Guides and Veterans

On the icy ground, Li Qingzhi's eyelids trembled a few times as his consciousness slowly surfaced from a muddled chaos.

But just as he regained consciousness and barely managed to sit up, he saw something strange—

Under the corner of a building not far away, beside a sharply edged piece of rubble, a young man wearing black-rimmed glasses was twisting a rusty steel bar, repeatedly grinding one end of it against the stone.

The harsh scraping sound, accompanied by the patter of rain, was especially clear amid these silent ruins.

??

Li Qingzhi's pupils contracted slightly, and two enormous, glaring question marks appeared in his eyes!

Wasn't it? How was someone awake earlier than him?

Wasn't this supposed to be a Newcomer Trial world? Were there other Main God users who had entered together with these "Visitors" lying all over the ground?

Instinctively rubbing his eyes hard, his mind still not fully awake, Li Qingzhi even raised a hand to open the light screen, intending to confirm the information first—

[Current World Instance—Ruined City]

[World Type: Newcomer Trial]

[Difficulty Rating: One Star/Low]

[Main Quest One: Survive for seventy-two hours (Current Survival Time: 0:00:00—timing begins after everyone awakens)]

[Main Quest Two: Reach an Exploration Score of five]

[Main Quest Reward: After clearing this instance, you may receive 10–120 Universal Points depending on your performance in this quest (as this scenario is a Newcomer Trial, quest rewards gained after clearing it are increased by 400%); no penalty for failure.]

[Additional Notice: Once a Visitor completes either main quest, they will be considered to have cleared the Newcomer Trial. They may choose to activate an identity number with the Main God and immediately leave this world.]

[Additional Notice: Within this quest world, you may interact with plot characters, but you are forbidden from revealing any information related to the Main God Platform to plot characters by any means.]

[Additional Notice: Your identity in the current quest world is "Guide." You do not receive any Newcomer Trial reward bonuses. However, during final quest settlement, for every Visitor under your guidance who successfully clears the trial, you will additionally receive at random 5%–15% of the reward points that Visitor obtained in this quest world. For more rules, see Guide Regulations.]

[Additional Notice: Under the current mode, both Visitors and users are merely consciousness projections. Death, injury, and all other conditions within the instance will not affect your actual body in any way aside from possible psychological trauma. Seize the opportunity and participate actively.]

[Note: "...Know your limits."]

[User No. 0102107: Li Qingzhi]

[Level-One Main God User]

[Race: Human]

[Physique: 0.9]

[Spirit: 2.2]

[Enhancement: Psychokinesis (First Tier)]

[Overall Assessment: First Tier]

[Additional Notice: —You are serving as a Guide in the current quest world]

[Note: "For healthy adult humans under normal conditions, the standard quantified values for both physique and spirit are 1. Kid, you really should exercise more..."]

Yeah, that was right! Both the quest information and personal panel on the light screen clearly marked him as a "Guide."

He paid absolutely no attention to the teasing "kid" in the note.

Li Qingzhi was simply a little confused right now.

Unlike these newcomers around him, who were obviously Visitors, he was an "old hand" who had already participated in one round of the Main God Game and successfully obtained user status.

Not long ago, after watching that vast, brilliant swarm of "light fish" swim into the endless sky and vanish without a trace—

Once the brief shock had passed and he came back to his senses, Li Qingzhi returned to his own affairs.

After all, compared to irrelevant things, focusing on what lay before him was the most important attitude.

Yet just as he was struggling through a particularly difficult choice between five options on the platform, carefully studying the five randomly generated quest worlds before him in preparation to choose a relatively suitable one, an additional procedural prompt suddenly popped up on his light screen.

—Would you be willing to serve as a temporary newcomer "Guide" and enter a random Newcomer Trial to carry out a guidance process?

According to the Main God's brief introduction, this was an optional quest randomly offered to certain veteran users whenever new Visitors entered the trial process. By taking on guidance duties, users could also receive corresponding reward feedback.

The words "reward feedback" instantly moved this ambitious man.

After all, now that every user had already gained a preliminary understanding of the value of the Main God's "rewards"—

With the thought of it's all just a dream anyway, so even dying wouldn't be a loss, Li Qingzhi quickly finished reading the Guide Regulations within the extra-stretched flow of time. After confirming that the specific quest difficulty should not be too high, he readily accepted the so-called [Guide Quest] and was transported into the quest world together with the newcomer Visitors...

But now came the problem. If Li Qingzhi remembered correctly, one clause in those Guide Regulations clearly stated—multiple Guides could exist in the same quest world. However, during the newcomer deployment phase, each group of newcomers requiring guidance needed only one Guide.

In other words, Guide resources theoretically would not be "duplicated."

So how was this young man before him supposed to be explained?

Narrowing his eyes, he carefully examined the expressionless figure in the distance, who was competing with a rock. Yet no matter how he looked, he could not find anything wrong.

According to the Guide information—generally, the higher an individual's spirit attribute, the less they were affected by the "special information-blocking state" during transport into a quest world, and the faster they awakened.

Judging solely from the fact that he had already awakened while these people around him were still lying there without reaction, this experience should have been true.

