Chapter 135 - 128: Discussion on Game Permissions, Imminent Disclosure of the Arctic Affair

Little Ordinary Person: "After this Inference Day, there are only sixteen of us left in the group. I wonder who’ll be eliminated next. It feels like things are getting harder and harder."

Logical Genius: "The entire continent is a total mess, how could it not be hard? But overall, the situation for the first-wave Players has stabilized. The death rate finally isn’t as high as before."

Not the Tea Monarch: "Most first-wave Players have powered up by now. It’d be crazy if the death rate was still as high as before! But speaking of which, what’s the deal with the big shot Night Owl? I don’t even see his ID in the group anymore. How does the Countermeasures Bureau know he’s still alive? Sister Yu, care to say a word or two? @Insomniac Rain."

Wada Xiwa: "Yeah, for real. I thought this Inference Day would definitely push toward six hundred days, but it was only four hundred. That’s a relief. But what’s really going on with the Chief?"

Sweet Little Cookie: "Do you guys think it’s possible that the power gap between Night Owl and us normal Players has gotten too big? Maybe the game doesn’t calculate the Inference Day based on his Tier anymore?"

Logical Genius: "You know, that’s actually a real possibility. It’s even possible that Night Owl has already entered High Tier, advanced even further as the Chief Player, and gained more permissions from the True Game as a result."

Not the Tea Monarch: "Gained game permissions? Holy shit! By the way, what kind of permissions are there for the Chief and the ten runner-up Players? Logical, did you get a runner-up title too? Can you talk about the privileges that come with it?"

"Damn it! I was just one step too slow in reaching Tier Four. The system told me all ten runner-up Player slots were full or something. After I broke through, I just got an ’Elite Player’ title. This title is so useless. All it does is let you view the info of non-elite Players and only gives a 5% Attribute debuff against other Players. It’s so LAME."

Wada Xiwa: "Be grateful. It’s better than nothing. As for the permissions and stuff, it’s really just the ability to block yourself from appearing in official game video releases. You can figure out the rest. We’re all pretty much the same."

Sweet Little Cookie: "W-wait, from the way you guys are talking... you’ve all reached Tier Four?!?!?!"

Not the Tea Monarch: "All the races on the continent are practically beating each other’s brains out. Even the Sea Race is seeing their Growth Levels skyrocket by plundering Human and Elf coastal cities. And you, little Elf girl, still haven’t reached Tier Four???"

Sweet Little Cookie: "AHHHH! That’s not fair! My character in the Elf Race isn’t even an adult yet! The Empire doesn’t take minors on their campaigns!!! What am I supposed to do?! It’s so infuriating!"

Logical Genius: "Lol, it’s rare to see Little Sweetie lose her cool. But let’s get back to business. So what’s the real situation with the Chief? Also, how come we haven’t seen ’Ah Cheng’ around lately? He reached Tier Four an entire cycle before us, so he must have a runner-up title."

Sweet Little Cookie: "@Brother Cheng Takes Off, @Insomnia and Rain, I’ve tagged them for you. You’re welcome."

...

About ten minutes later, just as the group’s discussion was heating up, Insomnia and Rain finally appeared.

Insomnia and Rain: "Sorry, something urgent came up in real life. I just saw everyone’s messages. I just now found a moment to get online."

Insomnia and Rain: "Regarding the Chief, I don’t know much either. But Night Owl is definitely fine. ’Ah Cheng’ knows this best. However, unless Night Owl brings it up himself, I think it’s best if we don’t go prying."

Not the Tea Monarch: "How come Ah Cheng knows the most about the Chief? Could it be???"

Logical Genius: "Did Ah Cheng manage to latch onto the Chief???"

Sweet Little Cookie: "When did this happen? No wonder Ah Cheng has been so quiet after this Inference Day; he hasn’t even popped up in the group chat. He managed to latch onto Night Owl?"

Little Ordinary Person: "A blessing in disguise! With the Chief looking after him, Ah Cheng’s safety is pretty much guaranteed. Speaking of which, has Ah Cheng been lurking this whole time? @Brother Cheng Takes Off, say something."

Brother Cheng Takes Off: "I didn’t mean to hide it from everyone, it’s just that I’m not really clear on Big Brother Night Owl’s situation myself. He didn’t tell me, so obviously I can’t just go spouting nonsense, right? I know my place as a little brother."

Brother Cheng Takes Off: "Also, Big Brother Night Owl really did help me out a lot. If he hadn’t killed a bunch of huge monsters, it’s hard to say if I would have even made it out of the Great Tomb. Thankfully, I’m out now, hehe. I’ve already made it to the border of the Land of Death. It’s really nice here. I even recruited a group of Skeleton underlings. Being a minor Lord of my own little turf feels pretty good."

Not the Tea Monarch: "What the hell? So it’s true! By the way, isn’t the Chief’s territory like a million miles away from the Land of Death? How did he get there? It’s completely unbelievable."

Logical Genius: "Looking at it this way, the Chief’s power really has completely outstripped ours. He must be High Tier already. He got the Chief title at Middle Tier, so now that the number one Player has reached High Tier, he must have gained even greater game permissions. Following that logic, it makes sense that he’s been removed from the Sequence of normal Players."

Wada Xiwa: "Yeah, in that case, we also need to race against time to get stronger. The situation with this True Game is honestly a bit weird. We don’t know to what extent these ’permissions’ will be opened up to Players. I’m afraid that eventually, some Players might end up becoming official or semi-official staff of the True Game!"

