Weird Game: I brought an old version bug

The golden light faded from Jiang Chen's body, and the upgraded warmth circulated through his limbs and bones, leaving behind an indescribable feeling of comfort.

【Lv.2】

[Gained new skill: Scouting (Lv.1)]

[Reconnaissance: A basic reconnaissance skill that allows you to view basic information about a target.]

He opened the panel and glanced at his attributes.

[Player: Jiang Chen]

[Rank: Lv.2]

[HP: 120/120]

[Mana Points: 60/60]

Stamina: 100/115

[Attributes: Strength 10, Agility 10, Constitution 10, Spirit 10]

Free attribute points: 5

[Skill: Scouting (Lv.1)]

[Equipment: Beginner Cloth Armor (White), Stone Hammer (White, Crafted)]

[Backpack: 3 rabbit pelts, 2 rabbit teeth, 50 copper coins, 1 unnamed rule fragment]

He hasn't allocated his five free attribute points yet. Based on general game testing experience, attribute points shouldn't be allocated randomly.

First, you need to figure out whether the game's combat logic is more physical or skill-based, and what the benefit curves of the four main attributes are. Blindly adding points is like digging your own grave.

He closed the control panel and took out his beginner cloth armor from his backpack. The drab linen coat was better than nothing, so he put it on.

The defense level went from 0 to 5, which is better than nothing.

He glanced at the fragments of rules again.

[Rule Fragment - Unnamed]

[Status: Bound, Not Resolved]

[Effect: Can be used to add the "Ignore Environmental Restrictions" attribute to a skill]

[Usage Requirements: Must be activated after acquiring the skill]

He instinctively wanted to click "confirm activation," but his finger hovered above the panel and then stopped.

There's only one fragment, it would be a waste to use it on reconnaissance, what if I get a better skill later?

Jiang Chen stood up and stretched his muscles.

As dusk fell, the golden halo over the grassland shimmered warmly in the setting sun. Half the players were gone from the safe zone; some had gone out to hunt rabbits, while others had disappeared.

The old NPC in the wooden house was gone, but the campfire was still burning, its light illuminating a radius of several meters around it.

He was about to find a place to rest when he suddenly noticed a strange phenomenon.

To the northeast of the starting village, there is an area marked in dark red on the map.

[High-level danger zone (recommended to explore after level 15)]

Everyone walked around it, but one figure stood at the edge of the area, drawing his bow and releasing his arrow with fluid, graceful movements.

Before a gray wolf, twice the size of a mutated hare, could even get close, it was struck in the neck by an arrow, fell to the ground, twitched twice, and lay still.

[Slayed: Grassland Gray Wolf (Lv.8)]

Experience points gained: +45

[Dropped Items: Gray Wolf Hide x1, Copper Coins x12]

Jiang Chen narrowed his eyes.

A level 1 player going to a level 8 map should theoretically die from a single hit from a monster, but that person fought very easily. It wasn't because her level was high, but because the monsters didn't attack her at all.

The gray wolf roamed near her, raised its head to sniff the air, and then turned and walked away, only engaging in combat when she initiated an arrow shot.

That's not right.

All players should have the same aggro range; there should be no exceptions.

Unless, the system determines her identity differently than that of ordinary players.

Jiang Chen stuffed the last bite of bread into his mouth, clapped his hands, and walked in that direction.

The closer you get to the edge of the danger zone, the fewer players there are around.

For the last stretch of road, the grass was already waist-high, and the sky was darkening. Only the corpse of the gray wolf in the distance could be faintly seen.

She stopped what she was doing and didn't turn around.

"You're the one who tries to hunt rabbits with torches."

It's not a question, it's a statement.

How did you know?

"The starting village is only so big, everyone can see it."

She turned around.

A young woman in her early twenties, with long black hair tied in a single ponytail. She wore the same beginner cloth armor as Jiang Chen, and carried a basic bow and arrows, exactly the same as the ones sold by the NPC old man.

But her eyes were different; they weren't filled with panic or confusion, but rather with a calm scrutiny, as if she had known all along that something was wrong with the game and was just waiting for someone else to notice first.

"What are you doing here?" Jiang Chen asked.

"Leveling up by defeating monsters".

"This area is marked as level 8 monster zone; the highest level monsters around the starting village are only level 3."

"I know."

"Aren't you afraid of dying?"

She paused for two seconds, then said something that made Jiang Chen completely uneasy: "This is clearly the best spot to grind monsters in the starting village. Aren't you guys coming?"

you.

Jiang Chen's mind was on high alert.

When she said "you," it was as if she was tacitly agreeing that this place should be common knowledge for everyone.

