0.1 Version Game Update Log

Chapter 22: 0.1 Version Game Update Log

"Let me ask one more time, are you sure?"

"I'm sure! We'll risk death!" Jiu Cai Rong pinched his own flesh, his face filled with righteous determination as he gazed at the sky far beyond the manor.

Ning Zheng couldn't dissuade them.

He hadn't expected them to be so resolute, willing to risk certain death to fight, to embark on a mad venture of a hundred-person battle against tens of thousands of demonic beasts.

But he didn't want to mock anyone with a dream.

In Ning Zheng's view, they could have just coasted along, coming to eat, drink, and play, enjoying good food and fun, singing songs, molding clay, and forging iron. They could have simply enjoyed life at the "inn." Now, however, they were willing to take risks for the development of their "inn."

Knowing the danger, they were heading straight into it, aiming to develop the manor's unlikely magic artifact business, forging a future, and forcefully establishing a production line for forging!

What kind of spirit was this?

It was naive, foolish, but also magnificent!

He was actually moved by their youthful, surging vitality.

Ning Zheng was moved for a full three seconds, then he decided:

Let them be brave. He would secretly slip away anyway. But before he left, the kind Ning Zheng briefly introduced various information about the crow swarm, hoping to increase their chances of winning.

After all, they had to eliminate most of the crows to have a chance of luring out their leader.

He was essentially using them as bait.

Soon, a somewhat bewildered Jiu Cai Rong began to understand.

"So that's how it is. No wonder we can't afford to provoke them. Crows attack in swarms and hold grudges. Once provoked, they won't rest until they're finished?"

He frowned slightly, pondering the meaning. "Then we'll probably need to build fortifications. It's like a tower defense game. We'll use spears and crossbows, hiding inside to attack. We'll also need to set up house traps to lure them in and kill them."

"The blacksmith shop definitely needs to be protected by a building too!"

"It's our manufacturing core, after all. If it's exposed, we won't be able to forge iron under the crows' attack and replenish our war losses."

The gameplay for this first instance was quite interesting.

A trigger-based main quest – the Crow Calamity!

They were made to forge iron, farm, build tower defenses in advance, strategize, and then trigger the beast tide, facing waves of crows to prevent them from eating their brains.

This tower defense would precisely test the current forging standards of their blacksmith shop.

Indeed, everything revolved around the blacksmith shop.

The main quest was set up quite ingeniously.

Furthermore, after triggering the main event "Crow Calamity," they would likely have to live indoors, underground, or in fortresses for a considerable period. The outside would be filled with swarms of beasts, and stepping out would mean death!

This required ample preparation of war resources in advance.

Of course, they didn't need to worry too much about food. They could hide underground, eat dirt, and fight tunnel warfare, moving back and forth.

As long as they built their tower defense facilities well, the home-field advantage would be theirs.

Jiu Cai Rong planned to organize their forging efforts that afternoon to prepare various equipment, start a mad mobilization, and continue building houses.

Ning Zheng patted his shoulder. "I'm old. I can't handle the crows. Young man, the future is in your hands. This old man will retire at noon to enjoy his twilight years, and I'll visit the mountain occasionally."

He paused, planting a seed of foreshadowing. "The Manor Lord is in a critical stage of his seclusion. He cannot be seen or disturbed right now. If, at some point, a young man wielding a bow and arrow suddenly appears, that will be our Manor Lord."

Remaining in seclusion was an excellent excuse.

I might be in seclusion for a month, or I might be in seclusion for ten years. Such time spans are quite normal for high-level cultivators, right?

"Are you formally retiring? You've only been teaching me for two and a half days!"

Jiu Cai Rong was a mix of excitement and reluctance.

Having spent these few days together, the old steward had been kind and loving, incredibly endearing.

He appeared before everyone, vivid and warm.

The behind-the-scenes planners of other games, when playing a game, would find ways to annoy you, exploit you, and squeeze you dry. They were capitalists among capitalists.

Those damned planners would squeeze and withhold players' resources and money, making it feel like they were getting the same in reality.

There's no harm without comparison.

How could such a good person as the old steward just leave like this?

"From now on, all the manor's documents and archives will be handed over to you," Ning Zheng said, producing the key to the steward's room. "Those books are quite valuable; don't let them be stolen."

