While Southhaven breathed a collective sigh of relief, the rest of the world was burning.
[Planar Broadcast: Mirage Star City has fallen. Human population -70,000,000.]
[White Tiger Bastion and Peerless City have successfully established a Rift Gate. Inter-city transit established. Defense rating significantly increased.]
[Global Achievement: All Awakened in the Azure Prime Plane granted +5 to All Stats.]
The notification shimmered in the air, a bittersweet reminder of the scale of the war. Rift Gates were the holy grail of survival. Linking two cities meant the strongest Awakened could combine forces to clear high-level Dungeons and cull the regional bosses that kept humanity pinned behind stone walls.
For every milestone the "vanguard" reached, the entire plane reaped the rewards. Ash Valor had been Awakened for two years, and he’d survived long enough to see his base stats swell from these global handouts.
[Global Milestone: The strongest Awakened of Azure Prime has surpassed Level 120. All current Awakened granted +10 to All Stats.]
[New Player Catch-up: All future Awakened of Azure Prime will receive a starting bonus of +30 to All Stats.]
Ash stared at the floating text, feeling a lump in his throat. When he first Awakened, he’d started with a miserable five points in each attribute. This new generation would walk out of their Awakening ceremonies stronger than he had been at Level 20.
Power creep, he thought, a dry smile tugging at his lips. I really was born at the wrong damn time.
In the early days, the survival rate was one in ten thousand. Veterans from a century ago took decades to hit Level 40; there were no high-level carries back then, no one to tank a Level 60 boss while you soaked up the experience from the sidelines.
"One generation builds the foundation so the next can stand taller," Victor Ward remarked, looking at his own stat screen. "It’s the only way we survive."
"It’s fair, in a way," Lily Mercer added. "The old-timers have centuries of accumulated plane rewards. For us, thirty points is a godsend. It means a Level 1 can actually step into a Level 1 Dungeon without a death wish."
"It changes everything," Ash agreed. "Crafting classes won't be as fragile. Beginners will actually be able to find parties instead of being treated like baggage."
The members of Galeforce Squad went quiet, each remembering their own desperate crawl from the bottom.
"Ash," Victor said, looking toward the horizon. "Think Southhaven will ever get a Rift Gate? I’d give anything to see another city before I die."
"They say before the Descent, the whole world was connected," Lily whispered. "You could go anywhere."
"Southhaven is growing," Ash said. "It won’t be long. I’ve heard there are high-level Assassins who don't even need the Gates—they just vanish and reappear hundreds of miles away. Level 100 players can cross the wastes on foot."
"Or they just fly," Victor laughed. "A Universal Skill Tome for flight costs hundreds of thousands in Gold, assuming one ever hits the market. Wealth is its own kind of superpower."
Money. It always came back to money.
"Don't get ahead of yourselves," Ash said, snapping them back to reality. "Focus on the grind. Once you hit Level 50, head back to Southhaven."
Victor and Lily blinked in surprise. "You’re staying? There’s no XP for you here after 50, Ash."
"I’m staying to hunt Elites," Ash lied easily. It was part of the truth, but the real reason was his One in a Million talent. Triggering it twice a day provided stat growth that rivaled actual leveling. If he stayed here and kept his kill count high, he could potentially match a C-Rank Awakened's stats within a few months without ever stepping into a higher-danger zone.
"Leveling is the priority, Ash," Lily warned.
"I know. But I need to stabilize my foundation first. Go on ahead. Once I hit 50 and upgrade my gear, I'll be fine solo. Or I’ll find a healer to duo with."
Victor scratched his chin. "You know, Ash... if you're staying anyway, you could always run a 'bus' service."
"A bus?"
"Power-leveling," Victor explained. "Take people from Level 10 to 50. Charge two hundred Gold a head. People would kill for that kind of efficiency."
Ash’s mind whirred. Five people per run... that was a thousand Gold. His gear problems would vanish in a week. At his current output, a single Level 40 mob would probably jump a Level 10 player three levels instantly.
"I'll pull from the Guild," Ash decided, his eyes gleaming. "Level 10 to 50. I’ll be a goddamn grinding machine."
The grind was relentless, but the results were undeniable. Forty days into the marathon, Ash finally spotted it: a Level 50 Elite.
"Widow Champion!" Ash shouted, already nocking an arrow. "Victor, take the aggro!"
"On it! Don't let the venom touch you!"
Ash didn't need the warning. He retreated into the range of a nearby Arrow Tower, soaking up the territory buffs.
[-8,913!]
[Crushing Blow: -18,652!]
[Critical Strike: -10,369!]
The Elite was a powerhouse, its mandibles dripping with corrosive spite. Victor’s health bar danced violently, occasionally plunging to fifty percent in a single hit, but Lily’s heals were surgical.
[Damage Reflection: -15,968]
[Armor Break!]
[Shield Bash!]
The 500,000 HP pool evaporated under Ash's sustained fire. When the beast finally curled into a heap of chitin and ichor, the notifications flooded in.
