The Fourth Disaster: People become gods through high martial arts and gaming

Chapter 278 Darkness Descends and the Fog Mountain Prison

In front of the Obsidian Martial Arts School in the City of Light.

As players entered the flying transport vehicles, one after another, they soared into the sky above the giant warships, a sight that filled the thousands of eliminated players in the martial arts hall with envy, jealousy, and resentment.

"This time, the super dungeon opened up 999 slots, but unfortunately, I haven't been a martial artist for long enough to beat those guild martial artists. I was directly blocked from the 999 slots, and the hidden high-level profession is gone just like that."

"It's getting harder and harder for lone wolf players in this game. Those big guilds are now taking advantage of the bug in the digging assessment to have their internal members practice martial arts, visualization techniques, and breathing techniques in advance. Before even entering the game, they've already reached a high level in techniques like the Crushing Stone Fist, Leopard Shadow Step, breathing techniques, and visualization techniques. Once they enter the game, they're basically at least intermediate-level apprentices. Unfortunately, when I entered, my breathing technique level was only average, and I'm only a beginner apprentice in the game. I'm already a step behind those guild players."

"Yes, this game is getting more and more competitive. Before, the competition was only within the game, but now it's happening outside of the game too. A few days ago, I saw Xiaoyuan's update on how to cultivate before entering the game and start as an intermediate apprentice. The video had an incredible number of views. It got more than 500,000 views in just one hour and more than 5 million views in a day. It even went viral, making many people who don't play High Martial Arts Descent curious about what kind of game it is. I've seen pre-registration rewards for games, but I've never seen a game where you pre-register to cultivate."

"I watched that video too. The comments were all complaints, saying that the game company is incredibly greedy, forcing people who can't even play the game to spend money. They want to have a good foundation before they've even played the game, so they have to spend their lives to train. They've no shame at all."

"That being said, many of those who have pre-registered for High Martial Arts Descent are practicing according to the guides of the great master Xiaoyuan, hoping to have a good foundation when entering the game. After all, the gameplay of this game is becoming more and more perfect, and the game map is the largest in the entire game. In addition, the virtuality is 100%. I heard that some real estate developers are planning to enter High Martial Arts Descent and develop the land there to create a vacation paradise for the rich, so that the rich in the real world can go online and vacation anytime, anywhere in the future. I heard that even the land near the lake in Red Moon Town has been bought in advance by the Mythical Paradise guild."

"I've also heard that those real estate developers provided Myth Paradise with a large sum of money to recruit new players for the game in order to cooperate. The salaries they offered were incredibly high, which led many new players in the game to quit their jobs and join Myth Paradise. As a result, Myth Paradise's current number of players has exceeded three hundred, second only to Tianwei."

"Tianwei and Shenhua Tiantang directly took up nearly 500 spots in this event. With the addition of the people from the Jishen Guild and Cangqiong Guild, we free players account for less than 20%. It will probably be even more difficult to compete with these guilds in future events."

"Not necessarily. This time, several solo newcomers broke into the top 200. Their leveling speed was terrifying. In less than ten days, they had already reached the level of high-level martial artists. It's simply inhuman. Leveling up in this game is different from other games. It doesn't require experience points from killing monsters. It all depends on comprehension. People with high comprehension can level up very quickly as long as they have enough cultivation resources. On the contrary, if their comprehension is insufficient, they will be stuck at the level even if they have enough resources. In the future, as more and more players cultivate, even if the players in these guilds have good talent, they are not worth mentioning compared to the vast number of players."

Inside the martial arts hall, the eliminated players watched as the player was sent into the sky giant ship, and they all started discussing it, feeling that the game was getting more and more complicated.

Previously, players only competed with other players within the game, but now they also have to compete with players outside the game. Even veteran players who entered the game early can be overtaken by newcomers if they are not careful, forcing them to spend more time in the game to hone their skills.

After all, the game "High Martial Arts Descends" is becoming increasingly popular, with the number of pre-registrations exceeding seven million. Moreover, more and more real-world companies are starting to focus on the potential value of "High Martial Arts Descends".

If these early adopters don't work harder, it will be difficult for them to make a fortune in the future.

On the giant ship in the sky of Domain City, a large number of players followed Lin Qi to the deck and waited quietly for the event to begin. A dozen players wearing B6-level armor and whose strength had reached the level of a beginner martial artist gathered around Dark Judgment.

