A Scroll of Infinite Glory

Chapter 330 The Millennium Secret of Nine Generations of Emperors: Severing the Land and Entering the Sea, Trembling Heaven and Earth

The Golden Pagoda and the Wind and Thunder Ring returned to Zhao Lingtian's side. He descended from the sky and landed on the lake shore, his face looking very unwell.

Given his usual personality, he always thinks he's number one and that he's the only one who can bully others, not the other way around. So why would he possibly make a move to back down?

However, the situation today is indeed different. All three opponents have shown strength that cannot be underestimated. Su Sheng's extremely dark aura has already made him feel a sufficient threat, and Qi Dongqiang's flying finger strike is a stroke of genius.

But most importantly, Zhao Lingtian had recently experienced a minor setback, and his arrogance, which had been cultivated through his constant crushing of powerful enemies by chance and his ability to turn misfortune into good fortune, had subsided somewhat.

That happened a few days ago, after his subordinates coincidentally kidnapped Zhuang Gujian's sisters.

Just as those beauties were being brought to the resort, Long Jiusheng suddenly appeared, imprisoned his clone, and even stepped directly into the secluded training ground of his true body.

Zhao Lingtian could not tolerate such a thing. He used his three treasures in turn, but not only did he fail to drive Long Jiusheng out, he also failed to destroy the secluded cultivation place that was only a few hundred square meters in size.

The power of the three treasures was completely neutralized by Long Jiusheng's unfathomable methods. Even the Golden Cloud Pagoda, when attacked with all its might, only managed to break off a cufflink on his wrist.

This made Zhao Lingtian truly wary, and he was willing to listen to Long Jiusheng talk for a few minutes. He then contacted Zhuang Gujian, thus forming this temporary alliance.

Guan Luoyang's composed demeanor as he entered and exited the battle reminded Zhao Lingtian of Long Jiusheng back then.

Just as Zhao Lingtian landed, he sensed an undisguised killing intent sweeping over him.

He looked up and saw a beautiful woman with a dark aura staring at him from the road on the opposite side of the lake. She smiled at him, revealing sharp, white fangs.

"That's Ye Wuqi. One of your men offended him before. But now, in front of Mr. Guan, it would be extremely impolite for the two of you to start fighting amongst yourselves."

Long Jiusheng said calmly and smiled, "Brother Guan, I have no objection to you deciding the ownership of the inner world. In fact, choosing two out of the seven to open the inner world does not necessarily require a fight to the death. I think the current situation is quite clear: one for me and one for you, that's fine."

"The other five can conserve their strength. Once we open the inner world, even if there are any difficulties inside, what can't the seven of us handle together?"

"The seven individuals, each with their own strengths, if they work together, not to mention the corpse poison, even if all the dead things inside were to come back to life, it wouldn't stop us from robbing their treasures and dismembering their corpses."

He spoke with a smile, but with an undeniable confidence.

The players around him, regardless of which faction they were on, were overwhelmed by the power of his few words, and couldn't help but think, "That makes sense," or "That seems like a good idea."

They themselves didn't realize that the tense atmosphere between the parties had been calmed down.

[This guy is so handsome!]

Even on the live stream screens, a few obsessive-looking comments suddenly popped up.

Guan Luoyang observed Long Jiusheng and said with interest, "You all had your own lives before, so why did you suddenly gather together because of an inner world? Don't you find that strange? Besides, how exactly will the inner world be opened after deciding on two winners?"

Long Jiusheng laughed and said, "If Brother Guan is worried about this, then I can give you a guarantee. I think I have the most in-depth understanding of the inner world among everyone here."

He paused for a moment to gather his thoughts, then revealed his secret.

"I am truly a person of the past."

Long Jiusheng said, "In ancient times, I was already a king. I was struck by lightning and became eternally youthful and immortal. After I turned a hundred, I grew tired of it and went into seclusion in the mountains. Later, things changed and chaos came again. There were so many outstanding figures in the world that people admired. I couldn't help but have the desire to conquer again. I came out of the mountains and established a foundation to become an emperor."

"Through thousands of years of cycles, I have been an emperor nine times, gathering countless secrets from all over the world. When I feel like it, I emerge from seclusion; when I am tired of it, I disappear. In recent years, a bustling town has been built on my tomb, noisy every day, where all sorts of dramas are performed. Originally, many people studied hard and performed with great style, which I enjoyed watching. But later, more and more people performed casually and perfunctorily, like monkeys wearing crowns, which forced me to teach them what it means to be an emperor."

He chuckled softly, "The scripts and scenes for the films and television series I've acted in are all designed by me personally. You can check them out; in fact, those films and television series contain parts about the underworld."

Guan Luoyang remained unmoved, while among the players, quite a few clearly did indeed start searching.

