God of Trash - Chapter 4. Cashing In

After years of exile, Marcus is coming back home. A powerful mage with few equals, Marcus lives in a world full of monsters and powerful adepts, many of which have bad histories with him. But he has not come back to pursue vengeance or start a fight. All Marcus wants to do is reconnect with old friends, build himself a house, and maybe train a successor or two.Alas, the world didn’t stop just because Marcus went into exile, and not everyone is content to let go of old grievances. Strange things are happening in the world at large, too, hinting at a looming disaster of unknown nature. Still, where there is a will, there is a way.If nothing else, Marcus has a lot of magical power to throw at problems.+++Zenith of Sorcery is set in its own original setting and isn’t related to Mother of Learning… beyond being written by the same person, of course. This is a more classical fantasy story than my previous one, with a lower level of technology and stuff like elves and dwarves, but it has a lot of worldbuilding effort put into it and its own complex magical system. The story has significant xianxia influences, but isn’t meant to be a xianxia story.For those of you not familiar with my previous work, I write relatively slowly. I intend to publish chapters at the rate of one chapter every three or four weeks, subject to further delays as life intervenes.

He lived like a king, died like a grandpa... and woke up as a bratty villain inside a fantasy novel.Nice.Born into the mighty Arkanveil family, he’s expected to grow up spoiled, arrogant, and doomed. But sorry, fate — he’s got better plans.Armed with a broken Proficiency Panel, two god-tier Traits, and the mind of a seasoned conqueror, he’s here to rewrite the script.Demigods plotting. Councils scheming. Demon Emperors laughing.They’re all just EXP waiting to happen.Pretending to be a clueless baby genius, he secretly trains, conquers, and stacks power like a final boss.Because this time, the EX-Rank Villain isn’t playing to survive.He’s playing to win.The world’s greatest families have no idea what’s coming. But hey... they’ll find out soon enough.“EX-Rank problems require EX-Rank solutions.”

The world’s largest VRMMO, Conviction, was almost like a second world for humanity. It had integrated itself into the real world’s economy, with both corporations and individuals seeking their fortunes through the game.

In this game, Nie Yan prided himself in his Level 180 Thief. He could barely be considered among the top experts in the game. Though, that was the only thing he could take pride in. He was penniless and unable to advance in life; a situation he was forced into by the enemy of his father. If it weren’t for the little money he made by selling off items in Conviction, he would’ve barely been able to eat. In the end, he chose to settle his matters once and for all. He assassinated his father’s enemy. He lay dying shortly after being shot in the pursuit.

However, that wasn’t the end of his story. Instead, he awoke moments later to find that he had reincarnated into his past self. Armed with his experience and knowledge of future events, he sets out to live his life anew.

“I hate this world. I hate everyone. There's no justice for the weak,”Once happy and carefree, Reign's life took a dark turn when he was kidnapped and undergone brutal experiments.These trials broke not only his physical body but also shattered his mind.In the end, his body couldn't withstand the ordeal, and he died like a pitiful lab rat.But death wasn't the end.He woke up in a new world as a corpse, armed with the Ultimate Mutation System.A system that enabled him to mutate and gain power in exchange for his own humanity.Determined to avoid being exploited again, he sets out to become a true powerhouse.He knew that being weak would only make him a target, especially now that he was a monster.“Kill or be killed.”That was his only option.