Chapter 255: The Budget Is Burning, Brothers, Let’s Get To Work!
“Elder Yu Tian, could you tell us how you learned the Stellar Explosion Meditation Technique and the breathing technique in the Test Space?” Fang Zhen, beside him, could not help asking curiously. “I remember that as soon as you enter the Test Space, the boss will launch an attack immediately. Under such circumstances, there is no way to study the Stellar Explosion Meditation Technique and the breathing technique, right?”
If what Elder Yu Tian said was true, then for all their major teams, this would be an unimaginable improvement.
It would mean that even if they could not enter High Martial Arts Descend, they could still cultivate and improve, just without any resources. But compared to having to enter the game before starting cultivation, this was far better. At the very least, it could save a huge amount of time on learning martial skills and cultivation methods, quickly get through the newbie phase, and step into the Martial Artist Realm.
After all, cultivation of the First Level Breathing Technique did not require energy ore at all, only absorption of the free energy in the environment. This might allow them to become quasi-martial artists before entering the game. By then, as long as they were equipped with energy ore or Type 1 Energy Potions, they could quickly be promoted to martial artists.
“You mean that problem?” Elder Yu Tian looked at Fang Zhen as if at an idiot. “That Test Battle Space boss, once it appears, will attack immediately. While it is in an attack state, you indeed cannot do anything else. But does this game not have another Test Space?”
“That Digging Test Space gives plenty of time and no one harasses you. Do you not know that?”
Speaking of this, Elder Yu Tian also sighed with emotion.
It was just a Test Assessment to enter the game, yet it could be this difficult. It was also the first time in his life he had seen such a thing, forcing him to spend more than a month cultivating in that empty space. It was simply more bitter than being a monk.
He had even grinded so hard for more than a month that he had not attended the daily Heavenly Might meetings.
“Use the other Test Assessment Space for learning and cultivation?” Zhang Qing Wei was stunned when she heard this and completely forgot about that option.
In the Battle Assessment space, there was indeed no chance to study and cultivate, but in the other Digging Assessment space, one could cultivate however one wanted. And each death only cost 198, which was far more cost-effective than dying in the game.
“If that is the case, then even without persuading those board members, we can do it ourselves and quickly prepare a cultivation reserve force of tens of thousands of people.” Luo Wu Shang’s eyes carried a trace of excitement. “By then, we can steadily send people into the game without going through a long newbie phase.”
“Indeed, with this method, we can do it directly ourselves, without being constrained by those board members.” Zhang Qing Wei thought about it and felt it made sense. “I just do not know whether, if we do this on a large scale, the game manufacturer will impose any restrictions.”
If it was only about paying the practice fees for tens of thousands of guild members, they did not need to convince any consortium. Their finances alone could handle it, and the newcomers they cultivated could be directly put to use once they entered the game, allowing their team’s development speed to increase by an unknown margin.
The only problem was that if the High Martial Arts Descend game manufacturer saw them growing stronger like this, they might fix this bug.
At this time, including Lu Fanchen and the others, they were all somewhat worried. But with such a huge temptation in front of them, how could they not act? At worst, they would just control the scale and not make it too big.
Meanwhile, the conversation between Luo Wu Shang and the others and Elder Yu Tian was fully heard by Lin Qi, who had just walked in.
“So the Test Space can be used like this.”
Lin Qi was extremely surprised as he listened. He had never expected that what he saw merely as a Test Space for selecting player aptitude could also serve as a training camp for reserve players.
There was no need to wait until entering the game to cultivate; they could directly cultivate in the Test Space. By the time they entered the game, they could be treated as combat power right away.
“Next Version Update, I might as well set up a dedicated cultivation Test Assessment.”
Lin Qi felt that Luo Wu Shang and the others’ idea was very good. It would be a pity not to make use of it.
Now his Administrator Permissions had already reached level two, and his selective recruitment permissions had reached level three, allowing him to open new test choices.
Previously, he had only thought of bringing in players with talent and a willingness to work. But now they had local residents to do the work, who were cheaper than players. So there was no need to select players in the old way.
He could now open a cultivation Test Space, letting reserved players start cultivating directly in the Test Space. Whoever trained well could join later. This would also make his future improvement more convenient.
