Helping the Players

Chen Shanqiang's face instantly turned to astonishment. How could this be!?

Isn't this something only players can truly understand?

How did Count Merrick know...?

Could it be that he... is also a player?!

No! Impossible!

If Count Merrick were the player, the events described in the game's several acts would not be continuous.

Several guesses flashed through his mind in an instant.

The three players who came along were in the same situation.

All three of them Quasi-Hegemon at level 18, belonging to the top tier among players.

The emotions the three felt when they met with Lister today were far more complex and respectful than in the scenes depicted in some CGs or even in games where they fought each other.

After all, back then, Lister was just an NPC, or at least a special one, only an NPC designated by the authorities.

But things are different now. After realizing that he could only survive in this world, he no longer had any thoughts about the game.

Lister was also a true super-powerful World Annihilation figure, an existence that all players had to look up to, and the only true natural backer.

They had hoped that by discussing the topic of cosmic fusion today, they could make Count Merrick pay more attention to them, the players.

To everyone's surprise, the very first thing that happened was Lister's reply.

"Commander... was it... was someone from the Scourge Legion who spoke to you beforehand?"

Chen Shanqiang ultimately couldn't believe that Lister was also a player, or that he could see the chat messages and other correct guesses among the players.

Instead, they attributed the source of Lister's information to other players.

It's speculated that other players had proactively contacted Lister earlier than they had.

"No."

"Among the Scourge Legion, you are the first group to contact me in recent years."

Lister's words caused the expressions on the faces of the four people in front of him to change in complex ways.

At this moment, they all began to feel a little confused.

Seeing their expressions, Lister chuckled inwardly and shook his head, deciding not to tease them any further.

"Am I right? You really came to me about the matter of cosmic fusion?"

"Commander, we did want to inform you of this."

Chen Shanqiang's voice lowered, and he no longer spoke with the same anticipation he had when he first entered the castle.

"I'm very curious, with your level of strength, how did you manage to get your hands on such information?"

Upon hearing this, the four people's stunned expressions immediately eased.

At the same time, a look of surprise reappeared in his eyes.

But this unexpected event seemed to be easier for them to accept.

After exchanging glances and exchanging pleasantries, Chen Shanqiang spoke again.

"Commander, our Scourge Legion has a special connection to this cosmic fusion."

"Moreover, I have a feeling that after this cosmic fusion, the warriors of our legion, including myself, will undergo significant changes."

Chen Shanqiang finally breathed a sigh of relief; they had indeed scared themselves.

I couldn't help but reflect on and criticize myself.

Sure enough, he still preferred to treat Count Merrick as an NPC rather than the true Hegemon of this world, World-Ending Level powerhouse.

The players sensed the merging of the universes, and the World-Ending Level powerhouses of the other universe will likely sense it as well.

They even have more comprehensive information than the two universes themselves regarding their merging.

It was entirely our fault for underestimating Count Merrick that led to the misunderstanding we just had.

"Oh? You can sense the merging of the universe?"

"It seems that the fused cosmic energy may be on the same frequency as the undead of your Scourge Legion."

"That's troublesome!"

Standing in Chen Shanqiang's shoes, Lister couldn't help but speak frankly and express his concerns for them.

"With the merging of the universe, these rules and energies will be rewritten or transformed."

"If there truly is a connection with your race, there could be many astonishing changes..."

Lister's ramblings brought a pleasant surprise to the four people sitting opposite him.

They came to inform him of this matter, especially to prepare Count Merrick for the changes in their Scourge Legion.

There's no other way; now it's based on calculations by the data team and strategy team.

These player groups are constantly integrating into this universe.

The mastery and release of various skills, as well as the understanding of the universe, including skill learning, have all undergone new changes.

The prediction is that we'll wait until our own universe truly merges into this game universe.

Experience points, stat allocation panels, etc., may disappear.

Even the job change quest and evolution system will disappear.

Even the resurrection ability, which players feel most secure about, will be removed.

This was precisely what they were most worried about, as they came as representatives.

If the resurrection ability is ultimately removed, and the Scourge Legion is known in the Machine-Slaying Federation for its undead, suicide-style, and all-out-of-flight tactics.

