The Monster is Coming

Chapter 431 The Chaos of the Sun, Mechanical Impact

Qi Sheng withdrew his gaze from the direction of the Azure Star Sea.

He has been following the progress of the Explorers' creation of "Fengwu Poems".

This behavior is essentially serving the gaming experience of all players.

This also indirectly helped him build player factions, reduced the difficulty for players to explore the world, and increased the fun.

To his surprise, the explorer grasped the concept of pressure.

When he introduced the Intimidation System, it wasn't to provide players with a fixed template for special skills.

It makes no sense.

The existing stellar vein system does not require any irregular external forces to embellish it.

The core objective is to plant a seed within the player's camp.

The hope is that players can use this to forge their own unique "path of rules".

This requires players to have a deep understanding of themselves and to perfectly combine that understanding with the power of their outward emotions.

This is something that most players haven't even touched upon.

The pressure is simply viewed as a special skill, and its strength is understood by players to be far lower than other functions such as rune resonance weapons and the cultivation system.

Since its launch, less than one in 300,000 players have spent their resources to activate the pressure function.

While the explorer was creating inspiration for his landscape poems, he inadvertently stumbled upon the core growth direction of the Intimidation System: custom emotions.

The level of authority one can exert depends on their deep control over their own emotions and personality.

Within the established template of cowardice and oppression, the explorers begin to try to transform all their insights from the journey into "colors."

This marks the beginning of a powerful path from using rules to defining "custom rules".

Developing one's own rules is also a path to a divine realm.

This path, besides the fighting spirit, courage, and murderous intent accumulated during hunting, can also be about accumulating emotions during travel, just like an explorer.

At present, players are still in the early stages, and development in this area has not yet begun.

But Qi Sheng is certain that some players will emerge from among them in the future.

To create rules that are unique to themselves.

A quick glance at the forum revealed that the discussion surrounding the Fengwu Poetry plugin was currently skyrocketing.

It has become one of the must-have plugins in the eyes of players, which can greatly enhance the immersive fun of exploration.

Without paying much attention further, Qi Sheng, having received the guidance and feedback, turned his gaze to the more distant Land of Chasing the Sun.

This once relatively unpopular region is becoming increasingly popular over time.

Behind this is the Gold Coin Merchants Association, which is fueling the movement.

The guild that Alan formed during his early stages, based on the "Combined Vajra" model, is now under the full management of a member of the Lunar Eclipse Clan.

This member of the Lunar Eclipse Clan, based in the Land of the Sun, formed a united battle group, inviting promising guilds to join and jointly explore the unknown landscape of the Land of the Sun.

With the Gold Coin Merchant Guild acting as a benefactor, continuously providing financial support, the Allied Forces are developing rapidly.

Alan's core purpose in doing this was to target the two rules controlled by the two dominant forces in the Land of the Sun.

On one side is the mechanical legion that occupies the continent of the Earth-Ringing.

The mechanical overlord behind the scenes is as large as the moon and its combat power is among the top in the demigod realm.

To reach the demigod realm, one needs to break through the life leap threshold of level 500. This aspect of the system has not yet been perfected in the player system.

After all, players are still quite far from reaching the demigod realm.

The Mechanical Overlord's analytical hunting strength has reached level 787.

Although he failed to reach the divine realm, he was more than capable of crushing several ordinary demigods at the "Great Stele Sacrifice" level.

On the other side is the Virtual Rune Legion, which has fulfilled the prerequisites of the rules and directly ascended from a two-dimensional life form to a demigod-level force.

These two major forces respectively possess the two rules of [Divine Metal] and [Dimensional Ascension].

In Alan's strategic blueprint, these two rules will be a great help when "StarNet" enters the market in the future.

In particular, the Divine Metal Rule can endow "metal" with rule-level power, turning it into a living metal that can be shaped at will.

It can also rapidly increase the strength of living metals by consuming other metals.

Alan believes that if the Divine Gold Rules were made into a special life soul within the player system and bound to the player.

Then, without fear of wear and tear, a mechanical army can be woven anytime, anywhere.

Living metals are very similar to Kuroshio particles in terms of plasticity.

In war, they can switch troop types at any time, just like the Black Tide.

This is also a war model that StarNet once envisioned.

Therefore, Alan spared no expense, investing a large amount of resources into the development of the Land of Chasing the Sun.

Provide the Allied Guild with intelligence, sacrificial power, and other assistance.

He intends to use the Land of the Rising Sun as a strategic foothold to build a powerful war legion, and then extend his influence to the entire Earth-Ringing Continent.

The ultimate goal is to make the player faction a third-party force vying for supremacy on the Rumbling Continent.

