Adam stayed hidden in the shadows of the thick bushes and leaves, the dense foliage covering him well. His sharp blue eyes stayed focused on BlockHead, the player he had been watching kill the slimes in the clearing.
The way BlockHead fought was simple – basic sword swings, predictable movements, nothing special. It was efficient for a beginner, sure, but it reinforced Adam's feeling that he was on a completely different level now. He truly believed he had gone past, transcended, the idea of just being an ordinary player in a game.
His unique class, Administrator, and his new skill, Mark and Attack, meant he could achieve so much more in a much shorter amount of time. There was no reason for him to waste valuable time slowly grinding, fighting weak, slow creatures like slimes, getting just a few experience points at a time.
Slimes were for players who didn't know anything, players who had to learn the very basics of combat and movement. Adam already knew all of that from his past life, and now he had incredible powers on top of his knowledge.
"Slimes are just stepping stones," Adam thought, the phrase meaning they were only meant for taking the first tiny steps. He quietly stepped away from behind the big tree he had been hiding behind, leaving the clearing and BlockHead to continue his slow grind. His real targets were much bigger, much more dangerous, and much deeper inside the forest. That's where the better experience and potential loot would be found.
The forest around him seemed to sense his decision and welcome him deeper inside. As he ventured further in, the vegetation became even denser. The trees grew taller and taller, reaching high into the sky. Their branches spread out and intertwined with each other like a natural canopy, a thick roof made of leaves and wood.
This canopy blocked out most of the direct sunlight, filtering it into patches of soft, dappled golden light that lay scattered across the forest floor like spilled paint.
The air itself felt different here. It was rich and earthy, carrying the strong smell of damp wood, like after rain, and fresh, living leaves. The sounds changed too. The distant chirping of crickets faded away, replaced by the constant, soft sound of rustling foliage, the gentle whispering of leaves in the wind that filled the quiet space.
Adam moved quickly but also carefully, his steps light and quiet on the forest ground, a mix of soft dirt and fallen leaves that muffled his movements. His black outfit, designed for stealth and blending into the shadows, was perfect for this. It made him hard to see, helping him move without being noticed.
Unlike other players who were still clumsy in VR, finding it hard to move their characters naturally and quickly, Adam's actions were fluid and precise. He moved with the easy grace of someone who had complete control over his body, both real and virtual. This fluidity was a result of his real-life fitness and body control, combined with the huge amount of time he had spent in the old version of this game, years of muscle memory translating into the new VR environment. His past knowledge wasn't just about facts; it was also about how to be in this virtual world.
As he walked deeper, Adam's mind quickly reviewed everything he knew about the different types of creatures that lived in this specific beginner area. This was his greatest advantage over the other new players. They had to discover everything by trial and error, learning the hard way which monsters were strong and which were weak. Adam had all the facts already stored in his memory from his past life playing the original game.
He quickly went over the mental list:
Slimes (Level 1-2): These were the absolute easiest monsters to hunt. They were slow, they didn't hit hard (weak), and they moved in simple, easy-to-guess ways (predictable). They were exactly perfect for beginners learning the basics, just like BlockHead was fighting. Sometimes, a slightly bigger one called a Slime Boss would show up, which was still easy but gave slightly better rewards like extra stat points when defeated.
Fang Rabbits (Level 3-5): These were a step up from the slimes. They were rabbits, but with surprisingly sharp, long teeth (fangs). They were known for their speed and how quickly they could move (agility). Unlike slimes, which just slid or waddled along slowly, Fang Rabbits darted around very unpredictably, making them harder to hit and forcing players to react much more quickly to their sudden movements. They were a good next step after slimes.
Red Wolves (Level 5-10): These were the truly dangerous creatures, the real predators, of the Beginner Village's surrounding forest. They were much tougher than anything else nearby. They were fierce, meaning they were wild and aggressive fighters. They were fast, like Fang Rabbits but stronger.
And they were highly aggressive, meaning they would attack players on sight, not running away. These wolves were far beyond the abilities of most brand-new players. Even experienced adventurers, players who were already high-level but maybe just visiting this beginner zone, would usually avoid the Red Wolves unless they were in a party, a group working together to fight them. They were a serious threat.
Adam smirked again. It wasn't just a little smile this time; it was a look of confidence and perhaps a touch of arrogance. "Well," he thought. "I'm not an ordinary player, am I?"
Unlike the others he had just seen, players who hesitated and looked for the safest possible monster to fight, or who planned to stay near the village fighting easy slimes, Adam would go straight for the most dangerous prey.
He wouldn't waste time. If he wanted to level up quickly, if he wanted to get far ahead before the true rush of players joined and the world changed, he had to take bigger risks and fight stronger monsters right away. Risk equaled reward, especially in this game.
