That script was adapted from Richard Connell's short story "The Most Dangerous Game." Any similarity is purely coincidental.

"Welcome to Thriller Paradise," a deep male voice said.

[Loading complete. You are currently in Team Survival Mode (Normal).]

[This mode provides a script introduction and has a chance to generate side hidden quests and a unique worldview.]

[Script Completion Reward: 80% bonus to base experience upon completion.]

[The script introduction will now play. The game will begin immediately after playback.]

The opening CG began. The light in the picture was very dim, and the camera was slightly shaky. The sound of water and an engine could be heard, indicating that this was likely on a boat.

The system voice's narration arrived as scheduled: [The tropical, humid night has enveloped the yacht you are on in a warm, thick darkness.]

[You are a top hunter. Your keen senses perceive the presence of an island somewhere to starboard, through the velvet-like darkness.]

[The captain tells you that on old nautical charts, this place is called the "Ship Trap." Sailors gave it this suggestive name, and their fear of it has reached the point of superstition.]

[A superstitious crewman can sometimes infect the entire ship, and a ship full of nervous crewmen means accidents.]

[Your ship sinks, and you struggle to swim towards the island in the darkness. You are as helpless as a lone boat in the sea, but you still climb onto the rocky shore with all your might. You pull yourself out of the water, and jagged cliffs appear in the night. You climb up step by step, grinding the skin off your hands, using almost the last bit of your strength, and finally arrive breathlessly at a flat area at the top of the cliff. The dense jungle extends to the edge of the cliff. You are too weak to move forward and can only collapse to the ground, falling into a deep sleep.]

[When you open your eyes, the position of the sun indicates that it is afternoon. You see human footprints on the muddy ground at the edge of the jungle. You follow the only tracks, cross the jungle, and arrive at the center of the island, in front of a castle built on a cliff.]

[At this time, night... has once again fallen on the sea and the jungle.]

After listening to this description, the players officially entered the script.

Five players stood at the bottom of a row of stone steps outside the castle. The stars and moon were bright, and in this relatively open area, they could see quite clearly even without lighting equipment.

Si Yu stood next to Feng Bu Jue. Her outfit had changed. She wore a black tight-fitting cotton vest on her upper body and black mountaineering pants on her lower body. There were several pockets on both sides of the pants, which looked very practical. The clothes were sleeveless, close-fitting, and lightweight, allowing her to swing her arms more freely. She also wore a fingerless black leather glove on her right hand, but not on her left. Her right hand was the hand she held her sword with, so this seemed intentional.

Although the pants did not show the lines of her legs, Feng Bu Jue could see up close that Si Yu's figure was definitely curvy, with a distinct contrast between her slender waist and her high, rounded bust, which made people's minds wander. But in virtual games, most female players' appearances were like this. Si Yu had deliberately modified her appearance to be less eye-catching.

Among the other three teammates, there was also a female player whose nickname was Cai Bu Pa Ne (才不怕呢) [I'm Not Afraid], level 16. Her title was actually Duō Māo Māo (躲猫猫) [Hide-and-Seek]. She wore a light blue medieval-style wizard's robe, the hem of which reached her knees; she wore long boots on her feet and white stockings on her legs. Since the game did not allow skirts, she chose a woolen pair of shorts under her robe, which just revealed her thighs.

In terms of appearance, Bu Pa Meimei (不怕美眉) [Afraid Beauty] looked eighteen or nineteen years old, with willow eyebrows, large eyes, a delicate nose, and a small mouth. Her skin was as white as snow, and her figure was also beyond reproach. Anyway, as long as a girl was relatively thin and not too bizarre-looking in reality, they could all become goddesses in virtual reality.

However, the cutesy nickname, the cutesy title, and the cutesy look made Feng Bu Jue vaguely feel that he was about to be screwed over...

The remaining two male players looked like they had queued up together. Both were level 15. One was called Yi Jian Qing Cheng (一剑倾城) [One Sword Tilts the City], but his title was Cainiao Jianke (菜鸟剑客) [Novice Swordsman]; the other was called Yi Dao Qing Cheng (一刀倾城) [One Saber Tilts the City], but his title was Chu Ru Dao Men (初入刀门) [New to the Saber Sect]. Both looked to be in their twenties, with similar nicknames and uniform clothing: close-fitting outfits of coarse green cloth, and disheveled long hair draped behind their necks, like ancient knights.

This could not help but remind Feng Bu Jue of Pan Feng and Hua Xiong, whom he had encountered before. Their styles were similar to these two, and it was likely that they had already decided on their ultimate goals in the game when they chose their names...

The most common tragedy that happens to these types of players is that if their growth direction deviates from their original goal in the future, for example, after a period of game experience, they suddenly discover that they are more suitable for other fields, and finally become a shooting specialist or a medical specialist, then their nickname becomes slightly awkward.

