"Hah!" Freya’s cry was sharp as her fist struck Lin Fan’s chest like a bullet.
Lin Fan grunted, absorbing the blow to seize her by the collar. With a powerful twist, he heaved her over his shoulder. But the throw was useless. Freya twisted in mid-air, landing as gracefully as a cat, her momentum completely nullified.
Lin Fan paused, rubbing the sore spot on his chest.
“Is that all you have?” she demanded, her voice tight with frustration.
Lin Fan said nothing. He had expected the organization to write him off, given the pathetic progress he’d feigned. Yet for the past six months, Freya had trained with him every single day without fail. For some reason, she was pushing him especially hard today.
Although Freya was the commander of this base, her duties were light. Training Lin Fan was one of the few constants in her routine. When she learned of the Magnus’s decision to hand him over to Dr. Aris Thorne, a strange anger had stirred within her.
They had never truly spoken, but they had spent six months in each other’s presence. A person could get attached to an inanimate object in that time, let alone a living, breathing man. Perhaps, having grown used to seeing Lin Fan every day, she was reluctant to let him go.
How many times has it been? she thought. All those people… all those faces…
The organization's cruelty had cost her more than just friends; it had cost her a sister.
She had pushed Lin Fan harder today in a desperate attempt to stimulate him, hoping to awaken some latent talent. She wanted to believe there was more to him than this.
But it was clearly too much to ask for.
“The Magnus approved Dr. Aris Thorne’s request,” she said, her voice flat. “He’s going to dissect you.” She let out a soft sigh.
It was the first time she had ever said anything to him that wasn’t related to training.
A flicker of light crossed Lin Fan’s eyes.
He’d been anticipating this from the moment he decided to feign weakness, and he had no regrets. His fabricated background made advancement in the organization impossible; he would never be more than a grunt. Besides, Lin Fan had no desire to work for them anyway.
Suddenly, he spotted a photograph on the ground. It must have fallen from Freya’s pocket during their spar. He bent down and picked it up.
It was a group photo, set against a vast blue sea under a setting sun.
Two girls stood side-by-side in the center. One was a younger, radiantly smiling Freya. The other, who shared her features, had hair as white as snow. Her expression was both clever and gentle.
Freya’s composure shattered when she realized what she’d dropped. She lunged forward and snatched the photo from his hand. After a quick check to see that it was undamaged, she breathed a sigh of relief. She pocketed it, gave Lin Fan one last, probing look, and then turned and walked away.
As she left, the interface in Lin Fan’s vision lit up.
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You have initiated a D-Class Quest: [Freya’s Past]
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Lin Fan’s eyes widened. My first quest in six months!
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The dark and blood-stained advent of the Genesis Foundation has always been a great mystery to the Cerulean Hegemony. Freya has a secret past that no one knows about. Where do her loyalties truly lie? You now hold one of the clues to this mystery. Will you seek to uncover the truth?
(You may choose to pass this clue on to someone else for a small reward.)
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The photo had obviously triggered the quest.
Lin Fan knew exactly who the white-haired girl was. She was Freya’s younger sister, Aurora.
The two sisters possessed supernatural powers, but they were polar opposites.
Aurora’s blood held mysterious healing properties, potent enough to extend life or even raise the dead. She had been brainwashed and was now a captive of the Genesis Foundation. They not only exploited her power but also used her as leverage to ensure Freya’s absolute obedience.
Aurora was the only person in the world Freya cared about.
In his memory of the game, the war between the Hexarch Federation and the Genesis Foundation would reach its climax at the end of Genesis War.
As a final, desperate gambit, the Genesis Foundation would use Aurora’s flesh and blood to mass-produce a supply of miracle drugs, turning the tide of the war. Freya, fighting on the front lines, would only learn the truth months later.
The loss of her sister would shatter her. The Genesis Foundation, seizing on her moment of weakness, would capture and imprison her.
After her eventual escape, she would become a cold-blooded and ruthless monster, sacrificing countless lives in her quest to awaken her latent powers. She would turn to the dark side, stopping at nothing to gain strength, eventually earning the title ‘Death Maiden’, a name that would inspire terror throughout the Sundered Zone.
The Freya of today was cold, yes, but compared to the future Death Maiden who could extinguish entire civilizations, she was a billion times kinder.