As he moved deeper and deeper into the woods, leaving the safer edges far behind, memories from his past life weren't just about game facts anymore. They were about the struggles he had faced. He hadn't just struggled against virtual monsters; he had struggled against the game's environment and the players who controlled it. He remembered how, in the early days of the original game, before it even became Eclipse Realms, powerful groups of players called guilds had taken control of everything important.
Even in these beginner zones, they acted like owners, controlling the best hunting areas where the best monsters appeared. They charged "fees," basically making weaker players pay them just to be allowed to farm monsters and level up in those areas. If a player refused to pay or tried to fight in 'their' area without permission, the guilds would hunt them down, constantly attack them until they got so frustrated or fell behind that they were forced to quit the game entirely.
Adam had once been one of those weak players. He had to pay fees, or sneak into less valuable areas, constantly looking over his shoulder, forced to grind for hours under the unfair, oppressive rules of these powerful guilds just to try and keep up. He remembered the anger, the frustration, the feeling of being powerless.
He clenched his fist hard now, the memory fueling his resolve. "Never again," he said, the words silent but fierce in his mind. He would never be weak again. He would never be controlled by guilds or players who thought they owned the game world.
This time, he would turn the tables. He would be the one with the power. The guilds thought they controlled the game world, dividing up its resources and rules among themselves. But they had never accounted for someone like him – an Administrator. They didn't know what was possible.
He adjusted his hood over his head, the action feeling familiar, feeling the smooth fabric against his fingertips. His black outfit wasn't just for show; he suddenly realized its full benefit. The stealth ability, the property that made him hard to see and hear, was an unexpected boon, a great help.
He remembered thinking about it earlier, but now he understood its true value against the guilds. It was a property the game hadn't stripped from his transferred character when it upgraded his look. If the powerful guilds, in the future, tried to track him down, to find AlphaBoss, they would fail. He could move through the game world like a ghost, unseen, building his power in secret.
Adam moved even deeper into the forest. His steps were measured, careful, controlled. His whole body felt alert, ready for anything.
The towering trees seemed to stretch endlessly into the sky in this part of the forest. Their thick canopy blocked out most of the sunlight, making the ground dim. Only small streaks of golden light managed to pierce through, hitting the ground like spotlight beams.
The air felt heavy and thick, filled with the strong smell of damp earth after rain, fresh leaves, and occasionally, the sweeter smell of wild flowers growing hidden between the thick, gnarled roots of the ancient trees.
"This place feels familiar," Adam thought as he walked, the sounds of his quiet footsteps barely audible. "Like I've been here a thousand times before." And in his memories, his past life, he had been. He had explored every inch of this forest, fought every type of monster here, found every hidden spot.
It wasn't just the environment that felt familiar; it was the game itself. He had lived through this world once before, starting small, struggling to get stronger, learning its secrets, and eventually dominating it as a top player in the old version. He had put in thousands of hours, understanding the game deeply.
But this time, everything was completely different. He wasn't a clueless beginner character just dropped into a new world. He had knowledge, incredible knowledge of the future, that no one else in this version of the game, at this time, possessed. He knew what would happen, what items were valuable, which monsters were important, which strategies would work, and how the game would eventually change the entire world.
He moved with the natural confidence of someone who knew exactly where he was going, even though he was walking through a wild, pathless forest. His sharp blue eyes were constantly scanning the dense foliage, the thick bushes and trees, looking for any sign of movement, any rustle that didn't come from the wind.
He heard the soft sounds of the forest life around him. Birds chirping happily high above in the branches. Small insects buzzing lazily near the ground cover. And a faint, almost silent rustling noise echoing somewhere in the distance ahead of him. It wasn't the wind this time.
Adam's lips curved into a smirk, wider and more dangerous-looking than before. It was the smirk of a predator who had found his prey. He wasn't alone out here.
His fingers instinctively brushed against the hilt of his knife, the small dagger strapped to his waist. His muscles tensed slightly, his body preparing itself for action without even being told to. He crouched down low and quietly behind a massive tree trunk, its rough bark pressing against his black outfit. His breathing stayed steady and controlled, calm despite knowing something dangerous was nearby. Stealth was key now.
The rustling noise grew louder, closer. It wasn't just leaves; it was something moving through them. A low, deep growl followed the rustling sound. That was the sound of a predator. A dangerous one.
Adam peered carefully past the edge of the thick bark of the tree, his body still mostly hidden. His sharp gaze settled, focusing tightly, on a small pack of monsters standing a few meters ahead in a tiny break in the trees. It was a pack of Fang Wolves.
