When Chu Qiu woke up, he found himself sitting in the back seat of a car. The interior of the car was cramped and narrow, and the back of the worn-out seat emitted a realistic smell of smoke. Water dripped down the car windows in unsteady streams, and through the glass, he could vaguely see the drizzling rain outside. The sky was dark, and it was hard to tell whether it was dusk or night. His nasal passages were still filled with a faint, unpleasant smell of salted fish.
In front of him was a floating panel that read - [Game Instructions].
Chu Qiu furrowed his brows.
Where is this? Why is he here? What is this panel?
This panel seemed to be able to sense the doubts in his mind, and the answers appeared on it in sequence.
You are in a deadly game, and the reason you are here is that we detected a strong desire for money that erupted after you became unemployed, which triggered the start of the game
As the words on the panel appeared one by one, Chu Qiu finally recalled some things.
Yes, that's right, he is unemployed.
He has a strong desire for money. From childhood to adulthood, he has loved money to an abnormal degree. He was even diagnosed with "money hoarding disorder" by a psychiatrist. The doctor warned him that if he didn't control his desire for money, he would sooner or later do something reckless for the sake of money.
When Chu Qiu had a job, he had a certain fixed income every month, which could barely restrain his desire for money. But when he lost this job, Chu Qiu fell into an uncontrollable fervor, even wanting to hoard money recklessly. His psychiatrist said that this was the normal psychological state of laid-off office workers, and advised him to adjust himself and relax by going out to see the world.
After hearing that, Chu Qiu just wanted to sneer. Without money, one can only see hell and not the world, okay.
Chu Qiu sarcastically asked the psychiatrist, "After I go out and see the world, will I become rich?"
The psychiatrist exclaimed, "Of course not, you will become even poorer."
Chu Qiu: "..." Don't you know exactly what's going to happen?
"But after you become poorer, you will realize..." The psychiatrist comforted Chu Qiu, "Being poor is nothing more than that. Money is just a worldly possession. Why do you have to make yourself so miserable?"
Chu Qiu asked the psychiatrist with a blank expression, "Is it painful to encounter a patient like me?"
Psychiatrist: "…" Painful.
Chu Qiu chuckled and said, "Why are you torturing yourself so much? Why don't you resign and take a break?"
Psychiatrist: "..." For money, I dare not go out without money.
Wang burst into tears.
After making countless psychiatrists cry, Chu Qiu clapped her hands and sighed, "Poverty is indeed the best weapon to attack humans.".
It's like hurting others to the extent of causing them harm, only to end up hurting oneself in return.
Fortunately, the psychologist is provided free of charge by the community; otherwise, Chu Qiu would be even poorer.
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After losing his job, Chu Qiu fell into a state of extreme anxiety, unable to adjust himself. Even in his dreams, he could see himself becoming wealthy overnight, sitting amidst piles of money and laughing happily. Upon waking up, the huge gap between his dreams and reality often made him feel even more melancholy, as his savings were only in the five-digit range.
Amidst this unquenchable anxiety over being laid off and inner conflict, Chu Qiu would often rest his chin in his hands and daydream - if only there were a way to make money at high risk in this world. He could risk his life, but he needed money!
He shared his thoughts with his friend, who comforted him by asking, "Have you seen that Criminal Law book on your wall shelf?"?
Chu Qiu said he saw it.
My friend said, "Just flip to any page and look for one. There are high-risk money-making jobs listed there. If you work hard, you can even make it onto this month's expedited list.".
Chu Qiu: "..."
Chu Qiu didn't want to break the law. Is there no quick way to make money without breaking the law in this world? His friend said, "You'd dream faster.".
Even if it meant risking his life, he needed money - Chu Qiu thought as he lay in bed, dreaming, the moment he lost consciousness and was drawn into this game.
After the memories faded, Chu Qiu looked at the game panel hovering in front of him.
A line of text appeared on the panel: "Yes, it is your strong desire that has activated the game. As long as you successfully complete the game, you will get everything you want."
Chu Qiu didn't hesitate: "I want money."
Regardless of the game, he only wants to make money.
After a while, Chu Qiu asked again, "Is this game of yours legal?"
Panel: [... legal]
Panel: [By completing the game, you will earn points, which can be exchanged for money and anything you desire]
Chu Qiu: "What kind of game is this? What do I have to do to pass the level and earn the points you mentioned?"
Panel: "This is a horror escape game filled with ghosts, murderers, and unimaginable creatures. Your task is to find their weaknesses, complete the storyline of the entire game level, and survive from their clutches."
