# Chapter 1: New Hope (2)
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“New Hope? What New Hope!”
One player suddenly jumped up and shouted, attracting a bunch of confused looks from those around him.
“You guys should flip to page twenty! There’s a post from a Cold Wind City player, and there are almost ten thousand replies!”
“d*mn it, this bird-brained forum doesn’t even have a sticky feature—almost gave us a heart attack missing this important news.”
Xiao Ai froze for a moment, wiping away a tear as he remembered a livestream post he had seen earlier. The female player who was about to become a snack for others had also mentioned “New Hope.” He thought it was just some vague expression, but to his surprise, there was actual information related to “New Hope” on the forum.
He immediately flipped to page twenty and indeed found a post with a ton of replies.
“Cold Wind City, Humanity’s New Hope!
Want to escape hunger and not worry about survival anymore? Want to live in peace and happiness from now on?
Cold Wind City will be your forever home!”
The post cut straight to the chase, introducing the content that players cared about most.
“Everyone knows the name Cold Wind City, right?
This article is mainly for new players, but seasoned players, please bear with us.
Cold Wind City is located in the Chaos Forest, surrounded by trees with big and small lakes dotted around the city like pearls. Here’s proof.
[The photo shows an aerial view, with Cold Wind City in the middle, and indeed, as mentioned, the lakes outside are scattered like pearls, with a dazzling blue-green hue.]
So, Cold Wind City is rich in resources and has enough food reserves to feed an extra two million people.
Of course, even if our population exceeds expectations, we can quickly ramp up production. The animals hibernating in the forest and the delicious fish beneath the lake ice can become our food, as long as we can hold on until spring.
We will cultivate large fields outside the city, and everyone can work to sustain themselves.
Each person can find their dignity in Cold Wind City.
Here are some photos of early players who chose Cold Wind City as their birthplace for reference.
As long as you can successfully reach Cold Wind City, you’ll never want to leave, just like them.
[Neatly arranged wooden two-story houses, cozy yet simply decorated rooms, and the cheerful scene of players dining together at a long table.]”
I must say, these photos were a huge temptation for players still out in the wild.
Life in Cold Wind City looked like it was from a completely different world.
Most people were struggling without clothes and food in the winter, fighting tooth and nail just to survive. They had long abandoned their dignity; as long as there was something to eat, they would do anything.
Meanwhile, the players in Cold Wind City were living lives almost identical to the real world.
How could that not make people envious to the point of madness?
But the post didn’t end there:
“Cold Wind City is under the reign of the greatest queen ever, Princess Cold Moon Witch. She also rules White Feather City, Cold Wind City, and the important human stronghold Thousand Bird City. In all her territories, there are no horrific scenes of cannibalism; every player seeking refuge has been properly settled. We can’t lie about this because every player has the right to post and reply. If there’s even one false word, they would be ruthlessly criticized on the forum.
Though the treatment doesn’t compare to the real world, at least we can exchange labor for food and live with dignity.
So, I, with the game ID ‘High School History Teacher,’ sincerely hope that all players who see this post, if you have the conditions, can go to the three cities above. We will follow the Princess’s instructions and properly settle every player, striving to help more people survive this brutal winter.
Here are the maps of the three cities, so players can go to the nearest one.
Additionally, we’ve set up transfer points at the border of the Chaos Forest and human territories.
Players wishing to head directly to Cold Wind City or White Feather City can go to the transfer points, where we have dedicated staff to ensure your safety.
Simply put, as long as you reach the transfer point, you starving ones can keep living.
Thank you to Princess Cold Moon Witch for providing us shelter!
Cold Wind City, Humanity’s New Hope, awaits your arrival!”
Countless replies flooded the bottom of the post.
People struggled through the vast snowy plains, clinging to life on the brink of d*ath, and thought they had lost all hope.
But this post gave the players on the edge of collapse a glimmer of hope.
Plus, Princess Cold Moon Witch had left an indelible impression on many seasoned players, and their understanding of her strength, mystery, and beauty was firmly rooted.
Indeed, even Thousand Bird City had submitted to the Princess; the once-mighty Heavenly Sword Sect fled at the sight of her.
In this life-or-d*ath moment, what did it matter if the Princess was a Great Demon? They should throw their lot in with Cold Wind City; that was the only way to survive.
On to Cold Wind City! We must reach Cold Wind City before we d*e!
That is the sacred ground guarded by Princess Cold Moon Witch, our last New Hope!
Just as Xiao Ai and the others excitedly scrolled through the replies, some dissenting voices popped up.
“You fools, this continent has extremely low production capabilities and standards. A city located in a forest with poor transportation—how could it claim to support two million people’s food?!
The truth is, you hopeful idiots will become food for Cold Wind City once you arrive, devoured alive!”
“That’s right! Even the tall and handsome demons are struggling for food, but at least they offer every player two buns a day as a kindness. Why don’t you all go to the demon territories?”
“Not only that, but if a player stands out, the demons might even give you a chance for promotion!
Like me! I’m part of the demon race now—check out the horns on my head! Haha, I feel like I have infinite power, and those witches are nothing but trash. The demons will wipe them all out and ultimately unify the continent!”
Seeing these obviously demon trolls stirring trouble, the players from Cold Wind City, White Feather City, and Thousand Bird City were furious.
They rallied with posts and pictures reflecting their real lives, revealing more players to the truth.
This also strengthened many players’ determination to continue moving toward Cold Wind City, toward Princess Cold Moon Witch.
“Clap…”
As browsing time ended, Xiao Ai and the others’ forum interface became unselectable.
Even so, under the glow of the campfire, everyone’s expressions changed.
“We should go too, to Cold Wind City!” a player suggested.
Immediately someone piped up, “We all saw it! The Cold Moon Witch, she…”
Everyone fell silent. Right, if Cold Wind City’s greatest reliance on the Cold Moon Witch fell to the Fallen Species, then so-called New Hope would be nothing more than a mirage, destined to be slaughtered by the powerful Fallen Species.
After a long while, everyone’s eyes inevitably turned to Xiao Ai.
“Xiao Ai, what do you think we should do next?”
