The young player’s attention was fixed on the burly man. Seeing him stop, the man in the seat lifted his hat and said feebly, “I’m injured. Find another seat.”

Under normal circumstances, the burly man wouldn’t have let it go, even if only to save face after being caught bare-assed. But after hearing the man’s words, he gave an awkward chuckle. “Well, since you’re sick, that’s fair.”

Then he picked an empty seat and sat down.

The bus settled back into calm, and the passengers all shifted their gazes away in unison. Some slept, some watched TV, and two elderly aunties cheerfully coaxed a child.

The music, snoring, and crying children made Xu Huo’s head feel like it was about to explode. He pressed his hat against his face, veins bulging and throbbing at his temples.

He’d still fallen for it during his trip to Country Y. After boarding the train, he’d discovered his arm was injured. The damage started as subcutaneous decay on his right forearm, spreading until the skin broke open. When he cut it open with a knife, the rot had already reached the bone.

The healing potion and antidote hadn’t worked. The King Fungus mycelium repeatedly repaired the wound, but the burning pain and swelling came back in cycles, leaving him utterly exhausted and increasingly irritable.

Unfortunately, he’d already used his monthly bounty feature, so he couldn’t look up the cause on the game platform for now. He’d hoped to find clues after getting off the train in a new district, but when he stepped out, he realized the dimensional train had arrived in a very remote mountain forest. Here, only one bus passed through each day heading to the county town.

The bus could seat twenty-nine people including the driver. Judging by the vehicle and most passengers’ attire, the area’s economic level was about the same as a small county town under a mid-tier city in Zone 014, likely without any information exchange platform.

The female player with a head full of small braids chatted with a nearby passenger, asking where they were from, where they’d been, which stops this bus made, and when they’d reach the county town.

She gave a few candies to the auntie’s little grandson, and the auntie happily engaged with her, even offering, “Young lady, you’re visiting from out of town, right? Want to stay at my place? My home-stay is really clean, better than any hotel.”

“Sure,” the female player said with a smile. “When we get there, I’ll check it out first. I have high standards for lodging, but if your place is really good, I can pay extra.”

The auntie waved her hand modestly. “Guests from afar are a blessing. We’re just happy for the company. No way I’d hike up the price.”

“You’re so kind, Auntie.”

Both parties seemed satisfied with the exchange. After the auntie’s grandson started crying again, no one else spoke on the bus.

There were about seven players on the bus now, including the female player. Only three had chosen to pry information from strangers. The rest mostly kept their eyes closed in rest, and there was no communication among the players themselves.

By evening, the bus finally rattled into the county town.

As soon as they got off, the young player who’d tried to stop the burly man said, “This counts as a county town?”

The station had only a few vehicles coming and going. The facilities were dilapidated and old, without even a proper gate.

Looking out from the entrance, the few forks in the road seemed to stretch to their ends at a glance. The buildings here were more like rural self-built houses, mostly two or three stories, some looking like small villas. There were few people and few cars.

“This isn’t a county town at all. At best, it’s a small town,” the female player said.

As they walked out of the station, the players immediately received a game prompt:

[You have entered the Sifang Palace area. You are automatically participating in this D-rank dungeon, “Shared Eyes.”]

[Background: Sifang Palace City was once a tourist city famous for its religion. With the outflow of able-bodied youth, the local birth rate has gradually declined, and the city’s scale has shrunk repeatedly. Now it’s a small city with a population of under a thousand, its residents surviving only on a trickle of tourists and handicrafts.]

[This place preserves customs passed down from ancestors. Throughout the city, you can find complete or incomplete religious sculptures. Every household worships a religious deity and observes religious customs, making each person a devout follower. At the same time, they are generous and warm, offering guests their best rooms and finest food as part of their hospitality. Tourists don’t even need to pay.]

[Please find lodging before midnight. This dungeon is a survival dungeon lasting seven days.]

Compared to previous dungeons they’d experienced, this introduction was fairly simple—just a broad background, no specific danger warnings. Aside from the dungeon title “Shared Eyes,” which might hint at danger, the background offered very little information.

A very intuitive jump in difficulty.

The others clearly weren’t new to this kind of survival dungeon. A middle-aged man with neat hair said, “Since it’s a survival dungeon, we’re not in competition. How about we cooperate?”

“I’m fine with that,” the young player responded first.

Among the others, some nodded, some remained silent. Only a man in a black shirt carrying a backpack pressed down his hat and walked straight off.

The remaining six ignored him and introduced themselves in turn.

First was the middle-aged man who’d proposed cooperation, named Tian Kunwen, a photographer by profession.

The female player with small braids, Fu Danhong, a sales guide.

The young male player, Wei Xian, a professional fisher.

The burly man, You Jun, a welder.

Another long-haired female player, Yi Pei, a security officer.

Xu Huo’s gaze lingered on Yi Pei’s face for a moment before he introduced himself. “Xu Zhi, martial arts actor.”

“Your professions don’t seem to match your looks,” Wei Xian said, seemingly trying to lighten the mood with a half-joke.

Xu Huo gave him a cold look without a word, leaving Wei Xian awkward. The nearby Yi Pei, however, spoke up considerately. “When I chose my profession, I thought picking it would turn me into it. I chose security officer for combat power, but it didn’t turn out that way…” She trailed off, offering an embarrassed smile.

“Cut the act,” Fu Danhong said abruptly. “You’re doing D-rank dungeons now, and you’re still playing the fragile girl? Don’t mislead everyone and drag us down later.”

Tian Kunwen and the others didn’t speak up for Yi Pei. In the game, after all, whoever takes things at face value is the real fool.

“Since we’re cooperating, wouldn’t it be better if we discussed things properly? What good does this attitude do any of us?” Yi Pei shot back at Fu Danhong.

“This is just how I am. If you don’t like it, you can leave,” Fu Danhong said with a malicious smile.

Yi Pei frowned and immediately turned to walk away. Unexpectedly, Xu Huo was standing right beside her, and they nearly collided. Yi Pei quickly apologized, but Xu Huo waved his hand to indicate it didn’t matter. Then he said, “Let’s find a place to stay first. With so many people, we might need to split up.”

“It’s almost dark. Even though the game says before midnight, danger multiplies at night in survival dungeons,” Tian Kunwen said. “We still don’t know what we’re up against. Let’s settle on lodging first, then discuss the next steps.”