MTL - Ancient One - Chapter 8 Never a shortcut

(This is not a game-related text; please do not criticize if it's not to your liking.)An accident had made Zhou Yuan the only player in the real world.Transcendent, evolution, anomalies, deities, Control Bureau... A whole new world unveiled itself before his eyes.......【——The basic elements that make up our bodies were once evolved in the most dazzling stars in the universe.The iron in our red blood cells comes from the brilliant explosions of supernovae.The zinc in our blood is from the dust ejected by two colliding neutron stars into the cosmos.That trace of copper has even witnessed the death of a white dwarf star.Even the most insignificant cobalt has its origins in nebulae billions of light-years away.We are children of stardust, miracles in the grand universe.】【“Child of Stardust” Player System installation complete, we wish you a pleasant game experience.】

Takumi Hirooka(20) works at a black company. He stopped at a convenience store before returning home, and then gave his beloved dog Leo a treat before eating his own dinner that he bought at the store.

After eating, Takumi stood up in order to take a bath, but due to exhaustion from overworking, he fell to the floor and lost consciousness.

When Takumi opened his eyes again, he was in an unfamiliar forest. But what he thought was a large wolf sitting next to him, was actually his dog Leo…

Leo was now big enough to carry people on her back, and could defeat monsters that appeared in the forest in an instant.

A woman they meet in the forest, Claire, tells them that Leo is the most powerful of monsters, a Silver Fenrir.

Takumi couldn’t help but think that this world was all a dream. But after speaking with Claire and witnessing Leo’s strength, he finally realizes that this was another world that he had come to.

They are invited to Claire’s great mansion, and Takumi eventually lives there.

The young man Takumi and the dog Leo who were somehow transferred to this world.

As the powerful Silver Fenrir, Leo will protect Takumi.

While Takumi discovers that he has a gift, it is an ability called Weed Cultivation.

…Could such an ability be useful?

Takumi was tired from so much work, but he uses his ability to live with Leo and Lady Claire. This is his story.

“Obtaining the topmost degree of talent in sword arts in the world requires giving up 72 years of lifespan, which leaves you with only five more years of your life. At the same time, you will never be able to feel love, kinship, and friendship, and you’ll end up leading a lonely life until your death, unable to procreate, or to have any descendants.“From now onwards, everything related to happiness in the human world shall no longer be of your concern. Are you willing to accept this?”“Hahahaha, I’m already alone bereft of all support, my hopes dashed to pieces, shouldering only absolutely irreconcilable grudge and hatred, why would I disagree? Why would I not want it? I couldn’t ask for anything better!!”His sword sweeps across the Divine Continent for seven days and nights, moving 90,000 miles through the starry skies, unhindered.He slays saints and buddhas in Heaven, slaughters demons and devils in Hell, sweeping away all the grievances in his heart.

Lao Chen was just an old, underpaid security guard in a rundown apartment complex, living a miserable life under a stingy, ungrateful boss.His wife left him, his daughter wanted nothing to do with him, and poverty was his only constant companion.In the end, death came in the form of a drunk driver, leaving him broken and forgotten on the cold pavement.But fate wasn’t done with him. In his final moments, he prayed—desperate, pleading to any deity who would listen.And someone did.The God of Wealth and Love took pity on his wasted life and granted him a second chance.Wake up again as Zhao Yiming, a 25-year-old gambler and alcoholic drowning in debt with nothing but a good face and a strong body to his name, he was given the Affinity Money Maker System—a mysterious power that let him gain wealth and influence by forming relationships, whether as lovers, friends, or even enemies.Before he knew it, he had stumbled his way into unimaginable riches.But things never go as planned. One moment of recklessness—one affair with the wrong woman—led to an unexpected murder.Now, the system has thrown him onto a new path: The Villain Route. With a negative perk that keeps the police off his trail but tightens the noose around his future, Zhao Yiming is faced with an impossible choice.Will he claw his way to the top and become the billionaire he was meant to be? Or will his second life end behind bars, just as tragic as his first?