Chapter 69

Chapter 69

The Star-gazing Squad was surrounded by gang members controlled by players. Once everyone arrived, Alon waved his hand, and the remaining gang members along with some players headed to another battlefield.

"Don't say we're bullying you with numbers. Look, I've sent the others away," Alon stated.

"Pah, fair fight? You're clearly just afraid of us dying outright," the chubby one retorted sharply.

"Sort of, since four of us aren't enough to go around," Alon admitted breezily, "The big shots have gone off to try their luck fighting NPCs there, leaving only us here."

Including the twenty-odd players who unluckily died earlier in the alley, about three hundred players remained in the faction battle, plus a few dozen who couldn't make it in time, making up roughly three hundred participants in this operation.

Among them, about a hundred players with higher combat strength joined the gang members in besieging the Inspection Bureau's NPCs, while the remaining hundred or so attacked four players from the Inspection Bureau faction, which hardly seemed enough to go around.

In fact, given the current situation, if the Star-gazing Squad were smart, they should just log out of the game. Although they would lose the faction battle, at least they wouldn't be giving other players an easy victory.

But Destiny harbored a reluctance to give up just yet, clinging to a glimmer of hope.

That hope was their guild would soon come to their aid. As long as they got assistance, victory in this faction battle was still within reach.

Because just an hour ago, the system issued a second announcement:

Three hours into the faction battle, if players still survive, the victory will be determined by adding 50% of the remaining players and NPCs and the number of enemies killed. For instance, if the Secret Church killed four and had 200 remaining, it would score 2+100. If the Inspection Bureau killed 200 and had six remaining, they would score 3+100. The side with the higher score wins.

Players from the Secret Church couldn't respawn, and the number of participating NPCs was unknown. On the Inspection Bureau's side, there were 4 NPCs and 4 players, with players able to respawn, and their deaths also counted.

They still had hope for victory. Though the situation was overwhelmingly against them, achieving victory under these circumstances would be quite a feat.

But for now, their primary task was to stall for time, waiting for assistance from their guild.

Destiny licked his lips, "Hey, how about a bet? We don’t accept being outnumbered, but we can do a relay battle. Otherwise, we might as well log off and let you win the faction war rewards directly, though you won't get any extra rewards. On the other hand, if you accept the relay battle condition, we can let you farm points."

A-Long raised an eyebrow, realizing their plan from the barrage of comments: "You still think you can win the faction war?"

The Inspection Bureau squad was still breaking out, and according to the faction channel's battle situation, the players were generally no match for the Inspection Bureau's NPCs. If they really went all out in the attack, they might indeed accumulate a significant number of kills.

Destiny: "We have to try, right? Everyone should have dreams."

"Agreed," A-Long smirked, wanting to maximize the rewards from organizing this faction war. If these people simply logged off and forfeited, where would the fun be?

Besides, they had a backup plan. A-Long hadn’t moved all the gang NPCs; he left a group in a vehicle nearby, ready to come over and take out these four players in sight of the NPCs, ensuring the faction war victory would still be theirs.

[A-Long is so sneaky hhhh]

[Kinda has a villain vibe.]

[What's the fuss? We’re the villains! We're the evil cult organization, awoo]

[Why, oh why am I not in these 400 huuu]

The relay battle began on one side, while on the other, Jobe's escape was not a relay but a genuine fight.

Over a hundred players and more than three hundred gang members formed a circle, and Jobe's team aimed to break out. The two squads split into two, left and right, attracting a large number of people.

Initially, the players, seeing Eunice burdened with an extra person, excitedly surrounded her to attack. As it was close combat and surrounded by their own, the players hesitated to use their inaccurate guns, inadvertently giving Eunice an opportunity.

The seemingly petite girl clenched her fist, her face breaking into an exaggerated smile. With each punch, a player was knocked down. Not only was she incredibly strong, but her combat skills were also impeccable. Despite being surrounded, she effortlessly took down the players encircling her.

The usual disadvantages of being outnumbered seemed to have no effect on her. Behind her, though pale-faced, Idy never erred in the face of attacks, not adding any burden to Eunice.

But players are players because they fear no challenge.

The strongest man burst through the crowd, without hesitation, grabbing Eunice's leg to hinder her movement, while shouting, "Hurry up!"

