"Quick! Over there, there's movement!"
Under the shade of the lush, towering trees, a sudden burst of hurried footsteps rang out. A group of soldiers clad in imposing armor charged forth, long spears in hand.
Several hundred meters away, Liu Yuan stood dumbfounded, clutching a "Newbie Protection Token" in his hand.
This was a game—a massive, reality-grade, dynasty war strategy MMORPG released by the United Companies of Blue Star in the year 3021—Dynasty Wars.
Liu Yuan was a newbie who had just created his character.
[Newbie Protection Token (Cooling Down):
Effect: After use, the player is protected from all player and NPC attacks for 30 days.
Cooldown Time: 1 hour
Validity: 1 month]
Glancing at the status of the token in his hand, Liu Yuan suddenly felt the urge to curse.
'Damn it!
One-hour cooldown?'
Can I even last an hour right now?
Other people start the game with free resources and bonus tokens!
After a few actions, they're decked out in divine gear and soaring through the ranks.
'And me?'
First thing I pull is some cursed random talent!
On the very first day of server launch, I got "Fortune and Misfortune are Intertwined"!
'One-hour cooldown?'
Forget an hour—lasting ten minutes is a miracle at this point!
As the footsteps drew nearer, Liu Yuan had a thousand curses on the tip of his tongue but nowhere to let them out.
"I'm probably going to be the first player in the game to be killed by NPCs." Liu Yuan muttered inwardly.
He didn't even bother trying to run. With his current level and stats, trying to outrun an NPC was pure fantasy.
Whatever. At worst, I'll just delete my character and start over.
Half an hour later, I'll be a hero again!
Clang! Clang!
The soldiers closed in. When they saw Liu Yuan in his tattered clothes and dirt-covered face, the leader of the group frowned.
"Just a vagrant? I thought we'd found something valuable! Take him back!" the leader muttered with a sidelong glance.
They caught dozens—sometimes hundreds—of guys like Liu Yuan daily.
These wandering vagrants were always starving and freezing—perfect for replenishing the army ranks.
'Caught? Not killed?'
Liu Yuan blinked, a little surprised… and maybe a little happy.
He quickly composed himself and obediently followed the group toward the NPC military camp.
Dynasty Wars was set during an era of chaotic wars among various historical states. Apart from the overpowered players, the game was populated by native-born NPCs.
Many of these NPCs were powerful and already ruled territories, gaining widespread notoriety.
Trying to cozy up to a nearby soldier, Liu Yuan learned that the camp was still some distance away.
He quietly pulled up the game's forum interface, hoping some pro had shared tips on how to escape.
[OMG! I'm blessed by RNGesus! I landed and crushed a rich NPC to death—now I inherited his three carriages. I'm about to ascend! (Featured)]
Liu Yuan twitched as he read, silently spitting in disgust.
"Damn devs!" he cursed under his breath and kept scrolling.
[Screw this game! After three hours, I've only recruited one vagrant. How is this even playable?!]
*[Question: I picked up a marriage contract at spawn. It says the holder should head to Qiao City for a wedding. Signed by someone named Shi. Could it be Xishi (famous beauty)? Should I go have little monkeys (kids)?]
[This game is too damn hard. I tried hunting wild boars to level up and got gored to death. Screw this, I'm quitting!]
[Don't talk, dude. I saw you post above that you're just re-rolling your character!]
'Damn…
Absolute social death…'
[Let's gooo! Found a level-less Fine Iron Sword at spawn! +3 attack. I'm juiced.]
…
After browsing a while, Liu Yuan discovered, to his dismay, that even the unluckiest players still fared better than him.
'Maybe I should delete and reroll…
Nah, I'm scared of dying. Better to just tough it out...'
Half an hour later, the team halted. Looking ahead, Liu Yuan saw a massive city looming in the distance. Soldiers stood guard on either side of the gate. Above it, large golden characters read: Liang City.
"A city? Did I just latch onto a big shot?" Liu Yuan blinked.
According to the game's power hierarchy, territories were divided as: Village → Town → County → City → State → Nation.
Right now, the server had just opened. Most players didn't even have a village, let alone a city.
Just then, an old man with an apron and a rice ladle came rushing over, frowning as he scowled at the lead soldier.
"Only one this time?" he snapped.
Without waiting for a reply, the old man strode over and grabbed Liu Yuan, dragging him away like a sack.
"The kitchen camp's short-handed. I'm taking this one."
As Liu Yuan was dragged away, he realized he had no strength to resist at all.
'Kitchen camp?'
Was this some elite military division?
Why were the gate guards so terrified of this old man?
Could it be… I stumbled upon a hidden master NPC?
Am I finally on the road to greatness?
Liu Yuan's fantasy was quickly crushed.
He was dragged into a wooden fenced compound.
'Kitchen camp?!'
Wasn't this just… the cookhouse?!
So they grabbed me to be a butcher?!
I'm a dignified player! You can kill me, but don't humiliate me!
How can I be enslaved by NPCs… to cook for them?!
"The old man's name is Zhang Yingjun. He's the head of the kitchen."
"Here's a knife. Go to the back kitchen and butcher 300 chickens. You have half an hour. If you don't finish, I'll butcher you instead!"
Saying that, he shoved a butcher's knife into Liu Yuan's hands.
[Ding! Congratulations, player Liu Yuan has obtained: Level-less Butcher's Knife ×1.]
[Equip now?]
[Equip!]
[Butcher's Knife equipped. Attack +2.]
'Yingjun (Handsome)?'
With that ugly mug?
Then I must be a damn fairy!
Clutching the butcher's knife, Liu Yuan wanted to slash the old man, but a glance at his stat panel—filled with "???"—made him gulp and head silently toward the back kitchen.
Can't fight him? Then I'll just avoid him.
Just killing chickens, right?
Pfft, I've done worse.
Muttering to himself, Liu Yuan entered the backyard.
There, he saw a courtyard filled with chickens and swallowed nervously.
'These are chickens?'
They were covered in flame-red feathers with tall combs, about a meter high, sharp-beaked and glossy black.
Twice the size of any chicken he remembered.
Fortunately, they were all confined in cages with just their long necks sticking out.
"Just chickens. What's the big deal?"
He walked up to one, raised his knife, and slashed.
Clean decapitation.
[Ding! Congratulations, player Liu Yuan has slain a Fire-Feathered Chicken. EXP +10.]
A crisp system prompt echoed in his ears. Liu Yuan's expression shifted—then lit up with joy.
'Killing chickens gives EXP?!'
He gripped the knife tighter and stared at the yard full of Fire-Feathered Chickens with greedy eyes.
'The chickens are mine. The EXP is mine.
This place… is a leveling paradise!'
[Ding! Congratulations, player Liu Yuan has slain a Fire-Feathered Chicken. EXP +10.]
[Ding! Congratulations…]
[Ding! Congratulations…]