[Passing Pure Love God of War]:
“???”
“You really are such a CS!
While we were sleeping, you secretly logged on and became a grinding machine?”
[Ji Luo]:
“Wocao, what happened?”
“Did you really go exploring the Black Forest at night?
Hurry up and tell us—what is it actually like out there at night?”
[Kindergarten Boss]:
“Little Maluo, staying up late is bad for your health…
But what does your screenshot say?
Night Survivor?”
Lu Ziye quickly opened the screenshot Maluo had sent.
Although the image had been exported through the consciousness-capture function and the background was somewhat blurry, the dark-blue system notification and its crystal-clear text could not possibly be faked.
[Hidden Explorer Achievement Unlocked: Dark Night Survivor!]
[…]
After seeing the screenshot, Lu Ziye’s morning drowsiness instantly vanished.
His eyes widened like copper bells.
[Passing Pure Love God of War]:
“Holy crap!
Physically immune?
Magic-type monsters?”
“More importantly, our current starting class, the Ash Apostle, can actually unlock skills?!”
During the day, they had still been complaining that the game was basically nothing more than a hardcore survival simulator.
There weren’t even any active skills.
They could only rely on wild punches and crude handmade spears to fight monsters in close quarters.
But now, seeing the words “unlock more skills for the Ash Apostle,” everyone instantly became wide awake.
Skills!
That was the soul of an online game!
Who wouldn’t want to stand safely in the back and throw enormous fireballs instead of grabbing a rotten piece of wood and charging into melee range against monsters?
[Malou Also Has Dignity] sent several extremely smug voice messages.
“Hehe, tremble, mortals!”
“I just encountered an elite magic-type monster with its own BGM outside!
I ran through the poison zone for several hundred meters and survived purely through positioning.
The system directly awarded me a server-first hidden achievement!”
“And now Big Brother is only a few experience points away from Level 1.”
“Tomorrow, the moment I log on, you can all call me Maluo God!”
After listening to the voice messages, Lu Ziye was so furious that his back molars nearly shattered.
“You thick-browed, big-eyed Maluo!
Didn’t we agree that everyone would log off together and sleep until our hair turned white?
And you actually went behind our backs to grind experience and get achievements!”
[Ji Luo] was more interested in the game’s underlying mechanics.
“This information is extremely important.
So leveling up and increasing territory prosperity can unlock skills.”
“The game’s level of completion is even higher than we imagined.
The later gameplay is definitely going to be much more hardcore!”
Jiahao, who had remained silent the entire time, couldn’t help but emerge from the shadows.
[I Am Not Jiahao]:
“Spiritual monsters?
No physical collision?”
“That’s right.
This fits my hypothesis about higher-dimensional life perfectly.
Only by abandoning the vulgar carbon-based physical body can one achieve true sublimation of the soul…
Well, you guys understand what I mean, right?”
Although his words still carried that aloof, fragmented tone, anyone could practically smell the thick sourness radiating from the screen.
Yesterday, he had been busy posing and adjusting his eyelashes in-game and hadn’t gotten any benefits.
Now that he was watching Maluo show off so shamelessly, it hurt even more than dying himself.
[Malou Also Has Dignity]:
“I won’t chat with you guys anymore.
Big Brother is going to the forums to show off.”
“Tonight, I’m going to be the coolest kid on the forums!”
With that, Maluo immediately slipped away.
He ran straight to the massive discussion thread Lu Ziye had created on the forums and posted the screenshot without making the slightest alteration.
This time, the cloud players who had previously mocked them as paid shills fell silent for a moment.
Then the entire forum exploded.
“Wocao?
This UI, these lighting effects and textures…
Don’t tell me you guys made this in Photoshop just now!”
“Hidden achievements?
Territory prosperity?
Unlockable Apostle skills?
Is this game’s content really that deep?”
“Physically immune monsters?
A battle-royale-style poison-zone mechanic?
Hiss…
That sounds insanely exciting!”
“Desperately looking for an Awakening of the Ancient Gods closed-beta slot!
High price!
Negotiable!
Anyone with one, DM me!”
That night, countless hardcore gamers were destined to toss and turn in bed.
