"Now you haven't even figured out what's going on with this instance, and you plan to stay here. Would you survive if there are monsters everywhere else?"

"I've heard that players who linger in instances don't end well."

...

But the words of these people couldn't affect the scruffy long-haired bearded man from earlier. He only showed a disdainful smile and then turned around, opened his arms, and bounced away like a child, shouting as he ran into the distance:

"Oh! I'm free! I'm free! Hahaha!"

His laughter was so reckless and wild, showing he didn't care about his other teammates as he ran alone along the coastline into the distance.

"Damn, is this guy crazy?"

"Look at him, he must have escaped from some mental hospital."

The remaining players glanced at each other, and someone couldn't help but curse.

"I think it's better if we don't care about him. His departure might be a good thing; without him, our quest will surely go more smoothly."

The middle-aged player who had spoken earlier seemed to want to reignite the topic of teamwork.

"But letting him go like this isn't fair! We're all trying to clear the instance, facing all kinds of hardships and dangers, and he's just lying around waiting for us to carry him through? That's not fair! I can't accept it!"

Another female player was very angry and then started chasing after the long-haired bearded man, seemingly wanting to stop him.

"Tch... what's the use of chasing him? Can you bring him back? This instance doesn't have a punishment relief mechanism!"

Someone immediately shouted to the female player who ran out.

"In the end, this is a huge flaw in this game. We proper players who genuinely clear instances suffer the most; sometimes, the rewards aren't even as good as those lying around."

Another player sighed helplessly, clearly not the first time encountering such a situation.

"Yeah, this goddamn game is complete trash! And there's nowhere to complain!"

These discussions suddenly made everyone even more frustrated and irritable, causing a shift in the conversation, and some lost patience to continue discussing, starting to scatter in threes and fours.

"Bah! A bunch of losers! We still have to rely on ourselves for this instance! Let's go!"

The tall player who previously threatened the middle-aged man quickly left with his underlings, seeming to have lost interest in leading this motley crew.

Wang Zhifan and his two companions also stepped away from the beach, heading towards the distant buildings.

On the way, Chen Can, who was entering an instance for the first time, looked at his brother, who still seemed relaxed, and then at Wang Zhifan, who showed no expression and seemed lost in thought, and asked:

"Fan, these players are all level 20, but why do they seem to lack professional skills? Logically, reaching such a high level should mean they are elites."

"Having skills depends on the person; it's not that high-level players are always superior to lower-level ones. Maybe they just had good luck and got by lying down."

Wang Zhifan replied as he led the two without rushing.

"Also, at twenty-something levels, it's not really considered high-level. Generally, reaching level fifty is when you can say that."

He further explained to Chen Can.

"Alright, it seems like what they say on the forums is true; luck is actually the most important in this game."

Chen Can quickly remarked after hearing that.

"Fan! That really is a town over there! It's very classical in style! There are many people inside! There's even a harbor next to it!"

Beside him, Chen Ming, whose nearsightedness was completely cured due to consuming the Celestial Essence Elixir, pointed to a spot in front of them. They were now very close to the first NPC gathering place and could clearly see what's inside.

"Hmm, you both should be ready for battle, but don't show hostility."

Wang Zhifan had naturally noticed this long ago and reminded his two companions to be vigilant and then cast his sight and vast perception ahead towards the NPC town.

It seemed like a small harbor town with a somewhat Western ancient style, its streets paved with gravel and cobblestones, and most houses built of stacked stones, with a few larger buildings constructed of smooth marble. There were many NPCs of different skin colors going about on the streets, including yellow, white, and black skins, as well as strange skin colors like red, green, and blue. Some NPCs even had noticeable non-human features, like sharp horns or scales on their faces.

"A Western classical fantasy setting."

Wang Zhifan quickly confirmed the worldview of this instance in his mind, not out of boredom but to help him predict potential enemy types to some extent.

Soon, the three of them truly stepped into the harbor town's territory, walking through the gravel-paved roads towards where the NPC population was densest, passing by many different-looking NPCs, but these NPCs only curiously glanced at them and turned their gaze away without showing much interest.

"The diverse races here make us players seem not so unusual to them."

Wang Zhifan explained this phenomenon in his mind and then approached an NPC stall selling fish nearby to listen carefully to the stall owner's conversation with a customer.

"Oh my, your fish are too expensive! I'd rather go out to sea to fish myself!"

"No! Look carefully! I'm selling striped fish! It's a very useful material, not meant for eating!"

...

"I can understand their language, though it sounds a bit strange in terms of accent and phrasing."

After confirming that language communication shouldn't be much of an issue, Wang Zhifan assigned a task to his two companions.

"Ah Ming, Ah Can, let's split up and gather information. I'll take one side of the street, and each of you takes the other, mainly asking about the Forbidden Fruit Island. Stay friendly but also be wary of attacks and theft, and don't stray too far from me, stay within a hundred meters."

"Alright, Fan!"

The two brothers nodded immediately, understanding that his approach was both to improve efficiency in gathering information and to train them, knowing they couldn't always rely on him to lead. Developing individual instance-clearing abilities was essential.

So, the subsequent time became quite formatted as Wang Zhifan and Chen Ming, and Chen Can split up, actively engaging in conversations with any approachable NPCs they encountered, including passersby, vendors, customers, and even those who seemed to have unusual status.

But more than half of these NPCs didn't really acknowledge them; they turned away with strange looks as soon as they asked their questions. Only a few engaged in simple, friendly exchanges but almost all indicated they had never heard of the Forbidden Fruit Island.

After about an hour, when the three met again at the side of the street, their gathered information was not encouraging.

"Fan, we asked more than a hundred NPCs, of all kinds, but none had heard of the term Forbidden Fruit Island, let alone knew where it was."

Chen Ming first reported to Wang Zhifan.

"It was similar on my side."

Wang Zhifan nodded after listening.

"But just now, a shifty-eyed NPC told me he knows where Forbidden Fruit Island is and can take me there, but asked for money upfront, so I refused."

Wang Zhifan added with a smile.

"Fan, although that guy sounds very suspicious, he might still provide some clues. Maybe we can try to get some money for him."

Chen Can suggested to Wang Zhifan.

"That's possible, but don't worry; he hasn't left, still waiting for me."

Wang Zhifan's lips curled slightly as he said this.

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