The evening glow bled across the sky, dyeing the world crimson.
After school, the classroom emptied out. Only two or three students remained, focused intently on studying for the upcoming college entrance exams.
As Su Xuan packed his bag to go home, he was surprised to find an envelope, adorned with a heart, tucked between his books.
He didn't give it much thought, simply stuffing the envelope into his backpack with his textbooks before heading home.
It was probably a love letter, but at this stage in his life, Su Xuan didn't want to get tangled up in emotional attachments.
Because he was a transmigrator.
His name and appearance were the same as before he'd crossed over, but his background had been turned upside down. In his previous life, he had a happy family and a beautiful older sister. Now, he was an orphan.
Su Xuan's rented room was only a few hundred meters from school, a benefit of the government's support program. Of course, this housing would be reclaimed once he came of legal age.
Therefore, he had to find a way to earn enough for tuition before college and save up for future rent. The dorm rooms were too small to hold all of his personal belongings.
As for how to make money, Su Xuan already had an idea.
While searching online for ways to make money, he'd stumbled upon a mysterious game.
The game was currently in its non-wipe closed beta, eagerly anticipated by tens of millions of Players. Su Xuan had been lucky enough to snag one of only a hundred thousand beta slots worldwide.
The game's public launch was still three months away. If he could reach a mid-tier level within that time, his money problems would be solved.
If he got really lucky and recruited a Rare character, he might even become comfortably well-off!
After all, a single beta slot could easily be sold on the forums for as much as ten thousand yuan.
There were even rumors of high-rarity characters selling for millions on the forums!
It was easy to imagine just how popular this game was.
The moment Su Xuan returned to his apartment, he saw a package sitting outside his door.
"So heavy!"
Su Xuan carried the box into his room.
The box was heavier than he'd expected, weighing over thirty kilograms.
He deftly tore open the box, revealing a VR set.
In addition to the VR headset, the box contained a heavy console.
Su Xuan plugged in the console, pressed the power button, then put on the VR headset and lay down on his bed, waiting for the game to load.
The scene in his vision changed, and a dazzling, phantasmagorical world began to load in his consciousness.
An ethereal, wispy voice echoed in his ears.
[Loading, please wait...]
[Welcome to the Magic Continent!]
[You will play as an Adventurer's Guild President. Recruit Legendary Adventurers, complete various commissions, defend against Demon invasions, and finally clear the Demon King's Castle to become the greatest Guild on the Magic Continent!]
[To start, you have one free opportunity to recruit an Adventurer. The higher their rarity, the stronger their Attributes and Skills. They will become your most reliable allies on your journey.]
[Now!]
[The game begins!]
[Good luck!]
When the Sound Spirit's voice faded, Su Xuan slowly opened his eyes to find himself standing in an unfamiliar room. He looked around. The room was sparsely decorated. The lone bar and few sets of tables and chairs were neatly arranged, making the space feel exceptionally wide and comfortable.
A few empty wine bottles sat on the wooden bar. Sunshine streamed through the window, refracting off the glass and making them sparkle with a faint light.
"Such a realistic game world."
Su Xuan looked at his hands in slight astonishment. The game was so realistic it almost felt like he had transmigrated all over again. Sight, hearing, touch, and even smell were perfectly replicated from reality, forcing him to marvel at how amazing this game was.
'Can a game really achieve this?'
'Don't tell me I've transmigrated again?'
BUZZZZ~
Just as Su Xuan was marveling at the game's realism, a sheet of white paper drifted down silently from above, entering his field of view.
"Hm?"
Su Xuan curiously picked up the white paper that had landed on the bar.
[Adventurer Recruitment Scroll (White)]
[You can use this item to randomly recruit an Adventurer from the Otherworld!]
"A white Recruitment Scroll..."
After seeing the text in the parentheses, Su Xuan flipped the Recruitment Scroll over.
The back of the Recruitment Scroll detailed the recruitment qualities and their probabilities. From lowest to highest, the qualities were: Common, Rare, Elite, Epic, Legendary, and Myth.
A white Scroll only had a one-in-ten-thousand chance of recruiting an Elite Adventurer and a three percent chance of recruiting a Rare one. All other recruits would be Common quality.
Su Xuan's brow furrowed at the absurdly low probabilities.
The quality of his first Adventurer would obviously affect the Guild's growth rate. If he was lucky enough to recruit an Elite Adventurer, the journey ahead would be smooth sailing. But if he recruited a Common one...
Su Xuan shook his head, casting aside these wild thoughts.
'So what if it's a Common-quality Adventurer? This isn't my only chance to recruit. If I'm going to give up just because my first recruit is Common, I might as well have sold my beta slot.'
Phew~
Su Xuan took a deep breath, clutching the Recruitment Scroll tightly in his hand. He prayed, "I'll trade ten years of being single for one Elite Adventurer! Let's pull!"
The moment he spoke!
He threw the Recruitment Scroll into the sky!
In an instant!
Countless white motes of light rained down from the sky, like meteors streaking through the night, all converging on the white paper. The Recruitment Scroll erupted in a dazzling light, as bright as the midday sun, making Su Xuan's eyes sting.
'With a light show this brilliant,' he thought, 'there's no way the Adventurer I get is just Common quality, right?'
The thought had barely formed, however, when a notification sounded in his ears.
[Congratulations! You have recruited a Common-quality Adventurer: Church Intern Nun!]
[Would you like them to join your Guild?]
"Huh?"
Su Xuan's expression tightened.
'So I'm not that one-in-ten-thousand lucky winner after all. Not even part of the three percent!'
'Too bad~'
Su Xuan extended his finger, preparing to click "Confirm" and have his first Adventurer arrive at the Adventurer's Guild.
Just then, however, the image in Su Xuan's vision flickered, and a line of small text materialized out of thin air.
[Abnormal data detected. Recruitment information is being reconfigured...]
"Abnormal data? Recruitment information being reconfigured?"
Su Xuan froze, stunned by the new notification.
He didn't know what was happening, but the flickering game screen made him realize... 'Has my game... changed somehow?'
Before Su Xuan could react, countless tags popped into his field of view.
[Nun] [Pride] [Young Lady] [Skeleton] [Giant] [Traitor] [Minstrel] [Lost Memory]
[Please select any three of the above tags to combine into the Adventurer you wish to recruit!]
[Warning: Please avoid bizarre combinations! They may cause the game world to crash!]
[Free Tag Refreshes Remaining: 10 (More refreshes can be earned by completing quests!)]