Memoirs of the Returnee - Chapter 26: The Mine (5)

He shattered the heavens… and got isekai’d into a crazy desert survival game!Xu Tao cultivated for ten thousand years, defying death and destiny to reach the Divine Heaven Immortal Stage.But just as he touched the heavens—The heavens kicked him into a world based on a full-dive VR game.Now he’s got no Qi. No weapons, no cultivation… and no pants.Just a desert full of monsters, a glitchy “Lost System” that won’t shut up, and knowledge forged from millennia of clawing his way to the top.Enemies? Weaklings.Mystic beasts? Drop garbage loot.Level caps? He’s Xu Tao.He didn’t spend ten millennia chasing immortality just to get wiped by a scorpion in a tutorial-zone!But he’s definitely not here to play. He’s here to ascend—again.Even if this time, he has to grind EXP and punch sand beetles to do it.But wait... That's not all...? He could also... What?!

Athen had always lived a solitary life, as without any family or friends, he struggled to survive in his poor, forgotten hometown. The only escape from this grim reality came in the form of tales of magic told by rare visitors from the distant capital.That was, until one day, Athen discovered that magic wasn't just a dream. It was within him.With his newfound power, Athen completed a desperate heist, stealing a priceless diamond. But his triumph was short-lived when he realized the diamond was a fake.Yet... what seemed like a cruel trick turned out to be a blessing in disguise, for the fake diamond held the key to unlocking Athen’s greatest desire: the chance to truly learn magic.

The Apocalypse descended as the world turned into a game. And while everyone panicked, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was something wrong with my eyes.[Logging into the Game Master’s Account!]And my ‘oh-so-average’ destiny, changed into ‘is this a cheat life?’ Kind of destiny.[Would you like to Create a Skill? GM Points will be consumed!]While others struggled to kill a single goblin, I was searching for stronger monsters. While they were happy with getting even a random weak skill, I was customizing what kind of skills I needed.Even my Talents and Gifts can be customised. The only limit was my imagination.Heck, even the hidden quests that people would trigger randomly were present in front of me even before the scenario began.It wasn’t fair by any means. But isn’t that how life is already?[Would you like to make changes to the quests in the next scenario? GM Points will be consumed!]Is this how an apocalypse is supposed to be? I don’t know. I just tried following the script in front of everyone while trying out my cheat in hindsight. Don't get me wrong with the ‘pig eating tiger’ kind of thing. I just don’t like attention. I would rather stay with two trusted friends than with 10 fake ones.[Would you like to Initiate a Custom quest for the Players? GM Points will be consumed!]And for the players who were bullying the ‘weak’ me. One may even wonder how they ended up losing half of their stats and skills in a randomly triggered impossible type of quest.Fate can be truly scary, you know?One must always be careful of it.

The most cherished Little Princess of the Dragon Clan has fallen on hard times, living in an era of scarce provisions. Thankfully, she had a grandmother who doted on her as much as life itself.She drank brown sugar water every day and ate chicken eggs for every meal, making her plump and fair-skinned; she also donned new clothes for every season. All the young women and newlywed brides from miles around were envious of her naturally good fortune.However, the Little Princess had her woes: she was a dragon, and she craved meat, meat, meat!!Watch as she flexed her Dragon's Prestige —With just a glimpse at the trees, wild chickens would stiffly drop to the ground.If she stood next to the river, the fish inside would voluntarily leap onto the shore.Merely standing still, wild rabbits would run into her thigh...And as the Dragon Clan were fiercely protective of their food, she would fight anyone who dared to snatch her eats.Her fierce reputation extended far and wide, causing children in her group to take detours around her.Many people sneered: “With such a greedy, delicate and fierce character, she will definitely remain unmarried!”A certain Great Demon King who followed her said, “Marry me and become my wife. My home has endless supplies of canned beef, beef jerky, Dabai rabbit milk candy, imported chocolates, and various kinds of meat...”