TAG Chapter 4

Both of them took a sharp breath simultaneously.

After pondering over it, this seemed to be the only reasonable explanation.

Unable to resist, Shu Ai touched her right upper arm, where her Silver Frost device was hidden beneath her sleeve.

Qiao Jingting also felt the cold touch of the silver metal and chuckled self-mockingly, “So, it seems I got lucky that this thing happened to be on my wrist.”

“Actually, when everyone first arrives, it’s on their right wrist. It can move and transform,” Shu Ai nodded.

“Move? Transform?”

Shu Ai nodded again, “Its material is very special. Have you seen ‘Terminator’? It’s similar to the liquid metal in the movie, but it has more functions. By spending some points, you can change its shape and position as you wish. However, it cannot leave your body. I’ve seen someone transform it into a dagger fused with their hand. Actually, I think it’s more like a bomb strapped to our necks. As long as it’s there, no one can escape the control of the system.”

“But as long as it, along with the limb it’s connected to, is severed, the connection with the system can be severed.”

“And then you become a living dead, with your consciousness going to a void space,” Shu Ai shook her head. “I know what you’re thinking, but I think it’s highly unlikely to find an entry point here and escape the game.”

Qiao Jingting covered his throbbing stomach with his hand and gasped softly, “Then let’s follow the rules of the game and become a ‘Respected’… What level is a ‘Respected’?”

Shu Ai forced a bitter smile, “In the Abyss Game, the levels are based on playing cards. Levels 2 to 10 are ordinary levels, and above that is the ‘Attendee.'”

“‘Attendee’?”

“Four Jacks, four Queens, four Kings, four Aces, one Black Joker, one Red Joker. They are collectively referred to as ‘Attendees.'”

Qiao Jingting’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, rendering him speechless for a moment.

Just Zheng Wei at level 5 had made him feel superhuman. What kind of power would those who advanced further possess?

Shu Ai saw through his thoughts, “It’s terrifying, right? The highest level in the game currently is a King, the only one. It has been like that for a long time, with no second one. So, he can never become an Ace.”

Qiao Jingting shook his head. He felt no fear at all. He only felt excitement. Which man doesn’t dream of having god-like powers to control everything?

Shu Ai stood up, “I can take you back to my place. With your current condition, you won’t survive long in the wilderness.”

Qiao Jingting nodded.

Shu Ai looked him up and down, her tone suddenly turning cold. “Although you don’t look like a bad person, let me warn you not to have any crooked ideas. I won’t kill you, but I can break your limbs and throw you to the ground.”

Qiao Jingting raised an eyebrow and chuckled. He understood Shu Ai’s caution. After all, for Shu Ai, he was worth 2,000 points. A girl struggling to survive alone in this kind of world, it was not easy.

Shu Ai became somewhat annoyed and embarrassed. “Why are you laughing?”

“Those who help me, I repay tenfold; those who harm me, I also repay tenfold,” Qiao Jingting smirked. “If you’re still worried, you can go back on your own. I never go back on my words.”

Shu Ai hesitated, looking at him for a moment. “…Come with me.”

Qiao Jingting used his hand to support himself against a tree trunk and slowly stood up, gritting his teeth. His voice was weak and feeble. “Let’s go.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“I won’t let you come within two meters of me, don’t expect me to help you.”

“No need.”

When they returned to the village, Qiao Jingting saw people standing outside and tried to go around them.

“It’s okay, those are NPCs.”

“How do you know?” Could those people really be robots that look exactly like humans?

“Look at the top of their heads. NPCs have yellow names, while players have green names.”

Qiao Jingting thought about it and looked over. Indeed, a common name appeared above an NPC’s head. He then looked at Shu Ai, and her name appeared in green, along with her level—4.

Shu Ai led him into a house. The house was not small, decorated in a simple and elegant manner, clean and tidy, but there wasn’t much inside, just empty.

“I rented this house. The houses in the newbie village have a function to protect newcomers. Only people I allow can enter my house. You’ll be safe here.”

Qiao Jingting slowly leaned on the bed in the guest room, not wanting to move at all. The journey had been extremely taxing.

Seeing his painful state, Shu Ai pursed her lips and explained, “A healing scroll costs 80 points, and I can afford only one.”

