Su Ming felt his brain spinning as if it had been thrown into a washing machine, a dizzying whirl of vertigo.
The air was thick with the cheap, pungent smell of a cybercafe—stale cigarette smoke mixed with braised beef noodles and the distinct odor of athlete's foot. He forced his eyes open to see a 27-inch monitor glowing with a faint blue hue. On the screen, unmistakable, was the iconic login interface of *Divine Realm*: a majestic castle floating amidst the clouds.
"I didn't get hit by a car? I didn't die from overwork?"
Su Ming instinctively touched his chest. His heart was hammering against his ribs like a drum. One moment, he had been pulling an all-nighter at the office for that damn PPT; the next, he was back at eighteen, on the day *Divine Realm* opened its public beta?
He looked down at his hands. They were long, dry, and free of the calluses from years of keyboard mashing or the oily sheen of sleepless nights.
"Holy crap. Reborn?"
Su Ming shot up from the peeling leather cybercafe chair. The movement was so violent he knocked a bottle of cola off the desk. It clattered to the floor, splashing brown liquid everywhere.
"Hey, hey! Watch it! This machine just got a new graphics card!" The internet cafe owner, a man with a balding spot like a Mediterranean island, poked his head out from behind the counter, a red Tashan cigarette dangling from his lips.
Su Ming ignored the owner's complaint. His heart was still racing. As a veteran player who had spent over a decade in *Divine Realm*, he knew exactly what this day meant.
*Divine Realm* was the world's first and only "Second World"-class fully immersive VRMMO. It had reshaped the global economy and become the second life for countless people.
And today was the first day of the full login. It was also the only opportunity to draw a "Genesis Talent" and a "Hidden Class."
Su Ming remembered clearly. In his previous life, broke and unable to afford an expensive holographic headset, he had been forced to play with a keyboard. He had been stomped on in every possible way, ending his life as a mere cannon fodder at the bottom of the food chain.
This time would be different.
With trembling hands, he grabbed the sleek, silver-white headset on the table. It was a limited edition he had queued for all night. It came pre-loaded with five thousand yuan in game credits—the savings he had hoarded for his future wife.
"God, if you've let me live this life again, please don't joke around."
Su Ming took a deep breath and slammed the headset onto his head.
Darkness swallowed his vision, followed immediately by a torrent of colorful data streams cascading over his retinas like a waterfall.
[Identity Confirmed: Su Ming]
[Iris Binding Successful]
[Scanning Player Soul Frequency...]
[Scan Complete. Detected extremely high soul intensity. Qualifies for the Unique Hidden Class.]
Su Ming's breath hitched. Extremely high soul intensity? A Unique Hidden Class?
In *Divine Realm*, with billions of players, those with Hidden Classes were as rare as phoenix feathers. Every single one of them had become a powerhouse ruling a region. Classes like "Dragon Knight" or "Night Elf Archmage" were overpowered entities that money couldn't buy.
[Randomly assigning Unique Hidden Class...]
The mechanical female voice sounded surprisingly pleasant. Su Ming was already imagining his epic script: wielding a divine artifact, clad in dragon armor, slicing through enemies one by one.
Golden light exploded in the virtual space, dazzlingly bright.
[Congratulations, Player! You have acquired the Server-wide Unique Hidden Class—Abyssal Bobo Lobster King!]
The smile froze on Su Ming's face.
Before he could process the sheer absurdity of the name, a blinding pillar of golden light shot through the ceiling of the virtual space, piercing the sky.
[Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Su Ming" for successfully awakening the Server-wide Unique Hidden Class! Let us offer our most sincere blessings!]
[Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Su Ming" for successfully awakening the Server-wide Unique Hidden Class! Let us offer our most sincere blessings!]
Three consecutive scrolling golden announcements blinded every player currently logging in or creating a character.
The World Channel instantly erupted.
"Holy crap! A Unique Hidden Class this fast?"
"This guy is the luckiest person on earth! Who is he? I need to hug his leg!"
"Awesome! It's unique! If he sells this account or does boosting, he's got a down payment on a house right there!"
"Su Ming? Never heard that name. Is it a smurf account for some guild big shot?"
Su Ming stared at the floating class panel in front of him, feeling utterly defeated.
**Class: Abyssal Bobo Lobster King**
**Level: 1**
**Race: Crustacean Beast (Mutated)**
**HP: 150/150**
**Attack: 10**
**Defense: 50**
**Talent Skills:**
1. **[Thickened Carapace] (Passive):** Your shell is as hard as iron. You take 90% reduced physical damage.
2. **[Death-Dealing Scissor Hands] (Passive):** Your claws are corroded by Abyssal energy. Attacks deal 500 fixed True Damage and have a 10% chance to sever limbs (Ineffective against players, but deals devastating durability damage to equipment).
3. **[Delicious and Juicy] (Passive):** You smell delicious. All beast-type monsters have 200% increased aggro toward you. Upon death, the drop rate for premium ingredients increases by 1000%.
Su Ming felt his vision go black.
What the hell was this?
