Inside the office, Yue Shi was taking stock of his spoils.
The desk in front of him was piled with conches—all of them were Magic Conches that Little Red Riding Hood had shoved onto him. They were all incredibly noisy, each one more talkative than the last.
Yue Shi had originally owned a single Magic Conch with a gold rim, but he hadn't expected these things to be scattered all over the beaches of the God Realm.
He had no idea what use they actually served.
Yue Shi swept the conches into his spatial storage and continued flipping through the secret technique scrolls he had looted from the Ximen family treasury.
Knowledge was the most valuable treasure of all.
“Let’s see what kind of secret spells the Ximen family has kept hidden.”
“《Alice in Wet-Dreamland》? What on earth is this?!”
The Snow Leopard was sprawled on the corner of the desk, its belly pressed against the surface. Its four paws were curled together, and its tail hung over the edge, swaying gently with its breath. A satisfied purr vibrated in its throat, showing absolutely no interest in Yue Shi’s current activities.
Ghost drifted out from the corner of the wall. He had remained here the entire time, not following Yue Shi into the God Realm.
Yue Shi’s orders for him were to stay behind as his eyes and ears to gather intelligence.
He hadn't asked why, nor had he expressed any dissatisfaction; after all, he knew Yue Shi wouldn't treat him poorly.
During the time Yue Shi was away, Ghost had embedded himself into the city’s network like a fish lurking in deep water, quietly observing the ripples on the surface.
Seeing Ghost, Yue Shi asked, “What has happened during the time I was gone?”
Ghost floated to the other side of the desk, stopping about half a meter above the surface. His body bobbed slightly in the air as he lowered his voice. “Quite a lot. I’ll tell you everything, one by one.”
Ghost first spoke about the spread of the evil techniques.
Before leaving, Yue Shi had modified a batch of evil techniques and packaged them as mission rewards for the players.
The condition was that they had to perform a hundred bad deeds before they could exchange them for a spell.
The foundations of those evil techniques were already tainted, and after Yue Shi’s frantic modifications, just looking at them was enough to ruin someone.
Through Jian Lai’s hands, those evil techniques had already been distributed to all the players in the company.
Every single person who stayed with the company had received at least one spell.
“Everyone is cultivating now, and their progress is faster than expected,” Ghost said.
Yue Shi nodded. “Are there any abnormalities in the cultivation process?”
Ghost thought for a moment. “Those players are becoming increasingly wicked. Their moral bottom line has dropped repeatedly, and they’ve completely turned into bad seeds, committing all sorts of evils. However, they haven't noticed it themselves. After all, it's hard for a person to perceive their own descent into depravity.”
The corners of Yue Shi’s mouth curled up slightly.
Ghost added another point: “A portion of the players seem to have discovered that they can use these evil techniques in the real world.”
After logging off, players had tried to cast spells in their homes on Blue Star and felt the exact same sensation as they did in the game.
Instantly, many players guessed the truth.
The players who discovered this didn't breathe a word of it; they kept the truth hidden in their hearts as a personal secret.
But Ghost knew. He had seen many hesitant conversations in the player communication channels, where many players would frequently use a ‘those who know, know’ tone to say half-sentences just to show off.
The corners of Yue Shi’s mouth rose a bit more.
At this point, Ghost couldn't help but start complaining. “Also, that acting boss you chose, Jian Lai.”
Yue Shi raised an eyebrow. “What about him?”
Ghost sneered. During Yue Shi’s absence, Jian Lai had grown increasingly arrogant. He sat in Yue Shi’s chair, drank Yue Shi’s tea, and the only thing he hadn't done was wear Yue Shi’s clothes. He barked orders at the players, treating himself like the true boss.
Jian Lai had even posted on the forum boasting about how he had usurped the position, claiming he had used schemes to push out the original boss. The post was written quite convincingly, and many people worshipped him, increasingly forgetting that he was just a temporary proxy Yue Shi had tossed aside.
