Shipping goods from the game to the World of Warhammer

Chapter 82: The Consequences of Laziness in Testing

Without hesitation, Rhodes confirmed the receipt in his mind.

The moment my palm touched the sphere, a familiar sensation spread from my fingertips throughout my body.

It was exactly the same experience as when I absorbed the entrance to the network in Esperan.

An indescribable torrent of information, carrying psionic energy, surged into his body like a flood bursting its banks.

The instant these pieces of information flooded in, countless fragmented images, symbols, formulas, and structural diagrams flashed through Rhodes' mind. The speed was so fast that Rhodes couldn't capture any specific content in any frame. But he wasn't worried. However, Rhodes didn't feel sorry. With the ancient saint's technological information, even if he studied it for several more years, he might not be able to fully understand it.

Moreover, the system is consuming and digesting this data with extremely high efficiency. As long as the system can absorb it and transform it into rewards that it can use, that's fine.

Within the sea of ​​consciousness, the data flow on the system panel was as fast as a continuous band of light, with information items refreshing at a speed that was difficult for the naked eye to perceive. However, all the incoming spiritual energy and knowledge were absorbed by the system's underlying framework without any omissions.

The sphere's light gradually dimmed in his palm, the dark green within the spiral groove flashed one last time, and then the entire sphere transformed into a warm mist of light, disappearing into Rhodes' skin.

The moment the absorption was complete, Rhodes sensed two changes.

Firstly, the scope of his psionic control has changed. Just like when he absorbed the Old One's Webway portal in Esperan, his psionic connection to the system units has been greatly enhanced. Now, if Rhodes wants to, he can see every detail from the perspective of these units much more clearly.

Moreover, the maximum distance should have increased as well. He couldn't measure exactly how much farther it had gone yet, but the feeling of "the tentacles of perception suddenly extending a lot" was very clear. Even now, Rhodes could directly contact Esperan's swarm of insects.

The second change comes from the system's store.

[The ancient Holy Spirit has finished absorbing all of its energy into creation.]

[Tier 2 of the three races' tech trees has been unlocked for free]

[Available Games Slot Update: Currently Available Games (2/3)]

Please select the third game system.

Rhodes knew all too well what unlocking Tier 2 technology meant. Zerg Hydralisks and Infestors, Terran Siege Tanks and Vikings, Protoss Immortals and Colossi—all these units could now be exchanged.

Before Rhodes could even take a closer look at the complete list of the tech tree, the ground beneath his feet began to shake.

The tremors were irregular, continuous, and increasingly intense, causing the surrounding walls and ground to begin to crumble.

A crack appeared in the dome overhead, and rubble, dust, and fragments of golden material rained down from the top, hitting the ground and kicking up clouds of dust.

The golden patterns covering the walls were fading one by one, and the blood vessels within the facility were breaking one by one.

It seems that the sphere was the core and energy source of this facility. With Rhodes taking it away, the entire building lost its power to maintain its structure.

The collapse began to intensify.

Almost simultaneously, an upward passage opened in the wall directly in front of Rhodes. Golden patterns flickered twice at the edge of the entrance, as if the last will of the facility was doing its utmost to complete a final command, opening an escape route for visitors.

The passage quickly extended, forming an upward-reaching tunnel. Faint golden light still lingered on the tunnel walls, illuminating the path ahead.

Rod peeked inside; the tunnel's slope wasn't steep, about thirty degrees, but its length—

Rhodes' expression changed.

As far as the eye could see, the tunnel stretched for at least several kilometers and continued into the darkness, with no end in sight.

Another violent tremor shook the area behind him, and the main structure of the underground space began to crack. A piece of ceiling weighing several tons crashed down less than twenty meters from Rhodes, forcing him to hurry into the escape tunnel in an unfriendly manner.

The ancient sage clearly didn't consider whether he himself could run through the tunnel when he designed it.

Admittedly, for a visitor who can pass the physical trial, this distance is nothing.

The problem is that Rhodes himself didn't pass that level; he relied entirely on springtails and cockroaches to get through it for him.

Now, asking a wandering merchant to run more than a kilometer uphill on two legs, while also having to finish before the building collapses, given Rhodes's physical condition, let alone finish the entire distance before the collapse, he would most likely not even finish half the distance before being crushed in the building and becoming a burial object for that ancient saint.

