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Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

As Rainflower Jack shouted, four more players with the “Rainflower” prefix arrived, forming the original five-person Rainflower group.

“Rainflower guys? What are you here for?” Endless Ocean asked.

“Endless Ocean? I know you. A top-30 solo player from Glazed Lycoris Radiata,” Rainflower Drake replied.

Glazed Lycoris Radiata was the predecessor to Dreamscape. While its realism and immersion couldn’t compare to Dreamscape, it was immensely popular a few years ago. Sadly, it eventually faded away.

“Oh? I didn’t expect someone to still recognize a noob like me,” Endless Ocean replied, feigning indifference, though he was ecstatic inside. Being recognized felt incredible—showcasing one’s true skills casually and earning admiration from teammates was immensely satisfying.

However, he noticed that Zane and Starry remained expressionless.

Rainflower Drake shook his head. “I don’t want to have a conflict with you. I’m here for those two.”

“What did they do for you to bring so many people here?” Endless Ocean asked.

Rainflower Drake hesitated before finally explaining, “Here’s what happened. Earlier, I saw the two of them struggling to farm slimes, so I invited them to join us since we needed more damage output. But by the end, they used the slime’s half-health AoE mechanic to kill all of us!”

He clenched his fist, his anger apparent. “I don’t mind losing one level, but my party trusted me to lead them. I have to give them an explanation!”

Zane didn’t bother defending himself and just watched him perform.

“Brother, is that true?” Endless Ocean sent a private message.
“What do you think?” Zane replied.
“No, seriously, I mean… Did you really take down five of them 2v5?”
“Not exactly… We left two of them alive.”
“Damn, impressive! Rainflower’s reputation is all about bullying the weak, and they couldn’t even handle you two?!” Endless Ocean praised.
“…”

…

“So, what’s next? Do we fight? I haven’t PK’d since the game launched; I’m itching for a brawl,” Endless Ocean said, breaking the silence.

“Brother Ocean, there’s no need for you to get involved,” Zane replied.

“Why not? Rainflower is just a trash guild; they won’t dare do anything to me,” Endless Ocean said confidently.

Truthfully, while Rainflower was known for targeting weaker players, it was still a long-established guild with years of development and a core membership base. It could easily rank among the top 1,000 in the national server.

Don’t underestimate that top-1,000 ranking—considering the sheer number of players on the national server, it was no small feat. On the very first day, the game had over ten million players, and that number was bound to grow as more headsets became available.

Endless Ocean was clearly not one to back down, and he seemed particularly excited about this potential confrontation.

Still, no one else spoke.

He couldn’t help himself. “Hurry up, guys! Let’s finish this quickly so I can get back to grinding! How about this: there are five of you; Stardust can handle two of you. I’ll take two as well, and Zane can… Never mind, Stardust, you take three. Can you manage?”

Zane was speechless. He might not be as strong as Starry, but he could at least handle one opponent!

Rainflower Drake frowned deeply. “Are you determined to get involved?”

“Yep. What of it?” Endless Ocean said arrogantly.

“…We’re leaving,” Rainflower Drake declared, turning and walking away.

To everyone’s surprise, the five left without hesitation, leaving the three of them dumbfounded.

“What the heck? After all that buildup, they just walked away?” Endless Ocean exclaimed in shock.

“They probably figured they didn’t stand a chance. They thought 5 versus 2 would be manageable,” Zane analyzed, though in his opinion, Starry alone could easily handle the five of them.

“Boring.”

Just then, Shiu called out, telling Zane it was time to eat.

“Bro, we’re logging off for lunch. What about you?”
“Instant noodles will do for me; it won’t even take a few minutes.”
“Ah, a kindred spirit—we’re planning to eat instant noodles too.”
“What!? How could you make such a beautiful girl eat instant noodles? I can’t believe you! If you don’t want her, hand her over to someone who does!” Endless Sea wailed dramatically.
“She can eat whatever I eat. Alright, alright, let’s eat quickly and get back to leveling up!” Zane said, logging off. Starry’s figure vanished alongside him.

…

Two bowls of instant noodles were already on the table.

