71: Beginner's Guide and Advertising

There are quite a few people like Xiao Daidai who don't know how to play the game.

The Xuanhuan World is a truly open world; not only is the gameplay free, but different players also have different starting points.

The vast map, the astronomical number of characters like a sea of stars, and the unquantifiable Cultivation resources… everything about it excites many hardcore players. It is said that some have played the game with such high intensity that they ended up in the hospital.

But at the same time, it also left many players feeling lost and confused.

Their first reaction upon entering the game was:

Who am I? Where am I? What should I do?

The Xuanhuan World is simply too open. There are no main quests, no guiding NPCs, and no Newbie tutorials.

The most critical thing is that there are many players on the forums who exploit these new players as cannon fodder for exploration. The news about Broken Wood Cliff was fueled by some players who deliberately sacrificed lives to test the Demonic Beasts and Yao Beasts below.

Similar schemes are endless. Although there hasn't been news of players turning into evil Cultivators specifically to trick others into Cultivation, there is still a lot of trust among players. However, lower-level players genuinely cannot access systematic gameplay guides and are being manipulated by hardcore players, becoming part of others' gaming experience.

At this time, This Time Bu Ge uploaded his beginner's guide video.

He was still sitting at his desk, wearing a square television hat that obscured his face. Interestingly, the wall behind him had been repainted with an ink wash painting, and a 3D-printed longsword hung on it.

“Alright, no more rambling. I’ll get straight to the guide.”

As always, This Time Bu Ge went directly to the main topic:

“Games usually have core gameplay. Although the Xuanhuan World is an open world with many ways to play, ultimately, we can still find a core — Cultivation.

“So-called Cultivation can also be referred to as Cultivate or practice. Different systems will have different names for it. For example, the most common Immortal Dao system currently calls it Immortal Cultivation.

“Regardless of what it's called, the essence is the same: it's a process of growing from weak to strong, step by step, until reaching the pinnacle.

“To put it simply, the Xuanhuan World is a nurture game. What we need to do is to nurture the initial Mortal into a great Cultivator with world-shaking abilities. All other gameplay merely serves to help us in this nurturing process.”

As he spoke, an image appeared in the video with “Immortal Dao” written on it.

“Friends who follow the forums should have noticed that there's more than one path in the Xuanhuan World, but currently, the Immortal Dao is flourishing in the open map. I also believe the Immortal Dao is the easiest Cultivation system to get started with, so this video will only discuss the Immortal Dao.

“First things first, how should a new player play after entering the game?”

In This Time Bu Ge's opinion, soul transmigration is a gameplay style with a guaranteed baseline and extremely high potential, but unfortunately, it demands too much understanding from players. At this stage, probably few people can master soul transmigration.

So he only introduced the body transmigration gameplay.

Upon entering through body transmigration, everyone starts as a Mortal. The most important thing is to inquire about the surrounding situation and understand the current state of affairs.

“Other situations can be handled as they come, but one thing absolutely must be investigated: are there any Sects nearby that accept disciples? Are there any Loose Cultivators who have left behind a Legacy? If you're within the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty, you can also ask if the local government is still recruiting people.

“Anyway, the first step is to pledge allegiance to a power, obtain Cultivation Techniques and resources for Cultivation, begin Cultivation, and then become a Qi Refining Cultivator.

“Once you become a Qi Refining Cultivator, you can start planning for more Cultivation Techniques, more Medicinal Pills, Talismans, Formations, and so on. You can even start venturing out to seek Opportunities, and most importantly, you must seek the Qi Gathering Method to gather Immortal Qi and forge an Immortal Foundation as much as possible.

“Once you successfully upgrade from a Mortal to a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, you will definitely have a very good understanding of the game, and there will be no need to watch any more beginner guides. So, here I will only discuss the most crucial parts: how to go from a Mortal to a Qi Refining Cultivator, and how to go from a Qi Refining Cultivator to a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.”

The simplest method, This Time Bu Ge said from the start, is to find a master and Cultivate with the native Cultivation Techniques. This is a very comfortable way to start, because after finding a master, natives will teach you many important considerations about Cultivation, helping you avoid many detours.

However, this kind of start is only for those with Spiritual Roots and good talent. Many people cannot successfully join a Sect or even find a Loose Cultivator's Legacy, and can only wander aimlessly in Mortal towns.

“In such a situation, there are two methods.

“The first method: some players on our forum share Cultivation Techniques. You can import the incantations into the game and Cultivate.

