Chapter 2: The Game of Gods And Demons
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
"I'm not looking for Gautama so that he can save me. What if all of these were that fellow's handiwork?" replied Tang Luo.
Gautama—the professional blame-taker.
Everything was Gautama's fault. The various instances of him corrupting added together could go a full round around the Earth.
"What an interesting way of thinking. You're a monk?" asked the owner of the husky voice with his eyes on Tang Luo, who had already gotten to his feet.
A baldie might not necessarily be a monk. He could also be a poor unfortunate balding man.
There weren't any monastic ordination
However, this was already a contemporary age. It was very normal for monks not to have ordination scars too. That was why he had asked.
"Yes."
Tang Luo turned around.
The owner of the husky voice was a truly plain and ordinary middle-aged man. Neither tall nor short, he leaned towards a muscular build and had the typical beer belly that most middle-aged men couldn't rid themselves of.
The standing Tang Luo also got a clear look at the full view of the train carriage. Compared to the original train carriage, the current one was significantly shorter.
There were five other people, three men and two women, other than Tang Luo and the middle-aged man speaking to him.
Out of all of them, that middle-aged man was the oldest.
The youngest was a male high school student in his school uniform, who had some black fuzz on his upper lip.
Everyone else looked to be young adults in their twenties, including Tang Luo.
The exchange between Tang Luo and the middle-aged man had clearly gotten the attention of the others.
Some of them got up while some craned their necks and peered at them. They were all watching the two of them.
The middle-aged man didn't ask Tang Luo anything else. Instead, he clapped his hands and diverted everyone's attention from the duo to just him alone.
"Looks like everyone here is new. Let me give you a simple introduction of the situation," said the middle-aged man.
While the three terms put a look of realization on some of their faces, some people became even more mystified.
In an era where information was abundant and easily available, there would always be people who could grasp the situation.
Even if they didn't really understand what exactly had happened, at least, they did not say any of the following things:
"I don't believe any of it, all of this is fake! C'mon out, cameraman."
"My father is XX. How dare you kidnap me?"
"I'll give you any amount of money you want, just send me back home."
…
Everyone was adopting a wait-and-see approach.
To put it in professional jargon—the quality of the newbies this time was relatively high.
Since he was facing the group of high-quality newbies or amateurs for short, the middle-aged man nodded and replied, "More or less. Simply put, we've been chosen to enter a special place to complete a mission.
"However!"
The middle-aged man paused for a moment before he went on. "It's not World of Reincarnation or whatnot. Most people prefer to call it The Game of Gods and Demons. We are a group of 'players'. To be more precise, players entering a dungeon and risking our lives to complete the mission."
The bespectacled man, seemingly a university student, who had raised the question earlier, asked, "And then we'll receive rewards and points that we can exchange for items and become stronger?"
As he spoke, he even pushed his glasses up. He gave off a feeling very much like those calm, wise men types.
Of course, this was on the precondition that one overlooked his cute pink bear-patterned pajamas and bedroom slippers. The girliness spilling out was very much eyebrow-raising.
The middle-aged man shook his head slightly. "No, there won't be any points awarded. You'll only receive rewards after mission completion. If you wish to become stronger, you can either reap benefits while doing the mission in the 'dungeon' or receive rewards after mission completion. At least, that is what I understand so far."
He didn't mind 'Spectacles' here raising questions. He was even very happy to explain the situation to everyone through such a question-and-answer format.
They were all in that together.
Favors that didn't require much effort, like providing the information he knew so that newbies could get into the situation more quickly, were things that Zhou Zhenguo, the middle-aged man, didn't mind doing.
There might be people who liked to kick up a fuss about things like this. However, Zhou Zhenguo wasn't one of them.
"What kind of rewards are there?"
"Skills. This centers around skills, that's why it's called a game," replied Zhou Zhenguo.
"Will we be directly obliterated if the mission fails? Since there isn't anything like points that can be deducted."
"Yes, most likely. But I've also heard from others that it isn't so much as obliterated but disappeared."
"Disappeared?"
"Yes, disappeared. Or going missing mysteriously, because there is no way of proving whether they are really dead. But there's no need to be so worried. You won't disappear with just one failed mission. It probably happens after three to five times. I've failed my missions a few times, but I'm still alive and kicking."
"Alright." The bespectacled man in pink pajamas nodded.
Zhou Zhenguo asked, "Are there any other questions? I'll tell you everything I know—"
He had only just spoken when the moving train began to slow down before coming to a stop a few seconds later.
The one and only door in the train carriage slowly opened. It was a pitch-black world outside the train carriage. The light from within streaming out through the open train doors could only light up an area that didn't even reach a square meter.
Beyond a square meter, everything was dark.
Obviously, the train windows coated with a layer of dust and grime also prevented them from surveying their surroundings through the windows.
Even without the dust, what they would see would also just be a reflection of the train's interior.
Zhou Zhenguo cast a glance at the pitch-black world beyond the train doors and released a breath. Then, he said, "Let's go. We can talk while we walk."
After that, he stepped forward and walked right towards the train doors.
Spectacles followed behind him immediately without any hesitation.
The other two men also followed after them. The two remaining women probably knew each other. They stood very close to each other and hesitated for a moment before they followed after the rest.
Just as Zhou Zhenguo was about to lead the charge and leave the filthy but brightly lit train carriage, Tang Luo opened his mouth.
Zhou Zhenguo paused in his tracks and looked back at him. With a slight frown, he said, "Monk, what questions do you have? Let's talk while we walk."
"You're mistaken." Tang Luo shook his head with one of his hands held upright before his chest. At once, a sense of serenity and placidity emanated from him.
