Uniting the Myriad Dynasties

"What kind of trash game is this?! I went hungry the moment I logged in. I actually went up a mountain to gnaw on tree bark!"

"Good thing the country this game is set in is fairly powerful. Otherwise, there wouldn't even be bark to gnaw on. This game... I really have to hand it to them!"

"This game's starting difficulty is way too high. Seriously, how are we supposed to get through the newbie phase?"

On the forums, countless players had begun wailing.

They had only just entered the game, and the predicament they faced was far too difficult to resolve. All they could do now was come out and post questions, hoping to see how others had made it through this newbie phase.

But most people were still feeling their way through the game, and no one was particularly sure what to do yet.

Some merely offered a few small suggestions.

After browsing the forums, Fang Zelin found no new information to pick up and closed them.

After grabbing a little food, Fang Zelin returned to the game.

When Fang Zelin opened his eyes in bed, he was already back at the inn.

The distant sun was gradually setting. Even standing in his room, Fang Zelin could see the wash of golden yellow in the distance.

Wisps of cooking smoke rose far away, lending the scene a little more of the warmth of everyday life.

Just like that, the day had passed.

Looking at the distant dusk, Fang Zelin headed downstairs to get something to eat.

He had eaten in the real world, but not here. He had only just returned, and he was hungry again.

"What would you like, sir?"

Fang Zelin had barely come downstairs when the waiter from earlier immediately approached and asked with a smile.

The little tip at noon had certainly made him remember Fang Zelin.

Fang Zelin glanced toward the wooden plaques off to the side.

The names of the dishes here were written directly on small plaques, which were hung up to one side so guests could see them clearly.

Fang Zelin took a closer look, and his mouth twitched at the names. They certainly had literary flair: Eight Treasured Delicacies, Crossing the Sea Under the Immortals' Noses, and the like.

In Fang Zelin's experience, the fancier the name, the worse the food tasted.

Still, with the thought of giving them a try, Fang Zelin ordered a few dishes.

With nothing to do, Fang Zelin found a chair and sat down after ordering, then looked over the scene downstairs again.

There were quite a few more people downstairs now, and every one of them looked like a refugee.

"These people really are quite pitiful, without a penny to their names."

Fang Zelin made the seemingly casual remark as he poured himself a cup of tea.

He wanted to find out how the people of this world viewed their arrival here.

"Aren't they just!"

Hearing this, the waiter immediately nodded and replied with a deeply rueful air.

"They say these people all come from foreign countries, but coming here penniless-isn't that just asking for suffering?"

"Fortunately, before they arrived, His Majesty learned of this in a dream, so he specifically abolished travel permits and the like. Otherwise, the first thing that would've happened to these foreigners upon arriving in our Great Jin would have been getting thrown in prison."

The waiter shook his head repeatedly as he said this.

Fang Zelin was taken aback. So the emperor of Great Jin had known about this beforehand?

"By the way, sir, if you want to learn about cultivating immortality, perhaps you could ask these people. Earlier, I happened to overhear them saying their world had iron birds that could fly, and all sorts of miraculous techniques that let them transmit voices over a thousand li or travel tens of thousands of kilometers a day."

"Though it's also possible they were simply boasting."

Remembering how Fang Zelin had asked him about cultivating immortality earlier, the waiter hastily added this.

Fang Zelin's mouth immediately twitched at those words.

He himself came from that world. All that world used were machines and such. How were those techniques for cultivating immortality?

Fang Zelin could safely say he had no interest whatsoever in those things.

As for why the waiter suspected that these claims might be lies, Fang Zelin knew the reason.

When some other players had entered earlier, they had excitedly gone around announcing that they could make steam engines, gunpowder, and the like, which would then help Great Jin unite the myriad dynasties.

Because of this, the prefect had even received that person at the time.

What happened afterward, however, had stunned countless people.

Many laws of physics did not apply in this world. Gunpowder already existed here, and was normally used for fireworks and firecrackers.

But when someone tried to improve it and make it more powerful, they could not.

Besides this, certain other laws of physics did not apply either. For example.

When two stones of different sizes fell toward the ground at the same time, they did not land simultaneously.

As for that steam engine, they had failed to build it in the end.

These things had also led many people to believe that this was simply a game world, and that applying the real world's laws of physics to it was inappropriate.

Fang Zelin had read about all this on the forums.

That was how some players understood this world. They felt it was just a game world, and that applying a game world to reality was clearly not very feasible.

If that really worked, wouldn't you end up making nuclear bombs in here?

Fang Zelin, however, thought that perhaps this was a real world, only one that differed from the real world, which was why science could not explain it.

Of course, these were merely guesses. Whether they were true could not yet be determined.

"I've heard such things before, but I imagine they aren't the traces of immortals I'm looking for."

Knowing what those means of transmitting voices over a thousand li actually were, Fang Zelin merely shook his head.

The waiter took this to mean that Fang Zelin thought those people were boasting, and gave it no further thought.

Then he changed the subject to something else. "There are more and more of these foreign visitors now, but I hear the imperial cabinet has come up with a response."

"They're asking local gentry, government offices, and prominent families to help by making some work available-carrying water, chopping wood, keeping accounts, farming, and the like-so these foreign visitors can earn a living instead of starving to death."

The waiter's words left Fang Zelin somewhat dumbfounded. Wasn't this just handing out quests?

From the perspective of this world's imperial court, admittedly, there seemed to be an element of work relief involved.

But from a player's perspective, wasn't this simply the NPCs getting ready to hand out quests?

"Is there anything else you need, sir?"

Having finished speaking, the waiter spotted other people entering the restaurant some distance away. Needing to welcome them, he immediately addressed Fang Zelin respectfully.

If Fang Zelin needed nothing else, he would go attend to the other guests.