This game... the stats must be messed up!

Chapter 4: Your Game Stats Are Definitely Broken!

Lin Tang's sudden outburst instantly caught the attention of the four Raiders in the camp.

It was midday, and most of the Raiders were out hunting, leaving only a few behind in the base—all of them bearing some injuries.

But even so, a single injured Raider could easily massacre two or three ordinary humans.

The gap in strength and physique was too vast.

At this moment, if you only looked at Lin Tang's demeanor, he almost seemed like a human wielding some special power.

But the Raiders, with muscles crammed into their brains, couldn't read demeanor. They simply grabbed a big club from beside them and charged over.

Lin Tang smiled confidently. "Gou Ju, Hu Da, don't be afraid. Based on my years of Game Experience, beginner quests like this won't be that hard. Enemies that look scary are just minor mobs. The reason you're feeling fear is because the game's modeling is too good—you're getting caught up in the size and appearance differences. But don't forget! This is a Game World, so you can't use the logic of the real world to judge things!"

"So! Watch me crush these mobs!"

"Here I go!"

Lin Tang sprinted out from their hiding spot, charging head-on toward the nearest Raider.

A hideous face, thick bones, solid muscles, green skin, and a stench of chemicals mixed with rotting flesh wafting from it.

Smack!

Lin Tang, nimble in body, smashed a rock onto the Raider's shoulder.

In his own field of vision, he saw a faint black number float up from the Raider's head.

Physical Damage: 10

Then a red number flickered.

Bleed Damage triggered, HP -5 (10 seconds)

This Raider had an injured arm. The hit aggravated the wound, and it immediately opened its wide mouth, baring sharp fangs as it roared.

"ROAR!"

It swung its club backhand.

Bam!

Lin Tang was sent flying, and a line flashed before his eyes.

Physical Damage received: 98

On his watch, a blood-red line appeared.

A quarter of it had already vanished.

Clearly, this was his Health Bar.

"What the hell?! I'm this squishy?"

Meanwhile, the Raider's Health Bar had only dropped by about one percent.

Seeing the other three Raiders closing in as well, Lin Tang shouted, "Gou Ju, Hu Da, help out! These mobs hit hard!"

He turned his head to look—the spot where the three of them had been hiding was now empty.

Two burly men, both 1.8 meters tall, were sneaking away from him.

Lin Tang: "?"

He Took a Look at the four approaching green-skinned Raiders and his two teammates fading into the distance, then suddenly realized.

"Oh~ I get it! This stage isn't meant for brute force—it's a tactical level like It Takes Two, right?"

Lin Tang immediately yelled, "This stage tests three-person coordination! I'll lure them away, you two move when the time's right!"

Lin Tang might be reckless, but he wasn't stupid. Seeing the situation, he switched tactics on the spot.

He turned and ran!

He led the four howling green-skinned Raiders in the opposite direction from the African Thin Dog and Ghost Face Demon Fox.

And his lean frame was even more agile.

Weaving in a zigzag pattern, he danced just ahead of the four Raiders, staying close but never getting hit.

Clearly, he was an old hand at FPS games.

On the other side.

The Thin Dog and Demon Fox exchanged a glance and nodded in approval.

Thin Dog: "That kid Lin Tang has quick wits. Even after taking a big hit, he can instantly come up with a strategy that benefits us the most."

Demon Fox: "I actually noticed that too. Those Green Skins are tough, but... they don't Look Like they're too bright. It Might Be a hint the designers left on purpose—telling us not to fight head-on at this stage, but to rescue the NPC through clever tactics."

Seeing Lin Tang lead the Green Skins farther away, the two stepped out from their hiding spot.

They slowly walked into the Raiders' crude camp.

A campfire, a tattered tent, iron cans, thick wooden clubs, ragged cloth—a mishmash of junk thrown together into a small encampment.

It looked like a rural village yard from before the apocalypse.

But the collapse and damage were too severe. Only a few walls reinforced with steel bars could still be seen standing, propped up by these Raiders as crude shelters.

