Zongman, Rebirth of the Heaven-Defying Kirito

Kirito exited the SAO game interface, took off his NERvGear, and wore a triumphant smile on his face, having just defeated Lord Grim.

He stretched, hummed an unknown tune, and walked briskly to the living room on the first floor.

Suguha, who was sitting on the sofa, heard footsteps and looked up at Kirito, her eyes full of curiosity: "Onii-chan, what's wrong? You seem to be in a good mood."

Kirito proudly raised his chin: "Don't be surprised to hear that. Just now, I learned an advanced dual-wielding sword technique!"

"Advanced swordsmanship?!" Suguha looked surprised, her eyes widening. "Isn't that something you need to accumulate a lot of skill points to learn? Onii-chan, you actually accumulated enough!"

She naturally knew how high the threshold for advanced skills was. Ordinary players often had to invest a lot of points in low-level skills, and it was difficult to have extra points left for advanced skills.

Kirito, who only invests in a few skills and keeps saving up his ultimate move, is an anomaly.

"That's right, I've been saving it up for a long time." Kirito nodded, a hint of pride in his voice. "But its power is truly astonishing; you have no idea how amazing it is!"

"That's great~" Suguha sighed enviously, "Unlike me, I don't have enough skill points to learn advanced skills."

"Hehe~ Next time there's a chance, I'll let Naoko see it for herself." Kirito chuckled and patted Naoko's shoulder.

After talking about how he had learned advanced skills, Kirito's gaze fell on his younger sister.

Zhiye was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, her phone screen still lit up, as if she had been browsing something.

So he asked curiously, "Xiao Zhi, what are you looking at again? Is it school news?"

"No, it's the latest SAO push notification." Suguha shook her phone, her tone tinged with a hint of感慨 (gan3kai3, a feeling of mixed emotions, including amusement and disbelief). "It says someone has already defeated the boss on the 21st floor. That's really fast."

"Huh? Really?" Kirito's smile vanished instantly upon hearing the news. "I want to borrow it too!"

Suguha handed her phone to Kirito, and the screen displayed the latest news pushed by the official SAO account.

The message title was particularly eye-catching: "[Congratulations to the player team for successfully defeating the SAO Floor 21 BOSS [Holy Dragon - Nine Pillar Gods]!]"

A photo from the scene was also included below.

In the photo, a group of players are surrounding a giant, fallen dragon-shaped monster. From the players' perspective, it is clear that the monster's health bar has been reduced to zero, and the name "[Holy Dragon - Nine Pillar God]" is particularly eye-catching.

The monster had crimson skin and was covered in heavy golden armor. Even after it fell, its massive body still gave off a strong sense of oppression, making it easy to imagine how difficult it would be to defeat.

"It really is true." Kirito muttered to himself, handing the phone back to Suguha.

He was indeed a little disappointed that he couldn't participate in the battle against the boss on the 21st floor.

But Kirito quickly came to terms with it, realizing that missing out was normal and there was no need to worry about it.

Soon, Kirito was once again immersed in the double joy of defeating Lord Grim and learning the 'Starburst Stream Slash'.

He got up and went to the kitchen, where he poured himself a chilled drink.

But just as he was carrying his drink out of the kitchen and about to take a sip, the news he had just seen suddenly flashed through his mind.

Kirito abruptly stopped, then abruptly asked Suguha, "...You just said which floor's boss was defeated?"

Suguha was taken aback by Kirito's sudden question and looked at him with a puzzled expression: "The twenty-first floor boss, Onii-chan, didn't you just see the news? How could you forget?"

She really didn't understand why she was suddenly asking the same question again when everything was fine just now.

"This is a big problem!" Kirito's relaxed expression vanished instantly, replaced by urgency.

Then he put down his drink and turned to run towards the stairs.

"Onii-chan, you haven't drunk your drink yet!" Suguha called out hurriedly as she watched Kirito's hurried back.

"Just leave it there, I'll come back to drink it when I'm done!" Kirito's voice came from above the stairs, and his figure quickly disappeared into the second-floor corridor.

Suguha sat on the sofa, completely bewildered: "What's going on? It's just that the new floor's boss was defeated, why are you so agitated?"

Only Kirito himself knows how important this matter is!

What does it mean that the 21st floor has been conquered?

This means that the 22nd floor of SAO is about to open!

Of course, this is not just empty talk; for Kirito, the twenty-second floor is the real focus.

He clearly remembered that in the original SAO storyline, Kirito and Asuna bought a wooden house by the lake on the 22nd floor.

It was also the place where Kirito and Asuna's relationship quickly blossomed, leaving behind many precious memories.

How can we just hand over such an important 'treasure trove' to other players?

Moreover, if you arrive too late, the cabin will be sold to someone else.

Therefore, Kirito must return to the game as soon as possible, get to the lakeside immediately, and seize that wooden house!

Not long after, in Asuna's room at the Yuuki residence.

At this moment, Asuna was finishing her homework. Although there wasn't much left, as a top student, she was still taking it very seriously.

Just then, her phone, which was on the corner of the table, suddenly vibrated and lit up, interrupting her train of thought.

"Whose message is this at this time?" Asuna put down her pen and picked up her phone in confusion.

The sender was Kirito, and the message was brief yet conveyed anxiety.

[Kirito-kun: Urgent! Urgent! Urgent! I'm waiting for you on the 22nd floor of SAO!]

"Wait for me on the twenty-second floor?" Asuna looked puzzled, wondering what Kirito's intentions were.

Fighting monsters together? With Kirito's strength, there are very few monsters he can't handle.

Could it be a special mission that requires two people to complete? But if it's just a mission, he wouldn't be in such a hurry.

She stared at her phone screen, then glanced at the homework on her desk that she was almost done with, and hesitated for only a moment.

Homework was indeed important, but Kirito's urgent tone made her feel that there might be an emergency.

Besides, I can catch up on my studies anytime I have time, but if Kirito needs help, I can't just ignore him.

Asuna quickly made a decision, closed the homework, lay flat on the bed, skillfully put on the stealth helmet, and pressed the start button.

Link Start!

As SAO was activated, Asuna's consciousness instantly entered the game world. She remembered Kirito saying he would wait for her on the 22nd floor, so she crushed the teleportation crystal again.

A dazzling light flashed, and her gaze shifted again.

When the light faded, a lush forest appeared before them—this was the outer edge of the twenty-second level, the [Natural Forest].

Unlike the dark and oppressive 'Predator Forest' I visited before, or the 'Great Tree Sea' teeming with vicious insects.

The sun shines brightly here, and even the insect monsters flying in the distance look adorable.

Having grown up in the city, Asuna found this vibrant and beautiful forest to be exactly what she fantasized about nature!