Chapter 264: One Million Qualifications, A Strange Hometown

[The game is about to undergo a version update. The contents of this update are as follows]:

Poster: Guidance (Verified)

Update Content One: The new scene, Land of Chasing the Sun, is officially open.

New Scene Location: North of the Pale Continent, southern region of the Earth-Tremor Continent.

New Scene Introduction: The Land of Chasing the Sun is a rift valley in the Earth-Tremor Continent region, formed from the scorching golden fragments released after the fall of the ancient god "Kaci." The entire area bathes in an eternal dusk, with three small suns rotating in interlaced patterns across the horizon, casting their light over the region....

Update Content Two: The Return function is now officially online.

Content Introduction: A "Return" function has been added to the function panel. After use, players must wait five seconds, during which they may choose to cancel the return. Once the countdown ends, the player will return to Emperor Tomb Village in the form of death and enter a one-hour resurrection cooldown.

Update Content Three: Distribution of player qualifications.

Content Introduction: Tourists who have not yet obtained game qualifications may visit the Monster World official website to learn the specific distribution schedule for qualifications.

The game update contents sparked discussion on the forum.

For players who had already obtained game qualifications, nothing made them happier than the launch of the "Return" function.

This meant that in future uses of "Quick Return to City," the biggest drawback had been resolved.

Secondly, some veteran players complained.

The treatment for novice players was getting better and better.

Now, even returning to the city upon death had skipped the self-service Cultivation Mode, changing to one-click automation.

As for the far more numerous cloud gamers, upon seeing the pinned version update contents on the forum, they cared even more about the quantity of game qualifications being distributed this time.

When they logged onto the Monster World official website,

what they saw was that qualification applications were not yet open, along with a numerical marker displayed on the page.

Upon learning that Monster World was actually going to distribute two million player qualifications this time, all the cloud gamers appeared incredibly excited.

No matter how much one watched in the livestream room, it could not compare to experiencing it personally.

A new round of qualification distribution had arrived once again; no one wanted to miss this opportunity.

Even if the probability of winning a qualification was extremely low.

On that day, the headlines of major media outlets in the real world were all news about Monster World distributing two million qualifications.

Including the posts on the popularity charts of various racial city forums, which were all discussions about this sudden distribution of two million game qualifications.

Compared to before, the probability of obtaining a qualification this time had increased dramatically.

Members of all races felt immense anticipation regarding this.

Data City.

This was a newly constructed city of the human race.

Renovating the infrastructure of many old cities was too complex; the old, dilapidated buildings were like blood clots in veins, and various corrupted pipelines were like stubborn scars. Every renovation felt like performing CPR on a dying patient.

Thus, the high-ranking officials of the human race proposed the "Future City Construction Plan."

Data City was the first future city.

This was also the human race's first true super-city; although the population was not yet large, it showed a growth trend every year.

Those able to live here were generally the top talents of the human race.

The city's infrastructure was planned by the most advanced smart brains, rising from the ground in just five years.

This place was also a testing ground for the latest technology, where various novel techniques were applied and tested.

Data City was like a template for a future city, providing reference solutions for the reconstruction, or even new construction, of other cities.

The night was ink-black, yet the city had not fallen asleep.

The city's skyline was cut into fragmented geometric shapes by holographic projections, while huge billboards floated in mid-air, flashing with fluorescent light.

The slogan "Welcome to the Future" drifted across the sky above the city aboard floating airships.

Below the city, streams of hovering vehicles shuttled like ribbons of light, the hum of engines mixing with electronically synthesized music.

The outer walls of every high-rise building were decorated with screens, scrolling through advertisements, information, and other content.

In a corner of the city,

rain fell from artificial cloud layers, displaying brilliant colors under the refraction of neon lights.

Ji Chen sat beneath a holographic billboard, his hand, covered in age spots, clutching an identity report sheet soaked by the rain.

A hovering vehicle flying overhead kicked up a gust of damp wind, blowing open his tattered hood to reveal an old Iron Face covered in wrinkles; his left eye was a cloudy gray-white, while only his right eye remained clear.

