TAG Chapter 2

Qiao Jingting’s vision blurred, and in an instant, he was back under the same tree where the people had already dispersed. However, there were still some villagers looking at him with a mix of curiosity, mockery, and sympathy, intensifying his sense of vigilance.

He felt somewhat lost at the moment. What should he do now? What would happen after the newbie protection period ended?

In fact, until this moment, he still had doubts about everything. If someone were to come out and tell him that this was all a TV show, he would definitely beat that person up. Then he would feel relieved and laugh at himself for believing in this absurd game world and the words of two kids.

But now, since he couldn’t fully trust it, and yet couldn’t ignore it either, he couldn’t just sit idly by. If this was a game where killing was necessary to progress, he had to at least ensure his own survival.

He decided to look for something he could use for self-defense. His newbie protection time was probably…

A thought flashed through his mind as he imagined the “newbie protection time.”

Suddenly, a red countdown appeared in front of his eyes, indicating that there were 24 minutes remaining. It quickly disappeared.

24 minutes…

He surveyed his surroundings.

The village had dozens of households, as well as shops, restaurants, and inns, much like an ordinary small village with a population of just over a hundred people. What puzzled him was that some people were looking at him while others completely ignored him.

Who were these people? Were they all players… Since it was a game, there should be NPCs, right?

He noticed some tools like hoes and axes piled up behind the back door of a house. After some thought, he walked over and picked up a hoe.

“It’s useless.” A cold female voice came from behind.

Qiao Jingting turned around and saw the scarred girl. On closer inspection, she had fair skin and attractive features. If it weren’t for the ugly scar on half of her face, she would have been quite pretty. Qiao Jingting couldn’t help but feel a trace of pity for this girl of similar age.

She seemed accustomed to such gazes and didn’t flinch as she turned her intact face towards him. At the same time, she glanced at the hoe he was holding and said, “I advise you not to invite trouble.”

“Thanks for earlier,” Qiao Jingting said, weighing the hoe and finding it suitable in his hand.

“Even if I didn’t say anything, the system would force you into the newbie tutorial,” she replied, glancing around and speaking in a low voice. “Put that down and don’t anger them.”

Qiao Jingting hesitated for a moment but eventually put the hoe down. He had two main considerations: first, the girl didn’t seem like a bad person, and they had no grievances between them, so she probably wouldn’t harm him. Second, using a hoe might be an overreaction to the situation, and he tended to be heavy-handed. It was a solid weapon.

She looked at Qiao Jingting coldly and solemnly and continued, “Your newbie protection time is running out, and you just offended that fat guy. You’re bound to face some trouble.”

“Will he kill me?” Qiao Jingting asked disdainfully.

“He may not kill you, but there are countless ways to torture you. Don’t provoke them,” she said, then quickly walked away.

Qiao Jingting wanted to catch up and ask her more, but she clearly didn’t want to be seen talking to him and stopped after a few steps.

He pondered for a moment and decided to find something else for self-defense. His newbie protection time was probably…

She seemed accustomed to such gazes and didn’t flinch as she turned her intact face towards him. At the same time, she glanced at the hoe he was holding and said, “I advise you not to invite trouble.”

“Thanks for earlier,” Qiao Jingting said, weighing the hoe and finding it suitable in his hand.

“Even if I didn’t say anything, the system would force you into the newbie tutorial,” she replied, glancing around and speaking in a low voice. “Put that down and don’t anger them.”

Qiao Jingting hesitated for a moment but eventually put the hoe down. He had two main considerations: first, the girl didn’t seem like a bad person, and they had no grievances between them, so she probably wouldn’t harm him. Second, using a hoe might be an overreaction to the situation, and he tended to be heavy-handed. It was a solid weapon.

She looked at Qiao Jingting coldly and solemnly and continued, “Your newbie protection time is running out, and you just offended that fat guy. You’re bound to face some trouble.”

“Will he kill me?” Qiao Jingting asked disdainfully.

“He may not kill you, but there are countless ways to torture you. Don’t provoke them,” she said, then quickly walked away.

Qiao Jingting wanted to catch up and ask her more, but he noticed that she clearly didn’t want to be seen talking to him and stopped after a few steps.

He rubbed his stomach and felt a bit hungry. Curiously, he imagined food in his mind, and a semi-transparent interface appeared before him. In the bottom-left corner of the menu bar, it showed his initial point as 20, and there were countless food options to choose from, with detailed categorization. Most items were priced at 1 or 2 points, which surprised and intrigued him, making his head spin.

