The Newt and Demon - 7.9 - Fluff and Expand

[The 34th Galaxy Award for Best Online Novel][The No.1 on the Science Fiction Literature IP Adaptation Value Potential List (2023)][The Best Chinese Science Fiction Online Novel]…Have you heard?When the night is deep and silent, if you open your music player, put on headphones, curl up under the covers, and cover your head, listening to the same song on loop.After the loop has played forty-four times and you fall asleep, if you’re unlucky, when you open your eyes again, you will no longer be lying in your own bed, but will have entered a bizarre space completely isolated from reality.That space… on the surface, it appears to be places we commonly see, such as one’s own bedroom, the living room at home, the underground garage, the bathroom, the basketball court, construction sites, etc., but if you observe carefully, you’ll realize that everything is different…everything.====This is the story of an ordinary person, named Common, who after acquiring supernatural abilities, gradually transforms and grows in an alternate world, ultimately reaching the pinnacle of their experience.

Ren Kuroda, a college student and hardcore gamer, finally conquers Eternal Souls: Last Judgment, an unbeatable RPG, only to be met with a strange message on his screen.“Congratulations, Champion. Would you like to unlock the bonus stage?”When he clicks “Yes,” he is transported straight into the game world, reborn as Terence Ross, the overlooked third son of a minor noble family. Realizing he’s just an extra in a world teetering on ruin, Ren trains relentlessly to survive the coming chaos.However, life wasn’t smooth sailing.He was soon engaged to Lilith Underwood, the girl destined to become the game’s final boss, the Third Great Calamity. To avoid her devastating future, Ren takes a risky approach, trying to make Lilith emotionally dependent on him in the hopes of anchoring her humanity.Yet, his plan backfires spectacularly. Lilith’s attachment becomes a fierce obsession, one that could be just as dangerous as her dark powers.Now, as doom inches closer, Ren faces a double-edged crisis. He must keep Lilith’s powers in check while somehow surviving her unrelenting need to keep him by her side.In a world where even heroes fall, can an extra rewrite his fate? Or will he be claimed by the calamity he tried to prevent?

Facing extinction, humanity seeks salvation in the Astral Verge, a dangerous dimension accessed via portals that threatened to wipe out the entire planet.Few years later, aspiring recruit Daniel Vance enters the Verge for his final assessment, hoping to Awaken a Talent and secure his future. While others gain common abilities, Daniel secretly Awakens the mythical SSS-Grade Talent: [Soul Assimilation]. This allows him to absorb essence, enhancing gear, gaining stats and EXP from slain creatures, and crucially, absorbing attributes and skills from fallen Awakened.Witnessing the swift death of the arrogant Jaxon Rex, Daniel makes a grim choice: he assimilates Jaxon, gaining his first skill, [Kinetic Pulse]. This sets his path: scavenging the aftermath of others’ battles. He enhances gear and, after achieving his first kill on an injured beast, waits patiently to assimilate two more fallen recruits, acquiring [Quick Step] and the invaluable passive [Aura Sense].Starting as average, Daniel rapidly gains power in secret, enhanced gear, multiple skills, and boosted stats , far exceeding his peers while remaining outwardly unremarkable. He navigates the lethal Verge alone, using its inherent dangers to fuel his growth, wrestling with the moral cost of his unique, overwhelming power.