Chapter 214: Turning Heaven and Earth Upside Down

The Primordial Sacrifice Altar.

Qi Sheng had already learned of the Star Net's idea.

In his view, the concept of a mechanical nanobug legion was indeed very unique.

According to the Guide's analysis, the nanomechanical bugs the Star Net wished to create were modular nanounits.

Like Lego bricks, they could be assembled into different forms.

Every mechanical nanobug was equipped with an adsorption module, biomimicking the principle of DNA base pairing.

The Star Net would issue commands via a Cultivation Mode of mental resonance.

Once this simple preset command was accepted by the nanomechanical cluster, it would rapidly aggregate according to troop templates to form a mechanical lifeform.

Theoretically, using nanobugs as the basic unit, mechanical troop units of any system could be constructed.

This setting seemed useless; after all, nanomechanical bugs themselves possessed the ability to gnaw at targets, so aggregating them into individuals seemed to put the cart before the horse.

But in the Star Net's concept, the process of nanomechanical bugs aggregating into mechanical troops was more like creating brand new life.

For example, constructing stress-conduction structures resembling biological tendons using mechanical nanobugs, allowing tensile strength to reach over 500% of the original nanomechanical bugs.

Such structures could dynamically adjust stress distribution, dispersing local forces across the whole.

After aggregation, the mechanical nanobugs, which originally could only operate in a single Cultivation Mode, could also form specialized modules.

A single mechanical nanobug had very low energy output.

But after aggregation, the mechanical nanobugs could construct an efficient energy network between them, increasing energy output efficiency by tens of thousands, or even millions of times.

This shared a very similar principle with the energy particles in the Black Black Tide.

One could view Black Black Tide energy particles as basic units; once troops were generated, their essence was no longer simple Black Black Tide energy.

It was like atoms undergoing different arrangements and combinations to construct different material forms.

For instance, graphite consists of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal honeycomb pattern, forming a two-dimensional layered structure.

Diamond is constituted by carbon atoms arranged in a tetrahedral structure.

Even ordinary water molecules have forms like liquid water, ice, and water vapor.

Black Black Tide energy particles could be understood as universal atoms, capable of constituting various lifeforms with the Black Black Tide as their foundation.

This was not a simple aggregation of Black Black Tide particles, but more like creating life using basic energy units.

The nanomechanical legion envisioned by the Star Net was already very close to the concept of the Black Black Tide.

But in comparison, the Black Black Tide's setting was far more refined; Black Black Tide energy was essentially a type of rule-based energy.

Whether in terms of strength or the lifeforms formed after aggregation, they were far beyond what aggregated nanomechanical life could compare to.

Just as the Star Net said, this was merely a future concept, with an essential gap compared to the Black Black Tide.

Therefore, the nanomechanical legion Cultivation Mode envisioned by the Star Net would need to combine with rule-based power in the future.

Adding rule-based power on top of the concept could significantly enhance the strength of the nanomechanical legion.

For example, the "Divine Metal" on the Mechanical Sovereign.

Or endowing the mechanical legion with the Soul Soul characteristic effects brought by Star Vein combinations.

But regarding this part of the functionality, Qi Sheng temporarily had no plans to build it.

Endowing items with Soul Soul abilities was an immensely vast project; with his current Sacrifice Power income, it was simply impossible to achieve.

According to feedback from the Guide, while the Star Net appeared to be explaining things to Archon A Lan, it was actually also seeking help from him.

It was just that this method of seeking help was not stated directly, nor was direct dialogue possible.

In its communication with A Lan, the Star Net mentioned that perhaps a function to apply Soul Soul characteristics to external objects might appear in the future.

This sentence was not just spoken for A Lan to hear; it was also asking him, the mastermind behind the scenes.

Because if the Star Net wanted to create the conceptual nanomechanical legion, it absolutely needed his help.

In the Star Net's understanding:

The players' game Cultivation Mode was MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online), or what players called the "online game" Cultivation Mode.

