◎ New Substance in the Blood, Seizing a Player’s Identity ◎
Jiang Qi looked at her reflection in the glass. Her eyes were glowing with a purple light, which surprised her somewhat. She asked Dong Shengfeng, “When I caught that owl the night before last, were my eyes purple too?”
Dong Shengfeng glanced at her eyes. “What purple? Your eyes look completely normal.”
Jiang Qi touched her own eyes. “You can’t see it?”
Was this purple glow visible only to herself?
Suppressing this doubt, her consciousness continued to probe the confinement room toward Mi Fei.
While sensing, she imagined that she could “see” her consciousness drifting like a ribbon to Mi Fei. She controlled it to circle around him.
Mi Fei seemed to sense something. He raised his head and looked around in bewilderment, with a hint of surprise.
“Who? Who’s there?”
Hmm, he could indeed sense her presence.
Jiang Qi tapped Mi Fei’s left shoulder with her consciousness. He immediately looked to the left. She tapped his back, and he quickly turned to look.
She retracted her consciousness, floating quietly above his head. He began to look around again in confusion.
Jiang Qi adjusted the intensity of her consciousness, judging from Mi Fei’s reactions whether he could sense her movements.
After testing this for quite a while, driving Mi Fei almost to the edge, she finally mercifully tapped him on the forehead, severing his connection to the wallet. With a beckoning gesture, the wallet, as if guided, flew out of the open vent and landed in her hands.
Mi Fei clutched his head in pain, stunned for a moment, then shouted excitedly into the air, “Train Conductor! Is that you? Please save me! Do you want money? I’ll give you all my money! Everything I have is yours!”
Jiang Qi ignored him, opened the wallet, and checked its contents. The C-country currency was familiar, and mixed in were some train coins.
These train coins were all silver, varying in size, with denominations of “1,” “5,” “10,” and “100.”
Each coin’s front bore a train emblem, and beneath it a string of characters. In C-country text, it read “Cunning Snake 270144,” representing the train number.
On the back was a simple profile image, the silhouette of the train conductor of that train. Below it were two characters, the honorific of that conductor, which also translated as “Cunning Snake.”
Yes, no one knew the name of that old, scheming train conductor, but his honorific, or nickname, was Cunning Snake.
It was said that carrying train coins would bring the train conductor’s protection and blessing, so the more coins one had, the luckier they would be.
Of course, Jiang Qi didn’t believe such nonsense; at most, it simply meant that the richer someone was, the luckier they seemed.
Some also claimed that certain train coins contained the train conductor’s spiritual imprint. If a player carried enough, they could unknowingly become the train conductor’s puppet or slave.
Later, this claim was considered a rumor spread deliberately by poor people from the lower-class carriages, out of resentment toward the rich, in order to smear train coins and disgust wealthy people from higher-class carriages.
Yet some people still believed it.
In her previous life, Jiang Qi was very wary of this. Afraid of exposing her identity, she never carried a cent, so she had always been extremely poor.
Thinking back on those days of utter poverty, Jiang Qi’s mouth twitched. Even now, she did not know whether she had been completely misled back then.
So did these train coins really carry the train conductor’s spiritual imprint?
She looked around. With her shallow qualifications as a trainee train conductor, these were clearly just ordinary coins.
She asked, “Have the train coins been studied? Any findings?”
Dong Shengfeng said, “Yes, they’ve been studied. So far, it’s confirmed that the coins are made of a metal not found on Blue Star. Nothing else has been discovered.”
Jiang Qi thought for a moment, then increased the number of simultaneous training projects from four to five.
She was a little hopeful—could this trigger a project related to the train coins?
Just as she finished adjusting it, Mi Fei shouted again, “Train Conductor! Train Conductor, please save me.”
[Ding! A passenger has sincerely addressed you as Train Conductor. You have gained the passenger’s recognition. While this recognition is insignificant, it counts as a form of affirmation. Congratulations, you have gained 0.001 Internship Experience.]
Jiang Qi: “…”
She read the message carefully, scowling. What was the point of this project?
If a passenger’s recognition was insignificant, why did such a project even exist?
She pinched her hand: useless, useless, making me open a project at this moment! What a waste!
Dong Shengfeng: ?
Jiang Qi sighed, scratched her head, and looked at the train coins in her hand. Feeling a bit unlucky, she put them back into the wallet and handed it to Dong Shengfeng. “Forget it. Let’s check Mi Fei’s companions.”
This was a secret base. Aside from Mi Fei’s two companions, several dozen other players captured from the warehouse were also confined here.
They didn’t lock everyone in one place to avoid a rebellion if too many players were together.
Stronger players like Wolf Sai were kept in more secure locations and were not here.
Jiang Qi tested her [Passenger Offering] skill on these players one by one.