Together with the Mechanical Legion and the Virtual Rune Legion, they form a three-way balance of power.

Until the other two major powers, and the rules they control, are brought under their control.

……

The land of chasing the sun, the wailing stone forest.

The sky here is perpetually a hazy, golden hue.

Three dim suns hung in the scorched brown sky, casting a rusty hue over everything.

Click!

A boot crushed half a weathered skeleton on the ground. The player with the game ID "Stone War" was walking slowly through this forest of weathered giant stones.

As a member of the reconnaissance team of the "Gold Coin Alliance", his mission today is to lead his squad members to complete the map scene shrouded in mist in the "Wailing Stone Forest" area under their feet.

Normally, map exploration tasks would be handled by players who enjoy exploring the map.

Without any requests, they will proactively dispel all the fog on the map, always staying ahead of the player legions in their development and progress.

However, this area under our feet is quite special, with a very high density of monsters and various spatial turbulence.

This makes exploration very inconvenient.

For players who prefer exploration, the Sunburst Lands are not the only region to choose from; there are other, better options available.

Therefore, the fog surrounding the map here has never been dispelled.

He was joined by hundreds of others tasked with exploring the area.

They set off in different directions.

The area he had explored was now completely silent, save for the mournful sound of the wind whistling through the holes in the stone pillars, like the whispers of countless departed souls.

But Shi Zhan didn't care and continued striding forward.

During this time, they also kept an eye on the content in the team chat channel.

"You guys really have to admit, if I had the 'Poetic Scenery' plugin made by Coward, adding some music to my reconnaissance process, it would feel completely different," Shi Zhan laughed in the channel, his feet moving swiftly as he circled around a crooked stone pillar.

"Brother Zhan, what kind of background music do you want? I'll sing it for you right now, how about I charge you 1000 points of sacrificial power for one minute? That's not too much to ask, is it?" a player joked in the voice channel.

Upon hearing this, Shi Zhan couldn't help but laugh and scold:
"Get lost. Your singing sounds like you're banging a broken gong. I'd rather spend 1000 points of sacrificial power to shut you up for a minute."

"Okay, send the money, but first, I'll give you an hour of silence."

"No, I'm desperate for money. The sacrificial power is almost all going to me. Everyone knows I'm a spendthrift who spends all my sacrificial power. I haven't even figured out what to eat for tonight, so I was thinking of mooching a meal from you guys." Shi Zhan refused outright.

A few soft laughs from the other teammates immediately rang out in the channel.

"Brother Zhan, seriously, after crossing that area densely populated with monsters, this place is unusually quiet."

Shi Zhan stopped, looked around, and nodded:
"Me too, nothing but the sound of wind... Never mind that, if there's danger, we'll go back to the village and come back. Let's keep our spirits up and speed up our exploration."

"receive."

The team chat channel immediately fell silent.

After ending the conversation, Shi Zhan continued walking forward nonchalantly.

The howling wind sounds eerie, but it has the safety net of resurrection, so what's there to be afraid of?

We went around a crooked stone pillar.

"Ok?"

A faint buzzing sound rang in his ears, sounding particularly abrupt in this quiet place.

"What's leaking electricity?" Instead of being alarmed, he became interested.

He quickened his pace and immediately jogged over to see what was making the sound.

After a few steps around the huge rock blocking the way, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

On a patch of rubble, a metal instrument about half the height of a person stood.

With its dark silver streamlined shell, it exudes a strong sense of technology, which is seriously out of place with the surrounding style.

A thin rod stands upright on top of the instrument, inside which a deep blue crystal flickers rhythmically as if breathing.

There were several robotic arms stuck in the ground below, stirring something up, I don't know.

When faced with a problem that he couldn't solve, Shi Zhan decisively activated the analysis function to scan it.

Immediately, information related to mechanical instruments came to mind:

[Wolf-level Collector - Mechanical Legion]:
Hunting Level: 30
Target Description: Low-level automated units widely deployed by the Mechanical Legion to collect information, absorb free energy particles in the air, maintain basic operations and short-range communication for nearby basic units of the Mechanical Legion, and provide power to basic combat units.

The instrument itself is weakly defended and lacks the ability to launch proactive attacks. It is usually deployed in external areas that are not covered by the mechanical legion network to establish a small relay node.

After reading the analysis, Shi Zhan suddenly understood.

He realized that he seemed to have entered the edge of the mechanical legion's operational area.

Now that it was confirmed that the enemy's combat unit was not high in hunting, he immediately had an idea.

"Dinner's taken care of." After saying that, a smile appeared on Shi Zhan's lips.

Dealing with these non-combat, low-level units requires absolutely no skill.