The next moment, Eunice unhesitatingly lifted her leg, fiercely kicking the strongest man into another attacker. She then picked up a stone from the ground and threw it with force equal to a bullet, instantly piercing through several players' chests.

Meanwhile, Bufeng, who was close to Eunice, promptly raised his gun towards her.

[Shooting: Failure]

Bufeng: ?

The bullet fired from the gun, hitting the players... behind Eunice.

Players: …

"Sister, big sister, please put down your gun!" a player wailed before falling.

"Ah, this is all an accident!" Bufeng, his face red with embarrassment, quickly explained, reloading to aim at another NPC.

[Shooting: Great Success]

This time, his luck finally turned, hitting a vital spot. Idy instantly passed out. Eunice's expression changed, glancing at the path now visible behind the players, and fiercely threw a flare onto the ground.

The flare roared, the signal previously agreed upon by Eunice and Job.

Elsewhere, Dana, standing atop numerous player corpses, grabbed Job's hand without hesitation and activated her power.

If they could successfully regroup and use Job's ability to heal everyone's injuries, they could escape to safety.

However, the scene Dana witnessed upon activating her ability was not Eunice and Idy surrounded by a battle-scarred circle, but a quiet alley.

Dana was momentarily stunned, her gaze instantly locking onto a figure in black standing at the alley entrance, holding a strikingly familiar red emblem: "How could this be..."

Karens, smiling under his hood, said, “Scared, aren’t you?”

“And this is just the beginning.”

He lowered his hood, revealing his face. Dana and Job stared in disbelief: "Impossible..."

“Yes, I've returned from hell to find you,” Karens said with a light laugh. “First off, let’s activate.”

With those words, he vanished from his spot in an instant, charging at them. Due to the alley's confines, Dana and Job couldn’t dodge in time and Karens touched them.

It wasn’t particularly painful, but…

Both Dana and Job felt an intense burning sensation on their shoulders. Job, without hesitation, cut open the fabric on his shoulder, revealing a blood-red wolf's head etched in crimson lines.

“This is revenge,” Karens said, staring into their eyes. “Feel the pain I once endured, unceasingly, until you die. My curse will not fade.”

Dana silently drew her twin blades, but Job stopped her: “Dana, go find Eunice and the others now. I’ll hold him off.”

“But…”

“They used the signal without breaking through, which means they’re seriously injured. Go quickly, I’ll stay here,” Job insisted through gritted teeth. “Leave a marker for me. As soon as you find them, bring them here. If I die, cancel the marker immediately and ensure their escape!”

“Such touching team spirit,” Karens sneered. “Matches well with your hypocritical facade.”

Job stared at him gravely: “Hypocritical or not, you’re not one to judge.”

Seeing Dana still hesitating, Job's tone grew firmer: “Dana, I’m the captain. That's an order!”

“Yes, Captain,” Dana replied, biting her lip. She cast a glance at Karens and ran towards the entrance of the alley.

Karens, without hesitation, drew his gun and fired in that direction. Job’s pupils shrank as he moved to block the muzzle.

Dana, hearing the sounds behind her, gritted her teeth and didn't look back, but instead quickened her pace. Reuniting with Eunice and the others for backup was the correct choice. Eunice's group might be seriously injured; she had to find them quickly.

Not until Dana's figure vanished at the alley's mouth did Job, now riddled with bullet holes and using his arms to shield vital spots to prevent a fatal headshot, finally falter.

But Karens had no intention of finishing him off quickly. How could he vent his deep-seated hatred and agony with such haste?

“Isn't your ability healing? Use it,” Karens taunted, limbering up where he stood. Job glanced at him, and a healing white light began to emerge, just as Karens lunged forward for close combat.

Job dodged Karens' fists with difficulty, feeling a sharp pain from the blood wolf mark on his shoulder and the freshly healed wounds.

Job’s 'Healer' ability wasn’t without side effects. It worked by accelerating cell division; the more he used it, the faster his energy drained and it also shortened his lifespan. Having used it several times in quick succession, his physical condition was far from its peak.

Coupled with Karens' blood wolf mark that gradually corroded both mind and body, Job, despite having reached the third tier of Dream's Threshold, was barely matching Karens, only at the first tier.

Seeing Karens' eyes filled with hatred, Job had a vague idea of who was orchestrating all this.

But what he couldn’t understand was how Karens was still alive.