Two hours later, she discovered that if her movements were fast, light, and skillful, the target wouldn’t notice her actions or sense any train conductor presence. They would only feel a slight daze, and then the items would be taken.
It was like a master thief—leaving no trace while stealing.
She also realized that whenever she used any skill, her eyes would glow purple, and players could see this glow. This seemed to be a visible sign of the train conductor exerting power.
However, using the skills too often caused her head to spin, her eyes to ache, and her vision to blur, even leading to temporary blindness.
It was as if skill activation relied primarily on her eyes.
She fiddled in front of the mirror for a long time, nearly blinding herself, unable to hide the glow. In the end, she grudgingly gave up and had someone make colored contact lenses to conceal the light.
…
The next morning, Jiang Qi returned to the command center.
Zhang Zhengtian, seeing her bloodshot eyes, was startled. “What’s wrong with your eyes? Have you seen a doctor?”
Jiang Qi rubbed the corners of her eyes, which throbbed slightly. “…It’s nothing, just from overusing my skills.”
Zhang Zhengtian said, “I heard you practiced your skills for a long time last night. Don’t rush—take it slow. Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
As they spoke, they arrived at the testing area.
The command center was still as warm as spring, and lab technicians in white coats bustled back and forth, conducting various tests and research. Jiang Qi was led into a laboratory.
Zhang Zhengtian said, “This is where they’re conducting in-depth tests and analysis on your blood.”
Jiang Qi looked at the shelves lined with test tubes labeled differently, centrifuge tubes, and Petri dishes. They were kept in incubators at various temperatures, under different lighting conditions, and in different instruments.
“This is Dr. Xue He, a specialist in blood analysis. She’ll primarily be responsible for analyzing your blood.”
A woman in her forties removed her gloves and shook Jiang Qi’s hand. “You must be Comrade Xiao Jiang. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you. The last sample of your blood you sent was very interesting. I heard you’ve made new progress in the past two days. Do you mind if I draw some blood from you here?”
Jiang Qi thought: …Well, that’s direct.
She asked, “Interesting? In what way?”
Dr. Xue led Jiang Qi to a machine.
“This is a super-resolution fluorescence microscope with a resolution of 20 nanometers. Its greatest advantage is that it can observe molecular dynamics within living cells. Take a look at this imaging.”
Jiang Qi looked at the computer screen connected to the microscope and saw several biconcave, disc-shaped cells.
Since she had studied biology before, she immediately recognized them as red blood cells, though they seemed unusually active.
“These are familiar red blood cells. Look closely inside the cells.”
As the image was further magnified, Jiang Qi faintly saw a shadow inside the cells that seemed to move.
She widened her eyes slightly.
“What is this? Red blood cells shouldn’t have a nucleus, right?”
“Precisely, mature red blood cells in mammals do not have a nucleus. After maturation, mammalian red blood cells expel their nucleus and organelles to make room for hemoglobin, which carries oxygen. So the shadow we see now is a substance that shouldn’t be present in red blood cells.
“In the blood samples you sent previously, this substance did not appear. It only first appeared in the sample you sent the night of the 11th. Your red blood cells appear more active than before, even more active than normal red blood cells. We believe this substance is the cause.”
Dr. Xue then led Jiang Qi to an even larger microscope.
This was a scanning transmission electron microscope with an astonishing resolution of 0.05 nanometers, capable of observing atomic structures and performing elemental analysis and imaging.
On the computer here, Jiang Qi saw even more complex images and various elements and annotations she didn’t understand.
Fortunately, Dr. Xue wasn’t trying to confuse her and explained it in simple terms.
Essentially, they had determined that the substance in her red blood cells was unprecedented, with a peculiar, constantly changing structure, resistant to almost any extreme condition, and seemingly containing a strange form of energy.
They were now calling it “Qi Substance”—yes, directly named after Jiang Qi.
“At present, we can only observe this substance; we cannot extract it. I’d like to draw another vial of your blood. If the Qi Substance content has increased, it will basically prove that this substance is directly related to your internship progress. That will also clarify the direction of our research.”
Jiang Qi realized, “I understand. Thank you for your hard work. Let’s draw the blood now.”
Thus, Jiang Qi had her fourth blood sample taken.
…
After leaving the testing area, Jiang Qi and Dong Shengfeng followed Zhang Zhengtian to another section.
To reach this area, they had to take an elevator down to a deeper level.
When they stepped out of the elevator, a cold, austere scene met their eyes.
Bright white lights illuminated the entire space. Inside rows of one-way transparent cells, players were confined. Some lay asleep. Some smashed themselves wildly against the walls, shouting in fury. Some used their own blood to draw strange symbols on the walls, then revealed sinister, twisted smiles.
Several armed guards stood beside each cell, rigid and unmoving. In addition, people wearing black combat suits and green research uniforms moved back and forth between the cells, observing, recording, and discussing.
