Chapter 4

Under the relentless attacks of the Black Phantom, the zombie horde that had just gathered was completely wiped out in a matter of minutes, with rotting corpses scattered haphazardly around the kiosk.

The air was filled with a pungent, almost blinding stench.

This battle, which could be described as a massacre, had almost eliminated two-thirds of the zombies in the square. Within the visible range, there were no longer large groups of zombies, only a few stragglers slowly wandering at the edges.

The Black Phantom's existence was down to less than a minute, so Luo Jie directly absorbed it into his body as IBM particles and then habitually began to tally his gains.

Despite being mentally prepared, when he opened the积分排行榜, he was still stunned by the astonishing积分 number.

—2130.

Not to mention new players, even the vast majority of first-tier players would not get much more pure kill积分 each time they entered the illusion.

And he only used five minutes.

This was simply mind-blowing...

Luo Jie had not felt it much until he saw this number, and he suddenly realized how terrifying the initial advantage of the EX-level [Humanoid] bloodline was.

Unfortunately, the Black Phantom's endurance was terrible, a typical case of "charge for eight hours, fight for five minutes." It could only be used as a trump card in emergencies and not as a regular skill.

Luo Jie suddenly smiled in a self-deprecating manner. Despite having the dream-level EX bloodline that all players yearned for, he still wanted a powerful skill that could easily clear the illusion. Indeed, the sin of greed exists in everyone's nature.

"Still, let's level up first."

Luo Jie called up the semi-transparent main interface with a sci-fi feel. Below his name, the level item now had a flashing red exclamation mark.

At the same time, several extremely prominent red warning messages appeared in his field of vision.

[You have met the conditions for leveling up. Do you want to increase your current level?]

[Note: Leveling up to Tier 1 will cost 100积分. Your Constitution and Spirit attributes will each increase to 100, and you will unlock the data storage space.]

[Note: After leveling up, you will consume 1 commemorative badge every 60 natural days. (Commemorative badges are mandatory items for completing the illusion and cannot be traded.)]

[Warning: If you fail to pay the commemorative badge on time, you will automatically drop back to Level 0, with all attributes permanently halved,积分 and items cleared, and your player status permanently revoked.]

This warning meant that once you accepted the enhancement, you had to actively go on an illusion adventure at least once every two months, or face punishment.

Clearing积分 and items was not a big deal, but the permanent halving of attributes was quite severe. A person's initial attributes were at most 100, and halving them would basically leave you in a semi-disabled state.

The most terrifying part was that this halving was permanent, meaning you would never recover.

Luo Jie still remembered the shock and struggle on the faces of the survivors when they first saw this red warning in their previous life.

Some even cursed the unfair terms on the spot.

However, Luo Jie found this very reasonable.

To play someone's game, you must follow their rules, a principle even children understand.

Wanting the benefits without taking the risks is simply too selfish.

"Level up."

Luo Jie made the decision without hesitation.

As the积分 number dropped by 100, his personal attribute interface changed to "Tier 1," and his Constitution attribute increased directly to 100 points. His Spirit attribute, boosted by the [Humanoid] bloodline, soared to 200 points.

Countless blue-white grids lit up on Luo Jie's body, and a surging power emerged from within him, filling his entire body without warning.

Luo Jie jumped a few times, quickly made some punching motions, then closed his eyes and carefully savored the long-lost feeling of power.

After a moment, he opened his eyes and sighed.

"Still a bit weak..."

Accustomed to the strength of over a thousand points in his previous life, Luo Jie found it hard to adapt to this weak body.

Theoretically, the Tier 1 enhancement was enough to put him at the peak of human physical capabilities.

After leveling up, Luo Jie did not rush to leave but instead started rummaging through the various souvenirs in the kiosk.

"Ha, found it, just as I thought."

Luo Jie held up a printout the size of a half-opened sheet of paper, looking as happy as a child who had found a piece of candy.

[You have obtained the item—Good Luck City Visitor Map. Do you want to spend 50积分 to authenticate it?]

The illusion was like a game but not a game.

Except for a few special illusions, most were open-world structures with no main quests or scripted NPC dialogues.

However, the illusion world contained countless hidden quests and items. As long as you were diligent, you would always find surprises.