If he ever got the chance, Lin Fan would try to alter her tragic fate—not out of pity, but to prevent her future self from one day obliterating his personal fleet of spaceships. For now, however, he was far too weak. His only priority was escaping this base.
From observing Freya’s routine these past six months, Lin Fan knew she would be leaving the lab in two days.
That would be his chance.
Lin Fan returned to the tuning room and summoned his interface. He currently possessed one main class and two sub-classes: Mechanic (Novice), Agent, and Civilian.
Of the five main classes, Mechanics were notoriously weak in the early game, often relegated to a support role. In Genesis 3.0, however, they would receive a talent overhaul that massively buffed their combat prowess, making them one of the most popular classes.
In the late game, a high-level Mechanic was an army of one, equivalent to an entire galactic fleet.
Mechanics were known for their sheer number of skills. Every blueprint was essentially a skill, and with thousands of them available, the class offered limitless playstyles. Their vast arsenal made them adaptable to any form of warfare. Their only glaring weakness was the massive amount of experience required to level up compared to other classes.
Lin Fan considered his options for a moment before dumping all his accumulated experience into [Mechanic], initiating a leveling frenzy.
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[Mechanic (Novice)] has been raised to Lv. 3
+10 Energy, +1 INT, +1 END
You have received 2 unassigned stat points.
[Mechanic (Novice)] has been raised to Lv. 10 (max)
+30 Energy, +1 INT, +1 END
You have received 2 unassigned stat points.
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It took 130,000 experience to take [Mechanic (Novice)] from Lv. 2 to Lv. 10. In total, he gained 8 Endurance, 8 Intelligence, 100 Energy, 16 unassigned stat points, and 8 talent points, bringing his character level to 12. Prioritizing the main class was always more cost-effective due to the higher Energy gains.
He couldn't level [Mechanic] any further without a class advancement. Most classes hit a cap at level 10 that required a special quest to overcome.
Lin Fan then spent 80,000 experience to raise [Agent] to Lv. 9. This granted him 12 Strength, 9 Dexterity, 3 Charm, 9 talent points, and another 9 unassigned stat points. He had now reached Level 20.
A character could have any number of classes, but Level 20 was the hard cap before completing a special advancement mission. In the game, this cap was raised with every major update. In Genesis War, the maximum level was 60.
Starlight offered hundreds of classes, allowing for unlimited combinations and truly unique character builds. There was no single best strategy, which was one of the game's greatest strengths.
Then Lin Fan noticed an anomaly. His interface didn't display a maximum level. Could it be that he was not bound by the limits imposed on players?
The gameplay of Genesis War and 2.0 was confined to the beginner planets. Though stronger civilizations existed from the start, players couldn't interact with them yet. He wondered if his unique status as an NPC would change that.
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Lv. 20 Advancement Mission: Learn an advanced Mechanic skill.
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Learning an advanced skill required advanced knowledge, so for now, he was stuck.
He invested another 150,000 experience to raise both [Basic Assembly] and [Basic Enhancement] to their max of Lv. 10, earning two more talent points. He then spent 10,000 experience to get his [Machinery Affinity (Novice)] to Lv. 3.
After some quick calculations, Lin Fan used 60,000 experience to raise both [Basic Combat] and [Basic Shooting] to Lv. 6, which unlocked two new skills: [Grappling] and [Precise Aim].
That left him with 170,000 experience to use on some ‘blueprint gambling’.
Blueprints were the lifeblood of the Mechanic class. They could be obtained in several ways. Some came from leveling talents, others were mission rewards. A riskier method was reverse-engineering machinery, which cost experience and had strict requirements.
But the most important method—and the most volatile—was by combining talents. This also cost experience. With over 60 talents to choose from, and with each combination potentially yielding different results, the possibilities were endless. Some blueprints had hidden prerequisites, making the system even more opaque.
Worse, the experience cost for combining talents increased with each attempt, and there were no refunds for duplicate blueprints. The players had rightfully dubbed it ‘blueprint gambling’.
It was a massive experience sink, but Lin Fan had an ace up his sleeve. In his past life, players had discovered and cataloged thousands of combinations. He knew many of them by heart, including the formulas for a few rare, godly pieces of equipment that a Novice Mechanic could craft, completely bypassing the class's early-game weakness.
