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Forgotten Lands - Chapter 24 (Book 1)
🕑 Added 2024-02-13 14:07:09 +0000 UTCOld Farthma placed a batch of 20 Inferior Energy Potions on a small wooden table in the Farming Hall without saying a word. All she did was take the pouch with 100 silver coins before she left.
That left Zayn confused, yet happy. His relationship with Old Farthma was quite weird. However, it was also entertaining.
They didn’t know each other, and it was not as if they spoke a lot either, but there was a familiarity and closeness that couldn’t be explained. It was almost like two crazy people found each other at last.
Zayn didn’t reject the additional Inferior Energy Potions and went to work. He transported some of the empty clay pots near the entrance of the Farming Hall before he planted the remaining herbs and flowers he’d harvested and purchased inside the pots. He planned to increase their quality over the next few days to use them when he was ready to start his potion-making career.
Following that, Zayn spends the next few hours tending to the flourishing fauna in the Farming Hall. He consumed two Inferior Energy Potions while actively using Rapid Plant Growth and Iron Bark to increase its proficiency and level up the Demonic Treant Card Set.
It was already past midnight when Zayn was thrown out of Forgotten Lands. The Advanced VR Helmet notified him that he had to rest his mind for the next hours, preferably longer, and that he had to eat something before he was allowed back into the game. It was a safety mechanism that protected his brain from overexertion and ensured that the user would intake enough nutrients.
Zayn was starving and his throat felt like he’d swallowed a handful of sand. He quenched his thirst first, downing two liters of water within five minutes before his attention lingered on the fridge – the ingredients within, to be precise.
He retrieved some of the ingredients his mother purchased for him and finished a quick five-minute midnight snack which he finished on his way to the living room. His brothers’ laptops and dozens of papers with notes could be found nearly everywhere in the living room. Zayn smiled at the mess and decided to clean up a little bit, lest his mother would get angry.
“I wonder if they’re still awake,” He mumbled, wondering if his brothers were still awake, or if their Basic VR Helmet had already arrived. Did they already join Forgotten Lands, or were they still busy dealing with all the videos and guides?
His brothers were still asleep, but he found a bunch of sticky notes with their ‘beautiful’ handwriting. They notified him about the progress of his channel and that his Videos and Guides had been featured on MeTube. But that was not all. Apparently, some professional gamers made a video praising Zayn’s channel and his tips and tricks. They said that they learned a lot from him and that it was worth paying a small fortune to learn how to make real money in Forgotten Lands.
However, professional gamers were only a minority of Forgotten Lands Players who praised him. The majority of praises came from ordinary Players, who’d been fortunate enough to find Zayn’s channel and guides early on. They made videos, reels, and created forum threads to thank Zayn publicly after getting a tenfold return from their initial investment. They invested a few hundred Credits into Zayn’s video and guides but the information they obtained allowed them to grow stronger much faster than before. Using some of the less popular grinding spots introduced in his Guides allowed these Players to accumulate enough Soul Essences and Card Shards to upgrade their first Foundation and combine a complete Card.
Using the momentum they garnered thanks to Zayn’s guides, they changed their grinding spot and fought challenged stronger enemies, further elevating their drop-rate for Soul Essences, Card Shards, and complete Cards. It was only a matter of time before they would be rich…and it was all thanks to Zayn.
Over the course of 12 hours, Zayn gained more than 20,000 followers with close to 1,000 being devout followers, who donated enough Credits to gain early access to small snippets of the scheduled guides and videos.
“That’s surprisingly much faster than expected. Maybe, I should give you more attention,” Zayn mumbled as he read through a bunch of comments. One of his goals was to strengthen mankind in its entirety in case he failed to destroy the Anchors of the World Bridges before they stabilized. Of course, Zayn would give his utmost to prevent the worst case, but he wanted to be prepared for all cases.
And it seemed like the videos and guides he and his brothers released managed to do just that. They earned him a fortune all while giving essential pieces of information to the masses of Players.