[Experience +3,000. Gold +3. Kill Count +1.]
[Loot: Bronze-Tier Staff (Lv. 50)]
A solid drop. A few more days of mopping up trash mobs, and the golden light finally washed over all three of them.
[Level 50 Reached.]
Ash checked his internal clock. Forty days. In that time, One in a Million had granted him 800 permanent stat points—more than he’d gained from the actual levels.
[Level 50 Milestone: Attack +500, Attack Range +10m, HP +2,000.]
[Planar Vault Reward: 1,000 Gold.]
[Phantom Summon: Level +1, HP +500, Attack +100, Defense +30.]
[System Note: Post-Level 50 progression increased. Each Level: All Stats +10, Free Stat Points +20.]
"Damn," Ash breathed. The rewards were massive. Victor and Lily were staring at their own Vault rewards in shock.
Victor reached into his inventory and handed Ash a heavy pouch. "The six hundred I owed you. Thanks for the carry, Ash."
Ash checked his balance: 2,016 Gold. He had never felt so rich. He immediately headed for the market, offloading his Level 30 gear and burning nearly 1,400 Gold on a Level 50 Valor Set.
[Helm of Valor (Bronze-Tier): Str +40, Agi +40, Vit +40, Def +100, HP +1,000.]
He finished the look with a Level 50 Bronze Bow (+800 Atk, +40 All Stats, +10m Range) and a Ring of Radiance (Silver-Tier).
His attack speed hit 0.71. His range reached a staggering 105 meters.
[Ash Valor]
[Level: 53]
[Total Stats: 4,336]
[Attack: 6,506]
[HP: 15,000]
[Defense: 825]
He was a monster. He had the raw power of a C-Rank Awakened while still being technically "low level."
Ash didn't wait. He opened the Guild channel.
Ash Valor: Power-leveling service. Lv 10 to 50. 200 Gold per slot. 5 slots only. Fast and safe.
The slots filled in seconds. The five who showed up at the Guild Grounds weren't the desperate street urchins Ash expected. They were kids—sixteen or seventeen—with gear that made Ash’s look like scrap metal.
[Hazel Lane: Cleric (B-Rank Talent)]
[Drake Ward: Berserker (C-Rank Talent)]
[Mira Ward: Hydromancer (D-Rank Talent)]
[Ash Flynn: Battle Monk (C-Rank Talent)]
[Pierce: Archer (D-Rank Talent)]
Ash stood on the ramparts, staring down at them. "You’ve all got B and C-Rank talents?"
One girl, Hazel, smiled up at him. She looked like she’d never seen a day of hardship in her life. These weren't just players; they were the future elite of Southhaven.
"Stay on the ramparts," Ash commanded, summoning his Phantom warriors to form a perimeter. "Soak the XP. Don't move unless I tell you."
"Ash, do you need help?" Drake asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I want to earn some Contribution Points!"
"You'll get one-shot," Ash said flatly. "Stay put until you hit Level 20."
He began to fire. The efficiency was terrifying. Mobs died before they even realized Ash was there.
"Hey Ash," Pierce called out. "Where did you get your start? My family gave me 1,000 Gold for my Awakening. I spent it all on these Silver-tier rings."
"My dad gave me eight hundred," Mira added. "Plus a bonus for every ten levels."
Ash stopped firing for a second, his eye twitching. When he was Level 10, he didn't have ten Gold, let alone a thousand. He decided to stop talking before he developed a grudge against children.
"Just watch the bar," Ash muttered.
Two days later, the "rich kids" hit Level 20 and refused to stay on the walls any longer. Ash expected them to be a nuisance, but then the buffs started hitting him.
[Warbrand Aura: Atk +10%, Def +10%]
[Battle Fervor: Atk +200]
[Aqua Mend: Regen +10 HP/sec]
[Bloodfeast: Attack Speed +10%]
Ash paused, feeling the raw surge of power. "Okay. You guys can stay."
"Ash, try this," Drake said, handing him a flask. "It’s Fortifying Spirits from my family’s cellar."
Ash took a sip, expecting a burn. Instead, a notification popped up.
[Strength +1.]
[Strength +1.]
He chugged the rest. "Good stuff. Very... refreshing."
Over the next two months, the group became a well-oiled machine. They hit Level 30, then 40. Ash led them through Level 4 Hard Dungeons, turning the "rich kids" into battle-hardened veterans. By the time they hit Level 50, they were geared in Silver-tier equipment and move with the confidence of high-rankers.
Ash checked his own progress. He was Level 53, but his total stats had ballooned to over 6,000 thanks to the constant kill count triggers and the "gifts" from his wealthy students.
He looked at his friend list.
[Zane: Lv 68]
[Simon Cross: Lv 76]
He was still behind the true monsters, but the gap was closing. He had spent two and a half years in the dirt, but his roots were finally deep enough to support a titan.
"Stay humble," Ash whispered to himself, watching the sunrise over the Guild Grounds. "The grind never ends."