Chapter 107: High Difficulty Mission
Hang Yu had just finished editing a new mission.
Xiao Ba prompted, “Master, the refugees have all been settled. Shangyang Hamlet is about to be successfully rebuilt.”
Hang Yu nodded with satisfaction. “Have the hundred new Players been selected?”
Xiao Ba said, “They have. Among them are multiple representatives from major conglomerates and various top-tier professionals, including a senior operative from an intelligence agency.”
Hang Yu glanced over the list.
Among them, an official named Wang Yue had reserved a spot in the game primarily to investigate it.
No need to pay too much attention. It would be strange if he could uncover any real issues. Even if he did, it wouldn’t make any difference. However, his personal capabilities were quite strong — a real talent.
Although Hang Yu intended to limit the involvement of major forces from Blue Star in the game, if it was just an individual, there was no need to impose restrictions. Since Xiao Ba had selected him, he would be allowed to join.
……
“I actually got in?”
When Wang Yue received the email, he was completely stunned.
With millions of people having pre-registered, and thousands of officials from various government departments also in the queue, he had never expected to be selected out of such slim odds!
After the shock, ecstatic joy welled up.
He had been lurking in the Twisted Three Kingdoms section of the forum for an entire day.
Initially, he had approached it with a mission mindset, collecting intel.
But as he learned more about the game's content, he found himself increasingly fascinated by the world of Abyss Three Kingdoms.
Hundreds of Players had transported a massive amount of game information into the forums. Based on that, tens of thousands of Cloud Players carried out extended studies, ultimately producing derivative content dozens or even hundreds of times greater in scale.
Every story behind each NPC villager could be written into a character piece reflecting the era’s social context.
Even a seemingly insignificant historical detail could inspire a research paper or an hour-long video essay.
This was basically a real world, wasn’t it?
What kind of game development was this!
It was absurdly over the top!
Even Wang Yue found himself laughing at the thought — a game where you could resurrect after death, hunt monsters, and get loot, yet it still somehow felt like reality.
It could only be attributed to the overwhelming richness of the content and detail, combined with the incredibly advanced NPC AI, making it indistinguishable from reality — full of inexplicable black-tech elements!
No wonder it had drawn the department's attention.
This game was indeed unusual!
Now that he had secured a place in the game,
he would be able to investigate it even better.
However, although he had received the internal test slot, the official launch wouldn’t be until 8 PM tomorrow.
Having read all the trending posts from the past ten days, he immediately began following the latest game developments.
New intel revealed that there was a town in the Woniu Mountain region. Although it wasn’t large, it was likely to be the first Abyssal Town players could access, so the Lord took it very seriously and issued related exploration missions.
The mission itself wasn’t difficult.
But Players were taking it very seriously.
Over sixty top-level Players had gathered for it.
Whether internal test Players or Cloud Players, all were fascinated by the Abyssal Town.
From a development perspective, constructing a town with a population in the tens of thousands was on a completely different scale in terms of resources and difficulty compared to a small village of a few hundred.
Especially in this game, where every NPC had an independent mind, and people’s behaviors could influence one another and even push world development — the variables were countless, and the computational demand was astronomical.
Wang Yue was not only curious about the town’s appearance, but also wanted to see whether such a densely populated area might contain game-breaking bugs.
If the game could perfectly portray even a town of nearly ten thousand people — with each NPC having full independent consciousness, their own births and deaths, joys and sorrows, and all capable of growing and evolving through interactions with the environment and others — then even if all the computing power from global tech companies were combined, it might still not be enough to maintain such an immense AI model!
Logically speaking, with such an elite lineup, a small task should be handled with ease.
Cloud Players had even started betting on which team would arrive first and at what time.
Yet unexpectedly, the elite Calamity Army was wiped out as soon as they entered Woniu Mountain by the Dragon-Lizard People. When the news hit the forums, Cloud Players erupted in a frenzy of mockery.
“Hahaha!”
“So tragic!”
“That’s what you get for showing off!”
“This wasn’t an accident — it was an ambush!”
“You killed a Dragon-Lizard Commander. Did you really think the Dragon-Lizard Lord wouldn’t retaliate?!”
“Because of leftover effects from the previous mission, this originally simple task suddenly became extremely difficult? So Players’ actions really do influence the game, and the changes are truly unpredictable!”
“Lizardman Lord: ‘Hmph, you think you can escape after offending me?’”
“……”
Not long after,
news of a second team wipe broke out.
This time, even Cloud Players were left dumbfounded.
“This is a problem!”
“Looks like the Dragon-Lizard Lord is really pissed!”
“Forget completing the mission — even maintaining their levels is becoming difficult for the top players!”
