Pre-death assessment

After everyone dies, they are put to the test in this space.

However, if you die in the assessment space after arriving there...

There is a very high probability that you will become a hunter!

Because everyone is naturally unwilling to die.

If they discover there is still a chance to be resurrected and return to the present world, they will definitely seize that opportunity.

Unfortunately, they didn't realize that this so-called opportunity was simply being turned into a predator.

Of course, they had no idea that their memories would be erased and that they would be controlled by a program.

All hunters were indeed, in the very beginning, human beings.

So, when everyone is hunting down the hunters...

It is highly likely that the hunter he killed was... a former relative.

It could be your former lover, parents, or children.

"If you die in the present world, you will come to the pre-death assessment space."

Ling Wu then slowly said, "And if you die in the pre-death assessment space, you will become a hunter."

Ultimately, the vast majority of people will eventually become hunters.

"So it's hard to say... among the hunters you killed were people you used to know, or even relatives who had long since passed away."

For example, elderly relatives who have passed away, or your ancestors.

For example, Lei Yun also kills hunters here, but who knows, one of the high-level hunters... might actually be her dead brother.

"Damn! So... who knows, we might have killed our own great-grandfather or ancestor?"

Zhao Yu frowned deeply.

It's possible that one's ancestors became hunters in the pre-death assessment space hundreds of years ago.

Then, after arriving here, he killed the hunter.

It is indeed possible that one has killed one's own ancestor.

After all, who knows when these hunters first appeared in this second layer?

It might have existed hundreds or thousands of years ago.

"This is indeed... very cruel..."

Li Qingxue frowned, and her voice lowered.

Those hunters all struggled in this pre-death assessment space before finally dying.

Then he became a hunter.

As a result... even after becoming a hunter, one still gets killed.

Either be killed, or kill someone.

Indeed, it's impossible to avoid what Ling Wu said... It's either you die or I die!

And in order to complete the game, they killed so many people... whose memories had been erased and who were trapped in despair.

"No wonder you didn't tell us beforehand."

Liu Ruyan took a deep breath: "If everyone knew that every hunter was once a living person, I'm afraid they really wouldn't be able to bring themselves to do it."

If we had known earlier that all the hunters were human, who would have killed so recklessly?

Even though they only found out about it afterward, Li Qingxue and the others couldn't help but feel guilty.

Most importantly, this sense of guilt is beyond redemption.

There's nothing you can do but accept the reality that you've killed so many people.

"After death, you will become a hunter and serve Death."

Ling Wu then shook his head and said, "After becoming a hunter, whether you kill for Death or die at someone else's hands, it's all for Death's benefit."

"This is truly... squeezing every last drop of value out of everyone!"

The more people die, the better it is for Death.

The hunter can barely recover a moment of memory before dying.

Then, in that instant, there is repentance and pain—emotions that death needs.

It is true that only after every bit of value has been completely squeezed dry can one achieve true liberation.

"If you die in the assessment space in the future, and some strange power wants to make a deal with you, never agree to it."

Ling Wu continued, "Once you agree, you'll become a hunter."

"Your souls will become these steel bodies, your memories will disappear, and you will become machines that only think about hunting down ability users."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded emphatically.

If I really die one day, then I'll just die.

Don't let death take advantage of you after you're already dead, and let it harm others.

"No, you said you'd let us all leave alive, why are you saying this now?"

Li Qingxue frowned, realizing the problem.

"I wouldn't dare say I'm 100% sure."

Ling Wu simply smiled: "If you suddenly become disobedient one day, of course I can't guarantee anything."

"We will definitely follow your orders!"

Everyone spoke with great emphasis.

Ling Wu was their biggest backer.

No matter what, they were determined to cling to Ling Wu and leave this place.

"Then why would novice and intermediate hunters attack advanced hunters?"

At this point, Liu Ruyan asked another question.

"Because after becoming a hunter, in order to level up, you have to kill hunters of a higher level than yourself."

Ling Wu slowly said, "A beginner can kill an intermediate or advanced level, but if an advanced level appears first, then the best target will be the advanced level."

This is the hunter's path to advancement; in the hunter's program, advancement takes precedence over everything else.

Therefore, when a hunter of a higher level appears, all hunters' primary goal will be to kill the highest-level hunter first.