[Game instance loading... Loading complete]
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[Game Instance Name: "Siren Town"]
[Level: Tier 1 (Games with a player mortality rate of less than 50% are classified as Tier 1 games)]
[Mode: Single-player mode]
[Comprehensive description: This is an exciting game that combines action and puzzle elements, and it is very popular among players. However, it seems not very friendly to newcomers, as the mortality rate for newcomers is very high.]
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[Player information loading... Loading complete——]
[Player Name: Chu Qiu]
[Health: 100 (When the health drops below 60, the player's attack power decreases; when it reaches zero, the player dies)]
"Stamina: 80 (Full of Energy)"
"Agility: 25 (You spend all year long sitting at a desk, your body has become stiff, and you are not very agile)"
"Attack: 30 (only the attacking ability of a female high school student throwing a schoolbag at someone)"
"Intelligence: 89 (You are surprisingly intelligent)"
Luck: 0 (You have been incredibly unlucky throughout your life. If your company were to lay off one person, it would definitely be you.)
[Skill: None (You don't have any skills yet)]
[Spirit Value: 100 (You are the first player this year to maintain a full spirit value after logging into the game)]
There is a line of small red text annotations below the mental value.
(Note: Players are advised to ensure their mental health points are above 60. Mental health points below 60 will cause players to become mentally disturbed, with all character panel attributes halved; below 40 will cause players to see hallucinations that are not part of the game, increasing the difficulty of completing the game; below 20 will trigger a frenzied state in players, with random spikes in attack power panel attributes, killing various creatures; mental health points at 0 will completely assimilate players into the dungeon, turning them into monsters)
[Comprehensive evaluation of player panel attributes - F-level player, the lowest level player, but due to special measurements of mental and intelligence values, this rating is questionable, and the final player level is recorded as - F (?)]
After Chu Qiu scanned the entire character panel, he felt like he was being subtly mocked when he saw the question mark next to the F. He scratched out the character panel, and a new panel popped up on the screen.
[You have logged into the small TV screen in the newcomer area (1/100), currently no one has stopped for you, player Chu Qiu's popularity value is 0, and the recharge rate is 0]
Chu Qiu frowned and asked, "What is this?"
Panel: [Your gameplay will be displayed on the small screen in the newcomer area of the player lobby for other players to watch. However, no one is currently watching your gameplay or charging for it, so you are currently unknown.]
Chu Qiu understood a bit, it was the format of game streamers, but none of that mattered. His focus was on the recharge rate: "If someone recharges for me, can I get points?"
Panel: [Yes]
"The game begins now. Good luck, new player!"
The panel, like a TV screen that had been turned off, flashed a white light before disappearing from Chu Qiu's eyes.
In a certain game lobby, a small screen suddenly lit up, revealing Chu Qiu's clear, handsome, and fair face. Surrounding this small screen were many similar screens, displaying the horrified and broken faces of various new players. Some were huddled together like hedgehogs, holding their heads, refusing to accept reality, while others were wailing and continuously hitting the screen, trying to escape from it.
However, Chu Qiu remained unfazed, standing out as an anomaly among the panicked new players.
Everyone looked up at the suddenly lit screen and discussed it with interest.
"Newcomers have arrived again. I wonder how long they can last."
"Looking at the background, is this the game instance 'Siren Town'?"
"These newcomers are really unlucky. The mortality rate for new players in 'Siren Town' is very high. Didn't they log in a hundred players last time, but only one survived in the end?"
"The game dungeons randomly assigned to new players recently are too difficult, but seeing these newbies scared out of their wits is quite hilarious!"
"Wait!" Suddenly, a passing player, as if discovering something remarkable, approached the screen where Chu Qiu was. He looked at Chu Qiu's character panel attributes and exclaimed in disbelief, "There's a new player who logged in with a mental value of 100!"
"What?!"
"Get out of the way, I want to watch too!"
"Damn! Are newcomers all so perverted nowadays?! A mental value of 100?!"
"The last person who logged in with a spirit value of 100 is now in the top ten of the game's overall scoreboard."
"Potential seed! Let me take a look!"
Chu Qiu's small screen flickered, and a robotic voice reported in a straightforward manner:
Fifty people gathered around the TV screen of player Chu Qiu, who had achieved the "Newbie" achievement and unlocked the "One-click Triple-shot" system
"Twenty-eight people have liked the video of player Chu Qiu, fifty-six people have collected player Chu Qiu's small TV, and no one has charged player Chu Qiu's account. Please player Chu Qiu keep up the good work."