Ghost’s tone was filled with disdain. “Jian Lai doesn't know his place. He’s already forgotten his own insignificance and treats the company as his own.”
Yue Shi’s expression didn't change. “That’s it?”
Ghost grinned. He knew Yue Shi didn't care; Yue Shi had never taken Jian Lai seriously. That man was merely a tool Yue Shi had picked up on a whim—used and then discarded, never to be looked back upon.
Ghost was just complaining casually because he found it hilarious. Someone who wasn't even an ant in Yue Shi’s eyes actually thought he could trample over Yue Shi.
Ghost changed the subject. What happened during this time wasn't just internal company matters; over on Blue Star, 《Deep Red Continent》 had entered its open beta, opening to everyone.
He had overheard player conversations and knew that the price of gaming pods was very cheap. Social media was filled with discussions about the game.
A massive number of players had flooded into Liming City. As the newbie village of the game, the city was suddenly packed with hundreds of thousands of people, and players were everywhere on the streets.
“A massive number of players have flooded into Liming City. They can now freely enter and exit this newbie village, and it seems they’ve received a newbie gift pack, allowing them to level up exceptionally fast,” Ghost said.
Yue Shi’s eyes narrowed. The open beta meant even more players entering Zhongzhou. With such a massive influx of otherworldly visitors, wasn't Zhongzhou afraid of losing control and having the situation completely collapse?
Ghost continued, “I’ve monitored that some players were randomly assigned to other cities, and some were even dropped directly into the depths of the wilderness. The game system gave them no protection at all. Many of them spawned right next to monster nests or at the edge of contamination zones, forced into a battle royale for survival.”
Yue Shi asked, “Did these players offend the game developers?”
Ghost gave Yue Shi a flat look. “I overheard other players saying that those who were intentionally dropped into dangerous areas all seemed to be severe psychiatric patients on Blue Star. They had suffered from something called Nightmare Sickness and went around shouting that they could see the moon...”
Yue Shi choked for a moment. Heh, no wonder they were being targeted.
“What is the overall strength of the players currently?”
Ghost replied, “Most players are still in the newbie stage with poor equipment, few skills, and almost zero combat experience. However, they possess an undying nature. If they die, they can respawn at the respawn point. Their equipment will drop, but their level and experience won't be reset.”
“Furthermore, their leveling speed is abnormal—it’s more than ten times faster than it was during the closed beta. At this rate, it won't be long before they become the true Fourth Calamity.”
Yue Shi lamented, “The mastermind must be ‘fast-tracking’ these players, wanting to use them for something.”
“Fortunately, I made my move on the players early on.”
Ghost’s expression became subtle as he spoke carefully, “There is one more thing. A person has mixed into Tulip Security Company, a player with the nickname 【Legendary Investigator】.”
Yue Shi’s eyes flickered, knowing Ghost wouldn't bring this up for no reason. “Who is he?”
Ghost said, “【Legendary Investigator】’s words and actions are different from ordinary players. He doesn't laugh and joke loudly like the others, nor does he squat in the corridors eating snacks. He hardly engages in entertainment. He’s always observing and recording, looking at everything around him with an inquisitive, scrutinizing gaze. I suspect he is one of the personnel dispatched by Blue Star officials to enter the game and investigate.”
Yue Shi immediately became interested.
Ghost continued, “【Legendary Investigator】 has been asking around for information in the game, inquiring about everything and testing the waters.”
“Unlike ordinary players who only care about where to grind mobs or take missions, he scavenged a microscope from the second-hand market and is looking at everything. He is very concerned about the reality of this world and the behavior patterns of the background characters. Therefore, he quickly began to suspect that this is a real world.”
Yue Shi asked Ghost, “And how did you deal with him?”
Ghost laughed loudly. “I let him come into contact with a lot of evil techniques.”
Rate on N.U.
