Lind did not get disappointed. As twilight approached, Undead Loves White Silk, with one arm missing, dragged back a hacked wolf carcass.
On his ugly face was a manic smile, "Hahaha, my Lord, I am back!"
Lind: "..."
So this is how NPCs see players? Missing an arm, with a huge rip in his stomach, yet still laughing heartily—it was indeed cataclysmic, more terrifying than the carrion-eaters.
"You have passed my test, you have earned the friendship of Star Dragon Ridge outpost. Starting today, you can purchase some goods here, and we will try our best to assist you."
Looking at the bloodied, critically injured, yet manically jumping undead who heard this "good news," Lind sighed helplessly in his heart. He had once been one of them, only now he had become an NPC who could die.
NPCs definitely die because Lind had more than nine soldiers under him initially, and the dead soldiers did not "refresh"—dead meant dead.
When facing players, strength always comes first, not just strong but strong enough to make players despair.
Otherwise, all kindness and goodwill are just fleeting clouds; chaotic players do not reason.
At most, they might lament after killing you, saying: "He even gave me equipment, and he was quite a good guy."
Loves White Silk could remain expressionless despite severe injuries, which Lind could guess why—perhaps the game could adjust pain sensations. Has Earth's technology developed this fast? It has only been a few days since he crossed over; it must be the Earth of a parallel universe then.
The soldiers only grew more convinced that Undead were monstrous beings—how could one still joke around with their stomach cut open if not monstrous?
Loves White Silk looked at Lind, "Actually, you are an NPC, did you know that?"
Lind: "..."
The corner of his mouth twitched.
Should I say I know, or I don't know?
"No wonder you're AI," Loves White Silk sighed. "You can even react speechlessly to content you don't understand."
No, I understand.
Lind did not get a chance to ask; the other side had already mentioned quite a few key pieces of information, but with a voice growing fainter. The severely injured undead collapsed, his face bearing an ugly smile, sleeping like a baby.
"Bang~"
The body turned into a wisp of ashes and scattered on the ground.
"My lord?" Many soldiers had not seen this happen before; witnessing it now made their voices tremble.
A living person vanished into thin air just like that, even if one knew beforehand, it was still terrifying.
Yet, Lind advised, "Keep an eye on him when he appears again. If they show any signs of aggression, make sure you strike first and kill him."
Players are not trustworthy, but the soldiers under his command are. Lind really couldn't guarantee that the players, lusting after the soldiers' armor and weapons, wouldn't strike them down.
For now, their combat strength was superior to that of the players, but not by much. If the players really wanted to wear them down, they could do it.
"Also, clean up the corpse; tonight, we feast on barbecue!"
"Praise the lord!" the soldiers cheered joyfully.
Meanwhile, "Loves White Silk" had also reached the death limit and was forcibly logged out...
"Phew~"
Li Xiaojiang took off his helmet and sat up on his bed.
Rubbing his somewhat stiff neck.
"High-tech stuff is really amazing."
It was like leaping from the Stone Age to the Industrial Age in an instant. One moment everyone was running around naked and drinking blood, and the next, they were dressed in suits and waiting for cars by the roadside.
The technological marvels that have appeared these days have changed more than anything that has emerged in the last century.
Li Xiaojiang could hardly contain his excitement. He swiftly sat at his computer desk and opened the official website of "Doomsday Magic Ring."
["Doomsday Magic Ring" beta version 1.01, 3000 slots have been distributed, testing starts today]
Li Xiaojiang had a clear goal. He opened the official forum section, where the forum was eerily quiet.
"Too bad the death limit has been reached."
In real life, the number of resurrections refreshes every day at 6 AM as if to remind players not to get too addicted.
Being in the game means you still need to use the bathroom and eat in real life. As for the nutrient pods mentioned in the novel's setting, they haven't appeared yet.
Given the game's penalty system, many would prefer never to die at all, as death would mean no more playtime.
Playing the game while sleeping is like having a dream that you fully remember, and there is no fatigue, except for a bit of discomfort from wearing the game helmet as if it were a motorcycle helmet; there are really no downsides.
I believe third parties have already started producing related accessories. Nutrient pods are probably not a pipe dream.
"It's just unknown where this game and the helmet came from. Surely it's not alien technology, right?"
Among the posts trashing this game and the rants about it being a cash grab, one post quickly caught Li Xiaojiang's attention.
[New! I beg you guys [Newbie Post]]
Li Xiaojiang moved his mouse and clicked on the post.
@Long Live Sister Li: "Did my file get corrupted? I spawned among a group of scavengers and died three times in a row as soon as I entered the game. The next revival is still here. What should I do? Is there any pro who can save me?"
That's a bit harsh.
Li Xiaojiang scrolled down and found only a few sparse replies.
"Lol, you think just wearing a helmet is like playing SAO?"
"Making a bunch of fake videos for a forum that can't even function properly, calling it a game? Game? Where's the graphics!"
People still don't believe such a game exists, considering that just a few days ago everyone was cheering for a stitched-together global game. But even the cheering was done in front of a computer, and the only price was debuffs like [You gained Myopia +50], [You gained Hemorrhoids, Constipation], [You gained Tendonitis], etc., all while glued to just a screen.
People's understanding of virtual games still resides on those Miss JKs playing "Beat Saber."
Now you turn to me and say, if you're not afraid of a crick in your neck, put on this motorcycle helmet and you can enter a completely realistic game world, see if I believe you.
He glanced at the time, it was only 1 AM.
Li Xiaojiang rubbed his hands and decided to start working. A revolutionary game like this, how could it not feature his videos?
Against the backdrop of high Internet traffic and short videos, aside from those established game video bloggers from years ago who gathered a massive following by sticking to their principles and not selling out for quick cash, it's incredibly hard for new gaming bloggers to build their profiles—unless it's for a game feverish enough to go viral and quickly accumulate followers.
Clearly, "Doomsday Magic Ring" is such a game—it's the first to utilize virtual stealth technology only found in novel settings, vastly different from wearing clunky VR helmets.
During the entire gameplay, Li Xiaojiang recorded everything.
He exported the data from the helmet, opened the editing software to start rough cutting, dubbing, and adding subtitles. It was a tedious and time-consuming process, and he tried to streamline it as much as possible.
With ideas flowing abundantly, creating the new video was a gratifying process. Since the recorded content was plentiful and interesting, he didn't have to spend much time selecting engaging parts, making editing as refreshing as an early morning relief.
Finally, he exported the video as dawn was breaking.
He glanced at the time—just past 5 AM.
"What should the title be?"
After pondering deeply, Li Xiaojiang typed on his keyboard.
"White Silk Teaches You How to Save Magic World"