Chapter 502: Prize
Chapter 502: Prize
In recent days, the gameforum's popularity had exploded, surpassing even the frenzy of the Open Beta launch.
Over the two months since Terrifying Paradise's Open Beta, registered players had exceeded three million. With the server shutdown, all these players naturally flooded into the forum.
Of course, at least 60% were merely casual players—those who played casually during work or study breaks and typically browsed the forum for ten minutes before logging off.
Another 30% were hardcore players, deeply passionate about the game. They logged in whenever possible, devouring every scrap of game-related data and intelligence. These were the forum's most active contributors.
The final 10% were industry insiders—studio players, individual Class players, studio employees, internet trolls, and more. They were the trendsetters, the ones steering conversations on the forum.
To them, this forum was a battlefield without smoke. Words became bullets; information became ammunition. The combat here was far more perilous than in the game itself…
"Hype campaigns", "public opinion steering"—these tactics ranged from impossibly difficult to surprisingly simple.
Classic examples included:
- A and B trading insults, secretly boosting each other's visibility.
- A lavishly praising B, only to be swiftly refuted by C—actually a covert collaboration between A and C to discredit B.
- A savagely attacking B, seemingly unhinged, while secretly drawing criticism toward C.
- A deliberately provoking C, B's fanbase, only to be publicly humiliated by C's superior Operation—with A, B, and C secretly collaborating.
Techniques varied wildly, each unique. Some succeeded; others failed. Some were masterfully executed, leaving victims cheering their own exploitation. Others were so crude, bystanders saw through them instantly.
Undoubtedly, internet trolling was an art—a dark, intricate science.
It was a battle of wits and emotions between groups, targeting those who blindly followed trends, lacking independent thought or being naively trusting.
"Vote! Who Do You Think Is the Real Champion?!" Feng Bu Jue chuckled as he glanced at this trending vote thread marked with the "Hype" prefix. "Heh... professionals at work. You’ve all worked hard indeed..."
This thread obviously bore the fingerprints of studio staff, likely orchestrated by Order or The Gods. Stars would never post such things; they’d simply deploy their own players to vote en masse for Tian Ma Xing Kong.
Another hot thread read: "Dream Corporation Altered Rules Mid-Game! Summit Confrontation Riddled with Corruption! Rematch Inevitable!" This smacked of Shidao's signature style.
Notably, evidence suggested Shidao Wei Wang, Shidao's top expert, had left the studio. His photos and info were removed from Shidao's official site, and his Terrifying Paradise character was deleted.
This sparked waves within the industry. While his departure reasons intrigued people, more wondered about his future. If he hadn’t retired or switched careers, where would he go? To another studio? To become an individual Class player? Did his contract with Shidao include non-compete clauses?
Though his reputation at Shidao was poor, in business, if he truly had Capability, other studios would welcome him. With rebranding like "abandoning darkness for light" or "a prodigal son’s return", he could become a star player while tarnishing Shidao—killing two birds with one stone.
"Hmm... Despite the high post volume, the tension isn’t intense", Feng Bu Jue mused, flipping through more threads. He quickly noticed that hot topics around the tournament were mostly internet trolls clashing in orchestrated feuds. Meanwhile, most players had shifted focus to the "new version."
Wooly’s false flag strategy—using a major version update to divert attention from the tournament’s aftermath and the Derivative Being secret—had clearly worked.
"Still... 90% of these threads are nonsense..." Feng Bu Jue continued scrolling, discovering amusing posts.
Some titles alone were laughable: "My Thoughts on Freedom Explore Mode" or "Is Killing Derivative Beings Really That Hard? Let Me Teach You!" Not even the greenest newbie would believe such Y/Y guides.
Others were regretful rants: "Wish I’d Sold That Equipment Earlier" or "Equipment Prices Won’t Drop." These were more grounded. At least they recognized the impact of the Equipment Binding Setting—no longer could players use one Equipment from level 1 to 10+ and resell it on the Auction House.
Clearly, Terrifying Paradise's sudden version update had preemptively crushed typical Mmo pre-update frenzies.
After idly browsing threads, Feng Bu Jue checked his forum private messages.
His forum inbox was no less packed than his game email—after all, he was a celebrity now.
Fortunately, the forum’s private messaging system shared a "smart filter" function with the game’s email. Blocked users in the game were automatically blocked here too.
Even so, his inbox had tens of thousands of messages. He scrolled, deleted, and flipped through hundreds of pages before finding a message from Xu Huai Shang from days ago. With the final match over, its relevance was gone—but at least it showed Goddess Xu’s integrity.
——
On June 2nd, Dream Corporation finally posted an official notice: "The server will reopen at midnight on June 3rd. The updated version will be V1.10—Derivative Being Invasion."
The moment this news broke, internet trolls declared victory and logged off. Game studios refocused on the game. The new version’s launch meant mountains of work ahead, leaving no energy to dwell on the concluded tournament.
After two months, all industry players—from giants like Order and The Gods to small studios and individual Class players—had grasped Dream Corporation’s stance in three lines:
1. A dead pig fears no hot water.
2. You can quit playing, but badmouthing us changes nothing.
3. Cross us, and we’ll bury you.
Against such a publisher, any unconventional tactics were mere clouds in the wind.
——
June 3rd, midnight.
Feng Bu Jue logged into the game via Sleep Mode.
Recently, he’d adjusted his biological clock for fitness and diet. By midnight, he was always asleep...
"Players ranked 10th to 4th will randomly receive three Skill Cards corresponding to their highest proficiency, four random Skill Cards from other proficiencies, and 5,000 Skill Points..." Feng Bu Jue muttered as he entered the Login Space. "Heh... My lucky day has finally come!"
