Chapter 6: Sudden Power
Chapter 6: Sudden Power
Sun Fei was stunned in place.
“Game time limit for the day? What in the world was this?”
He had never expected something so sudden to happen; it was too unfair. Sun Fei had been ready to get serious, but now…
The next instant, Sun Fei’s vision blurred.
Then the whole world started to twist and warp in his sight, like an old TV with bad signal. Hissing static filled the air, the screen flashed with snow, and then the signal cut out completely.
Darkness rushed in.
…
…
Sun Fei opened his eyes and found he was back in the King’s Hall.
The splendid decorations, the beautiful vessels, and the golden-red soft bed stood in sharp contrast to the heavy, bloody scene from earlier in the Diablo World. Instantly, Sun Fei felt a wave of confusion.
“What was going on? Had he… just had a bad dream?”
Sun Fei found he was still in bed, soaking in smelly sweat, his body warm like he’d just stepped out of a hot sauna.
He froze there.
Pressing his hands down, he pushed himself to sit up.
At that moment, Sun Fei suddenly noticed with surprise that the hazy, groggy feeling he’d had when he first woke was gone. The dull pain he’d felt in his chest and head earlier had disappeared too.
What was this about?
Had that not just been a dream?
Deep inside, Sun Fei sensed something amazing had happened to him. But he couldn’t tell exactly what it was.
The whole King’s Hall was dead silent, with not a soul in sight.
Sun Fei got out of bed, stood up, and gently stretched his arms.
Rip—!
A sound of tearing fabric shredded the air.
The white knight-patterned shirt he wore suddenly split open in several places, hanging in tatters from his body like those raggedy outfits punks fancied in his past life. Even his pants tore open around the crotch, causing a sudden ‘exposure’.
“Holy cow, what’s with that?”
Sun Fei jumped back, startled.
All these weird things happening lately were making him feel wired.
He looked down and saw that the once-perfectly-fitting knight shirt seemed tighter now. His pants were snug too. So when he’d moved, the fabric had ripped apart…
“What flimsy junk! Didn’t expect fabrics in this other world to be so weak— one tug and they shred!”
A breeze blew in, and Sun Fei felt a sudden chill go through him.
The wind whipped around his crotch, feeling strangely cool.
“Need to find some clothes…”
Sun Fei scanned the King’s Hall quickly and spotted something that looked like a fancy wardrobe. He walked over, opened it, and sure enough, inside were all kinds of fancy garments. He picked out a black fitted knight suit that matched his size, put it on, then strolled over to check himself in a bronze mirror nearby.
At that look, Sun Fei was shocked.
In the mirror stood a sharp-looking young knight in black.
Standing about six feet tall, with a clean, lean build, he had thick black shoulder-length hair tied back by a bronze hair ring set with a ruby. His face wasn’t the type that would make men jealous or turn girls wild, but his broad, keen features gave off a rugged charm all over.
“Good grief, is that dashing guy in the mirror really me?”
Sun Fei waved and hopped around in disbelief.
The figure in the mirror copied the moves.
Only then did he accept the fact that the hunk in the mirror was himself. Sun Fei put his hands on his hips, threw his head back, and let out a silly laugh: “Wahahahaha! Total score! Seriously hit the jackpot! King Alexander may have been a bit daft, but damn, he looks sharp— at least way better than my old self.”
Sun Fei posed and danced before the mirror, thrilled as if he’d won big at slots.
That puffed-up vibe was just like stars who’d come back from “United States” makeovers, all preened and prim.
“From now on, I am Alexander, and Alexander is me!”
Sun Fei pumped his fist happily, saying it loud and clear in his mind.
After a little vanity stint, he turned to a row of medieval-style armors holding greatswords in the center of the King’s Hall. He chose armor near his height, drew the knight’s greatsword that came with it, and swung it proudly a few times to act all kingly.
But the next second, Sun Fei’s face twisted in confusion.
“Why’s it so light? Is this sword just wood carved to look real?”
The sword, around four feet long, glinted sharp and should have weighed at least thirty to forty pounds. But in his grasp, it felt no heavier than a blade of grass. This strange, new sensation left him amazed.
Clang—!
