The Cold and Ruthless Supporting Male Lead

It was impossible not to feel moved. Hai Ku hadn’t expected this group of people, who had only known him for a few hours, to be so loyal and supportive.

Not wanting to waste too much time, they confirmed their destination and took the elevator down to the first floor.

Fortunately, the design of this tower was relatively user-friendly. While climbing up had been somewhat brutal, thanks to the female lead, they didn’t have to walk much. Going down was also made easier by the availability of an elevator, which made them quite happy.

Although they had considered walking down in the hope of discovering something, the 100-floor height was no trivial matter. They had already decided that the place they were heading to was one of the exits, and the small team, led by Wu Hai, had an inexplicable confidence about it.

Following the map, they made their way to the school. It was only when Wu Hai and the others arrived there that they truly felt the terrifying nature of this junkyard.

The pain sensitivity in this game was only one-tenth of that in the real world, but the sense of smell and sight seemed magnified hundreds, if not thousands, of times. The stench emanating from the piles of garbage was nearly unbearable.

No wonder no one wanted to come to this place. The smell from the junkyard could be detected from a distance. Anyone who wasn’t a fan of such odors would likely go out of their way to avoid it.

After much effort, they managed to pry open the school’s main gate and entered the small park inside. By the time Wu Hai’s group reached the park, they were already close to exhaustion.

When they discovered something unusual about the small slides in the park, a notification appeared in the game’s system indicating that two players had already entered the second level.

The world chat channel instantly exploded with activity, and Hai Ku and his group refused to fall behind.

The two small slides were peculiar. It wasn’t just that they faced each other as seen from above; upon closer inspection, the interfaces of the slides were designed to connect.

After linking the two interfaces, the slide’s steps, originally lying on the ground, began to emit a faint glow. Soon, they arched into the shape of a doorway.

The group was pleasantly surprised but didn’t say much. They eagerly stepped into the second level.

The second level was entirely different from the first. As soon as they were transported to the second level, Hai Ku felt a wave of intense heat. This scorching sensation seemed to emanate from beneath the ground, directly attacking the soles of their feet.

The surroundings were an endless desert, with golden sand stretching as far as the eye could see. Aside from the exit from the first level, there were no other visible structures.

“Let’s quickly claim the rewards. We’re the second group to arrive here, so the rewards should be pretty good,” someone suggested, snapping Hai Ku out of his heat-induced daze.

Once someone discovered the entrance to the second level, others would inevitably follow, as the first discoverers couldn’t resist showing off online.

Considering that, the game developers had set up generous rewards for the first ten groups to arrive. The rest would only receive basic rewards.

The rewards Hai Ku’s group received were decent. Along with a map of the desert, they were given several sets of sun-protective clothing.

After putting on the sun-protective clothing, Hai Ku finally felt like he was alive again.

The task prompt for the second level indicated that the objective was underground. While later arrivals might struggle to find it, those who came earlier were given clues.

After equipping themselves, Hai Ku’s team entered the task prompt location.

***

“Oh my, you guys are so slow! We’re way faster than you, humph.” A coquettish voice greeted them as they descended. The familiar tone was one they had heard along the way, so it was impossible to forget now.

Turning to face them, Bing Jingxue flaunted her recently obtained reward. “We’re the first to arrive here, you know! This second level is full of zombies. After the desert, it’s a world of ice and snow. Look at this outfit I’m wearing; not only does it protect against the cold, but it also resists heat and zombie bites. Isn’t it amazing? Jealous, aren’t you?”

Hai Ku ignored Bing Jingxue’s boasting and instead focused on the man standing beside her.

This man’s in-game ID was ‘Longde Chuanren.’

(T/N: Longde Chuanren = Descendant of the Dragon.)

Hai Ku didn’t have much of an impression of this ID, likely because the storyline had already shifted. The male lead and supporting male characters hadn’t teamed up with the female lead, so she had randomly paired with a background character.

Longde Chuanren appeared to be an honest, quiet man. He followed Bing Jingxue silently, giving the impression of being rather dull.

Bing Jingxue’s flaunting left Wu Hai and his group speechless. They couldn’t understand what was so worth boasting about when it came to the game’s rewards. Although the rewards for the first and second groups differed slightly, the differences were likely just in the quantity or functionality of the items, with no significant disparities otherwise.

Seeing how delighted Bing Jingxue looked, Wu Hai didn’t want to rain on her parade. Arguing with a young girl would be unbecoming, and they didn’t feel like quarreling with her.

After basking in her own sense of superiority for a while, the man beside Bing Jingxue, Longde Chuanren, finally spoke. “Right now, it’s just our two groups here. If you don’t mind, how about we travel together?”

For him, reaching the second level had been a nearly unattainable feat. He’d started playing this game as soon as it launched, yet it had taken him a long time to find the first level’s exit.

If not for encountering Bing Jingxue, Longde Chuanren wouldn’t have made it to the second level at all. However, being alone in an unfamiliar and dangerous place was clearly unwise. If possible, he preferred to join them.

Bing Jingxue, in truth, knew where the exit to the second world was. However, she couldn’t decipher the map’s instructions and didn’t dare show it to Longde Chuanren. She wanted to figure it out on her own.

Now that he had made the suggestion, she didn’t object. After all, she wanted to flaunt her abilities in front of Hai Ku and his group. She wanted them to realize that abandoning her and choosing Hai Ku had been a mistake.

