2026-04-09 05:15:35Li Ming crouched behind the overturned trash bin, pipe resting across his knees. The hulking brute had moved on down the main street, leaving a trail of smashed cars and broken glass. Qingyun City was getting louder, more screams, more roars.
He checked his status again. The small bonuses from the alley fights had settled in.
Strength: 11
Agility: 13
Vitality: 10
Intelligence: 12
Mana: 8
Luck: 7
Skills:
• Knife Proficiency (Passive Lv.1)
• Street Brawler’s Instinct (Passive Lv.1)
• Scuttler Carapace Fragment (Passive Lv.1)
Nothing flashy, but his body felt a little lighter, reactions that made him confirmed the throne worked. Now he just needed to push it.
A soft chime sounded only in his head.
[Throne Anchor 1 active. Respawn point set.]
[Current absorption range: 50 meters.]
[Note: Absorption activates on any death within range. Proximity increases absorption quality. Distance reduces it.]
Li Ming nodded to himself. Fifty meters wasn’t much, about half a soccer field. He’d have to stay close to the action if he wanted good gains. Too close and he risked dying again. But dying wasn’t the end anymore. It was fuel.
He stood and moved carefully along the back alleys, heading toward the quieter residential blocks behind the school. Fewer people there meant fewer monsters for now, but also fewer deaths to harvest. A calculated risk.
After ten minutes of silent creeping, he found what he was looking for: a small community park, half-hidden by trees. Empty benches, a dried-up fountain, and best of all, no one around. Perfect for testing the anchor.
He sat on the edge of the fountain and focused.
“Create second Throne Anchor.”
Nothing happened.
[Error: Maximum anchors at current Throne level is 1. Evolve Throne or increase Reincarnator rank to unlock more.]
Li Ming frowned. One anchor for now. Fine. He’d have to be careful where he placed it. Moving it later might cost something.
A distant explosion rattled the windows of nearby apartments. Someone had probably found a gas line or a car. Good distraction.
He stood and started circling the park, looking for weak monsters or desperate survivors. Instead, he heard voices, young, cocky, already sounding like they owned the place.
“told you this zone is ours now. Anyone who comes in gets looted.”
Li Ming slipped behind a thick tree and peered out. Four guys, maybe nineteen or twenty, wearing the same high school tracksuits as him but from a different block. One held a metal bat, another had a chef’s knife. The tallest one had a crude leather vest made from what looked like scuttler hide. Level 5, according to the faint tag that appeared when Li Ming focused.
They were standing over two bodies. Fresh kills, probably other students who had tried to hide here.
Li Ming’s pulse quickened. Two deaths already inside what he guessed was fifty meters. The pull came immediately, soft but clear.
[Throne Absorption triggered.]
[Absorbed: Basic Leatherworking Fragment (Passive Lv.1) – Minor crafting insight.]
[Absorbed: Crude Bat Mastery (Passive Lv.1)]
[Minor stat bonuses integrated: +1 Strength, +1 Vitality]
The memories were quick flashes, arrogance, a quick fight, the satisfaction of winning. Li Ming ignored the emotional residue. He needed data only now.
The four guys were laughing, dividing coins and a couple of healing pellets from the corpses.
“These noobs thought they could hide,” the leader said, kicking one body. “When the tide hits tomorrow, we’ll be ready. Join my group and we rule this part of Qingyun.”
Li Ming stayed perfectly still. Four against one. Even with his small boosts, bad odds. But they had just handed him free gains without him lifting a finger. The range had worked perfectly.
One of the guys wandered closer to Li Ming’s tree, unzipping to take a piss. Thirty meters. Maybe less.
Li Ming weighed his options. Attack now? Risky. Wait and harvest more deaths? Safer, but the leader might leave soon.
He chose patience.
The guy finished and turned back. “Hey, let’s check the apartments. Might be more hiding.”
They started moving toward the buildings on the far side of the park. Li Ming followed at a careful distance, keeping buildings and trees between them. He stayed just inside what he hoped was the edge of fifty meters.
