1: Chapter 1 Talent Awakening, Gold-Tier Hextech Heartsteel

Blue Star, 2200 AD.

A full century had passed since unknown interdimensional forces tore through space barriers, and massive hordes of monsters swept across the globe.

A century of war had brought human civilization to the brink of collapse. The global population had plummeted by ninety percent, and the once-prosperous nations and cities had all been wiped out, leaving only giant Safe Zones protected by thick alloy barriers, struggling to guard the last embers of human survival.

National boundaries had long since dissolved, and racial barriers had completely vanished. All remaining humans on Earth were now under the unified jurisdiction of the Blue Star Federation.

Talent Awakening was the ultimate turning point in the lives of all young men and women raised in Federation orphanages.

Today, on the Awakening Plaza of the Ninth Public Awakening Middle School in the Seventh Safe Zone, nearly 10,000 students aged eighteen, all raised by the state, were gathered.

They had no biological parents, no familial bonds; they were all embryos artificially selected by the Federation. From birth to growth, they were raised, educated, and Awakened in unison, and today, they finally stepped onto the Awakening Ceremony that would determine their lifelong trajectories.

The air above the plaza was filled with a stifling silence. The teenagers looked tense, their breathing heavy, their eyes filled with undisguisable nervousness and anxiety.

Everyone understood the iron laws of Blue Star, carved into their very bones: upon turning eighteen, one could voluntarily choose whether or not to awaken a Talent.

Choosing to awaken meant being forcibly teleported into a one-star novice Dungeon to fight for survival. Surviving meant gaining extraordinary power and the chance to step into the upper echelons of humanity. Choosing not to awaken meant being confined to the bottom of the Safe Zone for life, working the most basic service jobs, receiving a meager minimum living allowance, and never having a chance to enter a Dungeon or gain power, forever trapped at the bottom of society with no hope of rising.

S-rank Talent, a one in ten million probability, was the top combat power protecting the human race; A-rank, one in ten thousand, and B-rank, one in a thousand, were both entry tickets to the Federation's elite class; Class C Talent accounted for nearly fifty percent and was the mainstream, yet it destined one to mediocrity, with holders barely surviving in low-star Dungeons; D and E-rank Talents were weak and pathetic, destined to be cannon fodder in the Dungeon.

Only the F-rank Talent, with the same one in ten million probability as the S-rank, possessed no combat power or growth potential, with attributes weak to the extreme. Awakening it was equivalent to being Dungeon cannon fodder, despised by the entire Blue Star and branded with the derogatory title of "trash Awakened."

"Quiet!"

An old yet majestic voice suddenly resonated throughout the venue. The principal of the Awakening Middle School stood on the high platform, his gaze sweeping heavily over the dense crowd of teenagers below, his tone grave and solemn.

"A century of catastrophe, monsters are not extinct, and the rifts do not stop. The survival of humanity depends entirely on the Awakened fighting to the death."

"The Federation implements a graded education system to ensure that the most potential-filled Awakened receive the best resources, allowing them to grow faster and become the sharp blades for humanity to fight against monsters. This is the Federation's choice, and it is a necessity of reality."

"Privileged offspring do indeed enjoy better conditions; their equipment is better, their resources are more abundant, and their starting point is higher than yours. This is a fact, and I will not shy away from it!"

"But the Dungeon will not let you live just because you are a privileged offspring, and monsters will not bite you more just because you are a state-raised child."

"In the Dungeon, Talent and equipment can give you a better starting point, but what truly determines whether you can make it to the end is your judgment, your execution, and your courage to fight for your life in desperate situations."

"You may not have those top-tier resources, but you have the qualifications to enter the Dungeon, and the qualifications to grab resources, kill monsters, and become stronger with your own hands."

"Every potion, every piece of equipment, every crystal—all can be fought for with your own lives. The Federation will not hand top-tier resources to you, but the Federation has never closed any door to you."

"Once a Talent is Awakened, it is irreversible and unchangeable. After awakening, everyone will be forcibly teleported to a one-star novice Dungeon. There is only one core principle: survive, and then become stronger."

"Remember, only by evacuating alive can you be considered a true Awakened. Dying in the Dungeon makes you nothing but forgotten cannon fodder."

The words fell, and the entire venue fell into silence, with not a single sound of chatter.

No one dared to fool around, no one dared to slack off. Everyone knew clearly that the Dungeon was filled with bones, and every year, more than half of the teenagers who participated in the awakening remained in the Dungeon forever, never to return.

The Awakening Ceremony officially began.

The Talent pedestals on the plaza lit up one by one with a faint glow. Green and blue halos flashed alternately; the vast majority Awakened ordinary Class C Talents. Occasionally, a dazzling purple halo would flash, representing the birth of a B-rank Talent, drawing gasps and envy from the crowd.

"A-rank! It's an A-Rank Talent!"

Suddenly, an excited scream burst out. The pedestal in the center of the plaza bloomed with brilliant golden light, so dazzling that everyone had to squint.

