[You have selected option one.]

  [You have acquired the skill: Mozambique Drill (Basic).]

  [You have acquired the skill: C.A.R. System (Intermediate).]

  [You have acquired the life skill: Precision Mechanical Engineering (Expert).]

  [Mozambique Drill (Basic): A close-quarters combat technique involving two rapid shots to the body followed by a headshot.]

  [C.A.R. System (Intermediate): Grants an additional +1 to Dexterity. A comprehensive combat system that integrates close-quarters and ranged attacks, moderately increasing your combat effectiveness.]

  [Precision Mechanical Engineering (Expert): In this world, no one understands precision machinery better than you.]

  "Not bad," Wayne Stilwell muttered, a satisfied smirk playing on his lips.

  In the world of "Apocalypse," you could never have too many Skills. Besides their individual uses, Skills could be combined in a unique gameplay mechanic called Skill Fusion.

  Players could expend experience points to fuse two or more intermediate-level Skills, creating a new, basic-level Skill. Fusion had a chance to fail, with a base success rate of 60%. This rate increased with the level of the initial Skills. For instance, fusing two advanced Skills was almost guaranteed to succeed, while two intermediate Skills had a 40% chance of failure.

  Even if the fusion was successful, the new Skill wasn't necessarily powerful. However, it would definitely combine aspects of the original Skills. And if the new Skill was underwhelming, you could always try again, since the original Skills were retained, albeit with their proficiency reset to zero.

  For example, there was a must-have fusion for Warrior Players. By combining the combat Skill [Slash] with the general Skill [Dodge], they could create [Evasive Slash]—a god-tier Skill that was both offensive and defensive.

  Julian Thorne was particularly interested in the Dodge Skill. However, acquiring it required a Dexterity stat of 10. When he first arrived in this world, his Dexterity was only 8, but now he had finally met the requirement.

  This was one of the most appealing aspects of "Apocalypse." As long as you had enough experience, you could create countless new Skills. Once these Skills formed a coherent system, you could even create a new class at an NPC.

  However, in the four years the game had been running, no one had managed to achieve this feat.

  And that was precisely Julian's goal.

  His Natural Force Affinity and Arcane Affinity were both zero, meaning he couldn't become a Warrior or a Mage. So, he might as well create his own class.

  With only a month and a half left until the Beta Testing, he needed to create his new class within that time. As for the name? He was leaning towards "Gunslinger."

  A class that primarily used firearms, combined with elements of mysticism and mechanics, and was highly effective against dark creatures.

  Of course, the most important thing was that it had to be cool. That way, he could rake in the dough from the Players.

  The game panel updated again.

  Character: Julian Thorne/Wayne Stilwell

  Race: Human

  Template: NPC [Beta Testing Countdown: 47 days, 12 hours, 22 minutes]

  Level: 2

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  Class: Student/Assistant Instructor [1/10]

  Secondary Class: Linguist [2/10]

  Natural Force Affinity: 0

  Arcane Affinity: 0

  Talents: Tony Stark (Purple)

  Attributes: Strength 10, Dexterity 13, Constitution 8, Willpower 9, Intelligence 9, Charisma 99

  HP: 80/80

  Stamina: 96/96

  Willpower (Stat): 9/9

  Mana: 0

  Life Skills: Basic Alchemy (Basic), Mysticism (Intermediate), Precision Mechanical Engineering (Expert), Gambling (Advanced)

  Normal Skills: Expert French Fluency (Expert), Pickpocketing (Intermediate), Basic Shooting Proficiency (Advanced), Pickup Artistry (Expert), Ripple Breathing (Basic), Mozambique Drill (Basic), C.A.R. System (Intermediate)

  Other details omitted.

  In his Quests log, the progress of the hidden Quest [A Literary Life] had reached 523/1000. It seemed his previous self wasn't a stranger to books.

  All in all, it was a good haul. Julian contentedly opened a book he had borrowed from the library. 'Learning makes me happy,' he thought sarcastically.