At this moment, he lowered his head, his gaze focusing on the report in his hand, wet from the rain, which clearly printed:

[Name: Ji Chen]

[Age: ???]

[Identity Code: sj-7429-2057]

[Residential Area: Data City District 13, Vertical Block-C, Room 17.]

[Occupation: None.]

Lifting his gaze from the paper, Ji Chen scanned the billboards lining the streets.

Watching a 3D virtual idol detach from a billboard and switch poses in mid-air, his pupils contracted slightly.

Everything around him made him feel strange.

"Ji Chen, you have now gained freedom, but all actions must comply with Data City regulations. If you encounter any problems while adapting to your new life, you may contact me."

A woman's voice came from the silver wristband.

Ji Chen looked down at his wrist, where an image of a woman in a blue uniform was projected.

"I understand," Ji Chen nodded faintly.

"Your situation is relatively complex; the technical data you provided is undergoing urgent verification. I will contact you again later... In any case, welcome back."

Ji Chen nodded again and reached out to actively close the conversation.

Standing up, he decided to head to his new home first.

"Hey, move aside!"

Just then, a yellow-haired boy riding a hovering skateboard whizzed past him, nearly colliding with him.

Ji Chen reflexively raised his hand; instantly, an invisible force gathered, and the skateboard hit what felt like a transparent wall, sending both the boy and the board flying backward.

"What the hell?" The youth crashed heavily to the ground, clutching the back of his head as he looked around, finally fixing his gaze on Ji Chen:

"What did you do?"

"Apologies," Ji Chen said, paying the boy no further mind as he walked straight toward the navigation address appearing on his wristband.

One hour later.

"Verification passed. Welcome home, Master."

Blue light swept over the door lock, and the metal door slid open automatically.

Stepping inside, the lights turned on automatically.

"Indoor temperature: 23 degrees Celsius. Air quality: Excellent."

The voice of the house steward came from the ceiling:

"Detected that your heart rate is elevated. It is recommended to consume a soothing agent."

Ji Chen paid no heed, his gaze sweeping over this unfamiliar home; this was also his first time here.

The novel technology he had never encountered before made him curious.

The overall space of the room was hexagonal in structure; the walls were made of color-changing smart glass, currently simulating the hues of morning light.

The entire left wall was a data display screen, scrolling in real-time with various indicators of Data City, including atmospheric pressure, today's simulated weather, hovering vehicle traffic flow, regional network load, and so on.

After walking around the room once, Ji Chen finally sat down in front of the computer desk.

Searching around, he could not find where the power button for the monitor on the computer desk was located.

So Ji Chen squatted down and began searching under the desk.

"Do you need assistance?" the house steward suddenly asked.

"Where is the computer's power button?"

"Booting up for you." The house steward directly awakened the semi-transparent monitor.

"What about the mouse?"

"There are currently no mouse devices purchased for this room. Perhaps you can use the neural induction wristband you are wearing to control it. Would you like to connect?"

"Connect."

Immediately, the silver-white wristband on his right wrist popped up a light projection prompt, displaying that the connection was successful.

Ji Chen tried waving his wrist, and the cursor on the screen moved accordingly.

"Not easy to use; a mouse is more convenient."

"Your thought has been recorded. An order has been placed for a mouse adapted to the size of your palm. It will be delivered in two hours."

Hearing these words, Ji Chen froze.

"Does placing an order not cost money?"

"Citizens of Data City are composed of descendants of martyrs from the Mechanical War era, top technical talents... According to Article 7, Chapter 3 of the 'Data City Livelihood Security White Paper,' all Data City citizens enjoy an annual basic consumption quota of 20,000 credit points, an electricity allocation of 8,500 units, and printing permissions for 20 cubic nanometers of synthetic materials."

Hearing the house steward's answer, Ji Chen fell silent.

This world made him feel strange.

Turning his gaze to the monitor, he clicked open the browser.