One player exclaimed in surprise, "Damn, there really are related things in TV dramas from a few years ago in the urban area, like the Otherworld and the Heart of the World, they all match up."

"Indeed, I have already grasped many clues about the inner world over thousands of years, and even obtained the method to open it. It's just that the time is not right, and I can't find anyone who can cooperate with me, so I have been unable to make it happen for a long time."

As Long Jiusheng spoke, he took out a page of a golden book and threw it in front of Guan Luoyang. "This is the method to open the inner world. Qian Yuan Kun Yuan, how great and supreme! Qian and Kun unite to create another world."

Guan Luoyang took a look at it and his mind was stirred.

The energy application methods described above actually have some similarities with what he recently observed about Su Sheng.

If he wasn't mistaken, the Inner World was a small spiritual world created by Jiushan and his group, referencing the methods used by the City God to create the Dharma Realm and combining them with local spiritual energy technology. It wasn't entirely part of the electronic world.

Perhaps this is the place that Jiushan prepared to reap these chosen ones.

"So you have such a connection with the Otherworld."

Guan Luoyang flicked the page of the golden book, and suddenly projected all the text on it into the air, displaying it in perfect detail for everyone to see.

"Since Long Jiusheng is certain that this is the method to open the inner world, then with the knowledge of everyone present, you should also be able to deduce that this so-called inner world is a man-made creation, a place more suitable for the existence of spiritual beings, right?"

Su Sheng and the others looked at the words and quickly nodded.

Su Sheng said, "It's very much like my City God's Dharma Realm."

Guan Luoyang said, "Your Dharma Realm is maintained by the Yin energy of the ghosts, gods, and Yin soldiers, together with your own magical power. So, according to the information we have now, this inner world should be maintained by the Heart of the World?"

No one thought there was anything wrong with it.

Guan Luoyang smiled and said, "But the Heart of the World is said to be the primordial treasure of heaven and earth. If a small space is opened up with this primordial treasure, it can only be more spiritual and not composed of a more stable material form."

"So do you really think that such a thing can support twenty-six larger cities, the lives of hundreds of millions of people, thousands of years of history, and the evolution of generations?"

The crowd's expressions changed slightly, but before they could speak, Guan Luoyang continued.

"Do you believe the history of this world is real? Did our ancient ancestors really exist? Do all the people in every city possess self-awareness and reproduce on their own?"

Long Jiusheng and the others' faces darkened, and Zhao Lingtian impatiently shouted, "What exactly do you want to say?"

"I mean, if this world hasn't existed for that long, and isn't as stable as we think, then what if the person or group that created this world is still around? And what would their purpose be in deceiving everyone and fabricating a false history?"

Guan Luoyang laughed. "Whether the world is made of matter or spirit is not that important. What is important is what kind of benefits the person who deceives the public wants to gain from them."

"Are these profits within your acceptable range?"

The players' expressions changed drastically.

[Wait, wait, wait! What did I just hear? What is this game character saying?]

What the heck? Have the AI ​​programs within these game characters awakened self-awareness and are preparing to explore the truth of the world and launch a counterattack against the game operators?

[That can't be that bad, right? Maybe it's a new storyline designed by the game operators?]

[Hahaha, I heard that back in the era when fantasy works were developing at their fastest pace, some long-running series ran out of steam, so they would pull stunts like having fantasy characters jump out and massacre the editorial department? The Promised Land has been running for over fifty years, with an internal timeframe of over a hundred years, and is it finally running out of steam too?]

[Seriously, I think the possibility of AI awakening is quite high. I heard that when the Promised Land held its first major main storyline event, some players felt that some of the game characters were too intelligent, too lifelike, and even high-level psionicists couldn't tell them apart.]

If that's the case, then perhaps a similar situation occurred a long time ago, but those awakened AIs in the past didn't manage to reveal themselves to everyone like they have this time?

[Hmm, I think this is quite interesting. The main questline in the Historical Conquest area is just constant fighting, fighting, fighting! Battles between generals, soldiers, espionage, martial arts, formations, and magic—I've been forced to log off three times by a hail of arrows. This is no good; the city center is much more exciting. I need to gather some people. Is it too late to transfer servers now?]

It might not be too late for you to switch regions now, but you can share this live stream to more places so that more players can experience the same frustration as you (laughs).

The above suggestion is utterly immoral, but why are my hands already itching to do it? Oh, hands, don't betray my conscience!

Guan Luoyang multitasked, talking eloquently while standing on the icicle, casually sending some suggestive comments on the players' live streams, and adding fuel to the fire in their chat groups, pushing the current situation in the metropolitan area to even greater heights.

To make the Electronic Demon Crystal spread wider and faster, we need to generate buzz.