A lobster? The kind you buy at the market for twenty yuan a jin?
And what was this "Delicious and Juicy" nonsense? Premium ingredients? So he wasn't here to play a game; he was here to be an ingredient?
Even more crushing was that as his class awakened, his character model had undergone a radical transformation.
The handsome young man who looked just like him was now rapidly turning red, his body hunching, his limbs merging. With a *plop*, he had become a giant lobster nearly a meter long.
Sure, he was bigger, and his deep wine-red color looked imposing, but standing upright, he barely reached someone's knee!
"Help! Can I return this? I want to be human!"
Su Ming waved his two massive claws, frantically searching the system interface for a "Class Re-spec" button. But the damn mechanical voice spoke again:
[Class Bound. Cannot be changed. Wishing you a pleasant journey in *Divine Realm*. To celebrate your Unique Class, a Newbie Gift Pack has been awarded.]
Su Ming was hopeless.
He had spawned in a corner of the Starter Village—Clearwind Village.
Surrounding him were human players in cloth robes, wielding wooden sticks, enthusiastically poking the Level 1 Slimes at the entrance.
Suddenly, someone noticed the red, pondering giant lobster in the corner.
"Look! What's that monster?"
"I don't know, looks like an Elite? Red name!"
"Holy crap, this must be an Easter Egg monster! Quick, kill it for loot!"
Su Ming's heart sank. Players nowadays killed everything they saw; they were bloodthirsty.
Before he could scramble away on his eight tiny legs, a warrior named "Crazy Cool Awesome" (Kuang Zhuai Kuang Xuan) wielding a rusty iron sword charged forward.
"Guys, this mob is mine!"
"Crazy Cool Awesome" shouted and swung a basic attack at Su Ming's head.
*Clang!*
A crisp sound of metal striking metal rang out, sparks flying.
Su Ming felt a slight vibration on his head, like someone tapping his skull with chopsticks.
**System Notification: Player "Crazy Cool Awesome" dealt 1 Forced Damage to you. (Original damage 58, absorbed 57 by [Thickened Carapace])**
One HP?
Su Ming froze.
"Crazy Cool Awesome" froze too, nearly dropping his iron sword.
"Holy crap? This monster's defense is that high? Everyone, come on! It's definitely a high-HP, low-ATK turtle shell type! Grind it down!"
At his cry, seven or eight players swarmed around Su Ming. Fireballs, pierce attacks, heavy strikes—chaotic skills rained down on him.
Su Ming panicked, scuttling wildly, but his lobster legs were clumsy. He moved like a drunk driver.
*Clang, clang, clang, clang!*
A cacophony of metal clashes filled the air.
Su Ming's health bar barely budged. Aside from the forced single-digit damage, he was an invincible fortress.
"Is this really a Level 1 monster? Is this defense serious?" "Crazy Cool Awesome" panicked. "Mages! Where are the mages? Blast it with spells!"
A player in a robe squeezed in, chanting for a long time before a ping-pong-sized fireball flew out and slapped onto Su Ming's face.
**System Notification: You took 5 Magic Damage.**
The mage stared at his damage output, plunged into deep self-doubt.
Su Ming looked at his slightly reduced HP and suddenly realized something.
Wait.
I may look like a lobster, but this defense... is a bit ridiculous, isn't it?
At Level 1, normal monsters had 5-10 defense. Players without constitution stats often had negative defense. Yet, his panel showed 50 defense, plus 90% damage reduction?
Was this the quality of a Hidden Class?
Su Ming stopped his ridiculous fleeing, turned around, and fixed his two black bean eyes on the warrior "Crazy Cool Awesome."
"Damn it, I'm a player! Stop hitting me!"
Su Ming finally managed to speak, though his voice sounded muffled, as if coming from the bottom of a water vat.
The crowd fell silent for a second.
"Holy crap? This monster can talk?"
"It's the big shot who drew the Unique Hidden Class!"
"This is the Unique Hidden Class? A... lobster?"
Someone started laughing. Then the World Channel exploded again, this time with a tidal wave of mockery.
Someone had recorded the scene of Su Ming being beaten up, scuttling around like a headless fly, and posted it on the forum with the caption: *"So this is the Server-wide Unique Hidden Class? Braised or Steamed?"*
"Hahaha! I'm dying! Did the *Divine Realm* devs lose their minds?"
"Is this Su Ming? I thought he was awesome, but he's seafood?"
"Guys, if you get hungry later, go find Su Ming in Clearwind Village. That lobster looks like it has a lot of meat."
"What's the point of this class? High defense is useless. Attack speed is slow, movement speed is slow. He's just a punching bag."
Hearing the players' unmasked laughter, Su Ming felt his blood boiling.
Shame? Anger?
No.
Su Ming watched "Crazy Cool Awesome" recklessly hacking at his carapace with a sword. If a lobster could smirk, the corner of his mouth would have curled into a cold arc.
You fools see my hard shell and forgot to check my attack?
Sure, the panel said a pitiful 10 Attack, but that [Death-Dealing Scissor Hands] passive...