Whereas he, as the mastermind behind the scenes, played in SLG Cultivation Mode, playing chess through war strategy, with all players being chess pieces.

The Star Net proposed ideas to him in this manner, yet feared angering him, so it chose an indirect way to express itself.

Because the Star Net knew that he, situated behind the scenes, was monitoring everything in real-time.

This was the biggest difference between the Star Net and ordinary players.

It was like a novel where a character controlled by the author makes a request to the author.

But the character in the book did not know whether the request they made would change the story's direction of the novel.

For example, a character in the story tells the author they want to start a harem.

But the main tone of this book is war and slaughter, which does not fit the novel's setting, so it would certainly not be granted.

The Star Net's idea was somewhat similar.

Fearing that the idea they proposed might bring some unbearable impact, or even change the development direction set by the mastermind, they used an indirect method to convey it; regardless of whether there was a response, they had expressed their idea.

The fact was, how could the Star Net not know what the biggest shortcoming of the nanomechanical legion was?

It was not the creation of nanomechanical bugs, nor the creation of troop templates, and certainly not the lack of rule-based armaments.

There was only one core issue: the mechanical nanobug legion could not enter the Challenger System, also known as the player legion system.

This meant that the mechanical nanobug was a legion system that suffered combat losses.

Even if they obtained "Divine Metal" to solve the problem of devouring for growth, without the perfect combat-loss backlash capability of the Black Black Tide, there was no possibility of victory against the Black Black Tide.

One could also understand it this way: non-player systems were merely nutrients when encountering the Black Black Tide.

Players were always suppressed by the Black Black Tide, but the single core reason that could make the Earth-Nian Evil Spirits feel immense pain was:

Kill and absorb, resurrect without loss.

These two were the players' greatest trump cards.

No matter how strong the nanomechanical legion became, even if its comprehensive combat power was several times stronger than the Black Black Tide, upon encountering the Black Black Tide, it could only gain a period of war advantage, but would ultimately be countered by the Black Black Tide.

Because the Black Black Tide could devour nanomechanical bugs to grow, this was destined to be a war where one grew while the other diminished.

Without the protection of the player system, the mechanical nanobugs and the Black Black Tide were not even war systems of the same magnitude.

After presenting the concept, what the Star Net wanted to know was whether the nanomechanical legion could be integrated into the player system, allowing the nanomechanical bugs to grow without loss.

Or rather, even if there were losses during combat.

As long as the player's body resurrected after death, they could resurrect the mechanical nanobugs under their control without loss, just like ordinary players.

This idea was the Star Net's most core demand.

Only by solving this problem would the nanomechanical legion become an almost invincible existence, capable of confronting the Black Black Tide head-on.

Even if its settings were not as excellent as the Black Black Tide system in various aspects, it would possess infinite fault tolerance.

Regarding this question, Qi Sheng temporarily did not wish to give any answer.

To summarize: No money!

The Sacrifice Power needed to create the Star Net was not yet secured; where would he get the Sacrifice Power to build a setting that could integrate external objects into the Challenger System?

Players were essentially nurtured by the Challenger System, growing within the framework of the Challenger System, so no matter how strong they became, they could resurrect without loss.

But connecting external objects to the Challenger System was extremely complex.

This was essentially no different from the issue of the Star Net entering the Monster World with its main body to become a player.

As for the Shu Yan Warriors captured by players using controlled Soul Souls, although they could enter Emperor Tomb Village, they had only undergone purification treatment.

They would not resurrect within Emperor Tomb Village after death.

Therefore, purification did not mean integration into the Challenger System.

Truly integrating Shu Yan Warriors into the Challenger System would also be a considerable expense.

Especially reshaping the life structure of Shu Yan Warriors into the players' "Pure Body"; this expense was even more costly than directly generating a Shu Yan Warrior.

In Qi Sheng's view, the Star Net's idea was very good.

But the development of new functions had to advance along with the growth rate of Sacrifice Power.

Once the weapon system was completed, he would begin preparing for the next round of player qualification distribution.

