Survival in an apartment, starting with a stroke of luck on a plane

On the other side, after leaving the square, the shadow clone, following its pre-arranged plan, searched the town while communicating with other players, and also subtly revealed information about the sunny young man.

Afterwards, he went directly to the square with several other players and met the other party again. The sunny young man was grateful for the shadow clone's subtle help, but the shadow clone could sense that the kid seemed to be more wary of him.

This is understandable, since the other party probably doesn't understand why the shadow clones are doing this either, so it's always good to be cautious.

In short, Shadow Clone has now remained in the group formed by the Sunshine Youth.

It must be said that the sunny young man's initiative and charisma are truly amazing. In just over an hour, he relied on his extremely approachable appearance and the practical "message firework" prop.

His analysis of the situation attracted more than twenty players to gather in the square, and they stayed temporarily, willing to cooperate with him.

Of course, it is undeniable that most of the players who stayed on the first day to seek cooperation were of average skill and equipment, and did not look like high-level players.

Meanwhile, most of the players were also on guard, some remaining silent while others scrutinized the sunny young man and the others.

Standing on the dried-up fountain base, the young man said to the crowd below, "Thank you all for taking this first step of trust! I know you still have doubts, which is normal."

My proposal is simple: we will not force anyone to do anything, nor will we ask anyone to sacrifice themselves.

We only do two things—share critical intelligence, especially any unusual information related to ghouls discovered during the day, and, if you receive a warning or request for help from a [message firework], consider offering assistance if it is within your capabilities and you are safe.

He took out some more [message fireworks] and distributed them to the new players: "You can use this item to discover danger, suspicious targets, or key clues."

The more timely the information, the greater our chances of survival.

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the crowd: "Of course, information sharing is voluntary."

But I believe that in the face of the threat of ghouls, individual selfishness will only lead to our being picked off one by one more quickly. We are not lambs, we are hunters.

For now, however, the hunter and the prey have temporarily blurred their lines.

These words were quite well said, and many players relaxed their guard a little.

A female player carrying a longbow asked, "How can you guarantee you're not a ghoul? Or... don't any ghouls have infiltrated your party? Gathering so many people like this increases the chances of ghouls getting in, doesn't it?"

This was exactly the question in many people's minds. The crowd instantly fell silent, their eyes focused on the sunny young man.

The smile on the sunny young man's face did not change at all; instead, it became even more frank: "Good question. I cannot prove that I am not a ghoul, just as you cannot prove to others that you are human."

This is precisely what makes this game so disgusting; it fundamentally destroys the very foundation of trust.

He then spread his hands and said, "And my logic is: if I were a ghoul, why would I do such a thing?"

Wouldn't it be safer and more efficient to sneak up and hunt down lone players?

I'm gathering everyone together, sharing information, and establishing an early warning network. This clearly increases the survival rate and counterattack capabilities of all 'human' players, which is entirely detrimental to the ghoul faction and not in any way beneficial to them. This is not in the ghouls' interest.

He looked at the female player who asked the question: "As for whether there are any ghouls in the team... I admit, it's impossible to completely eliminate that possibility."

But that's precisely why I emphasize "informal networks" and "limited mutual assistance".

We do not act collectively, nor do we share all secrets; we simply establish a channel for the flow of information.

If ghouls infiltrate, they can at most obtain some information or try to mislead us, but once information is circulating, cross-verification through multiple channels will greatly increase the difficulty for them to mislead us.

On the contrary, if everyone cowers in fear, the ghouls can easily create panic, spread rumors, and sow discord—that's exactly the situation they prefer!

"Hmph, all talk and no action." A thin player with sinister eyes sneered. "Who knows if you're playing hard to get? Or trying to become the 'human leader' and using everyone as cannon fodder to pave the way for you?"

The sunny young man looked at him, his eyes still calm, even with a hint of understanding: "My friend, I completely understand your doubts. In such an environment, doubt is an instinct for survival."

I reiterate that I have neither the right nor the ability to force anyone to trust me or follow me. My proposal is here, and the props are being distributed free of charge.

You can choose to join this information network, or you can choose to leave and continue your way of life.

I won't stop you, nor will I be hostile to you because of this. As for using everyone as cannon fodder... if I really had such thoughts, do you think I would give away precious early warning items for free?

Don't tell me this is just a Black Iron-level item. In this game, most of the time, the value of an item isn't determined by its level. I think everyone understands that.

His question left the man speechless for a moment.

The sunny young man looked around at everyone: "Everyone, time is precious. I propose that we stop arguing here. Those who are willing to try cooperating can form small teams of three to five people and split up to explore the town."

This will also ensure your safety.

Focus on searching for places such as libraries, churches, town halls, alchemy workshops, weapon shops, or any place that may contain information about history, legends, or monsters.

If you discover any information that may relate to ghoul weaknesses, special weapons that are unavailable to individuals or groups, or rules, please consider using the [Message Fireworks] to preset a 'Key Intelligence' signal, or share it back in the plaza when it is safe to do so.

At the same time, be aware of any suspicious people or things! Stay vigilant!

This pragmatic proposal received a positive response from the majority of people.

Soon, the crowd began to spontaneously form teams.

Shadow Clone chose to join a larger, seemingly more composed squad of five.

The squad is led by a burly man wielding a tower shield, known as "Stone Shield," and consists of two melee fighters, an archer, and a player wielding a staff.

Since there's no friends panel, everyone's introductions aren't their real names; they probably want to pretend to be high-ranking and intimidate others.

The sunny young man nodded to the shadow clone as it joined the team.

The shadow clone nodded slightly in response.

"Let's go check out the North District. There seems to be the outline of a cathedral there," Stone Shield said calmly.

The team quickly left the square and headed north of the town.

……