The second-most popular stream was Zai Zong's.
At that moment, he was also playing Dark Forest.
However, compared to Xin Xin, who ranked first, he had more experience as a veteran gamer.
It was already the fourth night.
Holding an Iron Shovel, he was covered in wounds and gasping for breath!
Two wild dog corpses and four Wild Man corpses lay on the ground.
Large patches of filthy blood had splattered across the floor and seeped into it. Just looking at it, one could practically smell that lingering, pungent stench.
A battle had clearly taken place!
Zai Zong, sitting before the screen, wiped the sweat from his forehead and smiled in relief at having survived.
After the experiences of the first three nights, he had gradually gotten the hang of things.
He had also roughly figured out how to handle the dangers of the night.
Zai Zong had not chosen the bedroom in the Shelter. To him, that room was too large and had several windows. Monsters could easily smash through them and ambush him, forcing a fight and draining resources.
So he chose a medium-sized room to reduce the chances of being attacked.
Because he had discovered that monsters wandered around searching.
Hiding in an enclosed room could effectively reduce the chances of being found.
In that regard, it was better than the bedroom.
At present, the room only had two windows and two doors.
He left one door as an escape route, while he nailed the rest shut with wooden planks.
He had also placed an Animal Trap beneath each window and in front of the door as a double layer of protection.
Before this, he had tried several different ways of hiding.
For example, he moved a cabinet into the room to block the door.
Then an earthquake shifted the furniture, rendering all his efforts useless.
He had also dragged the cabinet into a corner and hidden in the triangular gap behind it.
The monster simply smashed the cabinet apart and dragged him out.
After trying several methods, he understood that hiding blindly would not solve the problem.
He needed both defense and offense!
So during the day, he worked on the main quest while scavenging resources and materials in the forest. At night, he returned to the Shelter to repair doors, seal up windows and entrances, lay traps, and then hide in a corner to defend himself.
Then, he was discovered.
The monster broke in.
Now, after surviving a battle, he looked at his nearly depleted health, then at the completely destroyed doors and windows, as well as the room door smashed into splinters, and felt immensely relieved.
Broken doors and windows were no big deal. He could go scavenging again during the day and repair them. As long as he survived, everything was fine.
Zai Zong checked the time and saw that dawn was near. As long as he made it through this night, he could leave the Withered Grassland and explore the second area, Silent Forest.
As long as he stayed alive!
"Guys, this game is incredible! Whew... So thrilling! That feeling of surviving by the skin of your teeth is just unbeatable!"
The viewers in the stream also chimed in, saying he had fought beautifully just now.
"Zai is seriously awesome. If it were me, I definitely wouldn't have survived."
"True, but the Animal Trap helped too. It clamped the monster down so it couldn't move, giving him a chance to bash it to death with the shovel."
"These night events happen way too often. It's really hard to play without dying a few times."
"This is what Horror Games are like! Even I got scared just watching the stream."
"Horror Games have officially become something I need to approach cautiously."
Watching the chat scroll by, Zai Zong smiled.
Just as he relaxed and prepared to welcome the fifth day, a strange voice suddenly sounded from outside.
[Where are you.]
[Come over.]
Zai Zong's expression immediately stiffened, and the hand clutching the Iron Shovel trembled slightly.
"Damn it, another random event? I just finished fighting! My shovel's almost out of durability! Is this game trying to kill me!?"
But complaints aside, with only a sliver of health left, he had no intention of fighting.
He merely curled up in the corner, hoping he could hide through it.
This was an event he had not encountered during the previous three nights, so it had to be a new event!
Because of that, the viewers began flooding the chat.
"Could there be an NPC outside?"
"Should Zai go take a look? Maybe there's a quest?"
"It can talk, so it doesn't seem like a monster."
"I don't think nighttime is always attack events. Could it be some kind of rescue event?"
"Go take a look, Zai! Don't chicken out!"
Looking at the chat, Zai Zong began considering whether he should take a risk and go outside for the sake of the stream.
But the voice's next words made him abandon that idea.
[Where are you.]
[Come here.]
[Come to me.]
Who the hell would dare go out there!?
Zai Zong shook his head like a rattle drum and hurriedly opened the room door, retreating into the Entrance Hall.
There was no real protection here, but it was at least better than the drafty room he had just been in. The front door was also here, so if he truly could not hide, he could always bolt outside.