“You’re not obligated to help me. Providing me a place to recuperate is already good enough.”

Shu Ai nodded. “Rest up.” She turned off the lights and intended to leave.

Qiao Jingting thought of something and asked, “Is it possible to check someone’s status as long as you have their name?”

Shu Ai paused in her tracks. “Those functions require points to activate. You don’t need to waste points on that now. Whom do you want to check? I can help you.”

Qiao Jingting hesitated for a moment. “…Qiao Ruidu. Rui from ‘ruixue’ (snowfall) and Du from ‘ducheng’ (capital).”

Shu Ai remained silent for a few seconds. “Qiao Ruidu, level 2, born in Bi Yue Wu, West Baihu Continent, Newbie Village.”

Qiao Jingting’s cheeks swelled, and he stared straight at the plain ceiling, his eyebrows slightly furrowed. A faint mocking smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

Sure enough, Qiao Ruidu had also entered the game.

“He is your…” Shu Ai noticed Qiao Jingting’s strange expression but hesitated to speak further.

Qiao Jingting waved his hand. “Goodnight.”

When he woke up, it was already dusk.

Qiao Jingting looked at the unfamiliar ceiling, feeling dazed for a few seconds before his memories gradually resurfaced from his hazy mind.

His first thought that came to mind was—how was his grandmother doing?

He sighed, covering his eyes with the back of his hand. The intense pain coursing through his body couldn’t compare to the pain in his heart. His mother was rarely at home, and his grandmother had raised him single-handedly. From a young age, he caused trouble and fought, never allowing the old lady to rest easy. Finally, when he grew up and became sensible, ready to take care of her, this happened…

There were still tens of thousands of dollars left in the hospital, and his relatives would help take care of it in his absence. But what if the money ran out?

How long would he need to stay here? Would his grandmother be able to wait for him to come back? He didn’t know, and he didn’t even know how many days he could live.

Gritting his teeth, he got out of bed and took a few pills with water, then ate something.

Suddenly, voices came from outside the window. Qiao Jingting quickly crouched down, quietly moving to the window and peeking out through the gap in the curtain.

A group of people passed by, laughing loudly and telling lewd jokes. It was the fatty and the others.

Qiao Jingting’s eyes filled with chilling killing intent. He remembered their faces, and now he remembered their names too. He wanted to erase each and every one of those names.

He tightened the curtains, sat back on the bed, and thought about the healing scroll. He also thought about the 3-point gray rat. Feeling restless without Shu Ai’s return, he didn’t dare to act recklessly. Instead, he took advantage of this time to enter the player platform again. He wanted to quickly understand all the rules of the game.

It was the familiar scene again, and the twins were sitting obediently in their chairs, though they had changed their clothes.

Xiaoyuan smiled and said, “Player, do you need help?”

“I need a healing scroll,” Qiao Jingting said impatiently.

“But you can’t afford it.”

“Then shut up.”

Xiaoyuan shrugged and started tying his shoelaces.

Qiao Jingting’s eyes wandered on the platform interface, trying to decide what to look at. Just thinking about it would automatically select a certain menu.

He randomly clicked on the weapons category. Weapons were divided into melee, firearms, hidden weapons, large weapons, and magical weapons. Curiously, he clicked on the magical weapons, where there were several sub-menus such as weapons with magical attributes, weapons with infinite energy, soul weapons, divine weapons, and so on. Qiao Jingting became confused as he read through them, so he went back to look at the firearms. There were options for modern weapons, futuristic weapons, and super weapons. He opened the futuristic weapons option and was surprised to see an air-compressed shoulder-fired rocket launcher, explained as being able to cause massive damage without the need for ammunition. Its price was 1200 points.

Looking further ahead, things became even more mysterious. There were items like the far-infrared automatic targeting freeze pistol, explained as being able to automatically detect heat sources and shoot freezing bullets, priced at 400 points. There were also items like the heat source tracking net gun, sticky shotgun, and four-dimensional collapse grenade launcher, priced at 600, 400, and 6200 points respectively.

There were many other surreal weapons with explanations that Qiao Jingting couldn’t make sense of, and he became overwhelmed. He exited the page and randomly searched for other things, but the more he looked, the more confused he became.