“It is a pity I did not discover this earlier. Otherwise, in this City War, the number of player martial artists could have exceeded a thousand, matching the number of martial artists of ordinary races in the city. We could have directly applied for a Sky Battleship for fun.” Lin Qi could not help feeling regretful.
Total war between cities was not like fighting monster tides, where one only needed to hold one position. Instead, both sides attacked each other in the wilderness, seizing various towns and strongholds until they blockaded and surrounded the city, completely took it, and seized all resources.
This kind of war was the most brutal and was not a good outcome for either side.
Before seizing towns, in order not to affect their own towns and resource points, both sides would launch the most brutal field battles in the wilderness.
The Sky Battleship, as a strategic weapon of major cities, could not only allow martial artists to fight flying monsters in the sky, but also carry a large number of martial artists to support various locations in time, preventing the collapse of the front line.
But applying for a Sky Battleship was not easy. Usually, only powerful races in the city could borrow one. After all, each Sky Battleship was extremely expensive and could fight lord-level flying monsters in the sky. It was the foundation of a city and would never be shown lightly.
If it were not for going to total war with Star Tower City, ordinary races in the city would not be qualified to borrow one.
Although he was the Vice City Lord, if he could not represent the entire human race and casually mobilize more than a thousand martial artists, he still would not be qualified to borrow a Sky Battleship.
Lin Qi then followed his usual practice and gave the newbies a vivid speech, allowing them to cultivate freely, while announcing that early tomorrow morning, disciples who wanted to participate in the City War should gather outside the city.
After Lin Qi’s speech, the newbies who had just entered the game were extremely excited. They had not expected to join a large-scale game event on the very first day. Each of them was curious about what the game’s City War would be like.
Especially the newcomers who had only been in High Martial Arts Descend for a few days and had never participated in the martial arts hall’s Main Storyline, they did not know whether this City War would be fun. They were all curious about to what extent the Game Developer could make the City War, and whether it could be as realistic as real-world war.
In fact, not only the newcomers were curious; even Luo Wu Shang and the others were curious about how far this game’s City War could go.
The previous few faction battles had already been wars involving thousands of people, and their technical performance was flawless. Thousands of people synchronized without lag, unlike other virtual games where battles with thousands of participants would be unplayable without lowering the graphics.
Even a divine title like Pilgrimage would have some lag with battles of twenty to thirty thousand people. Especially guild sieges, where both sides brought tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands, the actual fighting was mostly done by the strongest few thousand, with others just cheering on the side, which was quite unsatisfying.
“I hope this game’s war test can allow tens of thousands to fight together without lag. Then this game could not help but explode in popularity.” Lin Xinyao from Mythical Paradise looked at the time on her Smart Watch. It was already six in the morning, and her eyes were full of anticipation.
This night, these players could not calm down to cultivate at all. They almost all talked about this Version Event, especially those from large guilds.
They represented their guild entering High Martial Arts Descend because they believed in its future potential, that it could become a substitute for Pilgrimage, that divine title, and continue Mythical Paradise’s status and income.
Although the three of them felt that High Martial Arts Descend was incredibly realistic, and purely in terms of technical power had far surpassed any game currently on the market.
But for a game guild, what they valued more was this kind of war, especially future player wars.
Pilgrimage was a divine title not only because it led in technical power at the time, but also because it did an excellent job with war, allowing tens of thousands of people to fight enjoyably on the battlefield at the same time.
If High Martial Arts Descend could do this well, Mythical Paradise would definitely be willing to invest even more.
“Since it is time, let us go assemble.” Lu Fanchen checked the time and, also somewhat impatient, walked out of the lounge.
He had been unable to calm his mind to cultivate the entire night. Fortunately, his cultivation method had finally reached the Second Level Perfection Realm, and together with his Body Strengthening Secret Technique at the second level, his current strength should not be inferior to Luo Wu Shang.
On the other side, at the Martial Arts Hall Training Ground.
“Elder Yu Tian, how is your cultivation?” Zhao Hu looked at the yawning Elder Yu Tian with some concern.