There was one other, lesser-used method known as ‘free creation,’ where a player could attempt to build something from their own imagination. The success rate, however, was abysmal. It depended on the viability of the concept, material quality, knowledge levels, specific abilities, and tools. No one had ever cracked the exact science behind it. It was widely seen as a waste of time.
Lin Fan now had 21 talent points—19 from leveling his classes and 2 from maxing out skills.
He picked two books off a nearby shelf and focused on his interface.
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Use 1 talent point to unlock the Weaponry branch talent: [Basic Mechanical Engineering]? Y/N
Use 1 talent point to unlock the Weaponry branch talent: [Basic Bio-engineering]? Y/N
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A torrent of information flooded Lin Fan’s brain, a dizzying rush of schematics and principles that left his head throbbing. The feeling subsided after ten minutes.
He immediately spent two more talent points to raise both skills to Lv. 2, deepening his comprehension.
“Combining these two Lv. 2 talents can yield six different blueprints,” he muttered to himself. “The cost doubles each time. The first try is 10,000 EXP. With 170,000, I have four attempts. I have to get it in four tries.”
With a nervous breath, Lin Fan initiated the combination of [Lv. 2 Basic Mechanical Engineering] and [Lv. 2 Basic Bio-engineering].
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Proceed with talent combination? This will consume 10,000 experience.
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His vision blurred for a second, and a new blueprint materialized in his mind.
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Success! Congratulations on discovering [Sky Swallow Gliders]!
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Not this one! Lin Fan clenched his fists. Again!
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…This will consume 20,000 experience.
Success! Congratulations on discovering [Bionic Limb]!
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Damn it! That’s the worst possible outcome!
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…This will consume 40,000 experience.
Success! Congratulations on discovering [Kineto-Gauntlet]!
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Lin Fan slammed his hand on the table, a grin spreading across his face.
Haha! The Kineto-Gauntlet… That’s it!
His entire six-month gambit had nearly gone up in smoke.
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Race: Human/Carbon-based (Yellow)
Name: Lin Fan
Model: NPC (Countdown to Genesis War launch: 182 days, 8 hours, 23 minutes)
Level: 20 (Advancement available)
Main Class: Mechanic (Novice) – Lv. 10/10 (Advancement available)
Sub-Class: Civilian – Lv. 1
Sub-Class: Agent – Lv. 9 (0/25000)
Health: 230/230
Stamina: 360/360
Energy: 120/120 [Lv. 3]
Attributes: 21 STR, 17 DEX, 22 END, 15 INT, 1 MYS, 5 CHA, 1 LUK
Unassigned Stat Points: 27
Talent Points: 17
Class Talents: [Novice Mechanic Affinity] - Lv. 3
Skills:
[Basic Maintenance] – Lv. 10 (max)
[Basic Enhancement] – Lv. 10 (max)
[Blueprint: Sky Swallow Gliders] – Lv. 1 (0/5000)
[Blueprint: Bionic Limb] – Lv. 1 (0/2000)
[Blueprint: Kineto-Gauntlet] – Lv. 1 (0/10000)
[Basic Combat] – Lv. 6 (0/16000) – +6% Damage when unarmed
[Basic Shooting] – Lv. 6 (0/16000) – +6% Accuracy
[Grappling] – Lv. 1 (0/3000) – +3% Parry, +2% Damage when unarmed
[Precise Aim] – Lv. 1 (0/3000) – +3% Accuracy, +2% Ranged Damage
Talent Trees:
[Arms]: [Basic Assembly] Lv. 1, [Basic Mechanical Engineering] Lv. 2
[Energy]: (Locked)
[Control]: (Locked)
Influence: 0
Reputation: 0
Equipment: None
Overall Level Evaluation: F
[To the weakest superhuman… you are a slightly bigger ant!]
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In a matter of minutes, he had reached Level 20, his combat potential skyrocketing.
He spent 5 of his 27 unassigned stat points to raise his Intelligence to 20, fulfilling the crafting prerequisite for the Kineto-Gauntlet.
Now, only one thing was left to do: get to work.
Lin Fan grinned, looking at the piles of spare parts scattered across the floor.
I’ll show you what it really means to raise a tiger cub.