Chapter 1 The Ghost Swamp, a Land Permeated with Foul Odor

Moonlight spilled down, illuminating the terrain here with stark clarity.

Calling this a swamp was generous; it was more like a gigantic cesspool… The area was filled with dark brown, viscous filth that constantly writhed, steaming upwards and fermenting into a suffocating stench.

The surface of the swamp was crisscrossed with narrow paths made of mud and stone. These paths were like a tangled network of blood vessels, extending in a chaotic and unpredictable manner, yet they were the only way for players to traverse this place.

The five players emerged from the Mocking Forest and arrived at the edge of this swamp.

At this moment, Uncle Worthless had already donned the [Pessimist's Skull]. He stepped forward, taking the lead, and stood there, pinching his nose. After observing the area, he removed the helmet to take another look, then put it back on and said in a muffled voice, "When I wear this, a green, semi-transparent 'light path' appears before my eyes."

"Hmm... so... if we follow this light path, which only the Wokel believers can see, we should be able to safely cross this swamp," Honghu replied.

"Ugh..." At this moment, Atobe finally reached his limit... and vomited. But there was nothing in his stomach, and he only spewed out a puddle of liquid.

"Hey, hey... are you alright?" Honghu tilted his head to look at him.

"Haa... haa..." Atobe panted a few times, then spat out a few strands of stomach fluid clinging to his lips with a "poo, poo" sound, before replying, "Even vomiting... doesn't make it any better! I still feel so sick!"

"I advise you to adapt as soon as possible..." Feng Bujue's cold voice rang out, "In a moment, you'll be walking on the mud and stone paths on the surface of the swamp, and the smell in the surrounding air will be even more intense." He snorted, "Hmph... if you can't even tolerate this level, then you're in danger..."

"Wh... what danger?" Sky Horse, standing beside Jue-Ge, anxiously asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Feng Bujue turned his head and pointed to the swamp in front of him, "If you're hampered by the stench, causing your concentration to drop, and your mind and body to become sluggish... then... if you slip while walking..."

"Don't say such terrifying things!" Atobe's expression changed drastically as he roared in anger.

Upon hearing this, Sky Horse's face turned pale, and he muttered, "Damn it... as a hero, I can't die in a place like this..."

"Indeed... unthinkable..." Even Uncle Worthless muttered with a grave expression.

Honghu also said, "And in that kind of situation, I'm afraid no one would lend a hand... because they might be dragged down with you."

"Heh... it seems you've all recognized the dangers of this shit swamp." Feng Bujue sneered, "That's right... what we're about to face... is one of the most terrifying forms of death in this world - drowning in shit."

"You're just saying that as if it's a serious thing, even though it's a word you couldn't even find if you flipped through the entire dictionary!" Atobe shouted, "Before this... wasn't this clearly called the 'Ghost Swamp'! Even if it's all shit, it's still called the Ghost Swamp!"

"If you take a wrong step..." Feng Bujue ignored the other party's retort and continued, "...it's an abyss of eternal damnation." When he spoke, he even looked solemn, "If you accidentally fall in, don't expect anyone to save you, because I certainly won't lend a hand."

"That line is just heartless..." Uncle Worthless replied, "But I have to admit that I think the same way..."

"Even if you manage to climb out of the swamp on your own, you'll probably be abandoned by your teammates, right..." Feng Bujue added.

"Don't worry about that, if I fall in, I'll just force quit..." Little Horse replied with a determined expression.

Honghu adjusted the glasses on his nose: "I plan to do the same."

"I won't fall in." Cold sweat was already trickling down Uncle Worthless's temples, "If I accidentally slip... I'll force quit before I even touch the surface of the shit."

"Tch... I wanted to force quit two hours ago..." Atobe said, stretching his face and squinting.

"Oh, right..." Feng Bujue seemed to remember something upon hearing Atobe's words. He turned around, faced an empty space, and threw out a punch with both fists.

"Hey, this is the third time you've done that action, right?" Honghu keenly noticed something and said, "If I remember correctly... you do this action once every hour." He paused, his eyes changing slightly, "And you say it's 'loosening your muscles'... but you're actually leveling up a certain skill, right?"

"Alright... you saw through me." Feng Bujue replied expressionlessly, "That's right, this move of mine is the legendary secret technique, the Grab [beep] Dragon Claw Hand. Hmph... even if you kneel down and beg me, I won't teach it to you."

"Who would believe that!" Honghu shouted, "How could there be such an obscene move in this game! Even if there really was... who else would learn it besides you!"

"Alright, don't get hung up on these trivial matters." Jue-Ge smoothly changed the subject, "There's still an hour left until the time limit for completing the mission... Since we're taking a shortcut, we naturally have plenty of time. If nothing unexpected happens, we'll be able to cross this swamp and reach our destination within half an hour." His gaze swept over everyone, "Everyone... with reverence for drowning in shit, buck up and let's go!"

"Well... in any case, let's first confirm the order in which we'll pass through the swamp," Uncle Worthless replied, "Those mud and stone paths are very narrow, so we'll inevitably have to walk in a single line on them." He patted his chest, "I'll be responsible for leading the way, so the order behind me is..."

"I'll bring up the rear," Honghu replied, "My reconnaissance specialization is alright, and my field of vision is also wide. Standing at the back, I can have a panoramic view and also guard against long-range attacks from all directions."

"I'll follow behind Uncle Worthless," Sky Horse said.

Upon hearing this, Atobe looked at Feng Bujue, "Then there are only the third and fourth positions left. Do you want to walk in front of me or behind me?"

"I'm not going to walk with you," Feng Bujue gave a surprising answer.

"What?" Everyone had the same reaction.

"You guys go first, I'm going to fully explore this swamp." Feng Bujue replied, "Based on my many years of gaming experience, there are often a few excellent items hidden in maze maps with extremely harsh environments where people are unwilling to stay for long, and their locations are mostly in some remote dead ends... I'm going to find them."

"Hey, hey... you're not kidding, are you?" Uncle Worthless said, "The setting here couldn't be clearer, right? Players can safely pass through by following the route mapped out by the [Pessimist's Skull]. And the other paths... probably lead to traps."

"Yeah... maybe you'll be walking along, and then your foot will suddenly slip, or you'll suddenly be dragged down by something..." Honghu added.

"I never intended to step on those paths in the first place." Feng Bujue shrugged, "I can walk in the air about a meter above the swamp." As he spoke, he had already turned around and prepared to set off, "When necessary, I can stand in the air for a short while. If that doesn't work... I can still walk on the surface of the shit." While he was talking, he looked towards both ends of the swamp, "In short, as long as the soles of my feet are facing down, I will never fall in."

"Well... if it were a normal person, I would probably say a few words of advice to him..." Honghu replied after thinking for a few seconds, "But... since it's you, it's your own fault anyway, so I won't try to stop you."

"Hmph..." Feng Bujue smiled smugly, "When this great master was fearlessly breaking into Black Dragon Pool with Cheng Ying, you were still playing finger painting."

"Huh?" Honghu revealed a bewildered expression.

The others also couldn't understand the meaning of Jue-Ge's words, and they looked at each other, not knowing what to make of it. It seemed that this generation of people was indeed relatively unfamiliar with DOS games, otherwise they would have recognized the Baseball Fist action just now.

"Enough said." Feng Bujue covered his mouth and nose with one hand, bent forward, and leaned forward, "You don't have to wait for me, just go inside the Faith Temple when you get there, I'll catch up."

After saying that, Jue-Ge exerted force with his feet and shot into the air.

He used Moon Steps continuously, maintaining a height of more than one meter above the swamp, and moved slowly like a dragonfly, gradually moving away...