Go Offline When It's Dark

"Kid, you really can run, can't you? How did you end up so far out? You really aren't afraid of dying, are you?"

Hearing this "kid" felt like hearing heavenly music to I Want to Become Immortal, and a glimmer of hope for survival instantly ignited in his heart.

"Help—help me!"

He shouted while rushing toward the other person, immediately recognizing him as the player called Hidden Moon Follows Wind!

He remembered the other player had warned him that morning. At the time, he had been full of confidence and told him not to bother, but who would have thought...

He felt both embarrassed and ashamed, but since his life was on the line, he couldn't afford to dwell on it.

He stood back-to-back with him directly, and no longer having to face enemies from both sides, he finally felt a sense of security.

"Drink a potion, quick! You'll be dead if you take two more hits," Xiao Jie reminded him from the side.

At the same time, he assumed a stance.

The skill One Cut Two Pieces was great in every way, except that one couldn't run while in the preparation state. In other words, one either had to slowly approach the enemy or wait for the enemy to charge in.

But it was perfect for defense.

I Want to Become Immortal hurriedly pulled out a Blood Potion and chugged it down, just as a wild dog saw him and charged over.

Now!

Xiao Jie turned abruptly, his Wild Goose Feather Saber slashing out sideways.

One Cut Two Pieces!

The wild dog tried to turn, but it was already too late; its head was severed by the blade—a one-hit kill!

I Want to Become Immortal stared in shock. He could understand killing a weakened wild dog, but a full-health one? He had almost been killed by three of them circling him, and wasn't the other guy only level one?

Another wild dog took the opportunity to pounce at Xiao Jie.

Xiao Jie didn't have time to charge up again, and unable to parry, he simply performed a Kite Flip! His body spun and leaped away, and the wild dog missed completely.

The moment he landed, he turned and slashed.

Horizontal cut—vertical chop! Two strikes left the wild dog with a sliver of health, and it snapped its jaws as if it had gone mad.

Xiao Jie stepped back, but his Wild Goose Feather Saber thrust straight out. Squish, the blade entered the dog's mouth and pierced out through the back of its neck, skewering it through.

Compared to ordinary blades, this Wild Goose Feather Saber had an extra thrusting animation module, which gave Xiao Jie much more room to maneuver.

Having cleanly dealt with the two wild dogs, I Want to Become Immortal's health had finally recovered by more than half.

Xiao Jie also ate a Strength Pill to restore his stamina, saying, "It's getting dark. Wang Kai asked me to tell you that Night Ghouls spawn after dark, but it looks like the wild dogs were enough to handle you. Let's get out of here."

I Want to Become Immortal urged anxiously, "Don't go yet, there's a Salvage Goblin over there."

With the threat of the wild dogs gone, I Want to Become Immortal had ideas again. He insisted on catching that thing; otherwise, wouldn't he have risked his life for nothing?

As soon as he turned his head, he saw the Salvage Goblin fleeing in a panic, disappearing into the dense forest.

Xiao Jie was speechless. He had absolutely no good feelings left for this guy. He had been so arrogant that morning, only to end up in this mess the moment they met. Now, he still didn't know when to quit, thinking about killing monsters for loot. This guy truly had no concept of the Death Game.

To think such a noob player would dare to play the Death Game...

He couldn't help but feel a wave of irritation at such stupidity.

"Salvage your ass. If you aren't leaving, then stay here. I've delivered the message, so I'm out."

After saying that, he turned and walked away.

I Want to Become Immortal was stunned by the scolding. He glanced at the direction where the Salvage Goblin had disappeared, then at the retreating back of Hidden Moon Follows Wind. He stomped his foot and hurriedly followed.

By now, the sky was growing darker, and the surrounding woods became extremely dim.

As his vision darkened, a sense of crisis welled up within him.

Fortunately, they didn't encounter any monsters along the way.

The two ran wildly along the path they had come from. When they burst out of the forest, the sky had already begun to turn black. The last ray of sunlight on the horizon was gradually fading into darkness, and everything around them became dim, gloomy, and carried an ominous aura.

