Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord - Chapter 158: Hope

Senior high school student Dugu Hong was logical autistic and had a very high IQ. Despite his impressive IQ, he was never taken seriously by his teachers or schoolmates. While playing a recently released eastern Wuxia online game called Jiang Hu, three vicious classmates trapped Dugu into a mountain cave in the game with no hope of escape unless he deleted his account and re-register it. Not succumbing to their demands, Dugu decided to stay in the cave and explore the game system, which benefited him greatly. His persistence to obtain massive internal strength aided him in finding a superior way to improve himself, and thus opened the function of inner observation of the main and collateral channels. Meanwhile, in the real world, he discovered he had supernatural powers when he tried to save the girl he secretly loved who had caught the eye of a gangster on the suburban railway.

How massive must the wealth of a family that has been passed down for five thousand years be? Sometimes, you’ll never know how rich your family really is until you push your parents a bit! Only after inheriting his family’s five-thousand-year fortune did Zhang Menglong realize that the joy of the wealthy is so simple. Bank president, “Mr. Zhang, please, I beg you to deposit your money with our bank, and you can set the interest rate!” Huaxia’s top wealthy second generation, “Does the whole world belong to your family or what?” World’s richest person, “I feel like I am just a poor man!” European Royal Family, “Mr. Zhang, are you lacking a girlfriend? If you are, would you mind finding one? If not, would you mind one more? What do you think about our country’s princess?” Latter, Zhang Menglong found out that the college his parents left him was the most impressive thing. Actually, being a dean turned out to be even more joyful than being the world’s richest person!

The year was 2026, and the world wasn't what it used to be. Ever since the Abyss Gates cracked open three years ago, spilling monsters and dungeons across the planet, life had turned into a chaotic mess. Cities were half-ruined, half-rebuilt, and people clung to whatever normalcy they could find. Hunters—those brave or crazy enough to fight the monsters—became the new heroes. Everyone else? Well, they just tried to survive.Fin wasn't a Hunter. He wasn't a hero either.He was just… Fin. A lanky 19-year-old with messy brown hair, a chipped front tooth from a dumb skateboard accident, and a power that everyone called useless. Absorption. Sounds cool, right? Like he could suck up energy or steal someone's strength. Nope. All it did was let him “feel” things he touched a little more than normal. He could tell you the exact texture of a brick wall or how warm a coffee mug was—big whoop. No fireballs, no super strength, no flashy moves. Just a glorified touchy-feely trick.“Fin, you gonna eat that sandwich or just stare at it like it's gonna confess its life story?” Meg's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.He blinked and looked across the rickety table at his best friend. Meg was short, loud, and had a wild mop of dyed purple hair that she swore made her look “intimidating.” It didn't.