The Second Life of Adam Cosmos

[You have acquired Grave Purple Rose x7]

[You have acquired Grave Mushroom x4]

[You have acquired Greycap x3]

After Adam dispatched all the enemies inside the catacomb, he started looting the various plants and herbs that can be found inside. A general rule of thumb is that if a certain plant grows in a place where the undead roams, it is a plant that has debilitating effects.

Each of the ingredients Adam is collecting can be used to brew powerful poison mixtures. Although it’s a pity that it only comes in small quantities.

“I miss the cavern.” Adam wistfully thought.

There is a reason why Adam decided to postpone his Blacksmithing quest in exchange for brewing potions in the caverns. Such an opportunity to harvest good quality materials for potion making is a rare opportunity.

It is no wonder he stripped the cavern dry before deciding to leave the place.

But now, he’s back to the reality of having to be content with getting more than 3 pieces of each ingredient.

“Oh well, it can’t be helped I guess.”

Aside from the Necromancer’s Heart and the alchemy ingredients, he also found another Necromancy Class Tome. Another addition to his new list of items to be sold in a few week’s time.

This is why the Necromancy Class Tome became one of the most bought class tomes in the early era of playing the World of Pangea. It is the most common class tomes that Lorikan players can loot.

As for New Camelot and Murim, they too have their own class tomes to offer for sale, but Adam is not interested in any of them.

All the items he put up for sale in the auction house have been sold out. It was the items he looted from the hidden room in the summoning room and the potions he put up for sale. He earned close to 40 grand from all of it.

The last time he logged out, he invested around 20 grand for more nutrients and fluid to ensure he can stay in Pangea for as long as needed. And for the remaining money, he intends to save them until he can buy a place of his own.

Living in the apocalypse had a profound impact in Adam’s view of the world. If he was his original self, a 40 grand would have been something he would have been ecstatic about. Yet now, he coldly sets aside the money for things that will help him in the long-term instead of the immediate present.

He then left the catacomb and headed to a nearby graveyard; he continued hunting for the undead with the intent to harvest Necromancer’s Heart.

It was not called the Undead Region for nothing; there had been countless places of burial from various periods of Lorikan history that had been placed here. This is because there was a point in Lorikan history where necromancy was used to battle the undead curse.

The ruling body at that time decreed that their dead will be buried in this region to be used as a material for summoning. Back then, it was considered a highly controversial tactic. Yet the result spoke for itself.

The undead had been kept at bay by an army of necromancers using their own skeleton army to protect the Lorikan border. And that is why the region has come to be known as the Undead Region.

Eventually, the practice was abolished. However, the Lorikan Kingdom was at war with New Camelot so the border has taken a backseat when it comes to national priority.

The necromancers that were dispatched to protect the border had been reassigned to battle and their summons had been left to wander aimlessly for ages. And with that, the region was effectively abandoned by Lorik.

They built a massive fortress to ensure the undead don’t reach their land. And that was it, no further expedition was sent for generations as the undead had been lying mostly dormant for centuries.

That is, until the summoning of the Otherworlders dispersed the accumulated dark energy and started reviving the dead. In other words, the players’ arrival unknowingly became the cause of the problem that they would eventually participate in resolving.

Of course, nobody but Adam is aware of this. It is only when the undead problem had been quelled that the players inclined to study the history of Lorik that they were able to piece this together.

In fact, the same theme ran prevalent even in New Camelot and Murim. The player’s arrival somehow caused a problem that threatened the land, and it was through the player’s participation that the disaster was averted.

With these memories running through Adam’s mind, he diligently continued his hunt for necromancer hearts for the next 24 hours.

By then, nearly all of the players in the Forgotten Chambers had already started exploring the region to head to the fortress. And finally, the event that Adam has been waiting for finally happened.

Ding!

[Pangea Announcement: Congratulations to all players. The first quest on all three continent has been completed.]

[You have made your first step in becoming a part of Pangea.]

[The Unified Rankings have been unlocked.]

‘Finally!' Adam thought, somewhat impatiently. 'Took you guys long enough!’

This is the reason why he hasn’t leveled up yet.

He was waiting for the unified rankings, or more specifically, the option that will become available once the unified ranking has been unlocked.

It is only when the first quest for the Lorikan Republic, New Camelot, and Murim Archipelago has all been completed before the Unified Rankings is unlocked. And with it is the option to-

“Remove me from the leaderboard rankings.”

It is because Adam did not want his name to be known worldwide. The unified rankings are ultimately just for real-world fame. It has no relevance in Pangea whatsoever- except for a certain quest years down the line.

While Adam made quite a contribution during the first quest, those actions as well as his name will eventually become old news as the more ambitious gamers hungry for fame make their own achievements.

As a matter of fact, within just 24 hours, there are players that have reached the early 50s; it is only a matter of time before Adam’s level 60 gets surpassed by other players.

Now that he is no longer part of the rankings, he can level up to his heart’s content without drawing attention to himself.

Adam gained a considerable amount of essence from the battle, the reward from the first quest, and his grinding in the Undead Region. He then spent every essence he had accumulated up until now and managed to reach level 77- it cost over 500,000 essence!