Another scuttler appeared from the bushes near the group. The bat-wielder swung and crushed it in one hit.
[Throne Absorption triggered – partial due to distance.]
[Absorbed: Minor Agility Fragment]
[Stat bonus reduced: +0.5 Agility]
Li Ming clenched his jaw. Distance penalty was real. Closer was definitely better.
He crept nearer, using the noise of their bragging to cover his steps. Street Brawler’s Instinct helped him move quieter than before.
The group kicked in an apartment door. Shouts erupted inside, a man and a woman trying to barricade themselves. A short, ugly fight. The bat cracked against bone. A knife flashed.
Two more deaths.
Li Ming was now twenty meters away, crouched behind a parked scooter.
The absorption hit stronger this time.
[Throne Absorption triggered.]
[Absorbed: Basic Cooking Skill (Passive Lv.1) – useless in combat but…]
[Absorbed: Desperate Survival Instinct (Passive Lv.1) – slight boost to pain tolerance.]
[Stat bonuses: +1 Intelligence, +1 Luck]
He almost laughed at the cooking skill. Still, every piece added up. The pain tolerance could be useful when he died again.
The four looters were getting louder, celebrating. The leader wiped blood from his knife.
“See? Easy mode. When the big guilds form, we’ll already have levels.”
Li Ming’s eyes narrowed. These idiots thought they were players. They had no idea one real player was already watching them, harvesting everything they touched.
He backed away slowly, deciding not to push his luck today. Four was still too many. He had gained six small passives and stat bumps without swinging once. Better return to his anchor, rest, and plan the next move.
As he slipped back toward the fountain, the global announcement rang in everyone’s head.
[First Monster Tide will begin in 21 hours.]
[All safe zones will shrink by 30%. Prepare.]
Li Ming reached the fountain and sat down, back against the stone. He pulled up the anchor menu.
“Confirm Anchor 1 stability.”
[Throne Anchor 1 stable. Respawn ready.]
Good. If things went south in the next fight, he’d wake up right here, stronger.
He closed his eyes for a moment, listening to the distant chaos of Qingyun City tearing itself apart.
These four loudmouths would probably die tomorrow during the tide. When they did, if he was close enough, he’d take everything they had built.
And if they somehow survived… he might help them die.
Either way, their power was already becoming his.
Li Ming stood, gripped the pipe, and moved back into the alleys.
He still had a lot of testing to do before the tide hits
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
The Price of Growth
They walked for two full days through the outer crimson wastes, avoiding main patrol routes. Li Ming led the way with Zhao Feng watching the rear, while his parents stayed close in the middle. The journey was slower than he liked, but necessary. His father’s wounds still ached with every step, and his mother tired easily in Floor 1’s heavier atmosphere.During a short rest under the overhang of a shattered obelisk, his mother handed him a piece of dried meat from their dwindling supplies.“Eat,” she said firmly. “You’ve been giving most of the good portions to us.”Li Ming accepted it without argument. “We’ll find more soon. There are smaller ruins ahead that aren’t heavily contested.”Zhao Feng wiped sweat from his brow. “Boss, the outer regions… what’s waiting for us there? More monsters like those wolves?”“Worse,” Li Ming replied. “But fewer organized factions. We can train safely. My parents need to get stronger quickly. The Vanguard won’t stop looking.”His father straightened a
Weight of Blood
The crimson night pressed heavy on the hidden camp. Li Ming sat motionless on a high ledge inside the ruins, short sword balanced across his thighs, eyes scanning the darkness beyond their crude wards. Below, in the main chamber, the soft glow of a muted crystal lantern illuminated his parents resting on makeshift beds of scavenged cloth and padding.He hadn’t slept.Zhao Feng’s quiet snores drifted up occasionally, but Li Ming’s mind refused to quiet. Having his family here on Floor 1 felt both right and terrifyingly wrong. Every instinct screamed that he had just painted a massive target on the last people he cared about.A soft footstep behind him made him turn.His mother approached carefully, clutching a thin blanket around her shoulders. Her face still bore the bruises from Floor 0, but her eyes were clear and determined.“You should rest, Ming’er,” she said softly, sitting beside him. “You’ve been fighting non-stop.”“I’m fine,” he replied, voice low. “The penalties are still a