Leaving aside Karens' later suicide by poisoning, his brain had been severely damaged by the Truth Helmet; survival seemed impossible without the poisoning, not to mention the Helmet’s characteristic of contaminating the mind.

Their fight was fierce, each strike aiming for vital points. Job’s combat style was formally trained, unlike Karens’, which was ruthless and unconventional, often targeting the lower body. After several setbacks, Job also abandoned restraint, both fighters blinded by rage, intent on annihilating each other.

Job had an advantage over Karens – he could heal himself anytime. As the fight dragged on, Job would eventually triumph.

…But was that really the case?

A cold sneer flickered in Karens' eyes. Suddenly, Job felt his body growing increasingly heavy, staring in shock at Karens: “You…?”

Were the bullets laced with a paralytic poison??

Karens sneered viciously, seizing the moment Job’s reactions dulled, he drew a dagger and sliced across Job’s neck, blood spraying profusely.

Even after this strike, Karens didn’t relent, knowing to strike while the enemy was down. Not waiting for Job to clutch his neck, Karens shot his wrists and ankles with a backup weapon, removing any chance of resistance, then plunged the dagger deep into his throat.

Blood gushed uncontrollably, and Karens finally relaxed, stepping back to watch Job convulse on the ground.

With injuries like that, survival was impossible.

To prevent any chance of feigning death, Karens rested in place for a while. Then, holding his gun, he moved forward to put a bullet through his opponent's skull.

However, upon closer inspection, his pupils constricted in shock.

What is this…?

……

Over at the players' side.

Alon and his team had agreed to a rotation battle and intended to keep their word. After a brief discussion, they sent out five players to fight against the Star-gazing Squad.

Destiny complained, “Didn’t we agree on a rotation battle?”

Alon nodded, “Yes, we'll fight you in rotation, squad by squad. Hurry up, don’t waste time. Others are waiting their turn.”

Gritting his teeth in frustration, Destiny had no choice but to confront them. He couldn't back out now as it was his proposal to begin with. Reluctantly, he braced himself for the confrontation.

Initially, with their extra 10 armor points and a five-minute health regeneration, the Star-gazing Squad actually won against several squads and mercilessly eliminated those players, accumulating head counts. Eventually, Destiny and his team started struggling and finally faced their first group wipeout.

Cruelly, Alon’s group left one player alive to allow for their resurrection. Upon reviving, Destiny bitingly remarked, “Do you think this is fair? This is nothing short of a massacre.”

“I think it’s perfectly fair,” Alon replied as he shot Destiny in the head, “Strange, you didn’t hesitate when you were killing other players. It’s all for victory, what’s there to discuss?”

Sadly, Destiny couldn’t hear the latter half of the comment. No matter, Alon repeated it when he revived and then shot him in the head again.

[Dang, two great successes, what kind of luck is that?]

[Luck isn't consistent, I’m calling hacks, someone's cheating here!]

Destiny revived again, silently observing the eager players around him, a cold glint in his eyes.

Their guild members would be arriving soon.

Finally, a message came through on the guild channel.

Star-gazing Guild Leader: Where are you guys?

Destiny quickly sent the coordinates.

Star-gazing Guild Leader: Alright, keep it down. We’re about to join you and bring a big surprise to make up for your losses.

Destiny let out a sigh of relief. After reviving again, he counted the seconds, focusing on Alon's reloading pistol. Raising his hands in surrender, he said, "Wait, wait, let me say something before you kill me."

Alon tilted his head, “What is it?”

Destiny took a deep breath and said deliberately, “You’re all dead.”

The next second, a smoke grenade was suddenly thrown into the group of players!

Alon and his team instantly lost their vision. Seizing the chaotic moment, Destiny snatched Alon’s weapon and, without looking back, shot him. Then, the Star-gazing Squad quickly sprinted in one direction.

The chubby player laughed hysterically, but dared not make a sound, resorting to typing in the channel instead.

Chubby: Mad, we need to strike back!

Go Player: Exactly! Let's make their heads roll!

Destiny: Yeah, first regroup with our guild, then counterattack. We must win this faction war!

The Star-gazing Guild had a significant number of members and certainly wouldn’t be short on weapons. Destiny was already planning how to confront the Secret Church players and how to rescue the NPCs of the Inspection Bureau. Approaching the coordinates left by the Star-gazing Guild, they excitedly rounded the corner.

