Chapter 161: Official Website Launch, Global Craze

The Primordial Sacrifice Altar.

Before launching the Monster World official website on the Star Net, Qi Sheng decided to capture two more domain nodes.

After the website went live, he planned to simultaneously release a batch of player quotas to the public.

However, the current Novice Village space had reached its capacity limit and required immediate area expansion, which meant absorbing domain nodes.

He had selected two domain nodes for this operation.

The first target was the resource node "Falling Leaves" in the Winter Snowfield region.

This was a Level 2 Resource Domain, possessing spiritual farmland area twice the size of Cloud Fields, guarded only by a group of monsters with an average Hunting Rank of 39.

For players at the current stage, capturing it would not be difficult.

Recently, first the battle between Shu Yan and the Ascension Clan, followed by the war triggered by the Soil-Eater Clan incident, had consumed most players' energy in the Colorful Mist Coast region, causing this node to remain uncaptured for so long.

Meanwhile, the novice players in the Winter Snowfield region generally had low levels and lacked the capability to capture it.

This time, he intended to issue a quest, urging players to capture this node as soon as possible to expand the Novice Village space's capacity.

The second target was the domain node "Thunder Lion" deep within the dense forests to the southwest of the Colorful Mist Coast region.

This was also a Level 2 Resource Node, producing spiritual energy resources; after absorption, it would increase the space's spiritual energy content, accelerating the rate at which players in the space gained Body Tempering experience.

This node was occupied by a low-intelligence monster race with an average Hunting Rank of 52.

However, given the players' current strength, capturing it would not be difficult, though it would require spending more time.

To expedite the absorption of these two nodes, Qi Sheng announced bonus rewards for the absorption quests.

[Challenger Alert (All Channels): Purification Quest Triggered: Absorb the Winter Snowfield region domain node "Falling Leaves." Rewards for this absorption quest will be distributed based on contribution ranking; during the quest, killing monsters in the node area yields +20% profit.]

[Challenger Alert (All Channels): Purification Quest Triggered: Absorb the Colorful Mist Coast region domain node "Thunder Lion." Rewards for this absorption quest will be distributed based on contribution; during the quest, killing monsters in the node area yields +20% profit.]

The Purification Quest alerts immediately attracted player attention.

Especially the Falling Leaves domain node; as a spiritual farmland-type node, it meant the contribution rewards distributed upon completion would likely be spiritual farmland.

Veteran players had already proven that obtaining a plot of spiritual farmland was equivalent to owning a money-printing machine, allowing for irregular harvesting of spiritual plants.

Furthermore, spiritual plants were one of the hottest trading commodities on the Exchange.

The Alchemist Alliance and Spirit Chef players were all clients for such goods; as long as the price was right, transactions could be completed in a very short time.

Secondly, one could also consume them personally to gain Body Tempering experience.

The benefits of owning a plot of spiritual farmland were numerous; it was one of the few channels in the Monster World capable of producing extra resources.

Players, who were already short on Sacrificial Power, flocked to it eagerly.

Large numbers of players traveled via teleportation arrays to the Winter Snowfield region, forming teams through the regional voice channel or gathering with their fixed squads to head toward the Falling Leaves domain node.

This Purification Quest had no commander; the players adopted a free warfare Cultivation Mode.

Before long, they organized a massive calamity torrent and advanced toward the "Falling Leaves" domain node.

The specific location of the node was in the western district of the Winter Snowfield.

Here, the sky hung low, and cold winds whistled through the valleys, rolling up layers of snow mist, resembling a silver-white gauze curtain dancing in the air.

The peaks flanking the valley soared into the clouds, draped in thick snow coats; the steep rock faces appeared even more stern under the ice and snow cover, while the accumulated snow on the ridges, sculpted by the sub-zero winds of the snowfield region, formed various peculiar shapes, some resembling sharp blades, others like massive beast spines.

At the bottom of the valley lay a frozen river, its ice surface smooth as a mirror; vegetation nearby was sparse, with only occasional stubborn snow trees visible, their branches weighed down low by the accumulated snow.

In the deepest part lay the Falling Leaves domain node, where a scarlet crystal hovered above the earth, creating a patch of fertile spiritual farmland soil amidst the harsh environment.