“Zane, I looked into that ‘Stardust’ username. Turns out it’s actually the name of a themed outfit, not a real person,” Shiu said, scrolling through his phone.

“Maybe it’s just a smurf account for some pro player,” Zane replied casually.

“Early-game progression is super important right now. Why would a pro waste time carrying a noob like you? Zane, don’t tell me… you sold yourself to get this boost!?” Shiu exclaimed, suddenly enlightened.

“Sell your head! I earned my spot fair and square!”

“Pfft,” Shiu gave Zane a knowing look, shaking his head in mock disappointment like he was watching a fallen angel.

“…”

“Let’s change the subject. I’m at level 6 now—what about you?” Shiu asked.
“Halfway through level 7. I should hit level 10 by the afternoon if everything goes smoothly,” Zane replied, mentally preparing for the cave exploration quest later.
“Ugh, why can’t I meet a pro who’ll carry me? Grinding alone is so slow.”

“Then just join a party.”
“Join a party? Don’t even get me started. I almost got killed several times because of stupid teammates. I told them a million times that mobs trigger AOE attacks at half HP, but no one listened! If I wasn’t quick on my feet, I probably wouldn’t even be level 4 right now.”
“…That bad, huh? Don’t worry. Once I hit level 10, I’ll ask the pro to carry you too!”

“They’re willing to carry someone else? You definitely did some shady backdoor dealings to secure that spot.” Shiu raised an eyebrow suggestively.
“Just eat your noodles and stop talking nonsense.”

“Oh, by the way, you guys were grinding at the north gate, weren’t you?” Shiu asked.
“How did you know?”
“Called it. Check the forums,” Shiu said, handing his phone over.

On the screen was a prominent post: Beginner Village North Gate Blocked?

The post included a series of videos proving the issue, along with… a guide explaining how to bypass the gate.

Each Beginner Village’s storyline was parallel, and the system would choose the village of the first player to reach level 10 as the default progression point for everyone else.

Thus, even if NPC favorability was lowered, the storyline would reset unless it was inherited by their specific Beginner Village. This mechanic had, unsurprisingly, been exploited by some resourceful players.

In the video, a player whispered something into the ear of the young gatekeeper, who then hurriedly left his post.

Shortly after, more than twenty players arrived, all bearing the “Temple” prefix. Having this many people in the same Beginner Village suggested it was a large guild.

The group tossed over a dozen Slime Mucus onto the ground outside the gate, coating it with an indescribable slippery substance.

The leading player then threw a small stone, hitting the Mutated Wild Boar and waking it up. Enraged, the boar charged forward furiously, but as it stepped on the mucus, it slipped and crashed headfirst into the gate.

Since the gate was not entirely sealed, players inside took advantage of the small gaps to thrust their weapons outward at the boar.

…

With constant attacks from the players, the boar’s HP dropped rapidly. Every time it tried to get up, the mucus caused it to slip again.

This back-and-forth continued until the boar’s HP dwindled to just 100.

Here it comes, Berserk Mode, Zane thought to himself.

As expected, the boar’s body swelled in size, and its stats surged. All incoming damage turned into forced reductions of -1 HP.

Now completely frenzied, the boar thrashed about violently, ramming into the gate multiple times in rapid succession. The already fragile gate, barely holding together, finally collapsed with a loud crash.

The northern gate was open.

The video ended abruptly.

Zane was utterly astonished. That was some next-level strategy! They had used items and positioning to completely neutralize the boar’s threat, and then leveraged its destructive power to knock down the gate. This meant that every player in the same village now had access to the northern cave! The mysteries of the cave would no longer pose a threat under the sheer weight of overwhelming numbers.

…

Upon logging back in, the figures of Emberveil and Stardust reappeared at their previous positions.

“You’re here! What’s the plan for this afternoon?” Endless Sea, who seemed to have decided to stick around, greeted them enthusiastically. He had realized that his own questing luck was abysmal, with only boring tasks like “Teach the Rabbits a Lesson” or “Deliver a Message.” The rewards were laughable, completely draining his motivation to even try.

“No time to explain—head to the northern gate now!” Zane shouted urgently.

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