But that also meant that if the guy in the distance really was a newcomer...

Could his innate spirit attribute actually be higher than that of a veteran like him, who had already exchanged for "Tier-One Psychokinesis Development"?

At that thought, even Li Qingzhi's face twitched.

By now, he was absolutely certain that, unlike the endlessly subdivided attributes in those flashy modern online games, the only two attributes on the Main God's seemingly simple user panel—[Physique] and [Spirit]—were incredibly valuable in practical terms!

Leaving aside anything else, just his own spirit attribute of 2.2—

Based on Li Qingzhi's earlier attempts to vaguely compare himself with others in reality, even though spiritual perception was still neither clear nor precise and carried a hazy feeling like looking at flowers through fog, he could be certain that the difference in spiritual effects between himself and ordinary people was far more than a mere one or two times!

The effects brought by [Tier-One Psychokinesis Development] also went far beyond a simple increase in mental power. It enhanced everything from thinking speed to mental reactions to varying degrees.

Li Qingzhi, who felt that his brain had become much sharper, was extremely cautious.

Even when his vague spiritual fluctuations swept over the other man, he could not detect any "abnormality" from him.

But he also knew one thing well—sometimes, no problem was the biggest problem.

Especially since the other man's clothes and appearance made him obviously Chinese. Unlike these "newcomers" around them, who clearly came from all over the world, perhaps he really was a Main God user Li Qingzhi had never met.

This "old hand," temporarily unable to make up his mind, did not rush over to speak to him.

The young man also seemed not to have noticed the commotion when he woke up, all his attention focused on the steel bar in his hands.

His grinding movements could be called meticulous. From time to time, he raised the steel bar to inspect it carefully against the dim light, then changed angles and pressed it against the stone again, grinding rapidly.

He let the reddish-brown flakes of oxidized rust fall in streams, accumulating into a small pile around the rock.

The atmosphere was silent.

Not much time passed before people nearby began waking up one after another.

"Where is this?"

Apart from those first two, the earliest to awaken was actually a skinny South Asian boy. Even while lying on the ground, he had been curled up like a shrimp. Now that he stood, his eyelashes were soaked, his whole body trembled constantly, his lips were purple, and he clearly showed signs of malnutrition.

Li Yun stopped grinding and turned slightly to look at him.

Unlike the veteran who had awakened early not far away, whose faint spiritual fluctuations far exceeded normal human levels and who should have undergone an exchange enhancement, Li Yun had not yet opened his temporary Visitor panel. Without the Main God's translation service, he naturally could not understand the boy's foreign-accented words.

But judging from the boy's frail build, height of less than 1.6 meters, and the fact that the Main God's standards for "selecting people" included a specific rule that invitations would not casually be sent to minors under eighteen—

It was obvious that this small boy was physically weakened by long-term malnutrition.

Li Yun shook his head slightly.

Honestly, after reaching his teens, he had never believed that nonsense about "hardship forging success."

The only benefit hardship had in life was that it made you suffer with clear eyes.

Yet seeing the small boy's timid gaze, the thin and tattered coat-like outer garment he wore soaked through by the rain, and the way he shivered uncontrollably, someone still sighed.

He tucked the steel bar, now stripped of most of its rust, into his sleeve and casually picked up a large piece of torn cloth he had earlier found in the ruins beside the stone.

Judging by its texture, the material should have been linen. He had originally intended to see whether he could turn it into something to keep off the rain.

Getting to his feet and walking over, Li Yun tossed the cloth before the boy. Only after seeing him freeze did he seem to react with hesitation.

The boy tentatively reached toward the torn cloth on the ground, his eyes constantly darting between Li Yun and Li Qingzhi beside him, as though he would immediately pull back his hand at the slightest sign of trouble.

...But soon, after seeing that neither of them moved and that they had even stopped looking at him, the frail boy quickly wrapped the cloth around himself. He muttered a few incomprehensible words, probably thanking them.

Meanwhile, someone took the initiative to turn toward Li Qingzhi, who was sitting on steps a few paces away by the roadside.

"My surname is Li. What should I call you, friend?"

Before this veteran could speak, the young man before him had already nodded in friendly greeting.

Good. His mouth movements matched his words!

After confirming that the other man's language was genuine, rather than translated by the Main God, and that he was not some foreigner, Li Qingzhi relaxed slightly.

After all, compared with these "Visitors" around them, most of whom were foreign-born, having at least one compatriot in the crowd who shared his origin and language was undoubtedly more convenient under the current circumstances.

"Oh, we're actually from the same family. What a coincidence! Little brother, my surname is Li, and you can call me Old Li or Brother Li."

He had accidentally heard the "Li" in the other man's introduction as the same "Li" as his own surname.

Although he likewise had no intention of revealing his full name, Li Qingzhi, who was actually only in his early thirties, still showed a degree of friendliness.

For some reason, even though he could not yet determine the other man's identity, his first impression of this handsome, composed young man was unexpectedly good.

After all, whether or not the other man was a Main God user did not change the fact that he was Chinese.

...Of course, if one really examined the matter, it would be most terrifying if the other man truly was a newcomer.

