“Too bad Tyson isn't here,”

Li Ang said in a deep, serious voice, “With his rich experience of often being compared to animals in virtual combat scenarios, he could definitely take down those three beasts with his bare hands.”

“Now's not the time for jokes!”

Black Trojan Horse said in a low voice, “Damn, this shouldn't be happening. An ordinary person would almost certainly die if surrounded by three hungry beasts. Could the system have hidden some secret equipment or props in the forest? Do we have to find the props first to successfully complete the game…”

“No, that's not it.”

Forest Cat's eyes lit up as if he had remembered something. “Leopard, lion, she-wolf, I get it, it's *The Divine Comedy*!”

Black Trojan Horse was stunned. “What?”

“*The Divine Comedy*, the epic poem written by Italian poet Dante Alighieri!”

Forest Cat said excitedly, “‘Midway upon the journey of our life I found myself within a forest dark, For the straightforward pathway had been lost… Almost before the commencement of the steep, A leopard light and nimble exceedingly…’ In *The Divine Comedy*, Dante strays into a dark forest symbolizing sin and is blocked by three beasts: a leopard symbolizing pleasure, a lion symbolizing ambition, and a she-wolf symbolizing greed.”

As a programmer, Black Trojan Horse had only heard of *The Divine Comedy* but had never actually read it. Fortunately, his mechanical eyes stored a vast amount of data, and he quickly extracted relevant information.

The epic poem was written between 1307 and 1321.

The poet Dante, as the protagonist, imagined himself as a living person touring the underworld, conversing with famous figures in Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, thereby condemning the rule of the church, opposing ignorance, and expressing the pursuit of truth.

“If it really is *The Divine Comedy*, then these three beasts aren't meant to be fought…”

The Witch's eyes lit up and she said, “In the poem, the one who rescues Dante from the predicament is his idol, the ancient Roman poet Publius Vergilius Maro. Next, that Virgil, commonly known as Virgil, should appear immediately in this desolate land.”

As a cultured information broker, Mule had also read *The Divine Comedy* and subconsciously looked around.

In the poem, Virgil would stand on desolate ground.

Dante saw him, asked if he was a man or a ghost, and begged for help. Virgil then revealed his identity, accepted Dante's worship as a senior poet, and said that he could guide Dante away from here to tour the underworld.

So?

Mule gripped his club tightly, nervously watching the three beasts approach.

The task log did not update, and the ancient Roman poet Virgil, who should have appeared to save the day, did not show up…

“Motherfucker!”

A classic English curse word with a strong black accent rang out from the left rear of the ridge.

Everyone turned around and saw a middle-aged, bald black man wearing a flamboyant wine-red suit, a top hat, and carrying a cane,

walking up the ridge with big strides while cursing in English,

“Fuckyouthefuckingfucker! Getthefuckingmyway!”

The bald black man waved his cane and cursed at the three beasts. He said the F-word at least ten times in a minute.

An incredible thing happened.

The three hungry and ferocious beasts, after seeing the wine-red suit-clad black man, actually lowered their heads, tucked their tails between their legs,

whimpered softly, and ran away dejectedly, soon disappearing at the end of the ridge.

“Muthafucka.”

The bald black man muttered again and walked closer to Mule. He changed his ferocious look,

his face beaming with joy. He held the cane in his left hand and extended his right hand, shaking hands very enthusiastically with the dumbfounded Mule,

“You must be Kevin Lomax, the lawyer? Pleased to meet you, pleased to meet you!”

Mule swallowed and asked uncertainly, “Sa, Samuel L. Jackson, Mr.?”

That's right, this bald black man resembled the American actor Samuel L. Jackson in appearance.

Samuel had starred in a series of classic films such as *Pulp Fiction*, *The Negotiator*, *Die Hard with a Vengeance*, and *Kill Bill*. His catchphrase was the American curse word "Muthafucka."

Because he cursed this word so well and with such style, he was almost the only actor who could say "Muthafucka" for a long time without being annoying,

so he was also jokingly called "Muthafucka Man" by some viewers.

(*Star Wars Prequel Trilogy* may be one of the few films in which Samuel did not say "Muthafucka")

“Hoo hoo~”

The bald black man waved his hand with a "hey, you actually recognized me" expression, and said amiably, "Heh, you're not the first to recognize me as that Mr. Jackson in the real world.

Although I look a lot like him,

I am indeed much older than him—I have already died.

Maybe one day I can take a day off to find him and exchange experiences on swearing."

Mule's eyelids twitched, "Dead?"

"Yes,"

the bald black man nodded, "This is a place where the living stop, the intersection of the underworld and the mortal world, the entrance to the underworld,

and I am the envoy who will guide you to the underworld.

You can call me Fury.”

Almost at the instant the black man finished speaking, Mule's task log also changed,

[First stage task objective: Climbing to the ridge has been completed]

[Second stage task objective: Follow the envoy of the underworld to tour the underworld hell]

Mule wanted to tell his companions about the change in the task objective,

but the unknown origins of this envoy of the underworld made it difficult for him to speak.

"Are you wondering why it wasn't the ancient Roman poet Publius Vergilius Maro who came to greet you?"

Fury seemed to see the subtle expression on Mule's face, leaned on his cane, and explained with a smile, "In fact, the *Divine Comedy* written by the Italian poet Dante was not his fantasy,

but something that really happened.

He really entered the underworld in a dream and toured Hell under the guidance of Virgil,

but after he woke up, he mistakenly thought it was a dream.

We in the underworld used to stipulate that

some worthless, insignificant dead would be automatically thrown into the underworld to be punished according to the degree of their sins.

Only those distinguished people who have made outstanding contributions to the world will receive the guidance of the underworld envoy and tour Hell without danger."