Departure

The result was just a single short sentence, with no further broadcast at all. "Damn, it's gone silent?" "At least introduce the game and how to play!" "Right, how are we supposed to play? It's completely baffling." "Tsk, a bunch of dumbasses. Are they your father? Does everything have to be explained to you? Can't you figure it out yourselves?" "What did you say!" "All right, stop arguing. Isn't there a newbie tutorial in the wristband?" "Hmph!" After the commotion, the many players on site raised their wristbands one by one to check them. Long Ming then raised his hand and tapped his wristband. A blue virtual interface popped up, and a prompt appeared. "Read the newbie tutorial?" "Yes!" Long Ming tapped yes without hesitation. He had never played a game so realistic, one that felt just like reality, and had no idea where to begin. Respected player: Civilization Paradise is a high-dimensional game. Players participating in this game will be born in Fanxing City. All players, please note that fighting is strictly prohibited in the Fanxing City area, or severe punishment will be imposed. To allow players to better experience Civilization Paradise, each player will receive ten Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scrolls. Players can use the scrolls at spatial teleportation gates to travel to different civilized worlds. After entering a civilized world, players can follow missions issued by the system or freely explore the world to obtain valuable items, as long as they withdraw from the world within the allotted time. In addition, each player is equipped with an initial backpack and a safe box. However, please note that if you fail to withdraw from the civilized world within the allotted time, or die during exploration, your initial backpack and all equipment on your person will be lost, but items in the safe box will not be lost. Long Ming carefully finished reading the newbie tutorial, a puzzled expression on his face. Although he roughly understood the tutorial's content, his heart was in turmoil. But Long Ming soon calmed down, reached out to dismiss the tutorial, and looked at the wristband's operation interface. On the operation interface were categories for character, dungeon, backpack, external warehouse, mission log, friends, and system. Long Ming first tapped on Character. Name: Civilization Explorer no. 841221 (Rename) Race: Carbon-based human Gene level: 0 Class: None Strength: 5 Agility: 5 Stamina: 5 Intelligence: 5 Charisma: 5 Skills: Common Language (Passive) Long Ming looked at his character attributes—very standard initial data. But he always felt something wasn't quite right. Long Ming frowned at his virtual body. Then he suddenly realized that in this game world he wasn't coughing anymore, and his senses and physique had improved, just like a normal person. A faint smile appeared on Long Ming's face. This game wasn't bad. Immediately after, he opened the dungeon interface. It showed civilization levels 1 through 6. Tapping each category displayed rows of grayed-out question-mark options. Even the lowest-level Level 1 civilization options were gray. Clearly, these dungeons were locked and required certain conditions to enter. Long Ming thought for a moment, then exited. His gaze fell on the backpack interface, and he tapped it. Backpack 1 (Safe Box) Usage: Wristband scan Volume: 1*1*1 Note: Cannot be dropped on death. Tip: Players' initial carrying capacity is 20 kg. Exceeding the limit increases stamina consumption. Carrying capacity will change with character growth. In addition, the safe box does not count toward weight. Long Ming glanced at it, then opened the warehouse. Inside the warehouse were ten initial backpacks and ten experience scrolls. Long Ming checked these backpacks. Backpack (Physical Backpack) Usage: Worn on back Volume: 35*20*45 cm Note: All items are dropped on death or failed withdrawal. Civilization Experience Scroll: Witness the deathly silence together, and experience the wonderful pleasure of death! Long Ming then closed the interface and opened the mission log to check. As a result, the mission list was empty. Immediately after, he opened the system interface, which had only one button: Log out of the game. After checking all the functions, he tapped his wristband and took a backpack out of the warehouse. Instantly, a regular 20-liter backpack appeared in his hand. He put on the backpack, then took out one Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scroll from the warehouse. The wristband then popped up a prompt. "Activate Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scroll? Using this scroll will randomly assign a Level 1 civilization dungeon." After reading the message, Long Ming did not choose to activate it. Instead, he raised his head and looked around at the many players on the mechanical platform. Most players were looking down at the newbie tutorial in their wristbands. He thought for several seconds, then decided to enter the game later. Right now, most people were reading the newbie tutorial, and everyone read at different speeds. But those who read quickly and acted first were either part of a guild organization or were professional experts. Of course, a small minority might be reckless hotheads. If he acted now, he would likely be grouped with them. Once conflict arose, he had no advantage one-on-one, and would be at even greater disadvantage against many. So it would be better to wait a bit. Maybe he'd be matched with some ordinary players, and he could also observe how others acted. Several minutes later, Long Ming noticed many players starting to act. They took out backpacks and put them on, then took out a Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scroll and activated it. Sizzle! The scrolls emitted a blue glow, then turned into specks of starlight and scattered. A faint glow lit up the mechanical obelisk at the center of the mechanical platform. Many players slowly rose into the air. Whoosh! Then, one player after another turned into a beam of white light and vanished. "Wow!" "So cool! Where were they teleported?" "I don't know." The surrounding players all showed excited and thrilled expressions. Many players, seeing others start the game, impatiently took out their experience scrolls and activated them. Long Ming suppressed his restlessness and waited quietly. Time passed second by second. In the blink of an eye, more than ten minutes passed, and three-quarters of the players on the entire mechanical platform had activated their experience scrolls. Seeing it was about time, Long Ming raised the Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scroll in his hand. The wristband interface displayed a prompt. "Activate Level 1 Civilization Random Experience Scroll!" Long Ming took a deep breath and said softly, "Yes!" Whoosh! As the scroll in his hand lit up, Long Ming felt himself surrounded by a beam of white light. When the white light faded, he found himself on a small, top-shaped mechanical platform. The small top-shaped mechanical platform was full of players. "What's going on?" "Why did they teleport us here?" "I don't know." "You idiot, look at the prompt on the wristband." Long Ming immediately looked down at his wristband interface. It displayed: Platform No. 432. Civilization Opened: Wabija Civilization Level: 1 Population: 845/1000. Long Ming saw the number rising quickly and immediately understood. The Level 1 civilized world called Wabija had 1,000 participants. Soon the number became 1000/1000. Instantly, the patterns on the surface of the mechanical obelisk at the center of the small top-shaped mechanical platform lit up, flashing with dazzling light. Whoosh! Everyone on the entire mechanical platform was covered by white light. Long Ming's surroundings turned a blinding white, and he could see nothing at all. (End of chapter)