Elder Yu Tian’s strength was undoubtedly impressive, but with age came less energy. Now that the Version Event had begun, if his level was too low, he would not be able to act together with them.
“I did not sleep all night, but fortunately, the Type 1 Energy Potions you gave me were good. With my First Level Breathing Technique Proficiency at 84 percent, I am now an advanced apprentice. If you give me two or three more days, reaching quasi-martial artist is not hard.” Elder Yu Tian stretched lazily, very displeased.
It was just a game event, yet Luo Wu Shang and the others had demanded that he quickly level up, at least reach intermediate apprentice, which led to him not sleeping all night.
“Advanced apprentice?” Zhao Hu was delighted when he heard this. At least Elder Yu Tian could act with them now and would not fall too far behind in this Version Event.
“You are all adults, yet you get this excited over a game event.” Elder Yu Tian looked at Luo Wu Shang and the others, who had also not slept all night, and felt quite puzzled.
Although he knew the game’s virtual degree was very high and that the first experience was indeed impressive, Luo Wu Shang and the others had been playing for so long and were still so excited and thrilled. It made him very curious whether High Martial Arts Descend was really that fun.
Just as Elder Yu Tian complained a few words, his voice abruptly stopped, and his eyes stared at the sky in disbelief.
He saw a Steel Giant Beast more than three hundred meters long slowly sailing through the sky. It hovered directly above the Martial Arts Hall Training Ground, blocking out the sun. The roar of its engines echoed for several kilometers, like a giant beast descending, leaving everyone present indescribably shocked.
“Is that a starship?”
“My god! This game even has warships!”
“Will we be able to purchase this warship in the future? If I can, I would sell my family’s villa to buy one.”
“This damn game, when will you open a recharge channel! I want to buy a warship!”
The players on the training ground stared at the Sky Battleship, unable to believe it was real, because the Sky Battleship before their eyes was simply stunningly cool.
Such a Steel Giant Beast, combined with the intense realism of High Martial Arts Descend, would make its owner the flashiest guy on the Street, with a 100 percent turn-back rate. It was far cooler than any transformation.
“All right, everyone board the ship.”
Lin Qi looked at the descending Sky Battleship with considerable envy.
A single Sky Battleship could easily carry five thousand people. It was like a fortress in the sky. Any Flying Transport Vehicle was pathetic in comparison.
Unfortunately, Sky Battleships were not sold in any city. You could not buy one even if you had money.
As the people of Obsidian Martial Arts Hall boarded, the Sky Battleship quickly left the Abandoned Area and arrived at the fleet outside the City of Light Chasing.
At this moment, there were more than ten Sky Battleships in the sky and over a thousand Flying Transport Vehicles densely packed above. Every Sky Battleship had thousands of martial artists standing on its deck. The scene was so spectacular that even Elder Yu Tian, who had seen many grand scenes, was dumbfounded.
“More than a hundred thousand NPCs synchronized without lag. If this game goes Public Beta, it will absolutely dominate!” Elder Yu Tian watched as the ships in the sky sailed together toward the distant forest, his eyes full of disbelief.
When the fleet arrived at an important town of the City of Light Chasing, Maple Forest Town, near Star Tower City, Luo Wu Shang and the others, after disembarking, were stunned by this City War.
The vast town was now packed with people. Among them were many quasi-martial artists and limit apprentices, and they could also see quite a few martial artists. The total number of participants in the town was at least one million.
“This Version Event is this big?” Fang Zhen looked at the sea of people in Maple Forest Town and at the teams of several thousand or tens of thousands leaving the town from time to time, his jaw dropping.
Although he had seen some big scenes in Emerald Sky, compared to this place, they were nothing. Here, team movements were in units of thousands. It was hard to imagine what the front-line battlefield would look like.
On the other side, Lin Qi and the others at their assigned residence were also shocked by this great war. They had never expected there to be so many martial artists.
“It seems our Lord City Lord has gone all out. For this battle, he has even transferred martial artists from other towns.” Qin Mu saw some familiar figures on the Street and could not help sighing.
The martial artists in Maple Forest Town now definitely accounted for more than half of all martial artists under the jurisdiction of the City of Light Chasing. If they lost this battle, the city would be unable to contend with Star Tower City.
