17: Chapter 17 new mode? How do you even play this?!

The main storyline of France (The First Singularity) concluded in an incredibly tragic and shocking manner.

Countless players sat before their screens, sighing with emotion over Queen Marie's sacrifice and the dissipation of Jeanne dArc Alter.

This journey, with its peak immersion, led everyone to believe that this was the current climax of FGO.

But for Gu Yi, the producer from Earth, the end of the plot was merely the unveiling of the tip of the iceberg for this game's true hardcore nature.

Shark Streaming Platform, PD's stream room.

"Brothers, the story is indeed awesome; I was totally sucked in. But having said that, the mobs in France were just so-so. In the face of my maxed-out five-star squad, didn't they just have to lie down obediently?"

PD stretched his muscles and leaned back in his gaming chair, his tone carrying a hint of the relaxation that comes after clearing a game.

Just then, as he cleared the final stage of the France Singularity, the VR vision before him suddenly trembled slightly.

The lights in the hall instantly switched to a warning dark red, and an extremely cold, emotionless mechanical voice rang in the ears of all players who had cleared the stage:

[Detected: Basic restoration of the First Singularity is complete.]

[Chaldea Environment Simulation System (SHEBA) permissions unlocked.]

[Tactical terminal update complete. New environmental calculation mode loaded.]

"Huh? There's a new mode?"

PD and the viewers in the stream room were all taken aback.

Next, three holographic panels emitting different colors floated succinctly in mid-air.

[Mode 1: Pseudo-Spiritron Transfer]

Environmental Parameters: Counter Force intervention; hostile spirit origins significantly weakened.

[Mode 2: Sheba Simulation]

Environmental Parameters: No Counter Force correction; restores the target's true combat power.

[Mode 3: Historical Retrospection]

Environmental Parameters: Loading the Master's (Fujimaru Ritsuka) original records. Based on true combat power, combat will be conducted using a fixed story spirit origin lineup.

As these three progressively difficult modes were revealed, any hardcore player with a bit of game sense immediately grasped the terrifying amount of information hidden behind them.

"Holy crap... Counter Force intervention, significantly weakened?"

A comment in the stream room immediately reacted: "Does that mean the France main quest we just struggled through was actually an Easy Mode specifically nerfed by the system to protect the players?!"

"The second high-difficulty challenge says 'No Counter Force correction, inferring historical combat power'... Is this the Boss's true strength?!"

These few lines of settings not only perfectly explained the game's difficulty levels through the world-building but also directly pushed the game's prestige to its peak!

PD looked at the panel, surprised at first, then suddenly amused.

"High-difficulty challenge? Don't make me laugh. So what if the restrictions are lifted? In the face of my 100,000-yuan maxed-out all-five-star lineup, what dungeon dares call itself high-difficulty?"

He unhesitatingly clicked on [Sheba Simulation: Revenge of the Dragon Witch] and plunged in with his team of glittering, top-tier Servants.

In the VR vision, the sky instantly turned into a blood-red that was even more oppressive than in the main storyline.

The "Dragon Witch" Jeanne dArc Alter, holding a tattered black flag and carrying a pressure far more terrifying than in the main plot, descended at the end of the tactical sand table.

"Perfect timing! Watch as my Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon shoots you full of holes!"

With a grand wave of his hand and after some skillful early-stage resource management, PD successfully deployed the five-star powerhouses Gilgamesh and Artoria onto the high platform and core defensive line.

"Mongrel! Be reduced to ashes before this King!"

Accompanied by the arrogant voice line, Gilgamesh opened the Gate of Babylon. A sky full of golden Divine Constructs poured down like a torrential rain, and the entire screen was filled with incredibly gorgeous explosion effects!

Boom, boom, boom! After a series of world-shattering special effects, the smoke cleared.

PD fixed his gaze on the health bar above Jeanne dArc Alter's head.

Gilgamesh's damage was terrifying, directly shaving off nearly a third of Jeanne dArc Alter's health!

"See that, brothers?! This is what you call brute force! I don't care about your historical combat power, you're still getting crushed!"

PD laughed triumphantly.

But his smile lasted for only two seconds.

Due to taking the concentrated fire, Jeanne dArc Alter's health bar reached a certain threshold, and her body suddenly glowed with an extremely dangerous crimson light!

Instead of falling, she let out a hair-raising sneer and raised the black flag in her hand high.

"Roar! My Hatred (La Grondement Du Haine)!!"

Accompanied by a pathological, wild laugh, a burst of pitch-black flames of vengeance erupted from the ground, like a volcanic eruption, directly piercing through PD's extremely dense defensive positions!

Because PD had blindly pursued ultimate damage output, his entire team consisted of five-star Archers and Sabers. He hadn't deployed any tanks to soak up damage or healers to provide recovery.

Bang!

Under this terrifying Noble Phantasm bombardment, Artoria on the front line and Gilgamesh on the high platform had their health bars emptied instantly, dissipating into golden light within the sea of fire!

The defensive line collapsed in an instant!

[Mission Failed]

The viewers in the stream room were all dumbfounded.

"Holy crap?! This damage is too insane!"

"The Boss's ultimate move is also world-shattering! How are you supposed to tank that?!"

"Boss P got counter-killed! Having only damage output is useless; this Boss's AOE just wiped out all your five-star glass cannons!"

PD sat in his chair, stunned for a long time before rubbing his face in frustration.

As a veteran player, even though he was a whale, he knew this ridiculous situation was definitely not right.

"Brothers, this [Sheba Simulation] high-difficulty dungeon is indeed a bit insane. Brute-forcing it with damage alone won't work. This Boss's charge and counterattacks are too fast. You must have a system for survival and damage mitigation."

Just as he was about to adjust his lineup and bring in heavy armor and healers for another attempt, the stream room suddenly lit up with the special effect of a Super Rocket donation.

[White Night gifted a Super Rocket * 1]

[White Night: Boss P, don't be in a hurry to bash your head against the high-difficulty mode. This game has many hidden mechanics. I suggest going next door to 'Historical Retrospection.' That dog of a producer put another core burst system of this game there in the form of a puzzle mode. Clear that, and your high-difficulty team building will be twice as effective with half the effort.]

Seeing this hardcore mogul, who had once been a god in the strategy section, speak up and even give him face by sending a gift, PD immediately took the opportunity to back down gracefully.

"So it's Great God White Night. Alright, it's good to take advice. Let's go see what kind of medicine is being sold in this puzzle mode first."

PD exited the high-difficulty dungeon and clicked on the stage next to it titled [Historical Retrospection].

As soon as he entered, he found that his all-five-star team was completely locked by the system.

In its place was a "France Story Bond Team" forcibly assigned to him by the system.