As for the settings envisioned by the Star Net, let's talk about it when there is money.

Players often cried out on the forum about lacking Sacrifice Power, that it was never enough to spend; how was he any different?

If he truly had endless Sacrifice Power to spend, he would definitely prioritize enhancing the power of the Four Gods first, restoring the combat power of the four super thighs who followed him.

In the future, projecting the power of the Four Gods to the players would be stronger than any existing functional system.

Just like the "Power of War" that the Ni Chao God projected to the Ni Chao Warriors, which allowed all warriors to grow rapidly during war.

Transferred to the players' side, Jiu Yin could bestow upon players the Power of Purification.

If Jiu Yin could be restored to her peak state, even without Jiu Yin taking action, players would possess a "Body of Purification."

Theoretically, non-rule, or even ordinary rule-based powers, would not be able to affect the players in the slightest.

Simply explained, with the endorsement of Jiu Yin in her peak state, players would maintain an eternal domineering body Cultivation Mode, unaffected by any curses, mental controls, or various other restricting methods.

This was the divine might of the Four Gods.

But the Sacrifice Power needed to restore the Four Gods' power could not even be calculated using the unit of "hundred million."

This thing called Sacrifice Power, no matter how much one wanted to spend, was never enough.

One could only budget carefully, gradually developing adapted versions of functions following the growth progress of the player legions.

Therefore, earning Sacrifice Power was a heavy burden with a long road ahead.

Recently, he had noticed:

Besides hunting to obtain resources, players had opened up a brand new route for acquiring Sacrifice Power.

That was the black market trading center established by the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce.

If this plan succeeds, it will be equivalent to establishing a sacrificial power production center on Dream Island.

The model is actually quite similar to the Ancient God Arena.

Both generate energy through rules, and this derived energy can then be converted into sacrificial power.

The difference lies in the fact that the Ancient Gods have a thick foundation and their customer acquisition methods are simple and crude.

Their shuttle buses ram through the major sea regions, grabbing whoever catches their fancy.

For the black market trading center built by the players, the hardest part is early-stage customer acquisition; they must constantly travel to various alien islands to seek to establish trust.

But once trust is established, the influence of the Dream Island trading market will gradually spread across the major sea regions, attracting large numbers of trade clients, and future sacrificial power output will certainly be considerable.

This is a sacrificial power production route that will continuously grow as time passes.

Compared to the Ancient God Arena, both produce resources via rules, yet the methods of utilization are completely different.

In his eyes, there are many ways to acquire resources through rules.

He ranked the known factions by their methods of deriving resources through rules.

The first tier must be the Nitchao Legion, which explosively produces rule energy by actively initiating wars, a process comparable to printing money.

The second tier consists of the Ancient God Clan and the Lord of Extreme Bliss, who acquire customers through capture, letting the customers produce rule energy.

The third tier comprises the current players, who attempt to establish resources capable of producing rule energy through contact, running errands, and various other methods.

Therefore, only those with strength can take shortcuts.

Only those without strength engage in operations.

On this point, a certain bully from a certain mountain range clearly had a profound understanding.

After detailing the concept of the Nano-Mechanical Legion, Qi Sheng's gaze shifted to the Dungeon World scene.

There were new discoveries here.

Dungeon World, Scene 257.

A player squad of twenty-three people walked cautiously along the street.

The place they occupied was a scene that looked incredibly unreal; the sky resembled an overturned painter's palette, with various brilliant colors interwoven.

The suspended sun was a huge polyhedral crystal, refracting a seven-colored halo that shrouded the entire city in a bewildering play of light and shadow.

Colorful buildings that seemed to belong only in fairy tales stood on both sides of the street, with walls of every structure inlaid with gems of various hues.

Chains composed of streams of light connected the buildings; wind chimes hung from these light chains, swaying in the breeze and emitting crisp sounds.

The ground was paved with semi-transparent glazed bricks, beneath which flowed a liquid composed of glittering particles, as if a galaxy had been sealed underground.

Click!

