[Decoded Worldview, Player: Feng Bujue received 200 points of Skill Value. Partys members now can see the rules of the plots Worldview in their menu.]

[Current Quest, updated. Main Quest, updated.]

[Escape the island or kill Rainsford.]

"The f*ck!" Feng Bujue cursed out loud as he slapped his own face twice. "Why did I read it!"

He stood up and checked his stats in the menu. After 20 minutes of resting, his Survival Value had increased by 34 points. His Physical Value, on the other hand, was a little bit better as it was 452/1400 now. The problem was, how could he complete the Main Quest with his current status?

"Eh? Specialty is upgraded!" At the same time, Feng Bujue found his Common Specialty in the Specialties Menu had been upgraded to D.

Common Specialty and Skill Value were somehow proportional. Of course, there was no absolute swap between them. Players could only use this for reference. Whatever the case was, only 1 in 10 players or some sort of players like Feng Bujue, who could often decode the special Worldview, if they had actions that contributed to the development of the scenario, would have points accumulate into Common Specialty. From this aspect, it was pretty similar to Skill Value.

Normally, the more scenarios they played, the higher the grade of their Common Specialty would be. Any player could reach Grade S in Common Specialties, and the difference between a master and an amateur was just the pace to see who could reach the top first. Of course, there was something higher than Grade S, but they werent the standard grades of Specialties that anyone could enter. We will talk about this concept later.

Right now, Feng Bujue had decoded the Worldview for the second time, and his Common Specialty was upgraded accordingly. However, he didnt feel any sense of accomplishment since this time, his work had been done without the need of reasoning, and it was mainly based on his courage, careful manner and luck.

Talking about this separately, if one had good fortune, he could find the skeleton in this col; if he were careful enough, he could find the small iron box, and if he were daring enough, he could gather his guts to read the paper

Anyway, everything had come to this, so he had to think about the countermeasures again. The period of five hours that they needed to survive had no meaning now. No matter what, Rainsford would pursue him soon. Getting killed was now just a matter of time.

Moreover, as Feng Bujue had estimated, the time he had wasnt much now, and there were two reasons for this.

First, this wasnt a scenario in Sleep Mode. From the players discussion in the game forum, the time for a multiplayer scenario was four hours max. Most of the time, they could be solved within 20 minutes or one hour. In this scenario, which Feng Bujue was experiencing, it had been around 90 minutes in real time already. Nothing would occur if he hadnt read the papers, but now, it could speed up the rhythm of the scenario.

Second, Zaroff had written clearly that this Rainsford was possibly not a human. Thus, if he could have wings and come here, it wasnt a surprise then.

It could be said that the remark of the piece of paper was preciseOnce you read it, everything will never be the same.

Sure enough, after he read it, the setting of this scenario had turned from thriller to magical and frightening style.

"The main thread is to choose one from two Kill the BOSS or escape the island." Feng Bujue sneered, "Hmm, if I could subdue Rainsford single-handedly, I would soon storm to him with One Saber To Conquer The City!" He licked his lips, patted his forehead with his fingers, and caressed the bridge of his nose, which was his old habit while thinking. "The problem is even the real General Zaroff couldnt escape this island, and Im just a player who has just arrived here, will I succeed?"

He rose the message again in front of his eyes, trying to consider it from all angles. As he had remembered 100% of the content, it was much relaxing just to read it for now.

"Ha ha... Tough then." He laughed from his heart.

In this world, there are some people who are addicted to fine food or women; also, there are some who are addicted to drugs

To Feng Bujue, an addict in thinking, investigation, and reasoning, breaking perilous situations and growing up again from impasses, these things could bring a perfect satisfaction to such a narcissistic guy like him. Thus, he could do it all the time without feeling tired.

"After getting back to the island, Rainsford suddenly had a tremendous physical ability. His strength seemed to be boundless as he didnt need to eat or sleep. He could kill the ferocious hunting dogs with bare hands. He had some kind of sense that could track down the animals from very far away. Murderous and cunning However, killing people was his priority. If not, he wouldnt take risks to draw the attention of the outer world by increasing his hunting frequency for more vessels."

Feng Bujue converted the contents of the letter into simple information. He read it in silence while his impression towards this guy was growing bigger.For those irrelevant details, he had trimmed them down and thrown them into the blind corner of his brain. "So he has a desire for killing people. Why doesnt he kill them directly? Why does he need to use the game the general has invented? Basically, Rainsford doesnt need to do the extra hunting tricks. At the same time, he doesnt need to control Ivan to be his servant or raise those hounds. Also, he doesnt need to impersonate the general. But he did them all. Why? Just to seek for excitement?"

Feng Bujues thought came to a dead end. However, he soon returned. "Wait a minute" Feng Bujue read the paper again. "When the real Zaroff was still alive, he met a sailor who got ambushed by a tiger and the real Zaroff himself died here. Rainsford didnt kill them on his own." Feng Bujue thought, "Rainsford has introduced those wild animals. When he mentioned Ivan tearing apart the Spanish sailor and feeding the beasts, he sounded natural And, when he talked about hunting himself, it was the verse of the Zaroff in the story."

