Though Thousands of Thousands, I Will Go

Zhuang Zhuang let out a roar of unwillingness and restarted the game on the spot.

Although Liu Liu was laughing heartily, she also embarked on a new round of the game.

I have to admit, this is a devilishly addictive game.

At first glance, you might feel that its graphics and controls are incredibly simple, even rudimentary.

But it's precisely because of these simple controls that you'll attribute each repeated failure to "bad luck," then turn around and start another game, convinced that this time you'll have an absolutely perfect start!

In reality, the essence of this game is the same as a pinball machine.

Launching the ball has no operational cost or so-called skill involved.

All you can do is hit the ball and watch it pass through obstacle after obstacle, falling naturally.

Then, the moment it drops into a scoring pocket below, you'll let out a roar of impotent rage or a cheer of joy.

In fact, Vampire Survivors even surpasses pinball machines in terms of visual stimulation.

The flashy special effects and barrage of attacks not only allow you to directly experience your own growth but also provide an extremely stress-relieving experience as you mow down monsters in swarms.

From the enemy being strong and me weak, to gambling for power, to reversing the harvest, and back to the enemy being strong and me weak.

The dynamic difficulty adjustment will repeatedly raise the player's pleasure threshold, forming a logic loop of spiral ascent for the entire game, completely captivating players!

The constant one-out-of-three upgrades and treasure chest openings are like scratch-off lottery tickets, full of uncertainty.

The continuous secretion of dopamine will stimulate the cerebral cortex, making it impossible to stop!

Zhuang Zhuang and Liu Liu were having a blast!

Starting from 8 PM until midnight!

A full four hours!

Although this game doesn't have multiplayer, the two still felt like they were playing a co-op game through the voice channel!

Sometimes mocking each other, sometimes discussing weapon strengths.

They were having a great time, shouting and exclaiming, just like when they were eight years old and first encountered the NES, full of novelty and passion!

This is the pure joy that belongs exclusively to gamers.

This is a pure game designed entirely to satisfy player pleasure.

Even though it was already midnight.

But their respective live streams were still buzzing with excitement!

Especially in Liu Liu's stream!

'Holy crap! Sister Jie is amazing this time!'

'As expected, it has to be the main weapon'

'This effect is getting more and more awesome'

'Feels like Liu Liu has mastered this game'

'Four hours, man, I've almost learned how to play just by watching'

'Holy crap, it's midnight? I have to sleep!'

'Screw work! Watch the stream! No sleeping!'

'Listen to good advice and eat well, so I'm not sleeping then'

'?'

'But why does it look like Liu Liu is about to give up again?'

'...'

At this moment!

The game had already reached fifteen minutes, and according to the game's settings, the goal of surviving for thirty minutes was halfway complete.

The screen was already full of monsters.

And Liu Liu stood in the center of the screen, constantly dodging and weaving.

Although she had a level seven whip, level six holy water, level five axe, and a max-level cross, her damage was considerable.

But she couldn't withstand the sheer number of monsters, which came like a tide, wave after wave, crest after crest.

The sight was even more terrifying than that of the elderly folks rushing to the supermarket to grab eggs at 8 AM.

What's worse, the game difficulty seemed to have increased again at this point.

Countless green cultists swarmed in, not only having terrifyingly high HP but also dealing massive damage, taking half her health in one hit.

"Ahhh! No! Don't come near me!"

For a moment, Liu Liu was trapped, not knowing where to run.

Monsters surrounded her from all sides, almost filling the entire screen.

"It's over! Sister Jie! You're gonna kick the bucket!"

In the voice chat, Zhuang Zhuang, who had come over to peek at Liu Liu's game progress, also let out a gloating sound:

"What a shame, your max-level weapon is going to go to waste—"

And as Zhuang Zhuang mocked her.

A small elite Oddity closest to Liu Liu was killed, dropping a treasure chest.

"Don't rush me! Watch me turn this one chest into a miracle!"

Liu Liu gritted her teeth, struggling to push through the monster horde, desperately reaching for the treasure chest.

