Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 89 The Reincarnation System is not a game!

Jiang Jin and Deathstroke returned to their room at the Yihai camp.

"I'm back..."

The watch automatically adjusted back to real-world time, and upon checking, it turned out he had only been gone for ten minutes!

However, once back in the real world, he could no longer use the wedding ring to establish a mental link with Liu Yan. Furthermore, he didn't know how long it would be before he could see Liu Yan again.

Jiang Jin planned to go outside for a stroll. He remembered that there were many stalls of reincarnators in the camp, but he hadn't had a chance to take a closer look.

After removing his wedding ring and going outside with Deathstroke, Jiang Jin carefully observed the Yi Hai camp.

In the central area of ​​the camp, there was a row of vending machines, which looked no different from ordinary vending machines, but the screens displayed a dazzling list of products:
Combat Items:
【Substitute Paper Doll】(1 time / 3 crystallized resentment)

[Undead Hound Leash] (2 Resentment Crystals)

[Black Donkey Hoof, a Special Product of the Ghost Blows Out the Light Dimension] (1 donkey hoof / 4 Resentment Crystals)

……

Career advancement category:
[Bloody Tracker → Ghost Hunter] Hunter Class Advancement Guide (3 Resentment Crystals)

[Soul Locker → Ghost Raiser] Soul Stealer Class Advancement Guide (2 Resentment Crystals)

[Soul Weapon Resonance Guide] Soul Reaper Class LV3 Soul Refiner Skill Guide (30 Resentment Crystals)

Lifestyle and Entertainment Category:
[100% Holographic Virtual Reality VR Gaming Helmet] (1 Crystallized Resentment)

[Bugatti Veyron] (1 Resentment Crystal, 2 Resentment Crystals required for the customized version)

[Consensual Agreement for Relationship Between Sexes] (2 Resentment Crystals. Once signed by both parties, the SAN value of the party who retracts the agreement afterward will be reset to zero. One agreement can be signed an unlimited number of times.)

[Globally Selected 20 Languages ​​Crash Course] (2 crystallized resentments, no learning barriers, learn in 3 days)

Jiang Jin stared at the price list, his brows furrowed.

Of course, you can also purchase it with equivalent SAN points. However, the manual states that, in order to maintain the average SAN points of the Reincarnation Camp, it is not recommended to use SAN points for daily consumption, and the main currency circulating within the camp is Resentment Crystals.

Cheap ginger is not to my liking, and the ginger I like is too expensive.

"Excuse me, if you haven't decided what to buy yet, could you let me do the shopping first?" a voice came from behind.

Jiang Jin turned to the side and saw a man wearing a leather jacket.

"Okay, you can buy it."

"Thank you."

The man in the leather jacket walked up to the vending machine and skillfully took out the resentment crystal and inserted it into the machine.

Purchase the [Spirit Vision Potion].

The vending machine beeped and dispensed a test tube with a faint blue fluorescence.

The man picked up the potion and glanced at Jiang Jin: "Newbie? I suggest you go to the stall area and find some cheap stuff first, don't waste your time here."

Jiang Jin ignored him and turned to walk towards the stall area not far away.

The stall area was much busier than the vending machine area, with dozens of reincarnators spreading out waterproof sheets on the ground and displaying all sorts of props:
There were worn-out talismans, bloodstained daggers, half-empty bottles of unidentified liquid, and even a few tattered "dungeon strategy notes".

One of the stall owners stopped Jiang Jin and said, "Young man, you should have noticed when you entered the dungeon that horror dungeons have a lot of movie and game vibes, right? But usually the plot is always drastically altered into all sorts of bizarre game rules. This dungeon strategy guide will save you a lot of trouble! You won't regret buying it, you won't be cheated, eight Resentment Crystals!"

Jiang Jin shrugged, indicating that he had no money.

Who would be foolish enough to openly sell such important intelligence? If everyone copied it down, who would still buy it? It's only good for fooling newcomers. Truly reliable and valuable intelligence is only sold by black market intelligence dealers.

Jiang Jin wandered around but didn't see anything with a good price-performance ratio. Suddenly, a woman wearing a baseball cap called out to him, "Handsome, want to buy dungeon information? Resentment Crystals, SAN points are all fine. Or, if you have any equipment that can't be exposed to the light of day that you want to sell, you can also consign it to us. We have underground auction channels."

She lowered her voice and mysteriously pulled on Jiang Jin's arm.

It turns out he was a middleman.

"An underground auction? Is that legal?"

The Reincarnation Camp has a formal auction house. Of course, the commission is handed over to the Meme Pollution Monitoring Department, which is considered national treasury property.

"Hey, the higher-ups have been turning a blind eye for a long time. Besides, the imperial court treats us leniently. Reincarnators don't have to pay taxes on any amount of resentment crystals they acquire, so who cares if it's an underground auction?"

"I'm afraid I can't make a decision right away."

The woman grinned. "It's alright, it's fate that we met. My name is Gao Lan, and I live at No. 11, Block B. Come find me anytime if you change your mind. This is my business card."

The woman handed him a business card and left. Jiang Jin shook his head, put the card away, and continued shopping. After shopping for several hours, Jiang Jin returned to his residence and saw a man and a woman standing at his door.

The man was dressed in a Taoist robe, with a string of five-emperor coins and an antique Bagua mirror hanging from his waist, exuding an extraordinary air; the woman wore a plain white cheongsam, with a red rope and copper bell wrapped around her wrist, looking elegant and refined.