On the navigation page was: Database Query.

With curiosity, Ji Chen opened the database query function and entered his own name.

Instantly, a vast amount of information lined up on the webpage; there were far too many people with the same name.

Fortunately, a search function in the upper right corner could assist in locating data.

He adjusted the time to the year 2325, which was 223 years ago.

Immediately, more than half the listed information pages vanished, the content in the search bar shifted, and the city names became entirely different.

He found the city where he had once lived, clicked confirm, and then set the gender to: Male.

After a thorough search, he found the records he wanted.

[Morning Mist Evening News, Society Section (March 18, 2325)]

Headline: Investigation into a Bizarre Disappearance Case; Intern Researcher Missing.

[By our reporter Lin Yueru]: According to a missing person notice issued by the police station today, 27-year-old man Ji Chen has been missing since the evening of March 15.

Colleagues reported that Ji Chen left the Seventh Research Institute normally after completing his shift that day but never returned to his residence.

Timeline reconstruction: 18:30 – Captured by building surveillance entering the elevator alone.

18:31 – The elevator stopped at the 47th floor; when the doors opened, only an empty car was visible....

Ji Chen's hand hovered above the file, his fingers trembling slightly.

The blue light of the holographic projection fell upon his Iron Face, making the wrinkles already carved into his cheeks appear even deeper.

In the news illustration, the young photo within the surveillance screenshot made his throat tighten.

That was himself from over 200 years ago, wearing the light gray uniform of the Seventh Research Institute, standing in the corner of the elevator.

In the photo, he was looking up at the camera, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on the corner of his lips, as if he knew what would happen to him next.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his own data page.

The cursor hovered over the search bar for a long time before he finally entered the names of his father, Ji Mingyuan, and his mother, Lin Ya.

After the search, information about his parents appeared in sequence.

Ji Mingyuan (Passed away August 15, 2391, aged 89)

Lin Ya (Passed away March 21, 2398, aged 93)

Cemetery coordinates: Sky Park, Zone E, Row 7 (Demolished)

Seeing that both his parents had lived to nearly a hundred years of age.

Ji Chen suddenly laughed, though his laughter was mixed with choking sobs.

During the long years away from Earth, he had countless times imagined his parents with heads full of white hair.

He had also countless times struggled to return, but in the end, he was too late.

"Butler, did they leave any video recordings?" Ji Chen forced out the request with difficulty.

"Searching... Most video data is lost; only one recording left by Lin Ya was found. Since the subjects are deceased and the confidentiality period of over fifty years has expired, you may apply to view it."

"View it."

A projection cascaded from the ceiling; an elderly woman sitting in a wheelchair appeared in the frame, her silver hair combed meticulously neat.

His mother's characteristic lip-pressing gesture brought a knowing smile to Ji Chen's Iron Face.

"Xiao Xing." His mother's voice was much hoarser than in his memory. "Keep these old photos safe... especially this one."

Her trembling hand held up a yellowed photograph.

Ji Chen held his breath; it was exactly the family portrait of the three of them taken at the entrance of the Seventh Research Institute on his 27th birthday.

In the photo, he wore a light gray uniform, standing between his parents with a silly grin.

"The year your older brother got lost, you hadn't been born yet." His mother gently rubbed the photo with her fingertip:

"Until the very end, your father would go to the police station every Wednesday to ask about progress; he never let go of it in his entire life, and even before he passed, he was still mentioning him."

Raindrops battered the window, but in Ji Chen's ears, there was only his mother's voice from within the video frame.

"Remember how you always asked as a child why your brother's room was kept exactly as it was? The reason is simple: we always held onto unrealistic fantasies that he might return one day. If he came back and saw his room changed, how heartbroken he would be."

"Xiao Xing, Mom knows you are busy developing weapons. This may be the last video Mom leaves for you. Mom's body has reached its limit; finally, I can go find your father and your brother."

The video ended there.

The instant the light and shadow faded, Ji Chen saw the reflection of his own aged Iron Face on the desktop screen.

