Chapter 2: The Ultimate Hint System

Nick focused his gaze on the pale blue light screen. After clearly seeing the hint, his pupils constricted. He didn't act rashly, but fell into a brief moment of contemplation.

If everyone could see these kinds of hints, then the instructions given by the Dungeon Survival Game earlier would be utterly pointless, like "taking off your pants to fart"—completely unnecessary.

Moreover, there wouldn't be other people encountering danger in the World Channel.

"Could it be that I'm the only one who can see these hints?"

Nick murmured softly.

He tentatively looked to the left. When Nick thought about digging, the pale blue light screen reappeared before his eyes.

[Dig 8 meters to the left, and you will find an unknown dungeon creature.]

Nick look at the right side.

[Beware of the right. Digging another 20 meters will lead to poisonous gas and instant death.]

After trying the remaining directions, Nick licked his dry lips. The symptoms of dehydration were becoming more severe.

Finding a water source was his most urgent task.

"Then I can only trust this hint..."

Nick made up his mind. Rather than trusting in the so-called goddess of fate, he would rather place his hope in this hint that only he could see.

He took two steps back, picked up the shovel, and began to dig upwards with force.

Even against the thick earth, Nick easily shoveled it away, hardly needing to exert much strength.

As the pile of dirt at his feet grew, Nick's digging progress also advanced.

In just a short while, Nick dug through the upper part of the dungeon and arrived at a new one. This place was similar to the previous one, with some differences.

The nearly ten-square-meter space was just as stuffy, the mud walls covered in scorch marks, and the cave was empty.

Nick gripped the iron shovel with both hands, his eyes scanning his surroundings warily. With a slight tremor, the previously dug tunnel instantly reverted to its original state.

This scene.

Was clearly within Nick's expectations. It also indicated that he had no way back.

"This hint... should be accurate."

After confirming that there was no danger, Nick's anxious heart finally settled.

He turned his gaze to the center of the cave, where a faint light shimmered. The endpoint of the hint on the light screen was right there.

"That 1L of pure water should be buried underneath."

Nick had a general idea. In this stuffy environment, 1L of pure water would evaporate quickly.

After noticing no hidden danger, he began to dig with the shovel.

After just a few shovelfuls, a shoddy wooden box with a strong smell of decay appeared before Nick.

He opened it and saw, apart from the plastic label indicating a capacity of 1L, there was no other information about the pure water.

Although his gain was just a bottle of ordinary pure water, Nick was quite happy. This proved that the hints on the light screen were accurate.

With these hints, he could avoid most dangers.

After replenishing his water, Nick made up his mind. He still had nine digging opportunities left, and he had to gather as many survival resources as possible.

"Then let's keep going!"

Ready to go, Nick picked up his shovel and looked at the remaining three directions: left, right, and up.

[Dig 8 meters to the left, and you will find nothing.]

[In the dungeon 11 meters above, a group of dungeon bats are nesting. They will suck your blood dry!]

[The goddess of luck is smiling upon you. Dig 7 meters to the right, and you will find a simple storage room. The supplies inside will allow you to easily get through today!]

With the best option presented, Nick didn't hesitate. He dug towards the right wall. The digging progress was disproportionate to the physical effort he exerted.

The incredibly hard mud of the wall was easily dug through under the power granted to the players by the Dungeon Survival Game.

It didn't take long for him to reach the next dungeon.

To be precise, it was a small storage room styled like a dungeon. Inside the cramped space, less than five square meters, survival supplies were scattered on the ground.

Thanks to the faint light on the wall, Nick could take in the whole scene.

He opened a relatively well-preserved wooden box on the ground. Six palm-sized compressed biscuits appeared before Nick.

Besides that, there was nothing else in the box.

"Not bad..."

Nick's lips curled up slightly. Although it was just a few ordinary compressed biscuits, one of the elements of survival, food, was now accounted for.

He didn't ignore the other wooden boxes or the storage shelves on the wall.

After scavenging everything, he found two 500ml bags of pure water, and even something Nick hadn't dared to dream of.

Beef.

He found three bags of it. The only downside was that the beef was all instant food. Nick could already imagine their taste.

It definitely wouldn't be great, but it was better than nothing.

As for the wooden boxes, Nick didn't ignore them either. Collecting all usable resources was essential to lay a good foundation for long-term survival.

"I guess this is a pretty good start..."

Nick smiled and shook his head. He took out the miniature altar from his pocket, planning to use the spare time to study the function of the Rune Base.

[Detected that there is no safety threat in the current area. Do you want to set this place as a temporary camp?]

The black window quietly floated, and Nick tapped the [Yes] option. In the next moment, the so-called temporary camp appeared before him.

A triangular cloth tent, with a simple stone campfire in front of it.

The red-hot charcoal in the campfire burned enduringly. Adding some wood would ignite it again, providing great convenience to the game players.

And the bottle of pure water that Nick had obtained earlier was now lying quietly on the ground.

To him, the Rune Base was like a small, lightweight backpack with a huge interior, allowing Nick to travel light at all times.

During this brief respite, Nick didn't forget to take out a bag of instant beef to replenish his energy, not choosing the compressed bread.

With water resources already scarce, he wouldn't eat them unless he was completely out of options.

"Hmm?"

The taste of the instant beef was beyond Nick's expectations. It wasn't delicious, but it definitely wasn't bad. In this situation, there was nothing to be picky about.

The most important point was that the portion of beef paste was sufficient.

After Nick replenished his food and water, a brief tremor shook the wall, and the cracks in it widened a bit.

Bright white light spilled in through the cracks.

Along with the light came the shouts of many people and the roars of dungeon creatures, causing Nick's heart to instantly jump.

"Help me..."

"What kind of monster is this? Why is it so fast!!"

"I want to go back, I don't want to die..."

With a heart full of apprehension, Nick approached the crack and, through the narrow gap, saw a scene that could only be described as hell.

Countless humans of different skin colors were scrambling to escape in the dungeon.

Behind them was a humanoid monster with pale white skin, moving in a bizarre crawling posture. Its withered limbs were stained with blood.

When Nick saw this monster clearly, his pupils contracted slightly.

A ghoul?