Xiao Shen spoke coldly, “If you want to roughly browse through everything on the platform without resting, it will take you 16 days.”

Qiao Jingting closed the weapons page and returned to the main interface. “Do I have to see you every time I enter the platform?”

“If you open it from outside, then no,” Xiao Yuan shrugged. “That’s the simplified version of the platform, with more focus, but you’ll have a lot of things to consult us about. Many players even come in just for lunch.”

Qiao Jingting rolled his eyes. “I’ll try to come in as little as possible.”

“Oh, do you have any complaints about us?” Xiao Yuan blinked, “Just a reminder, the system spirits have a favorability rating. The higher our favorability towards you, the more likely we are to give you some surprises.”

“Like what?”

“Of course, I can’t tell you the surprises,” Xiao Yuan playfully smiled. “If you frequently chat with us, compliment us, and buy us clothes and snacks, it will increase our favorability towards you.”

“No need,” Qiao Jingting heard the sound of the door opening and exited the platform.

Shu Ai was closing the door, and Qiao Jingting glanced outside. It was indeed dark outside.

“You’re awake, feeling better?” Shu Ai asked.

“Okay,” Qiao Jingting replied. When the pain reached its extreme, it became numbing. At least, if he stayed still, he could still breathe. “Can you take me to the monster-spawning point tonight?”

“I just came back from there,” Shu Ai poured herself a glass of water, her face filled with exhaustion. She tilted her head back and drank it all in one breath, then slammed the glass heavily on the table. She turned to look at Qiao Jingting with a serious expression. “Will you really help me kill Han Bin?”

“Definitely,” Qiao Jingting said without hesitation.

Shu Ai bit her lip. “I earned 24 points today. If it weren’t for Han Bin’s people showing up, I could have killed more. Wait until midnight, and I’ll take you to the gray rat’s place. The two of us can work together, and in at most two nights, we can earn 80 points.”

“Are those robotic rats formidable? Usually, low-level monster-spawning points should have player protection,” Qiao Jingting added. “That’s how most online games work.”

“Some of them are. Several monster-spawning points in Xin Yue Hu are passive attack types. They only attack when you’re within one meter of them, and they stop attacking when you move away from the monster zone. Usually, a completely unenhanced player can slowly grind and kill one or two monsters a day through ambush and repeated attacks,” Shu Ai looked at him. “With your abilities, perhaps it can be faster.”

“What if I attack them head-on?”

“Attacking head-on, it’s unlikely for an unenhanced player to kill the gray rats,” Shu Ai shook her head. “Actually, I did the calculations. If it weren’t for Han Bin stealing our points, a level 3 player who used all their points to enhance themselves would have no trouble killing the gray rats.”

“We’ll reclaim the points they took from us,” Qiao Jingting said clearly, enunciating each word.

At three o’clock in the middle of the night, the two of them set out.

Qiao Jingting spent 10 points to buy a high-quality steel longsword. With only 5 points left from his initial 20, he had swallowed quite a few painkillers before leaving. Otherwise, he wouldn’t even be able to lift a blade.

The gray rats were just less than a kilometer outside the village, and they quickly arrived.

In the dim moonlight, they could vaguely see dark figures standing motionless not far away. The heads were small while their bodies were large, and they dragged long tails. They stood there like zombies, unmoving. The scene was somewhat eerie.

The two of them approached slowly.

One gray-furred giant rat appeared within their line of sight after another. Each of them stood about the height of a person. After Qiao Jingting got a clear look, he confirmed that these were the same gray rats he had encountered in that void space.

Shu Ai read his expression and became even more puzzled, just like him.

They maintained a safe distance of at least one meter, and as expected, the rats showed no reaction.

Shu Ai said, “We’ll both attack from behind, first cutting its legs, then finding an opportunity to strike its head or heart. If we don’t succeed in one attempt, we’ll move further away and try again.”

“That method is really inefficient.”

Shu Ai frowned, “Your efficiency would be even lower. Watch me demonstrate first.” She spoke as she swung her blade towards the right leg of a gray rat.

