CHAPTER 53: CHAPTER 44: ACCIDENT DURING THE NOVICE TRIAL (PART 2)

"Do I need to make a choice?" Number 0 looked at the two options. According to the game steps, she should enter the prehistoric world 10,000 years ago, like the players before her.

(Your current military rank is Private First Class, but you haven’t experienced the New Stone Age. Following Military Road’s gradual progression rules, you must have experienced the Stone Age to enter the later main battlefield. You must choose one and then complete it as soon as possible to avoid falling behind.)

"So that means the spare Newbie Village is somewhere other players haven’t been?" Number 0 hadn’t expected the chain reaction of the arrival of the Sub-God Space to continue. If speaking from convenience, she could totally choose the Stone Age. Having previously organized information, she had watched the experiences of the other 98 players. By imitating their experiences, she could accumulate military merit points in a short time, then enter the main battlefield. However, Number 0 didn’t like to follow the beaten path, so without much thought, she chose the spare Newbie Village.

The selection interface disappeared. Number 0, who was previously immersed in the game’s virtual interface, felt her feet step onto solid ground.

Background confirmation: 2040 BC, location: the intersection of the water regions of today’s Anhui and Jiangxi provinces, beside the Tu River.

Character identity confirmation: Messenger Soldier Number 0, responsible for delivering letters from Yu to his wife, Tushan Nujiao.

Mission confirmation: Mission one, deliver the letter to Tushan Nujiao.

Military merit requirements: Complete at least two system missions, with military merit reaching 1000 points. (The spare Newbie Village also requires 1000 Military Merit Points, but without the military rank requirement.)

After the information of the spare Newbie Village was confirmed, there was already a system map in Number 0’s military backpack. Compared to the Sub-God Space, the real "Military Road" was more standardized; it would confirm background information and character identity early on, enabling Number 0 to integrate into the game setting more quickly.

Compared to the previous farmer soldiers, Number 0 has now become a Messenger Soldier - in essence, that was a form of progress. The constantly flowing Tushui River roared forward behind Number 0. A winding path led straight ahead.

BC, just a few decades before the establishment of the first dynasty of one of the ancient civilized countries in history, China. Messenger Soldier Number 0 was now heading to an early matriarchal clan tribe called Tushan.

Number 0’s understanding of the flood-control hero Yu and his wife, Nü Jiao of Tushan, was limited to a story of "thrice passing his own home without entering."

There was no extra letter in the military backpack. In that era, oral messages were often more practical than written ones. After walking along the river for half an hour, the scenery finally changed. Early human development traces gradually appeared, with simple tribal walls made of logs, and livestock moving on the mountain tops and fields. The early farms didn’t have regular ridges, just some roughly plowed fields. In early spring, after the rice sprouted, the slender green leaves undulated in the field breeze.

"Welcome to Tushan Tribe, you must be from a different village, right? I am a guide from this village; you can ask me about things concerning Tushan Tribe." An NPC old man dressed in black clothes and yellow pants inquired at the tribal entrance.

After a detailed description by the NPC old man, Number 0 more or less understood the general situation of Tushan Tribe.

Tushan Tribe was an agricultural tribe born by water and one of the most powerful tribes in the region. The tribe had a population of over eight thousand. Since it was still in the late matriarchal clan period, most men in the village were married-in from other tribes. After marrying in, men were responsible for tribal safety, farming labor, and hunting activities. The total size of the tribe was roughly equivalent to a regular modern town.

After asking about the residence of Nü Jiao of Tushan, Number 0 thanked the old man and continued forward.

The houses in the village were mostly made of thatched grass with parts of the structure built with a few wooden beams. In this era, bronze and iron tools hadn’t been discovered yet, and people’s lives were still affected by harsh weather and natural environments.

The civilians’ clothing was also very simple. Similar to the previous NPC old man, they wore coarse yellow tops and loose black trousers with crude straw sandals on their feet.

As Number 0 walked forward along the road, she passed a street with clothing shops, firewood stores, and more. Tushan Tribe had a quite comprehensive array of facilities. All the shops were open on all sides, and the people coming and going, as well as the shop interiors and goods, could be clearly seen from the outside. In the tribe, barter was still the primary form of primitive trading. However, players could still purchase goods with military coins, albeit at a higher price.

Number 0 had never seen such a scene and couldn’t help but take a few more glances.

"Young lady, would you like to take a look at the farm tools?" A craftsman-like man held out a hammer toward Number 0, "You’re not from our village, are you?" The people of Tushan Tribe were simple in nature; seeing Number 0’s unfamiliar face, they casually struck up a conversation.

"No, thanks," Number 0 glanced behind the craftsman. Apart from general farming tools, they also sold some simple weapons for self-defense, such as sharp stone knives and stone axes for chopping. She already had a needle shooting gun, so there was no need to buy these more primitive weapons.

(Find a suitable weapon, your Ghost Needle Gun is a bit out of place here and might cause unnecessary attention,) the reminder from Little Eight caused the rejection Number 0 was about to speak to retreat back.

(Entering Sub-God Space, going back to prehistory 75 million years ago, anything that happens, anyone you meet, you cannot mention to either side in "Military Road." It’s against the game’s rules, especially the modified needle shooting gun - whether it appears in the age of cold weapons or the later age of firearms, it’s unfair to both players and NPCs, so you must use it as sparingly as possible,) Little Eight wasn’t clear on the consequences of breaking the game rules, but she had to be prepared for any eventuality.

"Craftsman Uncle, I would like to buy a weapon for self-defense," Number 0 wasn’t someone who liked to cause trouble, so after listening to the advice, she stopped and walked towards the warmly greeting craftsman.