Chapter 336: Master Zhang Jingxu
Liu Xing rubbed the back of his head, realizing that he had been playing the game quite frequently, especially after advancing to the Shoggoth Region. The intervals between the two modules rarely exceeded a week.
Hence, encountering a mandatory module wasn’t entirely unexpected for Liu Xing.
At this moment, Miyako Godong had a frustrated expression as he spoke, "Sigh, I thought having a couple of thousand points would allow me to peacefully stay in the real world for a few years. I never imagined there would be mandatory modules. What’s more, I was traveling with my family when the game suddenly required my presence. I didn’t have time to explain, and when I returned, my family had already reported me missing, thinking I had committed suicide. I had to spend quite a while explaining things to the police."
Panda Pig, who was beside them, nodded in agreement, saying with resignation, "Yeah, this mandatory module is a real pain. When we receive the notification for its activation, we only have a minute to prepare. That one minute is barely enough to find a secluded place to enter the game. I couldn’t even explain to my girlfriend properly. Because of this mandatory module, I ended up breaking up with her. I disappeared on her birthday party without a word and was missing for a whole day." Liu Xing glanced at Panda Pig and could only think of four words - "serves them right"... Well, he refrained from saying it out loud.
"So, this mandatory module is really troublesome. Although the difficulty is generally not too high, and the rewards for completing modules are decent, the timing of this mandatory module’s activation is unpredictable. The first time I encountered it was about a month after finishing the previous module, and the second time was only twenty days later. I initially thought the intervals between mandatory modules would become shorter, but after anxiously waiting for two months, I finally encountered the third mandatory module," Miyako Godong said, spreading his hands.
Zhang Jingxu nodded and smiled, "Actually, I heard someone mention before that the activation of this mandatory module is based on a player’s performance in the previous module. If a player did exceptionally well in the previous module, the mandatory module is likely to activate within half a month. But if a player was just carried through the previous module by their teammates, the mandatory module might not activate for several months. Some even say that the activation of the mandatory module depends on an overall evaluation of all the modules a player has experienced."
Hearing this, Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and said, "So, don’t you guys think that Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall is grooming us? They select outstanding players and force them to complete more modules within a certain timeframe, thus accelerating their growth and allowing them to enter higher gaming regions faster. As for those average players, Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall doesn’t pay them much attention, only bringing them out occasionally..."
"This is just natural selection," Liu Xing continued. "As you mentioned, most game operators in the real world primarily focus on high-end players, disregarding the existence of ordinary players. After all, those ordinary players are just a part of the high-end players’ gaming experience. Besides, the Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall we’re playing right now doesn’t even allow for microtransactions."
Ling Ishikawa nodded in agreement but still had some doubts, "Liu Xing, what you’re saying makes sense, but I’ve been thinking about two questions. Why does Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall exist, and who created it?"
Liu Xing furrowed his brow, realizing that Ling Ishikawa’s two questions were not easily answered. He had pondered these questions before, but there were still no answers. Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall’s capabilities far exceeded what human technology could achieve.
Therefore, Liu Xing suspected that Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall might have been created by a high-tech mythical creature race from the Cthulhu mythos, such as the Yis People or Mi Ge. Alternatively, it could have been created by the scapegoat Nyarlathotep.
But if that were the case, it meant that the Cthulhu mythos was not fictional, and the Outer Gods and Great Old Ones were real. This also explained why humans could conquer the skies but not the depths of the ocean. The deep sea was sealed by numerous Great Old Ones, preventing human exploration. The underwater ruins were the cities built and abandoned by mythical creatures like the Ancient Ones and Deep Ones in ancient times. Earthquakes could be attributed to the Earth-boring Demon Worm accidentally surfacing on the land.
In summary, Liu Xing was unwilling to admit the validity of his own speculation.
"We definitely don’t have the answers to these two questions," Zhang Jingxu said earnestly. "Summer insects cannot talk of ice. With our current abilities, we are not qualified to discuss these matters. Moreover, we are currently in the Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall, so we should be cautious and avoid discussing these sensitive topics."
Ling Ishikawa nodded and shrugged helplessly, choosing to remain silent.
Liu Xing sighed and decided to change the topic. "Speaking of which, Zhang Jingxu, could you tell us more about your master? From your description, it seems like he’s also a player."
Zhang Jingxu raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised by Liu Xing’s insight. "Oh, I didn’t expect you to guess that my master is also a player. Honestly, when I discovered that my master was a player too, I was quite shocked. Before that, I had always believed my master was just a knowledgeable NPC."