If he couldn't fight and couldn't win, then running was still an option!
As a veteran gamer, whittling enemies down and kiting them were everyday tactics.
That voice was obviously trying to lure him out and kill him. He was not falling for it.
Holding the nearly broken Iron Shovel, Zai Zong hid in a corner of the Entrance Hall and prayed for the event to end quickly.
However, after speaking, the voice fell completely silent, as though it had left. Everything was quiet.
Had it really gone?
Zai Zong frowned.
Unable to be sure, he decided not to move around recklessly and simply stay in the Entrance Hall until dawn.
But after the fierce battle, he was feeling thirsty. He casually picked up the cup beside the table, intending to wet his throat.
The moment he swallowed a mouthful of water, a sudden Knock Knock startled him so badly that he choked.
"Fuck. Cough, cough, cough... Damn it. Cough, cough, cough, cough... Where did that... Knock Knock... Cough, cough, cough... come from?"
His miserable state provided the viewers with endless entertainment. Gifts came flying in, forcing Zai Zong to thank them while coughing violently.
The Knock Knock did not stop.
And it was very close, with a steady rhythm.
It was coming from the front door!
Zai Zong narrowed his eyes, his expression wary.
There was something wrong with this Knock Knock.
The voice calling for him had disappeared, and then this door started knocking. Was that not too much of a coincidence?
And why knock on the door?
Even the doors and windows he had nailed shut could be forcibly broken through.
The front door was not even sealed. Whoever was outside could just open it, so why Knock?
Could there really be an NPC outside?
What kind of trick was this developer playing?
Zai Zong was not sure. He prepared to return to the previous room. In his eyes, the Entrance Hall was no longer safe either.
But when he glanced at the stream, gifts were pouring in, and everyone was demanding that he open the door. Otherwise, it would be too boring.
Zai Zong gritted his teeth before the screen. He looked at the door, then at his health bar, hesitating over whether to take the risk.
But when a crimson message worth 10,000 appeared, telling him to go outside and take a look, he immediately decided to investigate.
This was not for the money. It was merely to satisfy the viewers' curiosity.
That was the code of service for a streamer.
It was also the dream and original intention he had when he first began streaming!
So, after glancing at the crimson message worth 10,000, he said nothing. Dragging his low-health body along and holding an Iron Shovel with nearly zero durability, he resolutely reached for the door.
"Come on, you little trash! I fear no death! I'm ready to respawn!"
The door was yanked open.
But outside... there was nothing.
No people, and no monsters.
No attack, and no strange occurrence.
Within the dead-silent, Pitch Black forest, there was only drifting fog and the cool night breeze.
"Hm? What's this?"
Sharp-eyed, Zai Zong spotted a letter on the ground.
When he picked it up, the game prompt said it was actually a Wedding Invitation?
Uh...
Zai Zong looked it over. The invitation was a crumpled piece of paper.
Some stick figures holding hands had been drawn on it with colorful crayons, and a cartoonish sun sat in the upper-right corner.
There was also a section of text in the center.
'We sincerely invite you to attend the wedding! It will be behind the Cornfield, southwest of the Withered Grassland.'
There was also a string of numbers beside it: 4840. It looked like some kind of password.
Zai Zong scratched his head. A wedding?
"Could this be a side quest? Who gets married in a terrifying forest like this otherwise? And the invitation was delivered in the middle of the night, like they're terrified people won't realize something's wrong with them!"
Zai Zong's words earned the agreement of the viewers.
And upon hearing that it might be a side quest, they all urged Zai Zong to go and try it.
Zai Zong was actually curious too. He wanted to know what this wedding would be like, and even if the viewers had not said anything, he would have done it.
Because as someone who enjoyed action RPGs, even if he did not touch the main quest, he still had to clear every side quest!
Even if the main quest's plot was in critical danger, he still had to help villagers kill chickens, chop firewood, and run errands first.
Even if the main quest was urgent, with enemies at the gates and everyone waiting for the protagonist to make a glorious entrance and show off his might.
He still had to help villagers unclog toilets, deliver letters, and hunt bandits first.
That was just how he played.
So in the face of the viewers' enthusiastic demands, he did not object.
Under such circumstances, the night ended. At the same time, stirring music representing hope began to play.
Then, with a flash of white light.
The fifth day arrived!
Before you continue