The Abyssal Garden: No Room for the Idle

Xu Linqiu was very serious, and the night watchman was quite earnest too, even though it was not the first time he had heard it, he really wanted to see Su Qi reveal a look of fear.

After all, the history of "Abyssal Paradise" was filled with cruelty and despair, which had a profound impact on him at the time, and later he chose to become a Spirit Investigator to strengthen his courage.

However.

Clearly, the night watchman was about to be disappointed.

Su Qi suddenly spoke, "Hold on a second, please."

From under the club's closet, he actually took out snacks and beer.

The night watchman roared, "Do you think this is storytime? And those damn snacks and beer were bought with Game Coins; how did you know they were there!"

"Here's a bottle for you."

"Thanks..." the night watchman subconsciously took it and then widened his eyes, wondering why he should thank him for something he bought.

"Do you want one?" Su Qi offered a bottle to Xu Linqiu.

Xu Linqiu: "..."

He had intended to create a serious atmosphere, but he realized he was mistaken.

He shook his head helplessly, "Nevermind."

Let's go ahead and say, after the story, this guy should understand what "Abyssal Paradise" really is; even if he is not frightened, at least he should have some respect.

Xu Linqiu took a deep breath and slowly said, "First, you have to understand that Abyssal Paradise... didn't have the last two words before; it was just a bottomless, bloody, and terrifying abyss."

"Let's start from the very first beta test."

Xu Linqiu gently began, "That was probably fifty years ago."

"People using the internet or their phones would suddenly see a pop-up message that contained only one sentence—Do you want to understand the true meaning of life?"

Su Qi's gaze shifted slightly.

This wasn't the first time he had seen this sentence; the masked figure had written these words in blood in front of the big screen at the shopping center.

"Anyone chosen would be sent into a space and then begin a cruel trial..." Xu Linqiu said calmly, "You should know that death back then was different from now... there was no revival to Personal Space after death; if you died, you were really dead, and nobody would know."

"That year the Investigation Bureau discovered a large number of disappearance cases, nearly over 80% were related to it."

"The first beta test lasted three years, and everyone who entered struggled through blood, horror, and despair; very few people were able to leave that place alive. Death and fear were the norm."

Su Qi listened silently, clinking beer bottles with the night watchman.

"...."

"The second beta test was twenty years ago... this time it was different; each selected person would be transferred directly into an instance, but afterward, they could leave and return to the real world."

"And it was for this reason that the Investigation Bureau quickly discovered something in the early stages and set up a related department to investigate, with many pioneers bravely entering the abyss."

Xu Linqiu paused and then added, "Actually, if you search carefully in the news and newspapers from around twenty years ago, you should be able to find a lot of related information."

Su Qi nodded, "I've seen posts on forums before about suicide cases... where the victims used their own blood to write 'I shouldn't have stepped into that abyss.'"

Xu Linqiu ignored the fact that he and the night watchman were peeling peanuts and nodded, "Backstabbing and slaughter were the norm then; the Investigation Bureau was just one of the powers that hadn't firmly established a foothold."

"This beta test lasted ten years."

Xu Linqiu's eyes turned toward Su Qi, "The atrocities during that period are indescribable, it was total chaos."

"Back then, the Investigation Bureau couldn't establish any Order, but eventually, with the help of a certain being, many exceptional predecessors grew rapidly and burst through a place of Chaos, cut through the Cultists, and finally established a firm foothold!"

The night watchman's action of eating slowed down a bit, and he only sipped a little beer at a time; clearly, he knew who these predecessors were and dared not be too presumptuous.

But Su Qi's eyes flickered with curiosity, "Who was the being that helped the Investigation Bureau?"

Xu Linqiu didn't expect Su Qi to ask this; he shook his head, "It's too far removed from you; very few people are fortunate enough to encounter him, this entity traverses various worlds, and even we are looking for him."

Su Qi drank his beer, his gaze calm.

He seemed to know who it was.

Swindler!

"And then what?" Su Qi asked.

Night Guard paused, broke off a piece of stewed pig's trotter, and lifted his gloved hand,

"I know this... in the last year of the second internal test."

"Paradise was born, the specific details I don't know, but all the major forces have settled into Paradise, and currently, the situation is harmonious."

He picked up the bottle of alcohol:

"Here's to you, Brother Su, let's drink."

Xu Linqiu: "..."

Su Qi clinked bottles with him, "Keep it down."

Xu Linqiu said helplessly, "You guys... I had originally wanted to create a serious atmosphere."

Besides explaining these things to Su Qi, he had also wanted to give Night Guard a heads-up, to let both of these new players feel a bit of cruelty, but now it seemed his efforts were unnecessary.

Xu Linqiu stretched out his hand: "Forget it, give me a bottle too, I've been craving it for a long time."

Su Qi passed one over: "Don't mention it, it's on me."

Night Guard: "????"

Thinking you're a big landlord, huh?

Xu Linqiu actually relaxed as well, his expression no longer as solemn, he shook his head, "I hadn't expected it to turn into this kind of situation."

He didn't care about that anymore, quietly saying, "The third internal test was three years ago when I was chosen to start delving into 'Abyssal Paradise.' Though it wasn't as cruel as before, where dying all the time was common, and we also had the help of Paradise."

"But you must reach a certain power level before entering Paradise... and those who fail to enter Paradise, or are kicked out, will have their level, equipment, skills, and so forth all reset to zero when the internal test ends."

Xu Linqiu looked at Su Qi: "Many of the internal testers you see now are actually those who have failed to enter Paradise."

Su Qi thought of someone else.

[Xun Xiaohuan]

That guy... he had mentioned it before, now that I think back, everything makes sense.

"And this open beta," Xu Linqiu spoke slowly, "is now available to everyone, at the same time... all the major forces have started to become active." Xu Linqiu went on: "Night Guard mentioned to me, you encountered players with patterns on them in the last instance, right?"

Su Qi nodded.

"They are one of the most dangerous of these forces, the entities behind their patterns indescribable, extremely horrifying, the taboo of all taboos..." Xu Linqiu's eyes revealed a deep fear.

Su Qi: "...."

Don't you talk about my Evil God like that!

'Anyway...' Xu Linqiu looked at Su Qi, "The situation in Paradise is more complex than you imagine, clubs are just the facade, the forces behind them are the true powers at-hand; while some adhere to Order, some Neutral, there are also those who aren't content with the status quo."

"And now."

Xu Linqiu's expression became stern again, he put down the beer bottle he had been drinking from, and seriously said,

"Su Qi, what I'm about to tell you is the real crux of the matter."

Su Qi reminded, "Remember to call me by my ID in the game."

"...Su Buxian." Xu Linqiu reluctantly spat out these three words, his gaze intense,

"I have an extremely precious spot available that allows entry into a certain instance, targeted exclusively at new players below level 20."

"If you enter that instance, whether or not you succeed in the end, as long as you don't die, there are generous rewards."

"But at the same time, the opponents are very powerful, including super rookies from clubs under the major forces, plus a whole bunch of Cultists eyeing it covetously... they will all make a move to snatch it."

Xu Linqiu's tone was icy,

"Do you dare to accept it."