My main world refreshes weekly.

Isn't it said that new players don't have any skills in their first game?

Could it be that the two extra attribute points just happen to meet the standard?

[Countdown to the next game: 00:37:56]

There's still more than half an hour left.

Chen Ci planned to ask Jiang Wanxin.

But when he turned his head to the side, he met Jiang Wanxin's gaze.

Jiang Wanxin was staring straight at him.

Eyes facing each other.

Jiang Wanxin's beautiful peach blossom eyes rippled with tears, reflecting Chen Ci's handsome face. Her long, shapely legs, beneath her cheongsam, unconsciously came together, and her heart fluttered with every turn of Chen Ci's gaze.

This little guy is getting more and more charming the more I look at him. That nose is so straight, it must be very big... Jiang Wanxin thought to herself, her face suddenly turning red.

Chen Ci: "?"

"You have a fever?"

"Hmm...maybe a little." Jiang Wanxin looked into Chen Ci's eyes, her gaze gentle and her voice soft and alluring. She reached out to touch Chen Ci's face, but fearing she might frighten him, she casually brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, then leaned closer to Chen Ci and whispered in his ear, her breath sweet as orchids:

"My fever is nothing serious, it won't kill me, it will go down on its own after I rest."

"But I would prefer that you, little brother, help your sister bring down her fever."

As she spoke, Jiang Wanxin produced a small syringe from somewhere, the kind used for skin tests. Chen Ci felt a pang of pain in his wrist at the sight, as he had been pricked by these things countless times since childhood due to his poor health. Jiang Wanxin placed the syringe in his hand, saying, "Take this. Use it in a critical moment. This is the only thing I can do to help you."

Chen Ci lowered his head, staring at the syringe.

A line of small text appeared.

[Muscle Activation Needle Type I (Grade D, Consumable): Injectable. Significantly increases explosive power for a short period and grants an additional 10 points to Constitution and Strength, lasting 600 seconds.]

A stamina score of 10... that doesn't look bad.

It's more than just not bad.

A player sitting on the nearby sofa stared wide-eyed in disbelief when Jiang Wanxin gave Chen Ci an item, exclaiming, "Sister Jiang, what are you doing?"

"Why are you giving him the props?"

The other players turned around upon hearing this and, finding it to be true, all wore expressions of amazement.

Some of them had seen similar syringes before. They were of average quality, the lowest grade, D. At first glance, they seemed ordinary, but the problem was that "items" were the rarest things in the game.

Its "drop rate" is extremely low. According to official statistics, it only appears once every 2.5 games on average, and most of them are consumables that are gone once used. Therefore, even if it is a D-grade item, its value is very high.

Not to mention that grade is just a reference; if used properly, any item can potentially help players rewrite the ending. Jiang Wanxin actually gave away something so precious?

Or should it be given to a newcomer who is about to die?

Jiang Wanxin's blush hadn't faded yet, but her eyes turned cold, and her voice was like ice: "Do I need you to teach me how to do things?"

One player, wearing glasses, protested, shouting, "That's unfair!"

"I got my access from you, Sister Jiang, so why didn't you give me any items?"

Jiang Wanxin shrugged: "Sorry, I'm hopelessly obsessed with looks."

Glasses player: "???"

His buddy next to him laughed, thinking to himself that it was obviously because Chen Ci was handsome, and he still asked, wasn't he just asking for trouble?

Chen Ci hadn't expected a D-grade item to be so valuable. It seemed the passive effect of his skill had kicked in. It was a pity there were no other women in the hall... In this life-or-death situation, Chen Ci naturally wouldn't stand on ceremony with Jiang Wanxin. He put away the syringe, smiled at Jiang Wanxin, and said, "Thanks, Sister Jiang. I'll try my best to bring it back to you."

Jiang Wanxin shook her head: "No need to pay it back."

Chen Ci nodded: "Okay, I was just being polite."

Jiang Wanxin: "..."

You're not pretending at all.

Jiang Wanxin chuckled: "What I mean is, your survival is more important than a prop."

To be honest, it would be a lie to say that everyone is not a little jealous of Jiang Wanxin's attitude towards Chen Ci. Don't be fooled by Jiang Wanxin's friendly and easygoing nature; she's just polite. Besides being polite, she also knows how to maintain boundaries. She's fine with being friends, but anything more than that is out of the question.

But what about the closing statement?

A newcomer, fresh off the scene, not only won Jiang Wanxin's favor, but she also gifted him a prop. The bespectacled player, who had long admired Jiang Wanxin, pulled out a pen and started drawing circles on the table, cursing Chen Ci for not being able to leave tonight…

"The Rock" Johnson noticed that Chen Ci was holding a bottle of liquor in his hand again, and deliberately took the opportunity to provoke him: "Kid, you seem pretty sullen?"