Growing on the spiritual farmland were various wild spiritual plants adapted to the snowfield environment.

Inhabiting this area was a monster species called Obsidian Bugs, which fed on the energy produced by the node and the wild spiritual plants growing in the spiritual farmland.

These were low-level creatures similar to the "Golden Pincer Crabs" of the Colorful Mist Coast, situated at the very bottom of the food chain; in their normal form, the analysis introduction listed their Hunting Rank at only Level 0.

However, nourished by abundant node energy, most had grown to around Level 39, and their life forms had undergone certain changes.

From an initial finger-sized state, they had grown to the size of a seven or eight-year-old child; their bodies were divided into three parts: head, thorax, and abdomen; their shells were composed of a mineral substance, smooth and hard, shimmering with a dark purple luster like crystallized cooled lava, covered in fine cracks through which snow-white energy substances could be faintly seen flowing.

Their heads were triangular, with two slender antennae on top, their tips glowing faintly.

They could spit a freezing ray from their mouthparts.

Targets hit by it would experience a drastic drop in body temperature, with frost spreading from the impact point across the entire body.

After the player legions arrived, they engaged in battle with the Obsidian Bugs guarding the domain node.

During this period, players discovered that every part of the Obsidian Bug was a treasure.

Materials such as shells and antennae dropped after killing them could all be listed on the Exchange.

Compared to poor monsters like the Black Black Tide evil spirits, killing monsters like Obsidian Bugs that dropped materials yielded several times the profit of evil spirits of the same level.

The key point was that the Obsidian Bugs' combat style involved no tactical strategy whatsoever.

Players could easily and happily earn hunting profits and contribution rewards without having to endure the dual mental and physical torment inflicted by the Underground Bully.

As the number of arriving players continued to grow, the war for the domain node was completed with an overwhelming push, achieving absorption.

When players touched the node crystal, a pitch-black spatial vortex expanded outward with the node crystal at its center.

It swallowed the spiritual farmland in the nearby area along with the attached land area.

Accompanied by announcements sounding across all channels, the three Novice Village spaces vibrated simultaneously, their areas expanded.

Qi Sheng did not disappoint the players, distributing the spiritual farmland area according to contribution rankings.

However, this time he cut the distributed spiritual farmland areas into smaller plots, ensuring more players could receive spiritual farmland rewards and gain extra Sacrificial Power income through them; roughly each plot could plant three spiritual plants, though the exact number depended on the plant variety.

Although the extra output from the spiritual farmland could not fully satisfy players' demand for Sacrificial Power, it indirectly increased players' usual Sacrificial Power income.

The Glory Chronicle in the function panel also recorded the entire campaign, capturing the brilliant performances of many players through videos and screenshots.

After ending the battle, the players changed venues.

Except for novice players who were still hunting monsters and searching for wild spiritual plants in the nearby area.

Veteran players shifted to the Colorful Mist Coast region, marching toward the Thunder Lion domain node.

This domain node was located in a relatively open scene within the dense forest.

The environment of the Colorful Mist Coast region was undoubtedly the most comfortable among the three scenes; the sky was as blue as washed silk, with a few wisps of thin clouds floating lightly above the node scene, pushed slowly by warm breezes; lush green grass densely covered every inch of land in the scene.

As the breeze brushed past, waves of grass rose and fell, as if the earth itself were breathing, and the air was filled with the fragrance of green grass and soil.

This node had been discovered by an Exploration Party player, yet few players had come to absorb it.

The reason was that the monsters inside the node had an average level of 52, and the abilities they possessed made players feel extremely disgusted.

The species occupying the node was called "Phantom Nightmare."

Phantom Nightmares had no fixed physical form; composed of translucent dark blue energy, they resembled a constantly flowing liquid energy mass; their body outlines faintly suggested a human shape, but their edges were blurred, sometimes twisting, sometimes stretching, as if they might dissipate into the air at any moment.

Their heads lacked facial features, showing only a patch of deep blue, like a vortex capable of devouring ability particles in the surrounding air.

The most conspicuous feature was their energy arms, long and soft, moving like fluttering ribbons, greatly resembling energy-based tentacles.

The ability mastered by Phantom Nightmares was of the mental impact type.

Players hit by it would first feel intense headaches, as if countless needles were stabbing inside their skulls, followed by a sensation of the world spinning, losing balance, and finding it difficult to stand.