Throughout the entire space, in every corner and every position, countless cameras recorded everything that happened here.
As soon as Jiang Qi and the others entered, everyone turned to look at them, then quickly formed into two lines on the left and right.
“Greetings, Commander Zhang! Greetings, Comrade Jiang!”
Zhang Zhengtian introduced the situation to Jiang Qi. “These twenty players here are the targets scheduled for identity seizure today. Based on their appearance, background, personality traits, and other factors, we selected forty matching comrades.”
He pointed to the forty people in black combat suits. There were men and women, tall and short, slim and sturdy. On their chests were labels reading “1A,” “1B,” “2A,” “2B.”
In other words, each player was paired with two people. If the first failed to seize the identity or if any accident occurred midway, the second would immediately take over.
All forty of them had written their wills and were fully prepared to sacrifice themselves during the identity seizure process.
Jiang Qi had been quite calm at first, but when she looked at these faces that showed a readiness to die, she suddenly felt a bit tense.
Every single one of them was an elite chosen from tens of thousands, absolutely loyal to the country and the people. Their lives were important and precious, yet they were standing here today to take part in an experiment whose outcome was completely unknown.
Yes, an experiment. For the first attempt at identity seizure, no one knew what would happen.
Jiang Qi suddenly felt a little regret. She had overtrained her skills yesterday and had not saved her best condition for today.
Zhang Zhengtian led her to the front of one cell. “This is today’s Number One target. His name is Lie Rong. On his second day after arriving in Spring City, he attacked women who lived alone. Our people caught him in time and took him to the public security bureau, interrogating him as an ordinary citizen. We discovered that he has an extremely strong sex addiction. In his previous dungeon, he raped and murdered at least dozens of men and women.”
Jiang Qi: “…”
Both men and women?
She was somewhat puzzled. “Such an extreme person. Why was he chosen as a target for identity seizure?”
It would be very difficult to play his role.
She glanced at the two male comrades with the 1A and 1B labels on their chests. Both of them looked upright and righteous. Was it not too unfair for them to play such a role?
When she looked at them, the two young men both showed a hint of awkwardness.
They were actually quite shy.
Zhang Zhengtian said, “Mainly because his other conditions are relatively suitable. Third-class carriage. Strong build, great strength, high endurance, fast reactions, and decent intelligence. He is also reclusive and acts alone. He even appears to have been a mercenary at some point. There are traces of military background on him. And when he is not having an episode, he is quite normal. His sex addiction stems from a psychological disorder. This can be redirected with appropriate justification.”
Jiang Qi nodded. Put that way, he did indeed have value. Since the expert panel had analyzed and reviewed him and all agreed he was suitable, there should be no problem.
Zhang Zhengtian continued, “I’m telling you all this so you understand that this person deserves to die.”
Jiang Qi froze for a moment.
Zhang Zhengtian looked at her and spoke slowly. “You said that in the novice-stage dungeons, each dungeon eliminates twenty thousand players. A hundred thousand players arrive here, and at most eighty thousand can leave. Two thousand are destined to die here. Whether they die by their own hands, by harsh climates, or by our hands makes no difference. You don’t need to carry any psychological burden.”
Jiang Qi’s expression turned a bit strange. “Actually, I don’t have much of a psychological burden. These players are invaders. They are not the same species as us. I have never regarded them as my own kind, and I’m very clear about that. Even if they were great saints, it wouldn’t change the fact that our positions are different. If they need to be killed, they should be killed.
“If we deliberately choose only the most despicable ones to kill just to make the act look more righteous, I think that’s putting the cart before the horse. It would only harm our interests and create obstacles for the operations that follow.”
Zhang Zhengtian: “……”
The other experts who had quietly gathered nearby: “……”
There was nothing wrong with what she said. It could even be considered a very clear-eyed understanding.
But players still looked exactly like humans. If she truly felt no burden at all, then they really would have to worry about her mental health.
What a headache.
Zhang Zhengtian helplessly patted Jiang Qi on the shoulder, treating her like a junior. “Just think of it as being for the psychological health of all your comrades.”
Killing a great altruist and taking their place, killing an innocent person and taking their place, and killing a villain and taking their place were completely different experiences.
This group of people was about to board the survival train. No one knew what kinds of adventures they would face in the future, what kinds of ugliness they would experience. Like a drop of water falling into ink, sooner or later they would all be stained black.
Resorting to any means was inevitable. Killing countless people was possible. Coldness and cruelty would become routine. Trying to remain pure and righteous would be courting death.
But Zhang Zhengtian hoped that at their core, a part of their nature would remain unchanged.
A player identity would be their foundation in the future. If, in the process of seizing this foundation, it were tainted with original sin, it would be extremely corrupting to one’s character.
Jiang Qi looked into Zhang Zhengtian’s eyes and vaguely understood what he meant.