After a brief discussion, Wu Hai’s group didn’t reject the proposal. However, they didn’t formally join Bing Jingxue’s team either. Instead, they agreed to travel together for now, with the understanding that they would part ways if they encountered anything problematic.

The instructions for the second level were quite straightforward. They only provided basic information about the level’s settings.

The second level had fifteen exits leading to the third level. Of these, five were hidden secret exits, while the remaining ten were normal exits that players had to find on their own.

The second level was divided into a desert zone and an icy zone. The desert zone was inhabited by virus-infected animals, while the icy zone was home to zombies. At the border between the two zones, both types of dangers coexisted.

Two exits were located at the border of the two zones, while the other eight were evenly split between the desert and icy zones.

In terms of danger, the border zone was undoubtedly the most perilous. However, it also covered the smallest area, making it the quickest way to find an exit.

Each player had only ten lives in this world. Although it was possible to replenish lives through various means, the most critical point was that once all ten lives were used up, players would be sent back to the first level.

Additionally, after re-entering the first level, the previous entrance to the second level could no longer be used, forcing players to find a new entrance to proceed.

In other words, they had only ten chances to lose their lives before being sent back to the first level to start over.

After leaving their current location, they headed toward the border zone. Thanks to the rewards from completing the first level, it only took them half an hour to reach the border zone’s entrance.

Following a brief warning of impending danger, they officially entered the area.

The border zone was a mix of ice and desert, with fluctuating temperatures that alternated between cold and hot. Fortunately, their reward outfits allowed them to quickly adapt to the shifting climate.

They walked for a while without encountering anything unusual; not a single zombie or animal. However, they remained vigilant and didn’t let their guard down.

In the second level, a hunger mechanic was introduced to prevent players from camping indefinitely. Combined with the zombies and mutated beasts native to this world, the game aimed to simulate a true apocalypse survival experience. If hunger reached a certain level, players would lose a life.

Various locations in the second level had hidden markers indicating where supplies were stored. Finding sufficient resources was their top priority.

The more players entered the second level, the fewer resources the system would distribute. Once supplies were taken, it would take some time for them to regenerate. Waiting idly during this period would only waste valuable time.

Having set clear objectives from the start, everyone was tense and focused.

But their concentration was abruptly shattered by Bing Jingxue’s startled cry.

“Ah! What an absolutely adorable little thing!”

They turned to see Bing Jingxue holding a small, snow-white rabbit and chattering excitedly.

The tiny rabbit in her hands was only the size of a palm, but its eyes were unlike those of ordinary rabbits. Its eyes were a striking blue. Other than its unusual eye color, the rabbit resembled a typical teacup bunny; small, soft, and fluffy.

“So, there’s actually something like this in the game? Oh my gosh! My maiden heart is about to burst!” Bing Jingxue exclaimed, spinning in a circle while holding the little rabbit. She immediately turned to Longde Chuanren. “Longde~ can we take this rabbit with us?”

“But…” Longde Chuanren hesitated.

When the second level was introduced, he had already seen that the exotic beasts here all posed some degree of danger. This meant that even this cute little rabbit might not be as harmless as it seemed.

“What does it matter? It’s just a little rabbit, after all. Besides, I’m the one who brought you into the second level, remember? Just take the rabbit,” Bing Jingxue said as she shoved the rabbit into Longde Chuanren’s hands, pouting.

“I also know where the exit to the second level is. If you don’t help me keep this rabbit, I won’t tell you where it is.”

Bing Jingxue had absolute confidence that she could make it out of the second level. She firmly believed in the red exclamation mark prompt in her mind.

Since the exclamation mark hadn’t warned her of danger while she was holding the rabbit, she was convinced it was safe.

“You…” Longde Chuanren sighed helplessly. He found Bing Jingxue’s willfulness exasperating, but he held the rabbit tightly, not daring to let it go.

He knew he couldn’t get out of the second level on his own. If Bing Jingxue really knew the way to the exit, he decided it was worth tolerating her antics for now.

***

Hai Ku glanced at the rabbit, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

While he didn’t remember much about the other details, he clearly remembered this rabbit. It was a bug in the second level, and before the early patches, it could be considered a divine beast.

As long as the rabbit was with them, no exotic beasts or zombies would approach.

This rabbit was actually a bug left behind by the game developers. It was originally intended to be a pet for players, but later, they decided that a pet didn’t fit the theme of a puzzle game, so the idea was scrapped. However, when the male and female leads teamed up later in the story, this bug was discovered.

Hai Ku couldn’t help but marvel at how ridiculously good the female lead’s luck was. He remained silent, not saying a word.

However, Bing Jingxue’s earlier tone and attitude were undeniably off-putting.

If everyone around her had positive feelings toward her, they might have found her behavior endearing. But to them, she was just another player.

Her overconfidence and the obvious air of superiority she exuded were irritating.

Although she was trying to present herself as a naïve and cheerful girl, her demeanor only appealed to those already interested in her.

As the saying goes, ‘Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.’ If someone liked her, no matter how she behaved, it would be seen as adorable.

But if someone already had a poor impression of her, her actions would only make her more annoying.

As the atmosphere grew increasingly awkward, the system notification appeared, announcing that the third group of players had entered the second level.

This notification was a clear reminder that time was running out. Hai Ku quickly spoke up, “Let’s hurry up and gather supplies. The second level is much smaller than the first, and there are plenty of exits, but we still need to act fast.”