Ruthless Player

Chapter 14: The Ruthless Player

Half an hour later.

[Drunk Gang Chat Group (Online: 21 people)]:

Wosinie Die: @everyone, !!!Urgent notice, a massive piece of news, this link can download the official version of Dark Land, we don't have to fight for purchase qualifications anymore!!!

This River Eel Can Do That: Uh... Big Sis, what's wrong? Are you talking nonsense?

Shrimp Meat Pig Heart: I was about to sleep, you scared me awake. Big Sis, have you gone mad from not being able to get the qualification?

Wosinie Die: @everyone, I'll say it again, this link can download a cracked version of Dark Land, hurry and download it so we can play together. I'll go notify Grandpa first, have him download the game too.

Word Duck: It seems to be true, she's even going to notify Grandpa Iron. The strongest war god in this group is finally coming out of retirement. I'm downloading it now.

Seeing the group owner mention notifying "Grandpa Iron," the group members realized this was no joke.

Grandpa Iron's in-game name was "Blacksmith." His real name was Li Tie, and he was the biological grandfather of the group owner, Li Siyu.

He was once a gene warrior in the Human Federation's Judgement Army. In his youth, he had repeatedly gone to suppress alien forces that had fled to Earth and caused chaos.

After retiring due to disability, Li Tie suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder. War memories would frequently flood his mind, making him unable to distinguish between reality and the battlefield. He was an unstable ticking time bomb, capable of exploding at any moment.

Under the guidance of a psychologist, Li Tie chose to enter virtual games, continuing to be a warrior within them.

He was the top enforcer of Drunk Gang, following them across multiple games, and in every game, he was a renowned top-tier player.

Unlike ordinary players who played games for fun, Li Tie played purely to vent his inner rage.

Thus, the players in the group realized this was not a joke and clicked the link to download the game one after another.

Fog Lamp City, Post-War Sanatorium.

Gymnasium.

Hoo~ Hoo~ Hoo~

Panting sounds echoed consecutively. A burly, white-haired man was performing bench presses. The combined weight on both sides of the barbell reached an astonishing 800 kilograms, far exceeding the limit of what an ordinary person could withstand.

Clack!

The iron rod locked into the bench press rack. Li Tie slowly sat up and reached for his prosthetic leg, attaching it to his severed left leg.

Standing up, his height reached two meters. He wore a tight training vest, his muscle lines accentuated by sweat. Every muscle was like an exquisitely carved work of art, containing terrifying power.

Just then, Li Tie's body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Battlefield scenes flashed through his mind.

He wore black battle armor, facing an endless mechanical army in the distance. Accompanied by the roar of energy cannons behind him, he led his comrades in a charge against the alien mechanical army.

"Kill!"

At this moment, Li Tie once again couldn't distinguish between reality and illusion.

When he calmed down, the training room was in disarray, his fists stained with blood.

He sat dejectedly on the floor, panting heavily, his chest heaving with each breath.

Just then, the projector embedded in the ceiling activated. Intertwined beams of light converged in front of him, forming the figure of a young and beautiful woman.

Seeing the scene in the training room, the woman in the projection looked worried:

"Grandpa, your condition has worsened again."

"I'm fine." Seeing his own granddaughter, Li Tie's face showed a rare smile, and he continued:

"Siyu, what do you need Grandpa for?"

"I found a new game that's very suitable for you. The download link is in the group chat. Grandpa, hurry and download it."

"Alright, I'll download it right away." Li Tie nodded immediately.

After closing the video call, he turned and entered the adjoining bathroom. After cleaning up and changing his clothes, he returned to his bedroom and downloaded the file as his granddaughter had instructed.

Li Tie did not hold high expectations for virtual reality games.

The virtual reality games he had played over the years differed significantly from reality, resulting in a very poor sense of immersion.

For him, virtual environment stress relief was secondary. More importantly, he wanted to accompany his granddaughter as they conquered the world in the game.

An hour later.

Appearing at the resurrection point of Emperor's Tomb Village, Li Tie's mindset shifted.

He reached out and felt the touch of the breeze on his fingertips. A hint of surprise flickered in his indifferent eyes.

What shocked him even more was that his lost left leg had a real sensation within the game.

He walked around the central plaza of Emperor's Tomb Village twice. The realism of his left leg amazed him, and it made him realize that this game was completely different from the virtual games he had experienced before.

Just then, a game prompt sounded in his mind:

[Player "Wosinie Die" has added you as a friend. Accept?]

After passing the selection, a video call request popped up in the top right corner. Li Tie clicked confirm again, and a semi-transparent light screen appeared before him. A small chicken with fiery red wings excitedly said to him:

"Grandpa, we've already left the village and are heading towards Crimson Plains. Do you plan to explore alone or act with us?"

"I'll explore alone."

"Okay, I'll call you when there's an event."

"Go for it, Tie Ye! Carry us to victory later."

"Tie Ye, long time no see...!"

Besides his granddaughter, other members of the Feast of Thieves guild also chimed in greetings from the video call.

The members of Feast of Thieves weren't surprised by Li Tie's decision to go solo.

In their eyes, Tie Ye had always been a lone wolf player, only appearing during guild wars, faction battles, and other player-versus-player events, leading the charge with his formidable individual strength.

Leaving Emperor's Tomb Village along the bluestone path, Li Tie headed east alone. During his journey, he chatted with the accompanying Guider about the game.

Five minutes later.

Li Tie encountered his first monster since entering the game.

A foul-smelling Cursed Soldiers slowly rose from the ground, raising a rusty broken sword towards him.

At this moment, Li Tie switched to his Stone Gargoyle form.

Unlike other monster forms, the Stone Gargoyle form was the closest to a human-like monster. It was precisely because of this form that Li Tie chose Stone Gargoyle.

Facing the broken sword swung by the Cursed Soldiers, Li Tie met it head-on. He raised his hand and gripped the Cursed Soldiers's elbow joint, preventing the weapon from striking down. He then stepped forward with his right leg, placing it between the Cursed Soldiers's legs, and twisted outwards. The Cursed Soldiers immediately lost its balance and crashed heavily to the ground.

Following this, Li Tie's heavy fists rained down like a storm, smashing directly towards the Cursed Soldiers's head.

Before long, the Cursed Soldiers's skull was shattered by the powerful punches, and the flame in its head extinguished.

At this point, a mass of black energy emerged from the deceased Cursed Soldiers. After a brief charge in the air, it flew towards Li Tie and seeped into his body.

Instantly, an unprecedented sense of comfort erupted from within. It was like drinking a refreshing cold beverage on a sweltering summer day. His dormant body was completely revitalized by the surge of energy, and his pores opened wide.

The wondrous sensation vanished as quickly as it came.

The first battle ended, but Li Tie couldn't help but frown. He had discovered a problem.

The game's tactile, olfactory, auditory, and all other feedback were indistinguishable from reality, but the pain feedback had a serious issue.

When his fist struck the Cursed Soldiers's bones, he felt the impact of the force, but the pain feedback was significantly reduced.

This left Li Tie feeling frustrated, as if something was missing from the combat.

He immediately asked the accompanying novice Guider if there was a solution.

Upon learning that pain feedback could be adjusted, Li Tie decisively brought up the function panel, navigated to system settings, and dragged the pain feedback slider from its initial 10% to the very end.

After completing this, a smile appeared on his lips:

"Now this is interesting."

[Ruthless!]

The novice Guider beside him also gave a thumbs-up at this moment, expressing respect for Li Tie's actions.

(End of chapter)