The No. 1 Hunfen King in the Entire Server [Interstellar] Chapter 1

[Loading game… successfully loaded. Name: “Door of Life and Death.” Mode: Adventure. Difficulty: Beginner.]
[Matching teammates… successfully matched. Average player score: 6 points.]

Clue to clearance: Door
Key NPC: Village Chief
Time limit: Seven days.
Dear player “Shuang Mu Cheng Jing,” good luck.

Tall, towering trees crowded together, their intertwined branches obscuring the sky. The forest was shrouded in heavy mist, with a damp and chilling air.

Lin Jing surveyed the surroundings, thinking the game setting this time was probably a remote mountain region on Earth from over two centuries ago.

Barren land and harsh waters, scarcely inhabited.

He rolled his neck, feeling a lingering discomfort in his head. 

Taking a deep breath, he massaged his temples to ease the faint pain in his mind.

Guiding him in the Door of Life and Death was a lively young man, likely an NPC. Laden with bags, he looked like someone returning home after working far away. Holding a map, he eagerly introduced Qinghe Village: “Once we get over that mountain ridge, we’ll reach the village. But first, you’ll need to stop by the police station. Lately, groups of people have been coming through, and the village wants to make sure no criminals sneak in. Outsiders need to register with the chief.”

Snapping out of his gloomy mood, Lin Jing replied, “The local police station? Your law enforcement’s not bad, huh.”

The young man, who called himself Dahu, scratched his head with pride. “Of course! Our village may be remote, but our security is solid.”

Curious about the main NPC, Lin Jing asked casually, “What kind of person is your village chief?”

At the mention of the chief, Dahu’s expression shifted, his face twitching slightly. “The chief’s temper is… a bit odd. Just listen to whatever he says and don’t upset him. The chief hates people who don’t follow orders. For outsiders like you, chances are you’ll be staying at his house. Be careful.”

Lin Jing nodded. “Thanks.”

Rounding a mountain peak, they arrived at a fork in the path. The mist here was even denser, shrouding the scenery ahead in a cold, white haze. Only the faint outline of the mountain could be discerned.

Dahu pulled him toward the left and warned, “The village is at the top of the mountain. We have to climb up now—be careful. This place is dangerous. If you fall, you’re done for.”

Lin Jing nodded slightly.

The path was truly treacherous. Carved along the edge of the mountain, it spiraled upward with only a few low shrubs serving as a barrier. The trail was narrow, and the slightest misstep could send someone plunging down. But Lin Jing had always been bold—at six years old, he had followed his uncle on a spaceship expedition to the stars. This height was hardly enough to faze him.

While Dahu held his breath and tread cautiously, Lin Jing scanned his surroundings.

As they climbed higher, the mist gradually thinned. When Lin Jing finally got a clear view of the opposite mountain peak, he paused in surprise and asked, “What is that?”

The mountain on the other side was also steep, with a sheer rock face that was nearly barren of vegetation. At first glance, the cliff was covered in densely packed, square-shaped black boxes. Some were placed inside rocky crevices, half protruding, while others were directly fastened to the cliff with wooden stakes.

“Oh.” Dahu wasn’t fazed and explained, “That’s a coffin.”

Lin Jing froze for a moment—a coffin?

Dahu continued, “It’s a custom around here. When people die, their coffins are hung on cliffs like that. The elders say it brings the soul closer to the sky, so they can ascend and become immortals.”

Following Dahu’s gesture, Lin Jing looked at the coffins again, squinting slightly.

The sunlight came from the opposite side, leaving the coffins shrouded in shadow on the cliff’s shaded slope. They were arranged densely, their lacquered wood faintly glowing with a reddish sheen, like a bloody aura encircling them—a sight that sent chills down his spine. The wind whistling up from the bottom of the cliff sounded eerily like someone crying.

Feeling uneasy, Lin Jing asked, “Bro, has anything strange ever happened in your village?”

Dahu was momentarily stunned. “What?”

Lin Jing rephrased patiently, “I mean, have you ever heard of anything bizarre or inexplicable from the villagers?”

Dahu smirked. “Plenty of that.”

“Huh?!” Lin Jing blinked—so easy to get him talking?

Dahu added, “The old gossipy women in the village always have something strange to say. Last time I went out for two years to work, they said I struck it rich, bought a house, got married, and that my kid was already in elementary school.”