A person who should have been dead was now sitting in the future, two hundred years later, listening to his mother's dying wishes addressed to another son.

Ji Chen's chest felt as if gripped by an invisible hand, making even breathing feel difficult.

More than two hundred years of time were enough to smooth away many things.

Those inhuman tortures and the loneliness sufficient to destroy one's will had long forged him into a silent shell.

He had thought his emotions would rarely ripple again.

Yet at this moment, facing this simplest of final recordings, his emotions could not be suppressed.

His mother's voice, crossing over two hundred years of time, gently struck his eardrums, piercing precisely into the heart he had believed long dead.

It turned out that some pains had never truly gone numb.

A tear slid from his only remaining right eye and splashed onto the back of his hand.

He slowly raised his hand, touching the screen, his fingertips gently tracing the aged Iron Face of his mother in the photo.

"Mom, I'm back." His voice was hoarse beyond recognition.

With over two hundred years of time spanning between them, this single call felt so pale.

No matter how much he had experienced, no matter how many vicissitudes of alien worlds he had witnessed, at this moment Ji Chen was still like a child who had been lost for too long.

Those edges and corners, smoothed cold and hard by the years, shattered completely within this call that had never reached its destination.

Outside the window, neon lights dyed the rain into mottled colors, while light trails from hovering cars carved fleeting trajectories across the night sky.

Ji Chen's gaze became blurred, and suddenly he felt an immense sense of lostness in his heart.

The memories of his parents were like an old window sealed by dust for many years.

Now, it had been suddenly pushed open.

Those scenes he thought had grown fuzzy were now so clear they made his heart tremble.

He remembered how his father always loved peeling apples after dinner, his rough fingers holding a small knife, pulling the peel into a long, spiraling strip.

His mother's hands always carried the faint scent of hand cream; she would always complain that the two of them, father and son, made the study look like a junkyard, and she would often replace the coffee his father wanted with warm milk good for the stomach.

Every time his father went out, his leather shoes would be polished until they gleamed.

When his mother cooked, she would always unconsciously hum a tune.

That pot of pothos on the balcony died and came back to life, came back to life and died again; none of the three of them could ever remember to water it.

These trivial daily details suddenly became so vivid.

For over two hundred years, he had thought he had forgotten the unimportant details, but now they rushed into his heart one after another, making Ji Chen feel suffocated.

Those scenes he could never return to were carved into his mind, cut by cut.

Taking another deep breath, Ji Chen looked up at the screen and reset the search function.

Before long, new information emerged.

[Ji Xing (2326–2405)]

Description: New-style weapons researcher; died during the city-slaughtering action by the descending faction "Double-Blade Clan."

Marital status: Unmarried.

Direct descendants: None.

After his younger brother died, their branch of the family had no direct descendants left.

Toward this younger brother he had never met, he felt no affection whatsoever.

But toward the bloodline left behind by his parents, he ultimately could not remain completely indifferent.

He recalled the words his father always hung on his lips:

"Our old Ji family..."

This younger brother named Ji Xing was the child upon whom his parents poured all their longing and expectation after losing him.

He was also the bloodline that carried on the same surname, bearing the hopes of his parents' remaining years.

But now, this line had also been severed.

A sense of regret quietly sprouted in the bottom of his heart, and memories of the alien world surged up alongside it.

In his parents' eyes, he had suddenly vanished.

But the truth was far more absurd than mere disappearance, because he had transmigrated.

Ji Chen clearly remembered being swallowed by a blinding white light while riding the elevator.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a world where twelve blood moons hung suspended.

Appearing on the teleportation altar along with him were figures of various alien races.

Feathered people with scaled wings growing from their backs, Forest Folk with skin like tree bark...

Before the altar, atop a towering white throne, a deity calling itself "White Demon" let silver waterfall-like long hair cascade down.

As its finger swept across, a searing mark was branded onto his forehead.

A snowflake-shaped rune that rotated continuously signified that he had officially become a Provider.

Or, to put it another way: a slave.