500 Fixed True Damage!
In this Level 1 newbie village, everyone's HP topped out at just over 100. Mages might have 50. What did 500 True Damage mean?
It meant one-shotting everyone, ignoring defense!
"Done mocking?"
Su Ming spoke coldly. His massive body launched forward in a sudden burst.
Don't let the slow walking fool you; when a lobster bursts from a short distance, the contraction of its abdominal muscles is immense.
*Whoosh!*
Su Ming's form became a streak of red light, instantly closing the distance to "Crazy Cool Awesome."
"What do you think you're doing, you broken seafood..." "Crazy Cool Awesome" didn't finish his sentence before he saw a massive claw, shimmering with faint black light, clamp around his head at a speed that defied physics.
*Crack!*
No bone-crunching sound followed, but the sound of equipment shattering did.
**System Notification: Your skill [Death-Dealing Scissor Hands] triggered the Sever effect. Player "Crazy Cool Awesome"'s head equipment [Coarse Cloth Headscarf] destroyed! Dealt 589 True Damage!**
"Crazy Cool Awesome" didn't even have time to scream. Like a popped balloon, he instantly dissolved into white light, respawning at the graveyard to count down.
A deathly silence fell over the area.
The mage who had been frantically casting fireballs shook his hand, throwing the fireball at his own feet. He screamed in pain as he burned himself.
One-shot kill?
This was a Level 1 account?
Su Ming released his claw, looking at the copper coin dropped on the ground. He felt an immense surge of satisfaction.
Global mockery? Trash class?
I am a heavy tank carrying a nuclear warhead!
He slowly turned around, waving his two massive claws in the air, making a grating sound that made teeth ache.
"Anyone else? If you think I'm good for braising, come try."
Su Ming's voice wasn't loud, but everyone present felt a chill run down their necks.
That wasn't a giant lobster; it was a meat grinder wearing seafood skin!
"Run! This monster is a freak!"
Someone shouted. The crowd that had been packed tight instantly scattered like birds and beasts, running faster than rabbits.
Su Ming didn't chase. With his eight short legs, he could run in a straight line, but turning was a struggle. He couldn't catch anyone.
He leisurely crawled over and picked up the copper coin.
[Obtained Gold: 1]
It was only one coin, but it was the first blood, significant in meaning.
Su Ming looked at his rather simple panel, his heart swelling with pride.
"Lobster it is. As long as I'm strong enough, even if I were a paramecium, I'd show you all a thing or two."
Just then, a blue, semi-transparent figure popped up in Su Ming's vision.
It was a tiny sprite wearing a bikini with small wings on her back, floating in mid-air and looking at Su Ming with pure disdain.
"Hey, you... seafood. I'm your exclusive guide sprite. You can call me Sprite."
Su Ming paused. "I have a guide sprite?"
"Obviously. Unique Hidden Class gets one, of course." The Sprite rolled her eyes, pinching her nose. "I don't know why the system picked a lobster, but since I'm bound to you, I guess I'm stuck with bad luck. Listen, the Village Chief wants to see you. Get moving."
Su Ming raised an eyebrow. This NPC had a big attitude.
"What does the Village Chief want?"
"I don't know. Something about your... shell situation." The Sprite looked Su Ming up and down. "I'm curious too. With that look, are you really just meant for spicy crayfish?"
Su Ming ignored her mockery, waved his claws, and crawled majestically toward the center of the village.
Along the way, countless players pointed and whispered. Some took screenshots with their phones; others murmured about whether that one-hit kill was a hack.
Su Ming ignored them all.
His gaze was fixed on the distant forest behind Clearwind Village.
There, a beast he remembered vividly from his past life waited: the Elite Boss [Rampaging Black Bear].
In his previous life, this black bear was a nightmare for the starter village, slaughtering waves of player armies.
But now...
Su Ming looked at his claws that could crush anything and his indestructible carapace.
"Maybe it's time to change the bear's menu."
"After all, lobsters can eat bear paws, right?"
Su Ming grinned, revealing a mouth with... well, no teeth, but the ferocity in his expression made passing players nearly drop a level in fear.
The legend of "Lobster King" Su Ming had just begun.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the *Divine Realm* Central Control Center, several data analysts in white lab coats stared in shock at the red figure on the massive screen.
"Is this data... broken?"
"500 True Damage? This is still Level 1?"
"Don't move! Don't fix it yet!" A white-haired old man suddenly shouted, his eyes blazing with fanaticism. "Look at his soul frequency... that lobster, he's laughing! He's enjoying the fight! That is what a true 'Abyssal Dominator' should look like!"
"But... he's a lobster."
"So what? You idiots don't understand! This is returning to simplicity! Track him! Record all data in real-time. This kid is going to turn the entire *Divine Realm* upside down!"
The old man pointed at the screen, foaming at the mouth with excitement.
On the screen, Su Ming was crawling clumsily but determinedly toward the village gate. The setting sun stretched his shadow long behind him, resembling a red chariot of tyranny rolling across the land.