“What else can I do to guide them?” Zayn asked himself, smiling as he began to write down a few more notes. He wrote his brothers a few messages, telling them to reschedule the guides and videos. They should be released sooner. Other than that, his brothers should read through the comments and find out what most Players were curious about. Zayn saw various comments asking about Lifestyle Occupations, useful Card combinations and so on. These comments received hundreds, some even thousands of likes. They could be used to create more Guides and Videos to strengthen mankind by supplying information as well as earning a fortune.
Once Zayn was done writing down all messages and some notes for himself, he began to work out. His workout lasted 45 minutes and he panted heavily. Every muscle in his body was sore and he felt like cursing himself. The training he underwent was a mixture of a particular set of exercises that trained most muscles in his body. It required a tremendous amount of nutrients to unravel its potential and would only show full effectiveness if practiced with Energy.
Unfortunately, Zayn’s body was still void of Energy. The assimilation of the Foundation Orbit and the awakening of his Heart Deck wouldn’t start until six months after he joined Forgotten Lands. That was rather unlucky since he couldn’t make full use of his set of exercises, but it was not the end of the world. He could supplement his body with enough nutrition for the time being.
That was if Zayn had any Nutrition Solutions at home. That was not the case, which was also why he felt so miserable right now. Every cell in his body screamed for nutrients, yet Zayn couldn’t quench their thirst.
‘Well.’
Since his body screamed for Nutrition Solutions, he might as well get some. Zayn changed into gym clothes and decided to go for a short jog. It was after midnight, but it was not uncommon for athletes to use the cool night to go for a jog. A fresh breeze brushed through his hair as he found himself leaving the house. The streetlamps illuminated the darkness around him, guiding him on his path to the nearby gym. The Dragon Lair was a gym that was open 24 hours every single day in the year. It was a wonderful place where thousands of powerful Players had been trained in the past.
It was only a matter of time before all Players would realize that their real-life fitness, finesse, and mental capacity were directly related to their potential in Forgotten Lands. Some professional Players must have noticed it by now, but the vast majority of Players were still clueless. At least, until Zayn’s Advanced Guide for Forgotten Lands’ Players would be released.
“It’s only a matter of time before some professional gamers and gaming corporates will set a bounty on my head,” Zayn chuckled lightly. He didn’t take it seriously, even though he understood that many professionals, and those who wanted to turn Forgotten Lands into their gold mine, wanted to keep certain game mechanics and facts about Forgotten Lands a secret.
If Zayn wanted to be a lone emperor, a ruler above all, he would keep his knowledge a secret as well. It would take months, or maybe even until after Forgotten Lands turned into reality, before some of the facts he was willing to reveal openly, would be known to the public. At least, that was the case in the old timeline. This time, it would be different. Zayn was there to reveal all the secrets, after all!
The logo of the Dragon Lair gym was a humongous eastern dragon. Its lengthy body coiled around the name ‘Dragon Lair’, whereas a blazing flame burst out of its mouth. The words 24/7 open were engraved on the flame. The designer of the logo did a very good job. Zayn loved it.
He entered the Dragon Lair gym and stepped into a large, speckless clean hall filled with all kinds of machines. The wall on the left was clad with mirrors that must have been cleaned recently. In front of the mirror wall was a lengthy rack of weights, several adjustable benches, and bench presses. On the other side of the expansive hall were various machines, two of each type. However, the most interesting was the large fighting ring that covered the majority of the gym’s center.
“This branch of the Dragon Lair is a dojo as well? That’s news to me,” Zayn mumbled. It was more that he never really cared. The dojo might have been there for a few years already.
“Are you new here?” A young man in his 20s asked when he noticed Zayn at the entrance.
Zayn turned his head to the young man wearing the Dragon Lair’s gym clothes and nodded, “I’m new here, but I’m only here to buy some Nutrition Solutions. I forgot to stock up and forgot how tiring my workout session can be.”
