Chapter 1002 378: "Safe Word!

"Yes, generally speaking, iris chip implantation is not needed in virtual online games. I've checked this iris chip; there's nothing explosive or otherwise, it only activates a panel that floats on the pupil."

"This technology is extremely outdated. It was common when virtual online games first emerged, but now it's almost extinct, let alone in a divine-level civilization."

"..."

Chen Mang remained silent for a while before putting on his sunglasses again: "Let him implant it, keep in touch with me, and halt any unauthorized operations in this game without my consent."

"Understood!"

A flash of white light appeared again, in a blank space, much like a game's starting point.

This meant he had successfully entered the game.

"Implantation complete?"

"Yes, it took 0.029 milliseconds."

"Why is there no pain sensation? I remember iris chip implantation causes some minor pain."

"For the divine-level civilization of human civilization, achieving painless and senseless implantation is quite simple."

"Removable?"

"Can be removed at any time."

Only then did Chen Mang feel at ease, looking at the panel that appeared in front of him.

-

"Please set your player name."

-

"Chen Mang."

Chen Mang didn't intend to hide. Even if the divine-level civilization knew he entered the game, so what?

Immediately, another panel popped up in front of him.

-

"Welcome, Chen Mang."

"As the 39230923082nd player in the 'New Cosmos,' we first thank you for your contribution to cosmic exploration. You will be a part of the civilization milestone. Thank you again for your contribution."

"Secondly, a friendly reminder."

"In case of a life-threatening crisis or insurmountable danger, please promptly chant the 'safe word' to exit the game. It is reminded again, except for chanting the safe word, there is no other way to quit this game."

"And if you fail to chant the safe word in time, dying in the game will mean real-world death (marked in red and bold)."

"Today is not April Fool's Day, and this is not a joke."

"As a 100% real virtual online game, we must allow the existence of real death."

"But if you chant the safe word in time, you will not die, but your game account will be permanently deleted. Please register a new account next time you log in and restart your cosmic exploration journey."

"Wish you a pleasant journey."

"Thank you again for your contribution."

-

In the next moment—

A flash of white light crossed his vision, and the scene in front changed quickly. When it settled, he was standing in the middle of a bustling city, surrounded by chattering pedestrians.

Many people here are game players.

He heard many people marveling at the game's realism excitedly.

Chen Mang looked around.

Indeed very real, almost indistinguishable from reality. He could even feel the humidity in the air and smell various scents in the air, like body odor and scalp oil.

The sensory experience was extremely vivid.

He stomped his foot on the ground and adjusted his groin.

In the puddle beside him, he could see his game character's appearance was identical to his real face, the entire game character's body and appearance were completely modeled on his body one-to-one.

"Ai, can you hear me?"

"I can hear you."

Ai's voice quickly appeared beside his ear; in a sense, if he wanted to play this game to the fullest, Ai would be his portable cheat, helping him advance quickly in the game to a sufficiently high position.

"Only after entering the game are people informed that there's a risk of death, what's going on here."

"I only just received this information myself."

Ai explained: "The main brain of New Cosmos hid this information very deeply; I didn't catch it before entering the game, and as far as virtual online games go, true death is strictly forbidden."

"And—"

"I couldn't find this information anywhere on the divine-level civilization's 'Human Civilization' player forums; it seems the officials have temporarily suppressed it. It won't be revealed for a short time, but it can't be hidden for long, and it will still be exposed later."

"By that time, there will be plenty of players."

Chen Mang didn't speak further.

He just walked silently down the street; he seemed to have guessed something. Most of the people on the street were players, mixed occasionally with some NPCs whose facial expressions seemed abnormal. There were no exclamation points, nor any question marks.

This place was basically the Newbie Village.

A rather large Newbie Village.

Just without any guidance process for newbie players, everything was left to free exploration.

As he passed by a shop, he saw an old product for sale in the store.

"Train Order."

Priced at 100 points.

Just then—

A somewhat hurried middle-aged man accidentally collided with him, then anxiously apologized: "I am terribly sorry, sir, I didn't see you. I was too anxious, my son is missing, he got lost with me just now."

"Have you seen him?"

"He's wearing a pink dress, with a black hairpin, a very cute boy."

"If you can help me find him, I am willing to reward you with 100 points."

"..."

Chen Mang stared expressionlessly at this man before him, and at the eerie little boy in a pink dress lying on his back, looking sinisterly at him, appearing rather chilling under the Fiery Sun with a cool breath brushing past.

Then, the little boy clinging to the middle-aged man's back showed a gloomy smile.

He glanced around.

This bizarre scene should draw attention from many people, but no one seemed to notice. It seemed only he could see this middle-aged man, a unique special task?

Then Ai's voice rang in his ear: "Train Captain, you must have triggered the newbie task. At the beginning of the game, it's sure to let every newbie player through some small tasks get 100 points to buy the Train Order and thus officially begin the game."

"Wait, I'll check the guide."

"Found it."

"Another player encountered this special task and posted a guide; you only need to tell him his child is right behind him, then a middle-aged woman will appear apologizing profusely, saying her husband has mental problems and offering 100 points as compensation."

"That player also said, he sensed there should be follow-up tasks here and is investigating."

"It seems that the father wanted a daughter so badly, he dressed his son as a daughter, but the child couldn't accept this twisted love and chose... to die, thus clinging to his father afterward."

"In this light, the game seems not purely science fiction but also incorporates eerie elements."

"Honestly."

"I think these two elements don't suit being integrated together, it feels somewhat incongruous."

The voice in his ear continued to chatter.

Chen Mang already spoke, calmly saying softly: "I kidnapped your child, transfer me 10,000 points immediately, or I will kill your child."

The middle-aged man slightly stunned, then fiercely outraged, grabbing Chen Mang's collar: "What did you do to him!"

Chen Mang didn't get angry at being grabbed; he simply glanced at his watch.

"You have three minutes left, three minutes before the timed bomb on your child explodes."

Subsequently.

The middle-aged man released Chen Mang's collar, his expression fluctuating, and aimed his watch at Chen Mang's watch, and in the next moment, Chen Mang received a notification, with 10,000 points credited.

"..."

Chen Mang silently lowered his gaze to the transaction notification.

The freedom level is indeed quite high.

Then he looked around, took a deep breath, stepped forward, and without any reason, he strangled the middle-aged man in front of him to death with his hands.

-

"..."

Chen Mang silently lowered his gaze to the transaction notification.

The freedom level is indeed quite high.

Then he looked around, took a deep breath, stepped forward, and without any reason, he strangled the middle-aged man in front of him to death with his hands.