Then, they were met with stupefaction.

Instead of the guild members they expected, the scene around the corner was littered with players' corpses.

A message popped up on the guild channel.

Star-gazing Guild Leader: Run!

But it was too late. Destiny and his team had already seen who was responsible.

A tall youth stood in front of the Star-gazing players’ corpses, a small knife dripping with fresh blood in his hands. He turned around, his face painted like a clown:

“Found the traitors~”

“Edmund…” Chubby said, dumbstruck, “Weren’t you imprisoned by the Inspection Bureau?”

“Hehe, guess who let me out,” Edmund said with a ‘gentle’ smile. “And who made me kill you all~?”

“Could it be Lann?” Chubby asked instinctively.

“Wrong answer~” Edmund stood up, his right hand in front of his face, pale skin and bloodshot eyes peeking through his fingers as he stared intently at them, “The punishment is execution on the spot.”

“Run!”

Destiny and his team immediately scattered. According to the faction war mechanics, as long as they weren't seen by NPCs, Inspection Bureau players could resurrect after ten minutes of being dead. If just one of them could escape...!

Suddenly, Destiny looked bewilderedly at the ground drawing closer to him. No, it seemed as if he was plummeting towards the ground.

Why couldn’t he feel his legs anymore?

The system notification was belatedly forthcoming.

[Brawl: Failure]

Destiny lay on the ground, turning his head to see that his legs had been completely severed. The manic clown approached him slowly, like the Grim Reaper with his scythe.

Even knowing it was a game, Destiny felt for a moment as if he was in reality, facing a serial killer. He couldn’t help but crawl backward.

[Sanity Check: Failure]

The last thing he saw was a spinning world and the distant wails of his squadmates.

[All Inspection Bureau players dead, faction war ends, Secret Church victorious.]

[Remaining Inspection Bureau players: 0, remaining NPCs: 4]

[Remaining Secret Church players: 203, remaining NPCs: 2]

[Reward calculation in progress, to be delivered to player inboxes soon]

……

Meanwhile, ever since Idy was severely injured by players, Eunice, in her effort to protect him, was increasingly stretched thin, her body covered with numerous wounds.

What puzzled her most was why Sister Dana hadn't returned in time to defend.

Risking a check, she reached into her pocket, only to find it empty. The red marker that was there had vanished without a trace!

When did it disappear?

Taking advantage of Eunice's momentary distraction, another bullet from a player struck her shoulder. Eunice gritted her teeth and grabbed a nearby player to use as a shield.

No choice now, it was do or die!

She hoisted Idy onto her back, her muscles bulging exaggeratedly. The bullet that had just hit her was even forced out by her muscles, and the flowing blood stopped abruptly.

Although she would be weakened after this state, it was better than dying here.

Eunice began charging towards a less crowded direction. What she didn't know was that due to Dana and Job's disappearance, players were gradually converging towards her location.

Damn it! Why are there so many of them?

Eunice was growing increasingly desperate. From every angle, she saw players' eyes filled with greed and battle lust, fearlessly fanatical in their pursuit. Clutching Idy's legs, she thought in despair that if it came down to it, she would throw Idy to escape. Better that than being hacked to death.

Just then, the players surrounding her suddenly stopped in their tracks, cursing, "Damn it, who did that?!"

“Yeah, we haven't finished off the boss yet!”

Eunice didn't miss this opportunity. She knocked down the players in front of her with a leg sweep, grabbing a player's corpse as a shield to break through the encirclement.

However, the players had already lost interest in them. Soon after, the sound of police sirens rang out, and the players scattered.

With no players blocking her way, Dana quickly followed behind Eunice, shouting, “Eunice! It’s me!”

However, the figure ahead didn't stop. Her hands tightly gripping Idy's head, she continued to rush forward. Dana, noticing Idy hadn't moved for a while, frantically threw her twin blades, embedding them into the ground in front of Eunice. The girl finally snapped back to reality, recognizing Dana’s weapons, and instinctively stopped.

“Eunice! Stop running, let's go back to the captain! Idy needs treatment!”

The girl finally stopped, and Dana caught up with them. She tried to check on Idy but found Eunice clutching him tightly, her eyes red and teary, gasping for air, her body involuntarily trembling.

Dana embraced Eunice’s head: “It’s okay, it’s over now Eunice. You did well. Let me see how Idy is.”