As a man forsaken, abandoned, and scorned by Lady Luck, obtaining seven Skill Cards at once? Pure bliss...
Feng Bu Jue couldn't wait to open his mailbox. As expected, the prize notification was highlighted and pinned to the very top of his inbox.
The subject line — [Congratulations on securing 10th place in the Peak Conquest Tournament] — looked particularly pleasing to the eye.
The email's attachment included seven skill cards. As for the 5,000 skill points, Feng Bu Jue had already checked his menu earlier and confirmed they'd been added upon entering the Login Space.
Currently, Feng Bu Jue's highest proficiency was martial arts. After the Peak Conquest Tournament, his martial arts proficiency had reached A-rank. Thus, he received three martial arts-type skill cards. However, his notoriously terrible luck manifested again — the remaining four skill cards were two scouting and two medicine cards.
Besides martial arts proficiency, Feng Bu Jue's other proficiencies were 1B, 4C, and 2D. Naturally, he'd drawn skills from his two weakest proficiencies...
Thankfully, these skill cards weren't bound. He could give them to teammates from Hell Front to use. If no one wanted them, he could sell them. Otherwise, half his prize would be practically useless...
"Hmm... An ominous feeling." Feng Bu Jue merely glanced at the proficiencies listed on the skills before sensing something was off.
He always prepared for the worst-case scenario, so he'd already considered several unfavorable possibilities. For instance... all drawn skills being F-rank.
This wasn't impossible. The prize terms stated, "Randomly obtain three skill cards corresponding to their highest proficiency, plus four random skill cards from other proficiencies." The key phrase here was corresponding to 'proficiency', not corresponding to 'highest proficiency'.
Theoretically, a player might draw seven S-rank skill cards, or... seven F-rank skills.
This reward system tied to "luck" was indeed fascinating. If someone really obtained seven S-rank skills, their boost might surpass even the top three contestants. Even if four of those cards were unlearnable, they could still be sold or traded with guildmates.
Conversely, someone with terrible luck drawing seven F-rank skills would receive pitiful rewards — inferior to even the 100th-51st place prizes. Those top 100 participants received ten Double Experience Cards, 20,000 game currency, and limited-edition T-shirts, all of which easily outvalued ten F-rank skills. Fortunately, the Top 10 still received 5,000 skill points — hard currency that never depreciated.
"No way..." Feng Bu Jue set aside the four cards from medicine and reconnaissance proficiencies first, then examined the first of his three martial arts skill cards:
[Name: Gang's Strong Leg]
[Skill Card Attribute: Active Skill, Permanently Mastered]
[Skill Category: Martial Arts]
[Effect: Release a weak remote slash attack (15-second cooldown)]
[Consumption: Stamina Value 15]
[Learning Condition: Martial Arts Proficiency F]
[Background: Vacuum slash formed from high-speed kick-generated wind currents. PS: This skill has absolutely nothing to do with Storm Leg!]
"Bullshit!" Feng Bu Jue exclaimed, "This is complete counterfeiting! Consumption is only one-tenth of Storm Leg's! The power is probably one-tenth of that too! And it has a 15-second cooldown?!"
This skill was clearly discardable...
An A-rank martial arts proficiency holder who already possessed the legitimate Storm Leg had no need to learn this counterfeit Gang's Strong Leg. Besides, players had only twelve skill slots, and Feng Bu Jue already equipped eleven skills — no way to fit this in.
"Great! Got this!" Feng Bu Jue muttered, "In some ways... it's one-third wasted." He looked up, seemingly addressing no one, "Ah~ I thought someone was watching over me... Guess I was mistaken? Don't want to win the bet anymore?"
Of course, no one would respond to his petulant antics.
"Hmm..." Feng Bu Jue waited a few seconds without reaction, then gave up — he'd only tried on a lark anyway.
His gaze shifted to the second martial arts skill card...
[Name: Brat's Low Kick]
[Skill Card Attribute: Active Skill, Permanently Mastered]
[Skill Category: Martial Arts]
[Effect: 100% chance to trip any monster theoretically capable of falling, enraging them into attacking you (No cooldown)]
[Consumption: Stamina Value 500]
[Learning Condition: Martial Arts Proficiency A]
[Background: This is Blue Cat's 3000 Kicks of Mischievousness!]
"Ha! Ha! Ha! Heaven... no, the Underworld has vision!" Feng Bu Jue burst into laughter, clearly delighted with this skill.
Indeed, this was the permanent version of the F-rank learnable Brat's Low Kick that could only be used thrice originally. A classic "strategic" skill — the A-rank rating and 500 Stamina Value consumption clearly indicated its worth.
"Hmph..." Feng Bu Jue quickly suppressed his laughter, "Stay calm... calm... don't show emotions. Big bro must remain composed."
It was rather strange — Feng Bu Jue could act flawlessly in front of others but frequently displayed middle school syndrome tendencies when alone. This was likely a side effect of living solo and long-term exposure to "Middle School Syndrome Cooking."
"Alright... The third one just needs to not suck..." Feng Bu Jue finally picked up the last martial arts skill card.
[Name: Roughhouse Fist Lv.1]
[Skill Card Attribute: Active Skill, Permanently Mastered]
[Skill Category: Martial Arts]
[Effect: Dual-fist attack against enemies directly ahead (can be used freely without targets, 1-hour cooldown; maximum ten uses per scenario, infinite in Freedom Explore mode)]
[Consumption: Stamina Value 3]
[Learning Condition: Martial Arts Proficiency F]
[Background: This skill upgrades with usage. Every sixty punches grants one level increase, up to ten levels.]
(End of Chapter)
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