He stretched out his right hand, and energy gathered in his palm, instantly condensing into an energy blade that emitted a blazing heat.

This weapon was custom-made by him in the forge, named "Thermal Cut," and focused on attack speed, with level 3 Windbreaker runes incorporated into its design. Shi Zhan stepped forward, his arm swinging out in a crimson arc.

Click!

The blade easily sliced ​​into the joint of the wolf-level gatherer, completing several cuts in an instant.

Suddenly, the blue crystal on the instrument began to flash rapidly, emitting a "beep beep" alarm.

Then the light went out completely.

The robotic arm inserted into the ground twitched a few times, then froze.

The slight hum of the motor and the sound of electricity also stopped abruptly.

The whole process was clean and efficient.

Looking at the mechanical wreckage that was now shut down and flickering with tiny sparks, Shi Zhan nodded in satisfaction.

He skillfully wielded his energy blade, stepped forward, and reached out to touch the collector's outer shell.

With a thought, the spatial baggage opened.

The dark silver shell, the broken mechanical arm, the energy crystal core—not even a speck of metal remained; everything was packed into the spatial bag.

The main theme is "plucking feathers from a passing goose, leaving not a blade of grass standing."

Immediately afterwards, Shi Zhan skillfully brought up the "Gold Coin Price Plugin" that he had downloaded custom from the function panel.

The plugin automatically compares market data and provides a real-time valuation of energy crystals.

He was too lazy to haggle and set a reasonable fixed price.

Almost instantly after the item was listed, a notification popped up in my mind that the trade had been successfully completed.

As for the low-value metal debris, he didn't bother to look at it and casually selected the one-click sacrifice option.

Instantly, the "scrap metal" turned into specks of light and vanished without a trace within the spatial bag compartments.

The series of operations were performed smoothly and in less than ten seconds.

The number in the personal balance column jumped abruptly from two digits to four digits: a total of 1293 points of sacrificial power were credited.

Looking at this "small windfall," Shi Zhan nodded in satisfaction.

This money is enough for him to enjoy a sumptuous spiritual meal.

If it were the basic energy cream, it could indeed keep him alive for several months.

But for a semi-veteran player like him, those tasteless experiences are long gone and a thing of the past.

His current physical condition gives him a very strong ability to resist hunger. Rather than forcing himself to eat energy paste, he would rather go hungry first.

To paraphrase the God of Wealth: Eating this stuff is no better than breathing air.

Shi Zhan wholeheartedly agreed with this statement.

Each player has a different philosophy when it comes to playing games.

For example, there are many hoarders who like to accumulate resources and watch their wealth grow: hoarders.

In older games, he even saw many players who were "hoarders" (players who squandered resources) and never wanted to experience the feeling of extravagance until they quit the game.

In Shi Zhan's view, this way of playing was simply foolish.

And he is the opposite of the hamster party: the spendthrift party.

The motto is: hoarding goods belongs to Brother Dizhao, but spending them is what truly belongs to you.

Sacrifice power, when you hold it in your hand, is just a bunch of cold numbers.

Only when it is quickly transformed into exhilarating physical enhancement or culinary enjoyment can its true value be realized.

His teammates often say that his spending habits are too advanced.

Shi Zhan also has his own explanation for this.

Players like him are seen as the lubricant for resource circulation in the game and the lifeblood of the sacrificial energy economy.

It nourishes the entire player ecosystem.

Every impulsive act of extravagance contributes to the prosperity of the player faction.

At this moment, with the sacrificial power in his account, Shi Zhan felt a surge of joy:
"We absolutely have to add a big dish tonight!"

Just as Shi Zhan was happily planning tonight's spiritual food menu, a shrill, piercing whistle suddenly came from above.

He looked up abruptly and saw a slender black shadow, like a falling meteor, tearing through the dim sky at an astonishing speed.

They closed in the blink of an eye.

With a deafening roar, it crashed with perfect precision at the location where the Wolf-class Collector had just been.

The shockwave sent debris flying and dust billowing everywhere.

As the wind dispersed the smoke and dust, what appeared before him was a three-meter-long, dark-colored metal spear.

The spear trembled violently upon landing, and its surface lit up with rapidly flashing red runes.

The next second, the spear split open from the middle, and blue arcs of electricity burst forth from within.

A spatial rift slowly appeared.

"Damn, have we stirred up a hornet's nest?!" Shi Zhan's heart tightened, and he immediately realized that the destruction of the collectors had provoked a retaliatory attack from the mechanical legion.

Before he could think it through, the spatial rift suddenly expanded.

The next second, bursts of energy hummed from the crack.

