Great Horn Mountain Settlement, one of the starting points for newcomers on the Blue Planet.
Mad Blade Raging Sword's vision blurred momentarily before he found himself standing in a square. Yellow earth crunched beneath his feet, and air thick with a rugged, earthy scent filled his nostrils—so utterly real he could even feel the warmth of the sun. He bent down and pinched his arm; the sensation of muscle felt almost identical to the real thing, leaving him utterly astonished.
This small square held hundreds of players, all eyeing each other curiously. Player nicknames floated above their heads.
Numerous wooden and stone encampments dotted the surroundings. NPCs clad in crude animal hides moved about in small groups in the distance, pointing and whispering among themselves.
Following the newbie tutorial from character creation, Mad Blade drew up his interface to check his Level 1 stats. Just as the official site stated, the standard starter kit included a non-lootable three-piece set: a tunic, trousers, and boots. Beyond covering his modesty, they offered zero attributes.
He noticed a fellow player tugging at his trousers, trying to remove them. After much futile effort, the man sighed regretfully: 'Bloody hell, can't get them off! What a rip-off!'
WTF, What are you up to?!
Mad Blade Raging Sword looked utterly horrified and quietly moved away from the fellow.
Mad Blade Raging Sword was an obscure professional gamer, a fresh-faced rookie barely into the scene. Hearing that the International Gaming Alliance was preparing a pro league even before Sterllaris Legend's release, he'd followed developments closely. When the highly anticipated closed beta opened, he'd persuaded club executives to secure a precious beta slot.
Gaining an early foothold in the pioneering phase meant staying ahead of the pack at every turn. Mad Blade Raging Sword was brimming with ambition.
The square buzzed with chatter among the players.
'Holy-moly, this feels so real.'
'What should we do now?'
'Any hints?'
Just then, a white-haired, white-bearded old man approached the crowd. His imposing presence, reminiscent of a white-maned lion king, commanded attention as he bellowed:
'You outsiders! If you wish to survive, find yourselves a job. Our settlement has no place for idlers. Now then, crops need harvesting in the fields, the tailor's and armourer's in the south require skilled hands, and a shipment has just arrived at the settlement gates needing unloading. In short, diligence ensures you won't starve.'
The players noticed two additional bars beside their health points: hunger and thirst. Should either drop to zero, the debuffs [Hunger] and [Thirst] would activate, weakening their attributes and steadily draining their health until death.
Mad Blade Raging Sword cast a detection spell on the old man.
[Based on your level, you obtain the following information]
[Sandre - Village Chief of Great Horn Mountain Settlement]
[Level: ?]
[Attributes: ?]
[You may regard him as the village chief of a newbie settlement]
[Danger Level: Medium]
Players possess a detection function, allowing them to view NPC names and information. However, if the level disparity is too great, certain details may be obscured.
The colour of an NPC's name indicates faction affiliation: green signifies friendly, yellow neutral, red hostile. The danger level reflects the power disparity between the player and target. As players are currently Level 1 novices, they cannot view Sandre's specific attributes.
'The armoury sells firearms, ammunition, and melee weapons. The market stalls offer food and water. The western beast pens rent packhorses for riding. Should you wish to depart, a public transit railway station lies several kilometres north. For learning various life skills, the blacksmith's and tailor's workshops are excellent choices...'
From Sandre's description, the group grasped the basics: the settlement only offered a few crafting professions and one combat class—[Novice Hunter]—all requiring paid training.
The players' map was currently shrouded in fog of war, a vast expanse of darkness. More planetary details, maps, and faction structures required exploration to illuminate the panel. With countless elements to uncover, Mad Blade Raging Sword evoked a sense of 'The Girl's Scroll 21'.
Ultimately, every action in the early stages required money.
So, did that mean they had to start by doing life skills quests to earn cash?
'I wonder if we could jump straight into monster-hunting quests?'
A guild leader spoke up. Mad Blade Raging Sword recognised him—the leader of the 'Slay the World' guild, 'Sliced into Eighteen Pieces'. His name alone hinted at his temperament, and he was likely from Guangdong Province.
