This Humble One, Reincarnation Stream Player

Hayasaka Ai slowly lowered her gun, suddenly understanding the source of the "simplicity" the man spoke of.

He climbed upward step by step, treading over the corpses of dungeon monsters and veteran players alike, taking the greatest risks to reap the highest rewards; this greatsword, for instance, inherited at least half of Thomas's combat prowess.

So that's how it is. He is no longer the man he once was.

The game was a torture that refined players like iron, stripping away impurities; every obstacle crossed and every step forward revealed a different landscape.

A day ago, Yuki had almost nothing but his long-prepared adaptability and the foresight of a transmigrator, but now he had stepped into the realm of the extraordinary. Beyond standard firearms, he possessed a long blade, a length of rope, and the greatsword in his hand.

Chaos Items, skills, traits, and the intangible assets of combat experience and psychological fortitude.

No wonder this game offers no teammate protection and requires no binding for Chaos Items. It encourages a winner-takes-all mentality, rewarding those who inherit the power of the dead.

Yuki's eyes gleamed with palpable excitement. He leaped down from the stairs, sleeves rolled up, his Magic Circuit flickering like a neon sign—brightening as he struck, dimming once he shattered a body, repeating the cycle.

It was still a Master-level skill, but Yuki felt that after a day of high-intensity use, he was wielding it with far greater proficiency without hitting his ceiling. He no longer relied on full-power output that forced him into a cooldown period the moment he reached his limit.

With the Chainsaw Sword on his back and the long blade in hand, his brief bursts of speed left the Living Corpses unable to react.

Pfft.

He pierced a skull, twisted the blade to pulverize it, and before the next arm could grab him, he pivoted at the waist. Like a gecko leaping across a wall, he appeared behind the Living Corpses, cleanly decapitating them before performing a sharp flourish with his blade and switching to a reverse grip as he turned.

A single slash swept through, sending several severed arms spinning into the air. With a twitch of his left shoulder, he caught the incoming rifle with his elbow, pointing the muzzle toward the corridor entrance.

Rat-tat-tat-tat.

His hip-fire remained precise. The bloated fat man that had just stepped into the corridor erupted in sprays of blood; it ran a few more steps into the hail of bullets before exploding with a loud bang.

Green mist permeated the corridor, driving the incoming Living Corpses into a frenzy. As they clawed their way through the fog, Yuki took one look, slammed the fire door shut, and reinforced it, leaving the Living Corpses to batter against it with a rhythmic thud-thud.

Click-clack.

A new magazine was loaded. With the crisp sound of the bolt racking, Yuki finally turned around.

"The Living Corpses have all been drawn to the corridor. We leave through the window; there's a sewer not far from here."

Hayasaka Ai, Mai Sakurajima, and Robert stood at the stairwell, guns in hand, staring at the man in a daze.

They had fought all the way from the tenth floor to the first, yet they hadn't even managed to fire a single shot. Dozens of Living Corpses had been handled entirely by Yuki—especially that fat one. Robert's mouth began to twitch.

This master of acting played me for a fool!

Not long ago, he had been teaming up with Yuki to clear the path, feeling quite proud of his own marksmanship, only to realize now that the man had been hiding his true strength.

Perhaps he wasn't as brutal as Thomas, but his movements were fluid and efficient, rarely wasting a second strike or unnecessary stamina. It made one wonder: Is he really a novice at the same progress level as us?

"Fatty, what are you standing there for? Get to clearing the path."

Spurred by Yuki's shout, Robert nodded hurriedly, pried open the window, and jumped onto the street. He scanned left and right with a shifty gaze before using his rifle to pick off a lone Living Corpse.

Yuki sheathed his blade, looking at the scattered corpses with satisfaction.

He didn't need anyone to tell him he had grown stronger. In the past, getting down from the rooftop would have required racking his brains; now, it was direct and brutal.

"And this Chainsaw Sword—it must be top-tier among Chaos-grade weapons." Yuki glanced at the blade, which had returned to a silvery sheen. No wonder the game gave no extra rewards, and no wonder Li Dan was afraid of someone playing the pig to eat the tiger.

