiracy theories he had read online.

"Looks like a small group of you listened to me," the village chief said, stepping out of his large tent and standing in front of a few players.

Julius hadn't been paying attention until now, but when the chief spoke, he noticed that only a small fraction of the players had returned behind the walls.

"The majority of the foreigners chose not to listen to my advice. Like any other choice in life, that decision will have consequences." The chief's lips twisted into a cruel smile. "Unfortunately, for all the fools, the consequences will be quite terrible."

It was as if the world itself wanted to prove the old man's words.

"Arghhh!"

"What the hell is that!?"

"A-A demon!!"

"Open the gates!"

"Please help us!"

"Dammit, help me kill one of these del-!"

"HHAHAHAHHAHAHAH!"

Screams of terror, pain, and despair echoed in all directions, sending shivers down the spines of all players inside the walls. In addition, unearthly, maniacal laughter, which didn't match the desperate cries of the players, echoed from all directions.

"My dear foreigners, this is the threat you were summoned to help us deal with. Even though the rift that allowed these demons to cross into our world is thousands of miles away, the miasma that crossed with them has been enough to gradually corrupt our lands." The old man's face, for the first time since Julius had seen him, was dead serious.

"Obviously, the strength of these little imps is nothing compared to the real demons on the battlefield, but they are still far beyond your current level. That's why, for the next 7 days, you should always return before dusk. Of course, if you prefer to die out there, that's your problem. After these 7 days, a caravan from the kingdom will come to collect you."

"Your only goal in the coming days is to strengthen yourselves as much as possible. I can already see that some of you have even achieved decent strength for a mortal." The old man observed everyone present without rushing, showing his usual expression. Only when his gaze landed on Julius did he react differently.

So strong!? No player noticed the change, as the old man kept the same expression, but internally, he was shocked by Julius's rapid rate of evolution.

'Looks like a few individuals from the other world are actually going to become excellent cultivators. From what I've been told, they haven't even had their world invaded yet. What was is name again? Tyrant? Yeah, i guess so!'The old man chuckled as he turned to return to his tent, remembering the strange names of the foreigners.

"Haha, at least it will be easy to remember and report to the people in the capital."

Outside the tent, the chief's words echoed in the minds of all the players.

[The Celestial Will has given you a mission]

[A new mission has been generated for all cultivators in the village...]

[Survive for 7 days. 1/7]

[Reward: Travel to the kingdom's capital // Failure: Death of your avatar]

The system notification appeared in front of Julius again, showing another mission for him.

Now, he had two missions to complete. In fact, now that he had a time limit to stay in the village, Julius realized his first mission also had a time limit now.

[The Celestial Will Recognizes Your Will]

[A new mission has been generated for the cultivator: Julius Signus]

[Defeat the King of the Forest in 7 days. 1/7]

[Reward: 1x Samsara Coin // Failure: None]

Now, he only had 6 days left to complete the mission.

'I need to become strong enough to face the creature in the forest!' Julius tried to distract himself, trying not to focus on the agonizing screams that had been echoing in his mind ever since they started.

But it was impossible to ignore. The screams of terror and fear were so loud that pretending nothing was happening was out of the question. Even with his absurd evolution speed, Julius still felt that he needed to become even stronger.

'I don't think I would do better than those out there.' He tried his best not to imagine that scenario. But in the end, it was impossible for him not to imagine himself in the situation of those outside.

To be honest, he thought he wouldn't fare much better. Of course, with his more evolved attributes, he might be able to last longer.

But the screams were so terrifying that Julius forgot that he was probably stronger than all the players outside. 'At least, I think so. I haven't seen any other players hunting. I have to act cautiously and proceed one step at a time.'

He didn't want to fall into arrogance and end up biting off more than he could chew.

The immersion of the game was so incredible that, at that moment, Julius even forgot he was in The Gates.

That's why he was choosing his next steps with great caution, as he felt that any wrong choice could lead him to ruin.

And that's how he lost himself in thought despite everything that was happening outside.