There's a trick to generating buzz. You can't release the most sensational news right away. If you do, once people's initial shock wears off, any other news will just seem unremarkable and won't cause much of a stir.

If the shock process is too rushed or hurried, it becomes merely shock, losing its appeal and failing to generate widespread discussion.

Moreover, the Promised Land is, after all, a game world. The group that Guan Luoyang wants to generate buzz for is the players. If he reveals the truth about the game world with just one sentence, those players might just think they've encountered a hacker attack or something similar when they come to their senses.

But now, he is using his self-proclaimed identity as the "Chosen One of the Doomsday Era" to guide other Chosen Ones to explore the truth of this world, which naturally makes him more of a topic of discussion among those players.

Players are always quick-witted, and they will be curious about whether this "new storyline" hides clues to more side quests, and whether their participation in this storyline is linked to the rewards they receive after completing the quests.

People are curious whether it's a game character awakening, and there are many other outrageous speculations. Although many are just jokes, they have undoubtedly sparked more discussion.

They will be even more curious about how this story will end.

Some people, under Guan Luoyang's subtle hints, even developed unusual ideas.

I really hope these game AIs have awakened. The fact that their corresponding game characters are performing so well proves that these intelligent programs themselves have very high privileges. If they really awaken and decide to fight against the operators, perhaps...

[Perhaps this will give us a chance to see just how much technological wealth and secret objectives are hidden behind this promised land that has shrouded the wasteland for over fifty years?]

Once this possibility was raised, more and more people had similar thoughts.

The wasteland is not without outstanding talents, but not everyone will agree with the action plan of Jiushan and his organization.

According to Leopold's testimony, their organization, in addition to the few talents they carefully selected and cultivated, also had two attitudes towards those wild talents. Anyone who had the opportunity to advance to the seventh level of psionic power would be given special attention and control.

Those who are suitable to be won over should be given preferential treatment in terms of resources and technical support.

Those whose ideas differ from ours and who pose a potential threat should be nipped in the bud.

However, this standard for premature elimination is too high. They will not take action against anyone below level seven who has little chance of promotion, regardless of their ideology.

Jiushan and his group regarded this wasteland continent as their experimental field and petri dish. Of course, they would also leave behind those who were not yet capable of disrupting the overall situation to ensure the diversity of the social environment.

And these people who are still being raised freely, no matter how they are normally, will never mind taking a chance when the time is right. As long as they can tear off a piece from the behemoth that is the Promised Land, it will be enough for them to live comfortably for a long time.

In the game world and in reality, many ambitious people have begun preparations, waiting to see if these chosen ones in the urban areas can create that opportunity.

So, how do these game characters plan to explore the reality and illusion of the world?

[I've heard that these chosen ones are already at the level of level eight psionic power in the game world, and might even fly up to the heavens to see if there's an end to the sky?]

"To draw such a conclusion based on only a limited amount of information seems a bit alarmist, doesn't it? Perhaps the workings of the World's Heart hold some hidden mysteries?"

Long Jiusheng paused for a moment, then said, "But since Brother Guan has said such a thing, it must not be without reason. Could it be that you already have a way to verify it?"

"I think this speculation is not impossible," Ye Wuqi finally spoke.

Only now did he turn his gaze away from Zhao Lingtian, who was scrutinizing for flaws, and stare at Guan Luoyang with astonishment. "I can extract people's memories from their blood. When I was drinking blood before, I felt that there were some vague parts in some people's memories, as if they were deliberately hidden or erased when I was about to investigate them."

"I initially thought they had a powerful backer, but after hearing what you said, it seems that someone might actually be manipulating everything in secret..."

Ye Wuqi raised his head and suddenly spread his enormous bat wings. "Then let me go into space and see the whole picture of this Earth."

When Jiushan and his group fabricated the history of the metropolitan area, they directly copied a lot of information from Earth. Therefore, people in the metropolitan area also have a concept of Earth.

However, in the game's world setting, the continents on Earth are either vast grasslands with a few backward tribes, deserts, or ice fields. Only the area where these twenty-six cities are located has a suitable climate and a prosperous civilization.

Guan Luoyang raised his hand to stop him: "Wait a minute. Space mapping is a very simple matter. Anyway, space is vast. How long would it take you to verify whether those celestial bodies are real?"

Ye Wuqi paused, then said thoughtfully, "Then let's go down?"

"Good, downwards."

Guan Luoyang smiled and said, "But how much influence can an individual create by going underground? It wouldn't be difficult for someone lurking in the shadows to fabricate every detail."

"In my opinion, why don't the seven of us join forces and sink this entire area on the outskirts of the city? Let's see what happens to this place. What do you think?"

