The Great Battle Approaches

Jiang Ming genuinely wanted to ask the players in the discussion forum whether defeating a monkey king made one the new monkey king.

Instead, the trolls replied by writing an entire Journey to the West.

While Jiang Ming was dumbfounded, he couldn't help but feel indignant.

He was particularly annoyed by the replies constantly addressing him as "OP," as if he had truly turned into a monkey and was heading west to retrieve the scriptures.

By the time the inquiry post reached 1,000 replies.

The "Monkey King" (OP) in the eyes of the trolls had already become the Buddha of Fighting and Victory, and Jiang Ming, having reached his limit, posted a screenshot of the "White Ape Soul" and explained his encounter to the netizens.

In that instant, the players who had been mocking the OP for turning into a monkey transformed into green-eyed monsters.

The replies were filled with "WTF," their tone unable to hide their envy, jealousy, and hatred.

Some players even offered high prices on the spot, willing to pay cash for it.

Jiang Ming's account also cleared up a question that had puzzled many players for a long time.

It turned out that troop cultivation required the use of soul power, and killing creatures in the game was how one obtained soul power resources.

What excited the players most was this.

Beyond obtaining soul power resources, killing creatures in the game allowed them to acquire their initial souls, which could then be cultivated into their own special troop types after spending divine power.

The players went completely insane.

Many players immediately stated in the discussion forum that they were forming parties to set out and find the white apes.

Others set their sights on the giant wolves on the second floor of the Abandoned Mine, wanting to try and kill them to obtain their initial souls.

Creatures that were once seen as insurmountable, beastly floods were now highly sought-after prizes.

Of course, with the players' current strength, confronting these formidable creatures was essentially a nine-out-of-ten chance of death.

Yet, the temptation was too great, and a large number of players were still willing to take the risk.

Just as Lu Xun once said.

When there is appropriate profit, players will become very brave; with fifty percent profit, players will dare to take risks; with one hundred percent profit, players will even turn against their own kin and attack their own people; but with three hundred percent profit... even if the Buddha himself arrived, players would dare to defy him.

Of course, all of this was predicated on the fact that the players were in a game.

Therefore, players could never resist temptation; since there was a possibility of obtaining special troop types, they were willing to risk it all.

Thus, while mining and exploring the map, the players added a new project to their list.

Battling the creatures on Dragon Scale Island!

This type of confrontation reminded many veteran players of the old game "Pokémon."

The similarity lay in finding monsters, defeating them, and then capturing them.

Jiang Ming's description in the discussion forum helped many players find new goals and new ways to play.

Some players even started a thread in the forum, vowing to capture every creature on Dragon Scale Island and create a Dragon Scale Island Bestiary.

Full of motivation, the players began their days of being absolute nuisances on Dragon Scale Island.

Creatures they once had to walk around and avoid at all costs were now the targets of the players' harassment.

The first to suffer were, naturally, the White Ape Tribe in the south of Dragon Scale Island.

The newly appointed White Ape King hadn't even begun to enjoy the former king's wives and concubines before the fierce players arrived.

Although the players were weak, they were tireless.

Every day, large groups of players entered the territory of the White Ape Tribe, attempting to ambush lone white apes.

The White Ape King naturally responded to this; in its anger, it led its tribesmen to chase them down, brutally killing every player who snuck into their territory, thinking this would solve the problem of the foreign invaders.

However, before they could even catch their breath, another large group of players would arrive.

After several days of mutual torment, the White Ape King's mentality exploded.

What it found most unbearable was that the invaders had actually started setting traps within their territory to deal with them.

Ambushing lone tribesmen was one thing, but what was the meaning of these incredibly crude traps that could be seen through at a glance?

As an intelligent creature, the White Ape King felt that it and its tribe were being insulted.

Clearly, the players did not realize this.

To catch a lone white ape, the players used every trick in the book.

They tried everything from deception to trickery, and some players even attempted to lure lone white apes into an ambush using fruit.

The result, naturally, was having their heads smashed in by the furious white apes.

Although the players' methods were full of flaws and posed no threat to the intelligent and powerful members of the White Ape Tribe, these clumsy tactics were highly effective at breaking their spirits.

It felt as if a group of idiots were surrounding you every day, trying to mess with you using methods they thought were perfectly viable; even though you could see through them at a glance, you couldn't drive them away or shake them off, and the feeling of being tormented day after day truly caused the White Ape Tribe's mentality to shatter.

Finally, unable to endure it any longer, the White Ape King decided to nip the problem in the bud.

That day, the White Ape King led its tribesmen to kill all the players within their territory, then marched toward the east side of Dragon Scale Island—the direction where the resurrection point was located.

Every player encountered along the way could not escape the angry iron fists of the White Ape Tribe.

Even many casual players who had never considered provoking the White Ape Tribe found themselves caught in the crossfire.

News of the White Ape Tribe's assault quickly spread to the game's discussion forums.

It drew the attention of a vast number of players.

Players began voicing their opinions on how to resolve the issue of the incoming White Ape Tribe.

Some suggested a head-on assault, while others proposed guerrilla warfare... the discussion forum was a scene of lively activity.

Since this was a hegemony-style game, the players had long been prepared for war against the native factions.

Therefore, they were not at all afraid of the White Ape Tribe's arrival and collectively proposed to meet them in battle.

The aggressive players began to assemble near the respawn point, and the major factions temporarily set aside their grievances, deciding to present a united front to first repel the attacking White Ape Tribe.

Several hours later, the area near the respawn point was packed with a sea of people as a massive number of players converged.

While they waited, the silhouettes of the enemy emerged from the distance.

Hundreds of agile white apes leaped through the forest, rapidly closing in on the respawn point before dropping down like dumplings into a pot.

Upon seeing the dense crowd of foreign invaders ahead, the White Ape King was visibly stunned.

The number of foreign invaders was far greater than he had imagined.

However, the White Ape King had no intention of retreating.

Having clashed with the players many times before, he knew exactly how weak their strength was—it could even be described as pathetic.

"Roar!"

After a brief moment of shock, the White Ape King let out a roar of war, then stood on his hind legs and began to beat his chest vigorously.

Seeing this, the rest of the white apes followed suit.

"Roar your mother, charge for me!"

"All troops, attack! Charge!"

"My servants, it is time to show your loyalty. Fight for me, charge! (A certain chuunibyou youth)"

Under the players' commands, all units raised their weapons and launched a charge toward the white ape pack.

The first clash between the Fourth Calamity and the native forces of the Boundless Realm had begun.