"A masterpiece! The First Closed Beta veterans on the forum weren't lying!"
"This immersion blows every VR technology in the world out of the water!"
He wasn't the only one. As the players around him woke up one after another, the entire clearing erupted.
"Wow! This air, this breeze against my face! I can even smell the rotting vegetation!"
"This physics engine is insane! I just picked off a piece of bark, and even the fibers inside it have their own models!"
"Mom, I've crossed into another world! I've really crossed into another world!"
The fifty newbies were like country bumpkins seeing a palace for the first time. Some lay on the ground munching dirt to test their sense of taste, while others pinched each other's thighs to test their sense of pain.
"Thank goodness the system didn't make us wear nothing but boxer shorts too. Otherwise, every female player would quit this game."
A female player with the ID [Pay Big for Code] above her head patted her chest, tugging at her athletic tank top in relief.
"Everyone, look at that! What a cool church! What a magnificent Portal!" Another girl beside her pointed at the buildings behind them, exclaiming excitedly.
Only then did the players shift their attention from themselves to their surroundings.
An oppressive, overcast sky, the distant Black Forest that seemed poised to devour anyone who approached, and beneath their feet, a devastated Wasteland steeped in the epic weight of history.
The intensely dark Cthulhu aesthetic instantly won over every hardcore player.
"Guys! This must be our starter village!"
A burly man with the ID [Immortal Star Crazy Young Master] above his head stepped out of the crowd.
One look at that name was enough to tell he had to be an officer sent by some major guild to stake a claim on resources.
Kuang Shao cleared his throat and declared with swaggering confidence, "Brothers! Since we've been lucky enough to become the second batch of players in this groundbreaking masterpiece, we've got to give it our all!"
"Before logging in, I saw that system announcement asking for help in Fog Town. Our ultimate goal is to capture Fog Town!"
"Anyone who wants to team up, come sign up with my Undying Stars Guild! Let's build something big together!"
"Team up? Forget teaming up for now. Can someone tell me what we're supposed to do in this damn game? There's not even a tutorial NPC, and they won't even give us a stick!" One player spread his hands in despair.
Just as the fifty newbies milled around the clearing like headless chickens, all talking at once in utter chaos-
"Ahem! Ahem!"
Two conspicuously deliberate coughs suddenly came from the doorway of the dilapidated Church.
Those coughs seemed to carry some kind of magic-or rather, an air of lofty superiority-and instantly silenced the entire crowd.
All fifty newbies turned their heads in unison.
Five figures had appeared at some point on the Church's tall stone steps.
The moment those five made their entrance, every newbie present stared, transfixed.
The newbies had originally assumed the First Closed Beta veterans were just like them: a bunch of savages in boxer shorts, barely able to cover themselves.
But the way the five First Closed Beta players looked now, they might as well have been playing a completely different game!
After logging in, the five had discovered that the game had actually added a system shop!
So they had quickly gritted their teeth and bought themselves brand-new outfits while the newbies were still gawking.
The robes had no stats.
But they were well tailored and a deep, dark gray throughout.
Around their collars and cuffs, faint blue divine power had been woven into rings of mysterious ancient runes, their eerie glow shifting gently in the morning mist.
Sporting his flashy, spiky silver-white hair, [Passing Pure-Love Warrior] stood with his arms folded. Set off by his robe, the battle scar between his brows looked even colder and more hardened.
And the flashiest part of all?
All five of them now had a dazzling dark-gold title hovering above their heads: [Ash Guide]!
Their Lv.7 markers loomed like a mountain over all the level-zero newbies.
"Holy shit... those five are the First Closed Beta veterans?"
"Lv.7? What the fuck? The forum said they were only level three yesterday!"
"They shot straight up to level seven in one day?"
"Look at that title! Dark gold! Only five on the whole server! That's peak badass!"
"Pure-Love Warrior! Ji God! My saviors! Carry me!"
The newbies immediately burst into waves of frenzied cries.
In this world, differences in strength were plain to see.
Their seven-level advantage, combined with Ash Robes that practically screamed "elite player," instantly made those five old hands seem as imposing as guardians of the Divine Hall.
[Passing Pure-Love Warrior] thoroughly enjoyed having dozens of eyes fixed on him in adoration.
He forcibly suppressed the smile tugging at his lips and shot a sidelong glance at [Ji Luo] beside him.
[I'm Not Jiahao], meanwhile, took a deep breath and tucked both hands into the wide sleeves of his Ash Robe.
Peering with his left eye through the black hair that covered most of his face, revealing his melancholy beauty mark beneath it, he spoke calmly:
"New companions. Welcome to the Wasteland of ash."
"Though your arrival is consistent with this server's normal progression, I hope you will learn to respect the darkness here."
"It's very... you know. You get it, right?"
"We get it! Boss Jia is awesome! Boss Jia looks badass!" Some savvy newbies below immediately began shouting.
Just as the five finished striking their poses and prepared to give the newbies a vivid lesson in "beginner safety"-
Creeeak!!
The door of the little black-timber cabin beside the Divine Hall was gently pushed open.
Sivir stepped out, doing her best to maintain a dignified bearing. She wore a coarse nun's habit washed pale with age and mended with several neat patches.
Her long flaxen hair was tied neatly behind her.
Though malnutrition had left her rather frail, her large eyes shone in her delicate, fair little face, carrying an innocence and sanctity exceedingly rare in the Wasteland.
Sivir walked into the Church and looked at the fifty newly arrived "honored envoys," who were clawing at thin air.
She took a deep breath, trying hard to recall the words the revered Deity had personally taught her.
The little nun bowed her head slightly, folded her hands over her chest, and gave an exquisitely graceful, perfectly proper nun's salutation.
Then she raised her head and spoke in her clear, ethereal voice:
"May ash bless you, undying warriors."
Boom!
That clear greeting unleashed a tsunami of cataclysmic proportions in the minds of all fifty newbies!
"Holy shit!!! My wife!!!"
"This NPC... her looks, her expression! Even her tiniest movements are so realistic!"
"There's actually a hint of sympathy and reverence in the way she looks at me! Guys, I'm in love! My waifu has come to life!"
"Fuck off! She's this server's one and only heroine! Anyone who tries to steal her gets my blade!"
Before you continue