Finally, he chose a 1-point burger. Instantly, a burger appeared in his hand, still warm.

He had 13 minutes left of his newbie protection time, and he could already see a group of people in the distance observing him. As he scrutinized his surroundings, he mechanically started chewing the burger. He didn’t have any appetite in this eerie environment, but he needed to restore his stamina.

He looked down on the likes of the fat guy and his minions. Since the age of 17, he had been involved in underground fighting—pain, strength, blood, intimidation, greed, madness—he had witnessed most of the dark and ugly things in this world, so he naturally had no fear of these unruly mobs.

He habitually touched the pendant on his neck and pressed it firmly against his chest, calming himself under the artificial pressure.

He had to go back.

His grandma was still waiting for him in the hospital, and the money he left behind would eventually run out. Most importantly, his disappearance would take away all hope from the old lady.

To become a “Respected”… What did “Respected” really mean?

Just as he was about to return to the system page to ask more questions, he noticed the fat guy from earlier, accompanied by three or five others, approaching from a distance.

Qiao Jingting swallowed the burger in a few bites and stood up.

The sun was setting, casting a soft orange hue on the towering tree. The dappled tree shadows danced on the rustic stone path, swaying with the gentle breeze. The scene appeared serene and peaceful, seemingly untouched by worldly troubles.

But Qiao Jingting knew that beneath the surface of this seemingly ordinary village lay a power he couldn’t comprehend, and what awaited him now was far from benevolent.

As the group approached, the fat guy grinned with his mouth wide open. “Kid, time’s almost up, isn’t it?”

Qiao Jingting responded indifferently, “Is there something you want?”

The fat guy looked up at the tree and pointed with his thick, stubby finger. “That’s the ‘Tree of Life.’ Each city has one, and this game has a total of 32 cities. Apart from the 4 newbie villages, 4 free markets, and 4 border countries, the Tree of Life in the remaining cities can be marked by individuals. Once the Tree of Life is marked, it means that person has conquered the city. They can establish their own guild, and everyone in the city becomes their slaves. All resources in the city are at their disposal, and anyone who enters the city must abide by their rules.”

Qiao Jingting listened silently.

The fat guy sneered coldly, “Once you enter this game, don’t even think about leaving, and don’t fantasize about becoming a ‘Respected.’ The newbie village is the safest place. As long as you behave, live obediently, you’ll have food and drink to survive.”

Qiao Jingting shook his head firmly and said, “I must leave the game.”

The group burst into mocking laughter.

The fat guy laughed particularly exaggeratedly. “Everyone says that when they first come in. Let me tell you, they all deserve a good beating!”

Qiao Jingting squinted his eyes, clenching his fists in his pockets.

“Our leader is the highest level in the Xin Yue Hu guild, level 6,” the fat guy gestured with his hand, showing the number six. “Do you know what that means? Hehe, he can crush you like a bug.”

“Enough with the nonsense. What do you guys want?” Qiao Jingting glanced at his newbie protection time, which was less than a minute remaining.

“We want you to listen obediently. I’ll take you to meet our leader. He’ll like you since you’re strong and healthy. From now on, whatever our leader wants you to do, you’ll do it. The points you earn will be distributed according to our leader’s decision. Of course, if you perform well, the leader may promote and strengthen you.”

“How high of a level do I need to reach to leave the game?”

The fat guy’s expression was filled with anger and mockery. “You just can’t give up, huh? That’s something we’ll never achieve in our lifetime.”

“It’s something you’ll never achieve,” Qiao Jingting replied. He didn’t want to waste any more time talking to them. He knew too little about this game. He needed to find a place to study it carefully.

As Qiao Jingting turned to leave, he suddenly felt a gust of wind behind him. Without hesitation, he rotated his left foot, propelling his body with his right foot, executing a spinning kick. He had observed these people earlier, and they seemed ordinary in physique and spirit, not like skilled fighters. In the split second he turned around, he had already identified the person, and his kick should have hit the attacker head-on. However, to his surprise, the seemingly clumsy fat guy dodged very agilely.

Qiao Jingting turned back, his back against the Tree of Life, and coldly looked at the people surrounding him.

The fat guy sneered, “Had any training? If it were before, I definitely couldn’t beat you, but we’ve all been strengthened, and your speed… it’s too slow!” He swung his fist and lunged forward.

Strengthened?

