The first to recover from the shock was still the Apprentice Death God, Mad Spirit.
But he hadn't encountered Cyberspace before either, so he had to become even more cautious.
He understood the meaning of the rules, this game was simply about making them walk across the piano keys one by one, figuring out how to play a melody that would satisfy the robots.
It sounded simple to say, but when you think about it carefully, the problems inside were not small.
First, what is the so-called punishment? What exactly are the conditions that satisfy the robots? Why is there no clear standard...
If these issues are not resolved, wanting to clear the game is not an easy task.
Frankly speaking, in this dangerous game, the stronger ones should go first, that way more information could be gathered, reducing the number of casualties.
And as the Apprentice Death God, he had the nominal duty to help ordinary people resolve dangers, so people naively thought, would Mad Spirit be the first to take action, just like saving that woman from Jackal, and get them out of Cyberspace.
But this idea is destined to be wishful thinking.
Because this Apprentice Death God is not some saint... but a selfish and cruel bastard.
When conditions allow, he is willing to pretend to be a hero, and with a little effort, can enjoy people's praise.
But in this moment of complete lack of information, he would not risk his precious life to seek a way out for these "lowly ones" in his eyes.
So, after thinking for a while, he set his sights on the dying Jackal.
Due to severe blood loss, Jackal no longer had any strength to move.
But he was still alive, still able to feel pain and despair, and that was enough.
In the dazed gaze of the people, Mad Spirit somewhat disdainfully grabbed one of Jackal's legs, lifted him up, and then... like swinging a flail, spun him a few times and flung him out!
The power of the Apprentice Death God was terrifying, Jackal's entire body flew like a cannonball, along the black and white piano keys, shooting towards the robot in a suit.
But perhaps deliberately, Mad Spirit controlled his strength so that Jackal could not fly directly to the end, but instead crashed heavily onto a white piano key.
"Clang!"
"Do~"
The violent crash twisted Jackal's limbs into pretzels, his skull shattered in half, and a red-white liquid splattered, spilling on the keys.
And while he was "splattered brains," the struck white key emitted the first piano sound in Cyberspace...
It was light and soft enough to relax someone's mind... but against the backdrop of the sound of flesh tearing and bones breaking, this sound appeared incredibly eerie, making one's scalp tingle.
And this was only the beginning of the "music."
The impact rebound caused Jackal's mangled body to bounce from the white key and fly to the next black key.
"Thud!"
"Re~"
"Boom!"
"Mi~"
"Clap..."
"Fa... Sol... La... Si..."
"Do... Re... Mi... Fa... Sol... La... Si..."
The chaotic music, along with the scattered blood, stunned the onlooking people.
Even though they lived at the bottom of Nest City, where lawlessness was common, they had never seen such brutality, nor could they have imagined... the Apprentice Death God they regarded as a hero could wield such terrifying means.
Only Yun You, who already knew of the Apprentice Death God's methods, remained calm, quietly observing Jackal's state and the bloodstained keys, just like Mad Spirit.
Finally... after crashing through thirty-six keys, Jackal finally stopped, ending his "performance."
It must be said, the gang member's life was quite tough... even after so many falls, Jackal did not die.
His already inhuman body remarkably still clung to a thread of life.
However, in the next moment, a rainbow stream of light from the sky descended, piercing straight through his heart, striking the keys, and allowing him to play the last note of his life.
This was probably the "game over" punishment.
But judging from Jackal's previous state... rather than punishment, it was more of a release.
The life ravaged by the Apprentice Death God, revered as a hero, while the feared Mutant Creatures of the Death Domain brought release... it was quite the hellish joke.
But Mad Spirit himself obviously didn't care about these; he only cared about the information gained from Jackal's worthless life.
"This Cyber World's attack method manifests as unavoidable streams of colorful light, the speed and power so far seem not to be weaker than my attacks..."
"It seems that the punishment for failure in this game should be 'death'..."
"One cannot bear these streams of light head-on, still have to conquer the game by the rules... need to figure out what kind of tunes that robot likes."
With this thought, Mad Spirit got an idea.
He turned back, casually eyeing a middle-aged man wearing glasses.
"You, go test the piano keys."
His voice wasn't loud but carried an undeniable order.
"Me...?"
The man was in disbelief.
He paused, then reacted, wide-eyed, instinctively stepping back.
"I won't go... I won't go...!"
"Clearly, you are the Apprentice Death God... an expert in dealing with the Death Domain... why won't you go... and instead send me to die?!"
"I..."
Boom—!
The man wanted to say more, but the next moment, he suddenly felt a chill on his neck, raising his hand to touch his head, but found nothing...
His head was brutally crushed by Mad Spirit at the moment he opened his mouth, leaving only the lower half of his jaw in Mad Spirit's hand, gradually crumbling.
"Crunch... Crunch..."
The sound of bones shattering was like a dull saw, slowly grinding down the fragile spirits of the people.
They instinctively opened their mouths, wanting to scream... but the sound that reached their lips was suppressed by their survival instincts, unable to come out.
"Have I shown you too much face? Lowly rabble... giving you the courage to question my words."
"You don't really think, your worthless life... is worth the Apprentice Death God risking especially saving, do you?"
Mad Spirit expressionlessly shook off the bone remnants from his hand, eyeing the crowd with a gaze of contempt and genuine disdain.
"Remember, my words are not suggestions, they are commands."
"Unwilling to listen, unwilling to create value for me... then die."
Saying this, he casually glanced at a woman dressed in bar server clothes, who, upon being locked in his gaze, was so frightened she collapsed to the ground, losing control.
"Now, whoever I point to, goes over to the other side. Go, one by one."
"Whoever dares take a step back... when I get out of here, you... and your family in Nest City, won't live."