Once Kael finished explaining everything, it was just about time to open the shop.

  "Are you clear on all the new rules and procedures?" Kael asked one last time.

  "Crystal clear, Boss," Shier nodded earnestly. She always took her duties seriously; after all, this was her job.

  "Good."

  Kael walked over to the snack vending machine. "Shier, what do you want for breakfast?"

  "Instant Cup Noodles," she answered without hesitation.

  "Alright." Kael pulled out two buckets of instant noodles, poured in the hot water, and left one on the counter for her. Taking his own bucket and a bag of potato chips, he walked over to the booth near the entrance to start his day.

  "It's about time I put getting a beverage vending machine on the agenda," Kael thought to himself after booting up the New World Mode.

  Eating potato chips by themselves made his mouth uncomfortably dry. As an upstanding, wholesome young man, Kael wasn't about to start downing alcohol early in the morning, which left plain water as his only option. But how could plain water ever compare to the joy of an ice-cold cola?

  While Kael was letting his thoughts wander, the regulars began to trickle into the shop.

  Surprisingly, the earliest arrivals were the Brilliant Academy's training group, led by Zhong Lingyun.

  "Good morning, Shier, Manager," Zhong Lingyun greeted them upon entering, spotting Kael sitting in the booth near the door.

  "Good morning, Sister Zhong," Shier politely returned the greeting.

  Following behind Zhong Lingyun, the students caught a whiff of the savory noodle aroma permeating the shop and immediately went to buy their own breakfast.

  The inns in Cloud City technically provided breakfast, but compared to the food in Kael's shop... well, there was simply no comparison.

  Zhong Lingyun lined up behind her students, waiting to buy her cup noodles and get hot water. They would sort out their breakfast first before diving into their training. After all, the temporary boost to Comprehension provided by the noodles was an absolute game-changer for their progress.

  "Huh? Shier, what's this 'New World Mode'?" Ying Feng asked, wandering near the counter with his cup noodles. He had quickly noticed the writing on the new blackboard.

  As a regular, Ying Feng was already used to the shop occasionally rolling out bizarre new features—including the sudden appearance of fifty new training pods overnight.

  "It's a new mode for the Combat Strength Enhancement Arena. Once you enter, it feels exactly like stepping into an entirely new world," Shier explained simply. There was no need to go into too much detail; the crystal ball would automatically transmit all the necessary information into the player's mind once they activated the mode.

  "A new world!"

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  Ying Feng's interest was instantly piqued. Given his noble status, wandering the world freely was practically impossible without a high level of strength; it was simply too dangerous. Having lived in the Imperial Capital of the Archaic Origin Empire his entire life, the allure of exploring a "new world" was incredibly strong.

  However, after taking a closer look at the blackboard, he hesitated.

  Twenty Spirit Crystals wasn't a lot for him. If he truly got to experience a new world, it was actually a massive bargain. The catch was the ongoing hourly fee after activation—that was the real trap.

  "Right, the Boss is probably playing it right now. I'll go watch him first," Ying Feng thought. Perhaps the Comprehension boost from the noodles had made him sharper, as the idea came to him instantly.

  Acting on it, he carried his cup noodles over to Kael's booth and peeked inside.

  The scenery inside the crystal ball was picturesque. Kael was leaping and weaving through a mountainous landscape, the vibrant scenery rushing past him in a way that looked absolutely breathtaking.

  "Twenty Spirit Crystals... I'll give it a try," Ying Feng decided after watching for a while.

  "Shier, activate the New World Mode for me."

  "If you're planning to play, I highly recommend pre-loading your Spirit Crystals and becoming a shop member," Shier suggested, stepping smoothly into her sales pitch.

  "A member? What's that?" Ying Feng looked endearingly confused.

  "If you pre-deposit Spirit Crystals..." Shier pulled out a translucent, crystal-like Membership Card and gave him a brief rundown.

  The card's function was straightforward and didn't require much explanation.

  "That actually sounds really convenient," Ying Feng nodded as he listened. "Alright, set up a Membership Card for me. I'll deposit five hundred Spirit Crystals to start."

  With that, he casually pulled out five Brave-rank Magic Cores.

  "Certainly. Please hold your Membership Card and place it on the scanner to activate it," Shier instructed as she swept the Magic Cores into the cash box and handed him the card.

  This process bound the card to his soul. Once bound, no one else could use it. With a Membership Card, customers wouldn't have to walk back and forth to the counter to pay every hour; they could just activate their session, and the fee would automatically deduct from their balance.

  Shier's primary role was now helping customers set up these cards and processing their top-ups.

  Card in hand, Ying Feng smartly chose the booth right next to Kael's. If he ran into anything he didn't understand, he could just ask the Boss directly.

  He activated the New World Mode and selected 'Enter'.

  The moment his consciousness arrived in the stark-white creation room—the space used to assess a player's class and download the game's basic info—Ying Feng instantly felt that his Spirit Crystals were well spent.

  It was realistic. Too realistic.

  If Ying Feng didn't constantly remind himself that this wasn't the real world, his subconscious would have entirely believed he had been transported to another dimension.

  A living, breathing dimension.

  "Is this the Boss's true power? To create a world this lifelike... he is even more terrifying than I imagined," Ying Feng muttered in awe after the system confirmed his Sword Knight class and dropped him into the village at the foot of the mountain.

  The sensory feedback was flawless, prompting his heartfelt sigh of amazement. Thankfully, the Boss harbored no ill will.

  After taking a moment to marvel at his surroundings, Ying Feng followed the system prompts and opened his Sword Knight skill tree.

  While Kael was busy playing, he was also keeping an eye on his surroundings. Seeing Ying Feng log in, Kael took a quick peek at the young man's screen.

  The skills listed were completely standard martial techniques—the exact moves any competent Sword Knight should know. With Kael's Martial Arts Mastery passive, he recognized them instantly.

  In fact, the techniques on Ying Feng's skill tree were actually fewer than what a fully trained Sword Knight would typically possess.

  "Wait a minute... are the skills and magic on these trees entirely based on what the player already knows in real life?" Kael made a bold guess.

  And on this point, Kael was spot on.

  In order to adhere to the laws of this world, the System didn't pull new martial arts or magic out of thin air for the players. The skill trees in the New World Mode were generated by directly converting the player's real-world knowledge into game mechanics.

  Furthermore, players still had to earn "Skill Points" by leveling up to actually unlock and use those skills in-game.