If one's own mental strength was not high, suffering such a mental impact could even induce a state similar to being drunk: memory disorder, blurred consciousness, even forgetting what one was doing, resulting in brief disorientation.

During this period, effects such as accelerated heart rate and rapid breathing would also occur.

The mental interference effect attached to this type of mental damage ability fell outside the protection scope of the Purification System; its intensity was below the warning line and could not be isolated or defended against.

Even if the Purification System could be activated, the mental damage would still be borne by the players.

Only the negative status effects would be isolated.

Such mental-type abilities truly gave players headaches, especially for melee players with weaker mental strength; for them, it was undoubtedly a painful torment.

At the current stage, there were no Soul Souls available for inlaying that could resist mental damage, so melee players were generally unwilling to engage this type of monster.

Magic-system players had high mental strength and could withstand it after receiving a mental impact.

But without melee players standing in front to absorb damage, they were simply no match for the "Phantom Nightmare" monsters, which were higher level than themselves.

Therefore, the players' choice was to temporarily give up on absorbing the domain node, waiting until their strength was sufficient to easily absorb the node with an overwhelming posture.

However, the appearance of this Purification Quest caused many players to change their minds.

A 20% increase in profit, coupled with extra ranking contribution rewards, was enough to make players endure the pain of pioneering.

Entering the green shaded grassland where the node crystal was located, one could see large numbers of Phantom Nightmares hovering in the air, resembling jellyfish.

The players' reckless invasion quickly attracted attention.

The Phantom Nightmares, possessing extremely strong territorial awareness, rapidly gathered via mental communication and launched a mental storm impact against the invading players.

Patches of players fell as if being mowed down like grass.

But at this moment, the players had not died; they had merely suffered severe mental damage, while the magic-system players in the rear seized this opportunity to unleash their output.

Facing Phantom Nightmares equipped with mental strike abilities, the players were not without countermeasures.

The Tower Defense flow within the Magic-system faction could perfectly counter non-materialized mental impacts; as long as the constructed Magic Towers were not destroyed and their stable structure maintained, they could continuously output elemental damage.

The most countered in battle were the Assassin flow players.

The Stealth state, which could exempt most physical damage, was as good as nonexistent before the Phantom Nightmares.

A single mental impact strike could instantly kill fragile Assassin flow players; defense through the Twilight Shadow form was utterly impossible.

The great battle lasted for half a day, until some players discovered that a niche Soul Soul had a certain resistance effect against mental-type damage.

That was "Brain Overclocking," considered one of the sewer-tier Soul Souls in the current version.

This Soul Soul was swept into the sewers by players immediately upon its debut because it provided no combat bonuses; its trait effect was to enhance logical thinking ability and memory.

But during combat testing, some players were surprised to discover:

After activating Brain Overclocking, while logical thinking became clearer, it also provided a certain resistance effect against the mental impact damage released by Phantom Nightmares, reducing the specific damage values.

However, this discovery did not spark heated discussion among players.

The reason was none other than that, in the players' eyes, this Soul Soul was still too weak.

Mental-type monsters were extremely rare; to capture the Thunder Lion domain node, there was absolutely no need to spend Sacrificial Power to change one's Soul Soul.

Rather than embedding a brain overclock, it would be better to resurrect a few more times.

The advancement of the Thunder Lion Domain node was extremely slow, yet the players' enthusiasm remained high.

By killing them, they discovered that Phantom Nightmares dropped a type of crystal stone upon death; analysis information indicated that weapons crafted from this crystal could amplify mental strength, while armor forged from it could resist damage from mental shocks.

Although the game Monster World had not yet unlocked the weapon forging function.

But in the eyes of the players, this type of crystal stone held considerable value; perhaps once the weapon forging function opened in the future, its value would skyrocket.

Qi Sheng observed the players' discussions in the chat channel.

He was indeed considering whether to launch a weapon forging function.

After all, those playing the Spirit Stream were mostly melee fighters, yet magic-system players lacked any weapons capable of amplifying their ability effects.

However, Qi Sheng was still deliberating on whether to specifically introduce such a function.

Players currently suffered from a severe shortage of Sacrificial Power for improving their strength; adding another function that consumed Sacrificial Power would likely invite another barrage of criticism against the Eclipse Clan.