When that day comes, no one will talk about surviving the World Annihilation War.

One poorly planned battle by the Light Machine-Slaying Federation was enough to Destruction most of the player base.

Fortunately, although the matter was fraught with twists and turns, communicating with Count Merrick was far easier than they had imagined.

Even Count Merrick offered to help them imagine reasons.

This saves them the trouble of fabricating requests and so on.

At that moment, Chen Shanqiang echoed with complete agreement.

"Commander, that's true."

"I feel that many of our characteristics are changing, even this immortality is gradually fading."

Although the resurrection function has not been removed yet, players in the data and strategy groups have rarely made mistakes in this general direction.

And everyone can feel their bodies becoming more and more integrated into this world.

Even the original character features gradually began to revert to their original appearance.

It's fair to say that we need to take preventative measures in this area.

At least from now on, the Scourge Legion can no longer afford to be so reckless.

Upon hearing this, Lister frowned slightly.

For the first time, his usually calm face showed a hint of seriousness.

After glancing at the four people, he seemed to be deep in thought.

After a long while, Lister's brows finally relaxed, and he shook his head helplessly.

"With a major battle imminent, I originally held high hopes for the Scourge Legion's awakening."

"As Undead Legion, even if their rank is slightly lower, their combat power is in no way inferior to that of high-ranking warriors."

"It seems we need to change our combat strategy."

In front of these players, Lister tried his best to put on a convincing act.

After all, his every move here is being watched by many players in the public chat.

In the past, he was at most a powerful NPC to players, someone who gave out quests.

Now, however, it is the faction leader who truly determines the players' life or death, and whether they can safely survive the World Annihilation War.

"In that case, I will not mobilize the Scourge Legion in the short term."

"To enable everyone to better integrate into the universe and adapt to their own changes."

After receiving a truly satisfactory answer, the four people in front of them all breathed a sigh of relief.

Even Chen Shanqiang is no exception; don't be fooled by his current status as Hegemon.

However, he had encountered the strength of World-Ending Level expert in battle; the Hegemon and the World Annihilation are on completely different levels.

He scanned Count Merrick now, and it was still all "???".

If he loses his resurrection ability in the future, even if he becomes Hegemon, his chances of dying are not small.

Gradually, players have become more accustomed to the feeling of not being able to resurrect.

I'm terrified that if I really lose the ability to revive, I'll mess things up.

Do you have any other requests?

Seeing that the four showed no intention of leaving, Lister naturally guessed the reason.

The current approach is to proactively bring up the topic and let them speak for themselves.

"Commander, we actually have another request."

As the only Overlord Tier powerhouse among the players.

In the end, it was always Chen Shanqiang who took the initiative to speak.

However, he felt somewhat embarrassed about the content of these requests.

"In order to adapt to this significant change, our legion wants to obtain... to obtain more federal resources to cope with it."

"Especially... Soul Crystals... and resources like the Eye of Ashes Barrier..."

Chen Shanqiang finally finished speaking, albeit haltingly.

If it weren't for Lister's facial expression subtly gesturing for him to continue, he really wouldn't have dared to say it.

After all, the Federation War was imminent, and their Scourge Legion had now encountered a change of fortune.

They were also unwilling to venture into the most dangerous front-line combat environments, so logically, their contributions and the resources they received could not compare to those of the past.

But now... he has to request more resources.

Especially regarding the resources of Soul Crystals, since no one had experienced them before, everyone felt that the Eye of Ashes Barrier was more important.

Having experienced the powerful boost that Soul Crystals brought last time, top players are now eager for this resource.

At this moment, Lister remained silent.

A troubled look flashed across his face, making the hearts of the four player representatives in front of him jump.

In fact, Lister didn't care at all.

He himself had the task of training four player Hegemon.

Many resources will inevitably continue to be allocated to the players.

However, blatant favoritism and preferential treatment may not necessarily be valued.

Resources that players actively seek out are more valuable.

This is exactly what he wants, but he won't agree so easily on the surface.

"With a major war imminent, all the major and minor powers in the universe are now adopting a conservative approach, and resources are extremely scarce."