But before he could understand the alien world, the White Demon killed a batch of randomly summoned beings who did not meet the requirements, keeping only those in flesh-and-blood form.

Afterward, the White Demon taught them cultivation methods through mental communication: Blood Sacrifice Offering.

Rather than cultivation, it was more like a special contract.

They were required to absorb spiritual energy from heaven and earth according to demands, transforming it into blood-colored energy to store within their bodies.

At regular intervals, this energy would automatically transmit to the White Demons via the brand, serving as the price for exchanging the right to survive.

During the long years of slavery, the alien creatures that arrived alongside him collapsed one after another.

Ironically, he, the weakest creature upon his initial descent, had stubbornly survived.

Curling up in dark corners every night, watching the blood-colored patterns wander through his blood vessels like venomous snakes across his skin, he had thought of death.

He loathed this body ravaged until it was riddled with holes, so much so that even every breath carried a foul rust-like taste.

He did not understand what meaning remained in his life; rather than spending day after day in torment, it would be better to grant himself release.

But the appearance of an alien creature changed his mind.

It was a night of the full moon, and he was curled up in the shadows.

At that moment, a tall, slender figure sat down beside him.

Its scales shimmered with a dark golden luster under the moonlight; even branded with a slave mark, its spine remained straight as an arrow.

While other creatures groaned in pain from the blood sacrifice, it laughed with complete indifference.

This new slave left a very deep impression on him from their very first meeting.

Through day-after-day contact, they began to attempt communication.

He clearly remembered the first thing that fellow, named "Dragon Kin," ever said to him:

"Hey, do you know the difference between a warrior and livestock?"

As it spoke these words, flame-like shadows danced within Dragon Kin's vertical pupils.

He remained silent, yet Dragon Kin extended its right claw on its own accord, pointing to its own forehead:

"Livestock accepts its fate once tethered, whereas a warrior contemplates when it can bite through the enemy's throat."

This sentence also laid the groundwork for Dragon Kin's counterattack.

Unwilling to resign itself to becoming a prisoner, Dragon Kin had always been waiting for an opportunity.

Before that, it hid its sharp edge, lying dormant in the shadows, allowing the White Demon's brand to draw energy from its body, yet its heart had never truly submitted.

Even while forced to bow its head and endure the pain of blood sacrifice at every moment, the spark of resistance in its heart had never been extinguished.

Dragon Kin's fighting spirit also infected him.

Just as Dragon Kin had said:

"Rather than rotting in shackles, it is better to burn for an instant amidst blazing flames; dying in the most brilliant manner is not bad either."

This statement was like a sharp blade, slicing open the deepest cowardice within Ji Chen's heart.

He made his decision: to follow Dragon Kin and launch a rebellion against the White Demons.

In the days that followed, Dragon Kin taught him many things, including how to steal the energy that was supposed to be delivered to the White Demons.

Every time the White Demons were mentioned, Dragon Kin always maintained an attitude of contempt.

It expressed that the White Demons were merely slightly stronger creatures within a minor world, fundamentally unworthy of the title of gods.

In the subsequent days, intelligence regarding the White Demon clan guards' patrol routes, weak points in their defenses, and all other information was gradually collected.

While other slaves collapsed in despair, a group centered around Dragon Kin silently accumulated its own strength.

Amidst the long wait, the opportunity finally appeared.

The frequency at which the White Demons drew energy suddenly increased; when they summoned creatures from another realm again, the arriving White Demon was clearly heavily injured and in very poor condition.

This was also the perfect opportunity in Dragon Kin's eyes.

Once the White Demon departed, the breakout began.

Dragon Kin's sharp claws tore through the throats of the White Demon clan guards first.

Ji Chen followed closely behind, erupting with all the energy he had secretly hidden, causing the blood sacrifice patterns to burn fiercely.

This was not a battle between evenly matched forces, but a path to survival torn open by a group of trapped beasts using their lives; people kept dying along the way.