“You’re low on nutrition from a single workout? That must have been a monstrous session,” The young man responded. Only now did he see that Zayn’s exposed arms and legs quivered. More precisely, his muscles trembled wildly, probably from exhaustion.
“Is a Low-grade Nutrition Solution enough for you, or do you want a Mid-grade Nutrition Solution? We have some Dragon Breath Nutrition Solutions as well. It’s from our brand. Their quality is higher than Low-grade Nutrition Solutions and specifically made for workouts. They’re priced at 700 Credits per bottle.”
Zayn thought about it for a moment. He was not sure what to purchase. All he wanted was to supplement his body with enough nutrition.
“I take two bottles of Dragon Breath. Let’s hope it’s as good as you advertised,” Zayn joked lightly before he paid 1400 Credits.
The young man went to the freezer and retrieved the bottles.
“Dragon Breathe has to be maintained at a temperature between -4 to 6 degrees Celsius to maintain their quality. I can give you a cooling box and some ice since you didn’t bring anything with you,” The employee offered but Zayn shook his head.
“I don’t think that’s necessary,” He responded, removing the lid of the first bottle. The content of the bottles was only 200 milliliters. Zayn finished the first bottle with a few gulps. The cold brew flushed down his throat right before unleashing an inferno of heat throughout his entire body. Every cell in his body was activated and infused with the highly potent nutrient of the Dragon Breath that swept through him at once.
The corner of Zayn’s lip curled upward and his muscles twitched as the refreshing nutrient reached every nook and cranny at last. Zayn opened the lid of the second bottle and swallowed the liquid at once.
“That…might have been a little bit too much for your body. Even professional athletes participating in world championships wouldn’t consume two Dragon Breaths like that. Not after a normal workout, at least,” The employee said, apologizing to Zayn before offering, “If you feel that your body is overflowing with nutrients, you can use the Dragon Lair gym free of charge for today. It was my fault for not warning you about the Dragon Beath Nutrition Solution’s high potency.”
Zayn tilted his head. He felt perfectly fine. If anything, he felt better than ever. His muscles were still a little bit sore, but he could tell that they were filled to the brim with nutrients. They were already regenerating, and it was only a matter of time before they would have regenerated into stronger and more durable versions.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine. I was low on nutrients after my last workout. Like…really low,” Zayn explained, but the employee didn’t quite understand how Zayn could be standing still. He should be breaking out into a sweat from a nutrition overflow right now.
“You… are you sure that you will be fine?” He asked once again, only to see Zayn smile lightly.
“I feel better than ever. Thanks for worrying about me.”
Zayn liked the employee. He was a nice guy. Thus, Zayn talked a little bit to the employee about the Dragon Lair gym, his workout session, the set of exercises he used, and Forgotten Lands. Zayn didn’t say much. All he did was explain some facts about his workout to clarify that there wouldn’t be an issue with his body.
The employee was very interested in his set of exercises but Zayn didn’t have the time and interest to go into detail. Maybe, he would tell the employee a little bit more later. It was quite nice to talk to a stranger outside Forgotten Lands. It gave Zayn another reason why he should never allow the Primordial Pantheon to win…not again.
After a good 20 minutes of talking, the young men separated. The employee went back to another guy, who’d been working for a while, whereas Zayn left.
“Since when are you so talkative? Have you been lying to me all those years?” A young man in his late 20s asked the employee, Leonard Ritheon.
“I’m not that talkative…I don’t know what’s going on either,” He responded, his eyes narrowed as he watched Zayn leave. Zayn waved him goodbye and wished him a good rest in the morning, only for Leonard Ritheon to stare blankly at Zayn’s bright expression.
“Why does he look so familiar?” He mumbled, tilting his head. Something felt weird.
At that moment, a face covered in blood, deep gashes, and scars flickered in front of his eyes. The face was oddly familiar. It was Zayn’s face, but it didn’t look the same. The face flashing in front of the young man’s eyes was older, and void of joy.
It was the face of a man, who had overcome the end of the world.