"Yes." Jiu Cai Rong felt the weight of responsibility, vowing to strictly guard the leek blacksmiths within the manor, starting with himself.

Ning Zheng declined their reluctant farewells and went down the mountain, even locking the manor's gate behind him.

Soon, Jiu Cai Rong and Su Yu Niang discussed it and formulated a development plan.

Jiu Cai Rong took out a large notice board, covered in dense text, and planted it at the manor's entrance, immediately drawing a crowd.

Wooden Notice Board:

[Official Announcement: The "Sword Forging Competition" will receive a major offline update. The 0.1 version update log is as follows.]

[Main Story Expansion: Crow Calamity is about to launch. The game will enter this expansion in trigger mode. Once the crows' hatred is triggered, a large-scale event will commence: The Crow Beast Tide will attack the manor.]

[We believe most blacksmiths have put up with them for a long time, right? All blacksmiths, please make sufficient defensive preparations in advance.]

[1. This update adds new emergency forging tasks such as "Blacksmith Shop Defense Construction," "Tunnel Construction," "Bow and Arrow Crafting," and "Board Building Batch Production." A total of thirty-seven limited-time tasks.]

[2. A new war suggestion submission box has been added. Players experienced in making traps and skilled in designing tower defense are encouraged to submit their genius blueprints and response plans. If adopted, the manor's steward committee will provide magic coin rewards.]

[3. A new temporary team mode has been added. During the event, teams are allowed to build private fortresses and tower defenses in public areas. However, the manor will take a 60% cut of the materials from hunted crows. All remaining materials belong to the individual team. Please work hard to hunt monsters.

Appendix 1: Please mark your personal name on tower defense structures and draw circles within the range of your tower defense's attack to distinguish your respective spoils of war and avoid disputes over loot.

Appendix 2: After the manor's war ends, various illegal structures such as tower defenses, cannons, and traps will be dismantled, and tunnels will be filled in.

Appendix 3: The manor management committee reserves the final right of interpretation.]

The densely packed notice boards were covered with version announcements.

???

Players crowded around to watch, and were instantly speechless.

They began discussing heatedly, pointing fingers.

[Dao Jiujiu]: "I really want to complain. Jiu Cai Rong is actually pretending to be an official planner, posting game update announcements in the manor, and he's doing it so convincingly. Could he be a genius?"

[Eye Bag]: "Holy crap, that's intense! Crow Calamity. You guys are so unethical, provoking the crows yourselves and calling it the main story. It's quite ceremonial. I, a life-skill player who just wants to chill, boycott this event! I'm too afraid of the crow lords holding a grudge against me! My daily carb bombs, boohoo~"

Before the crowd could continue chatting, they saw Jiu Cai Rong emerge from the room again, taking out a second official announcement and sticking it next to the first.

Everyone's hearts sank.

Is this guy addicted?

The second notice read:

[With this major update, the following matters will also be optimized.]

[1. The magic coin rewards for various daily tasks in the manor will be slightly adjusted to prevent inflation, optimize commodity circulation, and a brand new building, the Exchange, will be opened. Players are welcome to pay to set up stalls.]

[2. A small number of bugs have been fixed.]

[3. Several known issues have been optimized.]

[4. A new profession, Enchanter, will be added soon. Please stay tuned.]

[5. It has been detected that certain blacksmiths engage in extremely malicious pickpocketing behavior in the game. A reward mechanism for mutual reporting has now been added. The reporting process involves submitting to the suggestion box, and "fair scales" will be installed in the blacksmith shop, mining area, and smelting room, with checks upon entry and exit.]

[Medical Fairy Maiden]: "He's shameless! Heartless! Unreasonable! Wuwuwu, can a game that doesn't allow pickpocketing or opening treasure chests even be played?"

[God of Cookery]: "Rage! How can you, a player, fix a small number of bugs?"

[Shao Chai Kun]: "Wuwuwu, old steward, I miss you. Please come back quickly, please save this world."

These hundred people were in tears, all driven mad.

The noisy chatter had turned into a bustling marketplace.

Jiu Cai Rong was simply inhuman.

They all chattered about the "Crow Calamity" expansion, some rushing to do the emergency limited-time tasks.

Some began shouting in the crowd to form teams, preparing to build DIY fortresses, loudly proclaiming: "Brothers, I'm a ten-year veteran trap-setting player from my world, waiting for this day since '07! If you're my brother, come join my team!"