Game Forum

The murky river water, bubbles, swirling currents, and the distorted light refracting from the surface—he struggled desperately, breaking through to the surface to look at the pedestrians on the bank, shouting for help. But all he received were the indifferent gazes of passersby; some even took out their phones to record, their faces filled with excitement.

He sank back to the riverbed, his body temperature plummeting and his strength rapidly draining away. His mind went blank, filled only with the instinct to struggle, but in the end, his strength failed him. As he sank into the depths, his blurred eyes looked toward the surface, where the refracted light appeared strangely divine. The next moment, his eyes widened; that was...

"Hah!" Lu Li opened his eyes. The summer twilight bathed the campus in gold. Although the temperature had dropped slightly, it was still stiflingly hot. The ceiling fan overhead spun frantically, and the teacher on the podium continued to lecture, chalk dust constantly falling from their fingers as they explained various test points.

"Ding-a-ling, ding-a-ling..." The bell for the end of class rang, but the teacher only paused for a moment before saying, "Just two more questions. Everyone stay behind; we'll finish these before you leave."

Ignoring the groans of the students, the teacher continued the lecture. Lu Li sat in the last row, leaning against the wall with a detached expression. The reduced dexterity in his left hand and the notification box still lingering in the corner of his vision served as a reminder that what he had just experienced was no dream!

Based on the information about the class ending, Lu Li roughly estimated how much time had passed in the real world: "About half an hour? And why did I dream? Why did I dream of that thing?"

Setting aside those useless thoughts, as if by instinct, Lu Li knew how to use the notification box. With a shift of his consciousness, he opened the prompt still hovering in his vision. The panel before him transformed into his personal data, and a sub-menu displayed his inventory.

As his consciousness shifted, a dialogue box appeared, filled with notifications:

[Participant temporary ID Z0001, you have obtained official Player ID YZ0135. Please confirm your codename. Do not disclose your ID or real name to others casually.]

[Player has completed the test dungeon. Basic enhancement can be performed at any time.]

[Player's skill slots have been unlocked. Current count: 3]

[Please complete your enhancement as soon as possible. The interval between dungeon entries is one week to one month.]

[Player has been granted access to the Forum and the Shop.]

[Player's item, "Xuanjun Seven Chapters Secret Scripture: Immortal Sand Soul-Returning Record," has been automatically decomposed into Rule Module: Manipulation; Rule Module: Endowment.]

[Please be cautious when trading or conversing on the forum. Beware of scams.]

Lu Li continued to manipulate the panel, discovering that it consisted of only a few sections: his personal information, the game dialogue box, the forum, and the shop. He could control everything through his thoughts.

Opening the forum, a dialogue box popped up asking him to choose a codename. After a moment of thought, Lu Li entered his online handle: Strange Light.

Once the codename was set, Lu Li entered the forum and saw a massive number of posts with various titles. These posts were divided into paid and free. Lu Li scanned the titles one by one and found that the free ones generally lacked value, while the paid ones usually contained useful information, such as:

"On the Selection of Similar Rule Modules," posted by: Captain Overturn. The fee was 50 game points. Lu Li glanced at the bottom right corner, where a currency symbol sat next to the number 900; this appeared to be his balance of game points.

These were the paid titles. Most free titles looked like this: "Newbie looking for a sugar daddy, can warm the bed, only need 200 game points!" posted by: Near Heartless.

Suddenly, Lu Li's gaze fixed on a title: "Newbie Essentials: Choosing Enhancements and Skills!" posted by: The Sun and Moon Rise, Yet the Torch Never Extinguishes.

This was a paid post requiring 50 game points. Lu Li pondered for a moment before paying to enter. The post by The Torch contained no fluff, immediately diving into the key points a newcomer needed to know:

"Newbie Essential Rule #1: Do not expose yourself in the real world. The real world is not simple."

"Newbie Essential Rule #2: The shop has a self-repair function. If you are injured in the game, go there and pay to be healed."

"Newbie Essential Rule #3: Try your best to train your own strength; do not think about bringing thermal weapons into the game."

"A newcomer's first test dungeon is usually barely passed, and the game points obtained will likely only be the 200 provided by the mission. The modules obtained will only be from the post-dungeon draw—unless, of course, you have 'African' luck and draw absolutely nothing."

"200 game points are only enough to buy two entry-level modules, so don't consider buying modules from the shop to build skills yet. At this stage, the most important thing is your basic enhancement. Let's introduce the three types of basic enhancements!"

"Do not think of this place as an omnipotent infinite space. There aren't that many dazzling enhancements to choose from. There are only three paths here, plus skill enhancements. These three basic enhancements are: Alienation Type, Implantation Type, and Inner Demon Type."

"The three major types have no superiority or inferiority, only suitability. First, the Alienation Type: this type involves choosing to alienate a part of your body into an organ under your control. For example, if you choose to alienate your hair, it might become snake-like hair. Different people alienating the same part will get similar organs, but they will never be identical!"

"There is no absolute 'best' part to alienate; some choose hands, some the brain, and some even choose their 'third limb.' What you choose depends on what suits you. This system has high growth potential, but controlling the alienated organ is very difficult. Please choose carefully!"

"Next is the Implantation Type: this involves implanting items from demons, ghosts, or monsters into your body, allowing you to borrow their power. This system forms strength the fastest, but be warned: the entities implanted into your body are provided by the game GM, making it harder to break through to become a high-level player later."

"Finally, the Inner Demon Type: the concept here is to manifest something from the depths of your heart into an Inner Demon beast that appears in this world. These beasts are powerful, but there is a possibility of backlash. Furthermore, because all the power resides in the beast, your own physical body will be relatively weak."

"Please carefully choose your basic type based on your own situation; this will be your upgrade direction. Now that we've covered basic enhancements, let's talk about skills."

"Newcomers will have three skill slots. Generally, newcomers shouldn't consider skills, but one cannot deny that some have decent gains in their test dungeons, so I will explain them."

"Skills in this game are not directly granted; you must assemble them yourself using modules!"

"A standard skill is usually composed of several parts: Energy Module; Manipulation Module; Rule Module; and Form Module..."

Starting to throw out settings, and since Near Heartless said he wouldn't read anything under 100,000 words, I'll roast him for it first (grins)!