Moments later.
Kirito and Klein, their appearances restored, had found each other again. They simultaneously turned to look at Ling Feng.
"Huh? Ling Feng, why did your appearance change back?"
"Yeah, we all changed, why didn't you?"
Facing their questions, Ling Feng coughed twice, suppressing the amusement in his heart, and chuckled.
"I didn't change my appearance, so how could I change back?"
"That makes sense." Klein nodded.
Then, Kayaba Akihiko explained why he had done so.
"Good luck to all players."
As his final words fell, the avatar vanished.
The players in the plaza looked at each other, a moment of silence falling as they seemed to not have comprehended.
But this was merely the calm before the storm. As people gradually realized what had happened.
"No… no!"
"Ah! What kind of joke is this!"
"Let me out! What kind of joke is this!"
"…"
Almost simultaneously, piercing screams and deafening shouts erupted around them.
The scene devolved into chaos.
Kirito scanned the surroundings, his brows furrowed, and quickly called out to Ling Feng and Klein.
"Klein, Ling Feng, come with me."
"Okay."
Klein responded, and the two followed Kirito away from the starting plaza.
Ling Feng watched Kirito, silently admiring him. As expected, he was the fastest to react among all players in SAO.
In fact, Kirito was the first player, besides himself, to truly grasp the severity of the situation.
In an alleyway.
Kirito gravely invited Ling Feng and Klein.
"Listen carefully. I'm about to head to the next village. You two should come along."
"Huh?"
Klein looked puzzled, not understanding Kirito's intentions.
Seeing Klein's confusion, Kirito patiently explained his thoughts to them.
"If what that guy said is true, to survive in this world, we can only get stronger."
"VRMMO."
"I know the routes and dangerous locations. Even at level one, I can reach it safely."
Upon hearing this, Klein hesitated and said in a deep voice.
"But… my companions and I stayed up all night waiting in line to buy this game."
"They should still be in the plaza. I can't abandon them."
Ling Feng nodded at this. Klein was a friend worth befriending, loyal and true, a person one could truly count on.
Kirito heard this, glanced at Ling Feng, then at Klein, and began to strategize in his mind…
However, no matter what, things weren't ideal.
With more people, the leveling speed would significantly decrease.
Klein also noticed Kirito's dilemma and patted him on the shoulder with a smile.
"Sorry, I can't rely on you anymore. So don't worry about it, you guys go to the next village."
"I was a guild leader in the previous game."
"With the skills you taught me, I should be able to manage."
Hearing Klein's words, Kirito didn't intend to force him, but he still felt a bit dejected.
Since playing with Klein and Ling Feng, he felt things had become much more interesting, far happier than playing alone.
These two were also among the few friends he had made over the years.
"I see… then we part ways here. Let's go, Ling Feng."
"Wait, Kirito."
Ling Feng didn't move, but called out to Kirito.
He also didn't intend to accompany Kirito. If he stayed with Kirito for too long, Kirito's sharp observation skills would notice something unusual about him.
After all, his attack power, strength, experience points, and other stats were reduced by three-quarters.
It would be easy for Kirito to notice if he stayed too long.
Kirito turned back, disbelief evident, and said in a low voice.
"Ling Feng, you too…"
"I'm sorry, Kirito. I can't travel with you on the path ahead either. You know my situation. For you, I would only be a burden."
"So… live with all your might in this survival challenge," Ling Feng said seriously.
"I see, I understand. I'll tell you the dangerous locations around the starting town through our friend chat. Be sure to avoid them."
"If anything happens, send me a message anytime."
Kirito nodded heavily.
"Then… we part ways here."
Kirito turned and walked towards the alley exit, his figure appearing dejected and heavy.
Ling Feng and Klein exchanged a look, both understanding that they needed to give Kirito some "encouragement."
Klein spoke first.
"Hey! Kirito, I didn't expect you to be so cute. I quite like it."
Hey, hey, hey, what's with this gay-sounding remark?
If I hadn't seen the anime, I would have definitely misunderstood.
Kirito heard this, turned back, and retorted with a smile, "Your melancholic samurai face suits you perfectly!"
"Kirito, although I'm not a beta tester, you know my strength.
"When we meet again, if your level as a beta tester is even lower than mine as a newcomer, don't blame me for laughing at you."
Ling Feng also playfully taunted Kirito with a smile.
"Don't worry! Next time we meet, I'll definitely leave you far behind, and then I'll get revenge for today."
"Hey, hey, hey, it's not right for a high-level player to think about bullying a low-level player. If you have the guts, let's have a one-on-one at the same level."
"I'm not as strong as you in combat, that's your ability, but I'm using my own skills to defeat you, that's not wrong, is it?"
"Damn it! You scoundrel!"
"Hahaha, goodbye."
Kirito waved his hand and ran towards the alley exit.
Now, Kirito looked much more spirited.
"Hey, Ling Feng, why don't you come with us?"
Klein invited, partly for mutual support.
Secondly, with Ling Feng's formidable combat power, their monster grinding and safety would be greatly enhanced.
"No, next..."
Ling Feng said, turning around.
Stare…
At some point, a patrol of city guards had quietly approached them not far behind.
Ling Feng made eye contact with them.
These familiar faces, these familiar actions.
Ling Feng turned and bolted.
Damn it, even the city guard NPCs are playing dirty now.
"Chase! We absolutely cannot let him escape this time!"
Seeing that they had been discovered, the city guards no longer hid and immediately pursued Ling Feng.
Watching Ling Feng run past, followed by over a dozen city guards.
Klein hadn't figured out what was happening.
"Klein, I'll send you a message later."
Suddenly, Ling Feng's loud shout reached Klein's ears.
"Oh, oh…"
Klein instinctively responded, but Ling Feng had already run far away.
On the road leading out of the city, Kirito was on his way.
Suddenly, a dark figure whizzed past him, heading towards the city gates.
"Hey, Ling Feng, did you change your mind and decide to follow me?"
Seeing Ling Feng's familiar back, Kirito quickly sped up to catch up, asking.
"Nonsense! I'm running for my life!"
After saying that, Ling Feng increased his speed again, sprinting towards the city gate.
"Running for my life?"
Kirito was confused.
"Holy crap!"
He instinctively looked back, and the scene before him startled him.
Behind them, a vast army of city guards was following, each one tall and imposing, their aura terrifying.
Kirito looked at Ling Feng's slender figure and couldn't help but offer a silent lament for him.