Chapter 107: Cold Winds Blow, Flames Spread

Sailing is a long affair.

Especially when traveling from the Arctic to the Antarctica of a world, it is even more so.

Several fleets that had been marked for other regions, including the walls beyond the realm, had already dispersed; like giant beasts, the fleet gradually split into a dozen wings, beginning to advance toward those forbidden lands occupied by Chaos, or perhaps toward unknown sanctuaries.

Li Ang did not do anything superfluous, because in reality, due to the technological blockade by the God of Wisdom, the technological penalty brought about by a larger population became increasingly severe, so Li Ang himself had no intention of expanding his team too much. He simply led the fleet, advancing all the way toward the south.

During this month of sailing, Li Ang's fleet encountered some abnormal situations almost every day.

Sometimes it was an invasion by a group of blind Undead Pirate, and sometimes it was a greeting brought by a Dwarf steam fleet from Hag Graef—they had mistaken these for Empire ships. And upon learning that they were a group of Star-Bearer and players, these Dwarfs immediately turned hostile and left the entire sea area.

Because in the Book of Grudges of the Dwarf kingdom, the grudges regarding players had already been recorded. All Dwarfs would not have any good feelings toward players, which in turn seemed to have damaged the reputation of the Star-Bearer as well.

However, to be honest, Li Ang never cared about what the minor characters of these worlds thought.

He was simply maintaining his own plan, crossing the long coastline of Bretonnia from Albion Island, even passing over the prosperous Southern Kingdom, then passing by the legendary Wushi Qundao, and the even further south, the Nanbu Conglin where it was rumored that giant lizards as tall as a person appeared.

The players carrying all sorts of things along this journey could be said to have made a fortune. Do not think that the players just came to join in the fun or collect a dead-end wage. The players' business acumen was not low either.

They did not do many things not because they could not do them, but because they were not allowed to.

For example, like the normal and natural trade activities of everyone else, the players' fleet had no divine protection, and would be swallowed by storms and sea beasts within fifty miles of leaving port. But as for Li Ang's giant ship, his ability to go up and fight the Sea God was probably not low, not to mention the psionic seals and the Xiedu Yinjie of the Subspace covering his surroundings.

Of course, in everyone's eyes, those were some sacred symbols and signs of the Path. But in reality, it was just Li Ang swiping a batch of marks and symbols related to the Chaos Gods of the Subspace, and using them as his own insect repellent by the way.

Ordinary monsters, even if they did not understand, would be terrified upon seeing them. And those who knew, while understanding they were Chaos marks, saw the destructive golden light which proved that this thing was not just some Chaos.

As for the Chaos Warband, those Chaos Warband on the ocean really thought this was some of their own people.

When they reached the twentieth day, near the coastline of the Nanbu Conglin, Li Ang had once encountered a Warband flying the banner of the Chaos eight-pointed star, claiming to be a brother unit and demanding supplies. The pirate force of more than twenty ships of various sizes was left in tatters after two rounds of volley fire from Li Ang's Star-Bearer.

These vicious creatures who believed in Chaos did not take long to turn pale all over, and with dull expressions, they began their journey of service. And for Li Ang, this was just a small effort, and he even managed to get a relic.

"Token of the Fallen"

"Teshue Yiwu"

"The faction holding this relic can be regarded as possessing the aura of the Fallen; during combat, there is a probability of increasing the attention of the Gods. Placing it in the faction museum can add fifteen points of culture to your civilization."

That was it.

Just these few lines of text; it was likely the most shabby item Li Ang had ever seen, and it was very likely there was no other. But it was these things that made those Warband howl like mad, shedding blood and tears to forcibly take it back. This even made Li Ang feel a bit surprised.

Such trash would be considered an eyesore if left on the ground, what was there to want? Then, in front of the captured Warband, he threw that broken eight-pointed star stone to the side and stepped on it a few times.

In the end, he did not see any divine punishment or attention.

Or rather, in a sense, the attention on him might already be enough. No matter how much more attention there was, it would be useless.

However, this behavior instead sparked condemnation among the player community. Because everyone was not a dog of the Star-Bearer, and if they really wanted to evolve later, they might need the blessing of the Chaos Four Gods. You went up there and kicked someone out of line, what were the brothers who hadn't gotten on the bus supposed to do? So in the end, this strange thing instead became the players' favorite, and at the cost of one Gold Coin per player touch, they successfully completed the wage recovery plan. It was an eye-opener for Li Ang.

Players often have no concept of money in another world, but this kind of corruption and attention can truly make reality better.

And players seem to always believe that this kind of corruption and fall into degradation cannot affect themselves. Although there is no evidence to prove that this idea is correct, players always think so, and they smash Gold Coin for the trial qualification of that Token of the Fallen, never tiring of it.

Although Li Ang does not understand, he can understand the players' thirst for real power.

After all, he is also a player, and he also knows how much of a longing it is to possess power in reality; that is a reality that can distort a person's destiny and drive an entire world crazy.

So Li Ang thoughtfully launched the Star-Bearer ten-draw card activity, with a guarantee at ten thousand draws. The Star-Bearer Star-Mark Brand activity with a one-in-ten-thousand winning rate. One Gold Coin for one draw, and results can be recorded through military medals and individual performance.

Although it was only in a trial run for a period of time, Li Ang had already encountered several assassinations and attacks within the fleet; everyone had great resentment toward this activity and swore to kill Li Ang, the vested interest. Even the Player Base had received many early warning messages.

However, whether it was the officials or some open-minded people, it was very clear that this path of spending money to gamble with one's life to promote oneself was also a unique means of the Star-Bearer.

They are different from the Chaos Gods; having a clear price is a good thing. And if one is lucky, a single major discovery can allow oneself to leap completely to the next, or even the final tier. For players, this is a great thing. And Li Ang just smiled and accepted all the players' wages.

