[I. Huskies Unleashed: The Burning Graphics Cards]
Above the ruins of Emerald Valley, the cold wind cut like knives.
As the teleportation light faded, fifty small green goblins, glowing faintly and having just gained physical form, were running wild like huskies just released from their cages, frolicking on the edge of this dead and dangerous Ancient God Battlefield.
"Holy sh*t! This lighting! This texture! Look at the gravel on the ground!"
The player [SceneryParty152] lay sprawled in front of a broken stone pillar with zero regard for his image. He pressed his green face tightly against the icy stone, feeling the realistic roughness and the bone-chilling cold.
"It's real! Even the ice crystal patterns on the broken section of the stone are so realistic! This diffuse reflection lighting... My God, how many polygons does this model have?"
He spammed messages in the team channel, his voice trembling: "Taking screenshots! Every frame is a wallpaper! My graphics card is burning, brothers! This game will definitely explode! If it doesn't, I'll live stream doing a handstand while eating sh*t!"
"Stop looking at rocks! Look over there!"
Another player pointed to the distant sky. There, lead-grey clouds hung low, threatening to crush the earth. Occasionally, massive thunderbolts roamed deep within the clouds, illuminating the distant "World Tree" remains (actually the skeletal remains of an Ancient God) that towered into the clouds, connecting heaven and earth.
This grand, desolate wasteland aesthetic, filled with an epic sense of doom, instantly pierced the psychological defenses of these modern people living in concrete jungles.
"It's too shocking..."
"Is this the Otherworld? Mom, I don't want to go home."
[II. Strategy Group Online: That Old Man with an Axe]
Meanwhile, in the center of the camp, the atmosphere was a bit eerie.
After the brief excitement, the instinct of the "Fourth Disaster" awakened in most players. Their attention was quickly drawn to the few NPCs with golden names above their heads.
To players, what did NPCs mean? Not just triggers for quests and plots, but walking equipment storages, skill books, and... excellent wooden stakes for testing damage.
"That big green guy in mech armor is the Guide [Shi Dian]. The name sounds like a mage or tech-side boss, and his size is too big. He's probably the core of the plot, so don't provoke him yet."
The player with the ID [NoPants] (the pants-stripping maniac from earlier) acted as the temporary "Strategy Group Leader" in the crowd.
His green energy eyes spun around and finally locked onto the desolate-looking red-patterned old goblin standing behind Shi Dian.
[Red Pattern · Red Tooth (LV. ???)] [Faction: Emerald Valley (Friendly/Neutral)] [Note: A one-eyed instructor who looks like he's in a bad mood.]
Red Tooth was currently squatting on the ground, holding a black whetstone, sharpening a rusty, slightly curled giant wolf-tooth mace stroke by stroke.
Scrape— Scrape—
The ear-piercing sound of metal friction was particularly creepy in the cold wind, sounding like it was grinding against human bones.
"Brothers, based on my years of playing Souls-like games," [NoPants] plotted loudly in the voice channel, completely ignoring the NPC, "this kind of veteran who looks like he has tattered equipment, has injuries, and likes to sharpen his blade in a corner usually represents two possibilities."
"Either he's a hidden master like the Sweeping Monk; or he's a low-level elite monster in the novice village meant for players to practice on, with a high drop rate."
"I think he's the latter. Look at his mace. Although it's broken, it has blood grooves. Maybe it's a top-tier Green equipment."
"Go well, warrior! Test the waters!" "Remember to record! If equipment drops, share the profit!" "Can we explode his mace? It looks heavy."
Amidst the jeering of people who didn't mind watching the world burn, [NoPants] took a deep breath of the freezing air, adjusted his big boxers, and walked over with an arrogant stride that recognized no kin.
He didn't attack directly but extended a hand tentatively—this was the characteristic of the Fourth Disaster: flirt first, court death later.
"Hey, One-Eyed Uncle,"
[NoPants] leaned in front of Red Tooth, reaching for the weapon being sharpened with a hippie smile: "Is this stick for sale? It looks like scrap metal. Why don't you lend it to me to play with..."
(System Note: Translation Module Active. Player's words are automatically translated into the local dialect for NPCs.)
[III. Physical Education: The Romance of a Kick]
Red Tooth's hand stopped sharpening the blade.
The tooth-aching friction sound came to an abrupt halt.
He slowly raised his head. His remaining turbid, bloodshot eye reflected this reckless green dwarf. In his eyes, these "Disasters" summoned by Qing Shi were like a group of uneducated, irreverent low-level ghosts.
"Do summoned creatures these days not even have basic respect for the strong?"
Red Tooth murmured in a low voice, hoarse like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together, carrying a strong scent of blood.
The next second, the wind and snow seemed to freeze for a moment.