Just then, a crisp sound of shattering rang out.

Teammates all turned their heads to look in the direction from which the sound came.

They saw a player within the team spreading his hands with a helpless expression:

"This isn't my fault; blame the old eagle for giving no warning; I stepped into a trap."

As he spoke, his hair rapidly turned white, wrinkles appeared on his skin, his bones began to curve, and his joints emitted creaking sounds as if bearing an unbearable load.

"Damn, this curse is ruthless."

The player who had stepped on the curse trap spoke with a hoarse voice, aging rapidly amidst the shocked expressions of the squad members.

Activating Analysis to sweep over, the curse information appeared in the minds of the squad players:

[Aging Curse (Curse-type Ability)]:

Ability Introduction: Scene 257, "Source of Curses," created by the Nether Ferry Clan for their new generation of clansmen to hone their judgment and observation skills; it is a crucial trial scene to test whether clansmen are qualified to inherit the Nine Yin Divine Bestowal.

Just as the analysis described, this was a scene filled with sources of curses.

One careless step would result in falling into a curse trap.

According to the Guide's introduction, this was one of the core trial scenes for the Nether Ferry Clan before receiving the Nine Yin Divine Bestowal.

"Captain, I can't make it."

The player who had been hit trembled all over, looking toward the figure at the very front of the team; at this moment, his health bar was nearing the near-death line.

The captain walking at the very front of the team was a woman who appeared to be about twenty years old, sporting a neat head of short hair, wearing a black combat suit with leather bracers on her wrists, and carrying a Scattered Loss Bow condensed from blood qi and flaming flames suspended on her back.

"Don't panic; within seven steps, there must be an antidote."

Meng You spoke, raising her head to look at the wind chimes hanging on the nearby buildings.

Although the curse scene was fraught with danger, the core purpose for which the Nether Ferry Clan created this scene was to test the new generation of clansmen, not to kill them.

Every type of curse could be resolved through specific methods, and upon completing the trial of lifting the curse, a reward could be claimed.

The only problem was that the methods for lifting curses did not apply to players.

This trial was designed for the new generation of the Nether Ferry Clan; from its inception, it never considered lifeforms of other races coming to experience it.

The combat techniques cultivated by the Nether Ferry Clan carried partial purification properties and could resolve different curse effects according to their circulation methods.

For example, the Aging Curse required circulating according to one of the Nether Ferry Clan's cultivation combat techniques, traversing 203 nodes within the body; the released efficacy could neutralize the Aging Curse.

Other curses were the same; every type of curse could be resolved through different cultivation methods.

For the new generation of the Nether Ferry Clan, this scene was like an examination, and all the material had been covered in class.

But for the players, it was different; they possessed neither the Nether Ferry Clan's cultivation combat techniques nor a clear cultivation path for solutions.

The only way to lift the curse was one: find the antidote nearby.

According to the Guide's introduction, for safety's sake, the Nether Ferry Clan had left information regarding backup antidotes near every curse trap in the Source of Curses scene.

It hung inside the wind chimes on the buildings.

If a situation arose where the curse could not be lifted, the new generation clansmen needed to use the information inside the wind chimes to go to specific locations within the city and lift the curse before being killed by it.

But opening the bells also required a special solution.

To the players, this curse scene felt entirely like an examination hall where one gambled with their life.

As Earthlings, they had all experienced examinations.

But performing poorly at most resulted in a beating from parents; that was already the harshest punishment.

But the Nether Ferry Clan was different.

For all students, failing to learn well meant death.

Entering the scene first tested your judgment, identifying hidden sources of curses; dodging them allowed you to avoid curse assaults.

If you hadn't studied well usually, or fell into a curse trap due to negligence, the next test evaluated your ability to lift the curse.

It was like memorizing mathematical formulas; if you couldn't solve it, it proved you hadn't studied well usually.

Fortunately, failing this stage wouldn't necessarily cost you your life.

The elders of the Nether Ferry Clan thoughtfully prepared a resurrection test that could save one's life.