The teenager who Awakened the A-Rank Talent stood tall and proud on the pedestal, accepting the envious, jealous, and awe-struck gazes of everyone. With his status as a military officer-to-be, elite class, and supreme privilege, his future was already destined to be bright.

The principal watched this scene and nodded slightly, a rare look of approval on his face.

The ceremony continued, with some happy and some sad. D-rank and E-rank Talents appeared one after another, the holders looking pale and dim-eyed, having already foreseen their humble and desperate lives.

Before long, it was Lin Yan's turn.

He walked slowly onto the pedestal, his steps steady and his expression seemingly calm, though his heart was already churning.

No one knew he was not a native human of this world. Eighteen years ago, he had transmigrated from Earth and was born in a Federation orphanage, fatherless and motherless, just like all his companions, raised by the Federation.

Perhaps because of the transmigration, his learning ability was extremely strong; he was ranked first in cultural courses, theoretical courses, and practical combat courses.

But Lin Yan knew that Talent Awakening was random for someone like him, and he wouldn't get a good Talent just because he was excellent.

Walking to the Awakening Stone, Lin Yan slowly reached out, his fingertips touching the cold surface, but he couldn't help but pray silently in his heart: "Must give me a high-rank Talent!"

"Awaken."

The principal ordered in a deep voice, announcing the start of the ceremony.

Lin Yan closed his eyes, letting the light of the Awakening Stone slowly envelop his body. A weak force surged into his body, and the process of Talent Awakening was completed in an instant.

Lin Yan felt his spirit travel to a void space, where two light orbs floated before him—one gray and dim, the other shining with a deep, golden light.

He was overjoyed and instinctively wanted to choose the golden light, but a voice in his mind kept urging him to choose the gray-white orb.

By some twist of fate, his spiritual body touched the gray-white orb.

In an instant, there was no dazzling golden light, no brilliant blue light, not even the faint halo that ordinary Talents should have. Only a wisp of dim, gray-white, deathly light, so weak it was almost about to melt into the air, slowly rose up.

The entire venue first fell into a deathly silence, and after just a brief moment, it erupted into chaos.

"That gray light... Could it be the light of an F-rank Talent?! Lin Yan, the top student in the school, actually Awakened an F-rank Talent!"

"The one in ten million probability F-rank trash Talent, it actually appeared!"

"As rare as an S-rank, yet it's the most useless, most garbage Talent—it's simply a joke!"

"Hilarious, an F-Rank Weak Constitution, it only adds 2 points of Constitution with zero growth potential. Once in the novice Dungeon, he probably won't even be able to beat the lowest-level Rift Rat; he's definitely going to die in there!"

Mockery, disdain, ridicule, schadenfreude—all kinds of harsh sounds swept toward Lin Yan.

Surrounding students subconsciously stepped back, avoiding him with looks of disgust, as if standing next to an F-rank Talent holder would bring bad luck. In everyone's eyes, Lin Yan was already a dead man; for a century, very few F-rank Awakened had managed to walk out of a one-star novice Dungeon alive.

"Why did it have to be an F-rank trash Talent? What was that voice just now..." Lin Yan kept reviewing that feeling, but on the surface, he pretended to be calm, revealing nothing.

The principal's expression was grave, and he took a deep look at Lin Yan, his eyes full of helpless sighs. This young man had excellent grades in all subjects, but fate was cruel, and he had Awakened an F-rank Talent. The one in ten million S-rank was the hope of humanity, while the one in ten million F-rank was a useless burden.

He picked up the registration book, quickly recorded the information, and announced in a deep voice: "Lin Yan, Talent F-Rank Weak Constitution, Awakening qualified."

After the announcement, the principal's voice sounded again, spreading across the entire plaza: "All personnel have finished awakening. Immediately teleport to the one-star novice Dungeon! The Federation will uniformly issue standard Dungeon equipment. Remember, items not produced in the Dungeon cannot be brought into the Dungeon space!"

"After entering the Dungeon, if possible, be sure to rendezvous with others in time. Students with poor Talents can only improve their survival chances by sticking together. Even with an F-rank Talent, as long as you can entrust your back to each other, you can go much further than an A-rank fighting alone."

"The Federation is with you! May you all return safely!"

Pure white teleportation lights covered all the Awakened in the venue one after another. There was no extra comfort, no pause, and the space suddenly twisted and tore.

Lin Yan's figure instantly disappeared from the Awakening Plaza, forcibly teleported to the dangerous and unknown one-star novice dimensional Dungeon.

[Welcome to the one-star novice Dungeon — Rift Wasteland. Dungeon duration is 72 hours. Find the Evacuation Point and successfully initiate the evacuation procedure to return.]

[Initial Level: 0. Five basic attributes are all 1 point, with no additional bonuses.]

A cold system prompt sounded faintly in Lin Yan's mind.

He opened his eyes, and what came into view was a dim, desolate, and broken world.

Ruined walls and debris were everywhere, and the air was filled with a thick smell of blood and the stench unique to monsters. From time to time, low and violent roars of alien beasts came from afar, deadly and terrifying, revealing danger everywhere.

This was the one-star novice Dungeon, Rift Wasteland, the only absolute Safe Zone within the Dungeon—the spawn point.

