William Harris opened the first page of the materials and was instantly dumbfounded: “The origins of online games!? The process of game development? Types of game-assist software? This, this...”

Receiving an extremely speechless look from his best friend, Charles Bennett frowned: “I spent 24 hours compiling these materials. Is there a problem?”

William Harris felt the urge to go crazy and shouted, “Dude! You’re going to play a game, not make one. Don’t you understand the difference between the two?”

Charles Bennett shrugged and answered matter-of-factly, “I understand the difference, but it’s just like learning to shoot—you first learn how to make a gun, isn’t it easier to draw inferences by analogy?”

“That’s not the same as, uh, playing with yourself!!!” William Harris immediately felt the urge to cover his face and faint.

“For example, when you, William Harris, chase girls, you’re used to first understanding everything around the woman, then making your move. In the two years since you entered Bailu Medical University, your success rate with girls has reached 90%. Thorough preparation beforehand is the key to victory.”

Faced with his friend’s purely data-driven analysis, William Harris could only lower his head weakly, not wanting to pay any more attention to Charles Bennett. In five minutes, he tossed out 90% of the stack of materials, kept only two sheets, and sighed, “The only things of any value are this ‘Night Lord’ game background and the ranking list of top players. For something as simple as playing a game—a pastime everyone knows—there’s really no need to prepare so much. But considering you’re entering ‘Night Lord’ to carry out a mission, it probably won’t be easy, so keeping these two sheets is good enough.”

Seeing his carefully compiled materials almost completely rejected, Charles Bennett frowned, but he had always been self-aware, knowing that his best friend William Harris possessed strengths in the two areas he was worst at—women and games—that he could never hope to match.

“This ‘Night Lord’ game background sheet—you can browse it slowly while playing after you enter the game. The current virtual game helmet technology is very advanced; you can store these materials in the game’s external port.” William Harris casually tossed aside the sheet with the ‘Night Lord’ game background, picked up the last sheet, studied it for a moment, and looked at Charles Bennett with a half-smile: “You’re interested in the top player rankings? You’re entering ‘Night Lord’ to complete the E-level bounty hunter assessment, not to compete with these people, so why bother?”

“Know yourself and know your enemy.” Charles Bennett replied calmly, a sharp glint in his eyes. “What’s the deal with the ‘Major and Minor Heavens List’ in Yanhuang Country and the ‘Ancient Kings List’ internationally?”

William Harris scratched his head in frustration and said, “It’s pretty much the same as the Bounty Hunter Alliance rankings. The ‘Major and Minor Heavens List’ is the top player ranking in our Yanhuang Country’s gaming world, while the ‘Ancient Kings List’ is the internationally recognized ranking. The players who make it onto these lists are all top gaming geniuses.”

As he spoke, William Harris pointed to a name on the sheet and said, “For example, this ‘Iron Bodhisattva’ on the ‘Minor Heavens List’—his best class is Mage. In several previous games, his Mage has always ranked among the top three in overall strength. ‘Iron Bodhisattva’ has also become his exclusive game ID. That’s the glory of the ‘Major and Minor Heavens List’—players who make the list have their game IDs called ‘Heavenly IDs.’ If any player dares to use their exclusive game ID when creating a character, they’ll be hunted down by the other top players on the ‘Major and Minor Heavens List.’ As for the ‘Ancient Kings List’...”

At this point, William Harris suddenly stopped, staring helplessly at Charles Bennett: “Hey, Xiao Qian, don’t tell me you want to compete with these monsters in the game? You’re a total newbie—trying to reach their level is even harder than hooking up with our legendary senior at Bailu Medical University—Samuel Reed.”

“I won’t do anything beyond my abilities.” Charles Bennett suppressed his slightly excited mood and tossed a blank sheet in front of his best friend. “Write down the things a game newbie needs to pay attention to. Make it concise and practical—no less than twelve points.”

“Why should I? Charles Bennett, you’re making things difficult for me.” William Harris said indignantly, looking as if he’d never give in. “I’ve already faded out of the gaming world and am now focused on the art of picking up girls. Xiao Qian, why make me recall those glorious days?”

Ignoring his friend’s impassioned speech, Charles Bennett took out a bunch of keys from his pocket, picked one out of four, and placed it on the table. “It’s expensive to rent a room these days, right? Students are always tight on money when it comes to dating. I happen to have a spare room...”

Before Charles Bennett could finish, William Harris had already snatched the key and stuffed it into his pocket, a fawning smile on his handsome face: “Master Chu, it’s just twelve points, right? I guarantee I’ll overachieve.”

The sound of scribbling filled the room. Half an hour later, William Harris burst out, blew a kiss at Charles Bennett, and left laughing.

Charles Bennett sat at the table, holding that sheet of paper, the corner of his mouth twitching: “Game Newbie Survival Guide—Eighteen Touch Rules...”

……

Chapter Two: Midnight · Newbie Enters