Face-Worm

RomanticFoodBucket got a job and logged off.

As a fairly lone-wolf farming player, S&M had to explore on his own.

Star Dragon Outpost might seem small, with only 60 players, but it was actually divided into several smaller groups.

Groups based on regional dialects, groups based on age, groups based on play style, such as building, monster hunting, exploration, etc.

S&M and RomanticFoodBucket had spent the first three days as prisoners without any strength, so they needed to stick together for mutual support.

He wasn't very fond of the monster hunting part. Sure, the flashy skills were cool, but not everyone could handle fighting twisted-looking things.

Unlike VR games, Apocalypse: Law Ring's fully immersive game experience made it difficult for many timid people to play.

The gloomy atmosphere and the sun hanging in the sky like a refrigerator light, offering no sense of security, all made people shudder while playing.

S&M wasn't afraid, but his interest in the game wasn't in fighting. He just liked farming. If farming also included romance storylines, crop stealing, and crafting, it would be a masterpiece in his eyes.

Now, Apocalypse: Law Ring was subtly about to replace Stardew Valley in his heart, slowly becoming a masterpiece.

The miasma of the Carrion Eater's Nest was gradually dissipating, so he had to set out to search for seeds and find new areas shrouded in calamitous shadows.

Before leaving, he specifically soaked some beans in water, hoping to see them sprout when he returned.

"Rustle, rustle..."

There was movement ahead.

"Who's there!" S&M, with no equipment, wasn't scared. Or, at least, he tried to be.

First, he felt fear, and then excitement.

Hiyah!

He lunged forward, but after seeing that it was just a thumb-sized worm, goosebumps erupted all over him. He forcibly changed his movements, causing his left foot to trip on his right, and he fell to the ground.

Faceplant, but at least he didn't lunge onto it.

But he was still very close to the worm.

It was a worm with an ugly human face, no legs, but it looked somewhat like an arthropod.

Like a caterpillar wearing insect armor.

The human face was wrinkled, like… a baby's face.

Roll!

The human-faced worm's eyeballs turned and looked at S&M.

S&M felt his scalp tingle and he thought his head was about to explode.

This kind of weird thing was what made people's blood run cold.

So, he very simply and decisively got up and, with the instinct he used to deal with southern cockroaches, delivered a fatal kick.

It burst.

It felt a bit soft, sticky, and it seemed like a lot had stuck between his toes.

He remembered that he didn't have shoes on.

"Ugh…" He felt like throwing up.

Like he'd stepped in poop, S&M vigorously rubbed his foot, almost wearing it down before he stopped.

"Whew…" He tried to clear his mind and not think too much.

The road ahead was barren.

After leaving Star Dragon Outpost, S&M chose to head west. It was said that there used to be a pack of jackals there. Now, only three or four days after reaching the former jackal den, the dirty, stinking, rotting smell of the den hadn't dissipated.

"This definitely isn't a Calamity Shadow area."

S&M continued to walk west. It didn't seem like anyone else had gone that way before.

Many Undead chose to go north. The Carrion Eater's Nest was north of Star Dragon Outpost, and there might be rewards to be found there. This was based on gaming experience.

In many games without route guidance, following the distribution of "monsters" was a good way to explore a correct path.

The level of monsters along the way could then be used to determine if you were on the right track.

He walked from dawn till dusk, and nothing strange happened on the way.

However, he did pick up quite a few mutated plants along the way.

Not many were edible, but many could clearly be used to make poison.

"I guess you could say I'm expanding my seed collection."

This blade of mine is coated with deadly poison.

Schlick

S&M subconsciously stuck out his tongue and mimed licking his blade.

Unfortunately, he could only be weird by himself, with no one to witness it.

He logged off mid-journey to use the restroom, and when he logged back in, even he couldn't tell how far he'd gone or which direction he was facing.

He chose to climb a tree to get a better view, hoping to determine his position.

Although climbing the tree was a bit difficult, he was immediately rewarded when he got to the top. In front of him, beyond a small hill, were houses.

It looked like a village, and he could see people wandering around.

Turning his head again, S&M noticed that thick smoke was billowing from the direction of Star Dragon Outpost.

"What's going on?" S&M was bewildered. Had he missed some important plot point?

...

"I didn't miss some important plot point, did I?"

WhiteStockingsLover shaded his eyes with his hand, looking in the direction of Star Dragon Outpost. (I kept "WhiteStockingsLover" since it's a username, and translating it would lose the original meaning. If you prefer, I can suggest an alternative.)

Today's video content was a bit boring, so he headed southwest from Star Dragon Outpost, planning to scout the map and look for something interesting.

Logging off like this just feels a little unsatisfying.

TortoiseShield and the other two weren't together. After all, the three of them were still students, and they were just a hastily thrown-together team. Like WhiteStockingsLover's video content, it wasn't suitable to have too many players in the shot.

Too much noise and commotion wouldn't fit with his own self-deprecating, "let's play" style.

Whether to continue exploring forward or turn around and rush back to Star Dragon Outpost... a choice had to be made.

"No, keep going forward!" WhiteStockingsLover made the decision immediately. Even if he turned back now, he'd only get second-hand information. This garbage game didn't even have a Hearthstone, so he'd have to hoof it all the way. ("Hearthstone" is localized to the more general term of a teleportation mechanic, "hearthstone" being the name of such a mechanic in the game Hearthstone)

By the time he got back, it would be too late.

Passing through the tangled, overgrown forest, the silent air and the increasingly dark clouds overhead were like a thick comforter pressing down.

Suffocating his nose and mouth, making it hard to breathe.

He could faintly hear people talking.

"Someone's there!" WhiteStockingsLover's eyes lit up.

Whether they were wanderers or other NPCs, running into someone was good news.

He tiptoed forward, crouching low, lifting his heels high, and covering his ears.

Gaming is weirdly superstitious. If he couldn't hear them, they probably couldn't hear him, right?

Crack! WhiteStockingsLover accidentally stepped on a branch. The sound was crisp and clear.

No reaction?

Good!

But with his previous experience sneaking around, WhiteStockingsLover thought he should prepare for the worst.

His attitude was always to put in maximum effort, have minimal expectations, and plan for the worst.

He was just used to being cautious.

In the distance were six men, sitting around a campfire.

The smell of roasting meat and strong liquor wafted over, making WhiteStockingsLover subconsciously swallow.

Roast meat, as long as it's sizzling and glistening with oil, is heavenly!

The drunken men didn't seem to notice a strange creature with green hair approaching in the darkness at all.

Even though his footsteps were heavy, sounding "thump, thump."

Even though his shadow swayed back and forth in the firelight.