At that time, his gaze fixed firmly on Dragon Kin, who was charging at the very front; he only knew to stay closely behind Dragon Kin's footsteps.

In the end, they successfully broke through the final barrier, escaped the prison, and entered the Eternal Night Forest shrouded in white mist.

But the war had only just begun.

In the years that followed, this team composed of escaped slaves launched a counterattack under Dragon Kin's leadership.

They attacked the White Demons' spiritual energy veins, destroyed sacrificial arrays, and rescued newly summoned individuals.

Dragon Kin always charged at the very front; even as its scales became increasingly mottled, the flames in its eyes remained bright.

Ji Chen often saw it standing at the edge of a cliff, gazing in the direction of White Demon City.

There lay twelve blood moons that never set, along with the dignity and freedom that had once been stripped from them.

The night wind lifted Dragon Kin's tattered wing membranes, yet its Iron Face always overflowed with confidence; it would turn around with a smile and say to him:

"The greatest mistake the White Demons ever made was summoning me to this world."

This war possessed no epic grandeur, only the spreading firelight within the Eternal Night Forest and the increasing number of cracks upon the city walls.

Knowing that the White Demon clan had hostile forces in this world, Dragon Kin led them to contact alien races, obtaining resource support through auxiliary warfare.

The enemy of one's enemy is a friend.

Dragon Kin was undoubtedly an excellent leader; under its guidance, the resistance force gradually grew stronger.

This war lasted for nearly a hundred years.

Dragon Kin fulfilled the promise it had made back then.

And he, following Dragon Kin, successfully stood at the summit of that city which had once buried freedom.

He remembered his feelings at that time.

Overlooking the city ruins and looking back on past efforts, everything seemed like a dream.

When he raised his head to look at Dragon Kin, he discovered that, at some point, nearly all the scales on its body had peeled away, revealing flesh and blood beneath that resembled molten lava.

Yet the tattered double wings it spread were more unfurled than at any time before.

There were no cheers, no proclamations, only the moans emitted as the night wind swept ashes across the scorched earth, sending a funeral dirge to the White Demon clan.

At this moment, Dragon Kin also looked toward him, grinning arrogantly as it said:

"Chen, freedom has never been a gift bestowed by others, but a trophy torn from the throat of fate using teeth and claws."

He then asked Dragon Kin about its future course.

Dragon Kin answered with a smile:

"The altar still exists; I will read the information within it, and then find the path home."

As it spoke these words, expectation burned within Dragon Kin's vertical pupils, and it continued:

"This world was never my destination; my battlefield lies in a vaster world, which is also the direction my clansmen have strived for throughout their lives, the most brilliant world in the void, a battlefield only true powerhouses are qualified to tread; the future of myself and my clansmen belongs there."

"And this realm of heaven and earth is merely a waystation that accidentally appeared in my life; I have already delayed here for too long."

At that time, he curiously asked Dragon Kin what kind of world it pursued.

Dragon Kin's answer was:

"That is a world where the steps are paved with corpses; the weak do not even possess the qualification to look up. There is no need for you to follow."

Realizing this might be the final time he would spend with Dragon Kin, he offered his blessings:

"Dragon Kin, I believe you will likewise stand at the peak of the world in that realm."

Hearing these words, Dragon Kin laughed, turned around, and patted his shoulder:

"Wrong; although I am confident, I also know how arduous the challenges are that one must Iron Face when choosing this path. I will most likely die in battle in that world, but I will use my entire life to pave upward-climbing steps for my clansmen. Through one generation lifting up the next, I firmly believe my descendants will stand at the peak of that world."

After this exchange, Dragon Kin soon cracked the spatial information stored within the altar.

It found the path home and also located the spatial coordinates for him to return to Earth.

Dragon Kin transmitted away first.

In the final moment, Dragon Kin left only two words:

"Leaving."

There was no farewell, no parting instructions.

Just as Ji Chen was about to speak, he saw Dragon Kin already step into the spatial rift.

The last thing he saw was Dragon Kin, with its back to him, casually waving its claw before departing.

