Chapter 32
Like a stone thrown into still water, the player lobby instantly erupted in fierce curses and roars.
"Are you kidding me? Another A-rank Ghost King dungeon?"
"There's never been a precedent like this before. Who would believe it wasn't a shady operation!"
"System, I'll fuck you #*@@&..."
As we all know, the A-level Ghost King dungeon is currently the most difficult dungeon.
The first instance of this dungeon had a success rate of less than one in ten thousand. Its appearance cruelly shattered all players' illusions—participating in the trial did not guarantee a safe return; in severe cases, it could even drive some players insane!
From then on, the number of players willing to participate in the first trial plummeted, and the mission to redeem Earth suffered a crushing defeat.
About half a year later, the second A-level Ghost King dungeon opened without warning, and the result was also quite tragic.
—More than 70,000 players participated, but less than 1,000 of them successfully completed the game!
Don't be fooled by the seemingly higher success rate compared to the first time. Keep in mind that the players who have persevered to participate in the first-clear trial are basically elites selected through numerous trials, and they directly represent the backbone of the current strategy team.
After this defeat, only a few hundred of the more than 70,000 elites remained. The player base suffered more than just a severe blow; it was a fatal halving!
In this gloomy atmosphere, there is nothing to be happy about, except that the top-ranked player on the leaderboard has successfully completed the "Dog Harm" trial.
All the players watched in disbelief as the highest record jumped from [6] to [7], and their blood was instantly pumping.
There are only 3 left to redeem the Earth from the 10 required. As long as the next 3 dungeons are not as difficult as the A-level Ghost King, they are likely to see the final dawn!
Before everyone could get excited, a server-wide announcement from the system stating that an A-level Ghost King dungeon had been generated stunned all the players.
"Damn it, were you never planning to let us win? Tell me! Just lay it all out in the open, don't try to play tricks on us at the end!"
If the system weren't intangible and invisible, it would probably have been smashed to pieces by enraged players long ago.
Now that things have come to this, no matter how devastated the ordinary players who still hold onto hope for redeeming Earth are, passing the trial is imperative.
The frontline strategy team didn't waste a moment. Within three minutes of receiving the news, they held an emergency meeting and swiftly arranged for personnel to conduct various data analyses.
Here, we must mention the division of the game space into different areas.
First is the player lobby, where you cannot use skills or items to attack others; it is an absolutely safe zone.
Originally, there was nothing here. Some players whose professions were related to engineering and construction discovered that the system store was selling cheap basic materials, so they joined forces and started to build up the environment here.
Today, this place has transformed into a bustling and prosperous mega-city. It boasts a full range of amenities, including shops, blacksmiths, pharmacies, dance halls, and trading markets. The login and exit points for the instance and the player respawn point are also located here.
Players spend most of their time in the player lobby when they are not tackling dungeons, forming teams, trading, or relaxing. The lobby is bustling with activity.
Secondly, there's the live stream lobby, which can only be accessed during the first completion of the trial, and the corresponding live stream function is only available during this time period.
Next are the private areas, which are divided into the player's personal space and guild territory. Only the area owner and authorized personnel can enter.
The meeting, which the strategy team invited to attend by many veteran players, was held at the [Parliament Building], which is essentially guild territory and can be accessed using the built-in teleportation function.
About ten minutes later, everyone gradually gathered at the Parliament building.
As a novice player with only one clear record, Xu Qingran never expected to be invited to participate in such an important meeting.
Seeing that she was surrounded by top players who were famous on the leaderboard, she felt nervous and reserved, but her eyes were filled with admiration.
Just then, an aggressive voice pierced through: "Is the frontline strategy team useless or insane? They're letting in all sorts of low-level players?"
Apart from the support staff, no player had a lower score than Xu Qingran.
She immediately realized that the sarcastic remark was directed at her, and looked in the direction of the sound.
A muscular man in a black training uniform sat with his arms crossed in his seat. He was tall and strong, like a small mountain.
Seeing that Xu Qingran still dared to look him in the eye, the muscular man immediately narrowed his eyes, his gaze filled with a terrifying fierce light.
If we draw an analogy to the difference in aura between the two, it's like a naive college student fresh out of school suddenly encountering a serial killer with dozens of lives on his hands.
The other players watched from the sidelines, all thinking that Xu Qingran would be scared and back down.
To everyone's surprise, the girl pursed her lips, stiffened her neck, and glared back fiercely.
It was at this moment that Yan Yue stepped forward and said coldly, "Xiang Jun, it's not your place to tell our guild members what to do. Besides, how strong can a [4] be?"
The muscular man named Xiang Jun's face twitched, and his bulging muscles leaned forward, looking like he was on the verge of exploding in anger.
Suddenly, a shout came from directly in front of the round table, interrupting the tense atmosphere: "Hey, hey! We're all comrades in the strategy team, why are you making things so awkward? The meeting is about to start, so please sit down."
Beside him stood a man with regular features and a dignified air, probably in his early fifties.
This man, who was also the one who led the entire meeting, immediately lifted his eyelids to look at Xiang Jun, and said with an air of authority without anger: "What we are about to discuss is of great importance. If anyone cannot stay here in peace, then please get out."
