Chapter 1: This Is Not a Game

A wind carrying a putrid stench blew steadily. In the dark corners where the moonlight couldn't reach, a few wild dogs were rummaging through a massive pile of garbage, searching for food for the day. Occasionally, small bits of trash would be picked up by the wind and heavily slammed against the old, dilapidated city wall nearby, making clanging sounds.

Suddenly, from the far corner of this garbage heap, there came a few faint groans. A young man, around twenty years old, gritted his teeth and crawled out from the bottom of the pile.

The man looked extremely disheveled. His face bore several cuts, likely from some unknown objects. His thick black hair looked as if it had been burned, and beneath his torn and tattered clothes lay relatively strong muscles. However, from his pale, almost bluish skin, it was clear that he had lost a significant amount of blood.

Having barely crawled out of the main area of the garbage heap, the man struggled to turn over and half-leaned against a pile of greasy metal parts, raising his head to look up at the sky.

After a while, the man spat out some bloody saliva and weakly muttered, "Damn it, this is not a game."

Maybe it was because the man's movements were too large, or maybe it was because the garbage heap itself had been hollowed out, but the pile of metal parts supporting him failed to hold his weight for long. With a creak, it collapsed with a clatter.

The man, who had just crawled out of the garbage heap, fell heavily back into the trash. The loud noise caught the attention of some nearby creatures.

Not far from the man, there came the sound of something slithering across the ground. In response to this sound, the wild dogs scavenging nearby whimpered and quickly fled in the opposite direction.

The man instinctively sensed something was wrong. Just as he was about to crawl up from the metal parts, he noticed a pair of eyes sweeping towards him like searchlights.

Without thinking much, the man stretched his hands to either side. A purple light appeared between his two palms. In his right hand, there materialized a scythe as tall as a person, made of white bones. In his left hand, a shield composed of interlocking bones appeared. With the weapons in hand, the man finally looked toward the source of the glaring light.

At that moment, the man saw clearly the appearance of the creature in front of him. It was a strange, giant snake.

The snake was as large as an anaconda from a primeval forest, magnified tenfold. Its original snake head had been pieced together into a triangular shape by various electrical components, with a pair of massive headlights mounted where its eyes should be.

Its body had begun to rot. In some places, white bones were exposed, in others, pale green rotting flesh hung loosely, and in yet other spots, electrical parts and fragments were crudely patched together.

[Shattered Corroded Python]

[Race: Half-Undead, Half-Mechanical Creature]

[Level: Lv1 (7 Stars)]

[Attributes: Strength 9, Agility 8, Constitution 6, Spirit 2]

[Description: Once a dominant creature in a primeval forest, it was abandoned in a garbage heap after its death. The resentment from being blown apart during mating caused it to fuse with the electrical appliances in the garbage heap, making it the overlord of this refuse pile...]

As a series of familiar data flashed before his eyes, the man grew increasingly tense about his situation. He knew that this was his current target. Without thinking further, he raised his left hand, lifting the shield in front of him, while his right hand launched a red beam of light into the sky with the scythe.

The moment the red light shot out, a voice sounded in his ear, "Decoy 157, target found, attack with full force."

As soon as the voice finished, a white light flashed before him, and a silver spear pierced into the Corroded Python, brutally throwing its body away.

Then, more than a dozen black mist-covered chains shot out from all directions, tightly wrapping around the Corroded Python.

Looking in the direction where the chains were coming from, he could see that each chain was tightly wound around a crimson coffin.

[Spirit-Suppressing Crimson Coffin]

[Race: Undead]

[Level: Lv1 (3 Stars)]

[Attributes: Strength 5, Agility 5, Constitution 10, Spirit 0]

[Description: A coffin buried for a hundred years in an extremely shadow place, uncorroded. After being soaked in fresh blood, it gained a portion of undead power. It can absorb and emit shadow energy, making it the best material to suppress uncontrollable undead...]

Bound by the chains, the Corroded Python's movements seemed to slow significantly, and as it writhed, its body emitted continuous cracking sounds.

It was clear that the Corroded Python was desperately trying to shake off the chains, but no matter how much it struggled, it couldn't move the chains or the crimson coffins an inch.

At this moment, a black-robed figure approached from afar. With each step he took, a skeletal hand would appear underfoot, creating a clean and stable path for him.

Soon, the black-robed figure arrived in front of the Corroded Python. The Corroded Python seemed to sense something, increasing the intensity of its writhing. The headlights on its eyes flashed non-stop, as if trying to evade something.

The black-robed figure, having stopped, chuckled upon seeing this. He stretched out his right hand, resembling a skeletal claw, and directly pointed at the body of the Corroded Python.

At the tip of the black-robed man's finger, a purple electric current shot out and penetrated the Corroded Python's body.

In an instant, the Corroded Python's body shone with a bright purple light. Numerous electrical fragments were flung from its body as it writhed. The headlight eyes exploded, and the parts and fragments within its body began to fuse anew, gradually covering the Corroded Python's surface.

In no time, the Corroded Python completely transformed. All the rotting flesh hanging on its body disappeared, and the white bones were entirely covered by fused mechanical parts. Now, the Corroded Python appeared to be a skeletal python made of metal parts, devoid of its previous chaotic appearance.

At this moment, the black-robed man extended his hand forward once more. Under the purple glow, the Corroded Python rapidly shrank, finally turning into a card that fell into the black-robed man's hand.

The man, who had been watching in shock from the side, got a clear look at the card. It clearly depicted the final form of the Corroded Python, with seven blank stars drawn at the top, and its attributes and description written on the back under the name [Corroded Python].

After placing the card in a black leather book, the black-robed man walked towards the man.

"You did well this time. Next time something like this comes up, I'll find you again."

Looking at the black-robed man, the man had no idea what to say. Before he could ask any questions, the black-robed man pointed with his right hand, and a card appeared in front of the man. The top of the card was painted with a vial of mercury, and the back read [Magic Mercury *1].

"This is the reward I promised you: one unit of Magic Mercury."

Without waiting for the man to check, the black-robed man quickly departed, just as he had come.

After walking about a hundred meters, the black-robed man seemed to remember something and shouted, "You did well, but don't focus on impractical things. DS-54370681-157, you must understand, this is not a game."