Kill Them Before They Can Wait or Eat

Lu Xiu's vision went black.

With a slight feeling of weightlessness, the whistling sea breeze and the noisy sounds of players in the square instantly faded away.

When she opened her eyes again, the familiar feeling of the ship rocking as she had expected did not appear, nor did the opening animation of departing from the Old World.

now.

She was standing on a solid wooden boardwalk, the air filled with the aroma of roasting meat, the crisp sound of metal clanging, and the clear calls of seabirds.

Lu Xiu looked up and what came into view was a huge base built against the mountain, with abandoned ships and rugged buildings blending together perfectly, creating an industrial aesthetic that combined wildness and primitiveness.

This is the Astera.

"Really."

Lu Xiu looked around at the all-too-familiar scene and thought to herself, "Just like the Witch Instance, offline dungeons completely disregard the step-by-step process of online dungeons."

If it's an online instance, then every player who enters will have to honestly be a newbie in the Fifth Fleet, starting from the beginning by following the story and watching the cutscenes.

But offline copies.

At least for her, as Architect, it seems she didn't need any tutorial to enter; she was directly parachuted into the Hunter ' base camp in the New World.

".

Lu Xiu withdrew her gaze, stretched her limbs slightly, and then prepared to check what changes had occurred in the Monster Hunter NPCs before going out to hunt in the wild to see what changes had occurred in the monsters.

But before she could act...

Not far away, a researcher from the Astera carrying a thick stack of documents happened to pass by.

He turned his head unintentionally and caught a glimpse of Lu Xiu standing on the plank road.

The NPC suddenly paused, startled.

Then he stopped abruptly, rubbed his eyes violently, as if to confirm whether he was hallucinating.

After confirming that the person in front of him was indeed Lu Xiu...

His eyes widened slowly, his pupils contracted sharply, and the documents he had been holding scattered all over the ground with a clatter, flying everywhere in the sea breeze, but he didn't bother to pick them up at all.

"No—something terrible has happened!!!"

The NPC pointed at Lu Xiu and shouted in a broken voice.

Then, he turned around abruptly and scrambled towards the direction where the Commander was.

As he ran, he shouted at the top of his lungs, and his voice instantly echoed throughout the entire Astera.

"No!! This is great!!!"

"Commander -Chief! Leader! Everyone, come out quickly!!!"

"That sir—that sir has returned!!!"

Lu Xiu stood there, watching the NPC who was running wildly, even tripping over his own feet and falling because he was too excited, but then scrambling to his feet and continuing to sprint.

Her foot, which was about to step out, froze in mid-air as a breeze carrying the scent of the sea blew by, ruffling the hem of her hoodie.

--

Lu Xiu's face darkened.

Now she believes what the post says.

While Lu Xiu stood there in a daze, the entire Astera seemed to erupt into chaos.

Next.

Heavy footsteps approached rapidly, and then a large group of NPCs that Lu Xiu recognized all too well appeared in his line of sight.

Leading the group was the Commander, his brow furrowed, exuding an imposing and authoritative aura.

Half a step behind him were the sword master, the golden-haired Leader, and many NPCs who would cross paths with him in the story.

oh.

There are also a whole bunch of Palico.

It seems like everyone from the entire Astera has come.

Of course, the usually energetic receptionist was also there, but at this moment she was hiding behind the swordsmanship master, only daring to peek out half her head to look at Lu Xiu, and whispered, "Sir----"

"You're back."

The Commander stopped a few steps away from Lu Xiu, looked her up and down, and then said with a sigh, "Ever since you single-handedly destroyed the food chain of the New World and skinned the taboos alive, you left the New World. There was no news of you in the Old World either. It was said that you went to a more distant place to find powerful enemies. I thought you would never come back."

So, have you found the formidable foe you've been craving?

Lu Xiu's lips twitched slightly as she listened to the lines that were so over-the-top with chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone with delusions of grandeur) and yet somehow fit the logic of an NPC's behavior when faced with a player disappearing.

What does it mean to completely disrupt the food chain?!

Aren't they all hunting missions?

All I did was kill people I found strange, didn't I?

All I did was apply Deconstruction to each monster once, right?

Why exaggerate like that?

You despicable person who slanders others!

"Cough."