In simple terms: in the survival train ahead, killing would be for survival—there would be no choice. But right now, when they still had a choice, they should choose the worst targets to kill and replace. That way, they could claim justification and occupy the moral high ground, keeping their convictions steady.
Yet she didn’t quite understand—wouldn’t doing this make everyone end up constantly role-playing as criminal reserves or deranged lunatics, effectively causing themselves to develop a split personality?
She asked, “So, for the next month, we can’t kill ‘good’ players anymore?”
“It’s fine to kill them, but you have to be cautious when taking their identities.”
Jiang Qi: “…Alright, you’re the boss, your call.”
…
Ten minutes later, everyone was ready. The area was cleared, leaving only Jiang Qi, the two guys 1A and 1B, Dong Shengfeng’s seven-member small team, and Cui He’s five-member small team.
The former group was protecting Jiang Qi, the latter providing support nearby.
Everyone else left, observing remotely via surveillance.
Jiang Qi picked up her gun and said, “Open the door.”
The door of Lie Rong’s cell slowly opened. The man inside tensed instantly, muscles coiled, eyes flashing with dangerous light, ready to charge out at any moment.
Jiang Qi observed his reactions while recalling the scene from her past life when she had seized a player’s stats panel.
Back then, the player lived next door in 604. The dungeon had arrived many days ago, and it was unbearably cold. The player’s stored food had run out.
Although Jiang Qi’s household didn’t have much extra either, as a local, their food reserves were better than those of a newly arrived player. Her main problem was the inability to make fire and the lack of ready-to-eat food, though there was still some rice, flour, and oil at home.
When that player came, pitifully asking for food, she couldn’t bear to refuse and gave them a bowl of rice.
In hindsight, it had been a mistake.
The player probably saw that her home still had plenty of food and, seeing her as a lone target, planned to kill her and inherit her supplies.
That was the first time Jiang Qi, in her entire life, had directly faced someone else’s naked murderous intent. In the ongoing struggle, she got lucky and redirected the knife meant to stab her into the other player’s chest.
At that moment, blood sprayed, accompanied by a flash of white light from the other player’s mind.
Because they were so close, she accidentally entered that white light and heard: [Player is about to die. Detecting a new entity capable of inheriting the player panel. Inherit?]
And so, she confusedly inherited the player’s stats panel, along with their name and the sparse, tattered inventory they carried.
Although her starting point was very low, she had to admit that having a personal backpack was incredibly convenient. Whether it was collecting firewood, scavenging junk, digging snow to melt for drinking water, or even moving house, she could just store everything directly in the backpack, freeing her hands and ignoring weight limits. It was unbelievably convenient.
The door in front of her swung fully open. The male player inside saw three people standing at the entrance and immediately kicked and lunged forward.
He didn’t know how many people were outside the cell. He planned to grab someone as a hostage. Unsurprisingly, he chose the seemingly weakest, Jiang Qi.
He moved incredibly fast, splitting into two figures in an instant, attacking Jiang Qi from both sides.
Jiang Qi’s eyes shifted slightly. This person actually had a talent ability as well?
He had never shown it before. He had hidden it well.
He had never shown it before. He had hidden it well.
At the same time, a purple light suddenly shone from her eyes.
[See Through Disguise] VS [See Through Fake ID]: You can easily see through the passenger’s personal disguise with the naked eye.
In an instant, she realized the figure on the left was an illusion, fake. The figure on the right was solid and real.
She focused on the real figure’s movements, and immediately, the opponent’s actions slowed in her perception.
[Ding! A passenger has unleashed their racial talent to attack you. Using [Train Conductor’s Mystic Eye], you discerned the attack trajectory. Congratulations, you gained 0.001 Internship Experience.]
Jiang Qi raised her gun and lightly pulled the trigger. The next moment, the bullet struck the player’s thigh. He slammed heavily to the ground, lifting his head in disbelief as he stared at Jiang Qi’s purple-glowing eyes. “You…”
[Ding! You injured a passenger, striking a vital point… 0.001 Internship Experience.]
“You’re the train conductor!” Lie Rong’s eyes blazed with fury.
[Ding! A passenger called you train conductor… gained 0.001 Internship Experience.]
“No, impossible!” Lie Rong shouted in his mind at the player panel. “She’s not the train conductor! She’s fake! I’m reporting this! I’ll use the message card! I’ll—”
A card began forming in his hand.
A chill ran up Jiang Qi’s spine. Sensing the imminent danger, she rushed forward, pressing the gun to Lie Rong’s forehead. Bang—
A spray of blood erupted from the back of Lie Rong’s head, and his whole body fell backward.
At the same time, a flash of white light emerged from his brain.
To Jiang Qi, that white light faintly outlined the player panel.
She reached out, grabbed the 1A team member who had been ready and waiting, and shoved him directly toward the avatar position on the player panel.
…
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