"Think of a Dungeon as a special kind of challenge room," Kael explained as he led the trio. "Where you’ll face a gauntlet of various foes. This specific instance is called the Goblin Mountains."

  "As the name suggests, the inhabitants are exclusively Goblins."

  Kael continued his walkthrough, casually swatting away a few stray Throwing Goblins that dared to cross their path. As previously noted, a starter-map dungeon posed zero threat to Kael, even if he were soloing it. This run was purely a promotional stunt—a livestream to hit his quest goals.

  To ensure Qin Shi and Luo Yuanxing soaked up enough experience points to level up, Han Ming stayed at the edge of the fray. Fortunately, Lady Luck was smiling; the Goblin Boss dropped a skill book on their very first run.

  "Skill Book: Fireball," Kael noted, glancing at the loot. "Who wants it? It’s a Fire Mage skill."

  "Me! That’s me!" Qin Shi shouted instantly. His eyes were wide with a frantic desperation, as if he feared someone might snatch his dream right out of the air.

  [System: Activate Skill 'Fireball'? Cost: 60 Spirit Crystals. Proceed?]

  "Yes!"

  Qin Shi didn't hesitate for a microsecond. Sixty Spirit Crystals were deducted, and the skill book dissolved into a streak of crimson light, surging into the space between his brows.

  "This... this is Fireball?" Qin Shi gasped, digesting the sudden flood of information in his mind. "I feel like... like I was born knowing how to do this." His heart hammered against his ribs; the excitement was nearly unbearable.

  It was real. He could actually learn magic!

  Recalling what Han Ming had told him the day before, Qin Shi immediately logged out of the New World Mode. Sure enough, he felt a faint, thready wisp of mana circulating within his body.

  "Fireball!"

  Mana coalesced at his fingertips, and a tiny, flickering spark of flame flickered into existence. Beside him, Luo Yuanxing stared with eyes full of raw, unadulterated envy.

  Snap!

  Kael snapped his fingers and let out a lazy yawn. "Han Ming, did you forget to mention something? No magic allowed in the shop—did you leave that part out?"

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  "I—I’m so sorry, Manager!" Qin Shi stammered, his voice thick with emotion. "I just... I got carried away. Please, forgive me!"

  While Qin Shi was drowning in joy, the rest of the customers watching the big screen were drowning in pure, unmitigated shock.

  "That was definitely the aura of mana just now. My senses didn't fail me," Blood Wolf muttered, staring at Qin Shi in stunned silence.

  "Your senses are fine. It's just that the Boss snuffed it out before it could grow," Tiger Hunter confirmed, his voice laced with disbelief.

  They were looking at two ordinary young men who, until moments ago, possessed neither Battle Qi nor Mana. To see one of them suddenly manifest magic was nothing short of a miracle. They knew their perception was accurate; the 'scent' of a commoner is fundamentally different from that of a cultivator. To a seasoned warrior, the shift was as jarring as a sudden clap of thunder in a silent room.

  But if Blood Wolf and Tiger Hunter were merely shocked, the Orchid Leaf Squad was reeling. They knew Qin Shi’s background inside out—he was a textbook case of a talentless waste who couldn't cultivate to save his life.

  Seeing him release a fireball—even a tiny, half-formed one—shattered their understanding of the world.

  "Qin Shi just used magic... I'm not dreaming, am I?" Even the usually composed Lan Ye rubbed her eyes, trying to force her brain to accept what she was seeing.

  The shock was paradigm-shifting. If a person’s natural aptitude could be altered this easily, the world wouldn't be full of "useless" commoners. Having zero affinity for mana meant your body literally couldn't hold energy. It was an iron rule of biology.

  "That shouldn't be possible. Can the Manager actually change a person's core aptitude?" Lan Qing'er whispered, her voice trembling.

  "Wait... that Fireball was the skill book the Manager just looted in the livestream," Feixue said, regaining her cool faster than the others. "It has to be because of that 'New World Mode.'"

  "Sister Feixue, you mean...?" You Jiu trailed off.

  "It seems the Manager’s new mode is more than just a game," Feixue praised, her eyes narrowing thoughtfully.

  "So, you're saying Qin Shi can use magic only because of the New World Mode?" Xia Ya asked bluntly.

  "Precisely. At the moment, it's the only logical explanation," Feixue nodded.

  "Well," Lan Qing'er said, letting out a breath. "I was getting a bit tired of getting thrashed in the Multiplayer Arena anyway. A change of pace sounds good."

  She had realized that in Kael’s shop, the word "impossible" didn't exist. First, there were the pills that permanently boosted stats—breaking the rule that stats only increased through leveling or trials. Now, the shop offered solutions for talent, mana purification, and physical tempering. Was there anything this place couldn't do?

  "Let’s go activate the New World Mode," Lan Ye commanded. If Feixue’s theory was right, this mode was infinitely more valuable than the others.

  She wasn't the only one who reached that conclusion.

  "Notify the rest of the brothers," Blood Wolf barked to his men. "Everyone activates New World Mode. Now!"

  "If a commoner can learn magic in there, imagine what it’ll do for us," Tiger Hunter said, cracking his knuckles in anticipation.

  The Single-Player and Multiplayer modes were perfect for honing combat instinct, but they were limited. The New World Mode was different. It was designed by the System (guided by Kael's ideas) specifically to enrich the gameplay—and, more importantly, to squeeze every last Spirit Crystal out of the customers.

  But one thing was certain: while it was fun to watch, once you stepped into that world and played for the first time, there was absolutely no turning back.