Chapter 11
Chapter 11: Walking into Despair
Long Ming gave the red-spotted giant lizard an extra, steady look, then turned and sprinted. [First time seeing a giant lizard this big, and those red bumps make it look anything but natural.] With no firearms, there was no chance to beat it.
A player at the back suddenly cried out: “Help!”
Long Ming glanced over his shoulder and saw the lizard closing fast, jaws wide and rows of sharp fangs on display, as it pounced on the straggler and knocked him flat.
“Run!” people shouted as they saw it, and they ran for their lives.
A chill rose in Long Ming’s chest. He pushed harder and sped ahead, passing player after player.
More screams rang out as the lizard caught up to those behind. Even knowing it was a game, those raw, desperate cries made everyone’s skin crawl.
Then Gu Yi, running a little ahead of Long Ming, stepped into nothing. His left foot sank into quicksand and his whole body tilted down. He yelled to his companion: “Chen Wei, help me!”
A tall, skinny man about 1.8 meters with a scar on his chin skidded to a stop, grabbed Gu Yi’s hand, and tried to yank him out. But as Chen Wei pulled, his own foot sank, and with no solid footing he could barely exert strength. He almost got dragged in too.
“Dang it, get over here and help!” Chen Wei shouted to a few players they had just teamed up with.
But those players were already scared out of their minds. They just ran.
Seeing Chen Wei about to be pulled under, Gu Yi said urgently: “Chen Wei, let go!”
“Like heck. I’m not ditching you. If we die, we die together!” Chen Wei refused to release his grip, and both of them sank a little deeper.
Long Ming was surprised by the scene. [Didn’t expect these two to be this loyal.]
Just when they thought they were done for, an iron chain suddenly whipped down in front of them. Gu Yi froze for a beat, then grabbed it. Long Ming and Chen Wei hauled together with a sharp pull and yanked Gu Yi free.
Long Ming did not stop after the rescue. He kept running. Chen Wei and Gu Yi scrambled up and sprinted after him.
Moments later, they finally shook off the red-spotted giant lizard. Everyone stumbled forward, out of breath. The group that had been around a hundred strong was down to a few dozen, and the rest had scattered.
Gu Yi and Chen Wei came up beside Long Ming and said: “Thanks, bro!”
Long Ming ignored them and kept walking.
They followed, confused, and asked: “bro, we’re thanking you, why not answer?”
Long Ming replied without slowing: “What for? Better to save my strength and keep moving.”
Gu Yi tried to reason with him: “bro, my name’s Gu Yi, this is my bro Chen Wei. What should we call you?”
Long Ming answered coolly: “Number NO.841221.”
Gu Yi’s mouth twitched, and he tried again with a smile: “Don’t you want to change your name, or tell us your real one?”
Long Ming shot him a glance and stayed silent.
They didn’t give up and stuck close. Other players, though exhausted, saw Long Ming still moving and forced themselves to follow.
Time slipped by, and evening came. The burning heat began to fade. Long Ming grew more uneasy. [With air this dry, the temperature at night might drop below zero.] The endless walk felt hopeless.
Gu Yi and the others were seeing stars from exhaustion. They slumped on a dune. Someone complained: “I’m done. Even survival shows aren’t this harsh.”
Another groaned: “Yeah, I’m finished. Just let me die.”
Long Ming also couldn’t take another step. He flopped onto the sand and panted. Gu Yi and Chen Wei grumbled toward him: “What kind of junk game is this? Did we come in here just to suffer?” “I can’t even tell if we’re playing the game or the game is playing us.”
Long Ming didn’t answer for a long time.
Gu Yi finally asked: “bro, why aren’t you talking? Do you just hate talking that much?”
Long Ming cracked his dry lips and said testily: “Talk about what? I’m insanely thirsty. Aren’t you?”
They admitted right away: “Thirsty.”
He snapped back: “Then shut up. Don’t go on and on next to me. If you have to, lie down farther away.”
He stared at the stars slowly coming out and felt low. [I came in excited, thinking that with my talent I’d at least make some money to get by. I never expected the game to be like this. If we don’t find something soon and just keep doing wilderness survival, I might as well start begging.]
Seconds crawled by, and the temperature kept dropping. Sleepiness dragged at his eyelids. [If I close them now, there’s a good chance I won’t wake up.]
Just then, the sand and gravel under them began to tremble.
“Something’s wrong, heads up!” Long Ming’s eyes flew open and he sounded the warning.
Everyone jumped to their feet and stared around, afraid something would crawl out of the ground. Nothing showed. As confusion spread, Gu Yi suddenly gaped and shouted: “Look, out there!”
They scrambled up the dune and looked to the horizon. In the distance, a giant shape studded with points of light was moving, letting out a deep roar now and then.
“What is that?”
“No idea!”
The players were stunned. Long Ming’s expression shifted, and he ran toward the moving giant. Gu Yi and the others followed.
As they drew closer, the shape grew clear: it was a battered mobile fortress made of black metal. On top stood a cluster of connected steel buildings. Turrets lined the outer edge, and metal chimneys belched black smoke. At the base, special giant treads churned through the sand. The whole mobile fortress was scarred by damage, with gaps and broken sections everywhere.