“Failing this mission won’t affect the next one, right? Big shots, pull yourselves together and think of something!”
“……”
Brother Xiao Ma posted during a bathroom break: “Don’t panic, it’s no big deal. We ran into a bit of trouble just now, but we’ve already figured out the reason, and with the great Lord’s help, we’ve obtained a solution!”
He introduced the “Breath Concealing Potion” and the new skill “Thunderhorn Eagle Summoning” on the forum, sparking a wave of cheers among fellow Players.
“Internal test big shots are unreliable!”
“In the end, it still has to be my God Yu!”
“New info! The Lord has summoned Zhou Ji! This time the internal test big shots will act together with this NPC!”
“Zhou Ji? The one-armed swordsman who fought the Lord!”
“They can even bring a powerful NPC? How is this different from cheating? I just want to see the internal test players get crushed!”
“The Lord is too awesome! If you still can’t complete the mission like this, you’d better commit seppuku and apologize!”
“Old Zhou mustn’t get hurt, I still want to learn his sword techniques later!”
“……”
At this moment, Midnight Pig Slayer released a brand new photo, taken from the aerial view of a Thunderhorn Eagle.
Sixty-two riders galloped across the boundless and desolate land — it was the third deployment of the Calamity Army!
Not to mention ordinary players and edgy nerds — even Wang Yue felt awe when he saw this scene.
Dozens of riders sprinting through the mysterious and vast terrain — what kind of freedom and boldness was that!
Wang Yue continued scrolling down.
Before long, he saw good news.
The players, using several teams to cooperate and distract, plus potions and Thunderhorn Eagle reconnaissance, successfully broke through the Dragon-Lizard People's blockade.
They even wiped out a Dragon-Lizard unit in the process.
A total of twenty-four Dragon-Lizard soldiers, including two Tier-Two elite soldiers, were all killed through the combined efforts of NPC Zhou Ji and the players.
A glorious achievement!
The forum erupted in cheers!
Zhou Ji played a pivotal role.
More and more players started sharing their interactions with Zhou Ji.
This made Cloud Players develop a liking for this bold, lively, flesh-and-blood NPC.
Zhou Ji was not a Three Kingdoms figure, nor a famous general.
But even a seemingly unimportant game character like this was full of charm and personality, which won the favor of many Cloud Players.
Next.
Even more explosive content appeared.
After breaking through the Dragon-Lizard People's blockade, the Calamity Army was halted at a place called Xi Village.
Because the area was controlled by the Dragon-Lizard People and hard to pass through, they had to take a little-known mountain path.
Unexpectedly, they stumbled upon a bandit stronghold.
Several photos were posted to the forum.
When the eerie stronghold, corrupted and polluted, was revealed.
When the Demonic Bandits and several types of new monsters made their appearance.
When the major boss Pei Yuanshao made his shocking debut before the Cloud Players.
The game forum instantly exploded — who would have thought that just taking a detour could result in such an unexpected encounter?
This game truly held surprises and changes at every moment, making it so that no one could predict what would happen next.
“Oh my god!”
“This is too thrilling!”
“Can that thing still be considered human?”
“Pei Yuanshao looks way too twisted!”
“Another Abyss Commander? Isn’t he as difficult as Ma Yuanyi?!”
“Hyped! Release merch now! I want to hang Ma Yuanyi and Pei Yuanshao on my wall and admire them!”
“Am I the only one wondering why Pei Yuanshao isn’t the boss of Woniu Mountain? If the biggest boss in this region isn’t Zhou Cang or Pei Yuanshao, other than Guan Zhao, I really can’t think of anyone else qualified.”
“We’re doomed! Judging by this, it’s going to be another wipe!”
“……”
Wang Yue was also deeply shocked when he saw Pei Yuanshao’s grotesque, demonic form.
He could hardly imagine how players were supposed to defeat such a terrifying monster.
What kind of experience would it be to fight such an existence?
Whether it was Ma Yuanyi or Pei Yuanshao.
They were just minor characters in the star-filled world of the Three Kingdoms.
The game’s potential for derivative content and its expansive world-building were enormous!
Wang Yue hurriedly scrolled faster.
“Don’t tell me they really got wiped out like everyone predicted!”
If they got wiped this time.
The mission would be impossible to complete.
Players wouldn’t be able to reach the ancient city of Sanxiang on schedule.
Not only would they miss seeing the city today, it might also affect future missions…
And if an NPC like Zhou Ji died in battle, he would be gone for good!
However.
The outcome was unexpected.
Not only did the players miraculously defeat Pei Yuanshao, they also obtained a huge amount of loot in the process.