Among these five people, Feng Bu Jue and Si Yu were slightly lower in level, but their titles, Lengxue Baotou Kuang (冷血爆头狂) [Cold-Blooded Headshot Maniac] and Wuqing Zhan Shou Zhe (无情斩首者) [Ruthless Head Taker], were very eye-catching.

Si Yu was okay. Based on her assassin-like eyes and her aura that kept people at a distance, as well as her unremarkable appearance, strangers would immediately come to the conclusion: This must be an extremely ugly loser in real life, so her combat ability in the game is incredibly fierce.

But Feng Bu Jue... did not look very strong at all. When the other three saw him, they were all thinking: It's one thing that this guy thinks he's handsome enough not to change his appearance, but he doesn't even bother to change his hairstyle when playing a game, and he hasn't bought one or two cheap outfits to add some stats even after reaching level fifteen; his appearance is ordinary, and his figure looks quite thin, and his nickname is inexplicable... A guy who looks so "casual" has a title that seems quite strong... Could this guy be hiding his strength? Or is he just a pervert in real life?

The five greeted each other and exchanged pleasantries, while also sizing each other up and speculating on each other's strengths.

After a few words, Bu Pa Meimei widened her eyes and pointed to the badges on Yi Dao and Yi Jian's arms, saying, "Wow! So you are members of that very famous Jianghu (江湖) [Martial World] guild!"

"Hehe... yes, it's actually nothing great." Yi Jian replied, but his face was full of "greatness."

Feng Bu Jue glanced at their badges, which were marked with a white cloud and the words "Jianghu." This should also be a studio-type guild. Feng Bu Jue remembered very clearly that Jianghu occupied a place on both the guild's overall strength and combat power rankings, ranking seventeenth in overall strength and eleventh in combat power.

However, Feng Bu Jue deduced that these two were likely not professional players from the studio, but rather ordinary players recruited by the guild to expand its scale.

If they were internal personnel of the studio, they would not be as low as level fifteen. And if they were personnel that the studio had only invested in the game during the public beta phase, with the lessons learned from the past and the support of equipment, their titles would not be so useless.

It was Bu Pa Meimei with the title Duō Māo Māo (躲猫猫) [Hide-and-Seek] who made Feng Bu Jue suspicious. Jianghu was ranked outside the top ten on both guild rankings. Ordinary players who looked at these rankings would be lucky to remember the top five or six, and most people would only have an impression of the top three. So her actions could be explained in three ways...

First, she is a professional player; second, she is a high-level player with a good memory; third, she has no idea that Jianghu is on those two rankings. Until a minute ago, she had never even heard of what Jianghu was, but after seeing the guild badges of those two, she deliberately pretended to be very admiring and said the vague nonsense "very famous."

These thoughts flashed quickly through Feng Bu Jue's mind. Combining it with the title "Duō Māo Māo (躲猫猫) [Hide-and-Seek]," Feng Bu Jue only spent three seconds to come to a conclusion. He immediately leaned close to Si Yu's ear and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "Once we have a chance, we'll split up from those three, and especially avoid that 'Cai Bu Pa Ne (才不怕呢) [I'm Not Afraid].'"

Si Yu glanced at Feng Bu Jue. She didn't ask why, she just chose to unconditionally believe him. "Okay," she replied in a low voice.

The expressions on both of their faces were very natural, and even their lips barely moved. The other three didn't notice them at all.

In the next few minutes, Bu Pa looked at the two guild members with an admiring expression and said many flattering things. Yi Dao and Yi Jian quickly became a little smug. In fact, they had only joined the guild this morning and were not internal members of the Jianghu studio. They could be said to be just two of the many small figures at the bottom of the guild. But after being praised by a beauty, the two's confidence really rose. They both thought in their hearts: Comparing myself to the big shots in the guild is one thing, they are professionals, but compared to the other male comrade in front of me... that Feng Bu Jue, I am still very strong. He can't even afford a piece of clothing. How miserable is he? No wonder no guild wants him.

The human mentality is so subtle. In small and medium-sized groups, especially in front of attractive members of the opposite sex, humans will always instinctively look for an individual who is weaker than themselves in some or all aspects and compare themselves to them in their hearts, looking for something that seems like a sense of superiority. In fact, it is just a sense of security, which plays a role in self-consolation. It's like saying to yourself... at least I'm not the worst.

A few minutes later, the appearance of an NPC declared that the players' preparation time was up. Next, the plot would unfold.

A grating creaking sound rang out, and the doors of the castle were opened, revealing a line of light that seemed very dazzling. A tall man holding a revolving rifle slowly walked out.

This burly man was tall and sturdy, with a black beard that reached his waist. His image was very striking and impressive. Coupled with the fact that he was holding a weapon, this undoubtedly made everyone wary.