Donald''s expression was unusually serious.


    He said sternly, "Luca, what have I taught you since you were little? This money isn''t ours; we can''t take a single cent!"


    "Especially money of unknown origin; it could drag our family into danger."


    "Quick, tell me where you found this so I can return it to its owner!"


    Luca shrugged and replied, "Don''t worry, this money ispletely legitimate; I earned it ying games."


    He couldn''t tell if his parents felt surprised, but they definitely looked shocked.


    Especially Donald, who had been to battlefields and had seen too much of human greed and blood-stained money.


    This million-dor checkpletely rattled his battlefield reflexes.


    "ying games?" Both Sini and Donald were momentarily taken aback.


    They had considered many possibilities for where the money came from, but never thought Luca would say this.


    "How could you possibly make that much money ying games?" Sini questioned, skeptical. Her monthly sry was only a few thousand, and Luca casually earning what amounted to decades of her wages seemed far-fetched!


    Donald furrowed his brow as well.


    He didn''t doubt that you could make a lot of money ying games; rather, he sensed that his son was lying.


    He knew his son too well.


    However, Donald didn''t confront Luca.


    He believed his son wasn''t the type to joke about their family''s situation.


    Plus, he was curious to see how Luca would exin himself further.


    Seeing this, Luca shared the exnation he had already prepared.


    Itmainly to cate Sini; he didn''t intend to deceive Donald.


    If it had been before, Luca might have concealed the truth for a while, waiting for the right moment to speak up.


    But now that the game had begun to affect reality, it was likely that monsters had already descended.


    He needed to prepare his parents for the game world.


    Especially Donald.


    Luca wanted him to believe his words.


    Because there would be many things afterward that he would need his father''s help with.


    Under the shared understanding between father and son, Sini took the check with a mix of belief and skepticism and left.


    With an unexpected windfall of over a million dors, she needed some time to calm her nerves.


    After Sini ced the check safely, she stepped out to find her friend Zhou Yan to talk things over.


    Only then did Donald close the door.


    "Knock, knock!"


    He tapped Luca''s expensive gaming pod with an iron cigarette case, lit a cigarette, and frowned, asking, "Now, tell me what''s going on. You don''t need to repeat the part you used to fool your mother."


    Luca paused, then looked up at his father and said, "Dad, if I told you that things are about to get chaotic and that it will be worse than anything you''ve ever experienced, would you believe me?"


    "Why do you say that? What does this have to do with your million?" Donald didn''t indicate whether he believed or doubted.


    Luca didn''t answer directly but extended his hand. "Can you pass me the cigarette?"


    Donald frowned slightly but tossed the cigarette case to Luca.


    He didn''t like his son smoking, but Luca was already over eighteen, so Donald respected his choice.


    However, to Donald''s surprise, after taking the case, Luca didn''t open it.


    His hand slowly clenched.


    In the next moment, a screeching sound of metal grinding filled the room!


    Under Donald''s doubtful gaze,


    the iron cigarette case in his hand was squeezed and reshaped into a ball like y-Doh by Luca.


    "Clunk!"


    The cigarette fell from Donald''s mouth to the ground, sparks flying, but he seemed unaware.


    "What… how is this possible?" Donald''s voice barely concealed his shock.


    That cigarette case was made of alloy steel, designed to be worn on the chest to deflect bullets.


    If he hadn''t seen it with his own eyes, he could never have believed that someone could casually crush and mold it with just one hand!


    Luca extinguished the cigarette butt and shrugged. "There''s nothing impossible; you saw it for yourself."


    Donald was about to ask how he did it.


    When Luca shook his head. "I don''t know either. Ever since I entered the game, I''ve noticed I''ve be stronger, and my strength increases as my character levels up."


    "Then I found out that many bigpanies in the game are buying high-tier gear, and what seems like an ordinary item can sell for hundreds of thousands. That million was earned by trading equipment."


    "I suspect this enhancement in strength isn''t happening just to me. These bigpanies probably received information ahead of time, which is why I say things are likely to get chaotic."


    As Luca spoke, Donald instinctively observed his son''s changing expressions.


    To his astonishment, he realized he didn''t see any signs of deceit on Luca''s face!


    This meant that everything Luca said was true!


    Trembling, Donald reached for a cigarette.


    Then he remembered that the cigarette case had been destroyed by Luca.


    Donald furrowed his brows, feeling a bit unsettled.


    After a long while.


    He exhaled deeply.


    He said solemnly, "I''ll reach out to some old friends in the next few days to gather more firearms and equipment. After that, I''ll check the situation in the game." He added, "I hope this is just your imagination; otherwise, things might really change."