Qiao Jingting didn’t have time to think too much. He was amazed at how fast the fat guy was, even in an underground arena, he would be a formidable opponent.

The fat guy’s fist came straight for Qiao Jingting’s face, but Qiao Jingting dodged to the side and seized the fat guy’s forearm, swiftly turning his back to him. With a vicious elbow strike to the fat guy’s armpit, the fat guy howled in pain, his face turning pale.

Qiao Jingting turned around and delivered a punch, hitting the fat guy’s face, knocking him down to the ground.

The remaining people all rushed at Qiao Jingting, throwing punches and kicks at him.

Qiao Jingting was surrounded, taking down one person but also receiving several blows himself. He was filled with doubts. These people had no fighting skills, their whole bodies were full of openings. Under normal circumstances, he should have no problem dealing with all of them alone. Yet each of them had impressive speed and strength, which an ordinary person wouldn’t possess.

Could it be true, as the fat guy said, that they had been “strengthened”?

Qiao Jingting took a kick to his side, causing half of his body to go numb. He instinctively knelt down, and as he did, fists and kicks mercilessly assaulted him. He tightly protected his vital organs, huddling and waiting for an opportunity to counterattack.

The fat guy pushed away the others who were attacking Qiao Jingting and kicked him on the back, angrily shouting, “Fuck you! You’re shameless! I gave you face, but you don’t deserve it!” He continued kicking and cursing, “Aren’t you tough? Come on, get up! You’re nothing more than a dog here!”

Qiao Jingting, who had been covering his head, suddenly grabbed the fat guy’s leg.

The fat guy froze, and the others hadn’t reacted yet. Qiao Jingting’s eyes flashed with a cold light as he pressed the fat guy’s leg with his forearm, using his body’s weight to slam the fat guy onto the ground. At the same time, he used his knee to ruthlessly press against the fat guy’s knee pit, exerting intense pressure.

“Ah-ah!” The fat guy let out a piercing scream, his fatty body trembling in pain as tears and saliva flowed uncontrollably.

Qiao Jingting stood up and kicked the fat guy’s face, sending his nearly two-hundred-pound bulky body rolling twice. He wanted to rush forward and deliver a few more blows, but the others pounced on him again.

Ignoring the punches and kicks raining around him, Qiao Jingting lunged at the fat guy, raining punches on his face one after another. His lips were tightly sealed, and his eyes were filled with killing intent.

A heavy blow struck Qiao Jingting’s back, causing him to stagger and fall onto the almost unconscious fat guy. Then he collapsed to the ground. He tried to prop himself up, but someone stomped on his fingers with a foot!

Finally, Qiao Jingting let out a cry of pain. His facial features twisted, and he landed a punch on the person’s thigh, struggling to stand up. But he was once again kicked down to the ground.

No, he needed something…

Qiao Jingting spotted a discarded hoe not far away, regretting listening to that girl’s advice. He gritted his teeth, rose up again, and quickly ran towards the hoe on the ground.

The people behind him chased after him, all faster than him. In an instant, they tackled him to the ground, and a rain of punches and kicks followed.

Qiao Jingting’s vision blurred from the beating, his head and face covered in blood. He desperately clung to someone’s leg, toppling them to the ground and unleashing a frenzy of punches.

This was the essence of a group fight—run if you can, and if you can’t, grab one person and beat them mercilessly. Unfortunately, he gradually ran out of strength. After throwing a few punches, he was kicked down again.

“What the hell are you guys doing?” a low and hoarse voice came from behind, breathing evenly. It must be someone who arrived later.

“Brother Wei.”

“Brother Wei, you’re here. Fatso brought us to teach the newbie a lesson.”

“‘Teach a lesson’?” the person called Brother Wei sneered disdainfully, kicking the fat and bloody figure on the ground. “Useless.” He walked up to Qiao Jingting, looking down at him from above with a cold smile. “Quite gutsy, huh?”

Qiao Jingting’s eyes were swollen, and he could only see a skinny man through his swollen eyelids.

Brother Wei grinned maliciously. “A group of people ganging up on one person, and that person is even defenseless. How unscrupulous. Here’s what we’ll do. If you can land a punch on me, I’ll let you go today. How about it?”

Qiao Jingting clenched his fist, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and struggled to prop up his body that felt like it was falling apart. He flipped over and slowly arched his body, then his knees, and finally, with a trembling stance, he stood up.

