Failed Lord: My SSS-Ranked Skill Can Evolve Broken Talents! - Chapter 17: The Shadows That Will Eat The Sun

In the Year 2030, the ground-breaking online game «Divine Realm» shook the whole world. Its system of allowing players to exchange in-game currency into real-life money attracted everyone’s attention.

…Ring! [ The Unique Skill ‘Grand Devourer’ has been acquired! ]

That’s how it first started.
And then… it didn’t stop:

[ The Unique Skill ‘Evolve’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Jelly-like Shapelessness’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Resistant Body’ has been acquired! —
[ The Unique Skill ‘Dwell’ has been acquired! —
[ The Unique Skill ‘Skill Copy’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Mana Perception’ has been acquired! ]

Up until…

[ The Passive Skill ‘Consciousness’ has been acquired! ]

And then I was through—

Normally, monster-type creatures don’t just pop up in some random place—let alone a human place—out of the blue, and without notice.
Yes, if we’re talking ‘normally’, monsters belong more to places like remote, hostile grounds: they ought to be from dark, nasty forests, old caves, or abandoned, ancient ruins.
As I said, it was only so long as we spoke of the usual deal, however. For better or worse, I wasn’t your regular mob.
So, forget about all the remote, uneasy places humans hardly go to—all the abandoned forests, caves, or dungeons I, a monster, should have been from—and picture a bright, lively family restaurant, in an oh-so-peaceful human village. A restaurant where people ate, chatted, and jested together, all having a good time, blissfully oblivious to the fact that, very soon, I would be cutting them all down.

By magic, a monster-type creature spawned in such a place. It was me.
So far, for the few seconds I had been living, it was quite the good life… I got to listen to a fantastic story being told and shared a cool moment with people.
However! Following an uncertain course of events, I happened to be put up against a wall, with a sword aimed at my chest, before I was mercilessly killed.

I, a unique monster, just spawned in that restaurant, with no clue regarding what was going on.
All I knew was that I wanted to live and survive.
Also, I knew I wasn’t your regular kind of monster.
Thankfully, I’d been granted unique abilities before I showed up.
That is how I managed to survive.

The world’s largest VRMMO, Conviction, was almost like a second world for humanity. It had integrated itself into the real world’s economy, with both corporations and individuals seeking their fortunes through the game.

In this game, Nie Yan prided himself in his Level 180 Thief. He could barely be considered among the top experts in the game. Though, that was the only thing he could take pride in. He was penniless and unable to advance in life; a situation he was forced into by the enemy of his father. If it weren’t for the little money he made by selling off items in Conviction, he would’ve barely been able to eat. In the end, he chose to settle his matters once and for all. He assassinated his father’s enemy. He lay dying shortly after being shot in the pursuit.

However, that wasn’t the end of his story. Instead, he awoke moments later to find that he had reincarnated into his past self. Armed with his experience and knowledge of future events, he sets out to live his life anew.

Yong'an City Publicity Department:“Once again, we remind all citizens that a Level 4 Demon Nest has appeared outside Yong'an City in recent days. Currently, it is being suppressed by a team led by the President of Huayan Martial Arts University, [Dragon-riding Guanyin·Zheng Yulan].During this period, the municipality urges everyone not to travel at night unless necessary! Life first, safety most important!”The appearance of the Celestial Demon disrupted the world's original progress, with technological innovation no longer leading the mainstream, and Martial Arts exploration taking the global stage.Day Character Punch, Eight Steps to Catching a Cicada... many ancient martial arts have been continuously studied and innovated, evolving into Cultivation Techniques better suited to contemporary people's physiques.Nine Paths of Qi Blood, Eight Great Restrictions, Martial Arts practitioners gather immense power, only the Martial Arts will can suppress Celestial Demons and shatter darkness!Tianshan Mountain Martial Arts Conference, River Gathering, the world's number one Martial Arts tournament! All for the sake of determining the strongest Martial Arts practitioner to lead the world in safeguarding our civilization and homeland.“Here's a piece of good news: our country's [Great Saint Zhao Linyuan] has once again won the top spot in the world's number one Martial Arts tournament! This further cements our country's dominant position in the global Martial Arts development arena.”“Zzzzz...”Meng Chuan turned off the television and, as usual, practiced the [National Obligation Basic Boxing]【National Obligation Basic Boxing: Perfection (99%) Awaiting Limit Breaking】【Limit Breaking Feature: Once Proven, Forever Proven (Super) Awaiting Activation】