“Idy…” Eunice instinctively loosened her grip, and Dana quickly laid Idy on the ground, only to discover he was barely breathing. The bullet had hit his heart; if Idy hadn’t become a transcendent by reaching the first level, he wouldn’t have lasted this long.

But it didn’t matter. As long as they got back to the captain immediately, there was still hope for Idy!

Dana’s head spun dizzily, a side effect of overusing her ability. Her teleportation could only be used three times, and the more people she took, the worse the strain. This was her last chance.

After using this ability, she might faint. What if, what if they teleported back and the captain had already lost...

Dana looked at Eunice, still dazed from the brutal battle, and Idy, who was on the brink of death, and clenched her teeth.

There was no other choice. Although she didn’t know why the enemies had suddenly retreated, if they came back, they would be defenseless.

Time to take a gamble!

Dana used her ability again, and their surroundings shifted to the familiar alley. Dana’s vision darkened and blurred, barely making out Job in front of her. The alley entrance was empty. She let out a sigh of relief and supported Job’s shoulder: “Captain, thank goodness you won. Please, treat Idy quickly, he’s dying, Captain…”

Job didn’t respond. Dana instinctively shook his shoulder, only to find the blond man collapsing entirely.

Huh?

“Captain?”

“Sister Dana…” Eunice’s tearful voice sounded from behind her, “The captain, he… he has no limbs.”

“But he’s still alive.”

What? What is she talking about?

As the dizziness from using her power subsided, Dana’s vision cleared. Looking at Job again, her pupils constricted.

Job’s hands and feet had been severed, and his neck was barely attached by skin, with copious amounts of blood flowing from him onto the ground, as if he was bleeding out entirely.

But as Eunice had said, he was still alive.

Pink granulation tissue was emerging at the wound, eerily writhing. Observing closely, the blood flowing out seemed to be moving strangely, not flowing downwards, but back into the body.

Is that blood or are those maggots? Is that blood or are those maggots?

It was as if two voices were in her head, like the eyes seeing blood, but the brain was seeing something more, something more real.

Dana's hands were covered in Job's blood. As she looked down, it seemed as though the blood on her palms had turned into crawling insects.

“Ahh, ahhhhh!”

Rewinding to earlier, Karens had intended to finish off Job, at least severing his head to be at peace.

But when he went to check on Job, the scene before him turned bizarre. A second ago, he clearly saw normal blood flowing from Job’s body, but the next moment, something in his brain warned him that something was amiss.

Worms were crawling out of Job's blood.

With this realization, Karens looked back at the wounds he inflicted, only to find no blood in the gashes, just maggots crawling, swarming, and squeezing.

Karens gasped in shock, instinctively stepping back: “My Lord…”

Lann, who had been monitoring Karens' revenge, heard his voice and descended in consciousness: “What’s hap...?” Damn.

He almost cursed out loud.

What in the world is this?

It was hard to tell if this was a human-shaped maggot or a maggot-formed human. If someone with trypophobia were here, they might be scared to death on the spot.

This was not human at all.

No, it was somewhat human, but not entirely anymore, and it looked eerily familiar, somewhat like a special boss from the previous life's special campaign “Qingshan Medical Institute.”

“My Lord... what should I do?” Karens' voice was strained.

Talk of revenge aside, just a glance at this was nauseating.

Lann was also unsure of the situation, having never encountered anything like this in his previous life. After a few seconds of silence, he noticed that the faction war had been won and a large number of police forces were closing in.

“Time to leave, Karens. The revelry is over.”

“But I haven’t yet…”

“Don’t worry, there will be plenty more opportunities,” Lann said indifferently. “Unless you want to find out more about him now? I don’t mind.”

“...No, you’re right,” Karens closed his eyes briefly, then said, “Ending it like this is too easy for them. But I need to collect a little more ‘interest’.”

He cut off Job’s hands and feet. Honestly, it felt like cutting a small part from a pile of maggots. He was disgusted by his own sensation, but considering it might be useful later or for research, he also cut off a large piece of Job’s clothing, wrapped it around the severed parts, and left the scene with a numb expression.

After he left, Dana and her team appeared out of nowhere, and that’s when they witnessed the scene just described.