Lin Jing: “…”

The more Dahu thought about it, the angrier he got. “If I had that kind of money, why the h*ll would I come back to this village?”

Lin Jing’s lips twitched, and he gave an awkward laugh. “Yeah, that does sound pretty far-fetched.”

***

Qinghe Village was at the mountain’s summit, deep within the forest. By the time Lin Jing climbed up, it was already night. The police station stood near the village entrance, its lights still on. It was a low, aged brick house nestled among short shrubs.

Lin Jing entered, thoughtfully staring at a wooden signboard standing in front of the station. It was made of wood, and to make the content stand out, three lines of text were written in bright red brushstrokes:

[Village Prohibitions]

1. No setting fires in the mountains.
2. No indiscriminate logging.
3. No hunting of animals.

The handwriting was crude and twisted, as if someone had dipped their fingers in blood to write it. At a glance, it exuded an eerie, sinister warning.

Three perfectly ordinary rules, yet made to look so creepy. Was the research institute worried he wouldn’t figure out that this scenario was tinged with horror and suspense?

Lin Jing smirked, pointing to the signboard. “What happens if someone breaks these rules?”

Dahu looked at him like he’d seen a ghost, suddenly on guard. “What are you trying to do?”

Lin Jing replied lazily, “Nothing, just curious.”

Perhaps his genuinely exasperated expression was convincing, as Dahu relaxed and whispered, “I don’t know either. I’ve lived in this village my whole life and never seen anyone break the rules.”

Lin Jing blinked, then chuckled slowly. “Dahu, your village must be incredible. Law-abiding, orderly, simple and pure, huh.” He didn’t believe a word of it.

Dahu straightened his back with pride. “Exactly.”

After lingering outside for a while, Dahu escorted him inside and left.

Lin Jing entered the police station and finally met his team, whose average rating was a disappointing 6.

The “police station” was, in reality, just an empty room.

Behind a mahogany desk sat the chief, a burly middle-aged man with a scar on his forehead. He looked more like a hardened criminal than a law enforcement officer and was typing on a computer.

A row of wooden benches lined one side of the room, where his teammates sat.

Four men and two women, all looking tense and stiff.

As a newbie with a score of 0 dragging down the team’s average, Lin Jing compensated with enthusiasm. Smiling brightly, he greeted the group on the benches. “Hello!”

Lin Jing had been good-looking since childhood—thick brows, sharp eyes, and a smile like a spring breeze. As the reigning “most handsome” in his elementary, middle, and high school years for 18 consecutive years, he would have surely carried this title into Imperial University if not for that car accident. Alas, life was unpredictable. A natural-born double-S mental power user, he now had to start over as an underdog, climbing his way back up.

The first to respond was a shy, short-haired girl. Her face flushed slightly as she murmured, “H-hello.”

The newbie zone was likely filled with peers around his age. To the left of the shy girl was another girl in a long white dress. She seemed anxious, staring straight ahead, too preoccupied to notice him.

Of the four guys, two of them also responded. The one on the far left, wearing sunglasses, glanced at him with disdain. Beside him was a chubby otaku who raised a hand in greeting.

The remaining two guys were less cooperative. One, with flamboyant dyed yellow hair, was absorbed in his game. The other, leaning against the window with his arms folded, appeared to be sleeping.

Lin Jing’s eyelids twitched. What a group of unreliable teammates.

No matter—thankfully, they had him. Congratulations to these six lucky souls in advance.

The little otaku was clearly a sidekick to the sunglasses guy, and the two girls were seated together, so approaching them was out of the question. The two on the edges seemed more approachable.

“Hey, brother.” Lin Jing sat down with his long legs and patted the shoulder of the yellow-haired.

The blond-haired guy, who was in the middle of a game, jolted so hard that he nearly jumped on the spot.

Meeting his shocked gaze, Lin Jing smiled good-naturedly. “Hello, I’m new here.”

Blondie finally snapped out of it, took off his headset, and suddenly understood. “Oh, hey, hey! Bro, why are you only getting here now? It’s almost dark!”

Lin Jing had no idea what was wrong with this crappy game. When he connected to the terminal, it lagged like it was malfunctioning, buzzing and stuttering for ages before finally letting him in.

Of course, he couldn’t say that. Instead, he explained, “I live in a remote district, so the lag is pretty bad.”

Blondie looked completely confused, nodding vaguely. “Oh… oh, okay.”