Xiang Jun's gaze darted around, seemingly somewhat intimidated by the Speaker's imposing presence, but he didn't back down: "Regardless, the frontline strategy team carries all the hope of redeeming Earth. This meeting is not something a novice can participate in. You must give a reason for inviting her!"
As soon as he spoke, the people sitting next to him raised their voices in agreement.
Members of other factions also cast suspicious glances at the council speaker.
The Speaker of Parliament didn't keep them in suspense and said directly, "Because she involves a crucial variable."
Xiang Jun pressed on bluntly, "What variables?"
"Thank you, Xubai."
The moment those three words were uttered, the scene fell into a deathly silence.
After a moment, Xiang Jun's face twitched: "Oh, they were lucky to run into that special NPC, so what? What's the big deal?"
The council speaker watched him defiantly and said, "I'll say it again: if you don't want to hear it, you can leave."
"..." Xiang Jun shut his mouth with a gloomy expression, finally quieting down.
Yan Yue led Xu Qingran and the other guild members to sit down. A few seconds later, he received a private message from Xu Qingran: [Did I unintentionally offend him? Will this cause trouble for the guild?]
Yan Yue turned to look at Xu Qingran's uneasy face and shook his head.
He knew that Xu Qingran was probably a bit disillusioned with the strategy group. She thought they were pioneers who were determined to save the world, but who knew there would be someone like Xiang Jun who was always looking for trouble, and the atmosphere in the group was far from friendly.
But reality is cruel.
Before the Infinite Game arrived, conflicts between people never ceased. After its arrival, order collapsed, so there was no hope of people living in peace.
Although all the players present gathered here to redeem Earth, there is a distinction between strong and weak players, and fierce competition exists between guilds.
Every time a live stream starts, the competition for viewership can ignite a fierce battle.
Xiang Jun targeted Xu Qingran because he felt that a novice player like her was not worthy of the live stream's popularity on the homepage, and he was jealous of her.
Besides him, there are probably many others who are harboring resentment and bitterness, but they just haven't shown it on the spot.
The meeting began quickly. Since the content of any level could not be recorded or presented in text form, the data analysts had to rely on their memory and recite it orally.
"Today we will focus on two topics. The first is the special NPC Xie Xubai, who is familiar to everyone."
"Special point one: Before the creation of 'Dog Harm,' all players' first-time dungeon runs were completely identical, including but not limited to the storyline, scenes, NPCs, and bosses. Until this time, an unprecedented exception has appeared—"
"He possesses crucial information unknown to the players, which directly influences the BOSS's actions. It can be said that he holds a pivotal position in the entire trial, yet he only exists in one instance!"
A data analyst used a laser pointer to write "unique" on the screen.
This kind of incomplete, meaningless description, which lacks context, is the result of countless trials and errors by many analysts.
I can't write any more; it will be directly erased.
"Afterwards, most players were indignant because this special NPC's intervention allowed them to win the trial effortlessly. They felt this was cheating, leading to a huge uproar, which then resulted in something that left everyone speechless—"
"The official system administrator, who has never paid attention to player feedback, has actually responded!"
Even the usually composed data analyst couldn't help but raise his voice excitedly as he said this: "It's different now, can everyone feel it?!"
He waved the laser pointer at the screen, spread his hands, and shouted angrily: "Before this, we could only passively accept the system's control and arrangements. Questions went unanswered, and doubts went unresolved. We were no different from lab rats in a cage."
"And now, the system has actually responded to our grievances!"
"This proves that humanity is not in a disadvantaged position of being absolutely controlled. It's even possible that we and this game were originally equals, and the system refused to respond because it didn't want us to discover this. But now, it has finally given in and exposed itself!"
Seeing the analyst's jubilant expression, no player objected or reprimanded his outburst.
People have been suppressing their emotions for too long, and there are quite a few who want to overturn this game. So much so that upon hearing these words, some became so moved that their eyes turned red.
"The system first broadcasted a message to the entire server, emphasizing that the trial would be fair. Then, after the first player cleared the trial, the points reward for clearing 'Dog Harm' would be directly distributed to all players—note that it's all players, including newly reborn players!"
"Most people were overjoyed to get points without having to go through the pain of clearing dungeons. Where else could they find such a good thing? But they never expected that the system would turn around and erase 'Dog Harm' that should have been put into the trial pool!"
The analyst's eyes lit up: "In retrospect, we have reason to suspect that the system's unrealistically generous compensation was intended to use the balance of fairness as a means to target 'Dog Harm'."
"Looking back now, what exactly is different about the 'Dog Harm' instance that could cause the system to behave abnormally?"
The analyst waved his hand and forcefully typed the word "unique" on the screen: "Without a doubt, that's the special NPC, Xie Xubai!"
"He is the only variable in this game, and may become the hope for all players to win!"
Author's Note:
I'm not feeling well today, so the word count is too low. I'll make up for it after Yuncheng wakes up QAQ. As compensation, 100 small red envelopes will be given out in this chapter.
The extra chapter for the 10,000 nutrient solution will likely be split into two 3,000-word chapters (writing 6,000 at once is too much for me; I almost died from exhaustion last time). I'll try to add more chapters when Yuncheng is feeling better.
Thank you for liking it.
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