The Hunter's path to advancement has the highest priority program, which even the twelve Overlords cannot rewrite.

Therefore, hunters of different levels generally do not appear at the same time.

Once they appear, no one can stop them from killing each other.

"Who set this up?" Li Ming asked curiously.

"Little BOSS," Ling Wu replied.

Li Ming and the others were immediately curious. What kind of mini-boss?

Aren't those twelve rulers just mini-bosses in the pre-death assessment space?

Didn't Ling Wu say that the second to eighth levels had nothing to do with those twelve rulers?

Could it be... that there is something else?

"Take a good rest for a few days first."

Ling Wu then stood up, carrying his beer, and walked towards the room: "In this second level, there's one last battle!"

Everyone looked confused upon hearing this.

What does it mean to have one last battle?

Isn't it all over?

Haven't we all met the requirements for clearing the level?

If you want to go to the third level, you can do so anytime now!

Does he really intend to help Lei Zhenyu complete the challenge before leaving?

"It seems... he and Lei Yun do have a pretty good relationship."

Li Ming said with a smile, "Otherwise, why would I risk my life to help her brother?"

This is indeed risky, after all, who knows how strong a hidden boss really is?

Upon hearing this, Jiang Luo, who was standing next to him, immediately became unhappy.

"What do you mean 'pretty good'? I think they're just ordinary friends at most."

She quickly replied, "If a friend needs help, of course we should help them, shouldn't we?"

"What if they're not just ordinary friends?"

Li Ming then laughed and said, "After all, you have no idea what happened to them in the pre-death assessment space before."

"I……"

Jiang Luo immediately pouted, "Anyway, he's my brother-in-law, no one else can have him!"

She genuinely didn't know if there was any special relationship between Ling Wu and Lei Yun.

After all, Ling Wu had even gone to see Lei Yun alone late at night before.

However, she will do everything in her power to protect her brother-in-law's innocence.

No one else can take her brother-in-law away.

One's brother-in-law is either one's sister's or one's own.

Either it's shared by myself and my sister.

Don't even think about it, everyone else!

……

Everyone in the second level of the pre-death assessment space now knows that the giant bell can be rung during the hunt.

So the next day, some people wanted to imitate Ling Wu's actions.

Because once hunters of different levels appear, they will kill each other.

This gives everyone more opportunities to take advantage of the chaos, kill more hunters, and complete the level.

Unfortunately, after everyone had tried it out during the hunt...

But they discovered that the giant bell could not be rung.

No matter whether they bombarded it with cannons or something else, the giant purple-gold-red bell remained completely unresponsive.

Everyone was immediately dumbfounded.

How did Ling Wu manage to do that yesterday?

Why can't it work today?

Does that mean something can only be done once?

Seeing that everyone's attempts had failed, Ling Wu had no choice but to tell them that only touching the giant bell could ring it...

Upon learning this, everyone suddenly understood.

Then those who possessed the ability to fly soared towards the giant bell.

Then... the giant bell was struck!

Adding another hunting moment to the existing hunting moment creates the ultimate hunting moment.

Sure enough, just like yesterday, when both novice and intermediate hunters appeared at the same time, the novice hunters would pounce on the intermediate hunters.

When advanced hunters also appear, the junior and intermediate hunters will stop fighting amongst themselves and turn their attention to the advanced hunters.

Everyone was caught in the chaos, constantly trying to pick off enemies and kill the hunters.

The second level of the assessment space instantly became just as chaotic as yesterday.

Now, everyone is working incredibly hard, as if they've suddenly found a special way to beat a game...

……

Above Ling Wu and the others' base.

If you take the elevator up, there is an observation deck.

At this moment, Li Qingxue stood on the observation platform, looking at the chaotic second level of the assessment space from afar.

Watching the hunters kill each other, and watching people reap the benefits everywhere.

The hunter is unaware that it is human, nor does it know that the high-level hunter it wants to kill is human.

Those who are killing the hunters are unaware that the hunters are actually human beings, and may even be their own family or loved ones.

This is hell!

Everyone is nothing more than a pitiful cricket in a jar, killing each other in different ways.

Little did they know that their infighting was exactly what others wanted...

How pitiful and pathetic!

"If one day in the future we leave this pre-death assessment space and return to the present world alive..."

Li Qingxue sighed softly, then said, "Tell me, are we heroes... or sinners?"