Every veteran player was a walking treasure trove. As a Chaos-grade item, this thing was far more potent than Hayasaka Ai's Frontal Lobe Fragment; it possessed not only staggering attack power but could also function as a utility tool.

"Seems like you're quite satisfied with that sword?" Hayasaka Ai leaned in, a hint of envy in her eyes. At least the Chainsaw Sword had fewer side effects than her own troublesome item.

Yuki climbed through the window, landing silently on the street. Seeing Robert open a manhole cover in the middle of the road and wave at him, he ran over and whispered:

"Satisfied is an understatement. I used this thing to kill a few Living Corpses earlier, and it warmed up the blade. While active, it provides a minor boost to my physical constitution."

Hayasaka Ai grew even more envious. An item with multiple uses, and even when used purely for combat, its destructive power was superior.

"That Thomas was lucky enough."

"I don't think it has anything to do with luck. He had nothing on him but this sword, and I can't even see the full information for the Chainsaw Sword." Yuki fiddled with the greatsword, guessing that Thomas had exhausted his entire fortune for this weapon, so he hadn't lost out even without the game rewards.

"Oh? That's interesting. He had gone through a complete dungeon, after all." Hayasaka Ai mused. So far, she had only obtained one Chaos Item and one skill upgrade; Mai Sakurajima's haul was about the same.

Thomas hadn't been coasting like the little fatty; his gains must have been more than just this.

"Looking at it this way, the items rewarded by the dungeon have other uses." Yuki reached the manhole, leaned down, and opened it. "Once we make it back alive, I look forward to exploring them."

Future concerns could wait for the future; the priority now was to finish the final leg of the progress. He and Hayasaka Ai pushed those thoughts aside and climbed down the ladder into the sewer.

The sewers of the Old District were shaped like an underground river, with foul-smelling wastewater flowing through the center and meter-wide stone steps on either side, just enough for people to walk on.

There shouldn't have been any Living Corpses here, but the Crimson Moon had delivered its third gift: a random appearance of elites possessing "intelligence," for whom opening a manhole cover was no difficult task.

Hayasaka Ai had previously breached the municipal system and downloaded the Old District's utility network map. Looking at it now, they wouldn't get lost. The sewer led as far as the canal, though the exit was closer to the south of the city.

"We'll have to take a detour. We'll emerge by the canal, cross the bridge, and then follow Cross Street northeast. It should take about an hour to reach the Ancient Castle Square."

"It won't be that easy. The closer we get to the castle, the more Living Corpses there are, and they're of higher quality now," Mai Sakurajima warned.

"That's only if we take the normal path." Hayasaka Ai didn't feel like explaining, so she simply looked at Yuki: "How about we find an armored vehicle, you use your skill to reinforce it, and we just brute-force our way through?"

"That would have worked before the Crimson Moon sent its third gift, but now, you're underestimating these Living Corpses." Yuki shook his head. That had been his initial plan—Reinforcement Magecraft combined with a SWAT armored vehicle could indeed carve a bloody path.

He glanced at his watch. It was 4:30 AM. He closed his eyes to think.

One cannot go too early; if a corpse tide is triggered near the Ancient Castle, even with three heads and six arms, one would still be killed. Yet, one cannot go too late either; the enemy's destructive power and mobility are too high during the day, and there is simply nowhere to hide in the city.

Furthermore, before the moon sets at eight o'clock, there is one more gift delivery, and no one knows what that is.

Yuki rubbed his head. Even though he already knew the answer and knew how to fill it in, and even setting aside the factor of Li Dan, it was still not something that could be accomplished easily.

"After crossing the canal, we will bypass Cross Street. Try our best not to trigger a large-scale corpse tide."

Hayasaka Ai glanced at the map. The main road running east to west was surrounded by residential areas and alleys, but there was no need to ask; it was certainly packed with Living Corpses.

"We can't bypass it, and we can't even take the rooftops. You saw it just now; these Living Corpses will intercept us from the front. Once we fall into a heavy encirclement, it will be hard to escape." Hayasaka Ai flatly rejected the idea, then looked at Mai Sakurajima: "The enemies at night are different from those during the day. Even if she takes action, it won't work."