He just wanted to satisfy his craving for lemons; otherwise, just eating lemons wouldn't be satisfying.

Unexpectedly, Chen Cizhen walked towards him and slammed the beer bottle onto the table with a "thud".

The burly man's already small eyes narrowed to slits: "What do you mean?"

"What do you mean?" Chen Ci sat down opposite him, crossed his legs, and spoke his mind frankly.

The burly man scoffed, "You think you can take me on?"

"I just asked Sister Jiang, and fighting isn't allowed here," Chen said. "But I'm a straightforward person, and I don't hold grudges. I usually settle scores on the spot. You just mocked me, which made me very uncomfortable. I won't be satisfied until I teach you a lesson, so..."

Chen Ci leaned forward, almost touching the burly man, and stared at him, saying, "Dare to make a bet with me?"

"I'll bet on whether I can get out alive."

"The losing side must unconditionally agree to one thing from the other side, and it will be done right here at the club, how about that?"

"You're really confident, kid!" Before the burly man could answer, the other players started clamoring, "What are you afraid of? Just say yes!"

"Then I'll make him bark like a dog!"

"Say something, muscleman, don't tell me you're chickening out."

"Do you think I'd back down from a newbie like him?" The burly man, having fallen for the whole provocation, sneered at Chen Ci, "Fine, I'll bet with you!"

"See you in a bit then."

After glancing at the countdown, Chen Ci got up and went to the private room reserved for players to run dungeons.

Jiang Wanxin was trying not to laugh.

When the others saw that the burly man had actually agreed, they couldn't help but burst out laughing.

The burly man sensed something was wrong and asked, "What are you laughing at?"

"What do you think?" one of them laughed. "Of course I'm laughing at you for being an idiot, hahaha."

"That kid is playing his first game; it's either win or die. In other words, if he loses, he's gone, regardless of the stakes. But if you lose, you have to honor your promise."

"I reckon if I wasn't worried about the stakes being too high and you realizing what was happening, that kid would probably have bet his life against you, hahaha!"

Hearing everyone's explanation, the burly man suddenly realized what was happening. His face flushed red, and he couldn't help but blurt out a curse: "Damn it!"

"Why the hell didn't you say so sooner?!"

"Why didn't you say there was more entertainment to be had?"

The air was thick with a cheerful atmosphere. They never specifically targeted a newbie, but rather teased every player equally. After all, you never know when you might die in a dungeon, so life is short and you should enjoy it while you can!

Inside the private room.

The door was ajar, and Chen Ci deliberately left a crack to listen to what everyone was talking about. He found that these players were quite interesting. They weren't particularly malicious, nor did they blindly fawn over anyone. Having been accustomed to being adored by girls since childhood, Chen Ci was actually quite pleased to be looked down upon occasionally.

This is the normal world.

Life is supposed to be full of ups and downs, getting beaten up and then getting beaten back – that's what makes it interesting.

After closing his eyes to gather his thoughts, Chen Ci opened the panel, stared at the countdown, and prepared to enter the game.

Regarding "Tenth Day" and the "Real-World Programming Game," Chen Ci had obtained very limited information tonight, but he wasn't in a hurry. Jiang Wanxin was right; knowing more wouldn't help in the first game. If he couldn't get out, knowing wouldn't be useful. It was better to focus on his own do-or-die situation first.

[Countdown to the next game: 00:00:03]

【00:00:02】

【00:00:01】

"call."

It was as if a cool breeze swept by, scattering the countdown on the panel.

Chen Ci remained seated in the private room.

"?"

Is there going to be another bug?

Chen Ci has read quite a few novels. Logically speaking, shouldn't this kind of infinite flow mechanism result in a blur before his eyes after the countdown ends, accompanied by a feeling of weightlessness, then a knock on the back of his head to knock him unconscious, and then be thrown onto some floor in the dungeon?

What does it mean if there's no movement?

Most importantly, if he gets stuck outside and can't get into the dungeon, does that count as him clearing it?

After waiting for a minute without any response, Chen Ci touched his neck. He didn't feel like he'd been hit on the head, but the back of his neck felt a little cold. He stood up from the sofa, intending to ask Jiang Wanxin what had happened.

But the moment he pushed open the door and stepped out of the private room, Chen Ci realized he was wrong.

It was dark outside.

He stood in the narrow corridor. The crystal chandelier in the hall in front of him had been replaced by a cluster of red lanterns. The blood-red light filled every corner, swaying gently with the cold wind that seeped in through the paper windows.

A mirror had appeared on the wall opposite the entrance to the corridor. Through the mirror, Chen Ci saw a girl with a red flower on her chest, her hair tied in two small buns, her face pale, and no eyes, only dark eye sockets, lying on his shoulder, smiling at him, and sticking out her forked tongue to lick his neck.

"Brother, it's time for the wedding ceremony!"

……