Rhodes turned his head to look behind him. The ground near the third checkpoint had collapsed in one piece, and the black collapse area was expanding and swallowing everything around it.

There was no time to hesitate.

"System, game slot!"

Rhodes mentally ripped open the game selection panel, and the familiar game list unfolded before his eyes once more, arranged in a long column. His gaze swept rapidly across the icons, his mind focused on only one thought: escape, now, immediately, as fast as possible.

Another piece of ceiling shattered and fell overhead, this time at a closer distance. The debris grazed Rhodes' shoulder and smashed into the ground at the tunnel entrance, creating a crater.

There wasn't time to think about it further.

Rhodes's gaze fell on a green icon, which depicted a pixelated tree with a lush, vibrant green canopy and two smaller branches on either side.

Without any hesitation, he clicked the button.

[The current game has been selected. Number of games available: (3/3)]

[Loading store data — Loading complete]

[The host is currently in an emergency state; movement-related items are being prioritized for display.]

A list of equipment popped up on the panel, and Rhodes's gaze immediately locked onto the first item.

Hermes Boots

[The wearer can run at high speed]

Price: 150 General Energy

Rhodes can exchange directly.

A flash of white light, and a pair of antique-style leather boots appeared out of thin air at his feet. The boots were made of dark brown leather, with a pair of small, outstretched wings embroidered on the uppers. They were exquisitely crafted and looked perfect for a wandering merchant desperately trying to escape.

Rhodes squatted down, quickly kicked off his original boots, and put on the Hermes boots.

The boots fit perfectly, and the leather felt surprisingly comfortable against his feet, but Rod wasn't in the mood to savor the experience.

He took a deep breath and stepped into the tunnel.

The first three steps were taken at a normal pace, no different from walking normally.

Starting from the fourth step, the sensation underfoot changed.

Pixelated dust began to rise from behind the wing-shaped decorations of the Hermes boots, and a thrust slowly rose from the back of the boots, gradually pushing Rhodes' body forward.

Step 5, Step 6, Step 7 —

Rhodes' movement speed began to soar within just a few steps, quickly breaking through from normal running speed to the level of a sprint, and then continued to accelerate. By the tenth step, he could feel the wind rushing past his ears, leaving the sound of collapse behind him farther and farther away.

The golden patterns on the tunnel walls began to recede rapidly, transforming into two continuous bands of light. Each step he took carried an extra thrust, as if an invisible hand was pushing him from behind, and the thrust was constantly increasing.

Rod's coat fluttered in the airflow, his hair was pushed back by the wind pressure, and his breathing was forced to quicken because the airflow caused by the high-speed movement made each inhale difficult.

This is the effect of the Hermes Boots. After running a certain distance, you gain an increase in movement speed, and the speed will continue to increase until it reaches its maximum value.

Rod's current perceived speed is at least twice that of normal running, and it's still increasing.

At this speed, the uphill tunnel, which is several kilometers long, will only take a dozen minutes at most. At least the collapse behind us won't catch up with us.

But just when Rod thought things were starting to go smoothly, the tunnel conditions changed.

About two hundred meters ahead, the ground of an entire section of the tunnel collapsed.

It seems that this ancient sage did not perform quality checks on the escape route he built; a section of the ground, several meters long, simply disappeared, revealing a deep collapse beneath.

The tunnel walls and ceiling are still there, but the middle section of the ground, which is more than ten meters long, is gone. There are vertical sections on both sides, and the edge of the ground opposite is faintly visible in the dim light of the tunnel, but it is so far away.

At Rhodes' current speed, if there were still ground beneath his feet, he could cross that distance in a fraction of a second.

But there was no ground left.

The Hermes Boots provide a horizontal speed boost, not flight capability. While high-speed sprinting to the edge of a cliff does propel him a distance due to inertia, the gap of over ten meters, coupled with a significant height difference—the slope causes the ground on the opposite side to be nearly two meters higher—means the ground on the other side is almost two meters higher than on this side.

You definitely can't jump over it by inertia alone.

Rhodes made his judgment about a second from the edge of the cliff.

"System, cloud bottle!"

Cloud Bottle

[Allows the holder to jump twice]

Price: 100 General Energy

A palm-sized glass bottle appeared in Rhodes' hand. The bottle was transparent and contained a swirling, tiny white cloud, which looked like a small cloud stuffed into a glass container.