When the fallen Brother Xiao Ma revealed the news, it once again caused a wave of cheers and celebration on the forum.
“Awesome!”
“Internal test players really are pros!”
“Even such a powerful boss got one-shot cleared!”
“Hah, you’re overestimating those guys. Last time Ma Yuanyi was thanks to my God Yu, this time Pei Yuanshao was thanks to Uncle Zhou. Without them, how could a dozen people possibly win?”
“This trip was such a huge profit!”
“So jealous!”
“……”
Wang Yue saw that the Calamity Army elites, after a full day of effort, finally overcame all difficulties and completed the mission.
When a mysterious and hazy photo of Sanxiang City appeared before him, his feelings were just as excited as those of the other players on the forum.
Mysterious and grand!
But also tinged with a strange eeriness!
The city itself was not large in scale or area.
But it gave the feeling that countless secrets were buried within, making it impossible not to want to explore inside.
According to the latest reports from Black-Eyed Rui Ge, Chimera Wraith, and others who just logged off,
although today’s operation had come to a temporary end,
they had triggered a new mission just before going offline: “Activate the Fate Stone of Sanxiang City”!
“This mission is extremely difficult!”
“After all, there are only twelve of us players left!”
“Feels like the success rate of claiming the Fate Stone is almost zero!”
In the latest update, Black-Eyed Rui Ge said: “But since the mission has already been triggered, we’ll still do our best to try. Please keep following our game progress. We expect to reveal the internal layout of Sanxiang City tomorrow, and attempt to approach the Fate Stone!”
Cloud Players buzzed with speculation.
“No way!”
“This mission is way too hard!”
“How can we possibly seize the Fate Stone with so few people?”
“Even though this mission is extremely difficult, the rewards are also incredibly generous.”
“Can’t we just negotiate and convince the Ancient City of Sanxiang to surrender willingly?”
“……”
After Wang Yue read through all the information revealed by internal test players about the Ancient City of Sanxiang, he became deeply interested in the mission the players had triggered.
The players had run into a major problem.
But it was also a great opportunity!
This type of high-difficulty special mission was exactly the kind of thing someone with his professional background excelled at.
Moreover, Wang Yue wasn’t acting alone.
He had an entire department behind him, and could even mobilize national-level think tanks and strategic experts to advise the players and offer solutions.
He had already obtained access to the game.
If he could help the players complete this difficult mission, he would not only earn their trust but also build some prestige, which would help him integrate into the player community.
Wang Yue therefore made a dedicated post, first revealing that he was among the latest batch of internal test players, and then claiming to be a doctoral candidate at a prestigious military academy, even displaying his military rank to enhance credibility.
Then, as a prospective player and professional, he began helping the players analyze the feasibility of this operation.
His main points were roughly as follows:
First, the Calamity Army was currently nowhere near strong enough to match the Dragon-Lizard People.
However, as human Players, they possessed enormous advantages that other races didn’t.
Therefore, they should avoid direct frontal conflict and instead look for weaknesses from within.
Second, while the mission seemed difficult, it was actually fully executable.
According to the mission description, Players did not need to capture the Ancient City of Sanxiang or defeat any powerful enemy.
What they needed to do was activate the Blessing Point at any cost.
Once activated, the Lord would most likely arrive promptly, and everything afterward could be left to the Lord.
Third, based on the limited intel currently available, Wang Yue proposed several feasible plans.
For example, they could fully exploit various internal and external conflicts.
Externally, they could incite and lure the Dragon-Lizards to attack the city to tie up their armed forces.
Internally, they could use Zhou Ji to unite or bribe a portion of the people that could be rallied.
Fourth...
Fifth...
Wang Yue offered many suggestions.
In the end, he left a comment in the post:
“In fact, it’s not just me. My teachers and classmates are all very interested in Twisted Three Kingdoms, but unfortunately they haven’t gotten game access yet.
I hope the top players can voluntarily provide a detailed map of Sanxiang City and more intel.
My teachers and classmates are willing to help study the situation and provide strategic advice free of charge.”
After the post was published, it quickly attracted many replies from fellow users.
A large portion of them congratulated or envied him for getting access to the game.
Many Players also thought the advice he provided was clear and logical.
Whether it would be useful or not, it clearly came from a highly professional expert.
Not long after that,
Wang Yue received several private messages from internal test players.
Among them were even famous players like Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Ye Li Meng.
Wang Yue felt that he could soon integrate into this group of Players.
He even began considering secretly building or supporting a faction that could operate behind the scenes for the department, gathering more intel.
Of course, putting work aside, he was also full of anticipation about being able to enter such a special game.