Genius Summoner - Chapter 2004 - : A Strange Auction (1)

Ethan Cross was just an ordinary college student in his past life—until he died trying to save a banker playing hero. Now, he finds himself reincarnated in “New World”, a realm plagued by Dread Beasts, where only those who awaken Aethermarks can become Heroes.But there’s a problem.Ethan has awakened as an E-rank Hero, the weakest tier, cursed with only one ability slot—a death sentence for any aspiring warrior. With no powerful clans willing to recruit him and the world already looking down on him, his future seems bleak.Until he discovers his Innate Talent: Sanctum of Beasts.This mysterious power grants him access to a personal dimension, where he can hunt endless waves of Dread Beasts. Unlike the real world, slaying them in this space drops Ability Fragments, which he can combine to gain abilities without slot restrictions. Even better? Time flows differently—he can train for days, yet only an instant passes in reality.Determined to rise from nothing, Ethan embarks on a secret journey to accumulate power. But as he completes missions and unravels the truth about the Black Pits, he realizes there’s something far more sinister lurking beneath the surface.The Hero Association hides dark secrets. Villains roam freely in the shadows. And Dread Beasts may not be the mindless creatures everyone believes them to be.With powerful enemies watching his every move, Ethan must play a dangerous game—remain unnoticed or become the hunter of both beasts and men.But one thing is certain:In this world, strength is everything. And Ethan Cross will carve his own path to the top—no matter the cost.

The amiable looking patriarch is gazing at a stone monkey: “Wukong, what do you want to learn from me?” “It’s all up to master’s instruction.” The stone monkey respectfully replied: “As long as I will be able to beat up Tathagata, then it’s alright.” One hundred years later, the stone monkey defeated Tathagata and ascended the throne, becoming the Jade Emperor.

- Description from rhadoko

Quinn Winter is a young man from another world. One day, he is suddenly chosen to become the new Demon King. But the Demon Kingdom is in big trouble – it's losing a terrible war against the human kingdom called Gran'le.To help his people, Quinn comes up with a risky plan. He will sneak into Gran'le and learn their secrets. But things don’t go as planned. A powerful noble sponsors him, and he ends up joining Heavenward Academy, the top school for training future heroes.At the Academy, there's a big challenge called the Selection. The best students become Paladins – magic knights who fight demons. Quinn doesn’t want to become a Paladin. He is a demon king! But now, he’s stuck in the Selection… and if he wins, he’ll become the very thing he’s supposed to destroy.He started the day badly. Now, things are getting even worse.

Several hundred thousand players are trapped in a gritty zombie apocalypse survival game just after game launch. There are hints that deaths in the game might be serving some other terrible purpose in the background of reality…

The main character, Liu Gan, is a quadruple amputee in real life. A quirk in the server code recognized his prosthetic limbs as ‘real limbs’ in game, giving him ‘normal’ arms and legs that nonetheless have the strength and power of steel limbs, and thus far more power than a normal player. With this minor cheat helping him survive the early stages of the game, Liu Gan sets out to find out what exactly is going on, and to endure as long as he can.

- Description from Novelupdates