"What's going on here? Can someone explain this to me? Is this a movie shoot, The Truman Show?"
"Hey, there's more than one newbie here."
"What exactly do you mean? Can you explain it clearly?!"
"Wait, I'll explain." The man with a cigarette butt stuck in his mouth spat twice in disgust, his eyes full of resentment. "What the hell is this? Why was I assigned this identity? Why are some people dressed so well while I'm just a refugee?"
"That uniform makes other people look like officers, but on you it looks like a security guard. You can blame it on the uniform if it makes you look bad, but if I really changed it, I'm afraid it would hurt your self-esteem."
The man who was complaining about the man was a rather thin young man, who looked to be in his early twenties. Like the man, he was wearing a shabby scarf, the dark blue frayed fabric was frayed and covered with a thin layer of dust. When he moved around a bit, the dust that flew up was pungent.
"My name is Sun Qi, and this is my teammate. You can call him Shang Shan. We are both players who have played five games."
Sun Qi was overwhelmed by the smell of the scarf, so he took it off his head, took a deep breath, and began explaining the game to the two new players present.
"In short, it's not a dream. Try to survive, especially if you don't clear the game in two rounds. If you die and don't get enough points, you're really done for."
The two newcomers, Xiao Wang and Xiao Su, were ashen-faced. "I just won five million in the lottery before I came in, and now it's all gone."
Xiao Su, on the other hand, took it easy. "I'm just taking it one day at a time. Now that it's getting exciting, are there any rewards for winning this game? Money or something?"
"I'm not giving you anything, I'm just taking advantage of you." The woman in tattered clothes walked through the crowd to the largest window and looked outside.
The Gobi Desert was whipping up sand and dust, and the wind was so strong that the sand and gravel were being blown straight at the glass.
The truck the players were in had a high chassis and a roaring engine. The woman took the opportunity to observe the other players through the bleached glass.
When she saw Shi Jinzhe and Shehe, she glanced at the two of them.
He was dressed neatly and cleanly, and didn't seem to care much about this round of the game; his overall demeanor was very relaxed.
Especially Shekh's unique attire, with its deep purple dress spotless and standing out from the other players who were covered in dust, clearly indicated that her identity in this round was very special.
While the woman was observing, other players were also glancing at the two of them sideways.
Some were curious, some were surprised, and some were eager to curry favor.
White hair and a blindfold—these two features are so distinctive that you can identify the person at a glance.
Some people started to plan and think about how to get closer to them.
In the corner, a young man who hadn't uttered a sound stood up and walked towards Shekh.
Compared to his tattered clothes, his clothes were intact and were also in uniform style, but without any patterns or designs, clearly indicating a different rank, belonging to a lower-ranking member.
"My name is Aji. Do you need any helpers? I can do anything."
Aji lowered her head, as if embarrassed, and shyly revealed a set of white teeth as she glanced at Shekh.
He wasn't very experienced, so in order to improve his success rate, he spent all his free time on player forums. He had read many of those discussion posts and had seen people mention this woman more than once.
The player who can be mistaken for the boss is said to be able to transform into a giant snake; his identity is shrouded in mystery, but he is incredibly powerful.
As for the white-haired man next to him, he was rarely discussed, his strength was not mentioned much, and the strength of his skills was unclear.
Aji had reservations and decided not to try to be nice to him from the start. If the man wasn't anything special, it would be a waste of time and not worth it.
"I have a notebook in my pocket about this operation. It has a very detailed plan. Take a look, sister. It should be helpful to you."
Before handing out the notebook, Aji wiped it with her palm, showing a mix of anticipation and trepidation.
The big shot he encountered in the last round had a vain mentality of being worshipped by subordinates and enjoyed being fawned over by everyone.
Now that other players are watching, and she's deliberately acting so cautiously, she should feel very proud and be able to fully experience the desire to dominate as a leader.
As long as you give him enough face, things will be easy, and he can get preferential treatment and be taken along in the game.
Under Aji's bright, sparkling eyes, Shekh took the palm-sized notebook.
Aji's face immediately lit up, but the next second she heard her say:
"I can't read."
"Ahem, ha." Sun Qi, who was watching the show, covered his face, trying to hide his obvious laughter.
Young man, you're too young.
Two people have been teaming up for a long time, and you insist on being clever and ignoring the other one. Without others knowing your true strength, where do you get the confidence to be treated differently?
He's far too self-important.
Regardless of what others thought, ignoring Aji's stiff expression, Sheh took the things and handed them to Shi Jinzhe, saying, "Take a look."
"Hey! Sister, if you can't read, I can read to you!"
"No need." Shi Jinzhe glanced at it briefly and tossed it into Aji's hands. "It's useless to us, take it."
Aji: "You didn't watch much..."
“If he won’t look at it, I’ll look at it for him.” Shang Shan took the notebook and read it aloud to everyone without any hesitation.
The notebook contained a general overview of the rescue team. Including the driver, a native, the other fourteen people in the vehicle had been replaced by players by the system.
There were only four legitimate rescue team members. Shekh's identity was not listed, and the other nine were refugees who had been forcibly brought in, all of whom were weak, sick, and emaciated.
Men are unable to work, and women are exposed to too much radiation and cannot give birth to normal children, so they can only be used as stepping stones and bait to feed the monsters.
After Shang Shan finished reading, he passed the notebook around to read. "There is algae in the car that can generate oxygen. If we leave this car, we must wear breathing equipment. In addition to the lack of oxygen, there is also radiation outside."
There is a difference between oxygen and the element oxygen. When the oxygen content in the air decreases, people may not react immediately. By the time they realize the problem, their blood oxygen levels are already too low and they have lost consciousness.
In this environment, in order to compete for resources, the stalled industrial technology came in handy in the last battle.
The crisis caused by nuclear radiation has exacerbated the survival problems of the world's original inhabitants. The organisms adapted to the low-oxygen environment have mutated generation after generation. Everyone who leaves the shelter and goes out will be exposed to a high-risk environment of hypoxia and radiation.
That's only one aspect. Another is the hidden radiation monsters, which always appear in groups, chasing after mutated algae just like humans.
Shangshan summarized: "So one of our tasks this time, finding algae, is essentially going to fight monsters."
Xiao Su's mood immediately soured: "What kind of monster is it? Will it be like the ones in the movies? Isn't this supposed to be a survival game? Can't we just play it safe?"
"Fine, then go ahead and play it safe." Shang Shan respected the individual's choice and returned the notebook to A Ji.
"You've all examined all my clues, shouldn't we make some exchanges... Isn't that going too far?"
Aji looked at Shekh with a clear purpose: "Isn't this a bit unreasonable?"
"What makes you think you can reason with me?"
Shekh bluntly stated the facts.
She has no interest in protecting people outside of her immediate circle; that is not her responsibility or obligation.
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