It did not matter if the Eclipse Clan was criticized, but launching a weapon forging function would also affect the growth rate of the players' own strength.

Unless the forged weapons could be strengthened in tandem with the players' growth.

If the weapon model required constant updates and obsolescence, it might appear to add fun, but it would be detrimental to the development of the player legions.

Such updates would instead slow down player growth and waste vast amounts of Sacrificial Power resources.

He planned to consult Super Dimension regarding these issues, asking in detail whether forged weapons could be set to continuously amplify through strengthening, or whether they could be dissolved and reshaped to return resources, ensuring not a single drop of Sacrificial Power was wasted.

If this could be achieved, then the weapon forging function would have a reason to exist.

Weapons that grew alongside the players could also be regarded as part of the players' strength.

However, at the current stage, Super Dimension and Nine Yin were busy attempting to create a cultivation system centered around the Qi-Devouring Fate Soul as the core cornerstone, so he had no intention of investing resources into the settings for a weapon forging function yet.

Without overthinking it, Qi Sheng kept his focus on the war in the Thunder Lion Domain.

This battle revealed another shortcoming of the players to Qi Sheng.

That was their complete lack of effective countermeasures when facing mental-type attacks.

Melee players primarily grew through blood and qi intensity, but mental attacks could ignore defense and directly destroy the players' mental consciousness.

Regarding how to solve this problem, Qi Sheng could think of only two solutions.

Launch a forging function to create mental-defense items using special resources.

Or wait for the players to contain a Fate Soul capable of resisting mental-type damage.

Such mental-defense Fate Souls would also become an inevitable embedding choice for future tank-stream players.

He planned to wait a while longer.

If the players remained unable to contain such a Fate Soul, he would then make up for this shortcoming by adding new functions.

Just like the vehicle function; it was launched to compensate for the shortcoming precisely because players had not yet reached the capability of flying through the sky and diving into the earth to quickly traverse large areas.

Two days later, after several difficult rounds of resurrection battles, the Thunder Lion Domain node was successfully contained through the players' efforts.

Once the spatial area was expanded, Qi Sheng decided to officially launch the "Monster World" website on the official portal.

And distribute ten thousand player qualifications on the official website.

That day, at 5:00 PM.

A direct link to the "Monster World" official website appeared on the homepage of the Star Net platform.

Many netizens who usually enjoyed browsing the latest technological information of the Eclipse Clan noticed it and immediately recalled the briefing held by the Eclipse Clan a few days prior.

Feeling surprised, they clicked to enter one after another.

The news officially released by Monster World spread rapidly across the network; netizens from all over the world accessed the official website link through various reposted channels to view it.

Netizens of all races, who were already full of curiosity about Monster World, were eager to use the official website to learn in detail about this game, which the Eclipse Clan called perfect.

6:00 PM.

Yelan City.

Tong Xin sat in his computer chair, staring blankly at the desolate group chat interface on the screen.

The sky outside the window gradually darkened; only the faint glow of the screen remained in the room, reflecting his dazed Iron Face.

His chest felt as if blocked by something, his breathing unusually heavy, and a sour sensation rose in his throat.

"If only back then... if only I had been more decisive back then..." he muttered to himself, his voice so low it was barely audible.

But reality offered no "if onlys."

Every time he opened the group chat and saw his teammates' messages, he dared not look too long, fearing that envy and regret would overwhelm him like a tidal wave.

He turned off the screen, plunging the room into darkness.

In the darkness, he closed his eyes as flashing memories played out.

He saw missed opportunities dancing before his eyes, like an unreachable dream.

Endless regret twisted around his heart like countless threads, tightening more and more until he could barely breathe.

What hurt was not the lack of opportunity, but that he had originally had two chances to possess it.

But now, he could only sit in the darkness, allowing sorrow and powerlessness to consume him bit by bit.

Just four days ago, he had thought he found redemption; after enduring bitterness came sweetness, and he was about to reach the peak of his life.

He still clearly remembered standing with one hand on his hip, high-spiritedly pointing at the screen and saying, "I've got this under control."

But just as happy as he was when he snatched the game qualification, that was how miserable he felt now.

