Boom——!
A ring of scorching ripples exploded in midair, crashing heavily into the horde of monsters not far away.
Charred monster bodies fell to the ground, letting out intermittent, miserable howls.
Immediately after, countless streams of magical light streaked in from outside the forest like meteors.
Faluxiel and Ailin whipped their heads around.
Was it… reinforcements?
“Bu’er? Did we come too late and let the Boss get wiped out by NPCs?”
“Tsk, why are even the mobs so tough?”
“Forget it, that Boss doesn’t look like something we can kill at our current level. Let’s farm mobs for experience.”
“Bro, is that ice-cold girl in the middle the Kanban Girl? We actually ran into her! That model is insane! Give me a chance to get close for a screenshot later…”
A group of figures with mismatched outfits and bizarre equipment charged into the battle circle from the thick fog.
Some wore armor, others robes, and some… sported strange floral shorts and shirts.
“They’re… players!”
Ailin’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“The players are here! Your Highness! We’re saved!”
Ailin couldn’t help but raise her hands to her chest, her braids behind her head seeming to bounce with joy.
The magic girls who were still conscious erupted into cheers, as if welcoming the arrival of heroes.
One hero swung a massive greatsword in broad, sweeping arcs, sending a swath of monsters flying.
But on closer inspection, that wasn’t a greatsword at all—it was a person-sized cartoon carrot.
A girl hero in a JK skirt, sucking on a lollipop, summoned strange spirit creatures to bombard the frontlines.
Another hero darted through the monster horde with dual blades, his movements ghostlike.
But if you looked carefully, he was even wearing flip-flops on his feet…
“Guuh——!”
A three-armed monster flipped a player over, its claws piercing his chest.
Blood splattered.
The player collapsed with a scream, dragged into the mist by the monster.
But no one stopped for him.
“Ha, he’s dead. Quick, who’s going to take aggro? Don’t let that thing grab the story character!”
“Relax, relax, he went back to soak in the spring. See if he dropped his equipment—[Yingya Po Jun]! If you have space in your bag, pick it up.”
“Nurse, watch the Main T’s HP! That [Rabbit Cute Can I Eat a Bite], stop window-shopping and put a shield on me!”
They joked as they fought on.
Every clash came at the cost of blood and wounds, yet none showed fear.
Though the monster army was vast, in this life-for-life war of attrition, a breach was being forcibly torn open in their outer defenses—and it kept widening.
Faluxiel still stood in the shadows, unmoving for a long time.
The dual-blade player flashed past her, giving her a sidelong glance and shouting to his teammates,
“Hey! Anyone want to heal the NPC? The Kanban Girl is really strong!”
As he spoke, the dual-blade wielder glanced at Faluxiel’s muddied legs beneath her torn battle skirt and whistled teasingly, as if joking with her.
“Her legs are brighter than a holy sword! Damn, the affection for this massive quest only went up by 1 point? When will we ever be able to complete the route?”
Faluxiel frowned slightly, but quickly relaxed.
She… couldn’t understand those strange terms, but she knew these were the “players” who had recently appeared on the Tingyue Continent.
Their fighting styles were wild and illogical, defying common sense; their expressions were excited, reckless, mocking—just like—
Just like none of this was war, but entertainment.
They had no reverence for life, their words flippant, their actions unruly.
When they looked at the natives struggling on the edge of life and death, there was no pity or sympathy in their eyes, only a kind of curious evaluation—as if examining some rare exhibit.
They were reinforcements, but what they brought, besides hope, was also a chaos outside of order.
…But now wasn’t the time to think about such things.
The dual-blade player tossed her a large bottle of recovery potion.
Dried-up magic began to flow through her body again, washing away her exhaustion.
Surging magical energy gathered in her hands once more.
“Everyone, charge! Support the players and break through!”
Frost snow blossomed into a brilliant blue light.
—
[Mission Complete: Abyss Forbidden Zone Opening—Rescue the Divine Chosen Squad]
[Disconnecting…]
A faint electric current flickered across his nerves, then vanished, leaving only darkness.
As consciousness pulled free from the other side, Jiang You felt as if he’d just fallen from a great height.
He removed his gaming helmet and opened his eyes.
The familiar ceiling of his rented apartment stared back.
Two grayish-white cobwebs swayed in the corner, as if welcoming him back from another world.
He sat dazed for a few seconds, his throat dry as he swallowed.
He placed the helmet beside the bed, his movements sluggish.
A few drops of sweat slid down his temple, as if reality was heavier than the war-torn Abyss.
“Hu… intense.”
Jiang You stared at the ceiling, his expression complicated, the final scene replaying in his mind.
Blue magical energy condensed around Faluxiel’s sword.
Empowered by the players’ supplies, the Divine Chosen finally unleashed their full strength.
She carved a bloody path through the siege, leading her remaining comrades to break through.
