New Player?
Wu Chang frowned; this opening line did not sound like good news.
Before he could think carefully, the electronic voice continued:
「Through random screening across the entire Universe, Blue Star has successfully drawn the qualification for the Abyss Game, connecting with the Universe Root and obtaining a great opportunity for evolution.」
「All intelligent life forms on Blue Star will be randomly selected as Abyss Game Players to explore the secrets of myriad Planes and achieve Transcendence along with their respective Planes.」
「Congratulations on being selected by the Abyss Game. The mysteries of the Universe, the limits of life, Transcendence and immortality are within reach. Do you wish to enter the game immediately?」
A large, web-game-style 「Join Game」 button floated before Wu Chang’s eyes.
He frowned, searching for a long time, but could not find where the option to refuse was located.
“Can I choose to exit?”
The electronic voice paused for a moment, as if it hadn't heard Wu Chang’s question, and continued its sales pitch:
「The Abyss Game will match Planes corresponding to the Player's Strength. The difficulty gradient is smooth, easy for New Players to pick up, suitable for all ages.」
“I asked, can I choose to exit?” Wu Chang repeated.
「We apologize, the Will of Blue Star has already agreed to join the game. Independent individuals cannot choose to exit.」The electronic voice replied coldly.
The bastard is dropping the pretense, starting with forced sales.
Wu Chang sighed. He could recognize the tone of a phone scam from the electronic voice’s script even across a Plane. Such low-level tactics would get him beaten three times in two days if he were in the North.
Hasn't anyone installed an anti-fraud app for our great Mother Blue Star, letting billions of old comrades be scammed and hit with a Sneak Attack?
Since the matter was settled and exiting was hopeless, he had no choice but to press the 「Join Game」 button before him.
「Your Player Identity has been activated.」
「Your Player ID is: 4444444.」
「Currently located in the first layer of the Abyss: the Desolate Realm.」
「Matching you for a Newcomer Trial Instance, Instance Difficulty: F, matching now.」
「Detected that the Player is inheriting another Player's qualification. Instance Difficulty adjustment applied. Adjusted Instance Difficulty: B! Official recommended minimum exploration Level: 15. Players are advised to proceed with caution.」
「Re-matching Trial Instance...」
Hearing this, Wu Chang’s complexion changed drastically.
What the hell?
What about the smooth difficulty gradient and being easy for New Players to pick up!
Moreover, judging by the electronic voice, the Instance Difficulty increased because he inherited the camouflage man’s game qualification.
Before he could curse the camouflage man for repaying kindness with enmity, his vision blurred, and he arrived in an unfamiliar single room.
He lay on the bed in the single room. The bedside was shrouded in a thin Mist, which acted like a Barrier, restricting his movement.
The Mist only blocked his movement; it did not obstruct his Line of Sight.
As he surveyed the room's layout, an interface resembling a Player Panel was projected onto the wall directly opposite him.
Player Nickname: Wu Chang （To ensure the Player's safety in the Real World, changing your nickname is recommended as soon as possible. ）
Player Level: 1 （0/100 ）
Health: 8 （5 ）
Strength: 9 （5 ）
Agility: 8 （5 ）
Stamina: 7 （5 ）
Energy: 0 （0 ）
Inspiration: 50 （5 ）
Will: 30 （5 ）
（Parentheses contain the average Stats for an adult male aged 20-40. ）
Skills: Mamba Iron Elbow, Firearms Usage （Proficient ）.
Talent: Salvation.
Talent Description: Death is the destination for All Things, unstoppable. However, an unexpected 'you' inserted itself between Death and Annihilation, which are fundamentally one, causing a slight separation between the two. This is unreasonable; the Administrator suspects you are cheating, but there is currently no Evidence.
The format of the Player Panel content was similar to games Wu Chang had encountered before, making it easy to understand.
The Abilities he previously possessed were materialized by the Panel, making their effects straightforward and easy to grasp, such as the basketball technique he used when he took down the Blood Thorn earlier.