Xiao Jie suddenly noticed that there were no stars in the sky, only a dark red Blood Moon hanging in mid-air.

It was unnervingly unsettling.

His stamina was exhausted again. This was not the time to save potions; there was no time to wait for stamina to recover on its own. Xiao Jie ate another Strength Pill and sprinted with all his might. At the entrance of the village in the distance, several militiamen were preparing to close the gate, and Wang Kai was waiting anxiously at the entrance.

"Don't close the gate, don't close it!" He shouted twice, but seeing the militiamen didn't stop, he simply blocked the entrance with his body.

Tie Qianli (Militia Captain): "Wang Kai, what kind of madness is this? Move aside at once. It's dark, and the gate must be closed."

"Wait a little longer, just a little longer—look, they're back!"

The Militia Captain turned a deaf ear and ordered the gate to be closed. Fortunately, the two had already reached the front and finally dashed through the gate at the very last moment before dark.

Boom!

The heavy wooden gate slammed shut. Tie Qianli glanced at the three of them but said nothing more.

"Light the torches. Thank heavens, we almost didn't make it."

Watching the gate behind him slam shut with a boom, Xiao Jie let out a long sigh of relief. Damn it, I was too greedy. I can't go taking jobs like this again.

I Want to Seal Immortals was also feeling a lingering sense of fear; if he hadn't followed them in time, he would have been locked outside the village by now.

"Big Brother Hidden Moon Follows Wind, I..."

"Don't thank me. If you want to thank someone, thank your Brother Wang. He's the one who asked me to go find you. But this is only for this one time; I won't be doing it again. Damn, to be so careless while playing a Death Game—I'm impressed. No wonder the one-year casualty rate for this game is as high as 78%. I bet everyone who dies is an idiot like you."

Xiao Jie scolded him without a hint of politeness.

In reality, he was actually a fairly easygoing person, but once it involved gaming, he became exceptionally stern.

After all, as a guild leader, he often had to lead teams through raid progression, where a single person's stupidity could lead to a total party wipe for dozens of others.

For those who were habitually foolish, one really couldn't be too polite; if you didn't scold them harshly, you would be wasting everyone's time.

And that was just for ordinary games. In a Death Game like this, seeing someone act foolishly caused Xiao Jie's subconscious frustration and intolerance for stupidity to flare up.

Only after he finished scolding did he remember that the person before him was a stranger he hadn't even known for a full day.

However, having just escaped danger, he was in no mood to coddle anyone's feelings.

He initiated a trade with Wang Kai directly.

"Here, this is your gear. Give me the money."

Wang Kai, however, thanked him repeatedly.

"Thank you, thank you! Brother Hidden Moon, you are too righteous. A true hero among men!"

Though his words were full of gratitude, his hands didn't hesitate during the trade. He placed 1,000 Copper Coins into the window and traded back all his equipment. Xiao Jie kept the few potions, and Wang Kai, knowing his place, didn't ask about them.

Seeing his gear returned, Wang Kai breathed a sigh of relief. This was his KPI for the last half-month, after all.

"I won't keep you, brother. If you need anything in the future, just come find me. See you tomorrow, hurry up and log off. It's already getting dark."

Xiao Jie asked curiously, "Do we have to log off just because it's dark? Aren't we inside the village? Can Night Ghouls even get into the village?"

"It's not absolutely safe inside the village after dark. Anyway, just listen to me and log off. We'll talk about everything else tomorrow."

With that, Wang Kai hurried back to the Blacksmith Shop to log off, never saying a word to I Want to Become Immortal from start to finish.

Heeding good advice was always wise, so Xiao Jie didn't hesitate. He found a safe spot and exited the game.

I Want to Become Immortal watched the two of them leave in a daze, thought for a moment, and then silently logged out as well.

Only Ginkgo Village remained in the darkness, shrouded under the blood-red moonlight, incomparably silent.