He had awakened earlier than Li Qingzhi, remained calm and continued acting after waking in such an unfamiliar environment, then swiftly realized the importance of weapons and clearly sensed the existing danger... With such temperament, he truly had the makings of someone capable of great things!

Li Qingzhi made a few judgments inwardly.

Especially after noticing that the young man was even willing to lend a hand to that particularly frail boy, this small gesture did indeed reassure Li Qingzhi somewhat.

Kindness could often be a weakness, but when it came from an ally, it could also inspire greater trust.

What was more, in this "Main God Game," where there was no genuine threat of death for the time being, as long as no absolute fundamental conflict existed, cooperation between users for mutual benefit should have been the first choice.

He was preparing to have a proper conversation and probe the other man's background, but at that moment, another faint groan came from not far away.

Everyone turned to look, only to see the eyelids of the elderly white man in hiking clothes tremble a few times before he slowly and with great difficulty opened his eyes.

Those blue eyes contained almost the same blankness and confusion as the boy's, staring vacantly up at the bizarre gray-black sky.

It was like a signal. One after another, within barely ten or twenty seconds, the unconscious people on the ground began to stir. Groans, coughs, and unconscious muttering gradually rose, breaking the unsettling silence.

But sometimes, waking up did not mean safety. It only meant more unknowns.

Soon, more and more people on the street awakened. First came confusion, then nervousness. They looked each other over before quickly descending into a chaotic babble.

The moment the freckled blonde girl among them sat up, she gave an obvious shudder.

She suddenly clutched her chest, her lips trembling, before letting out an extremely piercing scream, so high-pitched that it nearly tore through the heavy curtain of rain.

A man lying nearby, clearly Middle Eastern in appearance, with a high bridge to his nose and even a slight hook to it, was completely jolted awake by that close-range "banshee wail"!

The veteran's face immediately darkened.

Those people who started screaming like madmen at the slightest provocation, regardless of the time or place, were no different from unstable time bombs!

No one could tell when they might go off without warning!

The scene before him abruptly reminded him of several extremely unpleasant impressions from the previous quest world. No movement could be seen, but a crisp slap rang out, as though an invisible hand had fiercely struck through the air!

And just like that, the blonde girl's head was sharply knocked to one side. Her scream instantly cut off, and even her green eyes turned clear at once!

The effect was obvious.

The reasoning was simple. Under a sudden blow from outside, the human self-protective instinct made the brain go blank—in short, she had been slapped senseless!

After obtaining Psychokinesis Development, such an operation, though not especially precise, was as easy as eating and drinking to Li Qingzhi.

Of course, Li Qingzhi had held back. Although conflict between Visitors and users was not restricted, his identity as a "Guide" alone prevented him from truly hitting hard.

Not to mention that newcomers clearing the trial concerned his additional rewards, Guides would also receive corresponding quest penalties for killing Visitors.

—This was also recorded in the Guide Regulations.

It was his first time serving as this so-called "Guide." He was only a novice who had just started out and had no desire to casually test an approach that was obviously harmful to others without benefiting himself.

Soon, the Black man nearby, whom Li Yun had earlier dragged out of a puddle and tossed aside, still half-curled with his limbs guarding his neck and his breathing not yet smooth, also let out a more obvious gasp and barely opened his eyes.

Li Qingzhi noticed that the main quest to survive for seventy-two hours had finally begun counting down on the quest panel.

Looking at these newcomers, now all awake, either dazed or confused as they got to their feet, their faces filled with unease as they tried to communicate despite not sharing a language and talked completely past one another—

Li Qingzhi, whose mood had already been soured by that scream, no longer intended to waste time.

"Everyone, look over here and listen to me!"

He clapped his hands forcefully, and his booming voice immediately drew the attention of most people present.

"I know you're all confused right now! You don't understand the situation! You can't tell what kind of position you're in!"

"But! I'm only willing to explain the specifics once, so before I'm done speaking, you'd better not interrupt me..."

There was genuine fierceness in his tone.

As soon as the words fell, the veteran flipped his palm. A stone the size of half a hand suddenly floated into the air out of nowhere, hanging unsupported and trembling slightly. Then, with a crisp crack, the pebble exploded like a raw bean bursting open in a fire!

The flying fragments struck the ground with a series of sharp clatters.

That single display drew nearly everyone's eyes, their expressions mixed with shock, suspicion, scrutiny, and even disbelief.

Li Qingzhi clearly saw some people open their mouths, yet ultimately dare not make a sound.

Just as expected, the methods handed down by the ancestors were still the most effective.

To accomplish great things, one first had to establish authority.

He forcibly suppressed the faint dizziness and nausea rising in his mind.

Honestly, forcefully overdriving his psychokinesis to shatter that stone had already made his temples throb.

But it was undoubtedly worth it.

Throughout this process, he had deliberately, or perhaps unconsciously, passed over the young man named Li whom he could not quite figure out.

Seeing the crowd quickly fall silent and the situation finally brought under preliminary control, Li Qingzhi rapidly reviewed the speech he had already prepared in his mind. Satisfied, he nodded and finally began his explanation in a steady voice...