Chapter 3
Player Lobby.
The cold, impersonal announcement had long since ended, but the crowd below continued to chatter and murmur, as if a pot had been boiled over.
"An A-rank dungeon with an A-rank boss? And a Ghost King at that?! Are you kidding me?!"
"I must have misheard. I must have misheard."
"Wake up! How could everyone here have misheard?"
"But that's an A-rank Ghost King! We've only encountered an A-rank Ghost King once since the Infinite Game started, and the consequences were..."
No one dared to take the next step.
A silent fear spread through everyone's hearts.
About a year ago, the Infinite Game descended upon the world, opening with 300 million people being pulled into an endless square.
At a glance, there were all kinds of people, regardless of race, age, or gender, and regardless of time or place. Among the shouting crowd was even a submarine captain from the deep sea.
The game's organizers displayed their mysterious and unpredictable power, but did not show up directly.
In the vast, boundless sky, only a circular shadow hung like a black hole, so large that it seemed capable of blotting out the sun.
As the shadowy figure drew near, looming overhead, everyone simultaneously received a shocking message.
Of the approximately eight billion people in the world, these three hundred million became the last survivors.
—To redeem the lives of the other 7.7 billion people and return to the real world, someone must be the first to clear [10] trials within three years and win this game!
Conversely, if no one succeeds in the end, they will be trapped in this infinite world, without end.
The meaning of "continuous" is easy to understand: you cannot skip levels, and you cannot fail midway.
"First pass" means participating in each trial that is generated for the first time. As long as you pass the trial in that period, you can count [1] times.
But the players at the time didn't realize how heavy the weight of those two words was when combined.
Especially when they learned that dying in a dungeon wouldn't mean real death, but rather the erasure of all memories and reward points related to the trial, their frowns immediately turned into joy, and their confidence soared.
What's there to be afraid of if it's a trial that won't kill you?
They have a total of 300 million people. If each of them spat out a single drop of saliva, they could flood the entire instance. Taking victory would be a piece of cake.
Until the A-level Ghost King dungeon "Marrying the Mountain Girl" is opened.
The number of players who participated in the first round was 254.33 million.
The final number of players who cleared the game was 1,867.
The survival rate is less than one in 100,000!
What's even more chilling is that no matter how difficult the dungeons were, all the dead players would be resurrected once the level ended.
However, after that A-level Ghost King dungeon ended, some players actually mutilated and committed suicide in the supposedly absolutely safe lobby!
They hallucinated that the mountain woman they were marrying was inside their own bodies. They cut open their skin and stomachs with knives. Due to the excruciating pain, the whites of their eyes were covered with hideous red blood vessels. They vomited blood and tore out their own flesh and organs, frantically roaring at the crowd for confirmation.
"Look! She's right here! Quick, help me catch her! Hurry! ...Why aren't you looking? Why aren't you saving me?! I'm going to be eaten alive by her!"
Then they cheered and danced wildly in the pool of blood, crying and laughing, completely deranged: "Hahaha... I caught the mountain bride, I cleared the level! I can finally go home... Hahaha, waaaaaah, Mommy..."
Players cannot die, wounds can be healed, and memories can be erased.
However, the resulting psychological damage can seep into the soul like a bone-deep infection, driving a person insane.
Since then, no one has dared to underestimate this life-or-death game concerning all mankind. In fact, half of them are so traumatized that they completely give up on completing the first trial.
The A-level Ghost King dungeon has become a persistent nightmare for them.
Shortly afterward, the trial notice was officially issued.
Players nervously clicked on the announcement information on the game interface.
When he saw the blood-red words "A-level Ghost King", his last bit of hope finally vanished, and he sank to the bottom.
Some people cursed and swore, while others gave up on themselves.
Veteran players who managed to beat "The Mountain Girl" back then were devastated and yelled, "No weakness! An A-rank monster king could never have a weakness!"
"The characteristics of the Ghost Kings allow them to continuously summon evil ghosts. They feel no pain, are incredibly powerful, and their hearts are filled with nothing but hatred and a bloodthirsty ferocity. They are extremely cruel, and when we encounter them, we can only run away or wait to die on the spot!"
An atmosphere of despair and oppression, like a cold wind blowing through a snowy landscape, seeped into the hearts of every player.
[The dungeon "Dog Menace" is scheduled to open tomorrow evening at 18:00. Stay tuned!]
A string of bloody words appeared on the game screen, with the last two words, "Expectation," slightly distorted.
An overwhelming sense of malice washed over them, as if mocking their futile attempt to stop a chariot.
.
Xie Xubai got up very early the next day.
I went to bed quite late last night, but I didn't expect to feel any discomfort when I woke up. On the contrary, I felt refreshed.
Xie Xubai couldn't help but feel great. When he looked up at the sky, the whole world seemed to become much brighter, and he had a sense of sudden enlightenment.
After a quick wash and getting ready, he grabbed his briefcase and some canned treats for his dog and headed out the door.
The sky, washed clean by the torrential rain, looked bluer and clearer than usual. The weather was fine and sunny, a truly beautiful day.
Since it was still early, there were only a few passersby on the street.
Xie Xubai jogged all the way to the entrance of the alley. The stone bricks here were pitted and uneven, and the water could not flow into the sewers, making the ground damp and muddy.
I thought the dog, who naturally hates water, would stay in its kennel and not come out, so I went to look deep into the alley. But when I looked up, I saw the dog.
It was a thin, bony figure, standing ramrod straight, craning its neck to stare intently at the other side.
The right side is the direction Xie Xubai goes to work, and the left side is the way home after get off work.
However, Xie Xubai doesn't walk this street to work, leading the dog to believe that the young man would only appear from the left.
