Apocalyptic Technology

Chapter 42: Doomsday Technology

"Purification mission, three DPS soulmates needed. Applying to join the team now."

"Any strong teams going on the purification mission? I've unlocked my second Star Vein, a powerful combo of Stone Gargoyle + Taunt, guaranteeing the safety of other team members."

"Need players for the purification mission. If the monster level is below 8, don't bother applying. Only strong players needed."

After all missions were posted, the regional voice chat channel was flooded with recruitment messages.

Players flocked towards Gloomy Cave in droves.

At this moment, a long queue had already formed in front of Gloomy Cave.

Although there were five underground levels, enough to accommodate a massive player base, the entrance could only allow two people to pass side-by-side.

The arrival of a large number of players caused congestion at the entrance, forcing them to enter in an orderly fashion by queuing.

Inside the cave, players were continuously exploring deeper levels, engaging in fierce battles with Iron Shell Bugs. Occasionally, players would die and their souls would return to Emperor's Tomb Village.

This process appeared extremely frenzied.

Meanwhile, players waiting outside could only pass the time by browsing forums or chat channels.

Just then, a forum post attracted a large crowd of onlookers.

[Did I enter the wrong game? The way these guys fight is too outrageous, they must be using cheats!]

OP: Dark Land is so fun.

Content: (Attached: Recorded video)

The video showed a group of players, clad in their initial black cloth outfits, battling swarms of Iron Shell Bugs on the second underground level of Gloomy Cave.

Unlike other players nearby who fought by switching to monster forms, these players reached into their spatial inventories and pulled out weapons resembling firearms. After loading them with Spirit Stones for power, they unleashed a barrage of gunfire at the Iron Shell Bugs ahead.

Energy bullets rained down densely, striking the Iron Shell Bugs and erupting in sparks. They left bullet holes on the monsters' tough shells, causing blood to splatter.

This combat method did not consume stamina. Replenishing ammunition was also very simple: just purchase an energy crystal from the shop and replace it. Their combat power was not affected by stamina, nor did they need to consume or replenish mental energy.

This scene stunned the nearby players and left the forum viewers of the video dumbfounded.

The post received a large number of replies, sparking heated discussions about the video's content.

Black Night Long: No way, did I enter the wrong game? Where did they get firearms? I checked the shop and there are no guns for sale.

Reject Internal Strife: Cheating! I'm reporting them for cheating. How can they use firearms, and Energy Stone powered ones at that? This isn't the same game we're playing.

Is This Reasonable?: Huh? Aren't these real-world Spirit Energy Firearms? I studied psychomechanical engineering, so I know a bit about this. I never expected them to be successfully created in a game. My jaw just dropped.

Holy Crap: Player ingenuity is truly limitless. Since this is a game that perfectly simulates reality, in theory, any technology from the real world can be applied in the game. These guys are insane, they actually did it.

The "cheating players" discussed heatedly on the forum were members of the Weapons Research Department from the dome who had entered the game some time ago.

Due to funding issues, they followed Qin Ye's suggestion and spent two days mining ore in the caves.

After Duan Xing appeared, they followed Duan Xing's movements back and forth between the Ancient Battlefield and Crimson Plains regions, collecting a good amount of Evil Crystals. Finally, they had enough startup capital.

Lacking equipment to forge advanced weapons, they first purchased engraved knives from the shop and used Spirit Stones to craft a batch of Spirit Energy Firearms.

These simple Spirit Energy Firearms were surprisingly powerful. The principle involved engraving a set of energy flow paths within the Spirit Stones. When the trigger was pulled, the path would be activated, rapidly drawing energy from the energy crystals embedded in the gun body. This energy would circulate according to the path, be compressed into an energy bullet, and finally be propelled out of the barrel with the help of spiritual energy at the end of the path.

After this batch of firearms was completed, the all-player mission appeared.

The members of the Doomsday Technology guild, led by Yang Tianxuan, revealed their self-developed weapons for the first time in battle, resulting in the astonishing scene of overwhelming firepower.

However, the process was incredibly painful for the members of the Doomsday Technology guild.

The sight of dense bullets roaring from the Spirit Energy Firearms was spectacular, but the consumption was terrifying.

Players using monster forms consumed stamina in battle, while these players consumed Sacrificial Power. Every bullet was purchased with Sacrificial Power.

Fortunately, the Iron Shell Bugs were numerous, and a single volley brought in a considerable amount of Sacrificial Power income.

As for the issue of income and expenditure, the members of the Doomsday Technology guild didn't even consider it. This was their first practical test, aimed at showcasing the strength of the Doomsday Technology guild to other players.

Having experienced it for several days, they were extremely satisfied with the game.

In the future, if they wanted to establish a vast technological force within the game and test various dangerous weapons, they would require substantial financial support.

They alone were not enough; they needed to recruit more players.

Even if the recruited guild members didn't have technical expertise, providing financial assistance could alleviate their resource shortage problems.

Yang Tianxuan, the director of the Weapons Research Department, had a simple idea.

Establish a powerful guild, and through this guild, earn a large amount of Sacrificial Power to provide resources for the research and development of dangerous weapons.

Just as Yang Tianxuan had predicted.

The Doomsday Technology guild's initial emergence sparked heated debate on the forum.

The slaughter continued. As level-up notifications occasionally sounded in the minds of the Doomsday Technology guild members, smiles appeared on their faces.

Although they were pursuing a weapon development path, leveling up was equally important in the eyes of Yang Tianxuan and the others.

Before this, they thought the monster leveling system in the game had no relation to their chosen weapon research and development paths, and that monster levels were insignificant. After all, they never considered engaging in close combat with monsters.

However, their perspective changed after a guild member entered the Test Tower.

The member who entered the Test Tower brought back exhilarating news after their test.

The Test Tower contained many monster abilities that could aid their weapon research.

For example: Brain Overclocking and Spirit Spring.

The monster trait Brain Overclocking enhances brain efficiency, significantly boosting memory, focus, and cognitive processing power.

Spirit Spring's efficiency lies in accelerating mental energy recovery and weakening the feedback of mental fatigue.

To other players, these two abilities were practically useless.

Brain Overclocking, in particular, was even ranked as one of the ten weakest primordial abilities on the forums. But to Yang Tianxuan and his peers, these skills were divine, a hundred times more potent than combat-oriented monster traits.

Even the " Wailing" ability of the initial Eagle Head Demon form, which they had consistently ignored, was found during this test to grant a microscopic perspective when its perception range increased with level, offering some assistance in weapon research.

Upon learning this, Yang Tianxuan and his group personally entered the Test Tower for practical testing. This led to the idea of constructing a " Sage" path centered around Brain Overclocking.

This path, in concept, discarded all combat-bound souls, embedding only functional souls.

Therefore, monster levels became extremely important, as specific monster traits could bring about a huge increase in efficiency for their weapon research.