Already mentally strained to the limit from using her ability and being hunted, the sight of maggots flowing from their captain’s body was the last straw. Dana and Eunice completely lost their composure, one sitting dazedly on the spot, the other numbly leaning against the wall.

When Edmund arrived, he saw this eerie scene.

The scene was so horrifying that the clown, fresh from his own revenge, fell silent for a while, then asked, “Perhaps? Do you need help here~?”

Dana and Eunice turned their heads and stared blankly at him.

A rush of footsteps approached from outside, and armed police officers shouted, “Hey, what happened here? We received a report of a mass brawl…”

Mid-sentence, they fell silent.

The scene now before the police was this.

A clown holding a blood-stained knife, suspected of murder, a blond man brutally slaughtered, two victims lying on the ground, their condition unknown, and two ladies driven to mental breakdown by witnessing the murder.

Edmund: “Ah, wait, wait a minute, I can explain.”

The police officer, taking out handcuffs: “Explain in the police car.”

……

Players' forum

“Faction War Ends! Victory for the Secret Church!”

Original poster: But I want to ask, who exactly finished off the Inspection Bureau players? We were about to take down the opposing faction’s NPCs!

1st comment: Yeah, what's going on? I thought you guys would at least keep one player alive (annoyed). Wasn’t that the plan?

Alon: Something happened, it wasn’t us who killed them!

2nd comment: Yeah, someone caused a disturbance. Suddenly a smoke grenade came flying out from among the players, and then the Inspection Bureau players took the chance to run.

3rd comment: So who killed them?

4th comment: I saw it, I think it was Edmund. I saw him covered in blood coming around the corner. It seemed like Destiny and his team died there.

5th comment: Wow, plot twist kill, huh?

6th comment: Can't help it, maybe we were too slow.

7th comment: No, it should be like this: the faction mission involved NPCs, with 4 for the Inspection Bureau and probably two on our side, Karens and Edmund. They were there to assist the players in winning the faction war.

8th comment: Sigh, can't believe NPCs stole our kills.

9th comment: Stop complaining, you guys at least took down the opposing players a few times. We didn't even manage to kill a single NPC, and these NPCs are as strong as bosses.

10th comment: After all, they are the Inspection Bureau's elite squad.

11th comment: Hey, what about Destiny and his team? I wanted to interview them about their experience being hunted by 400 players.

12th comment: They surely won’t show up, why would they come out just to be ridiculed? (picks nose)

13th comment: Sigh, these professional players with guilds, they just switch accounts and you never know who they are. Alon, you guys better be careful about being ambushed outside.

Alon: Damn, that can’t be true.

14th comment: An old hand tells you, it happens, I’ve been through it.

15th comment: Seriously, does the official not ban these accounts? Many of my friends have sold their accounts. Recently, many guilds have been buying up accounts from the first batch of players. Is this kind of behavior okay?

Destiny watched the player forum discussions with an expressionless face, silently noting down the IDs of these people.

Especially Alon and other players who had killed them. Destiny was not one to let things go. Once the guild got him a new account, he wondered if he would seek revenge.

And then there was Edmund, the NPC. He definitely needed to catch him and find his weak spot.

And those damn NPCs from the Inspection Bureau. He hadn’t been this speechless in a long time. If he could, Destiny would rather not have joined this suspicious organization.

It might be better to switch to a new account and join the Secret Church, where the player base is the largest. Alternatively, I could climb the ranks here for now and then leverage the information from this faction for benefits when more factions become available.

Destiny urged the Star-gazing Guild: "Have you found a new account yet?"

Guild Leader: "About that... there was a sudden new announcement in the game, you should take a look."

Destiny, puzzled, quickly logged onto the forum and official website, only to see a new official announcement.

The announcement stated: "From now on, account trading is prohibited. One account per gaming pod, linked to the player's genetic ID. Accounts with mismatched login genetics will be directly banned. Please conduct your transactions cautiously."

Guild Leader: "That's the situation. It seems account trading will be impossible in the future. Do you... still want to stick with this game? Or we have other games where we can start anew."

Destiny: "...I’ll think about it for a while."

Now that Destiny's character had died, re-rolling might not guarantee a successful entry into the Inspection Bureau, and joining the Secret Church could lead to mockery from those who participated in the faction war.

The most important thing was that all their previous efforts were wasted. Starting over with a new character would put them far behind other players.

Destiny felt his mentality crumbling:

"What a trash game!"