A bizarre and terrifying experience; I messed up the dungeon world.

Zhao Qiang stared at the ring on his hand: "You're married?"

"Yes, my wife is waiting for me outside." Lu Ting touched his ring, his tone casual. "So I have to get out of here alive."

Everyone present could tell how weighty those words were.

-

What followed was both rapid and fraught with difficulties.

The entry requirements for the guild competition have been released: each member must complete at least three SS-level dungeons or possess special qualifications recognized by the system.

Zhou Lang, Han Yingying, and Shutu—all three have special qualifications and do not need to run dungeons anymore.

Zhao Qiang, Xiong Batian, and Lu Ting—are far from it. They each still need to complete three SS-level dungeons.

"Then let's fight." Although Zhao Qiang's mouth was trembling, he didn't say he was backing out.

"We'll be with you." Zhou Lang started the matchmaking process.

The system popped up a line of red text:

[You have qualified for the Guild Tournament. You will not be able to enter regular dungeons during the competition.]

Han Yingying tried it too. Same result.

I tried a different approach—his interface worked perfectly.

Of the three qualified people, only Zhou Lang and Han Yingying were selected.

Zhao Qiang: "Why not restrict different paths?"

Shutu shook his head: "That doesn't make sense. I'm qualified just like you, there's no reason for me to be treated differently."

Zhou Lang stared at the line of red text for a long time before closing the interface.

"The rules are targeting both of us," he said.

Han Yingying understood perfectly well. Only the system itself—or rather, something behind the system—could make such precise restrictions. She had a vague guess, but dared not delve deeper into it.

"Change the plan." Zhou Lang looked around. "Zhao Qiang, Xiong Batian, and Lu Ting, the three of you will team up to run the dungeon. Shu Tu will lead the team."

"Just the four of us?" Zhao Qiang's voice was weak.

"Shutu's puzzle-solving abilities are strong enough, Lu Ting can handle it, Xiong Batian can provide the output, you're in charge of using your brain." Zhou Lang counted on his fingers, "Which one isn't enough?"

Zhao Qiang opened his mouth, but couldn't find any fault with it.

"Then what are you two doing?" Xiong Batian asked.

"We'll wait for you guys to come back." Zhou Lang leaned back in his chair. "We'll also take the opportunity to study the information on the SSS-level dungeon."

-

Over the next week, Shutu led the three of them through two consecutive SS-level dungeons.

The first instance was a funeral home-themed dungeon, where Xiong Batian was almost dragged into the incinerator by a "living corpse." Fortunately, Lu Ting reacted quickly, swinging an iron rod and striking the corpse three times before finally dislodging it. Zhao Qiang remained huddled behind the morgue the entire time, but his unusually clear mind amidst fear became the team's information hub—he was the first to notice which path was a dead end, which door couldn't be opened, and which corpse's eyeballs were moving.

"Your observation skills double when you're scared, right?" Xiong Batian said afterward.

"That's called the survival instinct," Zhao Qiang said righteously.

The second one was about an abandoned school. Shutu's puzzle-solving skills were incredibly useful in this kind of dungeon—he cleared it in thirty-six hours, and everyone escaped safely. Even Xiong Batian started to change his opinion of him, though he still wouldn't say anything nice.

The third SS dungeon run was fraught with difficulties, and all four members sustained injuries to varying degrees, but they eventually managed to crawl out. After clearing the dungeon, Zhao Qiang collapsed onto the lobby floor and refused to get up, declaring, "I'd rather die than be a gamer in my next life."

All six members of the team met the standard.

X Guild, participant list confirmed.

-

Meanwhile, the real world is becoming increasingly unstable.

News notifications from the real world pop up intermittently in the game lobby. A large-scale "paranormal event" has occurred in a certain city, leading to the lockdown of multiple areas and widespread panic among the public. There are even more outrageous reports—some people have filmed semi-transparent figures moving through traffic on highways, and others have had hair growing on their ceilings for a month straight.

The strange occurrence is accelerating.

Zhou Lang closed the news page and exchanged a glance with Han Yingying. Without needing to say it aloud, they both knew: they had to clear the SSS-level dungeon as soon as possible, no matter what was inside.

-

The union competition has begun.

Sixteen guilds compete in an elimination format. Each match takes place in an independent space—with towns, wilderness, and floating islands at sea—and the terrain is randomly generated. The losing side is forced to withdraw but does not die; the winning side continues to advance.

The first two rounds were relatively easy. The opponent in the first round was a small guild that had only been established for two months. Although there were quite a few people, their teamwork was terrible. Zhou Lang charged in from the front alone with a chainsaw, and the opponent lost three people immediately.

The second round was a bit tougher. The opponent had an assassin-type player who was good at hiding. Zhou Lang used the oil lamp to sweep around and forced the person out—green light can't expose ghosts, but it can make shadows nowhere to hide.

After entering the quarterfinals, the atmosphere suddenly changed.

In the third round, the opposing guild was the second guild – "Iron Curtain".

Iron Curtain ranks second in the game, and its leader is called "Iron Face." Their strategy is simple and brutal: more people, more money, and more items. They don't follow rules or strategies; they rely purely on overwhelming resources to crush their opponents.

The competition venue was a partially collapsed ancient city. There was only one rule: the team with the most survivors at the end wins.

Within the first ten minutes, the Iron Curtain's tactics were exposed.

The six of them concentrated their firepower in one direction—Han Yingying.

"They're targeting you!" Shutu shouted over the communication channel.

Han Yingying's identity was never publicly announced, but her use of high-level privileges to bring people into the guild couldn't be kept secret. The Iron Curtain Guild had clearly investigated her—treating her as a core member of their team.

Once the core is eliminated, the rest will scatter.

The logic is good. It's just that the wrong object is being used.

In the chaos of battle, one of the assassins from the Iron Curtain circled behind Han Yingying. His dagger was already raised, aimed at the back of her neck.

Lu Ting was the first to react.

He lunged from the flank, landing horizontally behind Han Yingying. The dagger pierced his left ribs, the sound of metal cutting into flesh dull and brief.

The assassin was swept away by Zhou Lang's chainsaw as he followed closely behind.

Lu Ting collapsed to his knees. Blood seeped from between his fingers, which were clutching his ribs. The competition space was different from a normal instance—all damage was real.

Han Yingying rushed over.

"Old Lu!"

The color drained from his face quickly. His lips moved slightly, but the sounds he made were already very soft.

"My wife's name is Su Wan... her contact information is in the union system..."

He grabbed Han Yingying's sleeve, but his strength was already very weak.

"Take care of her for me. Tell her... I haven't let her down."

My grip loosened.

The entire battlefield fell silent for three seconds.

Then Zhou Lang made a move.

He picked up the chainsaw and charged at the remaining five men behind the Iron Curtain. An oil lamp, its green light flickering, was tucked into his belt. His face was expressionless—a detached calm more chilling than any rage.

Zhao Qiang, Xiong Batian, and Shu Tu followed.

The Iron Curtain was completely destroyed. It took less than three minutes.

After the match, Han Yingying sat in the rest area for a long time. She clutched a silver ring in her hand—the one Lu Ting had insisted on giving her at the last minute.

Zhou Lang walked over and stood beside her. There were no empty words of comfort.

"I will remember his story with you."

Han Yingying put the ring away and stood up.