「Great Qian Dynasty.」
「Liang City.」
「At the mountain gate of the Profound Yellow Sect.」
"Sect Leader, the mountains are high and the path is long. May we meet again in Jianghu if fate allows!"
The man clad in hemp robes gave a fist and palm salute, looking at the young Sect Leader before him with mixed emotions swirling inside.
Ever since the Profound Yellow Sect was handed over to this Sect Leader, in just one short year, the disciples had scattered and left. Now, even this last disciple was leaving.
The Profound Yellow Sect was no longer thriving. It no longer had the splendor of the hundreds of disciples it once boasted. With other sects offering better terms for recruitment, anyone would know how to choose.
Xu Nian, dressed in a light white robe, sighed endlessly in his heart. Everyone has left. The vast sect is now left with only me. What should I do in the future?
According to the rules of Jianghu, once a sect no longer had members, its territory would then belong to other powers.
Xu Nian was not from this world; he had come here by accident. Tragically becoming a prince of this world, he thought he would make a great difference, but the very next day he was arrested by the Brocade Guards.
The reason was that he had slept with a concubine from the harem!
Upon reflection, he realized that his memory did indeed hold some details of a rather romantic affair. But it wasn't his doing; it was the original owner of this body, Luo Yushu. He was already captured, so no one would believe his explanation. After all, he had inherited Luo Yushu's future.
His Majesty, considering him his son, had him directly exiled to Liang City. Xu Nian then joined the Profound Yellow Sect under his real name. In a year's time, he had inexplicably taken over the Profound Yellow Sect and become the new Sect Leader.
Will I now get a chance to make a difference?
And the result? The sect had been hollowed out internally, unable to support many people. Its Inner Three Halls and Four Chambers spanned an entire mountain range, arguably the largest sect within the vicinity of Liang City. But in the end, not only had the disciples left, even sustenance was becoming a problem!
He sighed. Should I also pack up, sell some valuables, and leave? Perhaps I'm the most unfortunate transmigrator in history?
But at that moment, it seemed the heavens decided to play a joke on him.
[System officially constructed, successfully solved causality, and successfully bound with the Profound Yellow Sect.]
[Task: Please recruit thirty disciples within one day!]
[Detection: No disciples within the host's range are sincerely willing to join the Profound Yellow Sect. Initiating alternative world recruitment mode.]
[Host may summon individuals from the original world, who will descend as game players and become disciples of the Profound Yellow Sect.]
[Reward: Ninth-Grade Martial Artist Realm; the Exchange Hall will be opened, and when players exchange for Martial Arts, the host can directly and perfectly master them.]
The cold mechanical voice ringing in his ears stunned Xu Nian.
What is this? I was about to leave, and now you tell me the System is online?
The reward was even the Ninth-Grade Martial Artist Realm. In this world where martial force was supreme, Ninth Grade was considered the entry level, marking one's true entry into Jianghu. Xu Nian had been with the Profound Yellow Sect for a year, yet hadn't even reached the threshold of becoming a Martial Artist. Apart from some basic farming-style moves, he seemed no different from an ordinary person.
Wait a second! People from the original world… I'm from Earth. If it means recruiting buddies from Earth, and they also come as players, wouldn't that be… The Fourth Catastrophe?! Directly summon the Fourth Catastrophe?
Xu Nian subconsciously clenched his fists, trying to suppress the excitement in his heart.
Go ahead, leave! All of you! Did you really think the Profound Yellow Sect has no one left? When this Sect Leader brings the Fourth Catastrophe sweeping through all of Jianghu, you'll see how formidable the Profound Yellow Sect is.
And about the Capital City! I've always felt that my exile wasn't so simple. According to my memory, before the incident with that concubine, the Ninth Prince had invited me for drinks, and then everything went black. When I woke up, Luo Yushu had already been imprisoned and had taken his own life, and then I, Xu Nian, took over. It seems I need to visit the Capital City later to have a heart-to-heart with the Ninth Prince. I refuse to be the scapegoat for this!
But... the Imperial Palace is teeming with high-level experts; even the Imperial Guards start at the rank of First-Grade Martial Artist. I'm not yet a match for them.
"System, how do I summon?" Xu Nian excitedly asked.
"The host may opt to recruit players in a game mode. The system has automatically constructed a game webpage module, and the required conditions will be automatically sent to selected players."
