this infinite world

"Our next mission world is Dark Souls."

Of course, despite his reflections, Chu Hao, as the team leader, wouldn't let these things interfere with his important tasks. After a brief mental adjustment, he returned to his usual work routine with a serious demeanor: "This is a world with extremely high difficulty, so from now on, we need to prepare in advance."

"Dark Souls? If I remember correctly, this isn't a movie, but a game, right?"

Upon hearing the name Chu Hao mentioned, Tom, a typical otaku who knew many games inside and out before entering the Main God Space, immediately raised his hand. But because of this, having experienced several worlds before, he asked curiously, "We've all experienced movie worlds before, so this time shouldn't be an exception... Could it be a movie with the same name?"

"No, Tom, you're right. We're about to enter a game world."

Chu Hao nodded seriously, confirming Tom's guess: "We also know from the matter of divinity that the main god is constantly evolving. The stronger the god is, the more secrets it knows, the greater the difficulty of the mission, and the wider the range of horror movie worlds it can enter... Not only movie worlds, but also worlds in TV series, comics, animations, and games may appear in our missions."

As he spoke, Chu Hao lightly traced a line in the air with his finger, and instantly, a stream of azure light bloomed before everyone's eyes. That light was not a simple visual projection, but rather transformed directly into countless streams of information, imprinting itself deep into the minds of all the team members in an incredibly peculiar way.

In an instant, the magnificent panorama of the Dark Souls world slowly unfolded in everyone's consciousness: the decaying royal city of Anor Londo cast long shadows under the setting sun, the cursed ones of the Undead Town let out inhuman howls, and the bonfire of Firelink Shrine flickered in the eternal darkness... Even more bizarrely, these scenes did not exist in the form of "watching," but were as real as if they were experienced firsthand.

They could even clearly feel the damp, chilly air of the Undead Quarter outside the city, smell the lingering, decaying stench of blood from the Northern Undead Asylum, and sense the layers of deadly intent within the ancient city of Thane. Each scene carried an almost tangible weight, along with the atmosphere of despair and desolation, deeply etched into their memories…

"The story of Dark Souls is actually very simple."

This feeling came quickly and went quickly. When the blue light faded and everyone was out of that immersive feeling, Chu Hao's voice rang out again: "In ancient times, the world had not yet been divided. It was shrouded in a thick fog, and everywhere there were gray rocks, towering trees, and immortal ancient dragons."

"Then, one day, the First Flame was ignited, and as the flame rose, the world began to change. The powerful who obtained the First Flame defeated the ancient dragons and established the Age of Fire, and a glorious civilization."

"But fire eventually goes out, leaving only darkness. So the protagonist, an immortal, will embark on a pilgrimage to find the flame, so as to reignite the world and bring light back to it."

"...It sounds like a glorious and righteous story."

With a bruised and swollen face, Zhang Heng rubbed his temples. Unusually, he didn't say anything funny, but seriously explained his views on the game: "However, I have a question. Since the initial flame has been divided up by the strong, how can the characters controlled by the players reignite this world?"

"Kill."

Chu Hao's answer was quite simple, but the simpler the words, the more they reflected the bloody atmosphere behind them: "In this world, 'soul' is a universal currency that can be bought, sold, traded, and plundered..." "Moreover, the same goes for 'humanity' as a human being. Although there are immortals in this world, as people die more, they will gradually lose their humanity, memories, and emotions, until they finally become a walking corpse, a living corpse driven only by its own instincts."

"Isn't it basically a story about how to save the world in the face of an impending apocalypse?"

Nian Xikong ate her popcorn without any pressure. Perhaps Chu Hao's "movie projection method," which directly affects the mind, was a bit of a burden for those with weaker mental strength. But for Nian Xikong, it was like watching a real holographic movie. Her experience of constantly reincarnating into different dimensions also allowed her to comment on the game's plot without any pressure: "Where there is heat, there is cold; where there is life, there is death; where there is light, there is darkness. Isolated yin cannot grow, isolated yang cannot be born; all things in the world are like this..."

"However, wouldn't it be possible to do it the other way around? Extinguish the First Flame and end the Age of Fire..."

"This is the story of another path, not choosing to integrate a vast soul into the world, rekindle the primordial fire, and prolong the world's life; but returning all souls to oneself to become the King of Darkness."

Faced with Nian Xikong's evaluation, Chu Hao simply shook his head: "As for whether to continue the Age of Fire or end it, that depends entirely on the players' ideas, and it's also a question we'll have to consider."

Although Chu Hao said this, everyone understood the young man's attitude, their exchanged glances revealing their mutual understanding. Chu Hao had always harbored a certain obsession with the concept of "saving the world," or rather, he had always steadfastly walked this path of salvation, practicing that seemingly naive ideal in a near-self-destructive manner. Therefore, it seemed that this situation was likely similar…

"No, this time, I will not make such a rash decision to 'save the world' before I understand the whole situation."

But to everyone's surprise, Chu Hao took the initiative to speak, saying, "Plan before you act, and know when to stop to gain something. Since the last incident, I have fully learned from the experience. After all, no matter what you do, you must have enough strength, otherwise you will just be recklessly leading everyone into a fire pit."

"So what are you going to do?"

Surprisingly, the first to ask a question was Sterry, who hadn't said much until now. A glint flashed in the young man's eyes as he bluntly asked Chu Hao, "Is there some kind of plan? Or some other scheme?"

"No, we need to make a plan after that, but before anything begins..."

Having said that, Chu Hao flipped his hand, revealing something—

"—We'll have to bring our former comrades back first." (End of Chapter)