The third day after the reservation, which was also the day before the open beta.
Chen Hao opened Baidu's settings page and activated the bid-ranking promotion, but removed SH City from the regional settings.
The next moment, Beyond Legend Alliance appeared in second place on the first page, right behind the official website of Shanda's Hot-blooded Legend of Mir.
Before long, the 2,000-yuan deposit dwindled away like a countdown timer.
After calculating it mentally, he realized that this small deposit clearly wouldn't last until tomorrow's open beta.
Chen Hao steeled his heart and burned his boats, pouring in all the money he had left. Strictly speaking, nearly all of the forty thousand yuan he had started with two days ago had already been spent, leaving very little!
On the day of the open beta, the weather was fine and sunny.
Before Greedy Blue Moon's private server officially opened, the number of reservations formally surpassed fifty thousand, reaching 56,721 players.
Chen Hao and Pang Ban sat hunched over the computer, staring wide-eyed at each other.
Ten o'clock had arrived.
Looking at the wallet lying pitifully empty with only one large bill inside, Chen Hao clenched his teeth and pressed the mouse button.
Would it be club hostesses or going out to work? Victory or defeat hinged on this one move!
Greedy Blue Moon's open beta had begun!
Inside E-Era Internet Cafe, Li Wu sat before the computer, having installed Greedy Blue Moon's private server in advance as he waited for the server to open.
Ever since he had failed to participate in yesterday's Sabuk guild battle in Shanda's Legend, losing the most valuable item on him, his Silver Snake, he had felt hollow inside. It was as if he had gone on a trip just to watch the excitement, only to come home and find that his wife had been kidnapped by bandits.
Li Wu had suddenly lost interest in Legend. It was utterly tasteless!
Nothing was more tragic than a heart that had died. This was exactly what it felt like!
As it happened, when he logged off and paid last night, he happened to glimpse a familiar-looking flyer.
He was instantly drawn in.
Holy crap, wasn't that the boss of Causeway Bay? And Chicken Brother, too?
Their generation had been deeply influenced by Hong Kong and Taiwanese Young and Dangerous films.
"If you're brothers, come and hack each other!"
That line was so damn imposing!
Looking at the familiar characters, familiar background and equipment, and the unfamiliar but incredibly badass giant sword—
That giant sword was square, broad, and as large as a door panel. Compared with it, Dragon Slayer could only be considered its little brother~
This was the sword of his dreams. It was exactly his style.
Especially the word "free" in the upper-left corner. It struck his sweet spot directly.
He currently relied on odd jobs to make money. Internet fees and game cards had already left him stretched thin, with his balance running low.
Could this game really be played for free? Everything would soon be revealed.
Li Wu rubbed his hands together, filled with anticipation.
A buddy beside him noticed that their login pages were the same and leaned over. "Buddy, which version are you planning to play?"
"We're men, so if we're playing, we have to play the most insane one!"
"Same here!"
The two exchanged a lewd grin. Everything was understood without words!
This time, he didn't choose the official-server Taoist class. Instead, thinking of the weapon he had been dreaming about on the flyer, he chose the Warrior class.
The moment he entered the game, he shouted, "Holy crap!"
A few seconds later, like an echo, the buddy beside him let out the same exclamation, brimming with emotion.
They spawned at level 20, received a basic set of equipment, and even had a reservation-reward weapon lying in their bags: Purgatory.
The character's spawn point wasn't Novice Village but the safe zone in Earth City, with a circle of NPCs standing all around.
New players in the safe zone sprang out of the ground like bamboo shoots after rain. Before long, the safe zone was packed with people.
The players wandered around in confusion like headless flies, circling the NPCs. The most popular spot was occupied by three statues dressed in lavish equipment, surrounded by layer upon layer of people gazing at them in admiration.
Li Wu looked over each NPC in turn. Oh, this one sold medicine directly; this one repaired weapons; huh? This NPC could teleport players to every map for game currency.
He had only made it halfway through when a strange cry from the buddy beside him caught his attention.
"Buddy, look at that first-charge offer in the upper-right corner! Holy crap, it's the Bone Jade Scepter!"
Hearing that, Li Wu saw the first-charge button in the upper-right corner of the screen. He clicked it, and an information window popped up. The first-charge rewards came in three tiers.