Lu Xiu coughed lightly, forcibly suppressing the urge to complain, and tried to make her tone sound as inscrutable as possible, "Coming back to visit—aren't you welcome?"

After all, the Commander is likely a key figure, so it's best not to get carried away with words.

"Astera will always be your home. You are our ace, the guide of our Sapphire Star. Of course, you are welcome."

The Commander's expression remained serious. "But your expression doesn't seem like that of someone who's simply come back to visit. Tell me, what is your purpose? Have you discovered a new place? Or are you injured? There shouldn't be any opponents for you here anymore—"

7

Lu Xiu was about to speak.

[Bite!]

[The core character of the instance (the fifth-generation Ace Hunter, played by player Lu Xiu) has appeared and completed a dialogue with the main characters.]

[Offline dungeon clear conditions have been triggered!]

[Current clearance requirement: Prove your strength.]

[Quest Description: Make the main NPCs of Astera remember your terrifying power that once dominated the entire New World.]

[Warning: If you are not strong enough, you will no longer be the invincible Sapphire Star in their eyes. Based on your past deeds, the NPCs' attitude towards you may undergo an irreversible change.]

The task popped up.

Lu Xiu stared at the pop-up notification box, slightly taken aback.

The character I'm playing is actually the key figure in the dungeon?!

However, upon closer reflection, this setting seems entirely plausible. In the Monster Hunter: World, everything revolves around the Sapphire Star, which the player controls—so it's normal for the Sapphire Star to be the core.

After Lu Xiu figured all this out, she breathed a sigh of relief.

She was initially worried that the core of the Monster Hunter offline dungeon would be Ancient Dragon, or that, like the Witch, the dungeon would be so complex that even she, as Architect, wouldn't recognize it.

But now it seems that the worries were unnecessary.

Most of the NPCs haven't changed much, and as a core character, her mission is simple; she just needs to prove her strength.

That's easy!

She knows!

Lu Xiu dispelled the prompt in front of her, ignored the Commander's probing and solemn gaze, and turned her head directly to look at the leader of the Smithy standing at the back of the crowd.

"Let's talk about pleasantries later."

Lu Xiu said directly, "I'll talk about my purpose later. First, help me forge a weapon that suits me. I'm going hunting now— the Fatalis has appeared again, right?"

Since I need to prove my strength anyway, I might as well go farm some materials and see if I can get a piece for the Fatalis Set.

As soon as Lu Xiu said this...

moment.

The wind seemed to have stopped.

All the NPCs were stunned for a moment, then stared blankly at Lu Xiu.

The next second.

"Etc!!!"

The Commander took a sudden step forward. "You've only been back at base for less than three minutes, aren't you going to rest for a bit? And you didn't come back just to hunt the Fatalis, did you?! Just to kill it???"

"No need to wait, and who said I came back just to hunt Fatalis? It's just something I did on the side."

97

I don't believe it.

Lu Xiu:

"----"

What?

The Leader asked anxiously, "Aren't you going to eat something?"

"No, I'm not hungry."

Lu Xiu shook her head, then said, "Are you worried? Why don't I just go? Actually, my weapon can also..."

The receptionist pounced from behind the swordsmanship master and hugged Lu Xiu around the waist. "It's not that I'm worried! Why did you come back and kill the Fatalis?! This rare Ancient Dragon species has only recently reappeared. Although it's a calamity and needs to be defeated, you didn't even give us a chance to study it! You just skinned it alive! Leaving nothing behind!"

"Yeah, why don't you eat something?"

The entire Astera instantly descended into chaos.

Chaos erupted.

Lu Xiu:

no.

Wasn't my goal to skip the smaller animals and go straight to the final boss to prove my strength?

Is it really necessary to be like this? You guys are the New World Research Commission from Monster Hunter! Show some composure like Hunter!

etc----

Could this be a test?

Are they deliberately trying to stop me? If I don't go, they'll think I'm scared?

no.

If we don't go, the mission might fail.

Go for it!

"I'll be back soon, so don't worry."

Lu Xiu forcibly ripped the receptionist off her waist, then strode forward to the Commander -Chief: "Tell me? Where's Fatalis? Does he need to go to the front-line combat base? Seliana?"

Commander:

Five minutes later.

Lu Xiu set off.

Fifteen minutes later.

call.

