Chapter 10

"Rest assured, this must just be a bug in the game; once the game management discovers the problem, it will definitely be fixed and adjusted."

There are panicked and uneasy people, but naturally there are also calmer players, and even people in the crowd who claimed to be beta testers said that the current situation is estimated to be a technical adjustment, asking everyone to calm down.

"Impossible, for a phenomenal game like SAO, it is fundamentally impossible for such a simple game loophole to appear.

And such a situation never happened during the beta test."

Compared to other calm players, Kirito at this moment felt that the sense of unease in his heart was becoming more and more intense.

"Then maybe it's really as I said, this is a game opening ceremony prepared by the game developer.

Just because they wanted to give players a surprise, so they didn't explain it in the game announcement?"

Regarding what Klein said, Shengzai and Kirito hadn't said anything yet, but soon someone answered this question for Klein.

An information box like a red brick covered the entire square at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Immediately after, a huge figure wearing a red robe, completely unable to see his face, and like a god of death, suddenly appeared in mid-air.

"This is indeed a grand ceremony prepared for you, but it is not the welcome ceremony you imagined, but a real death invitation ceremony.

First, let me introduce myself; my name is Akihiko Kayaba, and I am the developer of this game.

I believe many players should have discovered it; your game logout button has disappeared.

But I want to say that this is the real game rule of SAO; players cannot actively exit the game.

If people outside actively cut off the link, the helmet will also instantly release high-power microwaves, and the brain will be instantly destroyed.

And the only way to leave here is to successfully clear the one hundredth floor of Aincrad, defeat the final boss, and let the game be cleared."

For what Akihiko Kayaba, who called himself, said, many people naturally didn't believe in evil, but soon, Akihiko Kayaba directly took out extremely favorable evidence.

And stated that 213 people had already taken off their helmets regardless of obstruction, so they had already died at this moment.

And the news of their death was also making a lot of noise in the real world at this moment.

Seeing the news projection released by Akihiko Kayaba, many players who originally had some ideas didn't dare to act rashly at this moment.

"As long as we clear the one hundredth floor of the Sky Tower, it will be fine, right?"

Wanting to clear the one hundredth floor of the Sky Tower, the difficulty is actually not low; after all, during the beta test, the highest floor cleared by players was only the eighth floor.

But the beta tester who asked this question was not discouraged by this.

Because he knew very well that players in the game world are comparable to the Fourth Calamity; no matter how difficult the dungeon is, as long as they possess an "immortal body," clearing it is only a matter of time.

The number of players in the open beta is much more than in the beta test; the beta test took one month to reach the eighth floor.

Now that there are so many players here, clearing to the one hundredth floor would only take one year at most.

"Of course, I can guarantee this to you; as long as you clear the one hundredth floor, I will naturally let you return to the original time.

But under this premise, I also want to remind you that in this game, once your blood bar is cleared, the helmet will also release microwaves to destroy your brain."

Hearing Akihiko Kayaba's words, the beta testers in the square who originally had some confidence had their mentality instantly shattered at this moment.

"Are you kidding! Isn't this clearly asking us to die!"

"Exactly, dying in the game means dying in reality; isn't this asking us to clear the game in one life!"

Facing the scolding of a large number of players, Akihiko Kayaba didn't care at all, but continued to speak slowly: "So I said long ago that this is a real death game.

If you really hold the attitude of playing a game, then what is the point of me trapping you here?

Alright, before leaving, let me give you a small gift, and wish everyone a happy game."

As the voice fell, the huge god of death who called himself Akihiko Kayaba also disappeared from mid-air.

And until the other party disappeared, the players in the square all had a mirror in their hands.

Under the illumination of the mirror, all the players on the scene also returned to their original appearance in reality.

There were those who originally were handsome guys who turned into fat nerds on the spot, and there were even quite a few beautiful girls who were originally "ying ying ying" who turned into big men picking their feet—a proper large-scale online dating car crash scene.

Kirito and Klein beside Shengzai naturally were no exception, soon turning into a young-looking teenager and a somewhat vicissitudes-looking office worker brother.

Shengzai, on the other hand, held a mirror and kept fiddling with it at the side; his face looked no different from before.

The mirror given by Akihiko Kayaba should belong to a one-time prop, and it disappeared directly after use.

As for the effect, it should not need much explanation.

Because Shengzai entered the game with his original appearance, this "Mirror of Truth" prop was not triggered.

Looking at the mirror in his hand, Shengzai thought of Akihiko Kayaba later, who seemed to have also mixed into the players with a small account.

Then the problem is, if he gives this mirror to the other party later, can he make the other party reveal his true colors?

Compared to most players who died socially on the spot, the appearance changes of Kirito and the others were still within an acceptable range.

And when seeing Shengzai's appearance that hadn't changed at all, Klein, who had turned from a handsome guy into a decadent brother, also looked at Shengzai with surprise: "No, why are you the only one who didn't return to your original appearance?"

"This is his original appearance; Shengzai, this guy, didn't modify his facial model at all when entering the game."

Hearing what Kirito said, Klein was even more hit and said: "No, God, this is too unfair!

If I remember correctly, you said before that Shengzai, this guy, is the champion of the kendo tournament, right?

It's one thing to be young and promising, but he actually looks more handsome than the face I pinched—is this reasonable?"

Looking at Klein, who couldn't accept it, Kirito walked to his side, patted his shoulder, and indicated that he could fully understand his feelings.

Because he, Kirito, had been experiencing such feelings for many years!

"Compared to such irrelevant things, don't you think there are more important things to do now?

Just like the leveling area Kirito took us to before, will the limited resources nearby be snatched by quite a few players later?"

Shengzai's words directly made Kirito stunned for a moment, and then he nodded repeatedly: "That's right, the resources of the novice village are limited; if we don't go there quickly now, we will definitely be preempted by others!"

(End of chapter)