"The two of you?" Jiang Jin asked as he walked to the door.

"Is this Officer Jiang?" the woman in the plain white cheongsam asked.

"Yes, it's me."

The man immediately smiled and bowed, saying, "My name is Yu Tianlun, and this is my companion, Xu Yinqiu. We apologize for disturbing you."

Jiang Jin calmly observed the two of them: "Is there something you need?"

Could it be another broker?

Yu Tianlun took out a booklet from his sleeve: "I heard that Officer Jiang just completed his first dungeon in Qingtan Community and became a new Reincarnator, so I came to congratulate him. This is a summary of information about the current terrifying dungeons and the advanced cultivation of Reincarnators. You don't need to mind it; most people can obtain this, and it's very cheap. I thought I'd give it to you as a greeting gift, so we can become friends."

Jiang Jin became wary and immediately declined, saying, "I don't know you, and besides, I can't accept something for nothing."

Even if it's cheap, taking it is still a favor.

"Officer Jiang," Yu Tianlun continued, "To be honest, there are two types of reincarnators: solo and group. Most reincarnators need to enter dungeons in groups to survive in the long run. Our team has just been established and we are planning to recruit some new reincarnators to join us. There is also an introduction to our team in this booklet. Of course, Officer Jiang, you don't have to answer right away; you can take your time to consider it."

Before Jiang Jin could speak, Xu Yinqiu added, "Team Leader Yu was previously the leader of the Dawn Team, one of the top Reincarnator teams. Although he has left Dawn to start his own team, his strength and experience are unmatched by ordinary teams."

The Dawn Team? As a newly reincarnated player, Jiang Jin was also unaware of their background and planned to find out more later.

"Then I'll decline for now, but I can't just take things for free. I wonder how much resentment crystals are contained in this intelligence?"

"Officer Jiang, you're too kind. If you insist on giving it to me, that one Resentment Crystal will suffice. Of course, you can also pay with SAN points. Our team's temporary base is listed in the brochure. If you're interested, you can come find me then."

“No problem.” Jiang Jin took out a crystal of resentment and handed it to Yu Tianlun. “We’ll keep in touch when we have the chance.”

Okay. Goodbye then.

Jiang Jin pushed open the door and entered the house, sat on the bed, and opened the booklet.

After flipping through a few pages, his expression gradually became serious.

It says:

The most common misconception among new reincarnators is that they think the reincarnation system is a game, and then they blindly believe in numerical values, thinking that if they accumulate enough numbers, they will become invincible.

After all, the class system, reward distribution, and various skill stats can easily create this misconception. But in reality, the reincarnation system is not a game!
Although the skills and items introduced by the system currently come with various precise numerical values, that's only for beginners at level 1. Furthermore, all ghosts don't have health bars; the only thing that can truly counter them is the rules of the horror dungeons.

Jiang Jin frowned. He continued reading.

"This misconception among new reincarnators often only dissipates upon reaching LV2. Once at LV2, no longer a novice reincarnator, the system's descriptions of past skills, items, and future acquisitions become increasingly vague, and the system no longer provides reincarnators with such precise numerical limitations and protections. For example, 'causing ghosts to be stunned for 10 seconds' will become 'causing ghosts to have a certain effect.' The only remaining precise value is the cooldown time, and even the SAN value consumption is no longer fixed, often depending on luck."

Most importantly, as this beginner protection ends, items will become increasingly less effective against ghosts. For example, a hunter's bullet might kill a ghost with a single shot at level 1, but by level 3, deeper into the Lost Layer and even the edge of the Annihilation Layer, the bullet will be almost useless. Only then will the reincarnators truly understand despair. This isn't the system weakening you; rather, the ghosts you face will become increasingly similar to 'memes' themselves.

For example, with a leaf, at LV1 you see the specific shape of the leaf, at LV2 you can see the chlorophyll inside, and at LV3... you may be fighting against the rule concept of 'withering'.

The system provides beginners with precise data, much like a baby walker. Once you actually start walking, the walker becomes a burden. At the peak of LV3 and even LV4, items become almost purely auxiliary, rarely directly harming ghosts. At this point, the reincarnation system encourages reincarnators to learn their own class skills and even create their own. Ghosts cannot be killed; only curses themselves can combat them, and the highest level of curse is the rule itself.

High-level reincarnators are all studying how to transform skills into 'rules'. Just like ancient Taoist priests drawing talismans, the focus is not on the cinnabar formula, but on the profound principles of heaven and earth contained in the talismans.

This is why Resentment Shards are so important. Lower-level reincarnators generally use Resentment Shards to enhance items and gain immediate combat power, but their true purpose is to allow reincarnators to gradually master the rules of curses. However, this comprehension is difficult and requires a very long time.

Jiang Jin held the notebook, still somewhat confused.

Undeniably, he did feel that the Horror Dungeon Trial was very much like a realistic horror game.

"Yu Tianlun...Dawn Team..."

Self-created skills... rules...

Starting at LV2, the specific skill values ​​for protecting newcomers will no longer exist.

Three days later, after being assessed by the Reincarnation Camp, Jiang Jin's SAN value was stable, but his potential for decline remained at level D.

This is an excellent phenomenon.

Of course, everyone knows that once he was diagnosed with memetic contamination, it was impossible to truly cure him; a relapse was inevitable, it was just a matter of time. He'll have to continue entering terrifying new levels.

And he planned to... go see Yu Tianlun!

　A new alliance leader has been added today! As promised, four chapters will be released today!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)