Lu Xiu returned to the Astera via fast travel, looked up at the group ahead, and said, "All done—"

The difficulty of monsters in offline dungeons has indeed increased, but it's not as exaggerated as some other silly players are saying.

The damage is higher.

As long as you don't get hit, it's fine.

5

3

Everyone looked up to the sky and sighed.

At this moment, all the NPCs looked at the girl standing in the sunlight and finally recalled once again the fear of being dominated by this Humanoid Cataclysm, who treated all the monsters in the New World like wild dogs.

[Bite!]

[congratulations.]

[Pass condition: Prove your strength, completed!]

Lu Xiu clapped her hands in satisfaction as she looked at the system notification that popped up in front of her.

She knew it.

This is the fastest method.

As for the NPCs blocking my way, is it to make my mission fail?

It doesn't matter anymore!

Anyway, we've already got the Fatalis materials.

The Commander took a deep breath, looked at the Hunter before him who seemed impossible to fathom, and said, "Alright, let's go hunting then—now you can tell me, where have you been all this time? And what brings you back this time?"

What's done is done.

The Commander was at his wit's end.

Industry,"

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiu did not answer immediately, but looked at the Commander's face and fell into a brief silence.

In fact, she had no idea what the specific manifestation of the Monster Hunter "Instance Placement Site's " anomaly" was.

After all, she had only tried placing the instance once.

The anomaly in the Witch Instance began as soon as it was placed.

This seems to be related to the fact that there are two versions of the copy.

However, [Monster Hunter] is only pre-placed, and we don't yet know what the situation is outside.

The core of the Monster Hunter dungeon lies in the protagonist she, the Builder Roleplay—

So, can the direction of the mutation be guided by oneself?

Lu Xiu thought of Jade Capital.

That torn-up city, those diverse and constantly mutating and strengthening monsters that Chu Huai spoke of.

Although this doesn't align with the Monster Hunter: World —we're still facing monsters, after all.

Since my character, Sapphire Star, is the core of this instance, could I guide the NPCs through dialogue to give them a plausible reason to voluntarily appear in Jade Capital to hunt and study monsters in the real world?

Give it a try.

Thinking about this...

Lu Xiu raised her head.

"I've discovered a New World."

Lu Xiu explained, "Or to be more precise, it's a world being devoured by monsters."

"Eaten by a monster?"

The Commander frowned. "Even you find this troublesome?"

"Right."

Lu Xiu nodded. "The ecology there is abnormal, even collapsed. There is no natural cycle, only endless Mutation, assimilation and killing."

Moreover, those monsters are constantly evolving, and it seems there's no end in sight.

"The Hunter there are fighting them head-on with their bare hands; they lack weapons capable of cleaving through the monsters' heavy armor, and they also lack systematic research into this Mutation ecosystem."

The Commander paused, then said, "So—"

"So, the reason I came back this time is to invite the Fifth Fleet, or rather the entire Astera, to that world ravaged by monsters to establish an outpost."

Lu Xiu smiled and said, "Do you crave unknown ecosystems and formidable enemies you've never seen before?"

Let's move the timeline forward slightly.

In the real world, in Jade Capital, at the city's central square.

Lu Xiu just entered the offline instance.

Before the players who had gathered around could disperse, they suddenly felt a dull tremor coming from the ground beneath their feet.

"What's going on? An earthquake?!"

The players hadn't even realized what was happening.

The vibrations became increasingly violent.

Immediately following, starting from the enormous gate in the center of the square, incredible phenomena began to spread outwards.

Huge ships appeared without warning, and all sorts of things began to connect, including rough mechanical gears, massive pulley systems, and damp wooden boardwalks that smelled of the sea. Some buildings seemed to be squeezing into the real world.

Although it's just a phantom image right now.

But there are already clear signs that it has shifted from a false alarm to a real one.

"Retreat! Everyone retreat!"

Upon seeing this scene, Chu Huai's expression changed drastically; he had never expected that the unexpected change Lu Xiu had mentioned would come so quickly.

She's only just gone in!

So many players went in before and there was no response.

The Architect reacted as soon as he entered?

This is absolutely outrageous.

but.

Now is clearly not the time to think about that.

Chu Huai reacted extremely quickly. "Evacuate the crowd immediately! Set up a cordon! Quickly!"

Although the previously noisy players were curious about the phantom buildings, they still retreated to the outer perimeter of the plaza under the soldiers' command.