They stared at the 1KB installation package that displayed “No eligibility at this time” and swallowed their frustration again and again.
…
Early the next morning.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains and spilled into the dormitory.
Ding-a-ling-ling-ling!
Lu Ziye’s deadly chain alarm rang right on schedule at 6:50.
He shot upright from his bed as if a spring had launched him into the air.
There was no need for his roommates to wake him.
He didn’t even bother going back to sleep.
He kicked away his blanket, rushed into the bathroom, splashed some cold water onto his face, then sprinted back to bed as though he were running a hundred-meter dash and immediately put on his VR helmet.
Just kidding.
After that grandson Maluo had been grinding away all night behind their backs, if Lu Ziye didn’t get up and start grinding today, forget about getting the first kill—he wouldn’t even get a chance to drink the leftovers!
Exactly 7:00 AM.
In the other world, inside the dilapidated church beside the coastal cliffs, morning mist drifted in from the sea, enveloping the Abandoned Village and the distant Black Forest in a hazy veil of coldness.
Familiar lights flashed one after another across the resurrection magic array.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Five figures wearing nothing but linen shorts appeared in the center of the temple.
The instant he opened his eyes, Lu Ziye rushed forward, grabbed Maluo around the neck, and subjected him to an inhumane “throat-lock sanction.”
“You little bastard!
If you dare secretly log on and become a grinding machine again tonight, I’ll poison the well you drink from tomorrow!”
“Cough, cough…
Let go!”
“Old Lu, ease up!
The pain sensation in this game is no joke!”
Maluo frantically slapped at Lu Ziye’s arm, but the smug expression on his face couldn’t be hidden no matter what.
“What?
Jealous that Big Brother got a hidden achievement?”
“This is called strength.
Understand?”
[Ji Luo] helplessly watched the two clowns fooling around.
She clapped her hands, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Alright, stop messing around.
Let’s talk business.”
The moment she spoke, [Ji Luo] instantly transformed into a tactical commander.
Her expression became serious.
“Based on yesterday afternoon’s exploration and Maluo’s investigation last night, we’ve basically figured out the situation around the novice village.”
“The Abandoned Village is definitely a high-risk monster zone.
Not only is there a Tier 1 Boss with extremely high movement speed, but there may also be the same type of physically immune spiritual monsters Maluo encountered.”
“With our current equipment—bare chests and wooden sticks—going into the village is basically suicide.”
[Ji Luo] pointed toward the area behind the church.
“So today’s strategy is very simple—we’re not going into the Abandoned Village!”
“We’ll sneak eastward along the boundary between the church and the outer perimeter of the Black Forest.”
“First, we’ll collect scattered stones, vines, and wood.
Everyone will work together to make a spear or stone hammer for each person.”
“Second, we’ll specifically target the Corrupted Villagers wandering around the outer perimeter.”
“If we encounter a lone monster, we’ll gang up on it and beat it down.
If there are more than five, we run immediately!”
“Our main goal today is to stockpile Ash Coins and, while we’re at it, get everyone to Level 1!”
Bigshot clenched his fists and nodded seriously.
“I’ll listen to Little Ji.
Step-by-step is the safest approach.
No matter what, I have to smash a few more monsters today and earn enough resurrection money for three lives!”
Jiahao also reached one hand to the edge of his shorts and nodded slightly.
“Prudent capital allocation and risk hedging.
This fits my logic perfectly.”
“What are you waiting for?
Let’s go!
A great fortune awaits us!”
[Passing Pure Love God of War] roared and became the first to charge out of the church.
On the altar, Lynn had just awakened from his slumber.
He watched this energetic group of migrant workers with great interest.
After a night’s rest, combined with Sivier’s continuous prayers, Lynn’s Faith Point balance had reached:
[135 Faith Points]
Although this amount was pitifully small, at least it could cover ten resurrections.
“Go, my dear believers.”
“Clear out all the little monsters outside for me.
Whether this game can grow bigger and bigger depends on you.”
Lynn silently cheered them on as the five players departed.
The five-person squad stepped beyond the barrier, facing the gray morning light of this desolate world.
Like a group of well-trained bandits, they plunged into the withered grass along the outer perimeter of the Black Forest…