That was right—there had to be something dangerous about this game!
Xiao Jie could not shake the thought once it surfaced.
But what danger could there be in playing a game?
A game was not reality. Even if you were killed by monsters, you would not really die, and you could just start over—but wait! Fuck!
Xiao Jie suddenly remembered something. This game seemed to offer no second chances. After Han Luo died, not only could he not revive, he could not even create a new character. Xiao Jie had merely found it strange before, but now, thinking of the bizarre fact that in-game skills could be brought into reality, a dreadful possibility occurred to him.
If the game could directly affect players' bodies and allow them to gain abilities they did not originally possess—
Then could the bad things that happened in the game also be reflected on the players themselves? For example—death!
No! That could not be true! How could something so absurd exist in this world...
Xiao Jie muttered to himself, trying hard to calm down, but the shadow in his heart only made him more uneasy. If something as bizarre as game skills carrying over into reality could happen, then dying in the game and dying in reality seemed logically possible too.
The more he did not want to think about it, the more he could not stop himself from connecting all the pieces.
No, I have to find Han Luo, now!
Xiao Jie did not even buy the fruit. He turned and rushed toward Haitian Food Workshop.
By the time Xiao Jie ran into Haitian Food Workshop, Han Luo had just finished his battle. He rubbed his belly and let out a satisfied burp.
"That was awesome. It's been ages since I ate that well. Huh? Brother Xiao, why are you back? Where's the fruit?"
Seeing Han Luo like that, Xiao Jie relaxed slightly.
Thank goodness, he's fine.
Maybe I was overthinking it?
"How are you feeling?" he asked with concern.
"How am I feeling? Oh, you mean the meal? It was great, except... huh? What's that..."
Han Luo's expression suddenly changed slightly as he looked behind Xiao Jie.
"What is it?" Xiao Jie glanced behind himself, but there was nothing there.
"Something feels wrong. I feel..." Han Luo's face abruptly went pale, as though he had sensed something. He looked around frantically, rose from his seat, and backed away.
"Something's wrong. Something is really wrong. Brother Xiao, I—ah!"
A piercing scream suddenly erupted from Han Luo's mouth. Then Xiao Jie saw a scene that filled him with terror. An invisible force silently tore open Han Luo's abdomen, as though an unseen blade were carving through his body.
One cut... two cuts... three cuts...
His abdomen, diaphragm, and chest.
Blood splattered everywhere, his organs spilled out, and white bone protruded from the gash in his chest. Blood sprayed onto Xiao Jie's face, burning hot.
Han Luo clutched at the wounds with both hands, screaming, his face twisted in terror. "Brother Xiao... save me... save me!"
He reached a hand toward Xiao Jie. The next second, his scream stopped abruptly.
Han Luo's head suddenly flew into the air. A fountain of blood erupted from his severed neck, and his head rolled to Xiao Jie's feet. His eyes were wide open, his face filled with terror and pain, while his headless body collapsed limply beside it.
Xiao Jie stared at Han Luo's face on the floor. His mind went blank, as if he were trapped in a nightmare. For several seconds, he even had the urge to slap himself awake.
He touched his face, only to feel sticky blood.
Just as he had suspected, death in the game also meant death in reality.
His guess had actually been right...
Terrified screams rose from the diners around him, but he could not hear a thing. His entire body stood frozen in place.
"Name?"
"Xiao Jie."
"Age?"
"Twenty-eight."
"Occupation?"
"Director of a game studio."
The police officer across the interrogation table gave him a surprised look, then wrote down "freelancer" on the paper.
"What was your relationship with the deceased?"
"He was my employee, my... friend."
Xiao Jie spoke painfully. Even now, he found it hard to believe Han Luo had simply died like that. That cheerful guy, that close friend who had still insisted on following him after the studio fell apart.
He still remembered what Han Luo had said when he chose to stay—[As long as I'm still here as an employee, the studio is still a studio, and you're still the boss. But if I leave too, wouldn't that make you all alone? Don't worry, Brother Xiao. From now on, I'll stick with you. We'll make the studio bigger and stronger together, and create another glory].
A sorrowful smile appeared at the corner of Xiao Jie's mouth, but the questioning from across the table soon interrupted his memories.
"Do you have anything to say regarding the cause of the deceased's death?"
Xiao Jie looked up at the officer and opened his mouth, but he did not know where to begin.
He died in reality because he died in the game? Just thinking those words made him realize how absurd they sounded. Would the officer believe him? Would he be treated like a lunatic?
But how else could he explain it?
Should he just play dumb?
As he hesitated over how to answer, the interrogation room door suddenly opened.
A man in a black windbreaker walked in.
"All right, Officer Li. I'll take over from here."
The officer conducting the interrogation looked displeased, but when the chief appeared behind the man and nodded at him, he could only leave with a grim face.
The interrogation room door closed.
The man in the Black Windbreaker sat directly across from Xiao Jie, picked up the case file from the table, and casually flipped through it. He shook his head and tossed it aside.
"Do you smoke?" he asked, pulling out a cigarette and offering it to him.
Xiao Jie politely shook his head.
Black Windbreaker did not mind. He put the cigarette back into the pack, leaned against the chair, folded his arms, and stared at Xiao Jie's face. He watched him for several minutes, as though trying to dig hidden information out of Xiao Jie's stiff, grief-stricken expression.
Just as Xiao Jie began to grow annoyed under that stare, the man in black suddenly sat up straight.
"Mr. Xiao, right? Let me guess. You were playing a game earlier."
Xiao Jie's heart skipped a beat. He abruptly raised his head, his instincts telling him that this man definitely knew the truth behind it.
"That's right. A game called Old Earth." He spoke each word distinctly, studying the other man's face as well. Yet Black Windbreaker remained expressionless, revealing no emotion at all.
"Your friend died in the game?"
Xiao Jie could now practically be certain. This man truly knew the game's secret.
"Yes. So my friend's death was related to that game?" he asked, trying not to look as though he already knew anything.
An amused expression appeared on the man's face. "Didn't anyone tell you about this game's taboo?"
"A taboo? What taboo?"
Black Windbreaker did not explain. Instead, he continued asking, "Then how did you obtain your game's activation codes?"
"A friend gave them to us." Liu Qiang's smug, petty face surfaced in Xiao Jie's mind.
"That friend of yours didn't tell you what this game was about?"
"No. He only said the game was incredibly fun and would change our lives. Actually, he said those words to Han Luo. Han Luo was the one who brought back the activation codes."
The man wore an expression of utter certainty. "Looks like that friend of yours wasn't on good terms with you. Buddy, you were set up."
Xiao Jie had more or less figured that out on his way to the police station. Liu Qiang clearly had not given them those two activation codes out of kindness. He had most likely wanted the two of them to die in the game.
With such a high-difficulty game, if players left the village without knowing the penalty for death, they would most likely die on their first expedition.
The only reason Xiao Jie had survived was because he saw that Han Luo could not revive after dying and ended his exploration early, narrowly escaping disaster.
"Liu Qiang...!" Xiao Jie silently repeated the name, and his expression twisted along with it.
He gritted his teeth and asked, "What exactly is going on?"
The man watched Xiao Jie's twisted expression with his arms folded, seeming to understand something. He sighed, then began to explain.
Before you continue