"And, if he was seeking for stimulation and enjoying the hunt, why has he released the dogs to chase after his preys? What if the dog killed me, what else did he have to hunt down?" Feng Bujue muttered, "Is he some kind of animal Evil God who has hawk eyes, panthers speed, and bears strength?"

"He has done many things to nurture the wild instinct of the animals on the island, so as those animals could hunt down humans?" Feng Bujue immediately jumped to another thought. "But Rainsfords ability to communicate with animals is just like other people. Besides the hounds he has been raising, the other animals on the island are not subjected to his drive. If not, he didnt need to kill the three hunting dogs that the real Zaroff had released in their second game."

Feng Bujue had analyzed many features of this BOSS, but he couldnt conclude anything.

"Seems I need to go back to the castle for more clues." Feng Bujue sighed. "Whatever option I choose to complete the scenario, returning there is my only choice. The reason why General Zaroff couldnt escape this island is the only exit is hidden in the castle, and that place is the only place that he couldnt enter in the whole island. This explains why the castles owner finally died in the jungle."

"Sigh I really shouldnt have read it. What should I do now? Come back to the castle? My Physical Value isnt more than one-third. On the way there, I have to rest once or twice. If Im lucky enough to avoid Rainsford and get to the castle successfully, I must be exhausted. And I need to sneak in there it would be the bright daylight then" Feng Bujue irritatingly scratched his head and messed up his hair.

"I used to think that you would die before the other two. Unexpectedly, you are still alive Moreover, you seem to have found something interesting," Rainsfords voice echoed in the dark.

Feng Bujue agilely reacted, flexed his body and retreated while shining the flashlight to the direction the voice had come from.

Rainsford was clasping his hands behind his back while standing on a block of rock. Moonlight shrouded his body, illuminating a big grin on his face. "You would feel weird why I am here that quick."

"To tell the truth, nothing could surprise me now," answered Feng Bujue.

He didnt rush to run away. However, he understood that he needed to maintain a distance between him and the other. If this BOSS wanted to kill him, he didnt need to talk and would just ambush him directly. Thus, the conversation they had now was a part of the plot for him to harvest more important information.

"Ha, ha Traveler from the other world, I think you have used some other method to know that your friends are dead now," Rainsford said, "you must think that Ive killed them."

Feng Bujue knew what he wanted to say next, he interrupted. "So, they have died because of something you have been raising. And you, you have been chasing after me from the beginning."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha..." Rainsford laughed out loud. "Unidentified Mental Disorder," he called his players ID, which only the Derivative X-23 had done before. "Master Satsuma Diehl wanted me to send his regard to you."

"Sh!t" Feng Bujue was dumbstruck hearing that. His eyes instantly opened wide as he used a louder voice to repeat, "SH!T!"

[Ultimately there will be one day when you guys will pay a big price It won't be long]

Satsuma Diehls last words flashed back in Feng Bujues brain.

"So you do know Satsuma Diehl, dont you? Hey, Rainsford bro, how many years have passed by? And, isnt it happening on Earth?"

"How many years? Snort It doesnt matter. The human era is just a drop in the river of time. Places also arent related. Do you really know where you are?" Rainsford brushed his clothes. "My bulletproof vest comes from the era that you, Unidentified Mental Disorder, calls future. I dont know where it is, but is it very important?"

"Ha... Ha, ha..." Feng Bujue tried to force a smile. "Makes sense. Can I ask how did you form a relationship with Satsuma Diehl? And, Mister Rainsford, what are you?"

"Im still a human. Ive just got some extraordinary powers from Master Satsuma Diehl." Rainsford shrugged. "Many years ago, I survived Zaroffs hunting game. When he sent me out on a small boat, it didnt bring me back to the world I know, but to a strange place."

"At that place, Ive met all kind of things I have never seen before. Those things made my previous knowledge on religions and science seem to be worthless. Do you know why humans want to seek for the answers but always make wrong and stupid conclusions? Because the truth isnt something we could accept.

"Foreseeing future isnt different from stealing future. Understanding the truth could lead to negation and self-destruction.

"If apes knew the function of fire, they wouldnt eat raw meat. Thousands of years ago, if they knew about medicine, they would not bury the sick alive. Hundreds of years ago, if they understood the true teachings of religions, they wouldnt burn innocent women they considered witches.

"And I, after Ive known something, Ive become like this."

"Snort..." Feng Bujue beamed a vapid smile to him then threw him a crucial question. "What kind of agreement is it between you and Satsuma Diehl?"

Rainsford answered him calmly, "I provided him the exhausted and desperate soul, and he gave me the immortal life and supernatural powers." He paused for a while, "After Zaroff died, I tried to torture and confine all the victims before killing them. But soon, I realized that the castle doesnt have many cells for them. Ivan and I were too busy to care."

