Chapter 22 - 22 20 The Killing Intent in the Night

22: Chapter 20 The Killing Intent in the Night 22: Chapter 20 The Killing Intent in the Night Xiao Jie logged out of the game and checked the time—it was only 6:30 p.m. Staring at the empty living room, he suddenly didn’t know what to do. In the past few days, he had been trying to find games where he could grind for money, listing the old game inventories he had, thinking about recouping some costs. However, at that moment, everything he used to care about seemed meaningless. After some hesitation, Xiao Jie slapped his thigh, deciding to go have dinner first. Dinner was as simple as ever, rice with stir-fried eggs, plus a slice of tilapia fillet, without any special seasoning, just a quick pan-fry with some pepper and salt. Xiao Jie was usually too lazy to cook, but occasionally, when he wanted some fish to supplement his protein intake, he would settle for these frozen fillets. After dinner, Xiao Jie looked at his computer and couldn’t help but feel the urge to log back into the game and play some more. But then he thought that since he couldn’t go out to slay monsters or do tasks late at night, it seemed that there was no need to go online, not to mention the dangers Wang Kai had mentioned. What kind of dangers could they be? Xiao Jie couldn’t help but speculate, but with too little information, he couldn’t figure out what it might be. Forget it, he would ask after logging in tomorrow, and then he would naturally understand. Xiao Jie fiddled with the mouse unconsciously, thinking about playing another game but couldn’t muster any interest. After experiencing that death game on the brink of life and death, playing ordinary games felt bland and unexciting. Maybe he should just go out and exercise, his body was still too weak. Although he considered himself decent among professional players, for a ‘Swordsman’ his constitution was just too poor. He had practiced the “One Cut, Two Pieces” a few times, and his arm muscles were still sore from it. It was essential to train, as he currently couldn’t level up and invest points, so he might as well work hard on improving. He needed to get his body in better shape or else, if he learned Martial Arts later and his physical condition couldn’t keep up, that would be problematic. After Xiao Jie had digested his meal, he saw it was eight o’clock. He changed into sportswear and set off. Jiangbei City was a third-tier small city with a temperate climate, and although it was only mid-April, the weather was still quite warm. The cold night breeze was void of any chill, and the neon lights on the street shined on the crowd at the night market, creating a bustling yet peaceful atmosphere. Xiao Jie walked the streets, subconsciously looking up at the sky. Although the stars were hardly visible, the night was exceptionally serene—not at all like the oppressive, decayed, and disquieting darkness of the game. He made his way through the crowd and along the cobblestone road to a nearby park built around a small hill, a popular leisure area for local residents. Although it was already evening, there were still groups of people out for a walk. Alright, he’d start here! Xiao Jie stretched his limbs and began to run along the park’s circular road. He intended to run a few kilometers to warm up, then do fifty push-ups and a hundred squats, followed by a couple of fitness routines before calling it a day. However, just a few minutes into the run, Xiao Jie felt a tightness in his chest and began to pant heavily. Heave—Heave—Heave! His physical fitness really did need improvement. Normally, he wouldn’t notice it, but only when running did he realize how weak he actually was. If this were a real fight, he was afraid he’d run out of energy after just a few moves. Grinding his teeth, Xiao Jie persisted and finally stopped after running a kilometer, at the front of a hillside. Leaning on his knees and gasping for air, he felt like his lungs were about to explode. All around him was silence, with only the sound of his heavy breathing. Suddenly, a rustling sound made him tense up. “Who’s there!” He asked in a deep voice, nervously looking ahead into the darkness, where the hill in the night looked like a pitch-black beast, until a pair of green eyes appeared in the dark. It wasn’t until the thing got closer that Xiao Jie finally breathed a sigh of relief—it was just a black cat. It was a false alarm. “Sorry, kitty, I don’t have any food for you, whew—whew.” He continued to pant as he spoke. The black cat looked at him with a contemptuous expression as he panted heavily, which left Xiao Jie somewhat speechless. Was he being scorned by a cat? No, that’s probably just his imagination. Even so, he still waved his hand at the black cat. “Whew—whew—don’t look at me with that kind of gaze, it’s my first time night running—whew—whew, it’s only natural.” The black cat, not knowing whether it understood or not, let out a meow and with a graceful leap, vanished into the darkness. Well, time to head home. This aborted night run was just a minor episode. Xiao Jie decided that he should exercise more when he had free time and went home to wash up and go to bed. The next morning, bright and early, he logged into the game. It may have been a time when everyone was logging in; Wang Kai and I Want to Be Immortal were already in the village square, chatting about something. “Haha, Feng, you’re up early.” “You too. But what exactly are the dangers after it gets dark?” Xiao Jie asked as soon as he met the others, voicing the doubts in his mind. “Have you noticed that there are no stars in the sky in this game?” Xiao Jie nodded, “That does seem to be the case. Once the sun sets, everything around is pitch dark and you can’t see anything clearly, not a single star in the sky, and even the moon is red. Is there a reason?” Wang Kai said, “There is indeed a reason behind it. The stars in this world have all fallen because they are associated with the immortals in the heavens, such as the Southern Dipper Star Lord, Beidou Star Lord, the Twenty-eight Constellations, Nine Luminaries, Gold Star Taibai, and so on. Since the gods have fallen, the stars have also disappeared. Or to put it another way, they have become invisible. These Star Lords were in place to monitor the mortal world, and now that they’re gone, the demons and ghosts naturally have no restraint, so they all come out to harm people at night, or in gaming terms, monsters’ Challenge Levels double at night. Many special monsters will spawn at night, and some areas that are safe during the day become very dangerous at night, and hidden bosses might even appear.” Xiao Jie said, “But we’re in the village.” Wang Kai nodded, “Indeed, the village is relatively safer, but it’s not completely safe. The village walls can keep out most of the monsters, but some things can’t be stopped, and some will still sneak in. So even in the village, it’s possible to encounter monsters at night. Furthermore, some ghost-type monsters can possess players and then attack other players and NPCs around them, Back when no one knew about this, someone was AFK in the village at night and got possessed out of the blue, ended up randomly attacking people around, killing several, and was eventually killed by the Militia. Moreover, once in combat, players cannot log off, so it’s best not to linger in the village at night. I’ll give you a tip: if you suddenly enter combat at night and can’t see the monster, it’s definitely a ghost. Remember to run towards the ancestral hall at such times. The ancestral hall has the blessing of the ancestors; ghosts cannot invade it, and once inside, you’re basically safe. But encountering ghosts is something best avoided if possible, because if you’re killed in an instant, you won’t even have time to escape. So if there’s nothing special going on at night, it’s best to log off early to avoid danger.” It was only then that Xiao Jie understood.