1: Chapter 1: The Real Game

"According to the latest reports, the large-scale Western fantasy game 'real world', co-produced by the Five Permanent Members, is expected to officially launch globally at 8:00 AM Beijing Time on January 1, 2027."

"The game utilizes a brand-new non-invasive BCI gaming mode, allowing players to enjoy up to 100% game immersion with a Gaming Helmet."

"Please stay tuned!"

Mo Bai looked at the news on the TV and couldn't help but scratch his head.

"What the heck? A BCI game? A hundred percent virtual game?"

"Has technology already reached this point?"

Surprised, Mo Bai couldn't help but look up the news and found that invasive BCIs had already helped many disabled people regain their hearing and complete controlled limb reconstruction, while non-invasive BCIs had passed experiments long ago.

Only at this point did he dare to believe the news.

"That was fast."

Filled with emotion, he went online to look for people who felt the same way.

After a short period of fermentation, the news had completely exploded online. Nine out of the top ten trending searches were related to 'real world', with only the second one being news about a certain celebrity's concert.

Had it been number one at the start?

Mo Bai tilted his head in thought for a moment before brushing it aside. He clicked on the game's official forum and immediately saw a string of posts popping up.

"Brothers, I've finally lived to see a virtual game! My youth is back!"

"Honestly, did the government discover an Isekai? Is this actually a portal to another world?"

"The person above has too much imagination. I think this is just a testing ground for new technology, here to collect BCI data for AI."

"Are you all going to play? Do you think players from all over the world will gather in this game?"

"Could this become our second world?"

Mo Bai watched these posts with surging emotions, never tiring of scrolling through them, wishing he could download the game right now and play for several nights straight.

"It launches in half a month. No, I need to buy a Gaming Helmet first."

Without a second word, he spent nearly ten thousand yuan online to buy a specialized Gaming Helmet.

Time flew by, and half a month later, under the anticipation of countless people, the world's first non-invasive BCI virtual game launched with a bang!

A minute before the launch, Mo Bai gripped the ink box pendant around his neck, feeling the texture of the patterns with his fingers. He took a deep breath and, with a slight tremor, put on the Gaming Helmet, the silicone interface inside fitting snugly against his brow.

"Launch!"

"Buzz!"

Accompanied by a wave of coolness in his brain, drowsiness washed over him, and Mo Bai gradually fell asleep.

"Hmm?"

"Did I fall asleep?"

Mo Bai woke up in a daze and scratched his head, but he didn't feel the helmet.

When he opened his eyes, what he saw was not the ceiling of his rental room, but a vast blue sky.

"Welcome to the game. We wish you an enjoyable experience."

A crisp voice sounded in his ear, and Mo Bai suddenly realized.

"So this is the game?"

He looked at his own hands and the reality of everything around him, holding his breath slightly.

Beneath his feet was incredibly realistic soil, and in the distance was an endless sea of green forest; everything was incredibly lifelike.

"Is this really a game?"

If it weren't for the logout button constantly in the corner of his eye, Mo Bai would have even suspected he had traveled to an Isekai.

This thought made him unable to resist opening the game forum.

"Shocking!"

"Holy crap!"

"Did I travel to another world?"

"Did we all travel together?"

"How do you play this game?"

The forum was flooded with expressions of shock; he scrolled for a while before closing it.

"The game just started, so there's no experience to share yet. Everyone is just pioneering."

After closing the forum, Mo Bai muttered to himself.

"So, what do I do now?"

He pondered for a moment.

"I'll set up a Shelter first, then find something to eat."

Mo Bai searched the surroundings for a bit and soon spotted a stone about the length of a forearm.

"Hey, good stuff!"

He grabbed the forearm-long stone and struck it sideways against another rock.

"Crack!"

The stone split.

"Crack!"

"Clatter!"

After some trimming and grinding, this long stone finally had a somewhat sharp Stone Blade on one side.

Holding his "weapon," Mo Bai felt much more secure. He stretched and began searching, following the sound of the river in his ears.

"Eh, this spot is pretty good."

Before long, a small bamboo grove right next to the river caught his attention.

On a large tree beside the bamboo grove, two branches grew side-by-side, faintly forming a platform.

Mo Bai sized it up, climbed up in a few moves, broke off some bamboo, and tied it down with vines. After a bit of tidying, it made for a decent platform.

"Mmm, comfortable."

Although building a small base like this in a game felt a bit childish, he did it anyway.

It could be considered fulfilling a small childhood yearning for a treehouse.

"If I'd had a tree like this when I was a kid, I would've gone crazy playing on it, right?"

Lying on the small platform beneath the dense branches and leaves, Mo Bai couldn't help but stretch.

"This is just too comfortable."

Mo Bai lay there for quite a while before coming down from the tree, but as soon as he hit the ground, he felt a foul wind rushing toward him.

"Holy crap!"

He only had time to curse before being pinned to the ground. Then he saw a wild wolf pressing down on him, its bloody maw opening as it lunged for his throat.

"So stinky... Hiss!"

Mo Bai instinctively blocked with his arm, but when the wolf's sharp wolf fangs pierced his flesh, he gasped in pain.

Under the intense pain, rage instantly broke through his reason, and the instincts of the terrifying upright ape took over.

Without being injured, he might not even be able to beat a dog.

But once injured... "Ah!! You dare bite me? I'll kill you!"

Cursing furiously, Mo Bai clamped his legs around the wild wolf and began pounding on it, gouging at its eyes, and even forcing his hand into its throat despite the damage.

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

He didn't know how long he fought, but eventually, the wild wolf went completely silent. Mo Bai leaned against the tree, panting heavily and hissing from the pain.

A wisp of white energy emerged from the wolf's corpse and merged into Mo Bai's body.

experience points +16.

At the same time, a white experience bar appeared.

experience points: 16/100.

Looking at this experience bar, Mo Bai realized.

"So it's about killing monsters to level up... Why didn't you say so earlier!"

"I wonder what it will feel like to level up in such a realistic world."

"Will I really become a superman?"

Mo Bai felt a faint sense of anticipation, and just then, a glimmer of light appeared in his mind.

When he focused his attention, he appeared in an empty space within his mind.

In the center, a small Nine-layered Rubiks cube rotated in mid-air, its peculiar patterns messy yet full of beauty.

"Hmm?"

"Wait?"

"Isn't this the Nine-layered Rubiks cube that I've never even managed to solve one side of?"

"What the heck is this?"

Mo Bai instinctively touched his neck.

ink box: 0/100.