"Seems you got a big demand" sneered Feng Bujue.

"I should thank Zaroff for his invention of Human Hunting Game since the results show that it is the most effective way," Rainsford said, "I dont have to handle everything personally. I just only give them rules and wait to see them falling into hopeless desperation and instinctively struggle to survive before getting themselves killed."

"Thats it. I understand," Feng Bujue said, "so, the port to enter or exit this island is placed under your castle?"

"Hm You are as smart as Master Satsuma Diehl had told me," Rainsford smiled coldly, "its true. Theres a hidden river under the castle leading from there to the most west. An exit is hidden in a cliff there, and you could only see it when the tide is low. Anyway, its useless for you to know where it is. Therere only several boats in this island, and theyre all in my castle."

"All right, I cant get out of here," Feng Bujue mused and said, "so, you are not going to kill me now because Satsuma Diehl wanted to tell me something through you."

"Ah... Of course," Rainsford smiled, "your soul is something Master desires the most. Now I want to ask you: Are you exhausted and desperate enough? If not yet, I can play with you. Ha, ha, ha. How many days do you think you can survive on this island? Would it be longer than what Zaroff had done?"

"Youve underestimated me, Mister Rainsford." At this moment, Feng Bujue became more tranquil and was at ease; he even started to tease this BOSS. "What a coincidence! I happen to be the strongest creature in this world."

"Yeah? Do you really think that you are not human?" replied Rainsford.

"If you are considered human, of course, I am a human," Feng Bujue answered, "however, as everyone knows, aliens and SP682 (1) are not able to eat special Chinese people and so on because they are the most tenacious existences. Holding on the attitude of letting me emerge and perish on my own is useless."

Rainsford kept silent for around five seconds. "Although I dont know what you are talking about I seem to understand your point of view. If so, I will handle you on my own."

He hadnt finished, yet Feng Bujue had launched out like a rocket, jumping over 10 meters in just a blink. The place he had stood now had a deep footprint pressed down on the ground. There was a faint scent of blood diffusing in the air.

Rainsford beamed a malevolent smile and started to chase after Feng Bujue. The power of his moves wasnt less than that of Feng Bujue when he was using the [Body-Spirit Congregation Technique] as he just needed to slightly flex his feet a few times to glide over the direction that Feng Bujue had run away. Moreover, the more he ran, the faster his speed would be. Every time he flexed his legs, his body would dart forward just like it was shot out from a bow. This guy was incredibly strong.

In terms of strength, Feng Bujue couldnt be Rainsfords match. Even One Saber To Conquer The City, when he was full of vitality, could only last a single breath with one of his strike. With his current Survival Value, certainly, Feng Bujue couldnt endure anything. Thus, he didnt care how many points the Spirit-Body Congregation Technique would consume. After all, just one a blow of the opponent, and it would directly decline to 1.

In this kind of speed contest, Feng Bujue could reluctantly race a lap with his opponent. Although his absolute speed and outburst were slightly better, the distance between Rainsford and him was gradually being shortened.

The understanding of the two regarding the topography here was different. Moreover, the chaser could see the direction where the other was going as he could predict the way at once. Quite the contrary, besides running madly for his life, Feng Bujue had to check the small path in front of him not to step into the void or enter a dead end. If he didnt have his sight much enhanced, running in the jungle like this with only a flashlight would soon cause him to hit a tree trunk like a stupid boar.

At the last dark moment before dawn, there were two silhouettesone leading and one chasingwith the former energetically crossing the jungle just like a constantly boosting bullet, using the surroundings as the support to accelerate even more; and the latter, which was like a mayfly surfing on the water surface, light and agile, never been in a disadvantaged situation.

This race didnt last for too long. After only one minute, Feng Bujues Survival Value had been burnt down to less than 10 points. If he deactivated the Spirit-Body Congregation Technique at this moment, he wouldn't be able to re-activate it again. So now, he could only endure burning his blood to struggle for 20 seconds more.

Rainsford was very close to him. Gradually, he was just roughly 10 meters away. At this moment, the space between their eyes suddenly lit up as they finally got out of the jungle to the Dead Swamp at the South-East corner of the Island.

Feng Bujue didnt care; with the attitude of a hardcore gambler, he put forth all of whats left to him while gliding on the muddy surface of the quagmire like lightning. Finally, he successfully stopped on a piece of stone about ten meters away from the edge of the swamp. This was one of the only footholds in the middle of the quagmire.

At the moment he stopped there, Feng Bujues Survival Value had almost drained down to bottom. Now it was only 1 point left, and even a sting of a bee could instantly kill him.

Rainsford stopped at the edge of the swamp and didnt move further.

[1] SCP-682, also known as theHard-to-Destroy Reptile, is an extremely dangerous Keter-class creature fromThe SCP Foundation - a secretive organization that contains anomalous or supernatural items and entities away from the eyes of the public. SCP stands forSecure, Contain, Protect.