Chapter 1

Time rewinds slightly, to the edge of the Death Spirit Kingdom, in the desert of the Boundless Maze Domain…

A floating dark shadow and a crimson human figure were both moving at high speed. The entanglement between the two was rapid, fierce, and dangerous, a constant dance with death at every turn.

*Bang!* Another collision of power.

K3's form faltered, and he instantly retreated several steps. A solemn expression appeared on his face for the first time, and a crimson glow burst forth from his right arm. In an instant, a dragon's roar echoed in the desert sky, and an energy blast in the form of a giant red dragon erupted.

Vail also solidified into a human form in the air at this moment. His purple face was filled with horror. He crossed his hands, covering his entire body with death spirit energy, using himself as a shield to resist this terrifying blow.

By this point, the two had been fighting for a long time. As the intensity and speed of the battle continued to increase, and the techniques were constantly upgraded, K3's advantage became more and more obvious, while Vail gradually became overwhelmed. This attack was the move K3 believed could determine the outcome.

The Crimson Dragon Fist Flame charged forward with the force of swallowing the heavens and destroying the earth. Vail's defense was like a withered tree in a strong wind, which could be uprooted at any moment.

"You deserve praise for fighting this far." K3's killing intent subsided even before the attack had fully landed. In his eyes, the battle was already over. "However, your skills end here."

Vail didn't leave any last words, nor did he give K3 any surprises. In the end, he couldn't withstand the devastating blow. His body was blasted apart by the red energy, turning into a scattered black mist, which then poured down as dust, scattering and becoming part of the bone desert.

K3 coldly shook his hand and suddenly spoke to the empty maze domain before him, "You've been hiding and watching for so long. Even out of courtesy, you should come out and say hello."

In the sky, a distorted layer of black space slowly shifted, as if a veil was being lifted. A huge skull face appeared there, and a dry, wooden voice came from its mouth: "If you think it's necessary..." He replied to K3's words.

When K3 saw that face, he confirmed the other party's identity. "So it's the Chief. No wonder you were able to get here so quickly."

Under the command of Youwang of the Nether Abyss, there were nine subordinates who were second only to the Four Pillar Gods. They were known as the "Nine Death Spirit Chiefs," and the skull in front of K3 was the leader of these nine – Duo Ling (Soul Stealer).

"Hmph... Watching a member of your kind being killed, are you not moved at all?" K3 asked with a smile.

"He is not my kind, you know that very well." Duo Ling replied, "You and I are more like each other."

K3 replied, "That's also true. After all, we are both data with unique properties." He snorted coldly, pointing to the black dust left by Vail on the ground. "But this ignorant fool killed one of my fourth-level brethren, thinking he was so important."

"I am sorry." Duo Ling said, "But Vail did not do anything wrong. From his point of view, he only did what he should have done..." He sighed, "Each of us has our own mission and lifespan. Vail is like a fleeting spark, and my master and I are like candles that will eventually burn out, but you..." He paused. "You are a higher existence than us. As long as your ability is sufficient, you have a chance to enter the 'Inner World.' Once there, the lifespan of your data... can become an unknown."

"The Inner World is not some eternal place of peace either," K3 replied.

"Compared to data that can see the end of their fate at any moment, it is already good enough." Duo Ling said, "For us, 'unknown' is the most precious thing. So-called 'life' is full of uncertainty. But the precision, harmony, and predetermined 'answers' brought by mathematics are the sorrow we can never escape, and the most tragic thing is... we weren't even programmed with 'sorrow' as an emotion."

"I think that's pretty good." K3 said, "That's why you can look at what just happened so calmly, and accept the past, the future, everything that has happened and will happen."

"Hmph... maybe." Duo Ling did not continue the topic. "You need to return to the other side now... Let me open a space tunnel and send you on your way."

K3 replied, "Then... I'll trouble you, Chief."

…………

On the other side, Feng Bujue and the others only took less than ten minutes to reach the shrine on the top of the mountain. Without the influence of the illusion, they were just doing ordinary climbing, so they moved quickly. With the character abilities of these six people, chasing a bus for three or five stops would be a piece of cake. Climbing a mountain that wasn't very steep like this took them well under ten minutes.

As the saying goes, coincidences make a story. They had just passed through the torii gate outside the shrine when a red light suddenly erupted from the bottom of the haunted well in the courtyard. An indescribably heavy sense of oppression spread out from the wellhead like ripples.

Including the GM, everyone's feet seemed to be rooted to the ground, unable to move forward a single step. This was not the effect of a skill, nor was it something that could be explained by the laws of physics.

This experience transcending the five senses was unprecedented in any game. The six people who came here, as humans, actually felt "killing intent" in this virtual reality presented by neural connections.

K3-Red Iron leaped out of the well, stood on the edge of the well, and looked down condescendingly at the crowd with different expressions. His right arm under his sleeve was now in a complete state. A tattoo of a giant red dragon coiled around his entire arm from two-tenths of the way down his shoulder to his wrist, faintly radiating red light. And the invisible aura emanating from his body also revealed a faint red color.

"Hmm?" K3 looked at the number of people on the other side and murmured with some confusion, "Didn't the players teleport?"

"You should wait for our main quest to update with appropriate content before taking action." Feng Bujue was the most composed of the six, and he responded in a very calm tone.

"I see." K3 said, "But... now that things have come to this, it doesn't matter anymore." He jumped lightly to the ground. "Heh... Although I am somewhat restricted on this end, you guys... are really pathetically weak." He glanced at his right arm. "And thanks to Vail, I've already done a pretty thorough warm-up."

Galileo suddenly said nervously at this moment, "Four... the situation has changed. You have to help us..." He had obviously realized that the person in front of them was a third-level Derivative.

"Since you said so, I have a foolproof plan." Feng Bujue actually replied immediately with confidence. Before anyone could react, he stood with his feet apart, clenched his fists, raised his arms, and shouted, "I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"

[Protagonist Aura Transferred]

[The current player with the Protagonist Aura is – Feng Bujue.]

Just as the system prompt sounded, Feng Bujue added, "You guys can leave, I'm going to duel him one-on-one."