Countless mechanical combat units of various shapes and sizes, like ants whose nest has been breached, swarmed out from the narrow gap in the space.

Six-legged reconnaissance cutters skimming the ground, swarms of drones equipped with miniature energy cannons, mechanical warriors wielding vibrating blades... countless sensors instantly locked onto the only life form here: Stone Warrior.

A chilling killing intent instantly spread.

"Damn it, the teleportation portal is right in front of us!" Shi Zhan spat. Faced with this sudden wave of mechanical forces, a hint of seriousness flashed in his eyes, but he showed no fear whatsoever, nor did he intend to turn around and run away.

Although the mission this time is to explore the map, running away is something only explorers would do.

His style is simple: if you can't kill him, then beat him to death.

These are all lively and energetic sacrificial spirits.

"Perfect, let's add a few more hearty dishes to tonight's feast!" he roared, his fighting spirit surging.

In the blink of an eye, scorching energy roared and condensed in his palm once more, and the fiery battle blade quickly materialized.

Instead of retreating, he pushed off with his feet, causing the ground to shatter, and charged towards the surging mechanical torrent like an arrow.

The crimson blade light tore through the air, carrying an unstoppable momentum, and fiercely slashed at the cutting-type unit charging at the forefront.

"Qiang!"

Sparks flew as the cutting warrior at the forefront was cleaved in two by the battle blade without any resistance, sending shattered parts flying.

Shi Zhan moved like lightning, his battle blade flashing as a crimson storm.

In slow motion, he sidestepped an energy ray, slashed a drone to pieces, kicked away an approaching mech with a spinning kick, and then cleaved the mech's head in two with his blade.

In just a few breaths, dozens of mechanical units had been transformed into materials and sacrificial power in his baggage.

But the torrent of machinery seems endless.

More troops poured out of the spatial rift, instantly forming an encirclement.

Attacks from all directions rained down on him.

With more and more wounds on his body, Shi Zhan fought with increasing ferocity, his inner rage erupting in the battle.

Just then, a beam of light struck his chest.

The mechanical warrior's impenetrable body was instantly pierced by this beam of light.

"Damn, we didn't earn enough."

Shi Zhan only had time to have this thought flash through his mind before his figure was engulfed by the metal swarm, and he eventually turned into mist and returned to the Emperor's Palace.

……

Similar scenes unfolded in various directions of the Howling Stone Forest.

One after another, spatial beacon spears, like swords of judgment, tore through the dim sky and slammed precisely into the area where the scattered exploration team members were located.

Upon landing, the spear cracked open, space distorted, and a mechanical frenzy surged forth from it.

The other members of the joint task force responsible for reconnaissance encountered the same situation as Shi Zhan.

They typically discovered the mechanical legion's equipment during their explorations, and without hesitation, they destroyed it and stored it in their spatial inventory.

Then came the sanctions from the mechanical legion.

After a brief but intense exchange of fire, the figures were eventually reduced to wisps of mist by the mechanical torrent and returned to the Imperial Palace.

In just over ten minutes, hundreds of advance team members scattered across the vast stone forest area were quickly wiped out by the mechanical legion's power.

But the mechanical legion's war march did not stop.

Once life was discovered and the area was deemed a threat, the clearance protocol was initiated.

The next second, the dim sky of the Land of the Sun was shrouded in an even denser rain of spears.

Countless spatial beacon spears, like a black rainstorm, fell densely on the area where players were active in the Land of the Sun.

boom! boom! boom!
The enormous impact and the whistling sound of space tearing apart echoed across the vast land.

Each black spear, once rooted in the earth, unleashes an endless mechanical frenzy upon shattering.

Many players who were active in other areas of the Land of the Sun suddenly felt the light above their heads dim, and when they looked up in surprise, they saw a devastating rain of spears coming towards them.

The regional channels immediately erupted in discussion.

"Holy crap, what's going on? The mechanical legion actually initiated the attack?!"

"Good heavens, the sky suddenly darkened, and when I looked up I saw a rain of spears falling from the sky. Then everything went black, and I found myself sitting on a small stool in a dark room."

"Enemy attack! Brothers operating in the Land of the Sun, prepare for a massive attack. The big one is coming."

Many players who were hunting, exploring, and gathering were caught off guard by the sudden shriek approaching from the sky and the continuous barrage of black beacon spears.

They all turned into mist and returned to the imperial palace.

The regional channel was immediately flooded with exclamations and curses.

The first large-scale encounter between the player faction and the mechanical legion in the Land of the Sun began with a comprehensive purge.

　Here's 5500 words~ My hand has been hurting terribly lately, I hope it's not tendinitis. I'll update again once the pain subsides.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)