Only now did he realize that his brothers were faring much better than he imagined; they were not playing Dark Land at all, but the Eclipse Clan's next-generation game: Monster World.

What they obtained was even a closed beta qualification that Eclipse Clan players could not acquire through normal channels, distributed randomly by the Star Net AI.

Thinking of his sorrow, tears unconsciously slid from the corners of his eyes.

Once, a rare game qualification lay before him, but he did not cherish it; only after missing it did he feel immense regret. If heaven gave him another chance, he would say three words to that qualification: "I want to play." If a deadline must be added, he hoped it would be right now, immediately!

An opportunity that was once within easy reach had been discarded by his own hands, filling him with unspeakable remorse.

At this moment, how he wished time could flow backward, returning him to his first encounter with the Monster World closed beta qualification.

He would definitely cherish that hard-won gift, then firmly click "Download," and shout "Adoptive Father" to the welfare officer.

But time would not flow backward, and qualifications would not be reissued.

He had watched the Eclipse Clan's briefing.

Administrator Number One had explicitly stated that when the Monster World qualifications would be fully distributed was completely unknown.

Judging by the number of qualifications distributed, it was far lower than that of Dark Land.

Now the link was spreading everywhere on the internet; the entire network knew that one could download Monster World through the link.

The difficulty for him to obtain a game qualification was harder than winning the lottery; it was simply not something that staying up late or grinding hard could achieve.

"Twice... I had two chances to get the game qualification, boo hoo hoo."

He sobbed until his eyes were red and swollen, yet still could not dispel the sadness in his heart.

Just then, the computer screen lit up automatically, and a news notification popped up from the bottom right corner.

Tong Xin wiped away his tears and looked, discovering it was a notification sent by the largest news media of the Human Federation.

Opening the news, Tong Xin scrolled down, his heart pounding.

The Monster World official website had gone live!

At the end of the news was a link address to enter the official website.

Without hesitation, Tong Xin clicked the link, and the page immediately redirected.

Upon entering the Monster World official website, the screen suddenly dimmed, after which a deep starry river background unfolded across the display like a night curtain.

In the center of the page was a vortex, with the four large characters "Monster World" faintly visible within; the font had sharp edges as if carved by a blade, its borders glowing with scarlet light like flickering burning flames, while dense runes appeared and disappeared around the vortex.

In Tong Xin's eyes, the production of the Monster World official website was nothing short of a work of art, with every detail exuding unparalleled exquisiteness.

Opening the webpage, the deep dark-toned background instantly pulled him into a mysterious and dangerous realm.

The huge vortex in the center of the page rotated slowly, as if capable of devouring everything; the logo at the vortex's center was presented in scarlet flame-style font, bringing a strong sense of oppression.

The background music of the official website was low-pitched, weaving organ melodies with faint choruses to create a mysterious atmosphere of another world; the sound design was the finishing touch, with wind sounds, whispering voices, and metallic clashing sounds, each perfectly placed to bring a strong sense of immersion, as if one were situated in another world.

Clicking the four large characters "Monster World" in the center, the screen jumped to the Monster World official homepage with a scarlet background.

A line of text was printed at the top of the page: Dance with death, accompany fear; your legend begins by facing the Black Black Tide.

Hovering the mouse over the navigation bar caused the text to glow with a blood-red halo.

There were eight options above, namely:

World Map (Explored), Monster Bestiary, Fate Soul Bestiary (Contained), Spiritual Plant Bestiary, Spiritual Ore Bestiary, Domain Nodes, Glory Chronicle, Player Forum.

Filled with curiosity, Tong Xin focused his gaze on the first option, World Map.

Controlling the mouse, he clicked the "World Map" option on the webpage, and the screen was instantly swallowed by a patch of profound darkness.

The scene shifted, and an old parchment scroll unfolded before his eyes; this was a dynamic map.

The grand background of the presented map was a vast dark continent shrouded in thick mist, where broken mountain ranges, deep forests, and winding rivers were faintly visible; four large characters "Pale Continent" were printed upon it, while the map's edges were outlined by a faint blood-red glow, as if this land were being eroded by some invisible force.

Three regions on the map were clearly visible.

They were the Emperor Tomb Mountain Range at the very bottom of the map, the Colorful Mist Coast located at the continent's edge to the west, and the Winter Snowfield region to the east of the Emperor Tomb Mountain Range.

