Chapter 4: System Bug
Caw! Caw!
Excited and jubilant roars echoed from within the temple!
This time, Chen Mo was mentally prepared. Without waiting for the gorillas to emerge, he turned and sprinted away at full speed.
The narrow stone path beneath his feet was only a meter wide, with no railings—beyond it, billowing clouds drifted in the high sky. One misstep, and he would plummet to his death.
Chen Mo forced down his fear of heights, brainwashing himself: “This isn’t real, it’s just a game. What’s there to be afraid of?” Gritting his teeth, he began his desperate escape!
Back in school, his best time for the hundred-meter dash was fourteen seconds, but here, with attribute bonuses, he managed to sprint a hundred meters in ten seconds—a speed on par with a professional athlete.
Caw! Caw!
Just as Chen Mo marveled at his own speed, two gorillas leapt directly in front of him, blocking his path. His heart jumped into his throat. Panicked, he attempted a sliding tackle, trying to slip under their legs—but these gorillas were cunning; one simply plopped down on its rear!
A familiar, agonized scream rang out—Chen Mo was sat on and killed by a gorilla. How humiliating!
White light rained down; everything vanished. The game reset, and Chen Mo found himself once more at the temple entrance.
[Challenge failed. Final distance: 100 meters. Points earned: 100.]
“Damn it, that hurt!” Even with only twenty percent of real pain, being torn apart by gorillas was pure hell. Chen Mo had no desire to be caught again.
This time, he didn’t wait for the elven girl to announce the start—he dashed off immediately!
The elven girl was stunned for a moment. According to the dungeon’s design, the countdown had to reach zero before the escape could begin; otherwise, you couldn’t even leave the starting line.
With a three-second head start, Chen Mo left the five gorillas trailing by thirty meters.
“Hahaha! Come on, catch me if you can!” he laughed. He had calculated—the gorillas were only slightly faster than him. With a thirty-meter lead from the start, he had a massive advantage!
Soon, he reached the hundred-meter mark—only to find the path abruptly ended. A three-meter-wide abyss yawned before him. He would have to leap across to continue, but three meters? How was that possible?
Caw! Caw!
The furious cries of the gorillas drew ever nearer behind him. Chen Mo knew he couldn’t stop. Gathering all his momentum, he leapt like a soaring bird!
Bang—
Miracles did not occur. Chen Mo crashed into the cliff edge on the opposite side. As he was about to fall, he quickly grabbed the jutting stones with both hands and scrambled to pull himself up.
In the mobile game Temple Run, crashing into the wall meant instant death, but this wasn’t a mere game—it was a real dungeon!
Unfortunately, just as he managed to climb up, a massive gorilla grinned, white teeth gleaming as if mocking him. With a flick of its finger, it sent Chen Mo tumbling into the abyss.
Again, a wretched scream echoed as Chen Mo plummeted from the heights, his body smashed to pieces.
[Challenge failed. Final distance: 101 meters. Points earned: 100.]
Everyone had three attempts at the challenge; Chen Mo now faced his last chance. This was just too difficult!
For his third attempt, inspiration struck. He recalled the movie “Ready Player One” that Ye Zhiyan, the class beauty, had invited him to see last week. Chen Mo was handsome, his eyebrows sharp as swords, his features chiseled and coldly heroic—qualities much admired by the girls. But that was beside the point. What mattered was how the protagonist in “Ready Player One” won by taking an unconventional path, defying expectations and going in reverse.
He stared at the temple’s dark, menacing entrance behind him. Perhaps he could also try escaping in the opposite direction—maybe there was a hidden bonus!
Without waiting for the elven girl, Chen Mo spun around and dashed back into the temple.
And that was it.
The five gorillas let out excited, hungry roars, and moments later, another agonized scream echoed from within.
[Challenge failed. Final distance: -2 meters. Points earned: 0.]
Well…
The elven guide was utterly dumbfounded. Each player’s solo dungeon had a female elf, like a beginner NPC, to guide them; all the settings were identical.
But Chen Mo’s series of unconventional actions caused a data scramble—his elven guide crashed!
That’s right—she crashed!
Normally, every player had only three attempts. Upon failing, they would be transported directly back to the dungeon lobby and then return to reality.
But with his guide’s data in disarray, the dungeon failed to end. When Chen Mo revived, he found himself still inside the dungeon. He was stunned for a few seconds, but soon noticed the NPC elven girl was entirely unresponsive, as if bugged.
Overjoyed, Chen Mo wasted no time—he took off at a mad dash!
Caw! Caw!
The five gorillas’ data remained intact—they continued their relentless pursuit.
At the first hundred-meter gap, Chen Mo leapt once again. This time, his jump was farther than before—he nearly made it! Reacting swiftly, he grabbed the edge with both hands, pushed off, and clambered onto the platform.
Success!
Before he could celebrate, all five gorillas leapt effortlessly over the three-meter pit, landed behind him, and surrounded the hapless Chen Mo for another savage beating.
[Challenge failed. Final distance: 103 meters. Points earned: 100.]
This time, instead of feeling discouraged, Chen Mo’s heart raced with excitement—he still received points! Did this mean he could farm points endlessly?
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The elven girl’s eyes spun rapidly and erratically; her data was still scrambled.
Chen Mo realized he had to take advantage and farm as many points as possible before she returned to normal.
Charge!
Chen Mo launched his fifth attempt. That’s right—his fifth! This was no mere escape, but a charge!
At the hundred-meter mark, he leapt—failed!
Again! He sank his feet, pushed with his calves—failed!
And again…
At the fiftieth attempt, swinging his forearms, pushing off with powerful calves, pulling his hands behind him like a great roc spreading its wings—he soared!
Thunk!
With a clear, crisp sound, Chen Mo finally cleared the three-meter chasm in one smooth bound—success!
Laughing wildly, he rushed toward the second junction.
Again and again, agonized screams echoed through the dungeon. Chen Mo had lost count of how many times he’d died.
Leap like a carp!
His movements were as agile as a fish, head forward, arms extended as he dove at a five-meter-wide abyss.
Boom!
Suddenly, a wall of fire erupted, leaving only a gap less than twenty centimeters wide.
No wonder Chen Mo didn’t use the roc’s wings technique—instead, he dove like a fish, aiming to slip through the narrow opening in the wall of fire.
Perfectly aligned, he squeezed through. As his hands touched down, he rolled forward in one fluid motion.
Whoosh, whoosh—
No sooner had he rolled than sharp spikes shot up from the ground behind him. Had he hesitated for even half a second, he would have been skewered.
Such proficiency—so skilled it was almost pitiful.
This was Chen Mo’s ten-thousandth attempt! If the rest of the world knew they only had three chances, while someone had managed ten thousand, they would go mad!