[Would you like to enter Training Ground?]
Lin Fang hesitated to click at first because the system didn't offer any explanation of what a Training Ground was, but eventually, putting his trust in the system and believing it to be a place to train his monsters, he clicked on Yes.
Lin Fang felt a jolt in his head, as if he was struck by a rod or something, but when he got his senses, he found himself standing in the middle of an endless white space with nothing but a floating crystal, as large as his head, before him.
He touched it instinctively.
*Ding!
[Please select the habitat.]
A bunch of illustrations appeared, each one has a name and effects. His curiosity led him to click on one of the illustrations randomly. The surroundings changed in an instant.
[Silver Moon Snow Mountain has been selected]
Lin Fang suddenly found himself in the middle of where everything around is snow.
A chilly breeze flew past him, and he shivered in the cold, down to his knees.
"Oh, god… this is fuc*ing realistic effects… I don't think I can handle this… System let me…"
Before he even finished those words, a notification appeared on the holographic screen.
*Ding!
[Training period starts. All system functions are unavailable.]
[59:59]
[59:58]
[59:57]
The countdown timer started.
"F**k…" Lin Fang's optimistic face turned into horror. He stood frozen, literally and metaphorically, as the chilly winds pierced through his clothes like a thousand tiny knives.
His breath came out in foggy plumes as the timer above his head kept ticking mercilessly down.
[59:52]
[59:51]
"System, cancel!" he shouted. No response.
"System, exit!
Emergency logout!
Return!
Escape!
I take it back!"
He yelled whatever he could. But no response from the system.
The only thing he got in return was a gust of wind strong enough to send his bangs flapping wildly and force him to hug himself tighter.
"You're kidding me..." he muttered, glaring at the countdown like it had personally wronged him.
[59:30]
"System, you are the worst system one can ever get." Lin Fang wailed, stumbling forward.
Snow crunched underfoot as Lin Fang pressed onward, his breath fogging into the air like steam from a boiling kettle. His sneakers were soaked through, and the chilly winds pierced through his thin shirt like icy needles.
It had to be at least minus twenty degrees Celsius out here. And Lin Fang was shivering to death. He couldn't even feel his hands properly.
Worst of all, he was alone.
The system had locked him in. His pets couldn't come. His inventory couldn't be opened. Even the system interface was disabled, apart from that cruel, ticking countdown at the edge of his vision.
[41:38]
[41:37]
"Stupid… cursed… tutorial hell," he muttered between gasps, staggering as another gust of wind slammed into him, nearly knocking him over.
All that earlier feeling of happiness of earning a Quasi God Tier Potential monster companion was replaced with anger, helplessness, and frustration.
But still, he had to survive. After all, he has no idea whether he can revive in this training space. He can take a gamble regarding money, career, or even girls, but certainly not his life. Atleast not in this life.
He died once by giving up. He certainly doesn't want to waste a life he was given.
Eventually, he dragged himself over a small hill of snow, half-slipping as he fell face-first, catching himself just in time. Gritting his teeth, he pushed up and looked around.
As he walked and walked, finally, he found something apart from simple snow. There was a shadow against the slope of a nearby cliff. A jagged black outline against the white, maybe ten meters wide.
His heart leapt at the sight.
"Cave!" he shouted with sudden energy and stumbled toward it, tripping once, twice, falling to his knees but still scrambling forward like a man possessed. A ray of hope was seen on his face.
By the time he reached the opening, his lips were purple, and his vision was quite blurry. But he stepped inside without hesitation.
A sudden, blessed stillness greeted him. There was no wind or stinging frost, well, atleast directly to face. The temperature hadn't improved much yet, but it was bearable.
He staggered down the rocky path as he went deeper and deeper. There were no torches or lamps, yet the tunnel was strangely well-lit. It's just bright, as if there was a magic spell unleashed in the space.
It made no sense. But then again, this was the System's world. Logic didn't live here. He didn't see up there when he came, but he could swear that even if he had looked at the sky, he wouldn't have found the sun.
By the time the timer read [31:03], Lin Fang had reached the bottom.
It was like a simple chamber with smooth walls, maybe eight meters wide, that greeted him. There were no further pathways from there, and it was quite warm.
He collapsed onto the stone floor with a shuddering sigh and hugged his knees to his chest. The cold was still there, but at least he didn't feel like he was dying anymore. Maybe, around 0 or -1 C.
"This… this place sucks," he whispered to himself. "I will never come back to the training ground. Ever…"
[19:12]
He leaned back against the wall and let the minutes slip by. Time blurred. Maybe he dozed off for a bit. Maybe not. He didn't know. He just wanted to stay in that state until it was over.
But a soft chime made him open his eyes.
[03:47]
And a new window flashed into his vision, followed by a notification, when there is only a little less than 4 minutes left.
Ding!
[You have remained sedentary for more than 15 minutes. Activating Defense Protocol.]
[Spawning the Guardian… Please evacuate or engage.]
Lin Fang blinked. "Huh?"
Before he gets to realize what's happening all of a sudden, a strange hum fills the chamber. The temperature dropped several degrees in a heartbeat.
He felt it before he heard a scraping sound behind him. *Grrrr* A low, rumbling growl resonated through the floor, making his body tremble involuntarily.
Slowly, Lin Fang turned his head.
Behind him stood a massive Elephant, but with all hairy, at least ten meters tall at the shoulder, its fur shimmering faintly with frost crystals.
It stared down at him with emotionless black eyes before it let out a deafening roar that shook the cavern walls.
*Graaaa*
Lin Fang screamed. "Aaaah." He leapt to his feet and bolted, not even bothering to look behind to see whether it was chasing him or not. He just ran and ran toward the upward slope, toward the mouth of the cavern.
Ding!
[Penalty imposed. Training duration extended by +15 minutes due to inactivity violation.]
[New remaining time: 18:24]
[18:23]
[18:22]
"WHAT!" Lin Fang howled. "You're punishing me for not moving in a frozen hellscape?"
The Elephant gave chase, its trunk slamming down with thunderous weight.
"You fuc… YOU FUC*ING SYSTEM!" Lin Fang screamed, skidding as he turned a corner of the tunnel he barely noticed before. "YOU'RE NOT USER-FRIENDLY! YOU'RE A COMPLETE, COLD-BLOODED ASSH*LE!"
The system, of course, said nothing.