The response from the System thrilled Xu Nian once again.
What are players? Undying Workers, living tools, a never-ending supply of Chives! This wave must be harvested!
「Earth.」
Inside a modestly sized rental room in Demon City.
Su Bei sat at his desk, busily grinding with five accounts, wondering whether to add an egg to his lunch.
At the bottom right of the screen, a pop-up ad suddenly appeared. The next moment, his screen began to lag.
Damn it, the materials I just farmed!
Su Bei hurriedly tried to close the pop-up with his mouse but found there was no option to close it. Just as he moved his mouse over the pop-up, the entire game automatically closed, and all five accounts went offline.
Damn! What kind of crappy ad is this? Can't my antivirus see it?
Staring at the game's official website on his monitor, Su Bei was dumbfounded.
The design of the official game website was incredibly lavish, and gentle, ancient-style music began to play in the media player as soon as it appeared. The game's CG animation was also full of sincerity, with highly realistic character models and many fighting scenes. Just looking at this game's official website, it indeed lived up to a true major production.
「Inside the game forum.」
Junlin: "Is this thing really a game? Are you sure it's not a virus?"
Abbess, Don't Love Me: "My computer almost crashed! Isn't the game designer going to explain what's happening?"
Que Yue: "Damn, this game even says it's giving away free equipment. Is that true or false?"
Evil Queen Morgana: "I was just grinding when I suddenly got disconnected. I want compensation!"
Uncle: "Although this pop-up method is annoying, the CG is well-made and has the feel of a big company production. Are they conducting internal testing?"
Xu Nian looked at the virtual screen in front of him, and his lips curved up slightly.
Well, at least some players are curious. The System created this official website using the Profound Yellow Sect as the background; the buildings in it were directly transported over. It wasn't exactly fake, but more like seventy percent real and thirty percent fake.
After some hesitation, Xu Nian posted a message under the persona of the Game Designer.
[Game Designer: "100% real Jianghu experience! Looking for thirty players willing to participate in internal testing. Group number: 121115726. Limited to thirty people only. We will stop accepting new members once full."]
Watching this pinned post, Su Bei couldn't help but laugh.
This designer really is fearless. A 100% real experience? Such technology is virtually nonexistent across the entire VR game market. This kind of deceit is treating players like fools.
After closing this advertising official website, he reopened his game, but oddly, that beautiful game music still echoed in his mind.
Hesitating for a moment, he impulsively reopened the official game website and wrote down the group number.
Although many players were still complaining about the pop-up on the forum, when Su Bei joined the group, he found that there were already twenty-nine people in it.
And he was the thirtieth.
Were there really other people joining this group like him?
Poisonous Panda: "Game Designer, give us the code! I have a VR device and can start playing immediately."
Junlin: "There are thirty people now. Isn't the Game Designer coming out yet?"
Under the Phoenix Tree: "I'm here to ask about that music. My phone's music recognition app couldn't find it."
Game Designer: "I will send out a form. Please fill it out. The equipment will be sent by courier. Please make sure to sign for it."
Oh Hot: "Really? Free? No need to spend money or anything?"
Evil Queen Morgana: "You believe in pies falling from the sky? I bet you'll have to spend money in the game!"
Abbess, Don't Love Me: "The official website says there are no recharge channels. It's all up to the players to progress themselves, and the game has ultra-high freedom. If any required recharge channels are found, players can directly report them."
Junlin: "I've already filled out the form. Waiting for the equipment."
Poisonous Panda: "+1."
Soon, the group was bustling with activity.
And Xu Nian, as the owner of this System-created group, naturally watched this scene under his Game Designer persona.
Thirty players were chattering away, and the chat history soon hit 99+. Now that I've found thirty players, the System will take care of the subsequent equipment distribution. The causality is also handled by the System; I just need to wait for the players to arrive. It seems everything is progressing according to my plan.
After closing the image in front of him, Xu Nian stretched lazily and turned to walk toward the Great Hall of the Profound Yellow Sect at the mountain gate.
A hundred stone steps led upward, snaking their way to the top.
Behind the lush canopies, the outlines of ancient, quaint houses were faintly visible. Furthermore, the sounds of birds and insects in the woods truly made it seem like a blessed paradise.
But how could such a place be occupied by the Profound Yellow Sect?