But in reality, not a single player approached this area. The system map indicated "Recommended to explore after level 15," and everyone who saw this warning avoided it.

"What's your name?"

"Shigure".

"I'm Jiang Chen." He paused, "I have a question—do you think this game is normal?"

Shiyu put down her bow and turned to look at him.

It wasn't an expression of being offended, nor was it one of being frightened; it was one of relief, as if someone had finally asked the question she had been waiting for.

"Something's not right," she said, her voice soft but certain. "This game has been abnormal from the very beginning."

"When did you find out?"

"From the moment I entered," Shi Yu pointed to the west side of the beginner village, "the system marked that area as an 'unopened area,' saying there would be invisible walls. But when I went there, there were no walls."

Jiang Chen paused for a moment.

"Did you go through it?"

"Once you get through, that area is full of high-level monsters, but their aggro range is much smaller than what's written in the system documentation. As long as you don't get too close, you can go around them to farm experience. That's how I leveled up to level 5."

She paused, then added, "Some of the map information provided by the system is incorrect. It's not a typo; it's intentionally written incorrectly."

Jiang Chen activated his reconnaissance skill and glanced at Shi Yu's attributes, although he could only see basic information.

【Shigure - Lv.5】

[Class: Marksman (Not Updated)]

[HP: 280/280]

[Skills: Precision Shot (Lv.2), Eagle Eye (Lv.1)]

Level 5, 280 HP, two skills.

He barely reached level 2 after killing over a dozen rabbits since he came in, while she was already level 5. It wasn't that she was more efficient; it was that she didn't follow the normal route in the beginner village at all.

Jiang Chen noticed that her profession column showed "Archer (Not Updated)," which matched the profession assessment prompt he saw in his own panel.

The system has labeled her as an "archer," so her skill UI displays her as archery-related. He hasn't confirmed it yet, so her class is still listed as "unassigned."

He thought about it and realized that the tags might just be different UI display styles and wouldn't affect the underlying capabilities, but the Shigure tag seemed to have allowed her to see something that others couldn't.

He glanced at her skills again. She had two skills at level 5. The first skill was unlocked at level 2, and the second skill was unlocked around level 4. This pace was basically in line with the upgrade and unlock pattern he had previously predicted.

"You haven't followed the system's recommended route since you came in?"

"The system's recommended route is too inefficient," Shi Yu said. "It's guiding everyone in the same direction. But I don't think that direction is right."

Jiang Chen remained silent for a few seconds, then re-examined the person in front of him.

It wasn't because of her high rank or her keen insight, but because she and he shared a fundamental similarity—a natural distrust of the information provided by the system.

"The first instance is about to open," Jiang Chen said.

"I know." Shi Yu nodded. "'Forgotten Mine,' recommended level 5, suggested 5-person team."

She paused for a moment, then said, "But after reading the announcement twice, I felt that a few sentences were not quite right."

"What did you say?"

Shi Yu didn't answer directly. She drew her bow, aimed at a lone gray wolf in the distance, narrowed her eyes, and released her grip.

The arrow pierced the air and struck the gray wolf precisely in the neck.

[Slayed: Grassland Gray Wolf (Lv.8)]

Experience points gained: +45

[Dropped Item: Gray Wolf Tooth x1]

She put down her bow, turned to look at Jiang Chen, her eyes reflecting the distant campfire light.

"The mine opens tomorrow morning. If you trust me, team up with me."

"OK."

She nodded and turned to walk towards the pack of gray wolves.

She took a few steps and then stopped.

"By the way, the system announcement says, 'There is methane gas in some areas of the mine, please do not use fire skills.' But there is an area on Route B that is marked as a collapse zone, and the system says there is 'no methane risk' there."

She didn't turn around.

"There's something illogical about putting these two pieces of information together."

She left after she finished speaking.

Jiang Chen stood there, his mind racing.

Gas, fire-based skills, collapse zone, no gas risk.

The system states that Route A is the recommended route; monsters are densely packed, but the path is clear. The system also states that there is gas inside the mine, and fire-based skills are prohibited.

However, Route A passes through an area called an abandoned blasting zone. Would a place that has been blasted with explosives contain methane gas?

The blasting would consume oxygen, so methane wouldn't accumulate. Route B, marked as a "high-risk collapse zone," is described by the system as having "no gas risk."

The absence of gas risk means that the air in that area is either circulating or was once completely sealed off.

If a sealed space deep within Route B was opened after the collapse...

What's sealed inside might be more dangerous than gas.

However, the system did not warn that "Route B is dangerous"; it only said "Collapse zone, not recommended to take this route".

It's like deliberately guiding everyone away from looking that way.

