Chapter 2: 2. Chapter 2: A Game? Welcome to the Yunzhou Continent!

Chapter 2: A Game? Welcome to the Yunzhou Continent!

The world never lacks people with nothing better to do.

Even a gimmick as cliché as "Starting with a Broken Sect" will still attract clicks.

"Today's developers are truly insane. They dare to advertise anything—even a virtual cultivation game. And an unknown developer at that? It's definitely a scam game! How dare they claim there's no data wipe before it's even launched?"

Zhou Xiao was exactly that kind of person with nothing better to do.

She was a veteran of this large-scale gaming forum. Every time a new game was released, she would approach it with a sense of curiosity, wanting to taste whether it was pure excellence or total garbage.

First, she clicked into the website.

What met her eyes was an ancient, elegant, and ethereal background. A plaque symbolizing a sect was nestled within the clouds, inscribed with a script Zhou Xiao had never seen before; she couldn't recognize a single character.

The visual fidelity looked impressive, suggesting they had spent a fortune hiring professional artists.

Then again, if the storefront didn't look good, how could they trick anyone into clicking?

The first thing that popped up was an [Important Notice].

[1. This is a cultivation world game with no forced storylines.

2. The main quest is to help the Sect Leader, Song Jiulai, strengthen the sect and freely explore the Yunzhou Continent. If Song Jiulai dies, the game ends immediately.

3. There is no resurrection system. Upon death, the player's account and character are considered dead, and the identity ID will be banned for a period of time. To play again, please participate in a new recruitment drive for eligibility.]

[Highlight: Please treat Song Jiulai as if she were the most important woman in your life!]

[Note: The game offers extreme freedom. Please do not offend any NPCs.]

"What the hell is this?"

Zhou Xiao was stunned.

"Even if she's the female lead, shouldn't you at least show me what she looks like!"

Whether attracting male or female players, there should at least be a picture of a beautiful man or woman, right?

This was a common flaw in low-quality games on the market; they all had different styles to attract specific player demographics.

This game had nothing, and the story that popped up was nothing short of absurd.

"No plot, and the introduction is vague. Just this..."

Zhou Xiao sneered, "If this isn't a scam game, I'll twist my head off and kick it like a ball! Once I get in to try it, I am definitely writing a ten-thousand-word negative review!"

She filled out her recruitment information, and because it was first-come, first-served, she immediately obtained testing eligibility.

To her surprise, the game even had its own server port; one only needed to connect any VR device to download the game locally.

However, the display showed that the server port would not open for another two days. If the recruitment quota was filled early, it would open sooner.

In other words, even after filling out the information, she couldn't play yet.

But after submitting her details, there was another highlighted prompt: [Please note, the opening time for this game's port is October 1, 2024, between 20:00 and 21:00. After this time, the channel will close. Even if you are eligible, you will not be able to participate in the test and must wait for the next opportunity!]

"Are you kidding me? Restricting the time to play? Are you afraid people will actually play your game?"

Zhou Xiao searched for information about this developer online: "Longevity Sect? They don't even have an introductory website. Could they really be a scam company?"

With the mindset of "I won't be the only one eating shit," Zhou Xiao sent her recruitment info to her usual gaming group.

[Little Lady with Strength to Move Mountains: Brothers and sisters, come register for this trash game to test the waters. They actually claim it's a full-immersion virtual cultivation game. Once I've tried it, I will definitely write a ten-thousand-word review to shatter this developer's Dao heart!]

[I Once Shook the Mountain to Warn the Tiger: Huh? What kind of game is this?]

[I Once Shook the Mountain to Warn the Tiger: Holy crap, they actually claim it's a virtual game? Which trash developer is releasing a scam game now?]

[Professional Game Reviewer: Hahahaha, developers these days really have abandoned all basic principles. They release a low-quality VR game and dare to call it 'virtual,' huh?]

[Shocking News: I'm bored anyway, I'll go take a look.]

[I Once Shook the Mountain to Warn the Tiger: Oh? Big Boss, aren't you reviewing V-Corp's new game lately?]

