On top of the Stone Wall stood a group of villagers clad in elite steel armor, each holding a sharp steel spear.
From their clothes and appearance, they looked a lot like people from ancient times.
They watched the players working, their eyes filled with three parts disdain, three parts hostility, and four parts envy.
Following the Stone Wall, Gao Linzhi saw a tall tower jutting above it every hundred meters or so.
People stood atop them, gazing into the distance.
In front of the iron-plated gate stood a stone stele, boldly carved with the words "East Wolf Village."
Gao Linzhi was about to walk over when the village gate opened.
A team of five came out, each fully armed.
They wore plate armor from head to toe, with only a narrow slit left for breathing and observation.
Each had a name with the same prefix above their head: "Xu Clan*A'da," "Xu Clan*A'er"...
Each carried a long steel spear, a steel longsword at their waist, and a bow.
But they had no quivers.
Just then, a player who looked like a high school student came out as well.
He stood behind the gate and spoke to the five men, his tone impatient:
"Your only job this time is to go kill the Frost Wolf King for me."
"You'd better get that Talent Fruit to drop within a week!"
"Otherwise, don't bother coming back!" the high schooler ordered imperiously.
Gao Linzhi found the other person's face unfamiliar, but there was something strangely familiar about the way he spoke.
His tone sounded a lot like Xu Tianlang, the son of the chairman of Xu Corporation.
Every time Xu Tianlang came to the company, he would berate the low-level wage slaves just like this.
"Yes, young master," one of the men in plate armor replied in a muffled voice.
"Go, and don't take all day!" the high schooler barked, then turned and went back inside.
Gao Linzhi felt a stir in his heart.
Talent Fruit? Frost Wolf King?
They sounded like monsters that would be difficult to deal with in the early game.
The five men seemed to be Corporate Players too, but compared to the cavalry he'd seen before, they were clearly much more cautious.
Meanwhile, the players carrying stones merely glanced pitifully at the five armored warriors as they left. Every one of them remained silent.
They just worked even harder.
Seeing this, and putting together what he'd learned earlier, Gao Linzhi understood.
It seemed East Wolf Village really did offer Rogue Players protection.
The five men in plate armor were Corporate Players whose real identities had been exposed. Their lives were no longer in their own hands.
The players hauling stones didn't leave because they didn't want to be caught alone and forced to reveal their real identities.
They were only safe from corporate control because the village protected them.
At that thought, Gao Linzhi felt a little relieved.
At last, he'd found a safe place to develop.
He immediately headed toward the group of players, hoping to ask the veterans for some tips.
Gao Linzhi approached the players hauling stones.
As soon as he walked over, a pretty young woman named Ou Xiaohuang noticed him out of the corner of her eye and spoke coolly:
"If you're a newbie with questions about the game, go ask an NPC."
"Don't talk too much with other people."
"Remember, this isn't a game! And you're not a player!"
"There's a newcomer here, Captain Zheng!" she called up to the wall.
As soon as she finished, a dark-skinned man holding a gleaming steel longsword emerged from one of the towers.
After calling out to him, Ou Xiaohuang couldn't help adding, "Remember this: Hide yourself well, and be thorough when cleaning up."
Gao Linzhi was taken aback.
That was naturally a line from The Three-Body Problem, a joke he'd left behind as a ghostwriter. He had adapted it into a web novel and brought it over.
It had become a huge hit—because it captured the Corporate World so well, many people at the bottom had embraced it.
Put simply, the Corporate World was a dark forest.
If you had something valuable, you had to hide it.
Too bad the book had only lasted three months before it disappeared.
This female player was actually a fan of his.
He kept his expression neutral, deciding to wait and see.
Captain Zheng performed a nimble flip and jumped straight down from the six-meter-high Stone Wall.
He landed steadily in front of Gao Linzhi.
Gao Linzhi looked at the dark-skinned man and asked, "Hello..."
"Hello, Descender. My name is Zheng Dong, and I'm the patrol captain of the village's fourth team." Zheng Dong was very friendly toward Gao Linzhi, unlike the others, who had been so cold.
"Oh, I'm Canxue. Could you tell me..." Before Gao Linzhi could finish, Zheng Dong interrupted him.
"I know you newbies are all in a hurry, but don't rush just yet," Zheng Dong said.
"This world is called the Skyfall Continent, and the island beneath our feet is Wolf Snake Island."
"It's extremely dangerous here. Demons come out during the day, and monsters at night."
"Your official name here is 'Descenders.' You fall from the sky, and killing monsters earns you the world's favor. Not only can you grow stronger, you can also get items to drop."
"But just like us, you only have one life. If you die, you're dead for good."
After hearing this, Gao Linzhi nodded.
"Good. We only get one life in the real world too."
"At least here, there's a chance to break out of the cage."
At his words, Zheng Dong's eyes lit up.
He casually drew a saber from his waist and held it out.
"You seem like a brave man. Prove it to me with this blade!"
[(White) Long Saber: Low Sharpness, Low Durability.]
Gao Linzhi smiled. "Thanks."
He took the long saber and swung it twice, awkwardly.
If he recharged another 2,000 gold and upgraded to Noble Level 6, unlocking Basic Auto Mode, he'd probably be much more skilled.
As he thought this, the Minimap in his mind suddenly sounded an urgent warning—"Woo-woo"...
A cluster of red dots appeared at the edge of the Minimap.
When he zoomed in, he saw a group of giant crabs crawling frantically toward the village wall.
"Clang! Clang!"
At almost the same moment, an alarm bell rang out from a tower on the Stone Wall.
"Crab Demons, five li away! About twenty of them!" someone shouted from the tower.
Hearing this, Zheng Dong grabbed Gao Linzhi, planted a hand on the wall, and leaped with him onto the Stone Wall.
"Newcomer, you're in luck. Stand on the Stone Wall and watch closely. You'll see how we deal with demons."
"There are four ways to catch Crab Demons."
The villagers all sprang into action.
Some stood guard, some relayed messages, and others ran to the towers to fetch equipment and supplies.
Everything was orderly and well-practiced.
Standing atop a tower, Gao Linzhi saw that the players hauling stones below behaved very differently from the villagers.
They grabbed onto protrusions in the Stone Wall, scrambled up with a few parkour moves, and quickly climbed the six-meter wall.
Then they swiftly climbed back down on the other side and hid inside the village.
About fifteen minutes later, a group of enormous crabs appeared in the distance.
There were around twenty of them.
Each was about the size of a washbasin, waving its gleaming pincers.
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