The cold embrace of death wasn't unfamiliar.
I felt the last flicker of life leave me, my avatar dissolving into particles of light within the world of Epoch.
Wang Kai's mocking laughter echoed in the ruins of my guild hall, the final nail in the coffin of my shattered empire. Shadow Temple... they took everything.
Betrayal tasted like ash in my mouth. My friends, my fortune, my future... all gone.
Darkness consumed me.
Sudden brightness stabbed at my eyes.
Sunlight? Streaming through a window I hadn't seen in years. My old bedroom.
Impossible.
My heart hammered against my ribs. The smell of stale instant noodles and dust… it was real.
I scrambled out of bed, limbs clumsy, weak. My reflection stared back from the dusty monitor screen – younger, thinner, eyes wide with disbelief.
My hand shot out, fumbling for the cheap plastic digital clock on the desk.
The date glowed red.
Ten years. Ten years before my final, pathetic end. Ten years before Epoch devoured my life and spat me out.
Epoch… hadn't even launched yet.
A choked laugh escaped my lips, raw and trembling.
Rebirth.
It was actually real.
Not a dream. Not a hallucination brought on by despair.
I was back.
My fists clenched, knuckles white. Wang Kai. Shadow Temple. The humiliation. The losses.
The faces of those I failed flashed before my eyes. My sister… my loyal guildmates…
This time would be different.
This time, I knew the future. Every hidden quest, every exploitable bug, every market fluctuation, every rising star and falling giant in Epoch.
And this time… I wouldn't just survive. I would dominate.
I spent the next few days in a frenzy, a whirlwind of planning. My fingers flew across the keyboard, researching hardware specs, nutritional plans for peak gaming performance, recalling every crucial detail of Epoch's early days.
The best starting zone for an Archer? Whispering Glade.
The hidden NPC with the bonus stat quest? Old Man Willow, behind the waterfall.
The early mob with a ridiculously high drop rate for uncommon leather? Shadow Panthers, but only during the in-game night cycle.
My knowledge was my greatest weapon. For now.
The day Epoch launched felt like destiny arriving.
The sleek, minimalist VR helmet felt heavier this time, weighted with the memories of a future I would now rewrite.
"Welcome to Epoch. Please create your character."
The familiar interface swam before my eyes.
Race: Human. Standard, adaptable.
Class: Archer. My previous life's mastery, honed over a decade. This time, it would become something… more.
Character Name: Fierce Arrow.
Let the legend begin. Again.
Whispering Glade materialized around me, vibrant green and bustling with players.
New players. "Noobs," fumbling with basic controls, crowding around quest-giving NPCs, exclaiming over every dropped copper coin.
I ignored them all.
My feet moved with purpose, bypassing the main village paths, heading towards the edge of the map, towards the waterfall marked as a scenic spot but holding a secret only a handful ever discovered in my past life.
Other players gave me curious glances. Why wasn't I taking the easy starter quests? Why head towards that empty corner?
Let them wonder. Their path was the slow grind. Mine was a shortcut to power.
Behind the cascading water, hidden in a small, damp cave, sat an old man carved from gnarled wood – or perhaps he was gnarled wood. Old Man Willow.
He wasn't marked as an NPC on any map. Most players walked right past.
"Ah… a visitor," his voice rasped like dry leaves. "Few find this old one. Fewer still listen."
I bowed slightly. "I seek knowledge, elder."
He chuckled. "Knowledge? Or power?"
"Aren't they often the same?" I replied, using the exact phrase that triggered the hidden dialogue branch in my memory.
His wooden eyes seemed to gleam. "Clever. Very well. A small task for you, young Archer. Bring me three Moonpetal Blooms. They only grow atop the Silent Crags, guarded by harpies."
Harpies. Level 5 mobs, aggressive, fast. Suicide for a Level 1 player.
Unless you knew the safe path.
I accepted the quest. "It shall be done."
Navigating the Silent Crags was treacherous, relying purely on memory. One misstep meant a fatal fall or attracting a swarm of harpies.
I crept along hidden ledges, my starter bow feeling flimsy in my hands. The Moonpetal Blooms glowed faintly under the virtual moonlight.
Snatching the third bloom, a screech ripped through the air. A harpy spotted me!
No time to think. Run!
Arrows whizzed past my ear as I scrambled back down the hidden path, heart pounding. Survival first, power later.
Old Man Willow took the blooms, his wooden face unreadable.
"Well done, young one. Faster than expected."
He handed me a small, rough-spun pouch. "A trinket, for your trouble."
Inside wasn't gold or basic gear. It was a single, obsidian arrowhead, pulsing with faint energy.
[Obsidian Arrowhead (Unique)]
[Type: Accessory]
[Level Requirement: 1]
[Effect: +5% Critical Hit Chance]
Five percent crit chance at Level 1! This was huge! Most players wouldn't see crit gear until Level 10 or higher.
But as my fingers closed around the arrowhead, a jolt, colder and more profound than any game mechanic, shot through me.
[Ding! Unique item 'Obsidian Arrowhead' detected interacting with compatible soul host.]
A voice echoed in my mind. Cold, mechanical, yet tinged with something… ancient. Powerful. Almost seductive in its promise.
[Conditions met. Binding 'Infinite Arrow God System' to Host: Fierce Arrow.]
[Binding complete. Welcome, Host.]
[Ability Unlocked: Critical Combo (Passive)]
[Description: Upon scoring a Critical Hit with a ranged bow attack, your Attack Speed increases exponentially for a short duration. Stacks with consecutive Critical Hits.]
[Ability Unlocked: Attribute Unshackling (Lv 1)]
[Description: The conventional limits placed upon certain attributes by the world's laws are being loosened for you. Current Unshackled Attribute(s): None (Requires System Level Up).]
My breath caught in my throat.
A system? Not just rebirth, but a system?
The legendary 'golden finger' of web novels? It was real?
The implications crashed over me. Attack speed stacking infinitely on crits? Attributes unshackled?
This wasn't just rewriting fate. This was breaking the game itself.
A manic grin spread across my face. This changed everything.
I needed to test it. Now.
Just outside the cave, a Shadow Panther prowled – Level 3, tougher than the basic mobs. Perfect.
I nocked an arrow, drawing the string taut. My aim was steady, honed by a decade of virtual warfare.
Focus. Breathe. Find the rhythm.
The arrow flew, a straight line towards the panther's eye.
[-25! Critical Hit!]
The red damage number flashed. And then it happened.
[Critical Combo Triggered!]
My hands became a blur.
It wasn't conscious thought. It was instinct amplified, speed unleashed. Nock, draw, release. Nock, draw, release. Faster. Faster.
Thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip!
Arrows rained down on the Shadow Panther, a relentless storm of wood and steel. The beast didn't even have time to roar before it collapsed, riddled with shafts, dissolving into loot.
Five seconds. Maybe less. A Level 3 mob, dead in seconds to a Level 1 Archer.
My heart hammered against my ribs, not from fear, but exhilaration.
I looked at my hands, trembling slightly from the sheer, unnatural speed.
The system panel glowed softly in my vision.
Infinite Attack Speed.
Uncapped Attributes.
A low chuckle escaped my lips, building into full-blown laughter that echoed in the empty cave.
Wang Kai... Shadow Temple...
Your meticulously planned dominance? Your carefully constructed empire?
It's all built on sand.
And I… I am the coming storm.
But first… where was that early-game hidden boss rumored to drop the agility-boosting ring? My memory churned, pinpointing a location deep within the Whispering Glade woods...