There were five of them. Their bodies were sleek and muscular, moving with a quiet power that showed they were strong. Their sharp fangs, their long teeth, glistened in the little bits of filtered sunlight that reached the ground, looking very threatening. Their fur was a mix of dark gray and silvery colors, helping them blend in almost perfectly with the shadows and the dark colors of the forest.
At the front of the pack, standing slightly apart but clearly in charge, stood the leader. It was a striking female wolf, easy to spot. Her eyes were a deep, piercing yellow, constantly looking around. Her body was noticeably larger than the others, a little bit bigger and stronger. Her posture, the way she held herself, clearly showed her dominance, showing she was in charge of the group.
Adam's smirk widened. This was it. His first real target in this new, old life. "That's the one," he whispered, his voice barely a breath of air, speaking about the female leader.
He had fought Fang Wolves many times before in his previous life in the old game. He knew their patterns, how they moved and attacked. He knew their weaknesses, where they were most vulnerable. And he knew the best way to take them down, especially when he was at a low level.
In a direct, head-on fight, a Level 1 player would have absolutely no chance against a pack of Level 5-10 Fang Wolves. A pack would overwhelm a single beginner in seconds. But Adam wasn't just any player.
He was AlphaBoss. He was an Administrator, armed with future knowledge and impossible skills. He was someone who had already conquered this game world once, starting from nothing and becoming a top player through skill and understanding.
His fingers tightened around the hilt of his knife again, gripping it firmly. The stealth properties of his black outfit, the added bonus it gave him, allowed him to remain hidden from the wolves for now, invisible to their sharp eyes and noses. But he had to be incredibly careful. If the pack sensed him before he made his move, before he struck with his plan, they would turn on him in an instant and tear him apart in seconds with their sharp fangs and claws.
Holding his breath slightly, Adam activated his newest, most exciting skill: Mark and Attack. He directed his gaze, the focus of his blue eyes, onto the female wolf leader standing at the front of the pack.
As he focused, a faint, almost invisible glow surrounded the female wolf's body. This glow wasn't something anyone else in the game could see; it was visible only to Adam, a result of his unique skill activating. His skill had locked onto her. This "mark" ensured that whatever he commanded to attack her would follow perfectly and hit with precision.
Adam exhaled slowly, carefully, steadying his aim, making his body completely still. He was about to use his newly created skill for the very first time in combat. "One shot," he thought, focusing his will, thinking about the simple knife in his hand. "I have to make it count." His Mark and Attack skill, at Level 1, was limited. It took his second and last daily use of Reality Manipulation to activate this mode and the 'mark' was part of that activation. He needed this first attempt to work.
With a swift, very quick, movement that came from countless hours of practice and muscle memory, he pulled his arm back. His hand holding the knife moved smoothly and with deadly accuracy. Then, he launched, he threw, the knife towards the marked female wolf.
The blade flew through the air with unnatural speed and perfect accuracy, guided by the Mark on the target. It was almost faster than his eyes could follow.
The knife flew straight and true, embedding itself deep into the female wolf's skull, finding its mark with lethal precision.
Blood, represented by the game's realistic graphics, splattered onto the dark forest floor as the wolf let out a sharp, high-pitched, guttural cry of pain and surprise. Its body staggered, moved unevenly, for just a brief moment. Then, with a heavy thud, it collapsed onto the ground, a lifeless heap of fur and bone.
A system notification, a blue window he saw instantly, appeared before Adam, showing the results of his attack:
[Critical Hit! 100 Damage. Level 5 Fang Wolf defeated]
Adam let out a breath he had been holding, slowly letting it out. His expression remained calm, showing no outward sign of the incredible thing he had just done – a Level 1 player killing a Level 5 boss monster in one hit with a thrown knife. But he wasn't finished yet. He knew killing the leader would provoke the others.
The remaining four wolves in the pack froze completely for just a second. They were clearly shocked by the sudden, unexpected death of their leader. Their ears immediately perked up, listening hard, trying to figure out what had happened and where the attack came from. Their bodies became tense, ready to react.
Then, as if they received an unspoken command, or maybe simply reacted to the invisible mark disappearing from their leader's body when she died, they all turned in the same direction. They turned towards Adam's hiding spot behind the tree. A low, deep growl rumbled from all their chests at once, menacing and angry. They knew someone was there.
Adam's smirk didn't disappear. It stayed on his face, a challenge.
"Oh? You're angry now, huh?" he muttered, stepping out from behind the tree completely. He no longer needed to hide; he wanted them to come to him. "Good. Come at me."