The displayed map was not static within the scene.

When he moved the mouse over the three explored regions, the mist would slowly disperse, revealing hidden details.

For example, when he zoomed in on the Colorful Mist Coast region and the cursor swept over a forest, the tree trunks would sway slightly as if wind were passing through; when the cursor stopped over a Firefly Lake, ripples would rise on the water's surface.

Large areas of the map were marked with flashing light points of various colors; clicking a light point would pop up detailed information about that region, such as monster distribution, monster types, resource types, and so on.

Tong Xin discovered that the map design was very thoughtful, allowing one to intuitively see the progress of player exploration and world development.

In the bottom right corner of the map was a zoom toolbar designed in the shape of an ancient stone tablet carved with mysterious runes; when the mouse hovered over the runes, they would glow faintly accompanied by a low-pitched sound effect, and inside was a search box.

By entering the name of a small region or coordinates, one could automatically locate the specific position.

"What an awesome map design!"

Upon initially viewing the map, Tong Xin was immediately convinced by the detailed design.

Exiting the map function, he clicked on the Monster Bestiary function.

The page switched, and the screen was engulfed by scarlet flames; monster cards were neatly arranged on the page, each card's background depicting that monster's habitat, such as gloomy caves, bone battlefields, coastal forests, and so on.

Hovering the mouse over a card caused it to slowly enlarge, revealing a 3D model of the monster with vivid details; for instance, a monster named "Iron-Shell Beetle" possessed a thick carapace covering its body, with clearly visible cracks upon it, eyes like two burning coals, and when it opened its mouth, sharp fangs were exposed, as if it might leap out of the screen at any moment.

Below the cards, brief text introduced the monsters' habits and weaknesses; the font was slender and scarlet in color, looking extremely cool.

After browsing introductions for several types of monsters, Tong Xin felt full of curiosity and anticipation for the game Monster World.

Closing the monster page, he opened the Fate Soul Bestiary.

After the screen transitioned, what appeared before his eyes was a containment wall, with a monster imprisoned in each containment cell.

Moving the mouse over a contained monster caused information about its abilities to appear.

After viewing it, Tong Xin realized this was the Primordial Containment Wall his brothers in the group chat had mentioned, where each type of monster represented a specific ability trait.

One could choose a single monster growth path, or combine different Primordial traits to form a Star Vein Sect.

"You guys really deserve to die!"

Thinking that his brothers had already been enjoying themselves for several months, Tong Xin couldn't help but clench his fists tightly.

Sadness surged from the depths of his heart, but he forcibly suppressed it.

He planned to finish browsing the Monster World official website before allowing himself to grieve; for now, curiosity occupied the high ground, and sadness would have to retreat.

After sequentially viewing the Spiritual Plant Bestiary, Spiritual Ore Bestiary, and Domain Nodes, Tong Xin clicked on the seventh category page: Glory Chronicle.

After the page transitioned, what appeared before Tong Xin's eyes was an ancient book wrapped in chains; the chains were forged from scarlet metal, inscribed with complex runes, and in the center of the book burned a pulsating Emperor Omen Flame.

Clicking the book with the mouse caused the chains to snap, and the book automatically opened.

The background music changed at this moment, as if announcing that a long-buried history was about to unfold.

As the page expanded, a beam of scarlet light overflowed from the pages, after which text and images appeared upon the pages in the form of projections.

Printed on the preface page were two lines of shimmering golden text:

In the long river of time, every player writes their own story in their own way, and some stories are worthy of being recorded in history to become legends.

This serves solely to record the brilliant milestone moments on the growth path of the player legions.

Turning the preface page bordered with golden-striped imprints, the screenshot on the first page of the album recorded the high-octane moment when the player legions purified the Gloom Cave after fighting bathed in blood.

Below it was also printed the specific time of the campaign.

However, the video could not be clicked to view; a prompt indicated that adapting a game pod was required to view the specific video.

Filled with curiosity, Tong Xin flipped through page by page.

Besides campaign videos and screenshots, the details were divided into three parts.

These were respectively: Campaign Location, Highlight Moments, and Hero List (players with outstanding performance in the campaign).