As if telepathically connected with the other person, Xie Xubai laughed and called out loudly, "Peace!"
The dog's fluffy ears immediately stood up.
It turned its head and saw Xie Xubai, somewhat surprised, seemingly not expecting the young man to appear at this time.
Then its tail wagged rapidly, its joy evident in its expression.
Sure enough, they were waiting for him.
Xie Xubai felt a surge of warmth in his heart and couldn't help but smile.
Until the dog excitedly turned to the side, revealing wisps of dark shadow that had been hidden.
I initially thought it was a shadow, but looking at the number of branches, there were one, two, three... a total of six!
Xie Xubai stopped in his tracks, his pupils shrinking sharply.
"Woof—!"
The dog suddenly let out a loud howl.
Taking advantage of Xie Xubai's momentary daze from the roar, it swiftly kicked the tangled shadows.
Several shadows seemed to be impacted and flew backwards, skimming the ground.
Xie Xubai reacted quickly after regaining his senses.
He rushed over, taking three steps at a time, not having time to figure out what those things were. He held the dog protectively in his arms, staring intently at the spot where the shadows had disappeared, his face grim: "Ping An, are you alright? Is anything bothering you?"
"Woof."
The dog buried its head in his chest, seemingly comforting the young man and saying it was okay.
But if Xie Xubai lowers his head, you can see a dog's face full of guilt and nervousness.
Fortunately, Xie Xubai didn't look at the dog's expression.
— He chose to go straight for it.
"Ping An, wait for me here."
In the past, Xie Xubai would not have acted so recklessly.
But Ping An lives here, and he has to go to work soon, so he must first check the dog for any potential dangers.
Judging from the swift movements and small size of those shadowy figures, they must be small wild animals.
Just in case, Xie Xubai picked up a plastic stick from the ground to defend himself.
Seeing the young man's cautious steps, the dog was so frightened that its fur almost stood on end.
It hurriedly released suppressive energy at the ghosts hiding in the deep alley, fiercely warning them to hide well and not let the young man notice anything amiss.
The cats and dogs dared not disobey, so they sheathed their fangs and claws, shrank into mushroom-sized balls, and hid in the shade of the bushes and buildings, nervously pretending to be quails.
When Xie Xubai searched several times but found nothing, both sides breathed a sigh of relief.
"Did I see it wrong again?" Xie Xubai rubbed his forehead.
I've been feeling paranoid lately, maybe I should go see a doctor this weekend.
The delay was so long that Xie Xubai didn't even have time to cuddle with the dog. After opening the can of food and placing it next to the dog's bed, he had to rush to the company.
After he left, the ghosts peeked out from the shadows, curiously approaching the canned food that emitted an enticing aroma.
The stray cats and dogs that died in this area had never seen such delicious food; their best meal was scraps from the garbage cans.
They cannot be eaten directly; they can only inhale their aroma.
Although this way of eating makes the food tasteless like plaster, at least you can still eat it.
Unfortunately, the king of the spirits had no intention of sharing the food.
"Roar!" This is what he left for me, all of you get out!
A cold, icy roar sent all the cats and dogs fleeing in terror.
The dog used its tail to protect the can of food, and only after all the ghosts had run away did it let out a cold snort, lower its head to sniff, and then lick it carefully.
One hour later.
Xie Xubai arrived at the company building and stopped by to buy breakfast.
The breakfast shop owner was a middle-aged woman with a slightly round face. Since Xie Xubai often ate at her shop, the two became acquainted.
Seeing the young man running over from a distance, she skillfully picked out the freshly fried dough sticks and packed them into a bag along with the soy milk.
Suddenly her eyes lit up, and she exclaimed in surprise as if she had discovered a new continent: "Young man, you are so handsome? I never knew before."
The boss was genuinely impressed, but Xie Xubai didn't think much of it.
He always looks like this, and when he looked in the mirror this morning, he didn't think anything was wrong. He just took it as a normal greeting and smiled, saying, "Maybe I slept well last night, so I look more energetic."
"Boss looks as beautiful as ever today, with a great complexion. What brand of skincare products do you usually use?"
The boss waved his hand: "I work in the catering industry, busy from morning till night, covered in grease and smoke, why would I need skincare? You're just too sweet-talking."
She playfully complained, but her face beamed with joy as she coaxed him. Her chopsticks kept moving as she picked up another fried dough stick and put it into the packaging bag.
"Young people are growing, so eat more. Remember to help me promote this place later!"
Xie Xubai didn't refuse, and smiled as he accepted it: "Thank you, boss, of course."
After saying goodbye to the breakfast shop owner, Xie Xubai returned to the company to clock in for work.
As soon as I entered the door, I was startled.
He arrived not late, but the workstations were already full of people, slumped over their desks, their bodies seemingly emanating a dark aura that suggested they were about to die suddenly.
Xie Xubai was stunned for a moment.
He remembered that his colleagues had all gone home yesterday, so why did they look like they had been working overtime all night?
"Xie Xubai! What are you still standing there for? Are you out of your mind?"
Hearing his colleague's anxious call from the next table, Xie Xubai snapped out of his reverie.
Even without understanding why, driven by instinct, he quickly made the most correct move at the moment—he hurriedly sat down at his workstation and opened the office software on his computer, just like everyone else.
Just seconds after the computer screen lit up, a chilling roar echoed throughout the office area, so loud it sounded shrill.
The owner of the voice was burly and at least two meters tall, exuding a powerful aura. He moved with incredible speed and agility, traversing most of the work area in the blink of an eye, heading straight for Xie Xubai.
"Look at the time! You're only arriving now? Did the company hire you just to be a freeloader?!"
Author's Note:
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