Shen Hao met Xia Bing and received the game item she had given him, then put it in his inventory.
[Substitute Doll]
"It can do nothing and seems to have no use, but it can die in your place.
When you die in an Instance below S-rank difficulty, you will revive in the real world.
When you die in an S-rank or higher Instance or in the real world, you will revive on the spot.
After reviving, you will be severely injured, and all attributes will be reduced by 99% until your injuries heal."
The item was different from what Shen Hao had expected, but it was interesting nonetheless. It just might not be useful in some situations.
For example, if he died in a dangerous situation in the real world, reviving on the spot would just mean dying one more time.
With all his attributes reduced by 99%, a mosquito might be able to bite him to death.
So the item's greatest use was escaping an Instance below S-rank when he couldn't complete the mission.
Its revival effect was really nothing special.
Even so, the item was extremely valuable. For low-level players, it really did give them an extra life.
Looking at Shen Hao, Xia Bing asked in some puzzlement, "Didn't you just come out of a game Instance? Why are you matching with a new one so soon?"
"I just want to level up faster. After all, I'm only two levels away from level 10, and I want to awaken my supernatural ability sooner."
"Don't you dislike fighting and killing? Aren't you entering Instances a little too often?"
It was a little too often, and Shen Hao couldn't deny it.
A normal person entered an Instance only once a month. At this rate, he did seem a little abnormal.
"The last Instance was too easy. It got me a little excited."
"Your luck isn't so good this time," Xia Bing said with a sigh.
"Water-Sky Amusement Park is a somewhat obscure Instance. It was only revamped a few months ago, and so far, very few Alliance Guild members have matched with it, so there's no Instance guide."
"I didn't expect to match with an Instance like this either," Shen Hao said. "Looks like my good luck is running out."
Seeing that Shen Hao seemed worried, Xia Bing said,
"You don't need to worry too much. This Instance isn't particularly difficult for an A-rank Instance, because someone has already cleared it. The player who cleared it just doesn't belong to the Alliance Guild.
"If you can clear it, do your best to do so. If you really can't, even if you die in the game Instance, you can still revive in the real world."
"I understand," Shen Hao said. "It's an extra layer of insurance."
"Yes, that's right," Xia Bing said. "The fact that you matched with an A-rank Instance at only level 8 shows that the game system holds your potential in high regard. Your previous performance must have been excellent.
"I think you still have a chance of clearing this Instance, because in this Instance, there isn't much difference between Ability Users and ordinary people."
"Will there be Ability Users in the Instance?" Shen Hao quickly asked.
"Of course," Xia Bing said. "Normally, players only match with A-rank Instances at levels 10 to 19, so your teammates will all be Ability Users."
"All of them are Ability Users?"
"Yes, that's generally how it works. But don't count too much on relying on your teammates to clear it.
"They'll basically all be strangers. If you really run into danger, they might not save you."
Of course they won't save me. They'd love nothing more than to kill me, Shen Hao thought.
He looked back at Xia Bing and asked, "What kinds of abilities do Ability Users generally have? Can you tell me about them?"
Although he had read quite a bit of information about Ability Users online, it would be better to hear about this sort of thing from an Ability User in person.
"Sure, I'll give you a quick introduction," Xia Bing said.
"Ability Users are divided into seven systems in total. The most common are the Monster System, Defense Type, Witch System, and Illusion System.
"Monster System Ability Users have very high constitution attributes. Their bodies are extremely powerful, and their recovery abilities are strong too.
"Their abilities generally involve changing their forms, transforming into something like a half-human, half-beast. They're extremely strong in close combat, roughly equivalent to warrior-type characters in a typical game.
"Hong Tao, whom you killed, was a Monster System Ability User. Even when I drove a steel needle into his heart, it couldn't kill him immediately."
Shen Hao nodded. Xia Bing had explained it very clearly.
"Control-type Ability Users have very high spirit attributes. They can use their mental power to control objects, and they can also use it to defend themselves.