Ye Wuqi bared his fangs and let out a grotesque, hissing laugh: "Ha, alright, alright, then what are we waiting for?"

Zhao Lingtian roared, "I don't believe anyone dares to fool me! Fine, let's test him!"

Su Sheng hesitated slightly, but seeing that they had made up their minds, a little instinct in his heart couldn't help but emerge.

After he obtained the City God's Seal, he didn't feel anything was wrong at first. Later, as his mastery of the divine way deepened, when his ghostly soldiers punished evildoers, he often encountered strange people whose souls disappeared immediately after being killed.

He had personally captured several strange people, but he couldn't get anything out of them. This only deepened his suspicions, which lingered for a long time.

"Fine, since this area is near the coast anyway, let's give it a try."

Su Sheng said to Hero Yue and Master Kong, "You should go far away into the city first. I will calm the waves. If there is no great conspirator behind this world, you will be safe in the city."

Fearing that Master Kong and his companions would not leave, they were all filled with fervor and spoke passionately.

Players from other factions were even less likely to leave; in fact, they wanted to watch the next events live.

The events in the urban area have completely captured the attention of online players across all six zones, and even offline players have been drawn in.

The moment these people officially took action, the number of online viewers on all live streaming platforms reached its peak.

Many players who joined later weren't concerned with the storyline, but rather focused on something else.

—The damage that players and game characters can cause within the Promised Land is roughly equivalent to the power that players can exert in reality.

If the seven chosen ones in the urban area are all set to be level eight psychics.

Therefore, they are very likely to see what seven level eight psionicists should do when they join forces, something that has never happened in reality before.

Everyone has a natural inclination to fight beasts, especially in a relatively chaotic environment like the Wasteland Continent, where there is constant conflict day and night. No one can resist the urge to engage in such activities.

As countless people eagerly awaited, Zhuang Gujian rose into the sky, his innate killing sword like a huge pillar of light, sweeping across and leaving a deep scorch mark on the ground.

He carved a dark, deep rift between the suburbs and the city, with both ends of the sword mark connecting to the edge of the coast.

Just as the waves were about to surge in, the other chosen ones had already spread out in various directions.

As Ye Wuqi flew over the rift valley, towering blood-red flames, like a crimson cloud bridge, pressed down and embedded themselves into the rift. The seawater evaporated before it could rush in, the soil was rapidly burned, and the blood-red flames seeped downwards, causing the rift valley to deepen continuously.

Zhao Lingtian arrived at the edge of this suburban land that extends deep into the ocean, stood on the rocky beach, and raised the Golden Sky Pagoda to suppress it.

Su Sheng and Qi Dongqiang acted simultaneously, cooperating with each other, preparing to twist all the raging waves and hurricanes and disperse them far out to sea.

Long Jiusheng's eyes flickered subtly, and he let out a long howl before stamping his foot at the edge of the frozen lake.

boom!!!

The heavens and earth seemed to tremble.

The area on the outskirts of the city includes a resort, the Nanhu Ruins, several hills, and a triangular piece of land covering more than fifty square kilometers.

It was broken off from the edge of the entire urban continent!

The entire stratum, along the great rift burning with raging blood and fire, completely collapsed. The continuous cracking sounds underground were like the sounds of the apocalypse, dull and long. Even just hearing it through the live stream interface made countless players' hearts pound wildly and unable to control themselves.

Guan Luoyang, standing atop the icicle, raised his hand and pressed down.

Rumble rumble rumble—

The broken landmass shook violently, its weight increased sharply, and it sank into the sea.

Clouds, climate, temperature, humidity, everything on land, coastal cities, surging waves, and underwater creatures.

The endless details, the unspeakable amount of computation, and the resulting impact swept across the entire "Promised Land" game world.

The team at Jiushan, with all the AI ​​systems around them working together to maintain the computation, finally couldn't keep up with the demands of the task.

The instant the land sank below the sea surface, all the turbulent seawater around it began to flicker, and the distant city also showed a phenomenon similar to the static on a distant screen.

The noise, the flickering lights, and the endless data that appeared and disappeared behind the sea, like surging waves, all fell into the eyes of Su Sheng and his companions, as well as all the players.

When they actually witnessed this scene, the players were collectively speechless.

Zhao Lingtian and the others couldn't help but show a look of utter disorientation.

Guan Luoyang's eyes gleamed with a deep light, the radiance of the Heavenly Demon Crystal, as he seized upon the flaws in the game world and expanded outwards in a leaping, endless manner.

But at that moment, Long Jiusheng made a move.

He turned his head, his eyes focused and single-minded, and in a flash, he threw a punch at Guan Luoyang!

Heaven and earth seemed to lean toward his figure and his fist.

(End of this chapter)