Chapter 61

Wu Chang asked, "Instructor, what's the new recruit welcome package?"

Zhao Yan teased, "You'll find out when you get there."

The group followed Zhao Yan through the administrative complex.

Every major faction, upon meeting certain conditions, can carve out a unique space exclusive to itself.

For example, the special space where Wu Chang and the others reside—Chilang—is the faction space of the Anomaly Phenomena Administration.

Once constructed, the special space gains independent authority separate from Crimson Courtyard; only members of the faction and invited players may enter.

That means 99% of players appearing in Chilang are from the Administration.

Chilang is vast, and the number of players inside is equally large.

Along the way, Wu Chang and the others rarely saw quiet areas, especially in several core zones, where the bustle rivaled that of the public square.

Roughly estimated, at least ten thousand players were currently lingering in Chilang!

Keep in mind, Administration members aren't full-time players—they're tasked with handling supernatural incidents across all of Xia.

Like the baby-faced man and the balding middle-aged man, being constantly swamped is the norm; only a small fraction remain in Chilang.

Even a small fraction amounts to ten thousand—how many would the entire Administration have?

Thirty thousand? Fifty thousand? Or over a hundred thousand? In the Abyss Game, a faction of three to four hundred players can dominate a region.

Companies like United Information, with thousands of members, are already considered major forces capable of influencing the entire Wasteland Realm.

Yet compared to the Administration's scale, these civilian factions seem pitifully small.

Zhao Yan led them to Hongmeng Temple.

Before entering Hongmeng Temple, Zhao Yan finally revealed the answer to the new recruit reward.

"Your new recruit reward is an extra reward instance."

Wu Chang and several assistants exchanged glances, then couldn't help asking, "Extra reward instance? Like those no-combat, pure-reward checkpoints?"

Zhao Yan: "..."

"If there were such a good place, would we even leave the chance for you?"

Zhao Yan had originally intended to showcase the Administration's benefits by revealing the reward instance, to attract the assistants.

Who knew this Wu Chang guy immediately inflated expectations to infinity—now even if the reward instance was tempting, the newcomers would only think: "That's it?"

This bunch of slackers spends all day dreaming of easy gains.

Tui!

Zhao Yan cleared his throat, snapping them out of their fantasies.

"The reward instance isn't as absurd as you imagined, but it's still rare. Reward instance access is a privilege granted to factions with temporary administrative authority."

"Through this temporary authority, new members of the faction gain one extra instance opportunity, where the rarity of loot drops increases, and it doesn't consume the normal cooldown period."

The moment he spoke, the room fell silent.

That's it?

For most players, instances aren't good places.

Every entry into an instance means facing danger; if completion falls below 40%, you're penalized with a reduction to your Will attribute cap.

Someone did a survey: 85% of players wait thirty days between instance entries—only entering when the Abyss Game forcibly drags them in.

14.2% of players choose their interval randomly based on their condition;

Less than 1% of players wait until the shortest fifteen-day cooldown ends, then immediately enter the next instance.

For most players, they only wish the interval between instances was longer.

What the hell is an extra instance that doesn't use cooldown?

Four assistants stared at Zhao Yan with strange looks, as if asking: "Are you serious? Is this really a reward and not a punishment?"

Zhao Yan realized his wording was flawed and quickly corrected: "We call it a reward instance because entering via faction privilege reduces the difficulty's random probability by 10%. The instance's danger level is also weakened, and completion rate gains an extra 5% upon settlement."

At this, their expressions improved.

A 10% downward adjustment in random probability means an instance originally with 50% E, 40% F, 10% D odds becomes 60% E and 40% F.

This increases the chance of matching an instance below your level, and the extra 5% completion bonus further reduces clear pressure—now it genuinely felt like a reward instance.

"Using the extra reward instance is a new member benefit—it's unique, each member can use it only once. You may use it now, or store it for later."

"But..."

Zhao Yan suddenly changed tone and said:

"Activating the reward instance privilege has a level restriction—it cannot exceed level ten. Anyone planning to use it today, follow me in. Those not using it today may roam freely, but remember the level limit—don't forget the restriction."

As soon as he spoke, some expressions turned uneasy.

The reward instance is both a reward and a test.

All assistants here registered as level ten or below—if anyone cannot activate the privilege, it means they concealed their true level and have something to hide, requiring close attention.

The man who ranked second in the sparring match, who had worn a mask earlier but removed it, looked embarrassed and spoke first:

"I'm not feeling well today. I'll do it another time."

Just by his expression, it was clear he had concealed his true level—it exceeded ten.

Zhao Yan nodded, didn't call him out, and asked the others: "Anyone else feeling unwell today?"

Seeing no one else withdraw, Zhao Yan nodded approvingly: "Good. This batch of newcomers is clean. Come in."

The group followed Zhao Yan, scanned their faces, and entered Hongmeng Temple. The instant they stepped inside, a pending reward instance appeared in their Administration mini-program.

Wu Chang saw the reward instance's activation condition: Player Level ≤ 10, Status: Usable—and finally relaxed.

Good thing the max level included ten—if not, he'd have to pretend he was suddenly unwell like the guy before him.

Zhao Yan led them to the instance waiting hall, which connected to the public zone, where all pre-instance preparations—buying gear, checking leaderboards, reviewing intel—could be done.

Zhao Yan: "Though the reward instance's difficulty is lowered, don't let your guard down. I'll be back shortly—prepare yourselves before entering."

Because this entry into the instance was too rushed, Wu Chang had no time to customize armor and could only buy a few potions.

As for the other several assistants, they hadn't even prepared to buy potions.

As low-level freelancers, barely managing to clear the instance was already exhausting; any money they got was immediately turned into gear to boost themselves.

They wore all their wealth on their bodies, many were in debt, and had no need for last-minute preparations.

Armor, potions, auxiliary gear?

Those were perks for pay-to-win players and core members of big organizations—they had no use for them.

As the group finished preparing and waited for Zhao Yan to return, a middle-aged man, around thirty, slightly overweight, dressed like a salesperson, walked over.

"Are you all new assistants?"

One assistant replied: "Bro, you're one too?"

"I'm the instructor from Dongyang City. Call me Cotton."

At these words, the assistant who had responded was left speechless.

Wait, bro, why are you being so polite to me—you're an instructor?

Cotton asked the group: "Are you preparing to enter the reward instance?"

Wu Chang and the others nodded.

Cotton smiled and said: "Perfect—I only have two people with me. I'm worried that if we get matched into a team instance, we won't have backup. Could I let them join your queue to enter the instance together?"

"Don't worry, I won't take advantage of you—I happen to have a privilege that can upgrade the reward instance's level, and I can share it with you."

After speaking, Cotton opened a paper document.

A flash of light appeared in the document; when Wu Chang and the others looked again at the instance, its description had changed.

"Cotton invites you to enter the Intermediate Reward Instance Room."

"Intermediate Reward Instance: When matching, difficulty has a random 15% downward adjustment, danger level is noticeably reduced, completion bonus increases by 8% at settlement, and instance rewards rise by 10%."

"Activation condition: Player level ≤ 20."

"Accept Cotton's invitation?"

(End of Chapter)