Chapter 4 Obsidian City

No one knows exactly how big Obsidian City is. Some people have tried to find the city's edge, but no matter which way they go, they can't reach the end. It's not a case of being lost in a maze; it's just that they really can't find it. The city is simply too big, with at least tens of billions of people. This is just everyone's guess.

They were all people captured by strange beams of light and thrown into real-world replicas.

"A real copy?" Rong Yi asked, puzzled.

Zheng Kangping nodded, "That's right, real-world instances. Except for the newbie instance, which was specially created, all other instances take place in the real world. The people you encounter and the things you see are not NPCs or holograms, but real entities."

"How can we be sure? Maybe we're in some virtual world."

Zheng Kangping looked at the liquid in the cup. "Perhaps. Some people entered the dungeon and found it very familiar. Then they found their own homes and friends and said they were missing. They thought they had escaped the dungeon, but those places were actually dungeon locations. Countless eyes were watching us struggle inside."

"Try having a drink, who knows if we'll even make it out of the next dungeon alive." Zheng Kangping had ordered a drink at some point, pushed it in front of Rong Yi, and said in an ambiguous tone, "Enjoy life while you can."

Rong Yi remained calm, but a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he glanced at Zheng Kangping. "No need. Thank you for informing me. But what do you mean by watching us struggle?"

Zheng Kangping was so startled by that glance that he froze, as if the girl in front of him was not a newcomer, but a battle-hardened goddess of death who could draw her sword and kill him at any moment.

He swallowed hard and replied, "According to those who have been in contact with the high-end instances, we've all been captured to participate in a real-life program. Every move we make is being broadcast, but not everyone has an audience. To escape this endless series of instances, we need to attract an audience outside."

"Will falling for someone lead to a good outcome? Will it end everything?" This was Rong Yi's first thought.

Based on the information we've received so far, the possibility of them escaping is virtually zero. They don't even know where they are, let alone how they can escape.

·

Rong Yi quickly left the bar. Obsidian City was a cage that had been built to imprison players who had survived the dungeon. They were fed, drunk and entertained, and lived there like domesticated beasts. When the time came, they would be thrown into the arena to fight, in order to entertain the audience outside.

Some people here were traveling alone like her, while others were traveling in twos and threes. She took the opportunity of buying goods to ask some questions about the dungeon.

After wandering around for a while, I roughly figured it out. There's no countdown for the dungeon, and the rest days can be a few days or a month or two. Sometimes you're thrown into the dungeon while you're sleeping. Of course, you can also choose to enter the dungeon yourself, since you have to spend points to eat, drink, and have fun in the city, and you have to earn them eventually.

So when Rong Yi saw people suddenly disappear on the street, he knew exactly where they had gone.

Looking at the system interface, besides the personal information displayed, there's an online store next to it, and something similar to a communication software, which allows you to send messages and bind your account.

Sending messages isn't just limited to text; you can even send items through this system. Binding allows you to team up with teammates, and once bound, you can go to the same dungeon together. Teaming up provides a greater sense of security than being alone.

There are no so-called factions in Obsidian City, because too many people die in the dungeons. The person who was talking to you just now may disappear the next moment.

Right now, she can only afford basic necessities in the mall; forget about those magical items.

As for this talent, the shop sells talent-enhancing potions. They're not too expensive, costing 100 points per injection. Once injected, they can stimulate genetic potential, and what kind of talent is unleashed depends entirely on the individual.

Talents come in all shapes and sizes. The lowest level is physical, such as increased strength or far-seeing eyes. Better ones are like the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

However, most people's talents lie in physical strength, and they mainly rely on various tools, just like ordinary people ultimately make up the majority in society.

Rong Yi looked at the talent section of her personal information and saw that it said "none." She felt nothing about the talent-enhancing potion, but for some reason, she was very confident in her own strength.

I bought a storage backpack and shrimp meat, and I still have 8 points left. The survival supplies I was rewarded with are priced at 5 points in the shop, and that's for a non-tiered product. Tiered survival supplies cost at least 20 points, which is too expensive for a poor guy like me.

The prices of items in the mall are fixed, but the prices of the stalls and shops outside are not. The shops are basically run by high-end players, and the items they sell are collected from the dungeon world. These people have better survival skills, so they can rent shops to sell their goods.

Rong Yi spent 5 points to buy a waterproof and fireproof camouflage uniform, the kind that covers the whole body completely. This kind can only be bought in the store.

I found a shop selling medical supplies and bargained for 3 points to buy a set of medical supplies. The selection of medicines was quite extensive, including anti-inflammatory, antifungal, analgesic, and hemostatic drugs. There was even an insecticide, and the instructions said it could dissolve all common parasites. In addition, there were drugs that stimulate adrenaline and excite the central nervous system.

She had planned to store some food, but it seems she is even poorer than she predicted. Fortunately, she still has compressed biscuits and water as survival supplies.

I've used up all my points, but I still have a dagger from the system that I can use for weapon forging.

Just as the thought of forging a weapon crossed my mind, a system notification popped up: "[Use weapon forging?]"

"use."

The dagger in his hand seemed to be scattered by an unseen force, then reassembled, its shape unchanged from before, except that the blade had turned pure black and looked even sharper. Rong Yi flicked it with his hand, and the echo was good, so he nodded in satisfaction.

Obsidian City has day and night, and the night is even more lively than the day. Rong Yi waited until the second day and then took the initiative to enter the instance.

[Instance: Survival of the Brave]

Basic task: Reach the designated coordinates within 72 hours.

Basic Rewards: 50 points; Weapon Forging / 1 time; Burst Beads / 3

Advanced task: The top ten players must reach the designated coordinates.

Advanced Rewards: 100 points; 1 Tier 1 Shield

Penalty for failure: Falling into the Land of Pain

Rong Yi was wearing camouflage clothing, even her neck was wrapped up, her hair was tied up and tucked into a fisherman's hat, and she was carrying a storage backpack. In front of her was an endless expanse of green, with occasional strange noises echoing. Looking up, she could only see dense branches. At this moment, she was in the middle of the jungle, with no one else around.

He put on leather gloves and over-the-knee leather boots, took out his dagger, and prepared to go.

The system interface provided coordinates and even offered automatic navigation. Rong Yi scoffed; the task was definitely not that simple, but he had to hurry and set off.

Luckily I bought this outfit. The surroundings and the ground beneath my feet were full of weeds and vines, as well as fallen tree trunks.

As I lifted my leg, the weeds rustled against my trouser leg, and even with my fisherman's hat on, I could feel water droplets hitting my head.

The dagger was forged to be extremely sharp, capable of easily cutting through vines as thick as a finger joint. Rong Yi carefully watched the path beneath his feet and followed the navigation.

She had no choice but to follow the navigation, as she had no idea what the situation was like in this area and there were no other maps available.

(End of this chapter)