How To Survive A Calamity - Chapter 174: Misery [2]

“What does it feel like to be a shadow?”People say it's bondage — the absence of light, of freedom. But what is freedom, really?The ability to choose whatever you want?Or... just a beautiful illusion masking the void?Strange question, I know.But you'll understand soon enough.Because my lives?They've always been a little... enlightening.— Kaiser

Immortal arts, magic weapons, magical powers, and the boundless spiritual qi between heaven and earth vanished into obscurity overnight, and all exorcists turned to mere mortals. Three hundred years later, the Five Hus traversed the pass, it was a prelude to an era of great turmoil in China. They heralded the end of the world, where thousands of drought fiends stalked the night —— the collapse of the Divine Land is imminent. Fortunately, within this long, dark night where silence had fallen on all magic, a lone star still glistened brightly on the horizon. The Heart Lamp appeared, illuminating the vast expanse around it. A sixteen-year-old young man, who will end his life on his twentieth birthday, embarked on a journey to reclaim the spiritual qi of heaven and earth that had been sealed away —— only four years remain. The road ahead was filled with countless thistles and thorns, and it seemed improbable for him to succeed. ———— Chen Xing: “The important thing is that I’m the last exorcist in this world, yet the only magic I am capable of is emitting light. What can I do?” Wait patiently then. When the Dinghai Pearl reappears on earth, the uncertain trajectory of everyone’s fates will be completely disrupted before converging once more. Chen Xing: “Could I be partnered with a more normal Protector Martial God?” Isn’t your Protector really skilled in fighting? Chen Xing: “He is good at fighting, but when he loses it he’ll hit even me……” There’s nothing that can be done about that, you can only blame yourself for losing yourself to lust.

After being killed by a high-velocity tree-hug, Arlo is transported to a new world of skills, stats, and levels where those brave and talented enough to conquer ancient Delves are rewarded with incredible supernatural power. Unfortunately for Arlo, there is no tutorial, and he is immediately forced to tackle a Delve set to the highest difficulty with a party of adventurers who are not only strangers to him, but strangers to each other as well. Arlo has no armor, no weapons, no knowledge of the world at large, and his party is growing increasingly suspicious of his lack of preparation and paper-thin excuses for how he got there.There's also the fact that the System seems to be treating Arlo's situation like a big, cosmic joke.Determined not to die again, Arlo forgoes putting any points into his highest stat, Intelligence, and instead dumps everything he's got into Fortitude. After all, who needs equipment or fighting skills when you can eat fireballs for breakfast and still ask for more hot sauce?Mage Tank is a comedic LitRPG adventure set in an epic fantasy world that is rapidly evolving as new and powerful secrets of the Delves are uncovered. There are strong horror themes, graphic violence, overindulgent use of naughty language, and poorly constructed jokes. Mage Tank features slow progression and intelligent characters who spend time making intentional build choices. It’s not action all-the-time, but Arlo’s life is replete with danger and, more importantly, consequences.Cover art generated with MidJourney and Canva.Maps and world-building support by Sir Raiu Koren.