Peak Ranking, Xie Antong's Intelligence

The Store function has been activated.

During breaks between games, all Chosen Ones may prepare the items they wish to buy in advance. Products in the Store will aid your performance in the games.

The Friends system has been activated.

All Chosen Ones may add friends, transfer funds, give gifts, and so on. Of course, service fees will be charged according to the amount involved.

Please look forward to future features such as playing games together.

Feature activation announcement.

Since the games began, new people have been selected every day. We hope that everyone can become players.

Two games have now passed, and many outstanding players have emerged. We believe they will eventually possess everything.

To help players better understand themselves and others, the Peak Ranking will be introduced after the next game ends.

The Peak Ranking will comprehensively assess players' combat power, game performance, bonus items possessed, and other factors, then rank the top one hundred.

Those who make the list will receive further benefits. We look forward to everyone's active participation and strong performances in the next game.

The announcement ended, and the above words repeated twice in everyone's minds, as if emphasizing the key points.

Lu Ce looked at the announcement, his brows drawing together slightly.

"Peak Ranking."

Something like this was basically putting top players over the fire.

After only three games, he was probably already among the strongest group. But his strength was nowhere near absurd yet; compared to certain violent institutions, it was definitely not enough.

The simplest example was that he probably still lacked the confidence to survive being shot.

"Still, it says there'll be benefits. That might not be bad."

"I wonder whether it'll reveal my real appearance and personal information. I'll deal with it when the time comes."

For now, Lu Ce decided to put something beyond his control out of his mind.

He was cautious, but he did not lack the courage to take risks.

There was no way he would deliberately hold back in the next game or refuse to participate just to avoid this ranking.

He would lie low when he could, but increasing his strength came first. If something really happened, he would face it.

With that in mind, he summoned the screen in his head and looked over its interface.

Rest Mode.

For each game, you may choose to become a spectator or a player.

Of course, we believe the world welcomes players, and players will ultimately possess the world.

Time until the next game begins: 47:57:43.

This is the challenge of the gods. Chosen Paradise welcomes your arrival!

Besides this standard page, two more pages had appeared at the side: Friends and Store.

After familiarizing himself with how to use them, Lu Ce opened his eyes in the room.

Sitting up in the dim room, Lu Ce checked his physical condition and felt his fully restored body.

Mm, good. The special reward for a perfect clear—complete restoration.

This was the most obvious benefit of joining the game. In the real world, the effects of Chosen of Suffering were still far too limiting.

He lightly jumped twice, and his first impression was that he felt light—truly light!

If his previous 10 points of strength had been the limit after breaking through the Gene Lock, then his current 24 points of strength had truly exceeded what he could control.

Lu Ce did not know what the ancient heroes meant by being as light as a swallow. He only believed one saying—given enough strength, even a brick could fly. Right now, he was that brick!

It was as though his legs contained high-powered engines capable of providing terrifying propulsion.

He had not had legs in the previous game, and he had barely moved, so he had not felt much. Now, he felt that even controlling his body would require some adjustment.

If Zhang Tao appeared before him again and provoked him, Lu Ce might genuinely hesitate. One punch could really kill him. Killing someone in the real world would probably be troublesome.

His experiences in the game, along with Greed Mask's previous influence, had left him with somewhat twisted tendencies. He needed to return to normal.

He took out his phone and opened the familiar app. The first trending topic he saw made his heart jolt.

—People really can die in the Chosen Game!

Lu Ce had known it.

It was only during the second game that Chosen Paradise had truly bared its fangs. Only then would people realize the game's true nature and its cruelty.

After all, five people who had participated in the game with him had died—right in front of him!

One of them had even been killed by his own hand.

The remaining people had not achieved a perfect clear, nor did they have a chance at treatment like his...

Returning to the real world with one leg broken?

Thinking of it, Lu Ce's heart grew heavier. Turmoil on this scale would definitely not remain small.

The authorities should ban access to Chosen Paradise!

Everyone should be forbidden from participating in Chosen Paradise's games!

What exactly was Chosen Paradise? Supernatural power or a scam?

Patient numbers at hospitals across the country suddenly surge—what is the official explanation?

The trending topics were clearly different from the first time. The previous excitement and curiosity had begun turning into panic.

Lu Ce even noticed that some especially extreme headlines and videos could be seen one second, then vanish after a refresh the next.

It seemed that unseen hands were also exercising strict control, frantically deleting content to maintain stability.

But Lu Ce knew this state of affairs would not last. It was impossible to keep it contained.

"Ugh..."

With a sigh, Lu Ce put away his phone and headed to school.

Ding-ding-ding!

The class bell had already rung, but the classroom was still noisy. No one was managing it, and it was as bustling as a market.

The students kept chattering away. Boys and girls at that age seemed to possess endless energy, which was hard to understand.

But this time, Lu Ce no longer needed to listen to what they were discussing.

Their discussions, fears, and speculations about the game—every bit of it was his own personal experience.

Without realizing it, he seemed to have become somewhat distant from everyone else.

"The game's over. Did you watch it? Or did you participate?"

Only when a voice sounded beside his ear, carrying warm breath, did Lu Ce snap out of his thoughts.

Turning his head, he found that Xie Antong had somehow leaned close to his ear and was speaking against it.

Though Lu Ce had never admitted it, Xie Antong's words now practically assumed that he was a Chosen One.

"What is it? Do you need something?" Lu Ce still did not answer directly.

"If you cleared the game successfully, then congratulations, you were lucky. If you were a spectator, though, you must have seen quite a lot."

Xie Antong looked slightly solemn. As she spoke, she took out her phone and lowered her voice.

"This game, I collected as much intelligence as possible."

"Chosen Paradise is no joke. The cruelty and brutality of some games have clearly surpassed the limits of human endurance."

"They're called hell difficulty, and the name fits perfectly! They truly are like hell."

"Also, even though the games have only just begun, some absurdly powerful players have already started to appear."

"Look at this video."

As she spoke, Xie Antong passed her phone over from beneath the desk like a thief.

Lu Ce's left eyelid suddenly began twitching wildly...