NAME: Adam

LEVEL: 77

ESSENCE: 8,081 (35,450 essence to reach Level 78)

HP 160/160 (+100)

MP 300/300 (+200)

STATS

Vitality 20

Endurance 40

Willpower 10

Strength 28

Dexterity 14

Perception 15

Intelligence 14

Clarity 6

Harmony 12

Mystery 6

SKILLS:

(Intermediate Alchemist 29.13%) Purify

(Apprentice Pyromancer 53.29%) Firebolt 4, Fireball 3, Fire Enchantment 3

TRAITS:

Botanist, Toxic Resistance, Flame Resistance, Frost Resistance, Metallurgy

MP Regen +15% (Necklace), HP Regen +10% (Ring)

TITLES: see more

ACHIEVEMENTS: see more

He increased his Endurance to 40, Intelligence to 14, and Harmony to 12.

With the removal of his name in the rankings, and his level-up looking good, he decided to take a quick break.

“Log out.”

***

Back in the real world, Adam decided to stretch his legs and went out for a couple of hours.

He went shopping and bought himself some decent-looking clothes as well as a suit. Afterwards, he treated himself to a relatively fancy meal at a good restaurant.

Then, he bought himself the latest xPhone and left a message to the Cosmos Residence. It’s a brief message assuring his mother that he is doing well and has a steady income from playing World of Pangea and that he will regularly keep in touch.

He even took a screenshot of his bank account showing a few thousand dollars (but not his full earnings) as proof that he can fend for himself.

This way, they at least won’t assume he died in a ditch somewhere.

Afterwards, he took a cab and went back to his apartment. While en route, he decided to browse various gaming forums for discussion on the latest news on Pangea.

In particular, he is focused on Lorikan events.

***

“What a blast! I’m glad I didn’t give up until the end!”

“Same here, I thought I was dead for sure after those monsters started to swarm us.”

“Suck on this, pro-gamers!”

“LMAO, yeah. They think themselves high and mighty for braving the catacombs, but lo and behold, we also reached the same level they did by actually focusing on the quest!”

“Did you hear that the other pro guilds ended up bullying the chamber players and insisted they lead the exploration of the upper floors in the temple?”

“Yeah, I was there. They pretty much did that. They say it’s to ensure the safety of the non-pros and independent teams.”

“What a load of bull, nearly 50% of the Lorikan ranking are non-pros and independent teams.”

“What a bunch of sore losers!”

“But! Turns out the loot is pretty average in the upper floors. Most of them even ignored the loot. LMAO!”

“ROFL! I guess they really did you guys a favor. At least you didn’t waste your time exploring.”

“Guys, this is great and all but let’s not forget who made this all possible: Adam the Legend.”

“True dat. Banzai Adam-sama!”

“Hail Adam the Legend!”

“I am Adam and I am recruiting members for my own guild. If you are a dude, send me some cash as a form of support. If you are a chick, send me some nice pics and we can talk more.”

“STFU troll! LMAO!”

“Speaking of Adam, does anyone know what happened to him? He disappeared from the rankings.”

“After the Unified Rankings, his name disappeared from the rankings. Maybe the pro guilds bullied him into submission?”

“That doesn’t mean anything, there is an option to leave the rankings. I should know, I was ranked 293rd before I left my name out.”

“So who’s the #1 now?”

“Tyler, he’s Level 54 now. But we all know who’s really in the lead, don’t we? ;)”

“Tyler, the ‘#1’. LMAO!”

Eddit Post: Dark Sun and Magick Maidens Alliance: Confirmed

Eddit Post: Hao-Wei and Maxima Alliance: Confirmed

Eddit Post: Arbalest Unit, a rising guild

Eddit Post: Route to the Fortress (Updated)

Adam casually browsed the various posts on the internet. He’s mostly doing it to check what has changed now compared to his first life. Fortunately, many of the things that happened the first time around still remained mostly similar.

The alliance of various guilds, Tyler being the number one player, and an ongoing exploration of the Undead Region in search for the Fortress. These are the main headlines of the Lorikan server after the first quest was completed.

Despite the clear instruction to head north, and the fact that the region is mostly made up of plains and forests, finding a clear path is proving to be a challenge. In fact, this is why Adam decided to unwind for a couple of hours.

In his previous life, it was the Dark Sun and Magick Maiden alliance who found the best path to get to the fortress. And it took them over 14 days to do so.

In fact, out of the news circulating, the only thing Adam didn’t know about is the Arbalest Unit. He doesn’t know any guild that was formed in his previous life with that name.

From what he gathered, it appears that a group of independent players who survived the chamber battle was approached by a gaming company with an offer to form a semi-pro guild, and they are made up of either veteran or military retirees in their late 20s to early 30s.

‘A team with real-life combat experience in a VR-game? Welcome aboard!’ Adam exclaimed inwardly.

He, too, is eager to learn more about this guild. But for now, his curiosity will have to wait.

After a few more minutes of traveling, he is finally back in his apartment.

He was about to log back in when he noticed a few dozen messages from his mother, a few from his twin sisters, and one mocking message from his older brother.

Seeing as he already left a message answering that very question, he elected to ignore all of them. Or at least, most of the message.

A message from Selene, the younger twin sister, is different in tone compared to the rest of the messages.

“I’m happy that you’re happy. Good luck, Adam!”

This one made Adam feel warmth from his heart. He couldn’t help but respond back.

“Thanks sis. I am happy and I’m doing pretty well for myself.”

Adam couldn’t resist. He decided to show off his real earnings to her but included a three-word message: “Don’t tell them.”

After that, it is time to go back to Pangea.