The largest of the remaining wolves – the one that was likely the second-in-command of the pack – snarled fiercely, showing its fangs in a clear threat. Then, it didn't hesitate. It lunged straight at Adam, charging across the small clearing. Its sharp fangs gleamed again as it closed the distance between them incredibly fast, in just a heartbeat.
But Adam was completely ready. He knew how Fang Wolves attacked. He waited until the very last second, then sidestepped, moved quickly to the side, at the perfect moment. His body moved with an unnatural fluidity, a grace that most players could never achieve. The wolf's charging attack missed him by mere inches, its fangs biting empty air where he had been.
And before the wolf could stop its momentum or recover its balance, Adam struck. Not with a weapon, but with a quick, powerful punch from his bare fist. His fist connected solidly with the creature's ribs, sending a shockwave of pain and impact through its virtual body.
[ -15 HP ]
The wolf howled loudly in pain, stumbling backward from the force of the blow.
Adam didn't give it any time to react, to recover, or to try and attack again. He dashed forward immediately, his movements precise and fast, his attacks relentless, not stopping. His black knife, which had returned to his hand automatically after killing the leader (another hidden benefit he'd created with the skill?), flashed in his hand as he struck again, this time stabbing.
[ -20 HP ]
With that second hit, the second wolf collapsed, falling to the ground beside its dead leader.
Another blue system notification popped up, visible only to Adam:
[Level 4 Fang Wolf defeated!]
Adam barely looked at the notification. His focus was already shifting. He was already moving, changing direction, towards the next target, one of the remaining two wolves.
The last two wolves hesitated for a moment. Their natural instincts were telling them two different things: fight back against this strange, deadly player, or run away because their pack leader was dead and the other two had fallen so quickly. Their instincts were warring within them. But Adam didn't give them the choice to run.
He lunged quickly at the nearest remaining wolf. His knife moved like a blur, slashing sharply through its throat.
[ -18 HP ]
The wolf made a gurgling sound, a terrible noise, before it dropped heavily to the ground, dead like the others.
Within just a few moments, only one Fang Wolf from the original pack remained alive.
The final wolf, now completely alone, whimpered softly, a sound of fear and sadness. Its ears flattened backward against its head, a clear sign of submission and fear. It took a shaky step back, its eyes darting nervously towards the corpse of its pack leader, then back to Adam, then towards the deep forest edge.
Adam tilted his head slightly, looking at the frightened creature. "Running away?" he asked quietly, his voice calm and even. He wasn't mocking; he was simply stating what he saw. "Can't blame you, I guess."
The wolf let out one last low growl, a sound of defeat more than aggression. But instead of attacking Adam, it spun around and bolted, running as fast as it could, disappearing into the dark, dense part of the forest away from the clearing.
Adam didn't chase after it. He simply watched it disappear into the distance, letting it go. He had gotten what he needed from the pack. Then, he turned back to look at the three fallen wolves, the results of his first real combat in this new life.
As the wolves disappeared or turned into loot, a blue system prompt, a message from the game, appeared before him, giving him extra rewards.
[Congratulations! You have defeated a Level 5 enemy as a Level 1 player. Bonus experience awarded]
He saw his experience bar on his status window, which was usually almost empty at Level 1. It instantly filled up, the bar turning completely green. Defeating a Level 5 monster, and two Level 4 monsters, while only being Level 1 himself, was a huge accomplishment for the system, worthy of a large bonus.
A new notification popped up immediately after the bonus message, a question from the system:
[Your required experience points have been met for a level upgrade. Do you wish to level up?]
[Yes/No]
Adam let out a slow, quiet breath, watching the prompt floating in the air. His Level 1 character had enough experience points now to increase his level. This was exactly where his system modification came into play. He stared at the prompt for a moment, thinking about his plan.
Then, without any hesitation, he selected "No". He wasn't leveling up yet.
"This system is broken," he muttered to himself, a hint of a smile on his face, "in all the right ways for me." His change to the leveling system was working.
"If I keep fighting and collecting experience points without actually choosing to level up," he thought, "I can stack my potential, gather massive amounts of hidden experience, far beyond what a player at my apparent level should have. I can stack my potential beyond normal limits." He would look weak to others, but secretly hold enough experience to jump many levels at once whenever he chose.
Hidden in the forest, among the bodies of the strong monsters he had just defeated effortlessly, Adam felt the weight of his knowledge and his unique powers. He had confirmed that he could fight, confirmed his new skill worked like he planned, and confirmed that his system modification was working perfectly. The game system might try to put restrictions on him, but he was already finding ways to bypass them and gain incredible advantages.
He stood there for a moment longer, gathering himself, watching the last of the wolves' bodies disappear into loot. His eyes gleamed with quiet determination, seeing the path clearly laid out before him.