149: Season 1 gameplay: Interfering with the Empress's breakthrough

A new day began.

The end of the Ancient Style Game Development Competition didn't cause much of a stir.

After all, the data for Xuanhuan World was ridiculously high, and it achieved both sales and reputation, so winning the championship was a foregone conclusion.

But for those who hadn't yet experienced Xuanhuan World, the global publicity campaign launched by the Ancient Style Game Development Competition truly shocked them.

"Xuanhuan? What is that?"

"It seemed to have trended on hot searches many times before, saying they created a new world view that was a bit torturous."

"Who said it was torturous? Why do I hear it's a pure pleasure game? Everyone's gone crazy playing it."

Xuanhuan World went through a considerable process from its demo to the release of its Season One online game, leading many outsiders to vaguely grasp some different concepts.

It was said that the initial Xuanhuan World was purely torturous; players had to act like dogs for NPCs, always lacking resources no matter what they did, and the numerical design was very unreasonable, often leading to instant death from the residual shockwaves of minor monster battles.

But later, Huanmeng Studio was very receptive to feedback and introduced an excellent Evil Cultivator gameplay, allowing everyone to cultivate quickly, rapidly become superior, and making Xuanhuan World an unprecedented pleasure game.

"Doesn't that mean now is the best time to jump in?"

"If you don't join in Season One, are you going to wait for Season Two?"

"Although it's a seasonal game and new seasons will definitely have catch-up mechanisms, Veteran Players will certainly have an advantage, not to mention now is the most enjoyable time."

"Alright, alright, I'm going into Xuanhuan World right now. I want to join the Great Love Sect as an Evil Cultivator."

"Wait, Huan Meng just released a new CG!"

At this, not only were new players excited, but Veteran Players also became excited.

"Holy crap, why did Huan Meng release another CG?"

"Season One started, didn't you know?"

"No, does Xuanhuan World really have seasonal content? Why haven't I felt it?"

"Let's watch the CG first!"

A group of players rushed to the Huan Meng official website to check out the newly released CG.

For global promotion, the CG wasn't long, incomparable to the one at the start of the competition, just a simple video of over ten seconds.

The screen showed a dilapidated town, crying commoners, a spreading plague, and a pervasive bloody aura.

Then, faint white Qi subtly rose from the earth, merging into the overcast sky, gradually forming threads that flowed into the Imperial City with its collapsed walls.

There, a blurry infant shadow was cast in the sky, appearing somewhat gigantic, and particularly sacred amidst the swirling white Qi.

Outside the infant's projection, within the overcast sky, several blurry figures could also be vaguely seen, as if standing in mid-air, silently observing.

A ruined nation, a sacred infant, and a magnificent yet clearly collapsed city.

Everything about it filled the CG with a sense of shock, as if one was in a fantastical, mysterious realm, suddenly encountering the most profound sight.

"Holy crap, what is this?"

"This ruined nation, is it the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty?"

"Is it saying that we players have ruined the entire Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty?"

"Then what is this infant?"

"I don't know, I don't understand, but I'm greatly shocked."

The CG was only over ten seconds long, aimed at newcomers who hadn't experienced Xuanhuan World, to let them feel the shock of Xuanhuan immediately.

And the newcomers indeed felt it.

A once magnificent nation had collapsed for unknown reasons, countless mysterious white Qi flowed into an even more mysterious infant, and vague figures could be seen in the sky.

Although there wasn't much of a plot, it truly captured their attention, making them willing to learn about Xuanhuan.

From this perspective, the CG chosen by Jiang Feng was a success.

However, for Veteran Players, it was a bit confusing.

The destruction of the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty was understandable; after all, players were indeed a bit too arrogant now, with countless Evil Cultivators pouring in and causing significant damage to Great Jiang. Coupled with the Three Great Sects dispatching troops, the collapse of Great Jiang seemed to be within expectations.

But what was with the infant that appeared afterward?

Players were baffled.

After a long while, a player finally realized something:

"That infant might be the Empress!"

"What? That's the Empress?"

"The Empress showed her face before, videos were going viral, how could she be an infant?"

"She's undergoing a Breakthrough to Nascent Soul!"

Players discussed animatedly, finally finding the key point.

At this stage, most players were unfamiliar with Nascent Soul.

Even a Sect Master's direct disciple like Ye Chun knew very little about Nascent Soul, having no idea how to Break through or what would happen after a Breakthrough.

All they knew was the name.

If they knew a little more, they might know that Nascent Soul could be related to the soul body.

But beyond that, they knew nothing.

Only players like Wang Long and Midnight Gao Sou, who had a soul body residing within them, knew more about Nascent Soul.

Therefore, when a player with a soul body old man within him spoke out, all players on the internet instantly understood what was happening in the CG:

"Breaking through from Golden Core to Nascent Soul requires shattering the Core to form an Infant. Upon success, the power is immense, and the manifested characteristic is somewhat similar to an infant."

"Refining an Immortal Foundation into a Golden Core, then shattering the Golden Core to form a Nascent Soul—this path returns to simplicity, and the resulting infant is like a miniature version of the Cultivator, tender and pure, possessing infinite possibilities."

"In other words, the plot shown in the CG clearly depicts the Empress successfully Breaking through to Nascent Soul!"

As soon as this view was put forward, some players were in a state of confusion, but more players panicked.

"Holy crap, the Empress isn't dead, and she's even Breaking through? And she actually succeeded?"

"Don't scare me! I'm still besieging Great Jiang, just about to slaughter the city. Do I really have to face a Nascent Soul Empress?"

A group of players, especially the Evil Cultivator players currently wreaking havoc in Great Jiang, were genuinely panicked now.

If the Empress really Broke through to Nascent Soul, wouldn't they be the first to die?

"Wait, don't panic!"

At this moment, the player who revealed the secrets of Nascent Soul posted again.

"This is a CG, not something that has already happened in Xuanhuan World."

"Breaking through from Golden Core to Nascent Soul is incredibly difficult. This CG has also exposed the Empress's secluded cultivation location, so all we have to do is interfere with her, right?"

Upon hearing this, players' eyes lit up, and they began to discuss.

"That's right, as long as we interfere with the Empress and prevent her from becoming a Nascent Soul, can't we continue to live freely?"

"More than just continuing to live freely! If the Empress fails her Breakthrough, the entire Great Jiang will become ownerless land, and the mountains of resources in the Great Jiang Treasure Vault won't all be ours?"

"But how can we interfere with the Empress? Great Jiang hasn't been bothering us lately, clearly they've consolidated their strength in the Imperial City, where there must be countless powerful experts."

"That's simple. Haven't the Three Great Sects also entered the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty? Do you know why they entered?"

"Why?"

"Because the Cultivation Technique the Empress cultivates is related to the Great Jiang's national destiny. The stronger the national destiny, the stronger she is; the weaker the national destiny, the weaker she is. So, the Three Great Sects took the opportunity to invade Great Jiang to weaken the national destiny."

"I understand! We just need to continue wreaking havoc in Great Jiang, making the people suffer, causing the national destiny to decline or even the nation to perish, then the Empress's Breakthrough will inevitably fail!"

"Haha, we actually have a day where we can scheme against a Golden Core! This CG released by Huan Meng is really a good thing!"

A group of players cheered happily.

They spontaneously discovered the main plot and gameplay of Season One: invading Great Jiang, weakening its national destiny, and interfering with the Empress's Breakthrough!

Upon discovering this, both Evil Cultivator players and ordinary players began to act.

No one wanted a powerful Nascent Soul above their heads.