The design of the chronicle was full of interactivity; when the mouse hovered over text, the letters would glow faintly, accompanied by low-pitched sound effects, such as the beating of war drums, the clashing of sword blades, or the humming of magic.

Clicking on dynamic illustrations would enlarge the image and play a short GIF, such as a player swinging a weapon to slay a monster.

The button design for the view key resembled a medal; clicking it emitted a crisp sound of metal colliding.

Every page of the Glory Chronicle recorded a battle, with the page background being a dynamic battlefield scene: burning forests, bone battlefields, flying snow canyons... The display of each scene made Tong Xin's blood boil just from looking at the screenshots.

He couldn't wait to enter the game right now and charge into battle alongside them.

But such good fortune clearly was not destined for him.

Taking a deep breath, Tong Xin's eyes filled with envy:

"You guys really deserve to die, actually eating this well."

Exiting the Glory Chronicle function, he clicked the last option: Player Forum.

This was precisely the built-in forum of Monster World; this time it was completely opened to connect with the outside world, filled with strategy guides posted by qualified players, or other various content exchange threads.

Browsing the player discussions, the envy and jealousy in Tong Xin's heart were written all over his Iron Face.

At this moment, he clicked the post function:

[You Chosen Ones who obtained the closed beta qualification truly deserve to die!]

But after clicking send, a prompt popped up:

[Prompt: Identity account is in Guest status; can only browse forum threads or post two reply threads per day; unable to send main topic threads on the forum.]

Seeing the prompt information, Tong Xin couldn't help but feel sadness rise in his heart.

If he had seized the opportunity back then, he would now be standing at the pinnacle of the virtual gaming circle's chain of contempt, looking down on all the mountains, while countless players with envious expressions looked up from below.

The wind at the mountain peak was cold and aloof, blowing away the noise, leaving only the silence belonging to a king.

"You guys really deserve to die!"

Thinking that the Kindergarten Legion brothers who once stood beside him had already reached the peak, while he was still looking up from the foot of the mountain, his emotions could no longer be held in check.

Browsing the forum information and watching the exchanges between the Chosen Ones, sorrow flowed through his heart.

After a long while, Tong Xin entered the virtual game pod.

He accessed the Monster World official website through the virtual game to view relevant content.

Especially those videos that required a virtual game pod to click and view.

Entering the official website, he opened a video.

The scene before his eyes instantly pulled him into another dimension; the wind of Monster World whistled past his ears, carrying the dampness and rotting scent of earth, as if he were truly situated in that desolate land; the ground beneath his feet felt solid and rough, and with every step he could feel the texture of sand and grass leaves; he could even hear the faint sound of players' shoes stepping on the ground within the footage.

"As expected of a perfect virtual game; compared to you, Dark Land is truly a piece of shit."

The sight before his eyes made Tong Xin unable to restrain his praise.

Looking up, a blood moon hung in the sky, its light spilling onto decaying plants and casting long shadows; zooming in, his vision revealed a forest shrouded in mist, where the God King was leading the player legion advancing toward the forest.

Gazing into the forest, the tree trunks were twisted and ferocious; dense black mist rose from the depths of the forest, where countless ferocious evil spirits were breeding in the darkness, giving Tong Xin goosebumps; this intense sense of immersion made him feel as though he were placed in danger.

The subsequent battle scenes were far more spectacular than any special effects movie.

The gorgeous spells released by Magic System players, the domineering presence of Stone Statue Stream players holding the pass alone to push back evil spirits, the exquisite coordination of Support Stream players... it was like a magnificent visual feast, making Tong Xin's blood boil.

After finishing the video, Tong Xin, not yet satisfied, continued to browse other campaign videos.

During this period, he discovered that the weather system in Monster World also completely crushed that of Dark Land.

Even in observation Cultivation Mode, one could feel the changes in the weather system.

When heavy rain poured down, he felt the chilling sensation of raindrops hitting his Iron Face.

When wild winds howled, the corners of his clothes as an observer were blown fluttering loudly, and his body could even feel the resistance of the wind.

When thunder and lightning clashed, lightning tore through the sky, and the thunderclaps were deafening, as if the entire world was trembling.

Every change in weather had a gradual process; observing carefully, Tong Xin discovered that even the details of raindrops falling onto the soil and seeping into the ground were perfected to the extreme.

