Chapter 2: Starting from 5
"Planet 9322210182 intelligent lifeforms, planetary time 10 seconds until displacement."
That voice sounded in his mind as expected—terse and to the point, without a single wasted word or any intention to negotiate.
If this truly was an alien civilization, it was clear how insignificant and powerless humans were in their eyes, not even given a chance to struggle.
"10, 9, 8..."
"Waaah! Mom!!!"
Inside the café, a little girl clung to the middle-aged woman beside her, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Wife, I love you!"
"Son, Mom loves you!"
Farewells erupted all around.
The atmosphere reminded Liu Xiang of the 2012 doomsday rumors that had felt so real back then.
"Sigh... I still had 17 resumes left to send..."
He turned his head to gaze at the sky outside the window.
It had been such an ordinary afternoon just moments ago...
"1..."
His vision began to blur and distort—not because the world around him was changing, but because he was disappearing. There was no beam of light enveloping him, no discomfort, just a surge of warmth pulsing in his chest.
There was no time to observe his surroundings, because in the next instant, an overwhelming pressure closed in from all directions. It felt like being crammed into a subway car during rush hour, squeezed from every side, leaving him gasping for air.
Everything before his eyes was swallowed by darkness—pure, absolute black.
The pressure kept increasing. Just as Liu Xiang felt he was about to be crushed, the force suddenly vanished—or rather, lessened to a bearable degree.
After about 3 to 5 seconds, light abruptly returned.
At first, the same hazy distortion lingered, but soon, everything sharpened into focus...
"What the hell..."
People. Countless people. As far as the eye could see, there were people—endless, overwhelming, a sea of bewildered, dazed, panicked, and even grinning faces.
Then came the noise—not the usual clamor, but an explosion of chaotic voices.
Fear and confusion spread through the crowd like wildfire, infecting, erupting.
Some collapsed to the ground, wailing. Strangers clutched each other, unrestrained in their panic.
Liu Xiang stayed silent, quickly processing the flood of information around him.
Within seconds, everyone had been transported to an unknown location. The teleportation seemed to follow some logic—he noticed the café's customers and staff nearby, including the mother and daughter from earlier.
Everyone's original clothes were gone, replaced by black bodysuits. Liu Xiang himself was now wearing one, covering him from neck to toe, with only his head exposed. The material under his feet was tougher, serving as shoes. He rubbed his fingers together and found that even encased in the suit, his sense of touch remained sharp, unaffected. The material was unfamiliar—stretchy, lightweight, almost unnoticeable.
Amid the ongoing chaos, Liu Xiang's mind stayed calm.
He knew emotional outbursts wouldn't solve anything. Understanding this new environment was the only way forward.
Squinting into the distance, he saw that the crowd ended at an endless stretch of forest. They stood on a vast grassy clearing, bisected by a winding stream.
His bag was gone. So was his phone. Liu Xiang sighed—he'd bought that phone and laptop with his own hard-earned money, and they hadn't even lasted half a year.
Scanning the crowd, he noticed a few things: First, there were no elderly people—no one particularly old. Second, no children. The youngest he could spot looked about fourteen or fifteen.
"Huh?"
While observing, Liu Xiang suddenly realized that an information bar had appeared above the people in his line of sight.
[Category: Organic Intelligent Lifeform]
[Origin: Galactic Order]
[Species: Human]
[Gender: Male]
[Height: 1.64 meters (Planetary Measurement)] (Note: Since too many people aren't paying attention—this is someone else's info bar!)
[Physique: Insufficient Permissions]
[Spirit Energy: Insufficient Permissions]
[Faith: Insufficient Permissions]
[Elemental Affinity: Insufficient Permissions]
"This is literally a game character stat window!" Liu Xiang's eye twitched. A terrible suspicion dawned on him.
"Did the aliens bring us here to play a game?!"
The crowd, initially chaotic and panicked, gradually quieted—though "quiet" was relative.
There were still sobs, but softer now. Once people no longer sensed immediate danger, they began to calm down.
Groups of acquaintances gathered, discussing plans. Others searched for friends or family.
Some waved their hands in the air—likely trying to interact with the info bars, adjusting to this surreal interface.
With such a massive population and no communication devices, people formed circles, with men shielding younger teens and women in the center to prevent separation.
Liu Xiang's city, Qiantang, had a population in the tens of millions. Even excluding the elderly and children, at least 6 to 8 million people must have been transported to this grassland. That sheer number gave everyone an unspoken sense of security.
But a nagging worry surfaced: Millions of people meant millions of mouths.
What would they eat?
What would they drink? He glanced at the nearby stream—that could solve the water issue.
But what about... other bodily needs? Were they supposed to drink and relieve themselves in the same river?
Still, survival concerns didn't occupy Liu Xiang for long. With so many people here, there were bound to be smarter minds tackling these problems. It wasn't his job to worry.
Instead, he focused on studying the mysterious system (if it even was one) that had somehow integrated into him.
If he could see others' stats, then...?
Liu Xiang experimented, trying to access more information.
It wasn't hard. The moment he willed it, a status window appeared:
[Category: Organic Intelligent Lifeform]
[Origin: Galactic Order]
[Species: Human]
[Gender: Male]
[Titles: None]
[Height: 1.76 meters (Planetary Measurement)]
[Physique: Resilience: 5]
[Strength: 5]
[Agility: 5]
[Burst: 5]
[Spirit Energy: None]
[Faith: None]
[Elemental Affinity: None]
[Mastery: None]
[Body Techniques: None]
[Spirit Techniques: None]
"Well, damn. A certified weakling." A six-fold "none" to boot.
Any hope of being the "chosen one" evaporated. He was starting from absolute zero—five, actually.
Shaking off his disappointment, Liu Xiang gleaned a few key insights:
This system wasn't controlled by touch or gaze, but by thought.
This place was clearly not Earth anymore. Terms like Spirit Energy, Faith, Elemental Affinity, and Mastery defied conventional understanding.
The setup was undeniably game-like. Drawing from his gaming knowledge, Liu Xiang could even guess...
This world had magic.