Through the Gate
The Central Plaza was a battlefield of shifting alliances and desperate screams. Factions clashed over control of the Ascension Gate while scattered monsters from the lingering tide still prowled the edges. Li Ming crouched behind an overturned bus, supporting his father with one arm while his mother pressed close on the other side.“We’re too exposed here,” Li Ming muttered, eyes scanning the chaos. “The Gate is two hundred meters ahead, but three factions are fighting over it right now.”His father grimaced, trying to stand straighter despite the pain. “Then we wait for an opening, son. You’ve kept us alive this far.”His mother touched Li Ming’s bloodstained sleeve. “Ming’er… you’re hurt too. That penalty you mentioned — is it making things worse?”Li Ming shook his head. “It’s manageable. Just stay behind me and run when I say. No hesitation.”A massive explosion rocked the plaza as two rival guilds collided near the Gate. Li Ming saw his chance.“Now!”He surged forward, half-car
Descent
The Ascension Gate spat Li Ming out onto the blood-soaked ruins of Qingyun City’s Central Plaza like an unwanted memory. The moment his feet touched Floor 0 ground, the penalties slammed into him like a physical blow.His body felt heavier. Slower. Weaker.[Floor Descent Penalty Active: All Stats -15% for 72 hours. Throne absorption quality -60%. Cross-floor range further restricted.]Li Ming staggered for half a second, then forced himself upright. The familiar cracked blue sky overhead looked almost comforting after the oppressive crimson of Floor 1. But there was no time for nostalgia.He moved.The plaza was still a graveyard of the Second Tide. Piles of monster corpses rotted under the sun while survivors picked through the remains. Li Ming kept the Shadow Veil Cloak active and his head low, slipping through the chaos like a ghost. Even with the penalties, his base power was still far above most Floor 0 survivors.He headed straight for the residential block, heart pounding harde
Echoes from Below
Zhao Feng winced as he leaned against the rocky outcrop, clutching the fresh bandage Li Ming had tied around his torso. The crimson sun hung low, casting long bloody shadows across the wastes. They had been moving for hours, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and the collapsed cave.“You should have left me,” Zhao Feng muttered, voice rough with pain. “I was dead weight back there.”Li Ming scanned the horizon before answering. “Dead weight doesn’t complain this much. Save your strength. We still have a long way before we can rest.”A weak chuckle escaped Zhao Feng. “You know… when you first saved us, I thought you were just another strong loner looking for cannon fodder. But you pulled me out. Twice now.” He paused, studying Li Ming’s face. “Why do you fight like this? Most people with your power would’ve built a big group by now. Ruled something.”Li Ming remained silent for a long moment, eyes distant. “Big groups attract attention. Attention brings betrayal. I
Fractured Alliances
Zhao Feng slammed his axe into the ground, still buzzing from the latest ambush. “Did you see their faces when the wolves hit? Lin Mei looked like she wanted to kill her own men!”The group had gathered in their newest temporary shelter — a shallow cave system hidden behind a collapsed tower. A small crystal lantern cast flickering red light across their faces. Su Ling was bandaging a cut on one man’s arm while the others counted loot.Li Ming leaned against the far wall, arms crossed, listening.“We’re actually doing it,” said a wiry man named Guo Wei, grinning as he weighed a pouch of Floor Coins. “Three supply convoys in five days. They must be bleeding resources by now.”“Keep your voice down,” Su Ling warned. “We got lucky today. If that wolf pack hadn’t shown up—”“Lucky?” Zhao Feng laughed. “That was the boss’s timing. He always knows when to strike.”All eyes turned toward Li Ming. He met their gazes steadily but said nothing at first. The praise felt hollow. Praise often prec
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