Curious, Sun Fei gave it a try and lightly slashed the sword backward at a nearby steel-plated armor.
What happened next made his jaw drop—
With just one crisp sound, the effortless strike sliced the thick armor, at least three or four millimeters thick, clean through the middle. It was like cutting tofu. Moments later, the top half clanged to the ground— split in two.
“Hisssss…”
Sun Fei sucked in a sharp breath.
Even with his thick skin, the sight stunned him: “Unreal… Seriously unreal? What… what’s happening? My… my strength… how’d it get so big so fast?”
Thinking this, Sun Fei flipped his wrist on a whim.
Still feather-light, it felt like nothing.
But he saw clearly: the heavy greatsword churned out four or five shimmering, phantom sword flares in his grip. It vibrated with a low hum.
“That feeling…”
Sun Fei shut his eyes and savored the last swing.
Again, it was exactly like when his level 5 Barbarian character hacked monsters with a great axe in the Diablo World while he’d slept— same strength, same weight.
“Could it be…”
Sun Fei jolted to his senses abruptly.
“Had he carried over the Barbarian character’s strengths from the game to real life?”
He froze at his own idea.
A long pause later.
Sun Fei decided to test this wild hunch. He slid the greatsword back into its scabbard and scanned the King’s Hall for other weapons.
Then he spotted something.
Over in the corner, Sun Fei saw a weirdly shaped great axe. The axe itself was huge— handle and curving edge together stood about five feet tall. It must have weighed close to a hundred pounds, propped solidly beside a set of jet-black armor, making a deep dent in the stone floor where it sat.
The dark weapon had odd engravings carved on it, dripping menace.
He strode over, reached out, and lifted the great axe.
Immediately, a mysterious, deep-rooted feeling surged through every nerve and cell of his body. Sun Fei felt linked to this axe, as if it fused with him— became an actual limb.
He closed his eyes and savored the bond.
“Yep, just like in the game when the Barbarian’s ‘Axe Mastery’ hit level 3— total control, like he could do anything with it…”
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—!
The great axe spun in Sun Fei’s hands like a windmill, swirling out waves of shadowy light. All kinds of incredible Barbarian axe tricks flowed out like he’d trained for decades— an axe master, down to the bones.
Now, Sun Fei absolutely believed his theory.
Without a doubt.
He knew he had all the skills of that level 5 Barbarian from the Diablo World dream— strength, axe talent, stamina, attack power, defense… all these game-build quirks were his now.
That massive power gave Sun Fei a huge wave of security he’d never known.
“Is this what strength feels like? But where’s it stand in this magical world?”
Drunk on that power rush, Sun Fei suddenly recalled something grim: “Right— that Master Paladin pal said enemies were storming the city. Maybe I should go see…”
The thought flashed and stuck like glue.
With his current strength, he really might pull off something useful.
Before heading out, though, for safety, Sun Fei grabbed a suit of knight armor roughly his size. Straining, he wrestled into it.
The heavy armor covered him head to toe.
He pulled down the visor on the knight helmet, hiding his face but peering through the slits to see everything clear as day. Sun Fei felt suited up just like Iron Man knight Robert Downey Jr.— each rustle of the metal joint made a clanking noise that pumped courage through his veins.
Draped in fierceness, oozing danger.
The fifty-pound suit of plates? Back in the day, it’d have crushed Sun Fei flat under its weight. But now slung over him, it was light as a new-tech sports shirt— barely a hint of its burden on him.
Clang—clang—!
Sun Fei tapped the black great axe against the armor in good spirits, thrilled at the sharp chime: “Haha! Even a direct arrow hit won’t touch me now!”
Time to go!
Tiptoeing past the King’s Hall main door, Sun Fei glanced around left and right.
He’d first thought about wowing the palace guards, but it turned out nobody stood watch outside the King’s Hall. Dead quiet stretched around— not until he reached the outer gate did he spy two soldiers napping, slumped against it, their bodies covered in scrapes.
They looked like they’d been dragged back from the front, totally beat.
“Holy cow— only two injured rookies guarding the King’s own palace? This battle at the walls must be hitting peak heat…”
Listening to battle cries echoing from afar, Sun Fei’s stomach tensed.
He stepped up his pace.
Maybe time was running out.
…