"This damn thing is what a game should be!"

He knew that the brothers who obtained qualification for Monster World were all feasting.

Yet he never expected that they would be eating this well.

The quality of this game was far superior to what was described at the No. 1 Governor's briefing.

It even gave him an illusion that the colors in the game were more vivid than in reality; the intensity of the flames, the cold of the frost, and the brilliance of the lightning in the campaign videos were all amplified to the extreme, as if the entire world had been injected with life.

Even the perception of sound was more three-dimensional; the roars emitted by players during combat, the footsteps during movement, and the humming of spells were distinctly layered, placing him within an epic symphony of war.

The feeling the video imagery gave him after watching was that it was more real than reality and more brilliant than a dream.

After a long while, the game pod lid opened, and Tong Xin stepped out of the pod to change his clothes.

A strong sense of disparity rippled in the depths of his heart.

Although he had returned to reality, his heart remained immersed in the imagery and scenes of Monster World, as if the experience just now was not a virtual observation, but a real transmigration.

"Sigh."

A thousand words and ten thousand thoughts ultimately transformed into a single sigh.

All of this originally should have included a share for him.

Recalling that night of deep sleep, he wished he could slap himself.

This one sleep had caused him to lose a wonderful world.

"I truly deserve to die!"

Returning to sit before his computer desk, Tong Xin's mindset changed completely.

He had originally thought that if he really couldn't obtain qualification for Monster World, he would play Dark Land first as a transition.

But after experiencing the scenes of Monster World through observation, he had only one thought.

What trash is Dark Land.

If he had never witnessed the extreme, he could have tolerated mediocrity.

But now, he could not endure it.

The quality of the two games was simply not on the same level; calling it a dimension-reduction crush would not be an exaggeration.

Even if he continued browsing the Monster World official website and the videos posted by players on the forum, he did not want to play Dark Land anymore.

Constantly browsing forum information, Tong Xin felt like a rat in a sewer.

He could only observe the prosperity of the upper world through the cracks in the manhole cover; the brilliance he saw seemed within reach, yet remained out of reach.

And he could only curl up in a dark corner, listening to the liveliness and joy coming from above, while a sour sensation surged in his heart.

Because that prosperity did not belong to him.

But he also knew that he could no longer be satisfied with the dark environment he was in.

Lost in the forum environment, time slipped away unnoticed.

Just as Tong Xin clicked on a post published by an exploration-faction player, the forum page automatically redirected to the Monster World official website homepage.

This left Tong Xin feeling puzzled.

Yet at that moment, the official page began to change.

The page background collapsed; behind the cracked screen, a dark abyss emerged, with magma gushing from the fissures, dyeing the entire page blood-red.

Once the blood color completely saturated the official site, a massive circular timer appeared in the center of the page. The burning digits seemed to be devoured by flames with every tick, and each change in the numbers was accompanied by a low tolling of a bell that struck directly at the heart.

Below the timer, a line of large characters starkly emerged from the blood-red haze:

[Qualification Battle, Countdown Remaining: 23 hours, 59 minutes, 52 seconds.]

"Holy shit!"

Seeing the text, Tong Xin suddenly realized something: the Star Net would distribute Monster World qualifications once the 24-hour countdown ended.

His low spirits instantly turned to excitement.

Sharing Tong Xin's feelings were players of all races within the Earth Alliance, as well as the high-ranking officials of all races.

Like Tong Xin, they had scrutinized the Monster World official website in detail and were all shaken by the game's perfect quality.

In the video experience footage, the immersion and emotional impact brought by being physically present were overwhelmingly intense.

After exiting the game's visual scenes, the shock in their hearts lingered, refusing to fade.

Now, seeing that the Monster World official site was actually releasing game qualifications to the public, the entire network erupted.

The top spot on the popularity charts of every race's Star Net forum was now occupied by the topic of Monster World's upcoming qualification release.

According to the statement made by the Eclipse Clan's First Governor, netizens of all races understood clearly that Monster World would not be like the Dark Lands, distributing over a million qualifications in a single round; the number was extremely scarce, and the probability was slim.

Yet every player wished to seize this opportunity.

As long as one could snatch a game qualification, they would gain access to a brilliant new world—an irresistible temptation for members of all races.

(End of Chapter)