First charge: 6 yuan, Blade of Fate.
First charge: 98 yuan, Staff of Judgment.
First charge: 198 yuan, Dragon Slaying Saber.
Huh, 6 yuan got him a Blade of Fate. That was much cheaper than game cards. He had just been about to charge five yuan to try it out when Li Wu suddenly felt as if he had overlooked something important.
He clicked the mouse a few times.
Holy crap!
Dragon Slaying Saber?
The Dragon Slaying Saber!!!
Everyone on the server where his Taoist character was had one. And this one could actually be bought with money?
Holy crap!!!
Most importantly, the weapons given for the first charge had no level restrictions! In other words, they could be equipped immediately!
What did it mean for a level-20 Warrior to wield a Dragon Slaying Saber?
Li Wu panted heavily, his bloodshot eyes almost bulging out. After thinking for only three seconds, he felt that continuing to think and hesitate would be disrespectful to the Dragon Slaying Saber.
He gritted his teeth. Damn it, wasn't it just a month of eating steamed buns?
He immediately clicked the 198-yuan recharge option.
The page that popped up displayed a bank account and two customer-service QQ accounts, one for Greedy and one for Blue Moon. Below them was a notice in red text: After making the transfer, add the customer-service QQ account and send a screenshot of the transfer along with the login account to link them, so the customer-service staff could process it.
Following the instructions, Li Wu opened Online Banking and made the transfer step by step. Once he had sent all the information, he began staring at the recharge button in the game. Maybe it took a few minutes, or maybe more than ten. In Li Wu's eyes, time began to stretch out, as though he were waiting centuries for some faith.
Ding-dong. QQ notified him of a new message: Your recharge request has been processed. Enter the game to claim the corresponding reward.
Li Wu entered the game again. He had opened the first-charge page countless times before, and the button had always said "Reset." This time, it had changed into a "Claim" button.
He clicked "Claim Now."
Duang!
A metallic sound effect rang out.
The Dragon Slaying Saber appeared quietly in his bag, its blade gleaming coldly, standing apart from the world!
Without a second word, he equipped it.
In the safe zone, a level-20 Warrior in light armor appeared, holding a Dragon Slaying Saber.
It instantly drew countless onlookers nearby, who exclaimed in amazement.
"Holy crap, big bro, where did you get that Dragon Slaying Saber?"
"Hey, he must be the GM. Look, his Dragon Slaying Saber doesn't even have a level restriction."
"Boss, are you taking disciples?"
"Big bro, will you take me to kill monsters~"
Messages filled Li Wu's screen, appearing both in the public chat and as private messages.
Li Wu exhaled a breath of stale air. In real life, he was a nobody, but in the game world, he was enjoying the worship of thousands at that very moment. It felt as if his soul had been elevated!
This Legend really wasn't bad!
The money had been damn well spent. For 198 yuan, he had experienced the thrill of a 1,980-yuan tier. The value for money was explosive!
Shanda's Legend? To hell with it. He had already begun considering selling his level-28 Taoist account. It should fetch a few hundred yuan, which he could then charge entirely into this game.
At that moment, someone spoke in the public chat.
"Bullshit, he's no GM. Everyone, look at the upper-right corner. You can buy one directly by charging money!"
"Let me see? There really is one."
"Greedy Blue Moon Legend, I love you!"
Before long, the players in the safe zone had all upgraded their weapons, equipping various high-level arms. The players' equipment as a whole instantly evolved from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age.
Light flashed over some players, and they vanished from the safe zone. Clearly, they had gone to explore other maps.
"Hey, buddy, where are you? Let's go kill monsters and level up!"
"Come to the Earth City bookstore. There are fewer people here. Let's meet up!"
One minute later, Li Wu saw a mage holding a Bone Jade Scepter run over.
"Mage, the 198-yuan one is the Bone Jade Scepter?"
Looking at the Dragon Slaying Saber on the Warrior across from him, the buddy's original excitement froze. He said awkwardly, "Uh, this one is the six-yuan one. The 198-yuan one is the Soul Devouring Staff."
Li Wu didn't look down on him for being a six-yuan player. Instead, he said confidently, "Team up with me. I'll take you monster hunting!"
"Oh, thank you, big bro!"
Before you continue