Sweet Little Cookie: "Stop talking, stop talking! This is so depressing I want to cry!"

"..."

Looking at the messages in the group chat.

Lince, who was currently lying on his bed, fell into deep thought.

’It seems there was no hiding the fact that the True Game is gradually opening up permissions to High-End Players.’

’After all, the runner-up and Elite titles have appeared, along with their corresponding privileges.’

’So it’s not hard to imagine that there would be different treatment after reaching High Tier.’

’But on the other hand, they were also wrong.’

’When I entered High Tier, my Chief Player title didn’t change at all.’

’The only thing that changed was that I was so far ahead of the other Players that the True Game gave me special attention, which is how I ended up with my current operational permissions.’

’If it were any of the later Players, they might not have gotten the same opportunity.’

’My path was unreplicable. After all, who else could have such a smooth journey, even receiving help from a Tier Nine being before even reaching High Tier?’

’Of course, nothing was set in stone.’

However, Lince wasn’t worried.

After all, he was already at the very forefront of all Players. Even if more True Game permissions were released, he was confident he would still be the number one Player.

Lince had at least that much confidence in himself.

And just as Lince was reading through the chat log, Insomnia and Rain suddenly dropped a message that took him by surprise.

Insomnia and Rain: "Let’s put the matter of the Chief aside for now. Everyone, please quiet down for a moment. On behalf of the Countermeasures Bureau, I have a solemn announcement to make to everyone here."

???

Unsurprisingly, everyone stopped chatting the moment they saw that message.

Insomnia and Rain: "This is a huge deal. I hope none of you spread this around. Of course, you won’t have to keep it a secret for long, because I imagine it won’t be possible to hide it for much longer anyway."

Can’t See the Bright Moon: "An unknown wormhole has appeared in the Arctic? That’s exactly what I was about to say. On behalf of certain financial backers, I’d like to post a recruitment notice here."

"For any Player Tier Four or above, as long as you’re willing to accept recruitment from my backers, everything is on the table—money, status, even shares in the core businesses of a major corporate family. That includes marriage alliances."

Insomnia and Rain: "@Can’t See the Bright Moon, isn’t your Bright Moon Building being a little too unruly?"

Can’t See the Bright Moon: "These are special times. Apologies. The Bright Moon Building has no intention of provoking the Human Alliance Countermeasures Bureau. It’s just that the people in this group are all High-End Players. At a time like this, the Bright Moon Building naturally can’t give up on recruiting them, can we?"

"It’s fair competition, just like at an auction. Whoever makes the highest bid, or rather, whoever the Players feel is a better fit—it all comes down to their own free will, doesn’t it? This doesn’t count as breaking the rules, does it?"

Not the Tea Monarch: "Huh? Sister Yu, Bright Moon, what the hell are you two talking about? I’m totally lost. What wormhole? Don’t tell me aliens are invading?"

Wada Xiwa: "Sounds about right. So, does this mean Blue Star is about to descend into chaos?"

Sweet Little Cookie: "Huh? Aliens? No way! Don’t scare me! I’m easily frightened."

Little Ordinary Person: "Can’t we just play the game in peace anymore? What’s this about an alien invasion? It’s not something the True Game cooked up, is it? Like how we’re invading the Oakland Continent through the game?"

Insomnia and Rain: "The situation is unclear, but the wormhole does exist. However, it looks something like a projection."

"It’s still unknown whether this is related to the True Game. However, there is definitely an Alien Civilization on the other side of the wormhole preparing to make a move on Blue Star. It’s similar to the Ragnarök cutscene that the Oakland Continent released previously. Perhaps some civilization has opened a Star Road connecting to our world."

Can’t See the Bright Moon: "Indeed. It’s hard to say the True Game isn’t involved. After all, Blue Star was completely peaceful before the True Game appeared. Now, one incomprehensible thing after another keeps happening. It’s all a bit too coincidental."

Not the Tea Monarch: "Holy crap??? So it’s for real!!! Then what are we waiting for?! Propose that the Human Alliance drop a nuke on it and see if they can blow it up! Are we really just going to sit here and watch them come over?"

Sweet Little Cookie: "For once, we’re in agreement. That’s what I was thinking, too. What’s there to even think about? Bomb it! Hurry up!"

Wada Xiwa: "A projection??? I’m guessing the higher-ups in the Human Alliance must have their reservations. They’re probably afraid a nuke could accelerate the wormhole’s opening. After all, this is completely unprecedented. Who would dare to act recklessly?!"

Little Ordinary Person: "We’re screwed. So, what’s there to think about? I think we should all just go home and take care of our families and friends first. As for what Sister Yu and Bright Moon are about to say, I’ve already guessed it, but I’m definitely not participating. I have to protect my own little family first."

"..."

’So, they just revealed the matter of the Arctic Circle that easily?’

Lince was a little surprised, but at the same time, he felt that there was really nothing to hide about the Arctic situation.

After all, it couldn’t be kept secret forever. The Human Alliance was probably already preparing to release the information to the public step-by-step.

It was also a way to recruit more Players. However, Lince wasn’t concerned about that.

’After all, when the time comes, the True Game itself will issue an announcement for a large-scale real-world war mission.’

But now that he saw Insomnia and Rain online, he had something more important to ask her directly.