Those who entered Blue Sea first and foremost were players who loved games.
But staying online for 24 hours was still difficult for them. Most people had jobs during the day or other things to take care of in their lives.
Games were just a pastime. Only rich kids and people who made a living from gaming could manage such horrifying hours online.
That said, there was no way they'd obediently give up their chance to enter the village.
Someone couldn't help but turn red with anger and shout, "So what if you're online 24 hours a day? Does being online 24 hours a day mean you can do whatever you want? Games are about skill, skill! I despise people like you hardcore grinders the most!"
Shi Wuliao twisted his mouth into a grin. "Sorry, hardcore grinders can do whatever they want!"
He looked smugly toward Fang Yue, only to see him exchange a few words with Lord Han before suddenly beckoning to Shi Wuliao.
"You can enter the village now."
Shi Wuliao was overjoyed.
"Thank you, big brother!"
With that, he hurried forward, carrying the corpse on his shoulder. But soon, his expression changed.
He realized his health was almost gone. At this rate, he wouldn't make it to the village.
He'd gotten so excited that he'd completely forgotten about that.
Despairing, he looked up at Fang Yue, about to ask for help, when Lord Han raised a hand. The rain around Shi Wuliao was immediately dispelled by a faint layer of mist, and the prompts telling him he was losing health stopped appearing.
"T-thank you, Lord Han!"
"Mm."
Compared with his warmth toward Fang Yue, Lord Han merely nodded at Shi Wuliao, his manner much colder.
Shi Wuliao didn't mind. He hurried into the village.
Once inside, he immediately collapsed to the ground, but his face was beaming.
At last, at last he was in the village! He was safe!
He stood up and looked at the refugees outside. The simple village gate seemed like a chasm dividing the world in two: one side was heaven, the other, hell.
And he was already in heaven.
Seeing the refugees' miserable, despairing faces filled him with immense satisfaction.
Happiness came from comparison.
At that moment, Shi Wuliao's happiness was built on the refugees' misery.
That happiness lasted only until his gaze swept over Fang Yue, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Compared with Fang Yue, he felt miserable.
"How can the gap between players be this huge in this lousy game? At least those refugees are at the bottom."
Shi Wuliao was just thinking that when Fang Yue suddenly called out to the refugees.
"What are you standing around for? Hurry up and follow him into the village."
Wha...
Shi Wuliao froze. The other refugees looked just as dumbfounded.
"W-we can enter the village too?"
"Of course. Lord Han will assign you tasks. We're all players, so we should look out for each other."
At that, everyone erupted into cheers.
"Big brother, you're awesome!"
"Big brother, you're the greatest!"
"From today on, you're my real big brother!"
"Big brother, are you looking for a girlfriend? I have nothing to repay you with, so I'd like to start a romance with you!"
Everyone was happy. Shi Wuliao's joy vanished.
He felt a little dejected, as though the whole game had lost its appeal.
So what had I gone to all that trouble to step up for just now...?
"Um, Brother Shi?"
Shi Wuliao was still dazed when he heard the voice. He jolted to attention.
"What can I do for you, big brother?"
"Nothing, nothing. I just wanted to add you as a friend."
As he spoke, Shi Wuliao received a system message.
"Ding! System notification: Player [Night Dawn] has requested to add you as a friend. Accept?"
Night... Ye Ye Ye, Night Dawn?!
The others might have only vaguely remembered that ID, but Shi Wuliao remembered it perfectly.
Just a moment ago, [Night Dawn] had triggered the game's first-ever server-wide announcement for killing an Aberration.
Shi Wuliao had been so jealous he was going crazy. And now, it turned out that this guy was [Night Dawn]?!
Shi Wuliao was dazed again. The world felt surreal.
He looked back at Fang Yue and saw him smiling as he added the refugees as friends, all the while making various sales pitches.
"To be honest, I'm [Night Dawn], a professional player. I plan to set up shop in Blue Sea, so send any business my way!"
"Oh, isn't this the little lady who wanted to start a romance with me just now? You're clearly gorgeous enough to bring calamity to the land. You're bound to get caught up in all kinds of grudges. Since you added me today, I'll give you 20% off a revenge killing for love! And I'll give you 50% off for catching a cheating partner. Fair prices, no tricks!"
"Come on, brother Innate Divine Strength! Got a Might stat of 3 and feel like you're super strong, but can't seem to bring out its power? I can teach you! Guaranteed to learn, guaranteed to master it. Not 998, not even 98. Special launch-day offer: my tutorial is only 9.8! Take home the Attribute Analysis Compendium!"
...Wait, big brother, why the sudden change in your style?!
Shi Wuliao was bewildered. The guy who'd gotten the game's first kill was... like this?
And those prices were ridiculously low. He could actually say "9.8" with a straight face.
The name [Night Dawn] had shocked Shi Wuliao so much that he hadn't remembered Fang Yue had also made some kind of sales pitch to him earlier.
The others hadn't paid it any mind either, but after receiving the friend request, they were all dumbfounded. Every one of them stared at Fang Yue with a strange expression.
Just like Shi Wuliao, they probably couldn't bring themselves to believe that the expert who'd scored the game's first kill was someone like this.
But once they came around, they started calling him "Brother Ye" and "Brother Ye," acting as though they were old friends. Several of them even bought his packages just to build a connection.
Shi Wuliao didn't miss out either. He hurriedly bought a package, mainly to build a connection.
A top professional player like this was worth getting to know first. He'd probably need help with quests and things like that later on. This was an opportunity.
But after buying a package, Shi Wuliao's expression turned sour.
"Your health, as the name suggests, is your blood level. Put simply, it's HP..."
Damn! Was this Attribute Explanation Compendium a scam?!
Shi Wuliao was feeling glum when he saw Lord Han pull Fang Yue out of the refugee crowd.
"You haven't even gotten your legs back under you, and you're already letting your guard down? I downplayed the effects of [Night Chill Erosion] because I was afraid I'd scare you. And yet you really didn't take it seriously?"
"Ah, well... Lord Han, I'll go warm up my feet, then."
"Mm. Come with me. I still have something to discuss with you."
"Okay."
As he spoke, Fang Yue called out to his "customers." "Everyone who bought the Attribute Explanation Compendium, I'll send you a group message later. Fair prices, no tricks—spread the word! I'm Good Professional Player, and I'm [Night Dawn]."
I'm Good Professional Player, and I'm [Night Dawn]...
Come to think of it, those two lines were pretty catchy.
Shi Wuliao felt like he'd been scammed, but when he received a message from Fang Yue, his pupils couldn't help but contract.
"[Unloading Force] is similar to defense, but it doesn't take effect automatically. Your hands or body have to make a blocking motion for the stat to take effect..."
That guy... actually knew his stuff!
So the Unloading Force stat wasn't like the defense stat in other games. You had to make the right blocking motion and actually block the attack for it to take effect.
He really hadn't known that. After all, he'd only been in the game for about an hour and hadn't even fought anyone yet. How could he have known?
Shi Wuliao composed himself and cast off the trace of disdain he'd felt.
The other players also excitedly studied the information Fang Yue had sent, feeling they'd gotten more than their money's worth.
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