At 7:30, the thirty-five finalists took their places at their computers, lined up in a grand display. Qin Chuan put on his baseball cap and sunglasses, clearly annoyed by the incessant flashing of camera lights. Next to Su Yao at number 24 was the empty machine number 25 left by Tao Zhijiao, and one spot away was Qin Chuan at number 27. They had just formed a team. Qin Chuan looked exhausted, and Su Yao worried if he could endure the three days ahead, but the thought of him dropping out was now irrelevant.
Nanbo Wan and his priests formed a team, while Ah Cao and his rogues were lively as ever. Gu Chaoyan wanted to go solo with cheats, but Wang Shenmu, the main designer of the divine weapon quest, invited him to join, and he couldn’t refuse. The main designer, Wang Shenmu, created all this and was competing, which was a huge advantage. Other players like Luo Zishang and Ji Canghai were mostly fighting solo. Surprisingly, Han Yanyan, who usually sought protection, decided to go solo today, her gaze toward Ji Canghai filled with resentment.
Just before the match began, Su Yao glanced at Luo Zishang one last time.
His distant, cold face contrasted with the charming, eloquent figure she knew from the game, making her question if one could have two personalities.
At 8:00 sharp, the finals started. All ready players were teleported into the new world of the Western quest, their screens broadcasting live to players nationwide. The sound of camel bells played through their headphones as Su Yao and Qin Chuan’s team, “Hong Yaotang and Sanchu Chuan,” were randomly placed in the vast desert, with no signs of life or paths, only the wind-blown sand blurring their vision.
[Team Chat] “Sanchu Chuan”: Follow me.
Remembering her promise to follow his lead, Su Yao clicked to follow. In this vast world, they had no map or quest prompts, relying solely on their non-replenishing health and mana, deciding whether to focus on killing monsters or treasure hunting. Neither wanted to lose this high-stakes game.
Then, she saw Ji Canghai, one spot away, raise his hand, “I’ve got a stomachache!” He had just encountered a level 300 monster, resembling a muscular bat that walked upright. Confidently activating his cheat’s “Monster Won’t Attack Me” feature, he strode forward to attack, only to be instantly stomped by the monster, losing 20% of his health. “What the hell!” Ji Canghai exclaimed in shock. His cheats weren’t working!
Frustrated, he tried several shortcuts to activate the cheat functions, but none worked, and his health continued to drop. Desperate, he tried to flee, but the bat monster relentlessly chased him, leaving him no choice but to engage in melee combat. By the time he killed the bat, he was down to 60% health. Fortunately, his thick warrior skin and the Golden God armor mitigated most of the damage. Had he been any other class, he’d have been dead.
Ji Canghai found a safe spot to rest. Twenty minutes later, after cursing out the studio manager, he was promised a reinstallation of the cheats, which was successfully done after he disabled all firewalls.
Ji Canghai’s strategy was to kill as many monsters as possible, knowing his “Youlong” would protect him from all harm. He decided to aim for the highest monster kill count, confident that with “Youlong,” no one could outdo him.
Moreover, his cheat had a feature to disconnect others, ensuring that even if someone else found the divine weapon, he could make them disconnect at the last moment, securing the unclaimed item for himself. With only 60% health but unharmed since, Ji Canghai laughed confidently as he blazed through the monsters.
Chapter 48: The Monster Circle of Huang Shen
Hong Yaotang and Sanchu Chuan continued westward, fighting as they went. “This new map is really damn sneaky.”
Su Yao sighed, “It’s already noon, and we’ve been walking with Qin Chuan, but we haven’t seen any other players. The map is huge, and there are traps everywhere. If you’re not careful, you could easily fall into quicksand. In the desert, once you’re in the quicksand, if you don’t get out quickly, you’ll sink deeper and deeper, losing health continuously until it’s too late to get out.” San Tuchuan was leading her, and he had already fallen in a few times, losing 9% of his health. “Let me lead the way,” Su Yao suggested, only to be coldly rejected.
Meanwhile, players watching the live stream were gossiping about who San Tuchuan was, with his trash gear but masterful skills. “He must be an alt of some great player!” they concluded, noting that no one had heard of such a figure before, yet his skills were more dazzling than Hong Yao Tang, the top-ranked rogue in the server. The renowned Hong Yao Tang was now following San Tuchuan’s lead. “Is this new god Hong Yao Tang’s new love? Haha, Hong Yao Tang hasn’t been on the game much since Cang Hai dumped him.” “I wonder who’s more powerful, San Tuchuan or Cang Hai. Look, Cang Hai hasn’t lost any health, the monsters never hit him, his movement is just too godly!” “Ah, can’t wait for the gods to meet!”
Wang Shenmu and Yi Chao Huan Yan were teleported to the depths of the desert, amidst ruins. They landed on a towering platform with the words “Celestial Burial City” engraved on it. Scattered bones lay at the top of the platform, and creatures that looked like a mix between crows and eagles swooped down to peck at the remaining flesh. Around them was desolation; scattered rubble and the ruins of what was once a prosperous city were buried under the sands of time.
The once vibrant scenes of human life had been swallowed by the shifting sands, leaving only a bleak, sandy expanse. “We’re lucky; this is the Western Celestial Burial City,” said the enthusiastic lead designer, inviting Yi Chao Huan Yan to follow him. Yi Chao Huan Yan recalled that there were several fortresses in this world. The Celestial Burial City was a vast maze built from ruins. The transfer points between sections of the path changed frequently, and one had to understand the pattern to navigate the maze. Normally, it would take ten days or half a month for someone to figure this out, but as the architect of the Celestial Burial City, Wang Shenmu knew the pattern well and was happy to help the low-level player from Changsheng Hall. Seeing Wang Shenmu’s confidence, Yi Chao Huan Yan felt flattered. Could Wang Shenmu really be a good person? No, there are no naive people in the world. Knowing the layout, Wang Shenmu could easily lead him into a dead end and trap him there. As a professional scammer, Yi Chao Huan Yan remained cautious despite expressing gratitude. However, they were indeed lucky; this part of Celestial Burial City was one of the easier fortresses.
Wang Shenmu had also mentioned the “Wild God’s Circle” in the desert, the most perilous challenge.