Before Luo Jie's rebirth, there was a special type of player called "Explorers." They did not focus on becoming powerful like ordinary players but were dedicated to uncovering hidden quests and rare items in each illusion, documenting their discoveries in the Explorer Guild's journal, "Illusion Deciphered," for others to read.

Of course, Explorers were not volunteers. "Illusion Deciphered" published mostly low-level illusion guides for new players, while high-level guides required a large number of积分 to purchase.

By the time of his rebirth, the free guides in "Illusion Deciphered" had been unlocked up to Level 5 illusions and a few Level 6 illusions.

A Level 1 illusion like "Zombie Siege" had been thoroughly explored by generations of new and old Explorers, leaving no secrets.

Due to the numerous hidden contents and the long time that had passed, Luo Jie could not remember everything.

Fortunately, he had always had the habit of taking notes. For each new guide, he would select and record some high-quality or cost-effective tasks, so he still had a clear memory of the things he had written.

For example, the [Good Luck City Visitor Map].

In his previous life, no one would have thought that such a useful item was right there in the kiosk, almost within reach.

"Authenticate the map."

Although it could be used like a normal map without authentication, Luo Jie still chose to pay the high authentication fee.

Maps were special items whose true functions only became apparent after authentication.

As a blue-white grid flashed, the map in Luo Jie's hand disappeared.

At the same time, a semi-transparent mini-map appeared in the upper right corner of his field of vision, with a green arrow in the middle representing his current position.

"Display in 3D mode."

As soon as he spoke, a 3D holographic projection of Good Luck City appeared in front of Luo Jie. The miniature displays of interior decorations were vivid and lifelike, much clearer than the abstract 2D map.

Of course, except for the updated scenery in the square, the other scenes showed the city before the zombie outbreak, providing only reference value.

The holographic map rotated and zoomed in various angles with his gestures. Luo Jie looked at the familiar scenes on the map, and his long-dormant memories began to awaken, becoming increasingly clear in his mind.

To be fair, "Zombie Siege" was a very suitable illusion for new players, with a low difficulty level that ranked among the lowest in all Level 1 illusions.

Low difficulty generally meant low rewards. Apart from a few hidden items, this illusion did not have much to explore.

However, it was not entirely without merit. The difficulty of obtaining equipment was very low, with plenty of items scattered throughout the central commercial street.

For a long time in his previous life, this "Zombie Siege" illusion was one of the largest sources of white cold weapons in the market.

"Ah, the积分 growth has stopped. By the time, Jia Shuai and his group should have reached the safe house..."

After glancing at the积分 ranking, Luo Jie folded his arms and muttered to himself.

Although they did not have a map, Luo Jie remembered that the survivor group had a chubby otaku. In his previous life, it was this person's vague memory of the game that helped them find the only safe house in the illusion.

The safe house contained a small amount of food and water. As long as these supplies lasted, Jia Shuai and his group would not take any action.

So, it was time for his show.

But before that, he needed to leave a little gift for the sunglasses man and Jia Shuai.

Luo Jie picked up a Good Luck City souvenir lighter from the counter, lit a new map, and casually threw it out the window.

In the bright flames, a mysterious smile gradually appeared on his lips.

"I really want to see their happy faces when they receive this gift..."

...

At the same time, in Good Luck City.

Jia Shuai and the sunglasses man, in different rooms, almost simultaneously received an email titled "Check out the Good Luck City Map."

"Map?"

Both men's faces lit up with joy. In this situation, where they were in the dark, the importance of a map was self-evident.

However, when they tried to open the email, a system prompt made them curse.

"Who is this nightmare? A lousy map costs 500积分? Why don't they just rob us!"

...

As soon as Luo Jie stepped out of the kiosk, he received a system email notification.

The map he had sent to the sunglasses man had been purchased. After deducting 50积分 for postage and 50积分 for authentication, he received a net profit of 400积分.

It was no surprise to Luo Jie that the sunglasses man would buy it so quickly.

After all, as a seasoned player, the sunglasses man knew better than anyone the importance of the map.

And the price of 500积分 was subtle. It was painful for the other party, but not enough to cripple them.

As for whether Jia Shuai would buy it, that would depend on luck.