But as time went on...

The architectural silhouettes are becoming increasingly visible.

The speed of the mutation was astonishing.

Furthermore, the moment Lu Xiu hunted the Fatalis.

Those illusory figures immediately began to transform from illusory to real.

soon.

Half of Astera suddenly appeared on the central axis of Jade Capital city!

"---- Astera?!"

"Why is the Astera in Jade Capital?!"

"Lu Xiu just went in? Could it be related to Lu Xiu?"

"Huh? Architect have this ability? No way! Isn't this something from a dungeon? How can this be brought into reality?"

"Holy crap!!! That's awesome!! I saw the Astera's Smithy!!"

The players who had been evacuated outside the cordon stared wide-eyed.

Chu Huai stared at the massive complex of buildings that had appeared out of nowhere. Only after confirming that no monsters rushed out did he breathe a slight sigh of relief, but the shock in his eyes was impossible to hide.

I was also a little excited.

There is a Astera in Jade Capital!

This is absolutely fantastic news.

But the mutations continue.

The cordon line receded all the way back.

at last.

The entire Astera appeared in reality, even the land surrounding the base appeared.

Players are very familiar with the base of this dungeon.

They noticed it too.

"Wait a minute— the Monster Hunter dungeon's setting won't replace Jade Capital, will it?"

"NPC? I think I saw an NPC?"

"Palico! The Palico from the dungeon have appeared in real life? Can I catch them? Can they be my followers?"

"My God! Are Architect that amazing? They can even do this?"

Players gasped in disbelief.

Countless players who had been evacuated to the perimeter were now staring wide-eyed at the massive base that had appeared out of nowhere in Jade Capital.

If the realization of the Astera in reality is merely awe-inspiring, then...

So when those NPCs that originally only existed in dungeons suddenly appeared as living, breathing figures in the base, under the sunlight of reality, it truly left players speechless.

"How did she manage to do that? What exactly did Lu Xiu do?"

One player murmured.

At the same time.

Lu Xiu walked out of the door, exited the instance, looked at the surrounding scenery, and breathed a sigh of relief.

The first step seems to have been successful.

What ultimately appears in reality is the Astera.

However, we don't yet know what the base's function is. The Witch Instance's location only has wandering NPCs who give you items, but you need to satisfy their obsessions, which is quite troublesome.

I wonder if Astera is like this too.

After looking around, Lu Xiu walked around the real-world Astera and noticed that some NPCs seemed to be missing.

first.

The Commander is not here.

The scholars and researchers from the investigation team were also absent.

The receptionist wasn't there either.

After roughly assessing the situation, Lu Xiu stopped in her tracks.

While there are fewer administrative NPCs, the good news is that all the functional NPCs that truly support the Hunter's combat system are still there.

I don't know if this will be useful in real life.

Let's wait until later.

Have Chu Huai bring the soldiers over to confirm the functions of the Astera again.

Lu Xiu finalized the next testing plan in her mind.

She cannot stay in Jade Capital for long.

So it's useless if she's familiar with it.

There's no rush.

Moreover, with such a huge change and so many players in the square before, there must have been a lot of chaos. I should go out and let them know I'm safe first.

Lu Xiu clapped her hands, then turned and walked towards the outer perimeter of the Astera, intending to first inform Chu Huai.

At this moment, the players in the square were still blocked outside the cordon. Although they all wanted to go inside the real-world Astera, no one dared to actually break through the defense line.

As soon as Lu Xiu left the Astera and stepped onto the cracked paving stones, she saw Chu Huai standing at the very front of the cordon.

She was just about to say hello.

Waaaaah!!!

But just then, a long and piercing air raid siren sounded without warning.

The players who were excitedly pointing out the Astera all changed their expressions instantly upon hearing the alarm.

"What happens?"

Lu Xiu quickened her pace and rushed to Chu Huai's side in a few steps.

Chu Huai was no longer as shocked as he had been when he saw the Astera descend.

The chief Patrollers, who had experienced countless life-or-death battles, visibly darkened his expression, and a murderous aura instantly surged around him.

"I'm sorry, Miss Lu, I have to go to the front lines now. Let me take you back first."

Chu Huai spoke rapidly, raising his hand as he did so, his fingers swiping quickly through the air to open the communication panel: "The Monster Tide is coming."