Chapter 6: The State of the Game

As the attribute panel popped up, Liu Zhi noticed that both the Name and Profession sections had drop-down options. When he fully expanded the panel, it appeared as follows:

[Name: Sandro (Sandro Eade: Cross-Plane Game, Southern Marsh Plane, V3 Player, Graduate of the Academy of the Bone Wind / Sandro Erlandz: Game Character, Disgraced Noble of the West Sea / Liu Zhi: Cross-Plane Game, Galactic Arm Plane, Novice Player, Ordinary Person from Azure Blue Star)]

[Profession: Necromancer (Necromancer: Ungraduated, No Skills / Noble: Not Activated, Not Displayed, No Skills / Novice Quest Period, No Profession)]

[Level: 0]

[Title: None]

[Attributes: Strength 1.4, Agility 1.3, Constitution 1.3, Spirit 2.9]

[Active Skill: Sailor’s Basic Swordsmanship Level 2 (71+0/900)]

[Passive Skills: Magic Knowledge Level 3, Necromancy Knowledge Level 4, Basic Science Level 3, Basic Language Level 2]

[Experience: 66]

But what drew Liu Zhi’s attention most was the string of text at the very bottom. It was hidden under the experience bar, with a tiny plus sign that could be expanded; if one wasn’t careful, it would be missed entirely.

[Warning: Soul fluctuation deployment is chaotic, forced deployment detected, warning! Warning! Soul is deteriorating!]

[Warning: New connecting soul detected, determined to be in compliance with B-2237 Induced Soul Self-Compensation Clause, meets Cross-Plane Game integration rules, verifying new soul origin!]

[Warning: New soul-generated game system conflicts with old system. According to HC-2899 supplementary regulations, dual system identities are permitted. Novice quest difficulty will be increased to determine primary and secondary status between the two systems!]

[Warning: Old system quest is a mandatory identity task, forcibly locked. Failure to complete will result in loss of old system identity!]

[Warning: …]

Staring at this string of crimson warnings, Liu Zhi finally began to understand what had happened.

Just as he’d previously suspected, the necromancer graduate named Sandro Eade had vanished under the influence of a task deployment, and he, Liu Zhi, had arrived at that very moment, taking over Sandro Eade’s body.

Most importantly, the system actually recognized this situation. Not only did it retain his identity as Liu Zhi on Azure Blue Star, but it also provided him with a new system, and assured him with certainty that dual systems were playable—after all, someone had played this way before, and it had even been written into the game’s regulations.

However, the pressing matter now was that he must complete his novice tasks as Liu Zhi of Azure Blue Star to establish the primacy of the new system, and he must also finish Sandro Eade’s graduation quest to preserve Sandro’s identity. Otherwise, this stroke of luck—starting off with dual systems—would end with the old system reduced to nothing more than a background fixture in some underworld.

The logic and mechanisms behind all these processes were remarkably precise and rigorous; no matter how many times Liu Zhi examined them, he could find no loopholes.

But now, a far more pressing problem confronted him: where were his quests?

To complete the novice or graduation tasks, he at least needed to know what the tasks were. After searching for a long time, aside from the various warnings, there was nothing new in the attribute panel. How was he supposed to finish his tasks at this rate?

Just as Liu Zhi was growing frantic, an urgent ringing of bells sounded from outside the cabin.

Hearing this, Liu Zhi instinctively looked outside. What was going on—could it be pirates again? That seemed unlikely. After all, it wasn’t just one ship afloat; there were several warships and two pirate vessels they’d captured earlier, all heading toward Port Tortuga. Such a force on the sea was formidable—no one would be foolish enough to provoke them.

But then, what was this bell for? Clearly, this wasn’t the signal for a mealtime.

After a moment’s thought, Liu Zhi grabbed his scimitar, firmly closed the door, and dashed up to the deck.

There, he found chaos already reigning. However, to his bewilderment, the attackers weren’t pirates this time, but a race of blue-scaled, fish-headed mermen.

They wielded spiked clubs crafted from red coral and daggers honed from reef stone. Dripping with seawater and slime, they had clambered onto the ship from below.

Though they stood only two-thirds as tall as a normal person, their strength was formidable. In combat with the sailors, they would even lunge with their teeth, their sharp jaws snapping through human arms with ease.

Seeing the sailors rally, the captain shouted loudly, “Careful, everyone! These are Tidal Warriors of the Raging Wave Clan! Watch out—they have shamans who can wield lightning magic. Don’t let them hit you!”

Liu Zhi hesitated. Just then, several sailors rushed past, pushing him aside as they ran.

“Don’t get in the way if you’re not helping!”

Feeling both awkward and frustrated, Liu Zhi raised his scimitar and charged at a nearby Tidal Warrior.

The moment he engaged, Liu Zhi realized that these mermen were much tougher than pirates. Their scales looked slimy, but were in fact resilient, providing protection equal to a suit of standard scale armor.

When his scimitar struck them, there was a strange deflecting force, making it difficult to inflict real damage.

Instead, the merman seized the opportunity, swinging his spiked club at Liu Zhi’s head, showing no concern for his own chest, which was exposed to Liu Zhi’s blade.

Missing with his first strike, Liu Zhi immediately retreated out of the merman’s range, then slashed again, aiming for the creature’s eye.

“Don’t go for the eyes! See the tendrils on its face? Cut those off—they’re its main arteries!”

The voice came from behind. Without turning, Liu Zhi recognized the sailor who’d previously instructed him in combat.

There was no time for thanks. Liu Zhi twisted his scimitar, changing from a horizontal sweep to a downward chop.

The blade struck the tendril on the merman’s left side, but Liu Zhi’s swordsmanship was still lacking—though he hit the tendril, he failed to sever it completely.

Seeing his weakness exposed, the merman let out a gurgling cry and charged at Liu Zhi, swinging his spiked club.

Liu Zhi ducked, and the club smashed into the planks behind him. As the merman tried to retrieve his weapon, Liu Zhi slashed fiercely at his face, finally severing one of the tendrils.

As pale blue blood sprayed out, a red flash swept before Liu Zhi’s eyes.

‘+61’