The wind roared in Gene's ears as he fell through the open sky.
Falling towards the ground at full speed was usually a terrifying experience for a normal person, but he had ten years of experience dealing with terrible situations and random drops.
So he just kept his eyes open, ignored the rushing air slapping his face, and tried to get his bearings.
The thing about Genesis is that it is not just one big open map where everyone runs around doing whatever they want for as long as they want.
Its entire world is broken up into different stages, and the system has a very strict timer for every single one of those stages.
No one is allowed to stay in the same zone for more than a hundred days.
If a player fails to clear the main objective within that time limit, the system just kicks them out.
They get respawned right back on their home planet, and the system opens up another trial gate in some random city to recruit a poor replacement.
It is a harsh cycle of failing and replacing until the final roster is locked, which means time is always working against you.
Gene looked down past his legs to see exactly where the system was dropping him today.
The landscape rushing up to meet him looked exactly like a modern city, complete with skyscrapers, apartment complexes, and giant billboards.
But there was one difference that changed everything. Instead of structured roads and sidewalks running between the buildings, the entire ground level was completely flooded with deep water.
The buildings were just sticking out of a massive lake like glass and islands.
A blue screen popped up right in his line of sight, blocking the wind for a second.
[Stage 1: Submersion Zone]
➢ [Quest Created]
➢ [Find a weapon suitable for your style in three days]
'Ah, I need to find my axe quick,' Gene thought, watching the dark water get closer and closer.
He had left his camping axe back in the park after dragging that rabbit across the pavement, so he was currently dropping into a dangerous monster zone completely empty-handed.
But it would've been useless anyway since you can't carry anything from Earth.
[First Blood Bonus]
[Gene Riven receives +100 skill points]
[Skill points can be used to develop your techniques]
'Fuck yes,' Gene thought, an actual grin spreading across his face despite the wind peeling his cheeks back.
Skill points are literally the hardest currency to gain in this entire place.
You could fight low-level monsters for a whole week straight and maybe scrape together two or three points if you were lucky.
Starting the very first stage with a hundred points in the bank without even doing a single quest was a massive head start.
It gave him the flexibility to upgrade his skills right off the bat after receiving, putting him miles ahead of anyone else dropping into the zone today.
The system was not done handing out rewards just yet.
Two small icons appeared in the corner of his vision.
[You have received 'Enchanted rope']
[You have received 'Infinite Bottle']
As soon as the text faded away, his clothes started to change right in the middle of the air.
The jeans and the old black jacket he wore to the park completely vanished and were instantly replaced by a black uniform with sharp golden outlines at the edges.
It looked almost like military gear but felt much lighter and more comfortable against the wind.
Players who manage to survive the trial and enter Genesis always have their physical bodies go through a big upgrade.
The system essentially doubles their normal human strength just so they can actually survive the basic falls and the hits from low-level monsters.
And this new uniform is explicitly designed to help them take physical attacks without instantly bleeding out from a simple scratch.
Gene stretched his arms and felt the new dress pull nicely against his skin.
His muscles already felt denser and much more responsive. When he first got these starting items ten years ago, he actually thought this whole game was going to be relatively easy and honestly believed that as long as he kept clearing the games, the generous gods would just keep giving him more bonus items and cool clothes to wear.
But the first stage is the only time the system ever gives users anything for free to help them survive.
After this initial drop, there are no more handouts, free weapons or magical clothes.
Everything depends entirely on your own performance, how many things you can kill, and how smart you play the market.
The flooded city was coming into view.
He was aiming straight for a cluster of tall office buildings with huge glass windows.
Diving straight into the unknown water below seemed like a terrible idea, considering what kind of creatures usually lived in the Submersion Zone.
Those waters were practically a death trap for fresh players who did not know how to swim fast or defend themselves in the dark.
Gene reached his hand out, taking the new item from his inventory into reality.
The Enchanted Rope materialised right into his palm.
It was thick, braided, and felt sturdy.
As he plummeted past the side of a tall grey building, he spotted a large open window on the fifth floor.
He pulled his arm back and threw the rope hard toward the opening, using every bit of his newly doubled strength.
The enchanted fibres practically moved on their own, flying straight through the open window like a snake and automatically wrapping tightly around a desk sitting inside the office.
Gene gripped the rope with both hands just as the slack ran out.
His downward momentum jerked him hard, but his upgraded muscles allowed him to hold on tight without ripping his shoulders out of their sockets.
He swung in an arc right through the open window, his legs skidding across the floor as he landed safely inside the abandoned office space.
'Okay,' Gene thought, letting out a long breath as he stood up straight and dusted off his knees.
He let go of the rope, and the item instantly disappeared, safely storing itself back into his system inventory for later use.
'Let's go meet the players.'