# Chapter 5: From Virtual to Reality (2)
Lin Nan wasn’t really surprised by the game system’s audacious plan to lure nearly a hundred million players into the Asking Dao Continent.
Ever since the bl**d of All Spirits Formation had successfully extended the lives of countless beings in the Asking Dao Continent by two years, the Divine Clan seemed to have gone crazy with mischief.
Now that she thought about it, launching “The Way of Inquiry” and pulling players into the Asking Dao world was possibly part of the system’s grand experiment.
How do you get intelligent beings from another dimension to willingly step into your world? Games, of course! The best vehicle for such shenanigans.
And the pricey Game Pods, being the high-barrier essentials for entry, effectively controlled the number of players, allowing the system to cater to their gaming cravings within that specific range.
They even managed to preserve the players’ consciousness after d*ath, reconstruct their bodies, and resurrect them!
The reason for the penalties associated with d*ath and all those restrictions was simply to prevent players from exploiting malicious deaths for personal gain, which would create a maintenance nightmare for the system.
So, based on her hypotheses,
These players were likely never meant to be harvested by the Divine Clan.
When Judgment Day comes, they could always launch an expansion pack and let players choose their sides. It’s all just a game—what does it matter who you play with?
Players are profit-driven creatures; talking about justice with them? That’s a comedy show waiting to happen.
Once the local races are mostly wiped out, let the players take charge of the continent’s order! With their cleverness, who knows? In just a few years, they might restore the Asking Dao Continent to its former glory.
By giving the troublemaking players the title of Preachers, the development speed of the Asking Dao Continent could skyrocket past previous records.
Moreover, players’ levels are controllable; with a level cap set, players used to the system’s aid wouldn’t just burst through like those NPCs.
This nicely sidesteps risks while accelerating the beings’ path to cultivation—400 years could be trimmed down to 100, 50, or even less!
Of course, that’s assuming the game keeps the players’ interest piqued.
But little did the Divine Clan expect,
An uprising was brewing in the Asking Dao Continent under their rule.
The Flowerless Palace rebooted the bl**d of All Spirits Formation, postponing the harvest by another two years.
That surely crossed the Divine Clan’s nagging taboo,
Or maybe even derailed their plans. One way or another, the Divine Clan was quite unhappy.
To make up for those two years of losses, they decided to include players in the harvest process.
Players, though not as capable as NPCs, boasted sheer numbers. With tens of millions of players, they were nearly the same number as the local three races.
As long as they could detach the system from the players, they would be just like local beings. d*ath? No biggie. There are plenty of folks from another dimension to spare.
And that whole promise of sending them back in two years? Just sweet talk!
After all, once you’ve harvested, how can you send folks back?
Of course, all of the above was Lin Nan’s speculation after receiving the system announcement.
While she couldn’t fully confirm whether the system was wearing the same pants as the Divine Clan, it was pretty clear that the system was heavily influenced by them, and most current changes were tilting in their favor.
She truly couldn’t imagine the chaotic mental state of nearly a hundred million disorganized and undisciplined players suddenly crossing over to the Asking Dao Continent.
But there was one thing she was sure of.
The old players who had been bumming around in the Asking Dao world for nearly half a year would undoubtedly become their backbone.
Humans are social animals,
Without sticking together, survival is tough.
While the Asking Dao Continent isn’t some desolate land, with the Monster Race being the only uncivilized lot, the Human and Demon races have their own civilized societies, with towns and villages peppered everywhere.
Surviving isn’t hard,
The challenge lies in how to make it through Judgment Day two years down the line.
……
Outside Cold Wind City.
After the third chapter of the expansion pack kicked off, a significant chunk of players had firmly joined the Monster Race faction, eager to clash with the Human and Demon races for some high-stakes rewards from the system.
However, Cold Wind City kept its gates tightly shut, refusing entry to players, which sparked a wave of complaints.
We came to help you fight! Not even letting us through the gates? Aren’t we supposed to respect our allies?
If it weren’t for the backing of the Extermination of Immortals and Cold Moon Witch, players would’ve lost their patience and stormed in by now.
I mean, waiting in the wild for days on end? Boring!
No clue when Cold Wind City would officially start the battle—it felt like a colossal waste of their glorious youth.
Hence, quite a few restless players shifted into forest-cleaning mode.
Some temporarily vacant caves became their attack targets, allowing them to snag some experience and loot.
The “High School History Teacher,” a staunch follower of the Witch, watched with keen interest the Witch’s scheme to reform Cold Wind City with her red ideology.
Despite Cold Wind City’s seemingly unwelcoming closure to players, he firmly believed the Princess Witch had her reasons for it.
Before long, various new player villages mysteriously sprung up around Cold Wind City.
The influx of newbies threw the “Following the Red Flag” guild led by the High School History Teacher into a frenzy of excitement.
He finally understood,
This was the real reason behind Cold Wind City’s refusal to let old players in.
The emergence of new player villages meant,
A tidal wave of rookie players eagerly diving into this game world.
They typically brimmed with curiosity about the first major city they encountered, unknowingly treating it as a replacement for home.
Establishing their sense of belonging to Cold Wind City, and getting them to genuinely identify with the Monster Race would quickly amplify the city’s strength.
Surely Cold Wind City must have been racing to expand these days—not just for old players, but to surprise the newcomers too.
As loyal followers of the Witch, they couldn’t abandon their mission of red education for the newbies.
Ideological territory doesn’t defend itself; if you don’t occupy it, someone else will.
As the one red holy site in the Asking Dao world, how could Cold Wind City allow outsiders to encroach?
The High School History Teacher brimmed with zeal, and the 1,500-strong troop under him swiftly occupied all the exits of the new player villages.
They aimed to ensure that newcomers would see a flurry of high-flying red flags before they even left the village!
And on the seventh night of the new player villages multiplying,
Everyone received a system broadcast.
Compared to other guilds, the “Following the Red Flag” guild experienced the least fluctuations in thought among its members.
The High School History Teacher looked up at the deep sky, his eyes filled with profound thoughts about the future.
Only by quickly establishing a red society could everyone thrive in this world.
At that moment, he suddenly sensed something.
He whirled around to see a figure in a flowing black dress silhouetted against the bright moon atop the city wall, her tall, elegant form and cold, regal aura instinctively inspiring feelings of reverence and admiration.
Is it her?
……
Ps: Leave a mark if you want to see the plot of the Red Empire.
