A New Instance

【Floor 14: Gotta Eat Bunnies】: Associated NPC? What does that mean? It's my first time hearing about it. Could a veteran player please explain?

【Floor 15: Nine Folds of Silk】: Simply put, when different players make different choices in the same instance, it branches into different what-if paths. These paths then affect the status of those NPCs in subsequent, related instances.

For example, in Instance A, if someone saves a bystander NPC while someone else doesn't, then in the related Instance B, those who saved them might get their help—or their hindrance—while those who didn't get nothing. It's that simple.

【Floor 16: Money from All Directions】: Wow! Doesn't that mean if I do a lot of good deeds and get lucky enough to save the BOSS of a future instance, I can just coast to victory?

【Floor 17: Strawberry Gummy】: You're dreaming, brother. You underestimate Anomalous Infection. Instance BOSSes and the main setting aren't affected by what-if paths. No matter what you did before, the BOSS's core attributes and the final objective of the instance won't change.

If you could actually change a BOSS, that what-if path would end right there in Instance A. There wouldn't even be an Instance B.

【Floor 18: Don't Hit Me, I'm Feeding】: Hahahahaha, the floor above speaks the truth. Give up on trying to coast. There is no such thing as an easy ride in Anomalous Infection.

...

During the three days after clearing her first instance, Bai Ci had come across posts about associated NPCs while browsing the forum. That was exactly why she had decided to play her NPC role to the very end in the Withered Wood Post Office.

As a player, when Anomalous Infection assigned her an identity, it certainly wouldn't alter the game's underlying logic to fabricate a character who had never existed and possessed a massive impact on the background lore. This aligned perfectly with the concept of associated NPCs.

Why didn't you meet me in the same instance?

Well, why don't you consider whether it's just your own bad luck?

【Floor 22: Scottish Meow Meow Sect】: Stop derailing the thread! The OP came here to curse at Zhao Yu. Speaking of which, Zhao Yu is indeed quite famous among the Malicious Outlaws. He specializes in screwing over teammates and causing destruction. Newbies really need to avoid him. I suggest searching for blacklist threads and being careful of the other people listed there too.

【Floor 23: OP's Reply】: The OP is a massive idiot. Exactly! I want everyone to know what a bastard Zhao Yu is! He's just a troublemaker who can't do anything but destroy things. Dying was too easy on him!

【Floor 24: Gotta Eat Bunnies】: Are there really blacklist threads? I just entered the game and I'm terrified of running into someone like that. Can anyone share a link?

Reading these comments, Bai Ci could relate.

Zhao Yu was indeed a massive headache. Players from the Malicious Outlaws faction already derived pleasure from tormenting others and causing chaos, and Zhao Yu seemed to be an extreme case even among them.

Recalling the blacklist thread mentioned in the comments, her curiosity was piqued. She closed the thread bashing Zhao Yu, typed "blacklist thread" into the search bar, and clicked search.

A multitude of warning posts appeared in the search results. The most comprehensive one was titled 《Anomalous Infection All-Instance Blacklist Guide (Malicious Outlaws Edition) (Constantly Updated)》.

It listed numerous Malicious Outlaws players to avoid in instances, complete with links to the corresponding call-out threads. Zhao Yu's name was prominently displayed near the very top.

The thread mentioned that based on his performance in instances, Zhao Yu's skills could be inferred to be something akin to psychological suggestion, though some claimed it was sleight of hand.

His usual tactics included, but were not limited to, intentionally aggroing monsters, destroying clues, killing NPCs, and screwing over teammates. For newbies, the moment they encountered Zhao Yu in an instance, their best bet was to stay as far away as possible and avoid any involvement with him.

Bai Ci quickly scrolled through the blacklist thread, memorizing the names of the players she needed to watch out for so she could avoid them if she ever crossed paths with them in future instances.

Just as she was about to close the thread, she caught sight of a few newly updated entries, one of which caught her eye.

The update featured a newly added player suspected of being a Malicious Outlaw, and it was a name Bai Ci was all too familiar with: Su Xiao.

【Floor 52: Beyond the Long Night】: Watch out for Su Xiao (female). Suspected Malicious Outlaw. At the start of the instance, she acts pitiful to gain her teammates' trust, getting them to protect and help her. Then, in the later stages of the instance, she sacrifices her teammates to the BOSS to secure her own profits.

【Floor 53: Zhao Yu's Reply】: Whoa, don't lump this piece of trash in with us Malicious Outlaws. Sure, we love to torment players and stir up trouble, but we've always done it openly and proudly. We never resort to low-life, underhanded tricks like playing the victim, backstabbing teammates, or sacrificing companions.

This Su Xiao's behavior is just that of someone selfish to the core, who only cares about her own single life. It has absolutely nothing to do with us. Stop dragging our reputation through the mud.

【Floor 54: Don't Hit Me, I'm Feeding】: Hahahahaha, what a time to be alive. Zhao Yu, you actually have principles? You're actually looking down on someone else for using underhanded tricks?

【Floor 55: Wish I Knew Better】: The OP is a massive idiot. Zhao Yu, how do you have the nerve to talk about others? You're not any better!

【Floor 56: Zhao Yu's Reply】: Now you're just slandering me. Having such a deep prejudice against me really breaks my heart.

When I teamed up with you, I didn't stab you in the back, did I? As for the other players in the same instance, they're just toys. What's wrong with playing around a bit?

...

Bai Ci closed the blacklist thread and then the forum itself. Without browsing any further, she began her workout.

Four days flew by. When the countdown reached zero, the familiar wave of dizziness struck without warning.

Her sense of smell woke up before her vision. The damp, decaying scent of a forest after rain rushed into her nose, accompanied by the rustling of wind through the leaves. Bai Ci opened her eyes, welcoming her fourth instance.

Huh?

Bai Ci froze. After her last instance, she had a rough understanding that her initial loading scene would be different from that of normal players, but this time, it was a bit too different.

A remote forest—this much Bai Ci was sure of. Aside from the sound of the wind, there wasn't even the sound of insects chirping. It was not only remote, but also dead silent.

The surrounding trees were about four to five meters tall, their branches intertwining as they stretched into the night sky, leaving not even a sliver of space. Beneath the canopy lay a dense, murky darkness.

The spot where Bai Ci stood was like a clearing in the forest. Unobstructed by trees, the cool, silvery-white moonlight was bright enough to illuminate everything around her clearly.

But the strangest part was not the forest itself, but the clearing she stood in. Scattered across the ground were gravestones. At a glance, there were exactly twelve of them—no more, no less.

Most of the gravestones were mottled and ancient, their inscriptions somewhat blurred. Yet under the moonlight, their general outlines could still be made out. Clumps of red flowers grew around the gravestones, their petals thin and vibrant, like the color of fresh blood.

And in Bai Ci's right hand was an entrenching shovel.