Chapter 1: Earth Online, Officially Launched

"See, that's the difference between having connections and not. Who cares if your numbers are poor? You still get the top sales award and the bonus."
"The one up there getting the prize for top sales only closed seven deals all year, with a total profit of less than one and a half million. But her brother-in-law is the general manager, so what can you do?"
"Now look at young Shen. He closed three deals in one afternoon, netting at least five million in profits. He drank himself into the hospital, lay there for four hours, and still had to come back and throw a celebration—for someone else."
"Sometimes, the gap between people is greater than the gap between a person and a dog."
…
In the audience, a few prematurely balding sales elites watched Shen He—who sat among their ranks with a full head of hair and a sullen expression—with barely concealed schadenfreude.
On stage, Wang Long, a hefty man with a bulging belly, cradled the trophy in his hands, grinning broadly as his colleagues applauded and praised him.
Suddenly, his gaze locked onto Shen He in the crowd, and his smile vanished. He pointed at Shen He and barked, "Why aren't you clapping?"
The room went silent as all eyes turned to Shen He.
Shen He looked up at Wang Long on the stage, pointed at himself, and asked, "Are you talking to me?"
Wang Long scowled. "Obviously. The whole company is clapping—why aren't you?"
Shen He let out a bitter laugh, pointing at himself again, then at Wang Long. "Why should I clap for you? Why the hell should I?"
"I closed three deals this afternoon, made at least five million in profits—way more than you did all year. I drank so much I ended up with stomach pains, spent four hours in the hospital, and rushed back for this meeting. You just took the credit and the money; go ahead and enjoy yourself!"
"And you have the nerve to ask why I'm not clapping?"
"Who should I clap for? For your brother-in-law, the general manager who sends you after college girls every day, or for your sister, who spends all her time at clubs with male models?"
"Your whole family is like a toad climbing onto a frog—ugly as sin but still playing around."
As soon as the words left his mouth, the entire hall fell deathly silent.
Onstage, Wang Long's face turned livid.
Behind him, General Manager Zhao Hu, who had personally presented the award, stepped forward with a dark expression and gritted teeth. "Shen He, what nonsense are you spouting? If you have a complaint, file for arbitration. What are you doing blabbering here? Do you even want to keep your job?"
Shen He grinned. "What, are you going to fire me?"
Zhao Hu jabbed a finger at Shen He. "And what if I do?"
Shen He yanked the company badge from his neck and flung it onto the stage, teeth clenched. "I quit! And Zhao, don't even dream of cheating me out of a single cent of my commission. Check your inbox when you get home—I've sent you everything you need to see, you idiot…"
With that, Shen He strode out of the hall.
Zhao Hu, now purple with rage, saw the crowd beginning to murmur and shouted, "Everyone quiet! The awards ceremony continues!"
…
Shen He walked out of the building and glanced back at the company where he had worked for three years. The resentment in his chest only grew.
He had joined straight out of college and worked three solid years.
His performance was outstanding—he had passed his probation period in less than two months, and for the next two years, his numbers were always near the top.
This year, he'd finally landed a big deal, only for the general manager's brother-in-law to swoop in and take the credit at the last moment.
The bastard really had no shame.
Boom!

A thunderclap split the sky, and rain came crashing down, drenching Shen He in an instant.
He walked through the downpour, resentment boiling over, threw back his head and let out a furious roar, paying no attention to the way passersby stared at him as if he were a madman, then headed for his rented apartment.
In a dark alley, a black shadow darted out.
"Squeak, squeak."
Startled, Shen He instinctively lashed out with a kick, sending the creature flying into the wall. A splash of crimson stained the bricks.
Rain lashed down, blurring Shen He's vision, and a strange buzzing filled his ears—he thought he might be hallucinating.
[Ding! Congratulations, host, for slaying a Tier 1 Rat King. Attribute point +1.]
[Earth Online is officially launching!]
[Entering novice guidance phase…]
[Please open your personal panel to view your attributes:]
Shen He glanced at the corner, where a palm-sized, pitch-black rat lay dead in the rain, blood from its mouth and nose pooling crimson in the water.
He shook his head, half-convinced he'd gone mad. Hallucinations—what else could explain it?
The next moment, a glowing screen appeared before his eyes, lines of tiny text floating on its surface.
[Player: Shen He]
[Strength: 0.7]
[Stamina: 0.6]
[Agility: 0.5]
[Mental Force: 1.2]
(Evaluation: Years spent drinking at various banquets haven't stopped you exercising, but frequent heavy drinking has left you in suboptimal health.)
As the ringing in his ears faded, Shen He stared dumbfounded at his personal panel.
What the hell was this?
A hallucination? It felt too real.
He waved his hand through the light screen; it changed as his fingers passed through.
[Log]
[In 2026, July 13: The first surge of spiritual energy appeared—plants grew wildly, animals awakened, the world transformed. This is known as the Great Awakening.]
[Same year, July 14: The first Tier 3 monster appeared, slaughtering a town—13,572 killed or injured, the army intervened, with 800 casualties.]
[Same year, October 15: The first Tier 4 monster appeared, immune to ordinary firearms, escaped after being severely wounded.]
[Same year, December 7: The first Tier 5 monster appeared, wiped out a county—108,972 killed or injured, 3,500 military casualties, finally destroyed with heavy weaponry.]
[2027, July 6: First Tier 6 monster appears in the island nation—most of the island sank, 68.9 million deaths.]

[2027, September 1: First Tier 7 monster appears in America, destroys a Texas military base—680,000 killed or injured.]
[2028, January 5: Tier 8 monster appears in the Yellow Sea, peninsula sinks.]
[…]
Shen He stared at the log, shock filling his eyes.
July 13, 2026—the Great Awakening?
What nonsense was this? That was two years from now.
Was this some kind of “floaters” in my vision, projected by aliens?
Shen He looked at the screen in front of him, falling silent for a moment.
After a while, he summoned his attribute panel experimentally.
He eyed the little “plus” sign next to his ‘0.7’.
He tapped it several times in a row.
‘0.7–0.8’
‘0.8–0.9’
‘0.9–1.0’
‘…’
Suddenly, Shen He felt a rush of warmth flooding through his body.
He could really feel his strength growing.
Beneath his skin, his muscles seemed to be reshaping themselves.
He glanced over at a nearby trash can, filled to the brim.
A full trash can must weigh at least fifty kilos.
Before, he could barely lift it, and only a little at that.
It was, after all, a heavy, overflowing trash can—not some fair-skinned, long-legged beauty.
But if this feeling was real…
He spread his feet, shifted his weight, grabbed the edges, and heaved.
He hoisted the entire trash can up in one swift movement—so forcefully that garbage spilled out, two lettuce leaves landing on his face.
Dirty water mingled with rain trickled down his cheeks.
Holy crap! It’s real!