The three thousand mercenary players, having finished their campaign abroad, finally returned to their long-lost "Newbie Village": the city of Pentos.
The players sang songs and hummed tunes all the way. To an outsider, they looked like a force with sky-high morale.
At the city gates, Brown Ben Plumm was in the middle of cursing out a group of raw recruits:
"You cowards! Rookies! Dumb chickens! Pickled radishes!"
"Tell me! Why did you join the Pentos Legion?"
"To obey your orders, sir!"
"And what is the soldier's creed of the Pentos Legion?"
"Never disobey the commander's orders!"
Approaching the city gates, Zhao Xiaotian noticed this scene. With an amused look, he turned to his deputy, Salty_Egg:
"Tell me, what is the soldier's creed for joining our guild?"
"To obey your orders, Arthur!"
"Dammit, Gump! You're the finest soldier I've ever seen!"
Their banter caught Brown Ben's attention.
"Fck, who's the bastard mocking me? Can't you see I'm training soldiers here?"
Brown Ben spun around furiously. But when he saw who it was, his pupils dilated in shock.
He thought he would never see that man again in his life.
"You... you... you..." Brown Ben pointed a trembling finger at Zhao Xiaotian. Under the bewildered gaze of his soldiers, he seemed to want to say something, but it was as if a fishbone were stuck in his throat.
Zhao Xiaotian, however, had absolutely no memory of the man. He had seen countless NPCs; how could he remember this guy, even with his distinct skin tone?
Wearing a gentle smile, Zhao Xiaotian walked past Brown Ben, even patting him on the shoulder as he went.
"Hah... hah... hah..."
Why am I sweating like a pig? Brown Ben felt the sweat pouring down his forehead, his legs trembling uncontrollably. He couldn't help but ask himself.
"Watch the car, or I'll break your legs!" As players filed in one by one, Storm_Dominator followed closely behind, cracking a joke at Brown Ben as he passed.
But to Brown Ben's ears, it sounded like the whisper of a demon.
Are they going to kill me? Brown Ben felt like his tears were mixing with his sweat.
"Are you hot or something?" Nebula_Breaker, walking up to the gate, looked at the gatekeeper "soldier" with confusion. In his opinion, the game was perfect in every aspect, so why did this soldier look like he was glitching out?
Brown Ben couldn't take the stimulation anymore. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.
---
Looks like it really is a bug. Seeing the NPC soldier suddenly collapse, Nebula_Breaker thought to himself.
Upon entering the city, the players followed Viserys's instructions and gathered in the spacious square to await "inspection."
In truth, Viserys didn't have much to say to them. He simply praised the players, puffing up their egos a bit, and then notified them to log off soon because the game was undergoing its first major update.
Although the players grumbled, they dutifully found places to log off.
The location was ready-made. At Viserys's suggestion, the three thousand players poured into the barracks that originally belonged to the Pentos City Watch.
It was a tight squeeze, but they managed.
After logging off, players immediately flooded the official website to see what the devs were up to this time.
> [The world's first hit 100% realistic virtual game welcomes its first major update! Supporters who haven't had the chance to experience the closed beta, you are one step closer to the open beta!]
> [Update 1: Legion System unlocked.] Players can now form Legions to cooperate more effectively on the battlefield. Legion Commanders will be fairly elected by the players.
> After battles, the System will evaluate the contribution of every player in the Legion and distribute rewards fairly and justly.
> [Update 2: Farming/Management System unlocked.] Players can purchase properties from the King to manage themselves. Through combat and other contributions, players can receive royal grants to obtain properties: including but not limited to orchards, manors, shops, etc.
> [Update 3: Nobility System unlocked.] Players with major contributions can receive honorary titles, personally knighted or ennobled by the King. This includes but is not limited to Knights and Lords. Players who choose the "Lord" class have a high chance of directly obtaining a fief.
> [Update 4: More Closed Beta slots released.] 400 slots. The beta registration system has been updated. Filling out the questionnaire on the official website increases your chance of being selected.
> [Update 5: New Player Class added: Court Eunuch...]
> [Update 6: Bug fixes and optimizations.] Optimized the movement trajectory of sand and dust to make wind and sand more realistic... Ray tracing updated...
> [Update time: 5 hours in the real world. Please look forward to it...]
Wind_Like_Man: "Fake! It's all fake! This game is a scam because I didn't get a beta slot!"
Invincible_East: "I don't care about the rest, I just want to know if the Court Eunuch class gets the Sunflower Manual?"
I_Want_To_Roll_Leopard_Number: "I suggest the user above try it in real life first."
An_Zhui: "Dog devs, why won't you give me a beta slot!"
Pineapple_Pizza_Lover: "New players who got a slot, look here! Offline trading, 1 Kingdom Coin for 10 bucks! Fair price, fixed rate, honest business! Transfer immediately upon login! If you have the cash and want good gear, no problem, ask for prices offline!"
Serious_Bush_Camper: "You really are a profiteer."
The initial chat group Viserys had hand-picked was now bursting with over a thousand members, spawning second and third groups. But undoubtedly, the original group remained the liveliest.
Mouse_Is_Duck: "Say, brothers, after all this time, have you noticed that 'Vi-bro' is a little too intelligent? It feels like he's being roleplayed by a dev behind the scenes."
"Vi-bro" was the nickname the veteran players had given Viserys. Calling him "Your Grace" felt a bit awkward, and "Viserys" was too long, so "Vi-bro" (Brother Vi) slowly caught on.
Minister_of_Excuses (Teflon): "To be honest, I get that feeling too. But if it really is a dev roleplaying, that might be a good thing. Maybe we can corrupt him offline with 'sugar-coated bullets' (bribes) and get him to give us the green light in-game."
Steamed_Bun_Immortal: "I suggest using a Honey Trap to seduce Vi-bro."
Minister_of_Excuses (Teflon): "If he's willing, I'm not opposed to it."
Storm_Dominator: "Shut up! I can tell where you're from just by looking at you!"
Amidst the chatter of familiar players, the update time passed quickly.
Seeing the time was almost up, the vast majority of players donned their virtual helmets in unison, quietly waiting to log in.
Inside the temporary palace.
Four hundred new players pushed and shoved as they walked out of the room.
Even though they had watched gameplay videos on the official site more than once, seeing it with their own eyes the moment they entered the game was still shocking.
"Look! That's Vi-bro!"
Pfft! Viserys, who was just about to speak, nearly choked to death on his own breath.