Chapter 1

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Guo Li was an ordinary company employee. His life was as mundane and uneventful as his status in life implied. In fact, he often felt suffocated by the pressures of life.

He would open his eyes each day and drag himself to work for the sole purpose of paying off his mortgage and car loan.

His career pathway and salary were stagnant. In a sense, Guo Li could be considered among the most ordinary of common people, working hard each day for a mere pittance.

Guo Li did not even dare to have a girlfriend.

This was because, thanks to the aforementioned mortgage and car loan, there was basically nothing left of his salary after deducting his monthly expenses.

After work each day, the only source of entertainment he could afford were the games on his mobile phone, which he used to relax his body and mind.

Today was the same as any other. After Guo Li got home from work, he ate, took a shower, and laid on the bed. He then took out his phone and launched his favorite mobile game.

It was a game called “Everyone’s Island”.

The game’s contents were very simple. Players would start the game with a small island, and by relying on fishing, they would slowly build, repair and develop the surrounding environment of their own islands.

The atmosphere and pace of the game was very calming.

There was no need to spend any money on the game. He could fish every day and trade whatever he caught for resources with the game’s NPCs. He could then use those resources to expand his own island bit by bit.

The entire experience was quite fun and relaxing. Occasionally, Guo Li would even fall asleep while playing the game.

However, today, strange sounds filled Guo Li’s surroundings, and he awakened in a daze.

The sound of lapping waves.

The sound of squawking seagulls.

Although his eyes were still closed, he could still sense the bright sunlight shining on his face.

He slowly opened his eyes, but was temporarily blinded by the glaring sunlight.

He hurriedly used his hand to cover his eyes and, when he finally took a look at his surroundings, Guo Li was stunned!

“Wait!”

Guo Li realized that there was fine sand on his arm. When he raised his head, he saw a blue sky with a few white clouds floating lazily about.

The glaring sunlight was not only harsh, but also hot.

He quickly looked up and down around him. Guo Li was left dazed by what he saw.

“Who am I? Where am I?”

There was a beach in front of him. As he continued to look around, he saw the blue sea, and waves lapping against the sandy beach.

A few mischievous little crabs were rolling sand balls around.

He could smell the salty sea breeze as well as a hint of a fishy smell as the wind blew across his face.

“This dream is hella realistic!”

Guo Li recalled that, after finishing work, he had gone home, eaten his dinner, showered, and had then launched the mobile game while lying on his bed.

Unknowingly, he had fallen asleep.

“Hmm… this has to be a dream.”Guo Li adjusted his body into a comfortable position and lay down. He closed his eyes again and could not help but think, ‘If only I could live inside such a beautiful dream.’

The sun shone on the beach, and the sea breeze caressed his face.

After lying down for a few minutes, Guo Li got up hurriedly.

He realized that something was amiss. The dream was too realistic.

Looking around, he saw mountains and lakes, a flowing river, birds singing, and flowers swaying in the wind.

Was this not the paradise he had always dreamed of?

Suddenly, a fox-faced man wearing a vest appeared in front of Guo Li.

“Hello, guardian. Welcome to the world of Everyone’s Island.”

“My name is Li Ke, and I’m a businessman.”

“Li Ke?” Guo Li was confused. Was he not one of the mobile game’s NPCs?

Did he really transmigrate into the game world?

Before Guo Li could respond, Li Ke continued, “You are the 1098273rd lucky person. Here, you can fish, chop wood, or mine mineral resources on the island. These can be exchanged for resources in the mall to expand and upgrade your island.”

“Also…” Li Ke pointed to a beautiful and elegant wooden house in the distance and said, “You also have your own home.”

Li Ke then gave Guo Li a smartphone and continued his explanation.

“This phone contains all of the tools you will need.”

[Tool Synthesis]

[World Chat]

[Private Message]

[Game Mall]

[Call Li Ke]

[…]

Guo Li took the phone from him in a daze, and Li Ke happily snapped his fingers.

“From now on, you will be a good friend of Li Ke the businessman.”

“When you need me, you just need to call me using the phone. I will appear in front of you no matter where you are or what time it is.”

“There’s a long day ahead of us, so I bid you farewell for now.”

After saying that, Li Ke disappeared.

Half an hour passed before Guo Li, who was still standing on the same spot while holding the phone, finally reacted.

All of this was real!

He had really transmigrated to the paradise he had always dreamed of.

He no longer had to worry about eking out a meager living, nor would he be constantly burdened by the repayment of his mortgage and car loan.

“It’s like a f*cking dream.”

After muttering to himself, Guo Li could not wait to open his smartphone and check everything out.

He had truly entered the game world. It would be such a blessing to enjoy the warm sunshine and pristine beach every day.

Moreover, Guo Li really enjoyed the gameplay of ‘Everyone’s Island’.

He unlocked the phone and tapped on the [Tool Synthesis] button, which then displayed the synthesis requirements of the game’s basic tools.

[Synthetize axe: Wood x1, refined iron ingot x1, hemp rope x1]

[Synthetize shovel: Wood x1, refined iron ingot x1, nail x2 ]

[Synthetize fishing rod: Wood x1, fishing line x1, hook x1 ]

[Synthetize fishing net… ]

The way the tool synthesis function worked was particularly interesting. For example, when synthesizing a shovel, one needed to mine iron ore, refine the ore, chop down trees, craft nails, and so on…

It could not be synthesized with the casual tap of a button.

It had to be done step by step according to the process.

The [World Chat] was a public chat channel.

In this channel, one could speak freely, but one could not swear. Otherwise, one would be muted, and neither could one cheat or threaten others. One would also be muted for that offense.

The duration of the punishment depended on the severity of the offense.

The [Private Message] function was used to chat with other players privately once they were added as friends.

After gaining a basic understanding of the functions, Guo Li decided to call Li Ke to express his gratitude. At the same time, he hoped to ask Li Ke about the other functions.

However, Guo Li suddenly noticed that, on the lower left corner of the screen, there was actually a [Credit Line] section.

Once he tapped on it, Guo Li was dumbfounded.

He actually owed Li Ke three million yuan in the form of a housing loan. Every month, he had to pay nearly 10,000 yuan to cover both the principal and interest.

Seeing this. Guo Li smiled bitterly.

Damn it! He originally believed that he would no longer have to run around trying to pay off his loan in this new paradise.

However, the curse of his debt had followed him all the way into the game world.

After closing the [Credit Line], Guo Li immediately tried to look up ways to earn money.

There were many ways to earn money in the game world.

For example:

[Mining ore]

[Planting Fields]

[Raising Livestock]

[Fishing]

[Chopping down trees]

[Herb-picking and so on…]

There were many ways to earn money, but the methods were all somewhat primitive.

However, it was exactly this kind of primitive lifestyle that excited Guo Li. He could not wait to explore and develop his own island paradise.