Chapter 19: Log Off When Darkness Falls

"Kid, you really can run, can't you? How on earth did you end up this far out? You've really got a death wish, don't you?"

Hearing this "kid" felt like music to my ears; I, "Wishing to Become an Immortal," felt a sudden spark of hope for survival.

"Help—help me!"

As I shouted, I scrambled toward the voice and instantly recognized the player known as "Hidden Moon Following the Wind."

I remembered him warning me that morning. At the time, I had been full of confidence, telling him not to bother, but who would have thought...

I felt a mix of embarrassment and shame, but survival was the priority now, so I shoved those feelings aside. I stood back-to-back with him, no longer needing to worry about being flanked, and finally felt a sense of security.

"Drink your health potion! Take two more hits and you're dead," Xiao Jie reminded me, taking a defensive stance.

The skill "One Blade Severance" was powerful, but it had a drawback: you couldn't move while charging it. In other words, you either had to slowly close in on the enemy or wait for them to charge at you. It was, however, perfect for defense.

I scrambled to pull out a health potion and downed it. A wild dog, spotting the opening, lunged at me.

*Now!*

Xiao Jie spun around, his goose-quill saber slashing sideways.

*One Blade Severance!*

The wild dog didn't have time to dodge and was decapitated in a single stroke—an instant kill!

I stood there, stunned. I could understand him finishing off a wounded dog, but one-shotting a full-health one? I had nearly been killed by three of them, and wasn't he only level one?

Another wild dog took the opportunity to pounce at Xiao Jie. He didn't have time to charge another attack and couldn't parry, so he simply performed a nimble somersault. He spun through the air, and the dog missed entirely.

As he landed, he immediately turned and struck.

A horizontal slash—followed by a vertical chop! Two strikes reduced the dog to a sliver of health, and it lunged in a frenzy, snapping its jaws.

Xiao Jie retreated, his goose-quill saber thrusting straight forward. *Squish.* The blade entered through the dog's mouth and exited the back of its neck, skewering it through.

Unlike standard blades, this goose-quill saber had a thrusting attack animation, giving Xiao Jie much more room to maneuver.

After cleanly dispatching the two dogs, my health had finally recovered by more than half. Xiao Jie also consumed a Power Pill to restore his stamina. "It's getting dark," he said. "Wang Kai told me to warn you that Night Ghosts appear after dark. Looking at how much trouble you had with just a few wild dogs, we’d better get out of here."

"Wait, don't go yet," I urged. "There's a Scavenger Imp over there."

With the threat of the wild dogs gone, I had my mind set on that loot. If I didn't grab it now, wouldn't the risk I took have been for nothing?

I turned my head, only to see the Scavenger Imp scurrying away and vanishing into the dense forest.

Xiao Jie was speechless. He had lost any remaining shred of goodwill toward me. I had been so arrogant that morning, and yet, the moment we met, I ended up in this mess. Now, instead of learning my lesson, I was still thinking about killing monsters for gear. I truly had no concept of what a death game was.

*To think a noob like this dares to play a death game...*

His "stupidity-aversion" flared up.

"Scavenge your ass. If you don't want to leave, stay here. I’ve delivered the message, so I’m out."

He turned and walked away.

I stood there, stunned by his rebuke. I looked at the direction where the Scavenger Imp had vanished, then at the retreating back of Hidden Moon Following the Wind. Gritting my teeth, I hurriedly followed him.

The sky was darkening, and the surrounding woods became murky. As the light faded, a sense of crisis welled up within me. Fortunately, we didn't encounter any more monsters on the way back.

We sprinted along the path we had taken earlier. By the time we burst out of the forest, the sky was already dimming. The last ray of sunlight was fading into darkness, and everything around us grew gloomy, ominous, and filled with a foreboding aura.

Xiao Jie suddenly noticed that there were no stars in the sky—only a dark red blood moon hanging in the void.

It was unnervingly unsettling.

His stamina was bottoming out again. This was no time to save on medicine; there was no time to wait for it to recover naturally. Xiao Jie popped another Power Pill and pushed himself to run at full speed. At the entrance of the distant village, several militiamen were preparing to shut the gate, and Wang Kai was waiting anxiously.

"Don't close the gate! Don't close it!" He shouted twice, but seeing the militiamen show no sign of stopping, he simply planted himself in the doorway.

Tie Qianli, the militia captain, barked, "Wang Kai, what madness has taken you? Move aside at once! It’s dark, the gates must be closed!"

"Wait, just a little longer—look, they’re back!"

The captain ignored him and ordered the gate shut, but fortunately, the two of us had reached the front and managed to dive through the gate at the very last second.

*Boom!*

The heavy wooden doors slammed shut. Tie Qianli glanced at the three of us but said nothing more.

"Light the torches!"

*Thank goodness, that was too close.*

Watching the gates slam shut behind him, Xiao Jie let out a long sigh. *Damn it, I was too greedy. I can't take on jobs like this again.*

I, "Wishing to Become an Immortal," felt a lingering fear. If I hadn't caught up, I would have been locked out of the village.

"Brother Hidden Moon, I..."

"Don't thank me. Thank your Brother Wang; he's the one who asked me to find you. But this is the only time. I won't do it again. Damn, playing a death game and being this careless—I’m impressed. No wonder the one-year fatality rate in this game is 78%. I guess it’s all fools like you who die."

Xiao Jie didn't mince words. In reality, he was a fairly gentle person, but when it came to games, he became exceptionally strict. As a guild leader, he had to coordinate team raids, where a single person's stupidity could lead to a total wipe for dozens of others.

He had no patience for people who were habitually foolish; if he didn't criticize them harshly, it was everyone else’s time being wasted. And that was just in a normal game. In a death game, seeing someone act so foolishly triggered his instinctive disdain for incompetence.

Only after he finished scolding me did he remember that we were strangers who hadn't even known each other for a day. But having just escaped danger, he wasn't in the mood to coddle anyone.

He turned to trade with Wang Kai. "Here, your gear. Give me the money."

Wang Kai thanked him profusely. "Thank you, thank you! Brother Hidden, you’re so righteous—a true hero!"

Despite his gratitude, he didn't hesitate to trade. He put up 1000 copper coins and bought back his gear. Xiao Jie kept the potions, and Wang Kai, knowing better, didn't ask for them back. Seeing his gear returned, Wang Kai breathed a sigh of relief. This was his KPI for the next half-month.

"That's all for now, brother. If you need anything, just let me know. See you tomorrow. Log off now, it's dark."

Xiao Jie wondered, "Do we have to log off just because it's dark? We're in the village, aren't we? Can Night Ghosts even get in here?"

"Even inside the village, it isn't perfectly safe after dark. Just listen to me and log off. We’ll talk tomorrow."

With that, Wang Kai hurried off to the blacksmith shop to log out, never saying a word to me.

Taking the advice, Xiao Jie didn't hesitate. He found a safe spot and logged out of the game.

I watched them both leave in a daze, and after a moment of thought, I silently logged out as well.

Only Ginkgo Village remained in the darkness, shrouded under the blood-red moonlight, perfectly silent.