"Regarding resources, all the army groups, federal forces, and affiliated forces are reaching out to me."

Upon hearing this, disappointment flashed across the faces of Chen Shanqiang and the other three players.

This was, of course, within their expectations.

But as Lister continued speaking, the expressions on the four men's faces changed once again.

"However... the Scourge Legion is an old legion after all, and its warriors all came from our planet."

"Your past achievements are dazzling, and this is the first time you've come to me as representatives."

"How about this, I'll personally send a batch of resources to the Scourge Legion."

"I have upgrade potions for Third Advancement and Fourth Advancements, the Eye of Ashes Barrier, Soul Crystals, and more."

"However, the amounts for the latter two are not very large."

"In terms of allocation, let's follow the same approach as last time, using one combat trial as the standard."

"That's exactly what I wanted to know; is there a ceiling to your current level of improvement?"

Lister is further shaping his personal image in the eyes of players.

I'm also genuinely curious about the current limitations on player progression.

Logically, after this cosmic fusion, the players' potential for advancement should have been removed.

However, due to the difficulty of the Fourth Advancement quest at level 18, it is not easy for most players to complete.

In just six months, Chen Shanqiang was the first to complete the job change and truly entered the Overlord Tier.

The upper limit of his potential improvement now depends on the speed at which Chen Shanqiang continues to improve.

Upon hearing Lister's words of help, the four people opposite him were immediately filled with gratitude.

In the past, when NPCs gave resources and provided assistance, everyone thought it was just a quest or a hidden mechanism.

Only with Lister's gift now can it be said that he truly values Scourge Legion and has truly stood with them.

Even in the public chat, Lister is now constantly being praised for the perfect result achieved by the four.

After Chen Shanqiang and the other three left, Lister stood alone by the window of the castle's main hall.

Outside the window, the scene inside the manor remains unchanged, almost identical to that of a thousand years ago.

Meanwhile, Lilina began to allocate resources according to Lister's instructions.

"Notification: The following resources have been allocated to the Scourge Legion: 40 Eye of Ashes Barrier Keys, 395 Soul Crystals, 15,000 Standard Tier 4 Potions, 22,000 Special Potions, 1,580,000 Standard Tier 3 Potions..."

On the system panel, countless fluctuating numbers made Lister raise an eyebrow slightly.

This batch of resources was what he kept for himself, and the amount wasn't large.

Especially since the resources of Soul Crystals could only be squeezed out to this extent, most of the harvest from this round of Soul Barrier was given to Boren Leviathan, after all, he was owed a considerable share.

While the remaining third and fourth-tier resources appear to be in large quantities, they are actually just a drop in the ocean for a player base that already exceeds 10 billion.

Fortunately, the distribution of the Eye of Ashes Barrier and Soul Crystals to top players is absolutely saturated, enough to cultivate a new batch of Hegemon.

He brought up the Fifth Advancement quest panel, his gaze falling on the count of the third tier—the progress bar (1/10) was gleaming faintly.

We need to speed things up.

Lister muttered to himself.

On the other hand, the player community is now bursting with renewed energy.

Six months of silence, unease, and various forms of escapism.

Now, thanks to the efforts of Chen Shanqiang and several other top players, and after communicating with one of the world's strongest players, Count Merrick, who is also the most familiar to everyone.

For a time, they had a new spiritual pillar.

I felt like I wasn't a lonely tourist in this game's alternate world; Count Merrick had truly been by their side since the very first act of the game.

Even now, as a cosmic legend, he still stands with them.

This has gradually restored the confidence of many players who were initially pessimistic about this new world.

Meanwhile, the top players on the other side were even more excited.

Top players have a different mindset than ordinary players.

As one of the strongest players, he was the quickest to adapt to the idea that he might spend his entire future in the world of "Divine Revelation".

And take advantage of the current Game System to quickly break through to the Fourth Advancement and improve yourself as much as possible in this short period of time.

Now that they have received another batch of crucial resources, excitement and hope fill their hearts.

Regardless, once they reach the Overlord Tier, they will still be major figures in this universe.

Moreover, with the World Annihilation powerhouse Lister as its backer, this universe is even more captivating than the original universe.