Whispers of Contempt

Jiao Ziniu hung up the call and fell into deep thought.

"An abnormal radio wave was detected. Your emotions are showing signs of anxiety. Could you please express your inner doubts so I can analyze them for you and offer suggestions?"

The servant's timely reminder made Jiao Ziniu shake his head and say:

"I don't know if you can understand this feeling. Huanfeng Province has been unknown for too long. Our hometown has always wanted to increase its visibility and exposure. But it always ends in failure. Maybe our hometown will always be just a nobody."

"So, are you questioning whether you should do your part for your hometown?"

"... In fact, when that manager mentioned that diving into the Star Abyss could raise the Level Cap, I already guessed what he wanted to say."

Jiao Ziniu covered his forehead:

"Just like he said, it's probably a problem for Huanfeng's team to even be able to put together a 20-person guild right now. Whether it's playing training matches, leveling up normally, or farming for equipment and materials, it's definitely not going to be our turn. Even if we do manage to put together a team, I don't think we'll be able to achieve any outstanding results for the time being."

"We have already searched for the Huanfeng Province Esports Celebrity List for you... Search count: 3 people."

"I knew it— Star Abyss isn't a game that promotes Individual Heroism. I think Lei Yunjing probably wants me to follow Li Aoz and first break the Level Cap, to create a buzz, like 'the first person to break the version cap.' Then they'll use that to make a name for themselves and attract team members from Huanfeng Province to join."

Jiao Ziniu shrugged:

"That's what's troubling me—I'd be happy to contribute if my hometown could, but the problem is, I feel like it wouldn't make much of a difference. The chances of success are too low."

"It's not very feasible. It's still unknown whether your character has a close relationship with ' Li Aoz '. In the space environment, since your character is unfamiliar with the place, there is an 87.9% probability that your leveling speed will lag behind that of the Sky Ring era."

The cyborg servant's cold and rational remarks validated Jiao Ziniu's conjecture.

"That's right..."

Jiao Ziniu thought sadly, "I never expected this to happen. The universe is full of unknowns. Before, when I was an individual player, I was just here to have fun. But the Heavenly Ring Ambush Battle made me famous overnight, and now several teams are inviting me to join."

"Are you not satisfied with this outcome? My emotion monitoring system shows that you are feeling a lot of stress right now. Would you like me to play some music for you to relieve your anxiety?"

"Thank you, but actually I don't feel that music means much to me. How could playing music possibly have an immediate effect..."

"Now playing: 'Sunshine, Rainbow, and Little White Horse'—"

Jiao Ziniu puffed out his cheeks, trying hard to hold back his laughter.

"—Pfft, hahaha, cough cough! Be serious."

Jiao Ziniu rubbed his temples. After the servant's interruption, he relaxed. "Since that's the case, and I haven't decided to agree yet, I'll go out and visit a friend—VT. You don't need to cook lunch for me."

"Received. A taxi has been called for you. Have a great time."

Twenty minutes later, Jiao Ziniu walked out of the parking area and arrived at his destination.

Terra Historical Martial Arts Research Club.

This antique-style building, appearing in a high-altitude city 400 meters above the ground, seems somewhat out of place. Lanterns are hanging from the eaves, which seems to be a way of celebrating the New Year in some areas.

At the entrance of the club stands the minister's prized possession: a 1:1 replica of a knight's plate armor, deliberately aged with added bullet holes from muskets and scratches from swords, transforming a modern artifact into a family heirloom weathered by time and rich in historical significance.

"Hey, A Niu, you're late."

As soon as Jiao Ziniu stepped through the door, a girl sitting at the front desk immediately called out to him, "We agreed to have a New Year's party today, why are you all so late?"

"Hey, Xia Yubing." Jiao Ziniu waved his hand. "Why are you alone? Isn't Jenna sitting at the front desk?"

"She kept nagging me, 'You can't drink sugar-free Coke, sugar-free Coke is for idiots,' and then Wen Long and Wang Kanshan bought Diet Coke—now she's so angry that she went to the convenience store to buy it herself."

"Drinking less carbonated drinks will slow down your swordplay."

A girl with purple-streaked bangs walked up to him, bumped fists with Jiao Ziniu, then bumped shoulders with him, and then complained:

"I mentioned yesterday that there would be a gathering today. I sent it in the group chat, and everyone agreed to come."

"A bunch of dead pigeons, that's normal. We can't even get a full group together when we're practicing swordplay normally, do you expect them to attend the New Year's party that this repressed minister is preparing on time?"

Jiao Ziniu shrugged.

"Where is the others? Wen Long and Kanshan are here, Jenna went to buy Coke—who else came today?"

"Sherise and Katie, who just joined the guild last month, are both foreign swordsmen specializing in swift swords, and they come from Colonies backgrounds."

Xia Yubing pointed to the two newly hung photos of a blond, blue-eyed man and woman:

"As for the others, Xue Chen said he's going to play ' Star Abyss ' and won't be coming today. Ailey resigned last month, and she had already planned to Electronic Immigrants to ' Star Abyss ' with her boyfriend. She probably won't be coming back after today."

After Xia Yubing finished speaking, she sighed, "It's really strange... People who were originally uninterested in games are now all getting hooked on them. Are these games really that captivating?"

"Xia, aren't you planning to come and have some fun?" Jiao Ziniu asked curiously.

"'Come play'—Oh, so our ' Cow Sword Saint ' is also addicted to the world of anime games?" Xia Yubing rolled her eyes at him. "The dignified second-ranked All-Armor Striker Champion of the Yanxia Zone, a player who single-handedly defeated six Yamata Swordmanship First-Rank players, has now become a net-addicted teenager laughing and joking with virtual electronic data?"

"It's not because of that... Star Abyss is currently the only game that allows you to 'turn off pain' and provides 100% feedback on movement agility. Plus, I'm an adult now, so Recognition Filter don't block out blood and dismemberment effects. Even the feeling of brains splattering and sword blades being hit and splashed by raindrops can be reproduced one-to-one."

Jiao Ziniu scratched his chin and said, "I think that the reason why everyone likes full-armor combat is not only because of their love for historical combat martial arts, but also because of the rapid secretion of dopamine and endorphins during combat. That desire for movement and fighting is unparalleled and something that mankind can never forget. Star Abyss allows me to wield my sword without any scruples, and I find that very enjoyable."

"Tch~~~ That's just virtual. Listen up, A Niu, the virtual world is a mix of reality and illusion. It's full of big data monitoring your behavior to cater to you, keep you playing games, and instill a sense of anticipation and achievement in you. You think you're playing a game, but actually, countless network experts are playing you behind the scenes."

Xia Yubing shrugged:

"Forget it, I won't say any more. Apart from that NPC Li Aoz who's pretty good-looking, I have no interest in the rest of Star Abyss. Let's go, Jenna sent a message saying that almost everyone has arrived, it's time for a get-together."

"That doesn't seem right." Jiao Ziniu counted on his fingers. "Aren't we missing someone?"

"Li Si, right?"

"Yes, it seems like I haven't seen Li Si participate in any events this year."

"Li Si," Xia Yubing paused, "Wasn't he dead last year?"