[Shocking News: Already tested it. I quit after ten minutes. It's absolute garbage—terrible controls, the plot is a pile of shit. I don't know how V-Corp can still put out such trash in the year 9042. It dies right at launch, I'm telling you.]

[I am a V-Corp Diehard Fan:...Do I need to change my name?]

...

The gaming group was buzzing. Soon, the number of people recruited for testing quietly surpassed ten.

Zhou Xiao was quite satisfied. She hadn't expected a big shot like "Shocking News" to join her in "eating shit"—ahem, in reviewing the game together.

Shocking News was a titan in the gaming industry. He could predict with high accuracy whether a game would become a hit or a flop after his trial run. He was also a famous influencer on Weibo with a great reputation, and he rarely accepted game advertisements.

He mostly criticized games rather than praised them.

The only two games he had ever praised had both become massive hits in the industry.

Many games would proactively seek him out for testing before launch, though he didn't accept every offer.

Usually, filling out the initial recruitment for a test would grant a download link immediately, but this broken sect actually required the recruitment to be full first.

Staring at the number stuck at 15 for a long time, Zhou Xiao felt it looked pathetic. She casually sent the game info to several other groups to promote it, hoping to get a crowd to taste the salt and bitterness with her.

Then, she went downstairs to buy something to eat.

In the Yunzhou Continent, Song Jiulai was also staring fixedly at that recruitment number.

System: "Stop looking. It won't reach the limit just by staring at it."

Song Jiulai was worried: "I'm not worried about the future. I just can't afford to fail to recruit 50 people in the first batch and waste my quota."

The system channel could only be opened once to link compatible soul consciousnesses, and there was only a one-hour preparation window.

To open the channel again, Song Jiulai would have to develop the sect to a scale capable of recruiting newcomers; otherwise, it would be an inefficient waste of energy.

Song Jiulai certainly hoped to recruit all 50 people.

She had originally wanted to ask the system to cheat and run an advertisement on Weibo, but the system said there wasn't enough energy and advised her not to do unnecessary things.

Everything was left to fate.

"Sect Leader!"

The clear voice of the herb-gathering boy, A-Wu, pulled Song Jiulai back to her senses. "Senior Sister Su from the Flying Sparrow Sect has come to deliver something. She said she has finished making what you requested."

Song Jiulai immediately sprang up. Looking at A-Wu, the only other living soul in the sect besides herself, Song Jiulai said earnestly, "A-Wu, starting tomorrow night, I am going to give you an important task. Some people will be coming to our sect. From now on, you will be their Eldest Senior Brother... let me explain it to you in detail!"

After giving A-Wu his instructions, Song Jiulai received fifty brand-new puppets from Su Huanli.

The puppets could help her work, but they required a continuous consumption of spiritual energy. Without replenishment, they would quickly rot.

Thus, the players who traveled through could use this body to experience the normal process of eating and drinking.

Two days later, fortunately, Song Jiulai's hopes were not in vain. Zhou Xiao's idea of bringing a crowd to "taste the salt and bitterness" had successfully filled the quota to fifty people.

If Song Jiulai knew about Zhou Xiao's actions, she would have undoubtedly given her the position of Eldest Senior Sister without hesitation.

She was a genius!

Seeing that the server opening time was eight o'clock, and with everything prepared, Zhou Xiao sat at home wearing her VR goggles, ready to begin this "maliciously intended" review.

The moment she put on the goggles, the time on her phone jumped to 8:00 PM—the standard opening time for night owls.

Everything went black before Zhou Xiao's eyes, and she suddenly heard a strange, mechanical voice.

"Do you voluntarily enter the game to experience life in the Yunzhou Continent and follow the arrangements of Sect Leader Song Jiulai?"

It was likely a safety warning similar to those before playing a game, but no controller prompts for "Agree" or "Disagree" appeared before her eyes.

So, Zhou Xiao tentatively said, "Agree?"

"Agreement constitutes a contract. Welcome to the Yunzhou Continent. Your brand-new life begins now!"