「Skill Name: Mamba Iron Elbow」
「Skill Level: D」
「Skill Description: Unexpectedly swing an elbow to violently strike the target's face, inflicting temporary effects such as blindness, stun, bleeding, Weakness, and poisoning; if Will is higher than the target's, the elbow strike is guaranteed to hit and cannot be blocked; the damage and duration of Abnormal Status effects from the elbow strike are influenced by the Inspiration Attribute.」
Besides Mamba Iron Elbow, the Attribute Panel also materialized his Talent Ability.
He saw that the Ability of Grudge was still usable in the Abyss Game, and judging by the Skill Description, it was quite formidable, definitely promising for the future.
As for the Administrator's suspicion, it was pure slander!
If I wasn't banned, it's a game mechanism. Have you ever seen a client that comes with its own Tool Spirit?
After he chose a vegetarian-style nickname—「Doesn't Eat Beef」—the surrounding Mist dissipated, and a prompt confirming successful entry into the Instance appeared before his eyes.
「Successfully entered "Wasteland - Plane 46957."」
「Instance Name: Moonlight Sanatorium.」
「Instance Type: Single-player Survival Instance.」
「Instance Difficulty: B.」
「Instance Status: On the Verge of Losing Control.」
「Main Quest One: Leave the Moonlight Sanatorium.」
「Main Quest Two: Explore the Secrets within the Moonlight Sanatorium.」
「After completing Main Quest One, the Player may choose whether to end the Instance and leave the current Plane.」
「Clearing the Newcomer Trial Instance will grant the Player Passage authorization for the Scarlet Courtyard and make them a Formal Player.」
At the same time, within a certain Red Temple, a gate of light was gradually taking shape on the Altar in the center of the Temple.
A dozen people were gathered near the Altar, watching the forming gate of light with grave complexions, as if something terrifying lurked behind the light gate about to materialize.
But for those present, if only Monsters were hidden behind the gate of light, they would not be so tense.
Only Veteran Players of the Abyss Game could appear here. What kind of Monsters in the Desolate Realm haven't they seen?
The reason they were so tense was that behind the gate of light lay a B-Level Instance, a B-Level Instance on the verge of Losing Control.
Instances in the Abyss Game are not repeatable programs; their essence is a connection to a portion of a real Plane.
The core of every Instance is unique. Before an Instance is completely cleared, Players can repeatedly Strategy it and explore it thoroughly.
But correspondingly, dead Players will turn into nourishment and be absorbed by the Instance.
External energy polluting the Instance Plane will cause the Instance Difficulty to continuously rise until the Instance breaks free from the Abyss Game's control.
A B-Level Instance on the Verge of Losing Control has a Difficulty no less than a normally functioning A-Level Instance!
If the Instance completely loses control, it will erode the Real World in reverse along the path the Players entered, causing a massive disaster.
The earthquake that occurred on Sakura Island some time ago, which resulted in over thirty thousand deaths and disappearances, and hundreds of thousands injured, was due to a B-Level Instance losing control and eroding reality.
To prevent such situations, Player Factions possessing Management Authority monitor high-level Instances within the management Area.
When an Instance reaches the alert threshold, they dispatch Game Breakers to execute the Instance Strategy.
But Game Breakers are not always able to break the game.
There are always Instances whose Difficulty is extraordinarily high, forcing even Game Breakers to take detours.
In the Abyss Game, an Instance Completion Rate greater than 40% counts as clearing the Instance.
An Instance Completion Rate less than 40% counts as Instance Failure, which incurs a penalty, but as long as the completion rate is greater than 5%, one can find a way to survive the Instance.
However, for the Instance before them, let alone a clear rate of over 40% Instance Completion Rate, the number of Players who survived and left the Instance was zero.
The Official rating for this Instance's Difficulty was: Extinction Level.
Due to the lack of Survivors, by the time the monitors detected the Anomaly in the Instance, it was already tending toward Losing Control.