"Control-type Ability Users are somewhat like archers in games, but their defensive abilities aren't bad either.
"I'm a Control-type Ability User."
When Xia Bing finished speaking, she suddenly looked at Shen Hao. He felt a vast, invisible force envelop his body, and he slowly floated into the air.
Only after Xia Bing withdrew the force did Shen Hao land on the ground again.
"That's the power of a Control-type Ability User."
"Impressive," Shen Hao said in admiration.
They really were archers with relatively strong defenses. Control-type Ability Users could use their abilities to control things like steel needles or flying swords to attack, and they could also use them to block approaching threats.
"Shaman-type Ability Users have very strange powers. They can generally be divided into two types.
"One type can control the elements of heaven and earth, such as water, fire, earth, ice, and lightning. They're somewhat like mages in games.
"The other type can heal people and speed up their physical recovery. They can also foresee disasters, and the powerful ones can even see the future.
"They can be considered a priest-type class in games, the only support role."
"What about Illusion-type Ability Users? Are they like assassins?"
"More or less," Xia Bing said. "Illusion-type Ability Users excel at using illusions to confuse enemies, and they can turn invisible.
"What they're best at is creating illusions and assassinating people when their guard is down. They're a very troublesome class."
Shen Hao nodded. He now had a basic understanding of the four common types of Ability Users. They really were much stronger than ordinary people. Even with the same attributes, an ordinary person could only be thoroughly beaten.
It seemed his third Instance wouldn't be very easy.
"What about the other three types of Ability Users?"
"The other three are rarer. They're the Boundary System, Soul System, and Divine System."
"Boundary System Ability Users excel at creating barriers, domains that belong to them alone. They're nearly invincible within their own domains."
"Soul-type Ability Users can control ghosts. Their main abilities are imprisoning ghosts and raising them for protection. They can also directly damage a person's soul."
"Both of those are impressive," Shen Hao couldn't help saying.
"Yes, those two types of Ability Users are even more troublesome, but very few people awaken those abilities. Still, anyone who awakens either of them will be strong."
"Then what are Divine System Ability Users like?"
"You can't possibly encounter a Divine System Ability User, because almost no one can awaken a Divine System ability. I don't know much about them either.
"I only know they're nearly all-powerful, which is why they're called Divine System Ability Users."
"In that case, Divine System Ability Users should be the strongest class, right?"
"Of course. They're the undisputed strongest class, but I don't know anyone who's a Divine System Ability User. There are very few rumors about them either."
A sudden thought occurred to Shen Hao, and he asked, "Are there Demon System Ability Users?"
"Demon System? Where did you hear about that?"
"I saw it online. I'm not sure whether it's true."
"No," Xia Bing said. "Divine System Ability Users are the stuff of legend. The Demon System you mentioned was probably made up by someone."
Shen Hao nodded. It seemed his class really was unique. At least, no one knew of the Demon's existence so far.
Divine System Ability Users had left behind legends, but there weren't even any legends about Demons.
"Thank you for telling me so much. Now I'll know what to expect when I face Ability Users again."
Xia Bing smiled. "You won't need to fight those Ability Users in the Instance."
"I mean the people from the Blood Banquet. Sooner or later, I'll have to face them."
Xia Bing said, "Don't worry. Although I've withdrawn my people, they won't be too far from you. As long as you tell me what's happening in time, you won't have to face them directly."
"I hope so," Shen Hao said.
"You're entering the Instance tonight, so I'll send two people to your home this evening.
"If you die in the Instance, you'll still be severely injured when you return to the real world. If you don't get treatment in time, you'll still die."
"All right." Although Shen Hao didn't think he would need the Substitute Doll in the Instance, he agreed anyway.
It couldn't hurt. He could consider it another layer of insurance.
After parting with Xia Bing, Shen Hao returned home.
At ten that night, he entered the game Instance.