The rat’s program instantly activated, and its eyes emitted a green light. It turned around and swiped its claws. Its reaction speed was quite fast. Shu Ai, who had become experienced, ducked down, avoiding the claw. She swung her blade at an angle, hitting the inner side of the rat’s thigh. Then she jumped back to the rat’s right rear. The rat limped after her, pursuing with scratches and bites.

Qiao Jingting found the attacking style quite familiar and remembered that he had been bitten and clawed by the gray rats face-to-face at close range in that void space, hundreds of times.

He had been involved in underground fighting for four or five years, starting with brawls against local thugs, earning 80 bucks for each win, and then moving on to professional combat arenas where he earned five or six figures. As an untrained street fighter, he managed to survive in the dark fighting arenas, relying on his innate keen observation and fearlessness. Observing the opponent’s attack style was a skill for self-preservation. During those biting incidents, he had already vaguely grasped the attack patterns of the gray rats. After all, these things were just machines, programmed with set patterns, far less cunning and unpredictable than humans.

Shu Ai dodged nimbly, fending off the rat’s claws and long teeth. Although her movements were unrefined and mainly consisted of evasions and wild swings, her speed was fast and explosive. In no time, she had wounded one of the rat’s arms, seized the opportunity, and plunged her blade into its heart.

The rat’s body twitched, then crashed to the ground with a clatter.

Shu Ai took a breath, “Did you see that? When the two of us work together, it’s much faster.”

“I want to try it alone,” Qiao Jingting said.

Shu Ai furrowed her brow, “Are you too confident in yourself? Your wounds haven’t healed, and you haven’t enhanced yourself at all. You probably haven’t even used a longsword before.”

Qiao Jingting ignored her and approached the nearest gray rat, wielding his blade. He stood in front of the rat and swung his sword towards its heart.

The gray rat’s eyes instantly emitted a green light, and it swung its claws at him.

That’s right, first the left claw, then the right claw, with an interval of less than a second. The heights were approximately 1.6 meters and 1.4 meters, followed by seven claw attacks and one pounce. After that, it would continue with claws again, but the frequency of pounces increased. How many times was it… Anyway, after a fierce pounce, it would repeat the aforementioned process.

Qiao Jingting attacked and retreated, evading every attack from the gray rat, although he couldn’t land a hit.

Shu Ai watched in astonishment.

Qiao Jingting continued dodging and engaging the gray rat for three to four minutes. He was the first to reach his limit, his face covered in sweat and pale. The painkillers were no longer effective, but he finally figured out the attack pattern of the gray rat, seized an opportunity, and stabbed its heart with his blade.

Shu Ai stared wide-eyed, clearly unable to believe it.

Qiao Jingting released his grip on the sword and sat down on the ground, gasping for breath. Suddenly, a row of fluorescent words appeared before his eyes.

“Congratulations to player Qiao Jingting for killing the gray rat and earning 3 points. You have obtained points for the first time in the game, unlocking the achievement ‘Blessing of the New Sprout’ and receiving 20 points as a reward.”

Qiao Jingting blinked, “An ‘achievement’?”

“Yes, there are various achievements in the game that require specific conditions to be met,” Shu Ai walked over and crouched beside him. “You were able to dodge every attack from the gray rat as if you knew how it would strike. I had to engage in real battles for quite a while to be able to dodge them.”

“I was bitten and clawed by it for a long time in that void space. Since we couldn’t physically touch each other, I just stood there and let it attack me. I saw clearly how it attacked.”

“I see,” Shu Ai nodded. “It seems that the void space helped you a lot. If you can kill the gray rats at this speed, you’ll be able to buy a healing scroll tonight.”

Qiao Jingting’s face had turned pale from the pain. He gasped heavily and said, “I can’t continue, but I can guide you on how to face them head-on. I guarantee it will be several times faster than your method.”

Excitement gleamed in Shu Ai’s eyes. She was clearly eager to give it a try.

“Go ahead,” Qiao Jingting said.

Shu Ai lifted her sword and ran towards a gray rat.

The names of several game settings, such as scrolls, life tree, and runestones, were taken from the only online game I played when I was young—Shadowbane. It was a very old game but truly a fantastic one, a masterpiece of its time. Since then, I haven’t played any online games because I have poor self-control and tend to get addicted to them. So, I have chosen to keep my distance from them.

I offer this as a tribute to that game~