Death Train: SSS-level talent right from the start!

[Carriage 1 (Su Jin): @Everyone, passengers above level 10 will be grouped together for this survival trial. Those below level 10 can join us. We will do our best to ensure everyone's safety. We will gather after the train arrives at the station.]

After Su Jin sent the message, the group was quiet for a few seconds, followed by a series of replies.

[Carriage 7 (Sun Wei): Sister Su, can we really follow you?]

[Carriage 5 (Li Dong): I'm level 10, I want to join too!]

[Carriage 2 (Wang Fang): There are two level 9 players in our team, can we team up?]

Messages kept popping up, their tone shifting from tentative to earnest.

Those who had thought they would face unknown dangers alone in this trial now felt like they had grasped a lifeline.

Su Jin sent another message.

[Carriage 1 (Su Jin): We still need to prioritize protecting passengers with lower risk levels. Level 10 passengers should have some self-defense capabilities. You can join the main group if you wish.]

After the message was sent, the replies in the group went from sporadic to frequent, with one after another "Received," "Understood," and "Thank you, Sister Su" flooding the screen at a dizzying speed.

"Being a nanny isn't easy. With such a large team and so many low-level members, things are bound to get chaotic if danger comes along."

Wen Ning's voice came from the front row.

Zhou Yating nodded: "Sister Wen is right, so we still need to organize it properly."

"Leave the organization's affairs to Su Jin. Your priority should still be to gain more points."

Chen Ye closed the chat panel, leaned back in his chair, and stared at the gray-white mist outside the window.

Two hours passed quietly amidst the roar of the wheels.

The train's announcement system came on again.

"Attention passengers, the G5002 Death Train is about to arrive at Blood Mist Forest East Station. Please prepare to disembark. I repeat, please prepare to disembark. Those who do not disembark will be eliminated according to the rules."

The moment the broadcast ended, the sound of wheels rubbing against the rails gradually decreased from a high frequency to a low pitch, the train's speed gradually decreased, and it finally came to a stop.

The grayish-white haze outside the car window began to dissipate.

Chen Ye stood up.

"Walk."

He was the first to step out of the car.

Zhao Hai followed closely behind.

Wen Ning, Zhou Yating, and Qin Zhaoyang followed in turn.

The system panel popped up automatically the moment the five people stepped out of the car.

[Survival Trial Begins!]

[Trial Setting: Blood Mist Forest]

[Trial Difficulty: ★★]

[Kill Points: 0]

Survival Points: 0

[Trial Quest: Obtain the Tree God's Blessing (Incomplete)]

[Mission Hint: There is a chance to receive the Tree God's blessing by cutting down trees in the forest. Passengers who do not receive the Tree God's blessing after the trial will be eliminated by the rules.]

Countdown: 71:59:59

Chen Ye's gaze swept across the panel. This survival trial was still at a two-star difficulty. There was no limit to the number of missions in this trial, nor was it mentioned that killing a passenger with a blessing would inherit that passenger's blessing.

Compared to the Survival Mark quest in Mirror City, this quest is quite friendly.

Chen Ye then closed the panel and looked ahead.

This trial is no longer set in a city; the so-called station is just an open space with dark green moss growing along its edges and unknown vines sprouting from the cracks.

The clearing was surrounded by an endless primeval forest, with ancient trees reaching for the sky. Their roots rose from the soil, intertwining and forming natural steps and ravines. A faint blood-red mist permeated the forest.

"This trial mission is really bizarre. Cutting down trees is destroying the forest, right? And you can get the blessing of the tree god by destroying the forest? Is this tree god an idiot?"

Qin Zhaoyang was still staring at the blue light screen in front of him, muttering to himself.

"Looks like we'll have to become Bald Qiang this time."

Wen Ning said, looking up at the towering tree in front of her.

Zhao Hai didn't speak. He clenched his tiger-finger fist on his hand. He wasn't much of a talker to begin with, but he became even more so after the deaths of Wang Shuo and Li Zheng.

Passengers in the eight carriages gradually disembarked.

More and more people gathered in the open space. Some were talking in hushed tones, some were checking their weapons, and some were looking up at the thick, giant trees. No one dared to venture into the forest.

Chen Ye's gaze swept across the crowd, and on the other side of the open space, he saw Su Jin, who was already surrounded by quite a few people.

Su Jin stood at the front of the crowd. Her gaze swept across the scattered people and precisely found Chen Ye's direction. Then she nodded slightly.

Chen Ye called to Zhao Hai, Wen Ning, and the others, and they moved towards Su Jin's direction.

Gu Qinghuan, Lei Xing, Jiang Ning, Wang Ze, and others also walked towards Su Jin.

Seeing that most of the people had gathered, Su Jin took two steps forward.

"Everyone, those below level 10 can join us in this trial, but there's one condition: you must obey our commands. If anyone is unwilling to obey, you can leave now; we will not force you."

As soon as she finished speaking, a murmur arose from the crowd.

Some people were nodding, some were exchanging glances with those around them, and some were frowning as if weighing their options.

A few seconds later, a man in a light yellow hoodie looked up from the crowd, his voice tinged with obvious doubt: "Following orders is fine, but you're not going to use us low-ranking people as cannon fodder, are you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, those around who were still hesitating immediately perked up their ears.

This is indeed their biggest concern.

The fact that people at the top of the rankings suddenly formed a group to protect them felt too good to be true.

In this deadly game, no one will act as a saint for no reason. If they are just used as bait and expendable resources, then it's better to take the plunge yourself.

Lei Xing crossed his arms and sneered, "You're overthinking it. We're here to protect you precisely because we don't want you to die too quickly. If you all die, the train will trigger the merge mechanism again. We don't want any overly high-ranking passengers on the merged train, understand? Why do you think we're doing this thankless task?"

The man in the light yellow hoodie opened his mouth, glanced at Lei Xing, then at Su Jin, Chen Ye, and Li Tianran, but ultimately said nothing more, simply nodding and swallowing his doubts.

But then someone else spoke up.

This time it was a short-haired woman, not very old, but her dissatisfaction was quite direct: "If we go with you, it'll be very difficult for us to get points. You kill monsters so quickly and fiercely, we can only watch from behind. How are we supposed to level up?"

Her words elicited various reactions from the passengers in the crowd who had already reached level 10.

Some nodded slightly, while others lowered their heads and remained silent.

Su Jin's gaze swept across their faces, and just as she was about to respond, Li Tianran spoke first: "Whether you choose to live peacefully or risk your life to gain more points, it's your choice. We're not forcing you to follow the main group. You can't have someone protecting you and also want the most kill resources. Isn't that wanting both?"

The short-haired woman's lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to refute, but when she met Li Tianran's calm eyes, she ultimately said nothing.

She pursed her lips and took a half step back.

Seeing that no one was speaking, Su Jin gave a final summary: "I'll say it again: those who want to stay with the group must obey orders; those who want to act alone, I won't force them. The choice is yours."

After saying that, she said no more and stepped back to the front of the group, giving everyone time to think.