The two looked at their watches.

The red dot had already overlapped with their position.

They scanned the area but found no sign of the NPC.

The Fox Demon looked up and said, "Nothing built above ground. Then... underground!"

"And if I'm not mistaken, that shed over there, the one that looks more solidly put together, is the entrance to the underground."

The Thin Dog nodded.

The two were old partners in the game, having played dozens of titles together online. Their tacit understanding was flawless.

The Fox Demon picked up two sharpened wooden sticks from the ground—ones the Raiders had whittled to points—and tossed one to the Thin Dog.

"I guess this counts as the first weapon we've picked up in this game? Too bad we can't see the weapon stats."

"It's definitely stronger than a rock. Let's go. Underground."

The Fox Demon: "I'll take the front, you take the rear. Watch for traps and door ambushes."

They shifted positions and stepped into the shed. Sure enough, there was a downward path, looking like a large cellar the village used for storing supplies.

In the pitch-black passage.

They walked down slowly.

Suddenly, the Fox Demon in front stopped. "Smell something?"

The Thin Dog's face turned serious. "A metallic smell is spreading from my nose and mouth. Actually, I felt it earlier when we got close to the camp, but here in the cellar... it's stronger."

The next moment, green numbers popped up above both their heads.

Radiation Damage: 3

You have been contaminated by nuclear radiation. Duration: Infinite (resets after leaving the radiation source)

The Fox Demon: "Debuff?"

Both their watches displayed health bars, slowly dropping.

"We're taking continuous damage. My base HP is 400. Losing 3 per second, natural regen of 0.5, so net loss of 2.5 per second. That gives me 160 seconds—2 minutes and 40 seconds. We have to move fast and save the NPC!"

"Go! Rush!"

They quickened their pace and charged down.

Bang!

The Thin Dog kicked open a wooden door blocking the way, revealing a narrow corridor lit by flickering flames. White bones were scattered across the ground. It looked... terrifying.

Beyond the corridor were four sealed dungeons.

In front of the dungeons stood a burly Green Skin. First, it looked surprised, then its rage visibly skyrocketed.

It grabbed a Wolf Tooth Club nearby, covered in rusty spikes.

One swing—if the Physical Attack didn't kill you, the follow-up Magic Attack would finish the job.

The two players, armed only with wooden sticks, felt a chill.

The Fox Demon glanced at the watch's positioning.

"The NPC is right ahead!"

The Thin Dog raised his stick. "Then there's nothing to say. Narrow road, let's fight! Take down this gatekeeper mob, and we complete the mission."

The Fox Demon: "I'll take left, you take right. Flank him, cover each other, aim for the head and crotch—crit damage! Lin Tang broke his defense with a rock. Our pointed sticks should deal even more damage. Two of us playing it steady, we've got this!"

"Alright!"

They charged in, looking like pros.

Crackle, thwack~

The Fox Demon was Killed.

African Thin Dog: "..."

He stared at the Green Skin, which only had a few bloody holes on its body, and swallowed hard.

"First, I underestimated the gatekeeper's strength. Second, I overestimated our Combat Power. Third, this game's stats are definitely rigged! Damn dev! How the hell is this a gatekeeper mob a newbie can beat?"

Their movements had twisted badly in the fight. They couldn't pull off the perfect attacks and defenses they'd managed with keyboard and mouse in other games. After taking three club hits, the Fox Demon was plagued by bleeding, radiation, and tetanus status effects, draining his Health Bar to zero and getting him Killed.

The Thin Dog glanced at the gatekeeper Green Skin's Health Bar. Still 80% left. And that was with both of them going all out.

After the Raider Killed the Fox Demon, it let out a furious roar and swung the Wolf Tooth Club at the Thin Dog's head.

The Thin Dog pondered briefly.

Then it clicked.

"Got it!"

He made his final decision.

"System, I'm done. Logging off."

At that moment, behind the Thin Dog, two clusters of scarlet flames abruptly flared to life.