Building a sect from scratch.

Leaving aside the laughter and commotion of the group, they walked along, machetes in hand, clearing a path through the brambles, and soon encountered a group of wild boars.

Back when there were only a few dozen or a hundred players, the average level wasn't even level 10. Not to mention Foundation Establishment, there weren't many who had even successfully drawn Qi into their bodies, so naturally they were helpless against the wild boar horde.

But now the number of players has long surpassed 1,000, with several hundred people online at peak times every day. There are all sorts of guides on how to kill boars on the forums. Moreover, Nietzsche's fixed group has several Foundation Establishment level experts, so wild boar herds are no longer a problem for players.

The dozen or so players had clearly defined roles: some were using nets, some were throwing talismans, and some were casting skills on the lead wild boar.

"Hey! Look carefully before using your skills! Incomplete pigskins will fetch a lot less money!"

"You're obsessed with money!"

"Every little bit helps!"

In the lively and relaxed atmosphere, it wasn't long before everyone successfully subdued and killed the wild boar herd.

"Ugh! How bloody!"

While complaining, one player quickly and ruthlessly slashed several times, and blood immediately flowed all over the ground.

Skinning and dismembering animals is something players can't do, even with the age requirement for playing "Ten Continents Chronicles," it's still too gory. Players usually try to stun or kill the wild boars and then bring them back to Chang'an to sell to the slaughterhouse or NPCs who know how to butcher them.

Having encountered numerous wild boar herds over several days of exploration, the Nietzsche Guild players were experienced and mostly chose to kill them with relatively weak lightning talismans or by stabbing them in the heart. The latter usually resulted in significant blood loss, but this method preserved the boar hide to the greatest extent possible. Don't underestimate this boar hide; it's different from the plump, white pigskin on Earth. It's thick, tough, and possesses some spiritual resistance, making it a common crafting material for armor and clothing. Besides its tusks, it's the most valuable part of the boar.

Strangely enough, while everyone was chatting and resting, waiting to deal with the wild boar, a thick fog suddenly rose in the mountains.

The thick fog arrived quickly and suddenly, enveloping all the players almost in the blink of an eye.

"What happened!?"

Even the most oblivious player immediately noticed something was wrong, but before they could even exchange a few words in the team chat, it started to drizzle.

The rain grew heavier and heavier, accompanied by howling winds.

The strong wind blew the fog, making it scatter and gather intermittently, and also making it difficult to open one's eyes. The swaying shadows of the surrounding trees were unsettling, and a strange rustling sound could be heard faintly overhead!

"Stand together in close proximity! Just in case anything attacks!"

The players only panicked for a moment. Someone shouted, and everyone calmed down and huddled together in twos and threes.

Nietzsche acted quickly, tossing out a wind-fixing talisman and shouting into the group chat, "Those with water and ice spirit roots, hurry up and try to condense water and ice!"

Unexpectedly, her idea was very useful. As several players with water and ice spiritual roots tried to condense water and freeze it on the ground, the fog in the air actually dissipated quite a bit!
At least the visibility wasn't completely reduced to pitch black, so everyone gathered together and soon huddled around Nietzsche, nervously observing their surroundings.

"Look!"

Another player looked up in surprise and pointed to the sky. Everyone looked up and saw a winged "dragon" hovering up and down in the air not far above their heads, like a bee dancing, following some unknown pattern, as if it were conveying some kind of message, or like it was performing some strange sacrificial "dance".

"Is this Yinglong?" Some players who enjoy digging into the plot and cultural details of the game recognized the identity of the "dragon".

"Does Yinglong look that strange?"

What is Yinglong?

"Is it a type of dragon? I heard there are many different kinds of dragons in this game!"

"What kind of hybrid is this? How come it has the wings of a Western dragon?"

"Were its parents in a transnational relationship?"

Everyone was buzzing with discussion, staring at the Yinglong above their heads, making nonsensical remarks.

It hardly resembles a dragon. Its body isn't as long as a dragon's, and its tail doesn't have the fan-like structure common in dragon illustrations. The whole thing looks more like a giant loach covered in scales. It has a pair of bat-like wings on its sides and two unbranched horns on its head, making it quite different from the traditional image of a dragon.

Suddenly, a player with sharp eyes pointed out, "It looks fake! Look at its wings, they seem to be semi-transparent!"

Upon closer inspection, everyone realized that the figure of the Yinglong was indeed somewhat illusory and not solid.

At this moment, Yinglong seemed to have finally finished its dance. It slowly stopped, but because it was in the air and some distance away, its expression could not be seen.

Gradually, the wind and rain subsided considerably. Nietzsche pondered for a moment, then commanded, "Those who can run fast, go up and check the situation... Let's go with the third one in the second team! I remember your initial skill is Swiftness! Everyone else, be ready to escape combat at any time!"

The player whose name was called nodded without saying a word, and immediately took to the air, reaching for the Yinglong figure in the sky.

When she got close to Yinglong, she was startled—this Yinglong had no eyes!

Or rather, its eyes are dark black holes, without even eyeballs!

A chill crept into the player's heart. She endured the discomfort and tried to reach out and touch Yinglong.

However, her hands passed straight through Yinglong's shadow—Yinglong was indeed a projection!
Then, as if she had triggered a switch, Yinglong's figure vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving only a huge, somewhat distorted "door" in place.

While called a "door," it's actually an entrance similar to a dungeon barrier, projecting the environment within the barrier and distorting it into a large, mirror-like screen that contrasts sharply with the surrounding scenery. Since these screens are often entrances to secret realms or hidden worlds, they're quite familiar to everyone and are collectively referred to as "doors."

Before Nietzsche could give any instructions, the player instinctively reached for the door again. Unexpectedly, she was sucked into the door without warning, only managing to let out a rapid and surprised "Ah!"

Fortunately, the players had a chat channel available. Nietzsche asked in the group voice chat, "How are you? Are you alright? Is it a dungeon inside?"

The player replied somewhat uncertainly, "Well... I think so? But there are no monsters here, it looks like some kind of ruins?"

"Remains...site?"

(End of this chapter)