11: Chapter 11 The Hundred Years' War of the Evil Dragon: Orleans

With the prologue finally coming to an end, the game's reputation among players experienced an earth-shattering explosion.

Whether it was the extreme hardcore strategy, the tear-jerking plot twists, or the unfathomable anime-style progression system, "Modded FGO" used comprehensive dimensional reduction strikes to formally crown itself king in this money-worshipping parallel world!

...

Youxing Network Forum, [General Discussion Area].

Just a few days ago, this place was still filled with collective mockery and disdain for "Fate/Grand Order," along with various snide remarks like "Waiting for it to crash and burn" and "A money-grabbing tower defense skin."

But now, the atmosphere of the entire forum has gone completely wild.

Following PD's screen-clearing with max-level five-star units, White Night's extreme low-star walkthrough tutorials, and the massive amount of information on plot, mechanics, and character progression brought by plot-focused players like "A-Dai"...

The reputation of "FGO" rocketed upward, experiencing an earth-shattering, dramatic turnaround!

The top ten trending topics were dominated by seven entries related to "FGO":

#A Masterpiece is Born! This is the True Ninth Art!#

#A 100,000-dollar whale gets soloed by a first-level mob; this game cures all arrogance!#

#Mash Kyrielight, the only designated wife for all players on Blue Star!#

#Lev, you animal! Give the Director back to me!#

#Shocking! Low-star cards are actually the tactical core? The god-tier White Night's step-by-step beginner's guide!#

...

Countless posts were refreshing like snowflakes on the forum; players in this other world seemed to have discovered a new continent, erupting with unprecedented enthusiasm:

"Just finished the prologue, I'm in bed, crying like an idiot. I was truly devastated when the Director died; no game has ever made me feel such deep emotions for an NPC!"

"Don't even get me started. I originally pulled cards just for the character art, but now I'm addicted to researching low-star lineups and can't get out. The thrill of using the three-star war god 'Dog Brother' to fight enemies above his level is ten thousand times more satisfying than spending money!"

"Large-scale defensive tactics are the way to go! Georgios is the GOAT! His forced taunt is a godsend for players with clumsy hands!"

Amidst this internet frenzy woven with celebration and wailing, in the real world, inside a narrow rental apartment.

Gu Yi looked at the long, long, long string of emotion value numbers on the panel, and the balance in his bank account that had instantly soared to eight digits due to players frantically topping up to pull cards, his mouth curling upward uncontrollably.

"A debt of 100,000? It's not even a fraction of a percent now." Gu Yi took a comfortable sip of his 'fat-boy happy water'.

In this parallel world, long poisoned by stats and VIP levels, the players' hearts were like dried sponges.

Gu Yi had merely thrown the tip of the iceberg of the vast epic from his past life's Type-Moon, combined with hardcore tower defense, and this group of players had fallen completely without resistance.

But he wasn't in a hurry to release new chapters immediately. His past life's experience told him that a good game needs a 'content drought' period to allow the ecosystem to settle.

Sure enough, over the next half month, "FGO" completely dominated the game scene on Blue Star.

Fan artists began frantically producing beautiful illustrations of Mash and Saber; lore enthusiasts, armed with the compendium in Da Vincis Workshop, studied the myths and epics behind the Servants word for word;

While the hardcore players brushed the few pitiful Free Quests from the prologue to the ground, experimenting with various flashy tactics like "All 1-star limit clears" and "Speed runs without healers."

Half a month later, as the main force of players raised their Servants (whether five-star or low-star war gods) to the current level cap, an undercurrent of "power creep" began to spread among the player base.

Under the comments section of the official account, there were hundreds of thousands of requests for updates every day:

"You damn developer! Even a donkey on a production team wouldn't take such a long break! Release new maps! I've farmed the skeletons in Fuyuki City until they're practically polished smooth!"

"Exactly! I've completely seen through this game's tower defense mechanics! Isn't it just the fixed formula of 'Vanguard for cost recovery -> Defender to tank damage -> Healer to keep people alive -> Five-star to clear the field'?"

"It's too simple! I can set up a defensive line with my eyes closed now. Whether it's skeleton soldiers or giant monsters, as long as my Defenders are tough enough, no one is getting past! I beg you, increase the difficulty!"

Looking at these extremely arrogant posts on the forum, where players thought they had fully grasped the surface-level logic of "Arknights," Gu Yi finally couldn't help but reveal a smile that was extremely "nuclear-friendly."

"Is ground-based melee the only solution for tower defense games? It seems the comfort of Fuyuki City has made you forget the cruelty of the battlefield."

Gu Yi opened the system store. "System, consume emotion points to redeem all plot text, art assets, and new mechanic code for [First Singularity: The Hundred Years' War of the Evil Dragons (Orléans)]!"

[Ding! 30,000 emotion points consumed, redemption successful.]

[New map, new mechanics, and new flying enemy units have been loaded.]

Gu Yi nodded in satisfaction, switched to the official account backend, and typed out an extremely detailed "Major Version Update Announcement."

Half an hour later, all players who were bored in the game or holding court on the forums simultaneously received a notification flashing with red light.

[Chaldea Official Announcement: Version 1.1 Major Update — [The Hundred Years' War of the Evil Dragons · Orléans]]

"To all excellent Masters: Congratulations on successfully surviving the crisis of Singularity F. But this is only the first step in saving humanity. The true river of history is waiting for you to correct it.

[Update content as follows]: Opening a brand new main story chapter: First Singularity [The Hundred Years' War of the Evil Dragons]. In this beautiful France, you will all witness the Saint's redemption and despair.

Opening a brand new Servant summoning pool: Jeanne d'Arc (Ruler), Siegfried (Saber), and other new heroic spirits join the Chaldea network. Level cap unlocked, Saint Graph Ascension (Breakthrough) system opened. — Love, your Producer, Chaldea."

Once this content-rich announcement was released, the entire Blue Star gaming circle instantly exploded!

"Holy crap! A major version update is here! Finally, no more content drought!"

"France? Saint Jeanne d'Arc?! Ahhhhh, I can't wait to see the plot that follows!"

"Charge! I've been saving Quartz for half a month, Jeanne, my wife, here I come!"

PD was the first to shout in his livestream: "Brothers! The new map is open! Watch how I use my max-level 'Big Dog', Georgios, and five-star Saber to sweep through France!"

He was full of confidence now. After half a month of accumulation, he had not only maxed out all the low-star war gods, but also considered himself a high-end commander who "deeply understood door-blocking tactics."

Accompanied by the countdown of the Rayshift, tens of millions of players excitedly stepped into this brand new Singularity.