  The book was about the Alchemist Secondary Class, titled "Equivalent Exchange: The Origins and Development of Alchemy," authored by an unknown alchemist named Tom Chambers.

  The book was filled with dry alchemical theories, along with some obscure terms and illustrations. Julian patiently read through it. After half a minute, the panel finally displayed a message.

  [You are self-studying Basic Alchemy. Based on your Willpower, your proficiency has increased by 2 points (Extreme Calm +0.2).]

  [You are self-studying Basic Alchemy. Based on your Willpower, your proficiency has increased by 3 points (Extreme Calm +0.3).]

  [You have learned a new alchemy recipe.]

  "Just like in the game," Julian thought, his heart filled with excitement. He focused and continued flipping through the pages.

  A 150-page book granted him nearly 200 proficiency points. He then picked up a second book... By the time he finished all the books he had brought, his Basic Alchemy proficiency was about halfway full.

  He also learned two new recipes: the Basic Brute Strength Potion, which increased attack power, and the Basic Stone Shield Potion, which increased defense.

  Just then, a knock came at the door.

  Probably John. Julian, without bothering to put on a shirt, went to open the door.

  He opened the door to find a rather pretty girl standing outside. She had brown hair, light brown eyes, and looked to be in her late teens. She was wearing a typical Briceton dress, but her legs were so long that the skirt seemed a bit short, revealing a pair of straight, fair legs that made him take a second glance.

  It was her... Rosie Lily, the alchemy prodigy, considered the second-best waifu by future Players in "Apocalypse". The reason was simple: she was cute, had a great figure, and those legs... well, who doesn't love a cute girl with long legs?

  In his fragmented memories, although they both studied under Professor Wesley, they didn't interact much. She was quite shy, always acting serious, but whenever she saw him, she'd blush and avoid him like a startled deer.

  "Ah..."

  Rosie Lily covered her mouth in shock, seeing Julian shirtless. True to form, she lowered her head, fiddling with the hem of her dress, her long legs shifting nervously. "Mr. Stilwell, could you please put on a shirt?"

  Julian didn't tease her further and started putting on a shirt while asking, "What can I do for you?"

  Recalling her purpose, Rosie took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and imitated Professor Wesley's tone, "Professor Wesley asked me to tell you that you can make any potion you want, but no more Healing Potions. Also, you'll be in charge of the orientation for new students four days from now."

  She actually did a pretty good impression. Julian nodded with a slight smile, "Got it. Anything else?"

  "Hmm? Do you want a donut?" Rosie subconsciously pulled out a donut from her pocket.

  "Sure." Julian took the donut from her hand. It was still warm.

  "..."

  Realizing what she had done, Rosie hung her head in embarrassment. She had a bad habit of eating when she was nervous, and the more nervous she got, the more she ate. She had messed up again.

  After seeing Rosie off, Julian shook his head with a smile. She was kind of cute, in a way.

  For the next two days, Julian followed his routine, shuttling between the alchemy lab, the library, and his apartment. Although his memory was still fragmented, he gradually pieced together his relationships. His best friend was his roommate John, and he was also on good terms with a chubby guy named Fred from the next room. It seemed every protagonist needed a fat friend.

  Unlike the first day, Julian didn't churn out as many potions. On the first day, he made Basic Mana Potions and Basic Brute Strength Potions. On the second day, he made some Basic Mana Potions and Basic Stone Shield Potions. By noon on the second day, his Alchemy Skill leveled up, and the long-awaited panel notification appeared.

  [Your proficiency has reached 100%. Alchemy has reached Intermediate level.]

  [You have acquired the Secondary Class: [Alchemist's Apprentice]. Willpower +1. You have gained 1 free Attribute Point.]

  [You have learned the Skills: [Potion Brewing], [Item Transmutation], and [Conversion].]

  [You have learned new recipes: Intermediate Healing Potion, Intermediate Mana Potion, Gold to Iron.]

  The real benefit of reaching Intermediate Alchemy wasn't these three somewhat useless recipes, but rather that he had finally met the prerequisite for learning a god-tier alchemy recipe.