Even before reaching the Antarctica, while on the ship, Li Ang had already harvested various supplies far exceeding his expenditure, and the price paid was only a few blessings, as well as some so-called treasures and supplies handed over by other players.

After all, it would be a bit excessive if you gave nothing after one Gold Coin. Li Ang was not such a cruel person. And so, amidst this laughter and joy, Li Ang solved the problem regarding finance on the spot.

Now he not only possessed the players' money, but also held the lifeline of the players in all aspects. Because if you want to draw cards, if you don't have Gold Coin, you can use other supplies to convert; of course, the calculated price might be slightly cheaper. But for leaping one's own class, isn't it very cost-effective?

And which god would be willing to use this way to shape your path to happiness for you? And which god would be willing to let you gain the god's blessing and enhance your own power just by spending money?

At least for players, this is the only choice, at least the only choice placed on the table.

Thus, the identity of the player Li Ang was subjected to infinite abuse and hatred, because all players believed that this shitty card-drawing mode was created by him. And as the bestower, the Witch King Li Ang received the reverence and worship of countless players. Because these things were truly bestowed upon the players by him.

This was not a big deal for Li Ang himself. In fact, at best, it was just giving the players something to do during the month of sailing. Otherwise, given the players' temperament, they would have long since dismantled the fleet during the lonely life on the ship for this month. Even if they didn't dismantle it, the player team that arrived at the Antarctica would definitely not be as vibrant as it is now.

For players who have no recognition of this world and only treat it as a benefit and a springboard, they actually don't have too many thoughts and demands. What they hope for is just to make this environment look a little better and make their own lives a little better.

In this shitty world, the players' lives are much worse than in their original world. Except for some curiosity seekers, more people are living just to live, just not wanting to die.

So at this time, giving them a sufficient motivation, a confidence that can keep them going, is actually still very important.

At least Li Ang himself thinks so.

"One month, if it were a normal month, the players would have lost patience long ago. No player would accept staying in the cabin for a month without any benefits or stimulation."

Letting the Elf sisters, who had been transformed into the Pale Army, stiffly but gently serve him in shaving his beard, Li Ang looked at the figure in the mirror and revealed a smile.

The player Li Ang in the mirror looked high-spirited, with a hint of rosy color.

Coupled with the Elf sisters beside him whose blood circulation had begun to flow and whose consciousness was beginning to be gradually filled, it looked like a scene of debauchery. And this was also the state Li Ang had to maintain, and it was also the appearance Li Ang wanted all players to see.

The Star-Bearer does not care about your personal thoughts and so-called psychological and physical relationships; as long as you can do things and can provide some good suggestions, then even if you did the Elf sisters, no one would care about you.

As long as you express such hints, and then spray a few words on the forum, you can quickly stir up the rhythm.

And such aggressiveness and abuse can effectively consume the players' restlessness during the journey. Coupled with the entertainment props and a series of gossip and prize-winning activities that Li Ang distributed and sold in the players' various fleets, the overall morale of the players, although slightly declined compared to the beginning, was still maintained quite well.

After leaving the sea area of the Nanbu Conglin and beginning to arrive at the Shuguang Qundao, the players arrived at the Elves' final Liming Yaosai. And the Liming Yaosai did not want to deal with the Star-Bearer.

Although nominally the Elves of the Liming Yaosai were under the jurisdiction of the Phoenix King, in reality, their recognition of the Phoenix King was not as solid as imagined.

For these players, out of kindness to the compatriots carried by the Star-Bearer, the arrogant Elves threw over a batch of discarded supplies that the Elves did not like to use, and that counted as completing this handover. Although the players complained a bit, feeling that the Elves really looked down on people, after trying to use them, they still felt it was truly fragrant.

After all, those were props that the Elves discarded. It is very likely that a whole set of exquisite and beautiful tea sets would be discarded by the Elf race just because there was a tiny flaw at the gourd spout. This is the luxurious life of the Elves.

For the players, this kind of discriminatory gift also greatly strengthened morale and a strange rebellious psychology. This was also something Li Ang was happy to see.

After that, after many times of spraying and scolding with players for hundreds of thousands of posts, and even showing some Magic videos with Elves, accompanied by the black snowflakes drifting in the sky, and the void screams and shrieks coming from time to time, all the players revealed solemn expressions.

The sea area began to become gradually dark and deep, and some strange behemoths seemed to slide past the bottom of the ship from time to time. Those ferocious dark beasts seemed to be peeping at this huge fleet.

And those black snowflakes were not ordinary pollutants, but carried a strong Corrosion brand.

Every snowflake was in the shape of the eight-pointed star of Chaos. Beyond the illumination of the Psychic Torch on the flagship, some unsettling phenomena had already begun to appear on the ships of some players.

Grotesque blood magic circles appeared in the cabins without warning, and players claimed to hear shrieks and curses coming from inside their brains. Some ships even saw unspeakable hallucinations, howling as they steered their vessels straight into black reefs, only to be smashed to pieces by the waves in the blink of an eye.

Antarctica, this is a place where the Chaos Magic Wind surges and roars.

If the Arctic at the beginning still had snowfields to prove that there were more or less physical laws there, then what Antarctica presented was absolute anomaly and the terror brought by the power of Chaos.

Everyone could even see surging volcanoes erupting in the distance, but what they spewed were not scalding magma and heat waves, but shards of twisted black ice crystals and black storms rolling downward. These regions that transcended Human reason and delusion were the areas Li Ang intended to explore.

"Find a place nearby where we can land; we are preparing to go down."

Looking at that black continent, Li Ang gave this order.

Four thousand words! Twenty-one thousand more to go! I will strive to finish updating before six o'clock!

(End of this chapter)