He was a bastard child, and his biological father seemed to have enough money to buy the whole world. His mother went after that money, and his strongest impression of that man was the contempt on his family’s faces when his mother shamelessly begged for money, like looking at a dog.

So from the age of thirteen, he never spent a penny of that man’s money. At seventeen, he started fighting in underground matches. He made quite a bit of money, but being beaten to the point of not being able to get out of bed for a month was a common occurrence. He didn’t care about these injuries.

Since he was young, he understood that principle, the principle that countless people had learned through blood and tears—weak flesh, strong food!

Qiao Jingting let out a low roar and attacked Brother Wei.

Brother Wei sneered contemptuously, easily dodging his attack. His speed was much faster than that of the fat guy and the others!

But Qiao Jingting’s target wasn’t Brother Wei. After Brother Wei evaded, he lunged straight toward the hoe on the ground. This time, no one reacted in time. Qiao Jingting grabbed the hoe, rolled on the spot, and stood up, wielding a deadly weapon in his hand.

The group of people looked at Brother Wei, unsure of what to do.

After being played in front of everyone, Brother Wei couldn’t bear the humiliation. He looked at Qiao Jingting with a sinister gaze and said, “You fucking refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.”

Qiao Jingting weighed the hoe in his hand and took slow steps towards them.

His face was covered in blood, his clothes dirty and tattered, giving him a disheveled appearance. But his eyes became even more sinister and fierce. The veins on his arm, gripping the hoe, bulged as if they were about to burst, as though he was ready to pounce and devour his prey.

The group of people was intimidated by his aura.

“Brother Wei… be careful, this kid is not weak.”

Brother Wei glanced at the person lying on the ground. For a Level 2 person who had never undergone any cultivation, to achieve such results against six Level 3 or 4 individuals, it was more than just “not weak.” He coldly remarked, “What are you idiots standing around for?”

The group exchanged glances and suddenly produced daggers, short knives, and sticks out of thin air.

Today had been filled with shocking events, and Qiao Jingting didn’t have time to contemplate the sudden appearance of these weapons out of nowhere. Subconsciously, he had already accepted the fact that he had entered a game world. He swung the hoe and struck the person closest to him.

The person raised a short knife to counter. Qiao Jingting’s attack missed, but he swiftly changed his grip and attacked from a different angle. Caught off guard by his speed, the person was struck in a vital area and let out a pained cry as they fell.

With a weapon in hand, Qiao Jingting seemed invigorated. In an instant, he took down two more opponents.

Brother Wei narrowed his rat-like eyes, clearly losing his patience. He rushed forward, a steel rod appearing in his hand, swinging it round to strike Qiao Jingting’s thigh. Despite his seemingly effortless steps, he had moved several meters in an instant!

Qiao Jingting watched as Brother Wei approached, watched as the iron rod came swinging towards him. But the speed was astonishing, and he couldn’t react in time to dodge!

A wave of intense pain washed over him as Qiao Jingting was hit hard and sent flying to the ground, the hoe flying out of his hand.

Impossible… How could he be so fast…

Qiao Jingting watched as Brother Wei’s shoe sole enlarged before his eyes, and then his head was ruthlessly struck. He was kicked, rolling several times and ended up lying on the ground, unable to move.

Then, a blunt object landed heavily on his shoulder.

“How about it? Can you still stand up?” Brother Wei’s mocking voice resounded above him.

Qiao Jingting tasted blood in his throat and spit out a mouthful of blood. He clenched his back teeth and, against all odds, managed to force himself to stand up.

Brother Wei’s expression changed slightly, clearly losing his patience, and he swung the stick again, hitting Qiao Jīngtīng on the side of his waist…

From the moment Qiao Jīngtīng fell to the ground again, unable to get up, he was driven to madness amidst his desperate situation. It was the first time he had experienced such despair. He couldn’t believe that anyone could be so fast. In his four to five years of fighting on the arena, he had faced over a hundred opponents, including the most formidable ones, but none of them could possess such ghostly speed! Moreover, Brother Wei seemed very relaxed and hadn’t even exerted his full strength.

When he realized that he couldn’t defeat someone like that, his desire to survive turned into boundless hatred. His only thought was not to save his own life but to die together with his enemy before him!

However, when he saw his hand separate from his body, rolling on the ground like trash, he no longer felt pain. He was engulfed by an overwhelming aura of death, unable to utter a sound from his throat or take a breath in his chest.

Am I going to die…

Grandma, I’m sorry…