It made people develop a sense of friendliness towards him, such that they were willing to listen to him speak. After all, he was someone who had attained enlightenment and become a Buddha. A Victorious Fighting Buddha was also a Buddha, alright?
"This monk's Dharma
Tang Luo added, "I am a direct disciple of Buddhism and am slightly versed in some demon subduing and vanquishing techniques. Should the few benefactors here meet with danger, you may look for this monk. I can protect you and keep you safe."
In Tang Luo's eyes, these people weren't simply some kind of players risking their lives to complete a mission. Each and every one of them was a walking virtuous merit, whose faces carried ill omens and had the star of
Since they were using their lives to play, there would naturally be times where they got out of line while playing.
Saving a life was of boundless beneficence.
This was exactly a time where he needed virtuous merits to treat his injuries. This sudden turn of events just so happened to satisfy Tang Luo's needs.
Heaven was totally on his side.
Fate played out in the most intriguing of ways.
"Really?" Everyone couldn't help being somewhat lost for words after hearing Tang Luo's words. They didn't know what sort of expression they should be making.
'Xuanzang? Why don't you say that your Dharma name is Itinerant Monk?'
"A person of religion boasts not." Everything that Tang Luo said was the absolute truth.
As if he had a eureka moment, Spectacles suddenly asked with mild mockery, "Master, do you know
"No." Tang Luo shook his head.
It wasn't a posturing kind of "I don't know qinggong, but I am skilled in divine powers and techniques that are even more impressive than qinggong".
He really wasn't skilled in it.
Tang Luo was a cultivator, who was very, very overly proficient in one aspect but completely unversed in others. The style he went for was one which 'overcomes all with one extremely well-honed skill'.
As for all these mysterious and fascinating divine powers and techniques? He didn't know any of them.
In times of need, he would rely completely on the Jade Lotus of Virtuous Merit for support.
"I see, so you don't." Spectacles chuckled dryly.
Everyone else turned away again too, intending to leave the train carriage.
Tang Luo didn't care whether or not they believed him either. Just leaving such an impression within their minds would do.
In times of crisis, they would naturally clutch this one last life-saving straw. And at that time, Tang Luo would save them, and that would do.
Should they really not believe it one bit, Tang Luo wasn't one to insist either. As a Buddha, how could he possibly not adopt a Buddha-style
Zhou Zhenguo took the lead and walked out of the train carriage. Tang Luo was the last to exit. The moment he stepped out, there was a slight change in the look in his eyes.
The vital energy there was considerably richer than on Earth, meaning it was beneficial to the recovery of his injuries.
The group explored the surroundings while whispering to each other.
Outside the train carriage was an abandoned subway station. It was extremely narrow and small. It was practically a cage wrapping around the train carriage.
What was noteworthy was that the train carriage, which Tang Luo and the rest had been in, was really just a carriage of a train. There was no head or tail of a train.
The tracks that the train had been moving along on their way there had already disappeared after they stepped outside. What they saw now was just a wall.
The only way out was a hollowed out and tightly sealed metal door on the platform. Behind the metal door was a staircase leading upwards.
It was pitch-black all around, yet gusts of chilly and sinister wind blew from somewhere, causing goosebumps to rise all over their skin.
After they adapted to the darkness and, with some difficulty, became able to see, Zhou Zhenguo reached out and felt around the metal door. He pulled at it forcefully a couple of times.
"Stand back a little," said Zhou Zhenguo as he gestured to the group of people behind him to move back a certain distance after failing to open the metal door.
Then, he launched a flying kick, causing a deafening bang to echo around the platform.
With a grunt, Zhou Zhenguo squatted down.
"What's wrong, Uncle Zhou?" asked Spectacles.
Everyone had already exchanged their names and other basic information, such as their occupations earlier.
However, Zhou Zhenguo had also proposed that they do not give out their real names. Just an alias would do.
He called himself Old Zhou.
Thus, the others also addressed him respectfully as Uncle Zhou. After all, this was someone whom they needed to cling tightly onto for their lives.
The others also followed suit and gave out family names that one couldn't tell whether they were real or fake either.
Various forms of 'Little XXs' surfaced, making this seem like a staff retreat of some company.
"I'm fine. I just stubbed my toe," replied Lifesaver Zhou Zhenguo.
"…"
'Let's count on ourselves. Relying on others is never as dependable as relying on ourselves.'
Although Zhou Zhenguo stubbed his toe, his kick was still effective.
The metal door was opened very quickly. Everyone walked up the stairs.
The air that was originally musty also became somewhat fresher.
Before long, specks of light appeared in front of them, followed by yet another metal door.
This time round, Zhou Zhenguo found the correct spot, and with another kick, the metal door fell right off.
All of them entered a tiny room that was even narrower and smaller than the subway station. To their sides were stone walls.
Only a passageway barely capable of fitting two people side by side was in the center.
Moonlight shone into the room through a half-open door at the other end of the passageway.
"This is a crypt!" Someone managed to identify the style of the room.
That was a western-style crypt. In other words, the kind of tiny chamber that was similar to a coffin. The 'stone walls' on either side of the passageway were actually 'coffins'. Names and the time of birth and death would even typically be inscribed on top, while some even had simple biographies.
None of them liked to stay in the crypt, so everyone hurried along and left.
When Tang Luo, who was the furthest at the back, stepped out of the crypt, from somewhere, a gust of cold and sinister wind slammed the door behind him shut.
At the same time, the originally half-hidden moon in the sky became completely covered by dark clouds blown over by the wind.
The moonlight that could still be considered rather bright and clear disappeared. Instantly, everyone was shrouded in pitch-black darkness.
Tang Luo turned back and glanced at the crypt behind him with a strange and thoughtful look on his face.
In no time, his countenance resumed its original serenity and tranquility.
-- Gift
received