Building a sect from scratch.

Chapter 117 Theme Competition
Let's go back to a little over ten days ago.

Exhausted, Wang Ergou and his companions climbed out of the game pod after a long day of battle.

The rewards for the limited-time battlefield are certainly tempting, but it's also incredibly grindy. Thousands upon thousands of monsters are a real pain to clear. Even tens of thousands of pigs would take a while to kill, let alone a horde of ghouls and demons that are far more difficult to kill than pigs.

After finally finishing the limited-time battlefield, it was already past midnight in the game, and everyone was too exhausted to stay awake any longer, so they all logged off.

Unexpectedly, as soon as I logged off, I saw a new official "announcement".

Or rather, it's a forum post released by the game's official team!
"Third beta test slots are up for grabs! From August 15th to August 31st, the 'My Ideal Taiyin Sect' themed competition will be grandly launched! This competition has four categories: illustration and illustration design, AI visual art, 3D design, and creative short video. Each verified account can only participate in two categories..."

"Each project has a gold award (first place), a silver award (second place), a bronze award (third place), and several awards of excellence..."

"Gold Prize: Ten unbound third beta test qualification activation codes, Taiyin Sect land deed (game item) redemption code, and superior-grade Xuan-level spirit weapon customization voucher (game item) redemption code."

"Silver Prize: Five unbound third beta test qualification activation codes, Taiyin Sect land deed (game item) redemption code, and mid-grade Xuan-level spirit weapon customization voucher (game item) redemption code."

"Bronze Prize: Three unbound third beta test qualification activation codes, Taiyin Sect land deed (game item) redemption code, and low-grade Xuan-level spirit weapon customization voucher (game item) redemption code."

"The prize for excellence is a bound activation code for the third closed beta test."

"Contest Requirements: Imagine your vision of the Taiyin Sect. Is it a celestial city in the heavens, or a place of earthly life? Is it a place of pavilions and flowing streams, or a place of magnificent buildings and towering mountains? Feel free to imagine what your sect's headquarters would look like. Perhaps your creativity will be featured in 'Ten Continents Chronicle'..."

On the game forum, a post that was pinned and highlighted in red by the official team quickly went viral across the internet.

Since the dark horse game "Ten Continents Chronicles" suddenly appeared, although the number of game slots was outrageously limited, the phenomenal popularity it generated was absolutely insane.

Besides its cutting-edge engine technology that surpasses all major game companies and its dubious national background, there are also various novel gameplay elements constantly being streamed live. Absolute freedom is not just a slogan; on major live streaming websites, the game streams of "Ten Continents Chronicles" have become the latest must-watch shows.

Therefore, once the official game promotional post for the competition was released, it quickly went viral both domestically and internationally. Many game enthusiasts from other countries even tried to find out whether the so-called "non-binding" third closed beta test qualification activation code allowed foreigners to register and activate it... Of course, the answer was, unsurprisingly, no.

Currently, the competition has not even started, but activation codes that are not bound to the third closed beta test qualification have already been sold for 10 yuan each, and the price is still soaring.

As a result, the number of participants in the competition nearly overwhelmed the server, and Fang Xianyu even had to spend extra energy to keep the website for submitting competition entries running normally.

Of course, while the competition has four tracks, not everyone can participate. For most people, their drawing skills are basically at a beginner level – the classic "chicken pecking at rice" scenario – the rice is eaten by the chicken, and then the chicken leaves. The only track where they can put in some effort is the AI-generated content, but that takes either a few minutes or several days to complete; someone who doesn't know the ropes can only manage a few minutes' worth of work even if you ask them to spend ten days on it. Therefore, netizens on the forum started spewing all sorts of sarcastic remarks, completely disregarding the competition – "Forget it, there's no way I'll win."

"The official team is getting lame and lame. Now they're not even going to make their own sect scenes, they're just going to copy what other players have done, right?"

"How can this be called plagiarism? This is called fully listening to the players' opinions!"

"I don't approve of the original poster not working in the game's public relations team."

……

As a relatively unknown artist, Zhao Qing was incredibly excited when she saw the post. She had actually had many ideas for a while, but because she was always busy playing games as ordered by the game, her side job of illustration had been neglected. Now, with the game's official competition, she decisively submitted her application overnight, took a week off, ordered takeout to recover her losses, and then curled up in bed to start drawing.

What should the world of cultivation be like?

As the player with the highest combat power in the entire server, Zhao Qing was one of the first to visit Guangcheng Sect. She had already seen what Guangcheng Sect was like.

Towering mountain peaks, solemn sect halls, and simple yet exquisite architecture.

It fits most people's fantasies about fantasy and martial arts, but it's not enough.

Having once made a living through art, Zhao Qing had developed an indescribable sense of belonging to the Taiyin Sect after playing the game for so long. She also developed a deep affection for her senior sister, Baili Shuang, who had always gently taught her. Cough, no, she developed a deep sense of filial piety towards her.

It can be said that, compared to Wang Ergou, who was single-mindedly focused on maintaining the community and being the leader of our group, Zhao Qing truly opened the door to this magnificent world of cultivation.

She truly learned what Tao and immortality are, and she genuinely experienced the process of cultivation, which made her understanding of the Guixu Realm much deeper than that of ordinary players.

The so-called immortal is merely a state of being after a life has matured; it is not high above, nor does it have the right to look down on everything. As for the so-called divine office, it is a "job" that is "worked year-round." Immortals who attain divine office must be responsible for their divine office; otherwise, they will face karmic obstacles, heavenly tribulations, and so on. There are laws in the world that limit immortals and gods.

So, in the Realm of Returning to the Void, what does cultivating immortality really mean?

The pursuit of immortality? The pursuit of transcendence?
No, it's more than that.

According to the many ancient texts of the Guixu Realm that she read, the cultivators of the past pursued "knowledge".

Zhuangzi said, "My life has a limit, but knowledge has no limit."

Whether in the Realm of Guixu or on Blue Star, humanity has been in a continuous process of "seeking knowledge" since the formation of civilization.

On Earth, in pursuit of knowledge, more than 3,000 years ago, ancient Egypt created hieroglyphics, the source of most phonetic writing systems in the world, including all European scripts. In the same pursuit, scholars of the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, revolutionized the philosophy of science, breaking free from the traditional constraints of Aristotelian philosophy and opening the door to modern science.

In the Realm of Returning to the Void, also in the pursuit of knowledge, ancient gods from ten thousand years ago risked their lives to explore the "Dao" of heaven and earth.

Perhaps at some point, the pursuit of knowledge ceased to be so simple; some sought it to plunder resources, while others aimed to dominate a region. But regardless, the pursuit of knowledge remains an instinct almost inherent to intelligent life.

Compared to the Realm of Return to Nothingness, we possess a more complete society, a more comprehensive system, and a highly advanced technological civilization.

Zhao Qing pondered for a moment and drew several arcs on the graphics tablet.

The arcs trembled, forming a continuous line.

A bright moon hangs high in the deep blue starry sky. Beneath the moon, large swaths of auspicious clouds with iridescent colors float in the sky.

(End of this chapter)