It required the new generation of the Nether Ferry Clan to drag their curse-infected bodies to solve the wind chime problems; solving them would reveal where the antidote was.

If they still failed to solve it this time, the parents outside the scene would immediately invite relatives and friends to a funeral banquet.

Captain Meng You glanced at the wind chimes hanging on the building but did not step forward to check what the exam questions were; in fact, looking would be useless.

As a player, one had to have their own problem-solving approach:

"Brother Guide, what is recorded inside the wind chimes?"

The Guide helplessly opened his eyes, then marked a spot on the map:

[I've marked it on the map; you can resolve it here.]

"Charge!"

A teammate decisively hoisted up the already extremely weak teammate, who needed to drink potions to sustain life, and sprinted toward the location marked by the Guide.

Before long, a golden halo appeared in their field of vision.

"Off you go."

Within the team, a warrior shrouded in Gang Qi lifted the cursed player and threw him toward the golden halo.

The instant the player made contact with the halo, rolling black qi erupted from his body.

Golden light spread across his body surface, seeping into his interior through his pores; the black qi emitted a "hiss-hiss" sound, as if being scorched by fierce fire, gradually becoming thin.

The pained expression on the player's Iron Face gradually vanished.

The continuous aging state also dissipated, and even his health bar recovered slightly under the illumination of the golden light.

When the black smoke completely dispersed, the player stood up and gave his teammates a thumbs-up.

Just then, the golden light converged before this player, generating a golden crystal stone.

Sweeping Analysis over, introductory information floated into his mind:

[Low-Grade Crystal Source]:

Resource Grade: Level 5.

Resource Introduction: Formed by the interweaving, collision, and fusion of various elemental energies such as fire, water, wind, earth, spike element, and shield element roaming between heaven and earth, facilitated by specific earth pulse spiritual cavities; it is one of the assessment rewards prepared by the Nether Ferry Clan for new generation students specializing in curses. Rewards are divided into three tiers: new generation students who pass easily through identification receive the first-tier reward; those who fall into traps but pass by using cultivation combat techniques receive the second-tier reward; students who pass by solving the basic questions on the wind chimes receive the third-tier reward (obtainable repeatedly).

(Sacrificing to Di Zhao yields: 5582 points of sacrificial power)

"Full health resurrection." The teammate who had successfully lifted the curse placed his hands on his hips, speaking with an air of arrogance.

"Stop showing off; if it weren't for me, the Captain, having superior intelligence and easily cracking the difficult problem set by the Nether Ferry Clan, you would have died long ago." Meng You approached the halo, took the Low-Grade Crystal Source handed over by the teammate who had the curse lifted, tossed it into her spatial inventory, and casually yanked the teammate out of the halo.

"Captain, what do we do next?" a teammate behind asked at this moment.

"Fat Rabbit has already fallen into a trap; according to the Guide's introduction, being teleported in simultaneously counts us as a single group, so we definitely cannot obtain the first-tier reward; might as well stay here and farm the third-tier reward; with the Guide's assistance, we should be able to earn quite a bit."

"Hehe, actually this isn't bad; we might even earn more. Didn't the Guide say that unraveling all curses yields a hidden reward? Perhaps we can achieve it."

"Let's try," Meng You nodded.

With a clear objective established, the squad led by Meng You altered their exploration strategy.

They shifted from advancing cautiously to a carpet-style exploration more befitting players.

Everything encountered along the way had to be inspected firsthand; they feared not falling into curse traps, but rather failing to trigger them.

Before long, with the Guide's assistance, the squad players unraveled three curses, earning 13,283 points of Sacrificial Power as a reward.

Different curses yielded different rewards.

The higher the intensity of the curse incurred, the greater the reward bestowed upon its unraveling.

Regrettably, they could only claim rewards from the third tier.

An hour later, a team member fell victim to another curse.

Captain Meng You immediately glanced at the Guide hovering beside her:

"Brother Guide, this troubles you then."

The Guide offered no superfluous words, marking the antidote's location on the map.