Rod stuffed the bottle into his belt without slowing down.

Thirty meters.

Twenty meters.

ten meters.

We've reached the edge of the cliff.

Rhodes' right foot landed on the last intact piece of ground on the cliff, and the momentum of the Hermes Boots at full speed propelled his body into the air.

The air whistled past his sides, and beneath his feet lay a pitch-black abyss. The faint golden light shone from the walls on either side, casting a rapidly moving silhouette of Rhodes' suspended body.

Inertia carried him for about eight meters, but his speed began to decrease and his body began to fall.

The edge of the ground opposite was still five or six meters away, and two meters higher than his current height.

You can't reach it by jumping normally.

Rod kicked his leg in mid-air.

The cloud bottle's effect was activated in that instant.

A cloud of white mist, like cotton wool, appeared out of thin air beneath my feet. It wasn't very dense, but it was dense enough to withstand the reaction force of a single stomp.

Rod's shoes stepped on the cloud of mist, which was compressed and rebounded upon contact, transmitting an upward thrust to him.

Double jump.

Rhodes' body suddenly rose a height in the air, while the remaining horizontal speed of the Hermes boots propelled him forward.

The crushed white cloud quickly dissipated behind them, turning into a few almost invisible wisps of water vapor.

The edge of the cliff opposite rapidly magnified in the field of vision.

Rhodes' right foot landed just on the very edge of the opposite side of the ground, with about two-thirds of it hanging in the air. But Rhodes' center of gravity had already crossed the critical point, and inertia carried him forward two steps.

The acceleration effect of the Hermes Boots took effect again the moment he landed, and the thrust rose from his feet once more, bringing his speed back to its previous peak.

The rumbling sound of the tunnel continuing to collapse came from behind; the collapsed area was expanding further, but Rhodes had already left it behind.

Although the remaining tunnels still had some cracks and loose rocks, there were no more large-scale cliffs. Rhodes maintained his full-speed sprint in the Hermes Boots, racing through the dimly lit tunnels where the golden patterns were gradually fading.

After running for an unknown amount of time, Rhodes finally saw the natural light from the outside world.

The dry, odorless air was mixed with the scent of earth, followed by a familiar gust of wind carrying the acidic smell of green fungi—

vomit----

This is the air on the Earth's surface.

At the end of the tunnel, a point of light appeared, initially the size of a pinhead, then rapidly expanded with the speed boost from Hermes' boots, transforming from a point of light into a halo, and from a halo into a whole expanse of bright skylight.

After rushing out of the tunnel, Rhodes stumbled. The momentum from the Hermes boots dissipated instantly after losing the support of the tunnel floor, and Rhodes stumbled forward several steps before barely managing to regain his footing.

Raise your head.

The sky was hazy, with the murky hue characteristic of this orcish planet. In the distance, the outline of Bloodaxe Town could be seen, along with the pale blue beams of light emanating from the Protoss base's crystal tower.

Recalling how he inexplicably ended up here, Rhode guessed that it was probably the energy field projected from the crystal tower of the probe warp that accidentally activated the underground ancient sanctuary and pulled him inside.

He took deep breaths, feeling the fresh air filling his lungs, and then looked down at the Hermes boots on his feet.

The glimmer on the wing-shaped decorations had completely disappeared, restoring the appearance of ordinary leather boots.

The tunnel behind them emitted a final muffled thud as the escape route slammed shut behind them.

Rhodes glanced back at the tunnel entrance, which had been completely sealed off by the collapsed rock, leaving only a pile of fresh rubble on the ground.

That ancient sanctuary, along with the remains of its master, is forever buried deep within the planet's crust.

Rhodes lay in front of the rubble, panting heavily, and remained silent for a few seconds.

Although the Hermes Boots allowed him to run at great speeds, for him, running continuously for more than ten minutes was a life-threatening endeavor.

He dusted himself off; there was still a lot to do. He needed to research the second tech tree and figure out all the shops in Terraria—things he hadn't had time to examine in detail yet.

But before that, Rod felt that he and the others should sit down and have a drink of water to calm down.

Arya and the others, who had just left the shelter and could receive the signal from Rhodes, rushed over immediately.