"Zhang Jingxu, can you tell us more about your master? He seems to have been very helpful and shared a lot with you," Miyako Godong said with interest.
Zhang Jingxu nodded and continued, "My master’s name is Feng Zhicheng. Of course, that’s not his real name; it’s just the name on his character card. As for his real name and his situation in the real world, I have no information. My master has never mentioned anything about his real-life circumstances, and he always emphasized the importance of distinguishing between the game and reality."
"Feng Zhicheng?!" Liu Xing exclaimed in surprise.
Liu Xing was astonished because the name Feng Zhicheng was familiar to him. He had a close friend from college named Feng Zhicheng.
"What? Do you know my master, Liu Xing?" Zhang Jingxu asked curiously.
Liu Xing shook his head and replied with a smile, "No, no, I don’t know your master. It’s just that I have a friend in real life named Feng Zhicheng. But I highly doubt that my friend would be interested in Cthulhu RPG Game, or maybe he’s just a satisfied person with his current life. Most of the players who joined Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall are likely to have a certain level of interest in the game."
"That’s right. I remember there was a forum thread where over five hundred players who accepted the survey all claimed to have some interest in Cthulhu RPG Game. But considering that the forum provided by Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall can only be accessed after advancing to the Shoggoth Region, those who have no interest in Cthulhu RPG Game probably perished in the first official module," Ling Ishikawa said seriously.
Liu Xing shrugged and didn’t say anything. However, when the topic turned to Feng Zhicheng, he thought of Wu Lei. Wu Lei had known Feng Zhicheng since high school, and they had a love-hate relationship. That’s why Wu Lei’s character card had "Feng Zhicheng" in it.
"Anyway, let me continue. While my master doesn’t want to be friends in real life, he has been an excellent mentor and friend within the game. He has an in-depth understanding of the Cthulhu Mythos and Cthulhu RPG Game, and he has provided me with a lot of help. Most importantly, my master often leaves me useful items, although I suspect these items are of no use to him."
"Unfortunately, I’ve never had the chance to play with my master because players from different gaming regions cannot be assigned to the same module. When I first used this character card, I was in the Ghoul region, and my master was already advancing through the Shoggoth Region’s promotion module. So, by the time I advanced to the Shoggoth Region, my master had already reached the Hound of Tindalos region. I assume that once I reach the Hound of Tindalos region, my master will have moved on to the Cthulhu region, so it seems I won’t be able to catch up with him," Zhang Jingxu said with an exaggerated sigh.
Panda Pig chuckled and spoke, "Zhang Jingxu, you still have a chance to play with your master. After all, no player has advanced to the Azathoth region so far. So as long as you advance to the Cthulhu region, you’ll be able to play with your master."
Zhang Jingxu nodded but looked puzzled. "Yes, I’ve been wondering why no player has advanced to the Azathoth region so far. To my knowledge, there are already over a thousand top players in the Cthulhu region. The most senior player there has been in the Cthulhu region for over ten years. Not to mention advancing to the Azathoth region, we don’t even know the conditions for promotion. So now, those top players in the Cthulhu region are still exploring the prerequisites for advancing to the Azathoth region. It seems that to ascend to the Azathoth region, you must first complete the World Mission entirely and make an agreement with a specific Great Old One, having them acknowledge your existence. Then you have a chance to take the promotion module, which consists of Missions assigned by the Great Old One you made a deal with. Completing those Missions allows players to advance to the Azathoth region."
Completing Missions given by a Great Old One?
Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, realizing that the conditions for advancing to the Azathoth region were indeed strict. Meeting a Great Old One was already a rare occurrence, let alone having a conversation with one. For Great Old Ones, humans were like insignificant ants, and most of the time, they would simply squash them instead of engaging in conversation.
As for gaining the recognition of a Great Old One, it was an even more challenging task. Players in the Cthulhu region had their attributes capped at 99, while many of the mythical creatures they had to face in the Cthulhu region had attribute values exceeding 100, even reaching into the thousands. Therefore, the key to gaining a Great Old One’s recognition lay in the items players possessed. Although players who could advance to the Cthulhu region each had powerful items, these items might not be sufficient to impress a Great Old One.
At this point, Panda Pig interrupted Liu Xing’s thoughts, "Hey, can we focus on the present for now? We’re still Shoggoth Region players, and it will take at least a year or two to advance to the Cthulhu region, assuming everything goes smoothly. So, should we consider taking action now and deal with Matsui Yui? Her tension level is already at 99."
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