Li Zi's codename was "Pear."
She and her four teammates were still searching every corner of the town, determined not to miss a single spot. Unfortunately, despite all their efforts, they hadn't found anything of value.
Just then, a system notification suddenly echoed in their minds: Qin Feng had reached Level 2 and unlocked the Shell Town ranking list.
The group froze.
"What the hell? Li Zi, isn't that 'Shadow' guy the one who went out alone earlier?"
"It seems like it… but how could he reach Level 2 so fast?"
"The crazy part isn't the level, it says he killed a Bronze-grade mini-boss!"
"That can't be right! We can't even handle a normal monster as a full team, and he soloed a Bronze BOSS?"
"This system doesn't make mistakes…"
"Maybe he joined someone else's party after leaving?"
"No, look at the leaderboard—only his name's there!"
The town's ranking list displayed just one name: Shadow.
Everyone stared, dumbfounded.
"Ah, this can't be real…" one of them muttered.
Li Zi gripped her longbow tightly, her face pale with disbelief. She remembered how terrifying the monsters outside were. Their five-man team had gone out together, fully armed, and still got wiped out by a single Level 1 normal monster. They couldn't even shave off half its HP.
But now, that man—the one she thought had gone out to die—had somehow soloed a Bronze BOSS?
"This is completely unscientific…" Li Zi whispered, her confidence cracking.
Meanwhile, Niu Gang and Guan Xiaoya had just revived in the centre of the town.
The system informed them that half their lifespan had been deducted.
They had originally possessed forty to fifty years each; now, only a little over twenty remained. Both of their expressions darkened.
Guan Xiaoya's face was ashen. "Niu Gang, do you… think that lifespan loss is real?"
Niu Gang shook his head hard. "Impossible. There's no way something like that exists in real life."
"But think about it," Guan Xiaoya said quietly. "We were sleeping, and somehow ended up here. This doesn't feel like a dream… and if it's a game, then it's way too realistic."
Niu Gang hesitated, uncertainty flickering across his face.
Before either of them could say more, the notification about Qin Feng killing the "Breeder" and reaching Level 2 rang in their heads.
Both of them froze.
"That two-and-a-half-meter spider got killed?!" Niu Gang shouted.
"Who is this 'Shadow'? How could he possibly kill that monster?" Guan Xiaoya was completely stunned.
"There were more than ten little spiders under it too…"
The two exchanged glances, both struggling to process it. In front of that giant spider, they hadn't even been able to move. Yet somehow, this "Shadow" had taken it down—and according to the leaderboard, completely solo.
It was beyond belief.
As more and more people fell asleep in the real world, new players continued to appear in the Land Abandoned by Gods.
The number of players in Shell Town quickly climbed to over five hundred.
The town square was already crowded with black-robed newcomers. Confusion filled the air as players grabbed anyone nearby to ask what was going on. But no one had answers.
Some panicked. Some tried to calm down.
One young man with dyed blond hair stood in the square, waving his arms as he shouted loudly, trying to organise the chaos.
"Listen, everyone! We all fell asleep and woke up here in this so-called Land Abandoned by Gods!" he called out. "We can't log out or leave for now. Based on what I've seen, we get lifespan by killing monsters, and if we die, we lose half of it!"
He raised his voice over the crowd's murmurs. "Whether it's real or not, we should take precautions! Don't go out alone. Quite a few people have already been killed outside and lost their lifespan. I suggest forming teams to explore; it'll be safer. Anyone who wants to go, come here and list your class!"
Some people listened seriously. Others dismissed him, treating it all like a prank.
At another exit of the town, a team of six had already formed, three men and three women.
The leader was a tall, broad-shouldered man named Wang Meng. He glanced toward the bustling town square and the blond youth shouting, then looked back at his team with a calm expression.
"With a game like this, it's better to believe it's real than risk ignoring it," Wang Meng said. "Let's treat it as a normal game for now. We'll go out, hunt, and level up. As long as we're careful, we'll be fine."
He raised his shield slightly, confidence in his tone. "I'm a Holy Shield Warrior. I have an invincibility skill that can block all damage for a few seconds. Just focus on dealing damage, I'll protect you."
His five teammates nodded. They were all Hidden Classes he had handpicked, their combination well-balanced and powerful.
"Let's move," Wang Meng said simply, and they headed toward the outskirts.
Elsewhere in the town, a group of five teenage boys, typical internet café regulars, were also hyped up by the situation.
"Bro, this game's our time to shine!" one of them laughed.
"Yeah, let's go farm monsters already!"
"We might suck at studying, but when it comes to gaming, who can touch us?"
"This God Forsaken Game allows six-man teams, right? We're missing one!"
"Let's find a healer, maybe a cute girl!" another said with a grin.
The group burst out laughing, their excitement masking the danger that awaited them.
Shell Town wasn't the only place where this was happening.
Across the world, thousands of similar towns were filling up with confused players; people from Great Xia, North America, Europe, everywhere.
All of them had fallen asleep, only to awaken in this same terrifying, realistic game world.
At first, everyone was lost. But as the minutes passed, players began to realise this wasn't just a game. Some chose caution. Others embraced the danger. And a few of those with strong instincts had already started creating a huge gap between themselves and everyone else.
Like Qin Feng.
"Level 2 unlocks the ranking list and gives one Reputation point," Qin Feng murmured, glancing at his system notifications.
He didn't dwell on it. Reputation would matter later; he could use it to buy rare items from NPCs once they appeared. Right now, his focus was on the Bronze-grade Breeder's corpse in front of him.
Still cloaked in invisibility, Qin Feng reached out toward the gray-white light sphere hovering above the spider's remains.
[You have gained 46 days of lifespan (tradable).]
A grin tugged at his lips.
A single mini-boss had granted him more lifespan than ten normal monsters combined. Normally, it would take several full teams to bring down a Bronze BOSS, and the lifespan reward would be divided among all members.
But Qin Feng had done it solo, meaning all the rewards were his.
He crouched down and sifted through the loot beneath the Breeder's huge corpse. Three items dropped, and when he spotted one of them, his eyes gleamed with excitement.
"This… this is a huge find."
[Skill Book: Greedy Hand (Bronze)][Type: Assassin Skill Book][Effect: Can be used on monster corpses. Has a 20% chance to gain one extra loot reward. Requirement: Level 1]
A 20% chance didn't sound like much, but the key was that it could be evolved.
Qin Feng's smile deepened as he held the glowing skill book in his hand.
"Perfect. This is exactly what I need."