The Game Begins
1718 Words
The moment the effect of the ripple faded, a 'ding' sound resonated in the head of every living thing in the Desolate Martial World.
Everyone froze. Cultivators mid-strike in a fight. Merchants mid-sale in the market. Children mid-laugh. Even the beasts in the forests went still.
The sound came from inside their minds, impossible to ignore or block out. Confusion rippled across the world like a second wave, followed quickly by panic.
[DING!!! The Era of Wars and Kingdom Building has been activated]
[Muahahahaha... You mortals that look like ants, I am the First World King! I hate to look at you weak humans living a quiet and peaceful life. From now on, this world shall be bound to the cycle of warfare. Every land will become a battlefield. Every soul a contender for dominion. Kingdoms shall rise, Empires shall fall, Dynasties shall be destroyed. Struggle! Struggle hard, become stronger, and use it to entertain me. Only by continuously strengthening yourself and building a lasting empire will you be able to survive. Otherwise, you will die! Now, the countdown begins! 5...]
The strange voice appeared in Yun Kai's mind. As the sound echoed, his body froze. He felt as if time itself had stopped. The entire world seemed to have slowed down, as if everything had been caught in amber.
In his mind, he only heard the countdown.
"4..."
His heart pounded against his ribs, but even that felt sluggish, drawn out.
"3..."
What was happening? What was this voice? This... system?
"2..."
"1... [The game officially begins! All of you ants, struggle to survive! Muahahahaha!...]"
Time snapped back to normal like a rubber band released. Yun Kai gasped, stumbling backward. His sensory bubble spun wildly, unable to focus.
He still looked on, stupefied and at a complete loss of what to do. He'd been the one who caused this chain reaction. A butterfly effect that had brought this world into an era of bloodshed and terror.
"What have I done?" The words came out barely above a whisper.
A subsequent string of messages appeared in his mind, flowing like water through his consciousness.
[DING! You have shattered the Sphere of Dawn.]
[Brave one... You have done what no mortal dared. With courage, or recklessness beyond measure, you have unleashed the Age of Conquest on the Desolate Martial World. Your action has awakened every dormant ambition across the world. All seek dominion and thirst for power.]
Yun Kai's breath caught in his throat. His fingers curled into fists.
[DING! SPECIAL TITLE ACQUIRED]
[You have earned the title: Harbinger of a New Era]
[Effect: Your presence alone will increase the aggression of future factions by 50%.
Effect: In three years, all factions will recognize you as the Catalyst of the Great War.]
"What in the nine hells!" His blood ran cold. A title that made people want to kill him more? That branded him as the cause of this chaos?
This wasn't a reward. This was a death sentence.
[Ding! Player rewards initiated.]
[Reward 1: God-Level Village Building Token x1]
[Reward 2: Unique Architectural Blueprint - Divine Warrior Pavilion x1]
[Reward 3:
> True Heaven-Grade Cultivation Manual - Spiritual Ocean Sutra: A cultivation technique that strengthens the user's soul consciousness, spiritual sense, and allows you to devour souls.
> Heaven-Tier Battle Technique - Heaven-Sundering Sword Scripture: At the highest level, this is a battle style that can cleave the sky, earth, and space with overwhelming force. The nine-layered sword arcs will descend like shooting stars, each two-fold stronger than the last.
> Heaven-Tier Battle Technique - Star-Stride Blink: A short-range instant movement technique that makes the user's movement smooth and unpredictable, like shifting currents. At the highest level, can bend intent and space for a split moment.]
[Due to unknown external interference, the system has distributed maximum tier rewards.]
Yun Kai stared at the notifications floating in his mind's eye, mouth hanging open in shock.
"What the hell is this?"
His voice came out flat, disbelieving. How was this even possible? Such insanely ridiculous rewards, all because he'd broken a glass ball by accident?
Three orbs of light materialized in the void before him. They pulsed with different energies, each one radiating power that made his skin tingle.
The first glowed golden, warm like sunlight. The second shimmered silver, cold like moonlight. The third, containing the three techniques, burned with purple flames that seemed to dance and writhe.
Yun Kai reached out toward the rewards, then stopped. His hand trembled slightly, still drowning in disbelief.
After all, free God-tier stuff didn't just appear out of nowhere like rain from the sky. Especially not after the psychotically deranged speech the so-called First World King had delivered.
This had to be a mistake. A glitch in whatever matrix now controlled the world. He was probably hallucinating. Dammit, he was a blind young man after all. Maybe he was hearing things that never happened in the first place. A good long rest would definitely clear his head.
He pinched his arm hard.
"Ouch!" Pain shot through his nerves, sharp and undeniably real.
This was not a dream or a hallucination.