"How are you all? This game is just as I described, isn't it?" Dark Judgment, whose strength had reached the limit of a high-level martial artist, smiled as he looked at the dozen or so people in front of him.

The dozen or so people in front of him were people he had painstakingly recruited from various mercenary groups. These people were originally celebrities in the mercenary world, but they had to retire and return to the lives of ordinary people because of injuries and disabilities.

After discovering the potential of High Martial Arts Descent, in addition to having his trainees play High Martial Arts Descent, he also tried to contact retired mercenaries he knew and had a good relationship with, so that they could also enter High Martial Arts Descent.

After all, these people are celebrities in the mercenary world. The wars and killings they have experienced in real life are incomparable to those of professional gamers. They are experts in combat, wilderness battles, and wilderness exploration.

With a virtuality level of 100%, these people can fully utilize their advantages. In fact, due to their cultivation, their physical attributes are much stronger than in reality, allowing them to unleash even greater power.

“Indeed, this game is as amazing as you said. In reality, I’ve lost an arm, but after entering this game, I’m no different from a normal person, as if I never lost my arm at all.” A tall, middle-aged man, nearly two meters tall, sighed. “Moreover, as I’ve grown stronger through cultivation, especially after becoming a martial artist, I feel much stronger in reality. At least now, none of the newbies can withstand a single punch from me.”

Before entering the High Martial Arts Era due to the Dark Trial, he was just a crippled instructor, and even the new trainees he trained didn't take him seriously.

He wasn't surprised by this. The mercenary world has always been like this: strength is king, and only fists matter. After all, life in the universe is a life of constant danger, and one wrong move can mean death. Only those who are strong enough can survive.

However, after he became a martial artist, all his former students were now being defeated with a single punch, making him wonder if he was dreaming. In particular, his Rock-Shattering Fist could shatter rocks the size of washbasins with a single punch. Such a feat was simply unbelievable.

"Judgment, now that we've all become martial artists, we know what you said before was true." At this moment, a young man with a stubble beard, who had reached the middle level of martial artist, looked at Dark Judgment and said calmly, "No one here is a fool. If you didn't have any ulterior motives, you wouldn't have told us such a good thing. Just say what you have to say."

As the young man in his early thirties spoke, the dozen or so people present all became solemn and looked toward the Dark Judgment.

"I wouldn't call it scheming. I just want to develop in this game. You've all seen the effects of this game. This is only the first time I've become a martial artist. As my level increases, there will probably be even more incredible effects."

“Aren’t you curious and eager to level up? Leveling up isn’t easy; it gets harder as you progress. Putting aside our talent and comprehension, various cultivation resources aren’t easy to obtain either. All of this requires strength.” Dark Judgment looked at the unshaven young man and said seriously, “So I want to form a mercenary guild and gather a group of professionals. Just like this event dungeon, if you want to get the benefits, it’s probably difficult for one person to do it alone. And gathering these professionals, I definitely can’t do it alone. I also need you to call on your old friends, preferably those with exceptional talent.”

Even the Dark Judgment held a degree of awe towards the unshaven young man before them.

Red Sand! Known in the mercenary world as the Hunter of Hell.

There are many famous figures in the mercenary world, but Chi Sha in front of us is a legend. He once single-handedly wiped out an entire space pirate crew, but he retired from the mercenary world because he was suffering from a terminal illness.

It took him a long time to contact Akasa.

“How about forming a mercenary guild?” Chisha thought for a moment and agreed. “That’s a great idea. Those retired guys are all very skilled. If they come into the game, they should be able to make a lot of difference. Many things that professional players can’t do are easy for us. If we form a large enough guild, we can even make a difference in the real world.”

With Chisha agreeing, the dozen or so people present also nodded in agreement, feeling that this was indeed a good opportunity.

Although they are all crippled now, if they become stronger in the game, they may have a chance to return to their peak in the mercenary world in the future, and may even be stronger than they were at their peak.

"Since Brother Chisha has agreed, then everyone should contact the others as soon as possible after this event. I will also advance to the Bone Forging Realm as soon as possible and set up the garrison." Dark Judgment smiled as he saw that more than ten people present had agreed.

