Chapter 19: Entering the Game
Ruins World, Little Stone Pool Village.
In a room not far from the primal hearth, a young man slowly rose from his bed, with a copy of the calamity encyclopedia lying beside him.
Seeing the open book still on the same page he had been reading before, Lin An nodded slightly to himself.
As expected, it was just as the Supernatural Ability Administration Bureau had said: whichever world the player is in, time in the other world remains frozen.
"Truly a method beyond the comprehension of gods and ghosts."
Feeling emotional, Lin An looked out the window.
The sky outside was beginning to brighten, and the primal protection that had burned all night began to enter low-power mode with the dawn.
"Next... it's time to join the Hunting Team."
Lin An pondered and quickly made his decision.
For players who had basically all reached the Novice Village at this stage, the most pressing matter was one thing: killing monsters to level up and increase their strength.
However, because the penalty for death was account deletion and memory erasure, people truly didn't dare to take risks lightly.
Thinking this way wasn't a problem; after all, it was common knowledge that only those who stayed alive could deal damage. If one threw their life away, everything they had gained before would be for naught.
But with two Substitute Talismans, things were completely different.
One to save his life and another for teleportation. Unless he encountered a disaster that dared to charge directly into Little Stone Pool Village, he was basically invincible!
And if he really encountered an Demonic Evil that even Little Stone Pool Village couldn't defeat, then even hiding in the Novice Village to slowly level up would be useless; he wouldn't escape death either way.
Opening his panel, Lin An first glanced at the top right corner.
[Return Countdown: 71:57:30]
"I have to stay for three days this time?"
He was a bit surprised, but Lin An didn't dwell on it much. After all, even during the closed beta test, this game's main feature was its unpredictable timing.
With a thought, he opened his player interface.
[Player: Lin An
Level: level three
Talent: Three-Dimensional Balance
Experience Points: 0%
Essence (Constitution): 14 (+2)
Qi (Origin Energy): 14 (+2)
Spirit (Spirit): 14
Skills: Tiger-Bird Technique (minor accomplishment), Substitute Talisman (minor accomplishment)
Items: skill incarnation talisman, cat face mask, crimson flame pearl, primary recovery potion*2... Current Status: Good]
Under the effect of the Three-Dimensional Balance talent, his Essence, Qi, and Spirit had all reached 14 points, and his total attributes were as high as 42 points!
In other words, he could now achieve a rapid return to town within 42 kilometers through the Substitute Talisman!
And this distance was, quite frankly, more than enough.
After all, the Hunting Team's main task was to hunt near the village, not to explore as far as possible.
Moreover, even without counting the time consumed by hunting itself, for low-level cultivators, completing a nearly hundred-kilometer round trip during the short daylight hours was no easy feat.
One had to know that ordinary members of the Hunting Team were only in the range of Level Two to Level Four. In terms of constitution, most were actually inferior to him, to say nothing of Spirit and energy.
Hiding one of the Substitute Talismans, Lin An was just stepping out of his room when he saw Tian Sheng walking toward him.
"Big Brother Tian, good morning."
"Morning."
Tian Sheng had a bright smile as he spoke to Lin An, "Brother Lin, I've brought you some good news this time."
Without intending to keep him in suspense, Tian Sheng spoke directly: "When the Village Chief heard that you reached the beginner level after observing the Tiger-Bird Technique just once, he was also shocked. He immediately decided to pay out of his own pocket to subsidize you with one thousand Ruin Coins every month!"
"The Village Chief also said that once your Tiger-Bird Technique reaches minor accomplishment, he'll reward you with ten thousand Ruin Coins!"
minor accomplishment?
Lin An blinked. If Tian Sheng and the old Village Chief learned that his Tiger-Bird Technique had already reached minor accomplishment, he wondered what their reaction would be.
However, after thinking about it, he held back for now to give them some time to adjust.
After all, being one step ahead makes you a genius, but being ten steps ahead makes you a freak.
"Of course, the old Village Chief hasn't mentioned this to the public. It's enough that we know among ourselves."
"Take the benefits quietly; don't be flashy about it."
After saying this, a sense of cunning appeared on Tian Sheng's ordinary face, giving Lin An a strange sense of amusement.
"I understand."
Nodding slightly, Lin An then said, "By the way, Big Brother Tian, I want to join the Hunting Team."
"Oh? I guessed as much."
Tian Sheng wasn't surprised at all. Instead, he spoke with a face full of confidence: "I felt back then that you wouldn't be content with mediocrity, Brother Lin. Otherwise, you wouldn't have chosen to kill that level three Pseudo-human."
"And joining the Hunting Team is definitely the choice that leads to the fastest progress!"
"Come, let's talk as we walk."
As the Grand Captain of the Hunting Team, Tian Sheng naturally knew the situation of his team inside out. Therefore, he quickly explained the management model of the Hunting Team to Lin An.
"The Hunting Team is divided into many small squads. Only cultivators above Level Five can serve as Captains and lead members out to hunt."
Tian Sheng said, "Our Hunting Team is actually quite free. As long as you can complete your quota, you can come to work whenever you want."
"If the prey you obtain exceeds the quota, you can keep it for yourself or take it to the village for recycling. Doing so can also earn you quite a few Ruin Coins."
"Right!"
Tian Sheng paused and looked at Lin An, saying, "Speaking of which, I don't think I know what level you are, Brother Lin Quan?"
"Level Five."
Lin An did not hesitate and spoke without thinking.
He didn't plan to team up with NPCs. After all, his items, storage backpack, and skill incarnations were not suitable for display in front of others. If seen, it might lead to his identity as a player being exposed.
As such, becoming a squad Captain who could act alone was his best choice.
"For real?"
Tian Sheng found it a bit hard to believe when he heard this.
Although he didn't have inspection-type skills, based on his half-step transcendent perception, he could feel that Lin An seemed to be around level three or Four.
Pondering for two seconds, Tian Sheng said, "Brother Lin, try punching me with an explosion of energy."
"This... then you'd better be careful, Big Brother Tian."
Knowing that Tian Sheng wanted to test his strength, Lin An didn't hold back.
14 points of Origin Energy erupted instantly, and a heavy, powerful punch smashed straight toward Tian Sheng!
*Boom!*
A loud collision sounded, and rings of airwaves surged outward from the center of the two!
Within the airwaves, Tian Sheng easily blocked the strike with one hand, his expression thoughtful.
"Your Origin Energy is decent, and your constitution barely reaches the Level Five standard."
As if thinking of something, he said with surprise, "Could it be, Brother Lin, that you previously specialized in Spirit?"
"Yes."
Lin An nodded slightly, beginning to fabricate his background story without blinking.
"Actually... I used to come from a Talisman Dao family."