Jiang Chen opened the panel and glanced at his level; he was still 3 levels below the recommended level for the dungeon. He looked at the gray wolves in the distance, then at the torch and stone hammer in his inventory.

He needs an upgrade.

He walked toward the pack of gray wolves, torch in his left hand and stone hammer in his right.

The first gray wolf noticed him, lowered its body, and let out a low whimper.

Jiang Chen held the torch forward, and the gray wolf took a half step back, but it was not as afraid as the mutated rabbit. The gray wolf was obviously more resistant to fire.

He had no choice but to fight head-on.

The gray wolf pounced, but he dodged to the side, and the stone hammer struck its side.

The gray wolf let out a painful howl, turned around and bit his arm, tearing a gash in the novice's cloth armor, from which blood seeped out.

Health Points: 120 → 98

He gritted his teeth and smashed the hammer down on the gray wolf's head again.

The gray wolf swayed and fell to the ground.

[Slayed: Grassland Gray Wolf (Lv.8)]

Experience points gained: +45

[Dropped Item: Gray Wolf Fur x1]

He was panting heavily when he glanced at his experience bar—he was still halfway from Lv.2 to Lv.3.

Not enough. He needs more experience.

He glanced into the distance; Shiyu was still grinding monsters, and she was moving much faster than him.

Drawing the bow, releasing the arrow, and moving—all in one smooth motion.

The gray wolf couldn't even get close to her before it was pinned to the ground by arrows.

This is the difference between level 5 and level 2.

Jiang Chen was not discouraged and continued to swat, one, two, three.

The wound on his arm was bleeding, and his stamina was dropping, but he didn't stop.

He needs to reach level 3 before dark, otherwise he won't even be qualified to be cannon fodder in the dungeon tomorrow.

When the fourth gray wolf fell, he had an extra wound, but his experience bar was finally full.

Congratulations! You have upgraded to Lv.3

Health Points: 120 → 140

[Mana Points: 60 → 70]

Stamina: 115 → 130

[Gained 5 free attribute points]

He leaned against the stone wall, panting heavily.

He has accumulated 10 free attribute points, but he hasn't added them yet. He needs to determine his fighting style first.

He opened the panel and glanced at the skill bar—Reconnaissance (Lv.1).

There are no new skills, no job prompts, and the system says the labels will be updated at level 10. He's only level 3 now, so there's still a long way to go.

But he has something that others don't.

[Rule Fragments]

Inside the backpack, the translucent, pale gold crystal fragment floated, with a faint flow of light on its surface.

He glanced at the fragment's status—[Bound, Not Parsed].

He needed to figure out where to use it, but there was only one fragment, and using it on reconnaissance would be too wasteful.

He turned off the control panel and glanced at the sky. The sun had completely set, leaving only the glow of the campfire and a few scattered torches in the distance on the grassland.

A cacophony of voices drifted from the direction of the starting village. Some were discussing tomorrow's dungeon, some were forming groups, and some were trading equipment.

As he passed the training area in front of the cabin, he found it even more lively than during the day. Several players were gathered around the strength testing area, working together to move a large rock. An old NPC was gesturing nearby, as if teaching them how to use skillful force.

Several of the grass targets had already been shot through, and a player carrying a bow was squatting on the ground collecting the arrows.

Another player was squatting in front of a pile of ore on the side of the wooden house, putting pieces of ore into his backpack one by one.

That's a gathering quest, given out by the old NPC during the day. You can get a considerable amount of experience for every ten pieces of ore you hand in.

Jiang Chen glanced at it and got a general idea. There were more things to do in the beginner village than just hunting rabbits—gathering, training, and public quests—every path offered experience points.

Those who leveled up to level 4 or 5 in one night probably didn't just grind monsters; they probably ran through all the different storylines, and the experience gained from those quests accumulated much faster than solo grinding.

He stood up, dusted himself off, and walked back to the safe zone.

At the door of the wooden house, he saw Shigure.

She has returned and is sitting on the steps wiping the bowstring.

Upon seeing Jiang Chen, she looked him up and down. His clothes were torn in three places, and his arm was wrapped with a makeshift bandage.

"You went to fight the gray wolves?"

"Um."

"How many levels did you advance?"

"Lv.3".

Shi Yu nodded without saying anything more.

After wiping the bowstring, she stood up and dusted off her skirt.

"See you at the dungeon entrance at 7:00 AM tomorrow."

"Seven o'clock? The system announcement said it would open at eight o'clock."

"I know." Shi Yu turned around, her back to him, "but I'm used to arriving an hour early."

She took two steps, paused, and didn't turn around.

"I've tried your method of using a torch to hit a rabbit."

"Will it work?"

"It worked," she said. "More useful than I expected."

She finished speaking and left, disappearing into the twilight.