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Murky river water, bubbles, churning currents, and the hazy light refracted from the surface. He struggled desperately, fighting his way above the water and looking toward the pedestrians on the bank as he shouted for help. But all he got was their cold indifference. Some even pulled out their phones to take pictures, excitement written all over their faces.

He sank to the bottom again. His body temperature was dropping rapidly, and his strength was nearly gone. His mind was a blank; all he could think about was struggling. But in the end, he just couldn't fight any longer. He sank beneath the water, his hazy eyes fixed on the surface. The refracted light looked strangely sacred. The next moment, his eyes widened. That was...

"Whew!" Lu Li opened his eyes. The summer evening glow bathed the campus in gold. The temperature had dropped a little, but it was still unbearably hot. The ceiling fan above him spun frantically, while chalk dust continued to fall from the teacher's fingers as he went through one exam topic after another.

"Ring, ring, ring..." The bell rang for the end of class, but the teacher paused only briefly before saying, "Just two more questions. We're staying after class today. We'll finish them before you go."

Ignoring the students' groans, the teacher continued his lesson. Lu Li sat in the back row, leaning against the wall with an impassive expression. The fact that the dexterity in his left hand had been cut in half, along with the prompt still hovering in the corner of his eye, reminded him that what he'd just experienced hadn't been a dream!

Based on the time since class had ended, Lu Li roughly estimated how long had passed in the real world. About half an hour? And why did I dream? Why did I dream about that thing?

He set aside those useless thoughts. As if by instinct, he knew how to use the prompt. With a thought, he opened the panel still hovering in the corner of his eye. It transformed into a display of his personal stats, with an inventory below showing the items he possessed.

With another thought, a dialogue box appeared before him, filled with prompts:

[Temporary participant number Z0001. You have received the official player number YZ0135. Please choose a codename. Do not casually reveal your number or real name to others.]

[Player has completed the test instance and may undergo basic enhancement at any time.]

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

[Please complete your enhancement as soon as possible. The interval between instances ranges from one week to one month.]

[Player has been granted access to the forum and shop.]

[The player's item, Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Monarch · Cinnabar Talisman of Soul Return, has been automatically broken down into Rule Module · Manipulation and Rule Module · Bestowal.]

[Please be careful when talking and trading on the forum. Beware of scams.]

Lu Li continued to explore the panel. He found that it had only a few sections: his personal information, a dialogue box for the game, the forum, and the shop. He could control all of them with his thoughts.

When he opened the forum, a dialogue box popped up asking him to choose a codename. After a moment's thought, Lu Li entered his online handle: Strange Light.

Once he'd chosen his codename, Lu Li entered the forum and saw a huge number of posts, each with its own title. Some were free, while others cost money. He skimmed through them one by one and found that the free posts were generally worthless, while the paid ones often had something worthwhile. For example:

"On Choosing Similar Rule Modules," posted by Captain Overturn, with a fee of 50 Game Points. Lu Li glanced at the lower-right corner, where a currency symbol appeared beside the number 900. That seemed to be his Game Points.

That was a paid post. The free posts were mostly like this one: "Newbie looking for someone to sponsor me! I can keep you warm at night. Only 200 Game Points!" It had been posted by Near Heartless.

Suddenly, Lu Li's gaze settled on a title: "Newbie Guide: Choosing Enhancements and Skills!" It had been posted by "When the Sun and Moon Arise, the Lampfire Still Burns."

It was a paid post, costing 50 Game Points. Lu Li pondered for a moment, then paid to open it. Juehuo didn't waste words; he launched straight into the essentials every newbie needed to know:

"Newbie tip number one: Don't expose yourself in the real world. The real world isn't as simple as it seems."

"Newbie tip number two: The shop has an automatic repair function. If you're injured in a game, go there and pay to get yourself patched up."

"Newbie tip number three: Train to improve your own abilities as much as possible. Don't think you can bring firearms into a game."

"Most newbies only barely pass their first test instance. They'll probably get only the 200 Game Points awarded for completing the mission, and the only module they'll receive will come from the post-completion lottery. Of course, there's always the chance you've got African blood and won't draw anything at all."

"Two hundred Game Points are only enough to buy two basic modules, so newbies shouldn't consider buying modules from the shop to put together skills. Right now, the most important thing is your basic enhancement. Let's start by introducing the three basic enhancement paths!"

"Newbies, don't think of this as some all-powerful infinite space where you can pick from a dizzying array of enhancements. There are only three enhancement paths, plus skill enhancement. The three basic paths are the Alienation Path, the Implant Path, and the Inner Demon Path."

"None of the three paths is better or worse than the others. It's just a matter of what suits you. First, the Alienation Path. With this path, you choose a part of your body and mutate it into an alien organ under your control. For example, if you choose to mutate your hair, it might turn into snake hair. If different people mutate the same body part, the organs they get may be similar, but they'll never be identical!"

"There's no absolute rule about which part you should choose to mutate. Some choose their hands, some their brains, and some even choose a third limb. Which one you choose depends on what suits you. This path has greater potential for growth, but controlling your mutated organ can be very difficult, so choose carefully!"

"Next is the Implant Path. With this path, you implant items belonging to monsters and demons into your body, letting you borrow their power. This path lets you develop your strength the fastest, but keep in mind that the monsters and demons implanted in your body are provided by the game GM. It'll be harder to break through to become a high-level player later on."

"Now let's talk about the Inner Demon Path. The idea is to turn something deep inside you into a tangible inner demon beast that appears in this world. These inner demon beasts are powerful, but there's a chance they'll turn on you. And because all your strength lies in the beast, your own body will be relatively weak."

"Choose your basic path carefully, based on your own circumstances. It will determine the direction of your future growth. That's it for basic enhancements. Now let's talk about skills."

"Newbies get three skill slots. Generally speaking, newbies shouldn't be thinking about skills, but some people do get lucky in their test instance, so I'll cover them too."

"Skills in this game aren't enhancements that are handed to you directly. You have to assemble them yourself using modules!"

"A standard skill usually consists of several components: an Energy Module, a Control Module, a Rule Module, and a Form Module..."

Now we're introducing the setup. Near Heartless said he wouldn't read it until I had a hundred thousand words, so I'm going to roast him first! (grins)