Zhuang Zhuang, however, just laughed heartily, unconcerned: "Sis, give up struggling. You'll just get the same old stuff from the chest anyway, you're toast."

As she spoke!

Liu Liu finally reached the treasure chest!

Bang—!!!

With fireworks and flying confetti, the treasure chest opened, and as ribbons flew, an animation like a slot machine rolled!

Before, Liu Liu had opened quite a few chests, and they always had one blue ribbon that would roll for about two to three seconds before showing the final result.

But this time!

The blue ribbon rolled for a full three seconds, showing no signs of stopping!

Is it stuck?

Liu Liu blinked, about to ask in confusion.

Then, the game's prize sound effect instantly became more intense!

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The blue ribbon instantly turned into three purple ribbons, gushing out from the chest!

"Holy crap!!!"

Liu Liu and Zhuang Zhuang were startled at the same time!

"Three golden eggs?!"

However!

It wasn't over yet!

The next second, the prize music became even more rousing, instantly transforming into an 8-bit symphony!

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!!!

The three purple ribbons directly turned into five golden ribbons!

"Waaahhhh—Five!!"

Liu Liu couldn't hold back and screamed directly!

The designer really knew how to do gacha.

Even though she didn't know what the actual prize would be, just the animation alone was enough to make people exclaim with joy, and their anticipation was maxed out!

The comments were also shocked—

'Golden ones, holy crap!' 'ohhhhhhhh—This is way too damn flashy!' 'Shocked, holy crap!' 'These effects are too exaggerated hahahahaha' 'Woc, who wouldn't get hyped seeing this animation' 'Feels like winning five million' 'Looks so satisfying, damn, this designer is definitely an old gambling addict' '……'

In this instant!

All eyes converged on the glittering golden ribbons!

Countless pairs of eyes watched the result of this draw!

They concentrated, holding their breath!

Finally!

Five rewards appeared on the screen.

And in the center, there was a weapon no one had ever seen before!

A sharp golden sword, radiating a dazzling light!

"Holy crap!!!"

Before Liu Liu could speak, Zhuang Zhuang exclaimed in surprise:

"What is this thing? A new weapon? So cool?!"

Liu Liu was also quite surprised and opened her personal panel to check.

"Holy Sword?"

Liu Liu blinked, looking at the new level one equipment.

Immediately after, she discovered a serious problem—

"But... it seems to have swallowed my original cross! Damn it!!!"

She was screwed, man!

That was her max-level cross!

Not only did it deal considerable damage, but it also had a knockback effect, saving her from dire situations countless times!

And now, a weapon that suddenly appeared had swallowed the cross she relied on for survival?

Even more outrageous...

"This thing is only level one, hahahahaha!!!"

In the live stream, Zhuang Zhuang's merciless laughter erupted:

"Stunned, aren't you, sis? Trading a level eight weapon for a level one. Just restart, don't struggle anymore."

Listening to her brother's gloating laughter, and seeing the screen filled with "hahaha" comments.

Liu Liu felt incredibly dejected.

Four hours.

She hadn't even lasted half the game's required time.

And here she was, saying the game was easy before.

Now, it seemed like the biggest Waterloo in her gaming history.

"Sigh—"

With a long sigh, Liu Liu reluctantly closed the equipment screen.

Around her, waves of monsters surged.

Cultists with bared fangs and claws brandished daggers, terrifying skeletons swaggered, and chattering blood bats relentlessly closed in.

Liu Liu had lost hope and released the joystick.

But the game character, standing still, continued to swing its whip and hurl axes.

Like a hero who could be killed, but never defeated.

Even more like herself, who faced societal blows every day but still greeted the sun with a smile.

In that instant, a quote from Romain Rolland flashed through Liu Liu's mind: There is only one heroism in the world: to see the world for what it is and to still love it.

Perhaps the inspiration and emotions games brought people were always hidden in seemingly insignificant details.

Everyone has a hero's dream.

In reality, you might never have the chance to become a solitary hero.

But games could help you fulfill those romantic fantasies in this utopia.

Though facing thousands, I shall go.

The next moment.

The Holy Sword descended.