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Sandre muttered something about what monster-hunting meant before bursting into laughter. 'With your puny frames, hunting beasts? You must be tired of living! See that mountain range over there? If you're not afraid of death, go hunt in the mountains. Based on the prey you bring back, I'll give you corresponding rewards. But in my opinion, you couldn't even take down the weakest grey-backed hyena.'
The group gazed in the direction he pointed. Not far away, dense forests stretched across the landscape, while towering mountains rose majestically, seemingly piercing the heavens. Clouds swirled around the peaks like colossal serpents coiled around the ridges. The breathtaking scenery left many players utterly entranced. The level of detail was astonishingly realistic, a world apart from the flat, textured landscapes of other virtual MMORPGs.
'Sliced into Eighteen Pieces' refused to believe it, leading several guild elite. They used the hundred coins each new player started with to buy crude melee weapons and immediately charged towards the mountains.
Before long, the group returned, heads bowed in dejection.
'Sliced into Eighteen Pieces' looked utterly wretched. He'd encountered a beast larger than a man—a giant ape. The moment he raised his blade, the ape hurled a load of filth that smashed his skull. Respawning nearby, his mind was overrun by a thousand grotesque emoji.
Why on earth do monkeys attack by chucking pops?! Must it be so lifelike?!
The faint scent of fate still lingered in his nostrils, churning 'Sliced into Eighteen Pieces''s stomach to the point of nausea.
Realistic details are fine by me, but giving poo a smell? That's definitely the developers' twisted sense of humour!
'Bloody hell, these monsters are too strong!'
'I didn't even see it coming before I died!'
'One swing only apply one damage!'
'Bloody hell, my newly bought [Rough Stone Knife] dropped!'
Death deducts experience points based on total level, with respawn timers accumulating: first death takes ten seconds, second requires one minute, third five minutes, fourth half an hour—increasing progressively. In-game respawn timers reset every six days.
The death penalty was no trifling matter. Players could only die ten times within the game's six-day cycle. Upon reaching this limit, they were forcibly logged out, unable to reconnect until the following real-world day. Rumour had it this was the latest anti-addiction measure, proving more effective than 'Sky Island and the Maiden''s fatigue system. Once students exhausted their daily death quota, they had no choice but to log off and study. Following Sterllaris Legend's implementation of this system, Yang's Internet Addiction Treatment Technology—a decades-old institution—posted its first negative review, likely due to business disruption...
Players promptly abandoned monster-hunting ambitions, instead focusing on errands for profit. Hundreds scurried about, bustling with task completion, contributing to the socialist construction of Great Horn Mountain.
Sandre stroked his beard with satisfaction. These outsiders were remarkably diligent—worth cultivating.
'The reward's pitiful, only fifty coins!'
'Levelling's so slow! Half an hour of questing just scraped together enough XP.'
'The controls feel so authentic!'
'Even hitting yourself takes damage—brilliant.'
'Are you daft?'
The game offered a challenging start without outright punishing players. It provided immense freedom while also offering optional beginner objectives, making it immensely entertaining. Players found themselves gritting their teeth yet utterly engrossed, caught in this peculiar blend of pain and pleasure. This sensation instantly prompted a group of players to mentally envision the game developer's wife in all manner of compromising positions.
Today, we're all your dear neighbor Old Wang!
...
'You're a pro gamer too?'
Mad Blade Raging Sword turned at the call, spotting three players approaching together. He recognised them all: superstars of the professional circuit. The prodigy 'Flash Fried Rice,' the decade-long veteran of virtual gaming leagues 'Eternal Moonlight,' and the esports beauty with millions of followers, 'Jiang Yuluo.' It was Eternal Moonlight who spoke.
Facing these industry titans, Mad Blade Ranging Sword felt himself shrink visibly. He asked awkwardly, 'What's this about?'
Eternal Moonlight smiled. 'Have you noticed the market price for maps is three thousand Blue Planet Coins? The rewards for newbie quests are pitifully low. Practically no one buys maps.'