The three orbs still floated there, waiting patiently for him to claim them.
Yun Kai's mind raced through the implications. If this "game" worked like he thought it did, the competition would be fierce. People would kill each other over rewards or tokens. Resources would become weapons. Power would be everything.
And now the system was offering him a God-Level token?
According to the information flowing into his mind, village building tokens had rankings. From lowest to highest: Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary, Mythic, Sacred, Celestial, and finally God-Level.
Nine tiers. And he was being given the highest one.
But it was the third reward that truly shocked him to his core.
True Heaven-Grade cultivation manual. Spiritual Ocean Sutra.
The word "True" made all the difference. Information flooded his mind unbidden, knowledge he hadn't possessed moments ago.
Equipment, skills, or manuals marked with "True" were exponentially more powerful than normal Heaven grades. The comparison was like heaven and earth, incomparable.
A Heaven-grade sword technique could cut through mountains. A Heaven-grade movement skill could let someone move faster than sound.
And he was being offered a True Heaven-Grade cultivation manual?
Heaven-Grade was already the highest known tier for cultivation techniques in the Desolate Martial World. The rankings went: Black, Yellow, Profound, Earth, and Heaven.
A Heaven-Grade manual was already beyond most cultivators' wildest dreams. Something powerful that empires would go to war over. A True Heaven-Grade manual was supposed to be impossible to acquire in a mortal's lifetime.
Yet here it was, floating in front of him like a gift from the heavens.
Yun Kai swallowed hard. His throat felt dry as sand.
As for the Divine Warrior Pavilion blueprint, he had no idea what it did. But if it was being offered alongside the other two rewards, it had to be extraordinary. Maybe even world-changing.
Something nagged at the back of his mind. The system wasn't generous. Nothing in this world comes free. Everything had a price.
So why was it giving him these rewards? What was the catch?
What Yun Kai didn't notice was a replica of that colorless glass sphere hidden deep in his chest. It had somehow merged with his heart, shining faintly with an ethereal light. The glow was barely visible, even to supernatural senses.
What he didn't know was that this sphere fragment had influenced the reward distribution. It had evaded detection by the First World King who'd turned the world into this game-like existence. And now it coexisted peacefully with his heart, subtly influencing the system's behavior like a benign parasite or a virus hiding in plain sight.
But Yun Kai remained completely unaware of its presence.
[Ding! Player data scan complete.]
[Four-dimensional attributes confirmed.]
[Preparing game mechanics merge into the Desolate Martial World.]
[Please claim your rewards before transfer to a random location within a ten-kilometer radius.]
[Ding! Transfer initiating in 5... 4... 3...]
Yun Kai's hesitation vanished instantly. Whatever the reason for these rewards, whatever hidden cost existed, he'd be a complete fool not to take them. The system wasn't asking permission. It was counting down, forcing his hand.
He grabbed all three orbs of light at once.
They dissolved into his palms like mist, warm energy flooding through his body. Information streamed directly into his mind, overwhelming his senses.
The village token settled into what the system called his "inventory," a space only he could access. The blueprint became a scroll in the same inventory. The cultivation and battle manuals embedded themselves directly into his consciousness, knowledge burning into his mind like brands.
The Spiritual Ocean Sutra unfolded in his thoughts. The cultivation method, breathing techniques, and energy circulation patterns. All of it foreign yet somehow familiar, as if he'd known it all along.
The Heaven-Sundering Sword Scripture came next. It was made up of nine forms or levels, each building on the last. He could see them in his mind's eye, feel how the sword should move even though he'd never held one properly.
Finally, Star-Stride Blink. Its movement pattern was like water, wind, and lightning, all at once. The technique promised speed beyond mortal comprehension.
[2... 1...]
White light erupted around him, blindingly bright even through his blindfold. His sensory bubble went haywire, unable to track anything as space itself seemed to warp.
The underground temple began to shake violently as the pillars cracked. The golden floor fractured and the entire structure collapsed inward, destroying itself as if its purpose had been fulfilled.
But Yun Kai was already gone.
The sensation of falling took over, though there was no actual movement. Colors swirled and merged in ways his senses couldn't comprehend. Up became down. Left became right. Everything spun like he'd been caught in a whirlpool.
Then, suddenly, solid ground appeared beneath his feet.
Yun Kai stumbled, catching himself before he fell. His sensory bubble expanded instinctively, mapping his new surroundings.
Trees. Lots of trees. A forest, but different from the Black Stone Forest. The air smelled cleaner, fresher. Less oppressive. The sounds of birds and small animals filled the air, normal forest life undisturbed by demonic beasts.
He was somewhere else entirely. Transported by the system to a random location.
- Writer
