Chapter 9: Watch Out for Your Sister!

"Snow Emperor, hold on a moment."

Futu Dunshan saw that Lin Tianhao was about to log off, and immediately called out to stop him.

"Something else?"

"Snow Emperor, I'm the young heir of the Futu Guild. I'd like to invite you to join us — an annual salary of ten million. What do you say?"

Futu Dunshan had his own understanding of the game, and Lin Tianhao's skill was simply too extraordinary — far beyond any professional player he had ever seen.

That level of skill alone was worth ten million a year.

Not to mention Lin Tianhao's absurdly powerful stats.

"Sorry, I've already formed my own team."

Lin Tianhao shook his head. "Thanks for the kind offer, though."

"Oh? I see. Well, we could still become long-term partners."

"No problem."

Lin Tianhao nodded, then suddenly paused mid-step. "Did you say you're the young heir of the Futu Guild?"

"That's right. What about it?"

"We've crossed paths, so let me give you a heads-up — watch out for your sister."

In his previous life, three months after Ragnarok launched, the news broke about a major shakeup within the Futu Group.

The young heir of the Futu Group had been driving when his brakes failed, causing an accident that left him disabled.

Half a year later, it was revealed that the one who had tampered with the brakes was none other than his own sister.

"Watch out for my sister?"

Futu Dunshan furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?"

"Just remember what I said."

Lin Tianhao waved his hand and walked away. They'd only just met — a single warning was more than enough.

As for what fate ultimately awaited Futu Dunshan, that was none of Lin Tianhao's concern.

This time, Lin Tianhao didn't log off in the open field.

Instead, he returned to the novice village before logging out — mainly because he had made an enemy of that assassin player, and it was better to be cautious.

Getting stabbed by an assassin while logged off in the wilderness would be a real waste.

After logging out, Lin Tianhao checked the time.

Eight in the morning.

Zhou Xiaopang was still in the game.

Lin Tianhao didn't disturb him. He opened the fridge and made breakfast.

As a game that transcended its era, Ragnarok had one remarkably unique quality: inside the game, the body received thorough rest, and even one's mental state would feel more refreshed and energized.

Later on, some experts came out to explain this, claiming it was because playing the game was equivalent to sleeping.

That explanation wasn't quite right.

The truth was only discovered in the mid-to-late stages of the game — leveling up inside the game strengthened one's attributes.

While those gains couldn't manifest in reality directly, they allowed the soul to be elevated, which naturally led to one's mental state growing better and better over time.

"Fatty, log off and come eat."

Due to budget constraints, Lin Tianhao and the others were using ordinary Game Pods rather than the high-end nutrition pod variant.

Apparently, the top-tier nutrition pods, once loaded with nutrient solution, could sustain a player for up to two weeks without logging out, keeping the body fully nourished throughout.

Zhou Xiaopang had barely logged off before he grinned at Lin Tianhao. "Brother Hao, you were right — going solo really does make earning money easy."

"I dropped a Level 7 piece of gear today and sold it for twelve thousand. There are so many big spenders in this game."

Lin Tianhao smiled noncommittally. It wasn't that there were so many big-spending individual players.

On the contrary, the number of wealthy solo players was fairly average — nothing remarkable.

The ones truly driving up the prices of equipment and skill books were the guilds, the conglomerates, and the government.

The guilds had seen how explosive Ragnarok was and knew it would be a goldmine in the future.

After all, even traditional PC games had generated industries worth tens of billions — Ragnarok's gaming industry would surely be measured in hundreds of billions, if not trillions.

As for the conglomerates and the government, they naturally had some insight into the true nature of Ragnarok, and understood full well how important it was to grow stronger within the game.

Lin Tianhao knew why Zhou Xiaopang had been so dominant in the early game. He had chosen the Warrior class, and after leaving the novice village, he had encountered a Bard NPC who was reciting poetry that made absolutely no sense.

Zhou Xiaopang had then proceeded to show off shamelessly, reciting classical poems from the Dragon Nation's greatest sages and scholars right in front of the Bard.

Rather than offending the Bard, this act left him deeply impressed, and the Bard immediately sought to become Zhou Xiaopang's disciple on the spot.

The discipleship gift was three passive Warrior skills.

Relying on those three passive skills, Zhou Xiaopang had been an absolute powerhouse throughout the mid-to-late game.

The three passive skills were Double Armor, Double Shield, and Double Strike.

Their effects were as follows:

Double Armor: All incoming damage is reflected back to the attacker as a certain percentage.

Double Shield: Each time a crowd-control skill is used, a shield equal to a percentage of the user's current HP is generated.

Double Strike: Every attack — including skills, equipment effects, potion effects, and more — has a chance to trigger multiple instances of damage.

Damage reflection, shielding, and raw damage — a fairly well-rounded combination, all things considered.

What made them especially powerful was that all three were passive skills, capable of triggering infinitely.

Moreover, Double Strike and Double Shield could stack off each other.

For example, the Warrior's charge skill was a crowd-control ability that could trigger Double Shield — and if Double Strike then activated multiple instances, the shield would also trigger multiple times in kind.

"Brother Hao, I'm already Level 9, and I've got those three passive skills now."

"I'll definitely be dropping even better gear going forward."

Lin Tianhao nodded. "Fatty, no rush. I've already paid for my little sister's surgery."

"Already paid?"

"Yeah."

Lin Tianhao pulled out the payment receipt. "My luck was a bit better than yours — I killed a boss."

"Holy shit, Brother Hao — you're Snow Emperor?"

Lin Tianhao nodded, then said to Zhou Xiaopang, "Let's eat. I'll put together a novice village guide for you afterward — there are a lot of hidden rewards in there."

"So that's how it is. Brother Hao, you're seriously incredible. If Li Haitao knew what you've accomplished, he'd probably be sick with regret."

Lin Tianhao ate his breakfast while mentally reviewing the novice village guide.

The hidden rewards in the novice village varied — each class had options that suited it particularly well.

"Fatty, go to the tavern in the novice village and buy the two most expensive bottles of spirits, then bring them to the blacksmith's shop and ask him to forge you the strongest Warrior weapon."

"After that, he'll give you a chain quest. The higher your completion rate, the better the rewards you'll receive."

"Got it."

Zhou Xiaopang didn't ask how Lin Tianhao knew all this — he simply agreed without hesitation.

After the meal, Lin Tianhao also prepared two more guides for Zhou Xiaopang — one suited for Skinny Monkey, and one for Glasses.

"Fatty, you head into the game. I'm going to go check on Qingqing."

"I'll come with you."

Zhou Xiaopang didn't log in alone. He went with Lin Tianhao to the hospital.

Since Lin Tianhao had already paid, the hospital was in the process of scheduling the surgery.

In the ward.

Lin Tianhao looked at the unconscious Lin Qingqing, his gaze softening considerably.

"Doctor, when will my sister's surgery begin?" Lin Tianhao asked.

"We're already arranging it. The surgery can be performed this afternoon. You can sign here."

"Alright."

Lin Tianhao nodded and signed the surgical consent form.

Once everything was taken care of, Lin Tianhao returned to the rental apartment and logged back into the game.