No surviving Players meant that Intelligence could not be transmitted out. Lacking Intelligence and Strategy, the Game Breakers and other Players entering the Instance for the first time were no different from each other.
Thus, five Game Breakers fell one after another in the Instance behind the gate of light. The only Intelligence transmitted out was that the Instance behind the gate of light was named 「Moonlight Sanatorium」.
According to calculations, this Instance loss of control will cause erosion into the Real World at Wanghai City in Xia Country.
Now, the Instance behind the gate of light has entered a critical state and could lose control at any moment. The last chance to break the game was entrusted to the strongest Game Breaker in Xia Country.
A Middle-aged Man stood before the gate of light. He was wrapped in a thick down jacket, his complexion pale, as if recovering from a serious illness, occasionally covering his mouth to cough softly a few times.
This man with a scholarly demeanor was Leng Shan, the strongest Game Breaker in Xia Country in the Desolate Realm.
Leng Shan, Level 30, one of the top Players in the Desolate Realm, had previously led the Strategy for two S-Level Instances and was hailed by Desolate Realm Players as the most secure Game Breaker.
If he wished, he could leave the Desolate Realm at any time and enter the next layer of the Abyss.
Leng Shan asked those beside him, “What is the Instance Situation?”
A Bald Strongman replied, “The Situation is stable. We have used our Authority to seal the Passage leading into the 「Moonlight Sanatorium」. Even if someone has malicious intentions, they cannot succeed.”
“Good.”
Leng Shan had prepared for a month for this game break.
To resolve the crisis of the Instance Losing Control, the Game Breaker must not only complete the Instance Mission but also find the Root of the Instance Anomaly and resolve it completely.
Converted into Instance Completion Rate, it must reach at least 70% to obtain an A- rating.
Facing a completely unknown, A-Level Difficulty Instance officially rated as Extinction Level, achieving an A- rating in one go put even him under pressure.
During this month, he not only formulated several Plans but also adjusted his mentality to its optimal state—「Absolute Calm」.
In the 「Absolute Calm」 state, his Will and judgment would be greatly enhanced, and even when facing a life-or-death crisis, his Emotions would not fluctuate in the slightest.
As the gate of light took shape, the Bald Strongman said, “Sir Leng, the Fate of Wanghai City is entrusted to you.”
“Rest assured, even if I die, I will die after clearing the Instance,” Leng Shan said lightly, but the determination in his words was as heavy as Mount Tai.
After speaking, Leng Shan stepped into the gate of light expressionlessly. The next moment, he seemed to hit a transparent wall, his forehead bumping against the gate of light.
Leng Shan, who had been perfectly calm moments before, instantly panicked.
“This is bad! Someone has already entered the Instance ahead of us!”
The Bald Strongman looked into the distance and immediately denied it:
“Impossible! The seal on the 「Moonlight Sanatorium」 and the Instance Hall has not loosened. Other Players absolutely could not have selected it, not even with a designated Instance Item! Unless…”
Leng Shan gave a wry smile, “Unless a non-Formal Player entered the Instance through the Trial Passage.”
The crucial final chance was handed to a rookie who had just entered the Abyss Game.
What a hellish joke.
If this were any other Instance, this joke would be enough to amuse Leng Shan, but concerning the 「Moonlight Sanatorium」, no one present could laugh.
The Baldy opened the records for the 「Moonlight Sanatorium」 Instance. Time flow in the Instance and Reality are different. The average time recorded for Instance Failure was:
12 hours!
The Players who left this data were all Veterans, while the Player entering the Instance now was just a rookie who hadn't even cleared a Trial Instance.
How long could this rookie last?
The Baldy shouted in despair, “Notify Wanghai City to enter the highest alert status!”
“Everyone who can evacuate, evacuate immediately. If you cannot evacuate, take shelter nearby in a Shelter! Surrounding cities, prepare for disaster relief. In the worst-case scenario, we only have a few dozen minutes!”