“Indeed, and Star Tower City has gone all out as well.” Lin Qi, after seeing the message from the City Lord on his Smart Watch, nodded.
According to the information obtained by City Lord Di Luoya, Star Tower City had stationed more than a million troops in Furious Wind Town on the opposite side. The number of martial artists was roughly estimated at over two hundred thousand, with nearly two thousand Bone Forging Realm Experts. It was basically the same as Maple Forest Town. Both sides were clearly planning to decide victory or defeat in a single battle.
Moreover, the fighting had already begun. City Lord Di Luoya required all major powers and races in Maple Forest Town to go to the front line to support immediately. As for himself, the Vice City Lord, he would sit in Maple Forest Town to prevent a Bone Forging Realm team from raiding it. They could not allow the front line to lose supplies such as food, potions, and equipment.
Just as Lin Qi was thinking about how to arrange players and the garrison, a half-scale race woman arrived at his residence.
This half-scale race woman was none other than Yinuo, leader of the seventeenth regiment of the City Guard, with whom he had once had a brief encounter.
“Hall Master Lin, Star Tower City has hired several mercenary groups as external reinforcements to attack our transport convoy. We urgently need support. I wonder if Obsidian Martial Arts Hall can send some martial artist disciples to go with our seventeenth regiment?” Yinuo looked at Lin Qi with sincere pleading.
If possible, she truly did not want to ask Lin Qi for people, but the supplies for Maple Forest Town were extremely important.
Now all the various factions in the town had already been assigned tasks by the City Lord. Only Vice City Lord Lin Qi’s side had no special assignment. It was probably because the City Lord wanted Lin Qi to sit in Maple Forest Town, so there were no arrangements for the other people from Obsidian Martial Arts Hall. After all, if the people of Obsidian Martial Arts Hall had to obey orders from other factions and ended up dying accidentally, Lin Qi would definitely be displeased.
And the martial artists of Obsidian Martial Arts Hall were simply not crucial to the entire City War, so it was better to leave them in Maple Forest Town and let Lin Qi arrange them himself.
But if her seventeenth regiment went alone, they might manage one or two mercenary groups. However, the teams attacking the transport convoy, including Star Tower City’s garrison, amounted to three teams total. If her single regiment went, it would be a sure death, and the transport convoy could not be protected.
Now she could only bite the bullet and ask Lin Qi to lend her people.
“Do they have many people?” Lin Qi asked calmly.
“Three teams, with around three thousand martial artists. There should be about thirty Bone Forging Realm Experts and at least three Extreme Advanced Level Bone Forging Realm experts.” Yinuo replied cautiously.
“Three thousand?” Lin Qi nodded. “All right, I understand. Send me the coordinates. You do not need to worry about this.”
“I do not need to worry?” Yinuo was stunned.
Her seventeenth regiment had fifteen hundred martial artists and could not handle it. Obsidian Martial Arts Hall had, at most, just over a thousand people, most of whom were children of great families who had joined after Lin Qi became Vice City Lord for the sake of their future. At best, they were beginner martial artists.
If they went, it would be total annihilation.
“If you are not at ease, you can go with them.” Lin Qi looked at the nervous Yinuo and just smiled. “If you have no objections, then send me the coordinates.”
“I would not dare.” Upon hearing this, Yinuo did not dare probe further. She quickly sent the likely ambush coordinates for the transport convoy to Lin Qi. She could only treat a dead horse as a live horse and hope.
Lin Qi checked the coordinates, then used his Smart Watch to issue the first Task to all players: the Transport Convoy Support Task. Upon completion, all players would receive ten merit points. Afterward, players could freely explore the battlefield and earn merit.
At the same time, Lin Qi set up a Resurrection Point under the residence. All players could freely bind to it. As part of the Version Event, no fee would be charged.
The players, upon receiving the Task, were instantly excited.
“Brothers, time to work!”
“This Task is too stingy, only three thousand martial artists. That is not even enough to warm up.”
“Damn! Fang Zhen, you are too underhanded! Where did you rent those Flying Transport Vehicles from?! Sneaking out like that, seriously?!”