Based on the experience of this day and two nights, any disturbance would trigger a corpse tide within a certain range, and then, once one disappeared from the perception of the Living Corpses for a few minutes, the tide would disperse on its own.

Therefore, Mai Sakurajima had no way to hold aggro and gather monsters for long periods.

"I know. This Rope Gun I 'borrowed' from Brother Li is strange, but its speed for crossing buildings is too slow; it's not suitable for continuous escape." Yuki patted the Rope Gun hanging on his belt. This thing was not a 3D Maneuver Gear; its operating speed was barely faster than an escalator, and there was no way to turn back.

If a terrifying monster were waiting on the target rooftop, players would just be lining up to deliver themselves as takeout.

"The ground is a no-go, so we can take this."

Yuki tapped the tablet three times, selecting another route that intersected with the cross-avenue. It read:

Crimson Moon City, Line 2.

"Enter Line 2, then head north. There is a transfer intersection. Do you remember where we escaped from the Ancient Castle Square?"

At the time, the players had split into three teams. Thomas led the housewives to fight their way out, Li Dan took Robert and hijacked a car to escape, while Yuki chose a different route.

"I remember it was Line 7."

"Exactly. We go through the sewers first, then enter the subway. Once we come out, we'll be at the Ancient Castle Square. We only need to charge a few hundred meters more to return to the Ancient Castle." Yuki put away the tablet and snapped his fingers lightly.

"As long as I return to the Ancient Castle, I can follow the clues I found earlier to solve the answer, and this dungeon will be considered complete."

"Those few hundred meters won't be easy. It might as well be a world apart," Hayasaka Ai said coldly.

"A world apart is still shorter than a day and a night. Besides, we are players—" Yuki gestured toward the chubby boy, signaling him to lead the way, then turned halfway, his face flickering in the dim crimson moonlight.

"How can we survive without risking our lives?"

Chapter 47: Pressing Forward (Revised)!

Life is the only value in joining the Reincarnation Game; as for how to make good use of this life, that lies in the hands of the players themselves.

Li Dan certainly wasn't a master of schemes when he was a rookie. It was precisely because of repeated hardships and narrow escapes that he became someone who trusted no one, though these things could not be reflected on a character panel.

"The will to survive is the most powerful instinct. In the game, it is magnified countless times, enough to distort a person's ideals and personality."

In the dim sewer, Yuki walked at the very back, staring straight at the backs of the three people in front. After pondering for a moment, he let out a dry laugh.

This truth did not quite fit the current team. Yuki himself had long since prepared himself mentally, and the impact of the Reincarnation Game was not that great for him.

Hayasaka Ai wore a mask called 'player,' and the influence she received was limited. As for Mai Sakurajima, she was lucky; under Yuki's escort, she didn't need to distort her personality.

But the chubby boy, Robert, was interesting. Since joining the game, he had no one to protect him and no innate skills, yet he still hadn't shown the slightest bit of improvement.

"Interesting. Even his illness is gone."

Yuki's gaze became gentle. The chubby boy, who had stopped to change magazines, happened to see it, felt a shiver run down his spine, and hurriedly quickened his pace.

The journey was uneventful, just a monotonous search-and-advance. The closer they got to the finish line, the more preoccupied everyone became, to the point where they didn't even have the energy to stop and chat.

The sewers were complex, and there weren't many Living Corpses wandering in. Often, they were shot dead by Robert from dozens of meters away. Occasionally, the team would encounter mutated Living Corpses, and Yuki would step in personally to resolve them.

In such narrow areas, the Chainsaw Sword was almost invincible. As long as the usage time was controlled, the side effects wouldn't cause much impact. In a head-on collision, even those giant frogs oozing pus from earlier were no match.

"The exit isn't far."

After winding through the sewers for about an hour, Mai Sakurajima suddenly cheered.

The heavy stench of the sewer was blown away somewhat by the night breeze, and the sound of flowing river water could be heard. The group hurriedly quickened their pace, kicked open the iron grate at the end of the sewer, and poked their heads out to breathe deeply.