While the player guilds were undoubtedly powerful in the game, they couldn't compare to these veteran mercenaries in terms of combat experience and exploration. Not to mention that these were all celebrities in the mercenary world. Once they leveled up, surpassing the current four major garrison groups would be a piece of cake.

Meanwhile, the four garrison regiments on the other side were also sharpening their knives.

"It's a pity that Elder Yutian was just one step away from completing the final bone tempering. Otherwise, our Tianwei would have had five experts at the Bone Forging Realm, giving us an absolute advantage among the four guard regiments." The Gods of Twilight glanced at the three guard regiment commanders, Lu Fanchen, Fang Zhen, and Yi Ye Fuyun, and couldn't help but feel regretful.

In the past few days, due to the event dungeon, you have to be ranked in the top 999 in terms of strength to participate. Not to mention that the dungeon description also says that there are a lot of Blood Coagulation Realm monsters in this dungeon, as well as teams from many NPC factions competing against each other. Everyone is frantically improving their level and strength.

In just a few days, Lu Fanchen had three people advance to the Bone Forging Realm, Fang Zhen had three, and Yi Ye Fuyun had two. In addition, Xiao Yuan Ye Kuang, a free player, joined forces with him. With only four people in Tianwei, they didn't have much of an advantage at all.

"It's alright. While individual strength is important in this event, team strength is even more crucial. After all, the event map is vast, and there are many areas to explore. The official announcement also mentioned hidden easter eggs, all of which require a large number of people. Once we complete the main storyline and begin free exploration, that's when we can truly leverage our strengths." Luo Wushang glanced at the other three major defense groups, her eyes brimming with confidence.

This event is extraordinary. In addition to the fact that the dungeon can drop hidden training methods and martial arts skills of the extraordinary level or above, the player who contributes the most will also be given the right to use the third floor of the Cultivation Tower. She really went all out for this.

The effects of the Cultivation Tower have become so strong recently that many core disciple players have bound their resurrection points in two different locations and used the Cultivation Tower to train in both places. They've gone crazy for the Cultivation Tower.

Because as long as you cultivate inside the Cultivation Tower, your cultivation speed is more than twice that of the outside world. As for the rumored third level, it can reach several times faster, but it has never been open to players.

Even after a player reaches the Bone Forging Realm, and their proficiency in the training method increases rapidly, tempering the bones throughout the body is a slow and painstaking process. The increase in proficiency does not speed up the tempering process much. As a result, even though she has reached 39% of the entry level in the third level of the training method, the level of tempering of her bones has not improved much. After all, the higher the level, the purer and denser the energy required, otherwise it would be difficult to further temper the bones throughout the body.

To speed up the tempering process, energy needs to be compressed and purified. Type III energy potions and rich external energy can significantly reduce the time required to refine energy and accelerate the tempering of the entire skeleton. Moreover, energy potions and external energy can be combined, and it would be even better if combined with a gravity environment.

The game has now opened up access to the third level of the Cultivation Tower. If she can seize it, she will be able to surpass other players in cultivation speed, so she is going all out.

They spent a huge amount of money and more than a day using a super quantum computer to deduce a ten-person battle formation. This is a formation that the Pilgrimage Guild often uses in its battles. By cooperating with each other, the players' strength is merged into one person, which can exert a strength far exceeding that of a single player.

This battle formation requires a high degree of teamwork from the players, but fortunately, all of the hundreds of high-level martial artists in the guild have mastered it. With the cooperation of ten people, a player's strength can be three times stronger than usual, which means that the martial arts technique used can be three times more powerful.

Even if it's just a super-level martial skill, it has power far exceeding that of an extraordinary martial skill. Under such circumstances, she is confident that she can kill even a BOSS in the Blood Condensation Realm.

Just as the players were looking forward to it, the giant sky ship of the domain city finally arrived at a huge mountain range shrouded in mist after spending half a day.

After arriving at this mountain range that stretches for hundreds of kilometers, the players were quickly awestruck by what they saw.

At this moment, hundreds of giant sky ships were docked in front of two mountain peaks tens of kilometers high, making players realize once again that the game company was extraordinary. The investment in just one event instance could probably bankrupt many large game companies.

Just as the players were in shock, a terrifying behemoth over 600 meters long suddenly flew past them. The crimson flame mark on the behemoth caused Precia's expression to darken slightly.

"Earthstar Pharmaceuticals?"

"How can this be?!"

(End of this chapter)