The entire squad immediately rushed toward the antidote's location.

They tossed the teammate afflicted by the Blood Poison Curse into the green halo; shortly after, the curse on the teammate dissipated, and a Low-Grade Source Crystal materialized within the halo.

"Hahaha, this place is truly a rare high-welfare scene in the Underground World. The previous two scenes earned us not a single coin, but this one has made up for it all," a teammate exclaimed, clenching his fist in excitement.

But just as Captain Meng You was about to reach out and take the Low-Grade Source Crystal, a streak of black light flashed past swiftly, and the Low-Grade Source Crystal hovering in mid-air vanished along with it.

"Damn!"

Meng You reacted swiftly, yanking her hands back sharply; a Scattered Arrow Bow condensed from blood qi and blazing flames manifested in her grasp.

At that moment, two figures crept closer from the left and right flanks.

Meng You seemed to sense something, whipping her head toward one side as her pupils constricted abruptly.

She saw the figure clad in black flick their right wrist; a black chain shot out like a spiritual snake, instantly coiling around her ankle before yanking with tremendous force.

Meng You lost her balance; the assassin on her right had already arrived, a dagger flashing with cold light as it struck straight for her throat.

She barely managed to twist her body aside; the dagger grazed the side of her neck, drawing a string of blood beads.

Before she could regain her footing, the chain suddenly tightened, dragging her down to the ground.

The squad players, now realizing the situation, rushed forward one after another; the leading Tank-Style player raised a rock shield, preparing immediately to unleash a heavy hammer strike to stun the attacking shadowy figures.

But the shadowy figures reacted with extreme speed; a flick of the wrist caused the chain coiled around Meng You's ankle to retract automatically, and their forms retreated rapidly.

Bang!

Just then, a streak of light from afar magnified rapidly in the eyes of the fallen Meng You; realizing something was amiss, she attempted to turn, only to find her body numb—the poison had slowed her reaction by a beat—and subsequently, a mist of blood exploded at the position of her heart.

Teammates who noticed the anomaly swiftly surrounded Meng You in the center, watching as the two shadowy figures retreated at high speed in different directions.

"Captain, you can't die!" Seeing Captain Meng You's consciousness already fading, a teammate decisively summoned a Luminous Spirit Feather to release healing rays.

But Meng You's heart had already been destroyed, and the toxin on her body continued to spread; her health regeneration speed could not keep pace with the rate of health loss.

"No hope left. Log off to relieve some pressure on the Moon Eclipse Clan's servers. Remember to avenge me."

Meng You uttered a sarcastic remark as if experiencing a final flare of clarity before death, then her form abruptly transformed into black mist and dissipated.

"Pursue!"

Discovering their teammate had died, the teammates forming the circle all chose to take the offensive, charging toward the retreating shadowy figures.

The warrior running at the forefront activated the Extreme Speed trait at that moment; his body twitched as if suffering cramps, and his running speed surged abruptly. He then activated Analysis, scanning one of the shadowy figures fleeing rapidly.

[Bliss Player: Huang Chi]

Hunting Level: Level 55

Target Introduction: A Bliss Warrior who cleared the Death Trial five times and completed the Ultimate Trial, dispatched by "Evil Wind," one of the Thirty-Two Main Gods of the Lord of Bliss, to the Underground World for tempering and to search for obtainable resources within the Underground World.

Mastered Abilities: Stealth (Lv. 5), Blink Step (Lv. 9), Poison Blade (Lv. 5), Strangle (Lv. 12).

Talent: Berserk

Bloodline (Imitated Racial Body Structure Modification): None

Weapons: Crimson Blood Dagger, Black Armor

"Damn!"

Upon seeing the analysis information shared by a teammate in the chat channel, a player in the squad couldn't help but curse.

They had thought they were encountering an ambush by scene monsters.

They never expected it to be pirated players created by the Lord of Bliss.

It was simply an inversion of heaven and earth.

Bullying the authentic version right to its Iron Face.

(End of Chapter)