"This shouldn't be the first time we've met, right?"
The clothes were exactly the same, the appearance was exactly the same, but Chen Qing was not very surprised, because his subordinates had mentioned to him twice that someone who looked exactly like him had appeared before.
It certainly wasn't his own clone, but as for what it was, Chen Qing felt the answer should be revealed today.
"This isn't the first time I've seen you, but it must be the first time you've seen me." The other person smiled at Chen Qing, a warmth clearly appearing in their eyes, completely different from the coldness they displayed when they crushed Xiao Mingyue.
"Are you the King of Qin?"
"I am the King of Qin!" the other party answered without hesitation.
Chen Qing fell silent for a moment. He had heard the legend of this person since he was very young. He believed that his peaceful life until adulthood and the imperial examinations, and the fact that he had never heard of demons or monsters in the twenty years he had lived in this world, were definitely related to this person. Judging from some of his deeds, this person was very powerful!
He delayed the release of the new version and almost changed the world. Heavenly Moon Plan, eliminating people's fear of demons, and the theory of human-demon coexistence—each one was a revolutionary breakthrough.
Although he didn't succeed and someone deliberately tried to erase the traces, judging from Xiao Mingyue and others' obsession, this guy has successfully imprinted himself in the hearts of countless people.
But when it came to him in person, he seemed to be quite different from the rumors.
Chen Qing looked at Xiao Mingyue, who had been trampled into a bloody pulp and visibly turned into shattered black ice, and felt an unprecedented mix of emotions.
Xiao Mingyue had designs on the King of Qin, a fact well known even to him, an outsider. But he didn't care. When he trampled Xiao Mingyue to death, he was indifferent, showing neither disgust nor malice, just a cold indifference.
"That's really ruthless."
A voice appeared between the two. Before Chen Qing even turned around, he knew who it was. Ziyue's methods were indeed extraordinary. In order to prevent the divine blood from leaking out, he had used Transcendent wind force to cut through the battlefield, but she still entered easily.
"She's been eyeing you for a long time," Ziyue said, looking at the Human Dao opposite her who looked exactly like Chen Qing. "If you just say the word, I believe she'll give you everything, just like before. Is it really necessary to go to such lengths?"
"She's beyond saving." The man opposite him remained indifferent. "She made a foolish move at the last moment, so it was all for naught. As for the power you mentioned, I can naturally take it over after she's dead."
"You weren't like this before." Ziyue frowned.
"People always change," the other person laughed. "After all, she's not the only one who's experienced being abandoned after giving her heart and soul."
She never betrayed you.
"In the future." The other party seemed unwilling to delve deeper into this topic, and instead looked at Chen Qing: "Now, may you reveal your identity?"
"Reveal your identities!" Chen Qing took a breath and asked all the questions she wanted to know, "And who are you? What were the forerunners mentioned by that statue? And who are you, the later ones? What does Samsara mean?"
"You don't know?" King of Qin observed Chen Qing. Although the other party's expression was cold, the doubt in his eyes was genuine. He was indeed eager to know the answer.
"Then I'll assume you're new here and give you a brief introduction."
As the King of Qin spoke, he waved his hand, and a screen of light appeared. On the screen was a model of this world, with countless stars in a void universe—but this void universe had a surface!
Upon seeing this, Chen Qing's pupils constricted sharply, and his expression once again became tense.
He was certainly familiar with this model; they had discussed it countless times and finalized the initial world-building model for the game with various project teams.
The primordial universe merged together, beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens, countless stars shrouded the earth in turbid energy, and the earliest version of humankind was merely one of these billions of stars.
At this moment, Chen Qing was completely certain that the people before him, whether it was Ziyue or the King of Qin, were all members of the project team, and perhaps not even ordinary players. Ordinary players wouldn't know about this world model; after all, the game version had only reached the third stage of development before his death.
"It seems you know him," the King of Qin nodded.
"Are you all from the company?" Chen Qing asked, suppressing his excitement. "Who are you? From the project team? The management team? Or..."
Upon hearing this, the King of Qin and Ziyue exchanged a glance, and finally the Kingly Dao, "Let's talk about the pioneers, which are of most concern to you."
"Literally, these pioneers were the first people to arrive in this world. Based on our later research, they likely didn't arrive at the same time; there was a sequence, but they undoubtedly all fell into the most dangerous ancient period."
Chen Qing frowned. Could the survival rate be guaranteed? In the early stages of the game, the game starts with a relatively stable dynasty and gradually introduces the ancient world. To face the ancient world right away, the pressure would be completely different from what he had experienced.
Seemingly sensing Chen Qing's doubts, the King of Qin continued, "Indeed, they had a hard time surviving at first. But whether they were the pioneers or the later ones, they all shared one characteristic: they could endlessly Samsara on the Yin-Yang Road, uncontrolled by any force in the Ghost Domain. Thus, through countless Samsara, this group of people eventually found a way to deal with the ancients."
Chen Qing frowned. That wasn't impossible. If one could Samsara infinitely, it would be equivalent to a player who could die infinitely. Any game, as long as it wasn't designed to be absolutely unbeatable, would eventually be conquered by players familiar with the rhythm.
"But if that's the case, why is the world still like this?"
"Why is the world still like this?" The King of Qin smiled and looked at Chen Qing: "Haven't you heard that those who slay dragons often become dragons themselves?"
Chen Qing: "."
So, that statue we just saw was indeed a player?
What does that mean? Could it be...?
"Ah, it's just what you think," King of Qin stared intently at Chen Qing: "Right now, most of the powerful ancient beings are controlled by players, at least 70% of them. The Yin-Yang Road has been almost entirely taken over by those pioneers. But even so, have you seen this world change?"
"Why?" Chen Qing looked at the other person, her heart heavy.
"Because players are human too," the King of Qin laughed. "As human beings, they desire immortality, greater power, and stronger strength. They want to change the world, which goes against their own desires. What do you think most people would choose?"
"Infinite Samsara... isn't that the same as immortality?" Chen Qing asked doubtfully.
It's one thing for ordinary people to be obsessed with immortality, but are players who can Samsara indefinitely also so fixated on it?
Being able to start over indefinitely and experience different lives—isn't that more interesting than unchanging immortality?
"Not really," the King of Qin shook his head. " Samsara comes at a price. Each Samsara results in the loss of a portion of your memories. After several Samsara, your memories will be completely lost. Once a player loses their memories, they become no different from an ordinary NPC in this world. In such a dangerous place, constantly threatened by ancient demons, would you be willing to lose your memories and live here?"
Chen Qing: "."
"In such a world, losing one's memory and endlessly Samsara means endless suffering. No one wants to be that suffering person, so everyone will do their best to become an immortal being. But immortality requires plunder. As long as saints live, thieves will never stop. This principle is the same everywhere. As more and more players need immortality, resources become increasingly scarce. The originally harmonious player factions have become rivals. After countless years, they have finally started to attack each other."
"In the end, it has become a world where the strong prey on the weak, and players have become beasts in this world, losing all their former specialness." King of Qin said with a bitter smile, "We were the last batch to arrive, so they are called pioneers, and we are called latecomers. Just like in the real world, players who catch up with the times get the meat, while later players don't even have the right to drink the soup. Me, A Li, Ziyue are all like that. The path to advancement is getting narrower and narrower, and we can only be forced to lose our memories in one Samsara after another, becoming the most ordinary NPCs, becoming one of the deprived members."
"This is the truth of this world!!"
To make up for yesterday's missed update, there will be two more updates tonight!