    On the surface, Luca nodded seriously, but inside, he wasughing.


    That was exactly what he wanted to hear from Donald!


    ...


    Meanwhile, in the training room of the Mages'' Association.


    The white cocoon that Luca had transformed into began to crack with tiny, sharp sounds.


    The outer shell started to peel awayyer byyer, like an eggshell, quickly revealing Luca wrapped inside.


    Jormungandr nced over, her eyes widening in disbelief.


    She eximed, "How did this happen? It''s like he''s turned into a different person!"


    [Ding! Congrattions, you have drawn the Superss fixed magic runes "Frostborn," with a quality of "Perfect"!]


    [Your skill "Magic Runes Drawing" has reached maximum level; you have gained 1000 points of free proficiency!]


    At this moment, Luca had undergone a significant transformation; his aura had surged more than twice!


    Not only had numerous silver patterns appeared on his body, but even his hair and eyebrows had turned silver, radiating a sharp, icy energy that even Jormungandr could feel chilling her to the bone.


    Luca opened his eyes, a cold light shing within. He stepped forward, and the temperature in the training room dropped dramatically. Centered around Luca, the walls and ceiling quickly became coated with a thickyer of ice visible to the naked eye.


    In the blink of an eye, the entire training room hadpletely transformed into a world of ice and snow!


    "This… is a Bronze Grade magic rune?!" Jormungandr was momentarily stunned. If she hadn''t known about Luca''s strength, she might have thought he was some high-level Demonic Rune Mage!


    Not to mention Bronze Grade; even a Superss fixed magic rune shouldn''t have caused such amotion!


    "Perfect quality! I did it!" After ncing at the notification, Luca let out a long sigh of relief.


    With the same magic runes but different qualities, the power varies significantly. A perfect quality magic rune could unleash up to 150% of the original magic rune''s power!


    All the effort he put in was worth it; he hadn''t wasted the hard-earned Superss materials.


    Checking his changes, Luca noticed that the magic runes on him were in an activated state.


    In this state, beyond the physical changes, his strength had significantly increased.


    Opening his stats panel, Luca saw that all four of his attributes had received substantial boosts.


    His mental attribute had doubled, surpassing 2000 points.


    His health had skyrocketed to an astonishing 30,000 points, nearly five times its original value!


    Moreover, he had gained the ability to freely manipte ice!


    "Is this the power granted by thatw rune?" Luca extended his hand, feeling the cold energy coalesce in his palm.


    In an instant, a magnificent, icy blue longsword formed in his hand.


    The sharp de shimmered with a cold light, emitting wisps of chill.


    With a thought, Luca sent the ice de flying toward the training dummy in the practice room.


    As it struck the dummy, the ice de pierced straight into its chest without hesitation, the powerful force sending it flying backward for several meters before it was brutally pinned to the wall.


    Immediately, from the point of contact, frost spread across the dummy''s body at a visible rate, radiating outwards towards the walls. This dummy, designed to withstand a full-force strike from a Gold Grade professional, was effortlessly incapacitated by Luca with just a casual blow—his strength had increased several times over!


    "Indeed, choosing to engrave that ice attributew rune was the right decision!" A slight smile tugged at Luca''s lips as he concentrated, causing the silver patterns on his body to slowly fade.


    Ultimately, they converged into an ancient, unique rune at his heart, gradually disappearing.


    He took a moment to check the specific skills of the "Frostborn" magic rune.


    [Frostborn: The only Superss magic rune. You have used "Hydra''s Icy Heart" and the "Ice Attribute Law Rune" to create a unique fixed magic rune that belongs solely to you. It grants you the incredible power to freely control ice and allows you to enter the magic rune awakening state.]


    [Skill 1 "Icy Heart": Passive skill. Your ice attribute damage is increased by 60%, cooldown times are reduced by 25%, and you can freely use mid-level and lower ice attribute skills. In the "Ice Pattern Awakening" state, you will enter an "Absolute Calm" state and can use high-level ice skills.]


    [Skill 2 "Ice Avatar": Active skill. You can create an ice clone that possesses all your professional skills and 80% of your base attributes,sting for 20 minutes with a cooldown of 24 hours. In the "Ice Pattern Awakening" state, the clone''s base attributes are doubled and it gains aberrant abilities.]


    [Skill 3 "Ice Pattern Awakening": Active skill. Upon activating the ice power within the fixed magic runes, you will enter the "Ice Pattern Awakening" state. Attributes are increased by 120%, damage is increased by 120%, ice skills are enhanced, and all skill cooldowns are reduced by 35%. This statests for 30 minutes, with a cooldown of 36 hours.]