[Skill Set:]

[Mode: Ashura]

[Skill 2: Ashura Rift] [Lv. 10] [150 MP] [55% Physical Damage + Burn 10s + Slow 5s]

[Skill 4: Bloodflare Cataclysm] [Lv. 10] [300 MP] [Increases ATK +25% every sec for 20s + Increases AGI +20% every sec for 20s + 25% Lifesteal + 10% Cooldown Reduction on all skills]

Ethan finished allocating his 2000 skill gems into those two skills. The surge in power was immediate—his damage had clearly increased.

At level 1, Ashura Rift dealt only 25% Physical Damage, but upon reaching level 10, that number rose to 55%.

The same applied to Bloodflare Cataclysm. Raising a skill's level meant amplifying its power, and that power would continue to grow as time went on.

Now, Ethan swiped the system panel aside, switching from Ashura Mode to Tempest Mode. In this mode, he had to distribute the remaining 4000 skill gems among his four new skills.

[Skill Set:]

[Mode: Tempest]

[Skill 1: Gale Rend] [Lv. 10] [100 MP] [35% Physical Damage + 15% Physical Pierce]

[Skill 2: Tempest Resonance] [Lv. 10] [250 MP] [Crit Rate +15% + 15% Physical Damage + 20% Attack Speed]

[Skill 3: Lightning Veil] [Lv. 10] [200 MP] [Crit Rate +35% + 25% Armor Pierce + Stun 7s]

[Skill 4: Stormbreaker] [Lv. 10] [350 MP] [45% Physical Damage + 25% Critical Rate + Bleed 50 HP/s for 15s]

Ethan smiled. Every skill gem had been allocated perfectly.

With such level boosts, he couldn't help but feel curious—just how strong had he become? He needed a test subject, a powerful monster perhaps, to measure the strength of these newly enhanced skills.

Only by testing them could he truly gauge their destructive potential.

[Buff Talent Activated: Infinite Rage!]

Just as Ethan was about to leave his room, a familiar system panel suddenly appeared before him.

The buff notification glowed brightly—it had happened once before, back when he first unlocked the Skill Rise feature.

Ethan knew well what Infinite Rage meant. With this buff, all effects and percentages of power were amplified fivefold.

It was this buff that had made him overpowered early on, boosting his stats far beyond those of ordinary players.

Now, with six newly enhanced skills all under the blessing of Infinite Rage, his strength would rise to an entirely new level.

Ethan opened the Omniblade system panel again, watching as two floating mode panels hovered before him. Thanks to the buff, his stats had skyrocketed in real time.

I thought this buff wouldn't appear again… seems I was wrong.

Ethan felt satisfied. He could rest easy tonight while planning his next move.

The Thousand Stars Event had ended, and there were no upcoming events for now.

Still, Ethan had no intention of wasting time. He had 180 days left to find a way to free Luna from the World of Thousand Stars.

If he could uncover that method, he was certain he could bring her back safely.

The [Private Side-Quest] was still active—a small but clear sign that Luna was alive and conscious somewhere within that world.

But that alone wasn't enough. Ethan had to free her, no matter what it took.

While lost in thought, he once again heard a desperate cry for help outside, coming from the city's main street.

Driven by curiosity, Ethan stood and walked to the window.

From there, he could see the same man from before pacing through the crowd, pleading with every player he could find.

Yet no one offered help. They had all heard of scams like this before—schemes that had cost countless players their lives, leaving the survivors wary and distrustful.

Ethan didn't know what was really going on. He had only been in this large city for a few days, and he hadn't heard any rumors about such scams.

But gossip always stemmed from a kernel of truth, even if twisted over time.

He decided to treat the rumor as half-truth, half-lie. He couldn't fully believe either side, especially as an outsider still new to Mavelard.

I should stay longer and find out the truth myself. Should I help them? I don't know yet…

Eventually, the desperate man gave up and walked away, disappearing into the dark streets.

Ethan closed the window, drew the curtains, changed his clothes, and turned off the lights.

Night had fallen deep. He needed rest. Tomorrow, he would start gathering information—perhaps he'd stumble upon something useful.

***

Three days later.

City of Mavelard.

Ethan stepped out of his inn and stopped in front of a mission bulletin board. In major cities like Mavelard, every guild posted missions that players could take on.

There were two types of missions: non-guild and guild missions. Naturally, the rewards differed greatly between the two.

Guild missions offered higher rewards and contribution points, while non-guild missions only provided general rewards without points.

The mission quality, however, depended on the guild's rank. Rank A guilds offered the most valuable missions, while lower-ranked guilds posted low-tier, often worthless ones.

There were only three Rank A guilds in Mavelard, one of which was LionArk. The bulletin Ethan was looking at belonged to a Rank C guild called Shadow Sword.

As expected, not many players gathered there—Ethan counted about fourteen to sixteen, all below level 40.

"Let's head to LionArk's board. Maybe they've got better missions there."

"Yeah! These are trash quests anyway."

Disappointed with the Shadow Sword board, many players started heading toward LionArk's headquarters.

Ethan had the same idea. To level up efficiently, he needed high-reward missions from top-tier guilds.

He followed the flow of players toward LionArk. From a distance, he could already see a crowd forming ahead—far larger than before.

There were hundreds of players, all of varying levels and classes, gathered along the main street in front of LionArk's base.

A massive mission board, designed like a glowing digital billboard, displayed all available missions. A registration counter stood beside it, handling mission applications and party queues.

When the non-guild mission list appeared, chatter erupted. Players began shouting to their teammates, confirming their choices, and rushing to register their parties.

Ethan watched from afar—there were a hundred missions available, ranked from C to S, with C being the easiest and S the hardest.

"Let's sign up!"

"No way! I saw that mission first!"

"You're too weak for it—let me handle it!"

The crowd descended into chaos the moment the list appeared. LionArk's members and officers had to intervene to calm things down, restoring some semblance of order.

Ethan just shook his head. This kind of mess only showed how poorly the mission system was being managed.

After about half an hour, peace returned. Seventy-six missions had been taken—all Rank C and B missions were gone.

Only fourteen Rank A missions remained, and the ten Rank S missions were still untouched.

Those who had taken their missions quickly departed with their parties, while the rest dispersed to other places.

The once-crowded area in front of LionArk was now nearly empty, with only a few dozen players left.

No one's taking the A or S ranks?

Each claimed mission dimmed and disappeared from the board.

Ethan noticed the Rank A missions vanish one by one until they were all gone—leaving only the untouched Rank S missions.

The street grew silent again.

"Ethan?" a voice called out. One of LionArk's officers approached him.

"Are you here for a mission? Sorry, the Rank A ones are all taken."

Ethan turned to him with a faint smile. "Rank A missions aren't worth my time anymore."

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