Lin Jing had just arrived, and the NPC guide, Dahu, had only given him a limited amount of information. He turned to Blondie to gather more: “Are we waiting for registration now?”

Blondie put away his gaming console, revealing his chatterbox nature. “Yeah, we’re waiting for registration. We got here this afternoon, filled out a long form, and handed it to Scar Bro.”

Lin Jing raised an eyebrow.”A form?”

“Oh, I forgot. You just got here and haven’t filled it out yet.”

Blondie wrapped his earphones and tilted his head, seemingly about to grab the form for him. But soon, he realized the stack of registration forms was sitting on the windowsill, pinned under a sleeping youth.

It was only then that Lin Jing turned his full attention to the youth.

The youth had long legs and a tall, lean figure. His jet-black hair, slightly long, partially covered his face. His skin was a sickly pale, the kind that hadn’t seen sunlight in years.

His sleeping posture was careless, one arm draped loosely. His fingers, long and slender, hung naturally from his hand.

On his wrist was a red thread threaded through a dark brown Buddhist bead.

On him, this item didn’t seem like it was for blessings or warding off evil but instead felt like a form of suppression or seal.

Blondie, apparently afraid of the youth, hesitated but eventually mustered up the courage to tug lightly at his sleeve, stammering: “Brother Xu…”

The commotion naturally drew the attention of the other four teammates. The man with sunglasses finally took them off, revealing small, piercing eyes as he stared at them.

Everyone else wore strange expressions.

Lin Jing raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

What happened before I got here to make them so terrified of the guy in black?

Blondie was clearly scared out of his wits: “Brother Xu…”

After several hesitant calls, the youth finally moved. His eyelids, thin and pale, lifted to reveal long lashes. When his cold, glass-like eyes opened, it felt as if the air temperature dropped several degrees.

Fortunately, the icy scrutiny only lasted a moment.

The youth lowered his gaze, letting his arm fall, and spoke in a faint, slightly hoarse voice from just waking up: “What’s the matter?” His tone was cold and crisp, like snow falling in the dead of night.

Blondie barely dared to breathe as he stammered: “Uh… Brother Xu, um, the form… you’re, uh… lying on it… A newcomer just arrived, and, uh, needs to fill it out, so I, uh…”

The youth glanced down without a word.

Blondie’s voice grew quieter and quieter until it was almost inaudible: “So… I… um…” In the end, he chickened out and laughed nervously. “Actually, it’s nothing. Please go back to sleep…”

“……” Lin Jing.

Bro, if you’re that scared, you could’ve just said so earlier. I would’ve gotten it myself instead of wasting half the day.

The youth in black frowned slightly and finally raised his head.

Lin Jing got a clear look at his face.

Even as someone who’d been voted “Most Handsome” eighteen times in school, Lin Jing had to admit this was a stunningly attractive face.

Lin Jing’s appearance leaned toward a gentle, handsome charm, while the youth’s features were sharp and cold. He was like a blade or a sword, exuding a weary, indifferent elegance that softened the edge of his stern aura.

The youth leaned back, his pale fingers casually pulling a sheet from the stack he’d been using as a pillow. As he turned his head slightly, Lin Jing noticed a tiny mole at the corner of his eye, resting just below his eyelid.

The police station fell into utter silence.

The chief continued inputting data on the computer, his fingers barely making a sound on the keyboard. Ever since the youth had woken up, the other five players didn’t even dare to breathe loudly.

Lin Jing glanced around, realizing he was the only one breathing normally.

“……” Did I enter the game wrong? What’s with these bizarre teammates?

The youth handed him the form.

Lin Jing took it politely. “Thank you.”

The moment Lin Jing spoke, the youth’s half-lidded eyes suddenly opened wide, staring straight at Lin Jing’s face.

Lin Jing, distracted by the form, gave it a gentle tug— Huh? It didn’t budge?

Awkwardly, he forced a soft, polite smile, like a spring breeze. “Thank you?”

When he looked up again, he was met with the youth’s dark eyes, cold and deep like a winter lake, framed by curled lashes.

Up close, the youth’s features were flawless. Outside, vines climbed thickly over the building, and the moonlight filtering through was pale and damp. Sitting by the window, the youth stared at Lin Jing for a long time before slowly withdrawing his gaze, his expression indifferent. The mole at the corner of his eye glimmered faintly in the eerie moonlight, adding a touch of mystery.

“You’re welcome,” the youth said flatly, then added, “My name is Xu Wanzhi.”