It already smelled bad, but mixed with the thick scent of blood, it was an olfactory hell.

Mai Sakurajima and Robert even started retching, feeling that if they stayed for another few dozen minutes, they would lose their lives.

This shitty dungeon turned people into rats, spending most of the time traveling through dirty and smelly underground passages.

It was indeed foul enough to make one want to peel off a layer of skin while bathing.

Yuki also pulled the toilet paper he had stuffed into his nostrils out. He first exchanged a look with Hayasaka Ai, then walked behind the senior student and gently patted her back.

"Ugh, how come you're so observant this time?" Mai Sakurajima leaned against the wall, grateful she hadn't eaten anything.

"I'm actually quite good at taking care of people." Yuki shrugged lightly, his tone gentle: "Besides, making you vomit your guts out is my fault. A man should have the courage to take responsibility."

Why did that sound so strange?

Mai always felt something was off. She gently brushed the man's hand away, stood up straight while holding her waist, and looked around.

They were in the middle of the river embankment. Not far away was the canal, shimmering with a rippling red light. The river was dozens of meters wide. Looking north, an iron bridge connected the two banks, and shadows were dancing on the bridge and the riverbank on the opposite side.

The density of Living Corpses was indeed much higher than in the old city. A casual glance revealed hundreds or thousands of them; just standing there would be enough to exhaust a person to death.

It seemed crossing the river wouldn't be easy...

Yuki and Hayasaka Ai also noticed the problem. There were too many Living Corpses on the bridge deck; it was definitely impassable. Using the Rope Gun to reach the opposite bank was also troublesome; one could neither dodge nor defend or retreat while in motion.

If it were the Living Corpses of the past, it wouldn't be much of a problem, but now that so many strange elite variants have appeared, being discovered would be a massive issue.

"We can only use guns to fight back, but that will trigger a horde, and by the time we reach the shore..."

"We'll be met by a group of Living Corpses waiting for dinner." Yuki finished the sentence for Hayasaka Ai, glanced at his watch, and then pulled out his binoculars to scan the opposite bank.

It was nearly six o'clock; with only two hours left to make the journey, time was quite tight.

"How about I go?" Mai Sakurajima offered, but Yuki raised a hand to stop her.

"Your ability won't be off cooldown in time for the next encounter. This is only the first hurdle; the real difficulties are still ahead." Yuki thought for a moment, then simply pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Brother Li, I'd like to ask for your help."

"Cross the river?" A cold voice came from the other end. Ever since they had burned their bridges, Li Dan's tone had become sinister.

So, he wasn't even pretending anymore.

Yuki instinctively scanned his surroundings, but finding no signs of surveillance, he decided not to bother with it. "Yes. You're a veteran player with a small group; even if you trigger a horde, it'll be easy for you to slip away. We have to rely on you."

The walkie-talkie fell silent. There was certainly risk involved, but Yuki wasn't lying—Li Dan was powerful and only had a housewife with him. Now that there was no need to keep up appearances, escaping wouldn't be difficult.

"Although we've had our unpleasantries, time is limited, and this is exactly the moment for us to be in the same boat." Yuki's tone was sincere, yet he had the other man cornered.

"Hmph, so now you know what it means to be in the same boat?"

"You were the one who didn't treat me with sincerity first; I'm just following your lead."

Another silence followed. Li Dan seemed too lazy to argue over who would win, saying with a hint of resignation, "Leave the Alienated Rope Gun behind for me, and you can cross the river now. Don't try any tricks."

Yuki offered a word of thanks and put down the walkie-talkie, just in time to catch Hayasaka Ai's questioning gaze. He gave a dry laugh.

"Don't worry, there won't be any problems. Brother Li is just looking to give us a warning."

To put it bluntly, Li Dan was showing off his capabilities, telling Yuki and the others that taking out Thomas was nothing—he was capable of much more.

Hayasaka Ai thought about it for a moment and simply nodded. "Fine, you're right. Are we still crossing the river directly?"

"Yes, it's a bit shorter that way. Follow right behind me, Senior will be third, and you, fatty, take the rear. Stay fifteen meters behind us, and don't fire your weapon unless you hear my command."