“But firstly, almost no high-value Cultivation Techniques are shared. Secondly, trying to Cultivate solely with incantations without a transmission medium heavily relies on the character's Comprehension Ability. This is a hidden attribute that varies from person to person; some might even try for three days straight and still fail to get started with a Ninth Grade Cultivation Method.

“So, this method works for some, but not for others.”

“Then let's look at the second method, which almost everyone can use. That is to first play the game as a Mortal, gathering herbs, mining, or working—anything. The point is to save money first. Once you've saved enough, go to various markets, black markets, or find Loose Cultivators to buy Cultivation Techniques, and then you can smoothly embark on the path of Cultivation.

“From Mortal to Qi Refining, for us players, it's definitely not difficult. After all, we can restart repeatedly, so we can at least get a Spiritual Root at the start.

“Next, I'm going to talk about how to go from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment.”

There's a common misconception that many people might make: once you have a Cultivation Technique, you just need to find a place to enter seclusion and Cultivate.

Many players are also waiting for the Lifespan Cultivation feature to be updated, preparing to use a hundred years of Lifespan in one go to instantly Ascend their Cultivation.

This understanding is very wrong.

Cultivation Techniques are indeed the foundation of Cultivation, but Cultivation requires more than just Cultivation Techniques.

If you have nothing else and simply spend Lifespan in seclusion to meditate, a hundred years of Lifespan might only get you to Qi Refining fourth or fifth stage. Another hundred years might only bring you to Qi Refining sixth stage, completely losing hope of Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, and you would die when your Lifespan is exhausted.

This is still under the condition that the character has good talent and a decent Cultivation Technique. If the talent is a bit worse, and the Cultivation Technique is also a bit worse, two hundred years of Lifespan might only get you to Qi Refining second stage.

“We need Spirit Gathering Arrays, incense to calm the mind, high-quality Medicinal Pills, and…” In short, we need a lot of resources to improve our resources as quickly and as much as possible.

“Ultimately, we need to improve the cost-effectiveness of our Lifespan, ensuring that the Lifespan we invest will definitely bring us a substantial amount of Cultivation, allowing us to Breakthrough to the next major Realm with relatively abundant Lifespan, rather than dying when our Lifespan runs out.”

“Therefore, after the next update, everyone, do not blindly invest Lifespan in Cultivation. Always ensure you have sufficient resources before investing Lifespan. This acceleration feature must be used with extreme caution.”

After discussing the common Cultivation needs, This Time Bu Ge continued:

“Furthermore, according to my investigation, some high-quality Cultivation Techniques have many special requirements, which can only be known when encountered.

“And to achieve the strongest Immortal Foundation, one needs to find a Qi Gathering Method, and then follow the method to gather Immortal Qi, which is another troublesome matter.

“Ultimately, secluded Cultivation should only be used for digesting Medicinal Pills, refining Immortal Qi, and so on. Without these special aids, never waste Lifespan in vain.”

This Time Bu Ge continued to speak eloquently. In fact, he explained things very superficially, essentially just the 'wealth, companions, methods, and land' principles that anyone who watched Xuanhuan or Immortal Cultivation in his previous life would know.

But for the people of this world, this was truly novel.

They finally understood how to play the Xuanhuan World:

Find a Cultivation Technique to embark on the Cultivation path, then continuously seek resources that can enhance Cultivation, and then digest these resources through secluded Cultivation to elevate their Realm. After advancing their Realm, they continue to seek resources, repeating the cycle.

As the Realm improves, the required resources become more numerous and complex.

Initially, perhaps only ordinary Spirit Stones are needed, then Medicinal Pills, followed by complex Immortal Qi. Beyond that, even This Time Bu Ge hadn't investigated what else there might be. He only speculated that successfully achieving Core Formation must also involve a step similar to gathering Immortal Qi.

In the process of finding resources, conflicts with other Cultivators are naturally unavoidable, and combat thus becomes paramount; it's impossible to only Cultivate Immortal Cultivation arts.

The audience watched enthralled, gaining some clarity in their minds so they wouldn't play aimlessly after entering the game.

At the end of the video, This Time Bu Ge coughed and said with a hint of embarrassment:

“Um, I took an advertisement.”

“Everyone knows Old Potato, right?”

“He soul transmigrated into a very high-status character and can arrange for everyone to join the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty's Tiger Wolf Guard to go to the Golden Core Tomb at Broken Wood Cliff together. With three thousand Tiger Wolf Guards protecting them, players don't need to exert much effort; they just wait to share the spoils of war. It's truly a guaranteed win.”

“The price isn't high, 50 yuan per person.”

Upon hearing this, all the viewers were stunned.

What on earth?