No red system warning light, no skill casting bar. [NoPants] didn't even see when Red Tooth stood up.
He only felt a blur before his eyes, and then saw a rough, scarred, mud-stained big foot rapidly expanding in his retina, blocking out the entire sky.
BANG—!!!
A muffled impact sound, enough to make teeth ache, echoed through the camp. It was the wail of flesh and bone under extreme violence.
[NoPants] felt like his chest had been hit head-on by a maglev train traveling at 300 km/h. In that instant, although the system-simulated pain was reduced to 5%, the massive, overwhelming impact still made his soul tremble.
"Pfft!"
He flew backward like a broken rag doll, drawing a beautiful twenty-meter parabola in the air, accompanied by a miserable scream:
"Wuhuuuu————"
Finally, he smashed ruthlessly into a pile of snow-covered ruins.
CRASH!
A broken stone wall collapsed directly, burying him, leaving only a pair of twitching green legs outside.
Immediately after, a white light rose from the ruins, flew back to the Ark Core inside Shi Dian, and then re-condensed at the spawn point three seconds later.
[Server Announcement: Player "NoPants" maliciously provoked the Faction Instructor and was subjected to "Physical Education".] [Cause of Death: Blunt Force Trauma (Kick). Overkill Damage 100%.] [Warning: This game pursues extreme realism. NPCs have independent personalities and emotions. Do not test the limits on the edge of death.]
[IV. Shock and Carnival: These Lunatics]
The resurrected [NoPants] touched his chest blankly, where the phantom pain of being kicked to pieces seemed to remain. He looked around in confusion.
Dead silence filled the field for three seconds.
Red Tooth snorted coldly and sat back down to continue sharpening his blade, thinking this should have deterred these petty characters.
However, the next second, the camp erupted with cheers even more violent and fanatical than before.
"Holy sh*t! One-kick kill!" "This physics feedback! Did you see the parabola when he flew out? The impact! It's so real!" "This NPC has such a bad temper! I love it! This is called real! This is called hardcore!" "Is this the Warrior Instructor? I want to learn that kick too! Too cool! Coach, I want to learn this!"
"Uncle! Kick another one! I want to fly too!" "Queue up! One kick per person!"
Red Tooth's hand froze again. He looked at these freaks who not only had no fear but screamed in excitement over being killed, and even started queuing up to be abused. For the first time, an expression named "Confusion" appeared on his weather-beaten old face.
He had fought in the Ancient God Battlefield for decades. He had seen deserters afraid of death, and crazy beasts, but he had never seen such... lunatics who treated death as entertainment.
"Qing Shi..."
Red Tooth turned to look at the mech giant behind him, the corner of his mouth twitching, his hand holding the mace trembling: "Were their brains blended by an astral storm during teleportation? Why do they look... like they enjoy it?"
Shi Dian (the Protagonist) watched all this expressionlessly, but his mind was calculating data frantically while feeling a burst of amusement.
This is the Player. The more you abuse them, the more excited they get; the more real it is, the more addicted they become.
"Very good. The worship of power is the best rein to control these chaotic creatures."
He controlled his massive mech body to take a step forward.
THUD!
The tremor of the ground instantly silenced the rowdy players.
"Had enough fun?"
Shi Dian's voice, processed by the system, carried a metallic majesty that exploded directly in every player's mind, making their heads buzz.
"Red Tooth is your Combat Instructor. If anyone dares to disrespect him again, there won't be a chance for resurrection next time." (A bluff.)
He raised his arm covered in dark green armor and pointed to the ruin square outside the camp, ravaged by the blizzard. The wind howled there, rolling up snow dust like a giant mouth ready to devour people.
"You are currently too weak to even qualify as cannon fodder. Want to gain power? Want to get real weapons? Then first prove you have the value to survive in this world."
Ding!
A golden, glittering Main Quest window popped up in front of all players.
[Main Quest: Setting Rules for the Wind (Phase 1)] [Description: The "Mad Wind" of Emerald Valley contains the chaotic residual power of Ancient Gods. It will blow away all unstable existences. To establish a base on this wasteland, you must tame it.] [Objective: Build the first effective Windbreak Wall in the Ruin Square to secure space for subsequent construction.] [Reward: Unlock Starter Tool Kit, Unlock Eating Authority, Faction Reputation +10.]
Seeing the word "Reward," the players' eyes instantly turned green.
"There's a quest! Charge, brothers!" "For reputation! For equipment!" "Don't stop me! I'm definitely moving these bricks!"
The players who were courting death around Red Tooth just a moment ago instantly rushed toward the freezing Ruin Square like a pack of hungry wolves seeing a bone, howling as they went, leaving behind a few NPCs messy in the wind.
(End of Chapter)