The surroundings were empty. All the Awakened from the same period were randomly scattered and teleported. Lin Yan stood alone in place. Just as he steadied himself, a unique, cold, mechanical voice that only he could hear suddenly exploded in the depths of his mind.

[Detected that the host has entered a dimensional Dungeon for the first time, the hextech system is officially bound!]

[System Uniqueness: Invisible, undetectable, and unplunderable to others, with no trigger restrictions.]

[Core Rules: Every time you enter a new Dungeon, landing at the spawn point automatically triggers a hextech three-choice-one; the effect is only valid for the current Dungeon and disappears after leaving or failing the Dungeon. Every five Dungeons cleared, one hextech can be solidified.]

hextech system?!

Lin Yan's pupils constricted suddenly, and a monstrous wave rose in his heart. The memory of being a veteran player of Hextech TFT in his previous life instantly flooded his mind. He never dreamed that the golden finger he had been waiting for for eighteen years since his transmigration would be fully activated at this desperate moment!

Before he could digest this surprise, three light screens glowing with brilliant golden light appeared out of thin air before his eyes. The text on the light screens was incredibly clear.

[Hextech Quality: Golden-Tier!]

[Selectable Hextech:]

First Hextech: Vampiric Habits — Gain 30% omnivamp effect.

Second Hextech: Executioner — Deal 10% extra damage to targets with health below 30%; after killing a target, immediately refresh all active skill cooldowns.

Third Hextech: Heartsteel — After marking an enemy unit for 3 seconds, the target reveals a fatal weak point; striking the weak point deals additional true damage equal to 10% of your maximum health, and permanently increases the host's maximum health limit by 20% of the damage dealt, with a 30-second cooldown per target; for every 1000 maximum health increased, your own size increases by +3% (up to 30%).

Lin Yan's gaze swept rapidly across the three Golden-Tier Hextechs, and countless operational strategies from his previous life flashed through his mind instantly.

These three Hextechs were each heaven-defying, with combat strength approaching an A-Rank Talent, easily crushing his chicken-rib F-Rank Weak Constitution.

And his gaze was locked tightly onto the third, "Heartsteel," his breathing unable to stop from quickening.

As a veteran Hextech player, he knew too well the horror of Heartsteel. It was not the strongest in immediate combat, but it was the god-tier Hextech most suitable for "turtling" and relying on stats to crush everything in the late game.

Vampiric Habits focused on sustained output, Executioner leaned toward battlefield cleanup, and he didn't have any active skills to learn yet, so he couldn't use it.

As for Heartsteel, as long as he could play steadily and continuously strike weak points, he could stack health infinitely, forming an infinite loop of "the higher the health, the higher the weak point damage; the higher the damage, the faster the health stacks." In the late game, he could push through all monsters and Awakened of the same level with physical attributes alone!

"I choose you!"

Lin Yan didn't hesitate at all; with a thought, he directly selected Heartsteel.

[Successfully selected Golden-Tier Hextech: Heartsteel, effect activated!]

[Current Maximum Health: 300, Heartsteel Stacking Layers: 0.]

A gentle yet incredibly tough force instantly swept through his entire body. Lin Yan clearly felt that a strange perception had been added to his consciousness, allowing him to lock onto the weak points of enemy units. At the same time, the vitality within his body seemed to have infinite potential for growth.

He immediately summoned his personal attribute panel in his mind, and the detailed information appeared in full:

[Current Level: 0] [Current Attributes: Constitution 3, Strength 1, Agility 1, Spirit 1, Luck 1] [Current Health: 300 / 300] [Current Mana: 100 / 100] [Physical Attack: 20] [Magic Attack: 10] [Physical Defense: 20] [Magic Defense: 15] [Speed: 10] [Talent: F-Rank Weak Constitution — adds 2 points of Constitution] [Skill: None] [Equipment: Standard Set (adds 5 Physical Defense), standard issue dagger (adds 10 Physical Attack)] [Experience required for upgrade: 0 / 100] [Free Attribute Points: None] [Items: low-level health potion × 3 (restores 20 health per second, lasts for 10 seconds); some food]

(Attribute Rules: Constitution 1 point = 100 Health + 5 Physical Defense + 5 Magic Defense; Strength 1 point = 10 Physical Attack; Agility 1 point = 10 Movement Speed + slight attack speed increase; Spirit 1 point = 10 Magic Attack + 100 Mana; Luck 1 point = slightly increases drop rate of rare items from treasure chests and trigger rate of special events.)

Looking at the attributes on the panel and feeling the power of Heartsteel within his body, the bitterness in Lin Yan's eyes dissipated, replaced by a firm, cold glint.

So what if it's an F-rank trash Talent?

So what if everyone mocks him?

He had the hextech system. One day, he would crush all prejudices and strong enemies, break through this solidified class structure, and in this monster-ridden Blue Star, walk his own path of a king.

In the distance, the roars of low-level monsters were getting closer. Lin Yan gripped his standard issue dagger tightly, restrained his aura, and walked slowly toward the depths of the Dungeon.