Her deep blue leather armor was torn to shreds in battle, exposing glimpses of pale skin beneath.
Splattered beast blood marked her robes, making her appear both valiant and alluring.
He tossed aside the thin blanket and set his feet on the floor with a loud “pa” from his slippers.
Jiang You walked to the window and looked through the grimy glass at the building across the street.
It was a commercial advertising tower, draped in neon and giant LED screens.
At the moment, it was playing a CG animation.
[Sword of Annihilation—one blade for eternity! Divine Chosen’s last magic—can the Swarm King withstand it?]
With dramatic narration, the screen showed Faluxiel channeling the magical power of all the magic girls into one sword, shattering the Swarm King.
.
A fully immersive game that had been online for less than a month.
Players connected their consciousness to the online world via gaming helmets or pods for hyper-realistic interaction.
“Welcome to —the ultimate immersive divine war game, crafted by Xingyue Interactive. This is the Tingyue Continent, a world of magic and miracles—here, as a player, you can freely explore this broken yet vibrant land.
You can choose to be a warrior, assassin, mage, or even hidden classes like alchemist, bard, or summoner. By raising native NPCs’ affection, you gain combat support and advanced interaction privileges.”
Advanced interaction privileges… huh, that’s an interesting term.
Jiang You thought to himself.
“[They aren’t programs—they are themselves.]”—The brand new AI simulation system of has arrived.
“Powered by Xingyue Interactive’s proprietary Omega Neural Empathy AI Engine 2.0, every NPC in this game has emotion models and decision systems approaching real human cognition. They’ll remember every detail of fighting alongside you, and grow cold and wary if you betray them.
They have love, hatred, growth, and even final death. No preset scripts, no forced dialogue branches—everything is based on genuine reaction. Here, you’re not playing a god. You’re simply sharing a life with another soul.”
“: Only NPCs with humanity can truly move your heart.”
“[Limited-time event! Recharge now to receive Faluxiel’s exclusive items: White Crow Spirit Feather ×10, Icy Breath Pendant ×1]”
Jiang You’s eyelid twitched, and he closed the curtains.
He silently returned to the table, picked up a cup of instant noodles, tore open the package, poured in the seasoning, filled it with hot water, and closed the lid.
Steam hissed in the cramped room, carrying the salty aroma of MSG and artificial oils.
In the game, the taste of delicious food could be simulated through electrical signals, but his real body still needed nutrients to survive.
[Yingya Po Jun]—that was his name on the Tingyue Continent.
The one who stood beside Faluxiel, wielding twin blades, moving through monsters as if through empty air.
He lifted the noodle lid, grabbed his chopsticks, and took a bite, hissing from the heat.
“Sigh.”
Jiang You swallowed the noodles, laughing bitterly at himself.
In reality, he was nothing—a useless guy living off takeout and using games to numb himself.
His phone suddenly began to vibrate.
Jiang You glanced at the caller ID and gently pushed the noodles aside.
“Hello, Mom? Mm, I’m looking, yes. Don’t worry, how could a senior programmer not find a job? I’ve eaten, had barbecue. Eh, what’s unhealthy about it? It’s not like I eat it every day.”
In-game food counts too, he thought.
—
The empty instant noodle cup spun lightly as he tossed it into the trash, landing with a “dong”.
The Tingyue Pact player zone was still lively, with video compilations at the top.
The headline read: [True Top-Tier Modeling! Faluxiel’s Sword of Annihilation Close-Up Footage, 3D Angle Detail Analysis]
Inside, several players replayed the ultimate magic release in slow motion, zooming in on Faluxiel’s lip movements and chestplate texture.
The comment section was a riot:
“I was there live, the closest! That pale face, blood on her lips—damn, unbeatable! Way more intense than her usual deadpan look!
Xingyue Interactive really knows their stuff.”
“Is there a tutorial yet? This SS-level affection route is way too hard.”
“No one’s gotten Faluxiel’s affection to 20 yet, right? The ultimate secret of Xingyue. By the way, how many secrets does Xingyue even have?”
“Can the people above show some respect? Stop with the secrets talk, so vulgar! She’s the Divine Chosen, the strongest bulwark of the Tingyue Continent, sacred and inviolable!…Of course, if I could max her affection to 100, pretend I never said that. (sarcasm.jpg)”
Jiang You stared at the screen, browsing the comments, a lazy smile at his lips.
Outside, giant projection screens continued looping game ads—this time, a dungeon CG of the NPC Zhao Yingyue soloing an Icefield Wolf, the ultimate fighter melee showcase, a main character not yet introduced in the storyline.
No one knew how long she had trained for that punch in another world.
“NPCs, huh…”
Jiang You murmured.
Summer night wind swept between the high-rises, carrying the city’s warmth and the smell of car exhaust.
He stood beneath the dim light, looking down into the distance.