He could not help but burst into curses, but as he cursed, he suddenly burst out laughing.

Because this was Dragon Kin's style; even goodbyes had to be expressed in the most free-and-easy manner.

Over a hundred years of friendship had ultimately reached the end of the road.

And he, after Dragon Kin's departure, stepped onto the transmission array.

He was not as free-and-easy as Dragon Kin; before leaving, his mind was filled with memories.

Those passionate years fighting side by side, those nights sharing cold dew within the Eternal Night Forest, those moments of smiling at each other under the blood moon... all ultimately turned into a sigh, dissipating into the winds of the alien realm.

Dragon Kin was born to soar through the nine heavens.

And he, ultimately, had to return to that world where parents still awaited him.

Thoughts returned to the present.

It was just that in this hometown world he had once longed for day and night, he could no longer find the warmth of the past; it brought him only a sense of alienation and strangeness.

Upon his initial descent, he had even been treated as an invader and subjected to interrogation.

During that period, he explained his situation to the city administrators and submitted technical data he had brought back from the alien world.

In the end, he obtained a new identity, becoming a resident of Data City.

Closing the webpage, Ji Chen felt nothing but confusion in his heart.

He was unclear about where he should go or what manner of life he ought to lead in the future.

After a long silence, Ji Chen spoke to ask:

"Butler, is there any way to quickly integrate into this world?"

"I suggest trying the virtual game; there, besides contacting a large number of human players, you can also contact non-human players, which will help you understand the culture and social methods of contemporary society."

Ji Chen was no stranger to virtual games.

Before his transmigration, virtual games had already taken rudimentary shape.

During the years of his disappearance, virtual technology had evidently made leapfrog progress.

Before transmigration, he had once eagerly anticipated experiencing ultimate virtual technology within his lifetime.

It was just that now, he no longer possessed the mindset of those days.

"Do you have any virtual game recommendations?" Ji Chen asked again.

"I suggest participating in the qualification application event currently underway for the official Monster World; this is the finest virtual game of the current era, boasting perfect realism experience. I have compiled player feedback information, and the only drawback is the difficulty in obtaining qualifications."

"Help me open the official Monster World site."

The monitor screen on the desk automatically switched, landing on the Monster World official website.

Ji Chen clicked the qualification application tag, and the page jumped to a countdown screen.

There was 1 hour and 38 minutes remaining until qualification distribution.

This made him unable to help shaking his head.

Times had changed, yet the game manufacturers' method of hunger marketing had not altered much.

The "limited qualification" trick that game companies played two hundred years ago was surprisingly still in use in this era; essentially, it was merely toying with players' expectations.

As he waited, time flowed away.

When the countdown reached zero, he manipulated the cursor to press "Apply."

Immediately, a prompt popped up on the page:

[Identity-bound account has applied for qualification acquisition; please wait patiently: The qualification lottery will open in 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 59 seconds.]

Seeing the prompt, Ji Chen's heart did not ripple in the slightest.

Over the next two hours, he began browsing game data on the official website.

This included the monster bestiary, introductions to the combat system... Starting from casual browsing, Ji Chen grew increasingly surprised; he discovered that this game's settings were extremely complex, essentially crafting the game world with the detail of a real world.

This gave him a slight sense of anticipation for this virtual game.

Cough, cough...

While browsing, Ji Chen suddenly coughed violently.

This was not the first time.

Having grown accustomed to the air imbued with spiritual energy in the otherworld, the harsh environment of his homeland world always made him feel unable to adapt.

Before returning to his homeland, the Long Yi had examined his body and told him he could likely live for another thirty years.

Thinking of it now, his remaining lifespan would probably be greatly discounted in the homeland world.

But he no longer cared so much.

For this scar-riddled, broken body to survive and persist until now was already a miracle in itself.

Amidst his drifting thoughts, a prompt box suddenly popped up on the webpage:

[Congratulations, you have obtained qualification for the Monster World game; please complete activation and usage within 24 hours.]

(End of Chapter)