Chapter 193 - 164: Floating Giant Dragon, Player Quest

A Giant Dragon over twenty-six thousand meters long—if it were to stand upright, an ordinary person wouldn’t even be able to take in its entire form.

When Lince stood tall, his height from head to toe was easily sixteen or seventeen thousand meters, if not a full twenty thousand.

At such a height, his towering head pierced straight through the clouds.

When the Giant Dragon was lying down, it looked exactly like a mountain range. After all, it was twenty-six kilometers from head to tail.

One can only imagine the terror an ordinary Player would feel at the appearance of such a behemoth.

The Giant Dragon rested high in the heavens, casting a terrifying shadow as it looked down upon the world below.

"What’s going on? Why did the sky suddenly get so dark?"

One Player voiced his surprise. The sky, which had been bright and sunny just moments before, had suddenly gone dark.

He then looked up.

And in that same instant, most of the other Players also looked up at the sky in confusion.

The moment they all looked toward the horizon, every Player was struck with shock and disbelief.

"HOLY HELL!!!"

"Can someone slap me awake? What the hell is this thing above our heads?"

"You’re asking us? Who are we supposed to ask? This thing is like a damn floating mountain range; who can even see it clearly?"

"Seriously, what the hell *is* this thing? Why hasn’t the game given us any notifications?"

"This can’t be some kind of attack from the Giant Race, can it?"

"..."

Countless Players broke into discussion, their gazes fixed on the sky, a mixture of utter astonishment and apprehension on their faces.

It was only then, as the Giant Dragon lowered its head from the clouds, that the True Game’s data panel finally appeared before the Players’ eyes.

Above the terrifying, mountain-sized head of the Giant Dragon, a caption appeared in an enormous font.

[Chief Player]

[Equivalent Tier: ???]

As they stared into the darkened sky, two pupils, as bright as twin moons, materialized.

At that moment, every single Player couldn’t help but curse out loud!

"Fuuuck!!! You’re telling me this thing that looks like a floating mountain range is the Chief???"

"This is the Chief? How can this be the Chief?!"

"The Chief is on a whole other level! Isn’t this power-up a little too insane? If you told me the Chief had already achieved godhood with a Body Type like this, I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest. This is just too terrifying!"

"Haha, what are we compared to the Chief? The Chief truly is the Chief, after all!"

"The Chief is this strong? We’re going to completely annihilate the Giant Demons in this world!"

"..."

The Players were both shocked and ecstatic!

After all, as fellow Players, they naturally felt a sense of shared glory.

Of course, there was no lack of jealousy among them.

But they were clearly in the minority. After all, when the gap in power becomes insurmountably vast, most people’s mindsets begin to shift.

From jealousy to resignation, then to admiration, and finally to the sense of shared glory the Players were now experiencing.

In an instant, cheers shook the heavens.

"That’s the Chief? This is too terrifying... Has it only been a single game day?"

Can’t See the Bright Moon stared at the sky in shock, her expression a mask of disbelief.

"That’s right. During the last video review, I saw clips from other Players. The scale of the Holy Light he used to hide himself was nowhere near this, was it?"

"’Nowhere near’? It’s not even in the same league!"

"If the Chief keeps growing at this rate, who knows what he’ll look like the next time we see him," a High-End Player added, their gaze complex as they stared at the sky.

"Maybe the next time we see him, the Chief will have truly undergone his Ascension to Divinity?"

"To achieve the status of the Dragon God in the body of a member of the Dragon Race... I’m sure you all know what that implies," Insomnia and Rain said wistfully, gazing at the sky with a dazed expression.

"Ascension to Divinity?"

The surrounding Players wore expressions of complexity and helplessness.

At this stage, besides the Chief, the strongest Players were only Tier Five, right?

Perhaps with this campaign instance, someone might advance to Tier Six, or even Tier Seven.

But compared to the Chief, that was still far too great a difference.

Besides, the Chief would undoubtedly claim the lion’s share of the rewards from this massive campaign instance.

After all, he was the one who had issued the campaign in the first place.

So, with just a little thought, it was clear that the Chief would likely enter an even more terrifying stage after this campaign.

Most Players had no idea what kind of strength the Giant Demon Empire possessed.

But there was one thing these Players all knew now.

With the Chief’s current terrifying physique and Power, the Giant Demons were in for a world of hurt.

All the Players cheered with excitement.

They were confident that it would be much easier to get some of the leftover rewards by following the Chief in this campaign instance.

Just then, the voice of the Giant Dragon high above resounded across the entire Player encampment, carried by a Spiritual quality:

"I am the Giant Dragon of Calamity, also known as the Demon Dragon, Nigredo."

"Mortals, you stand before me. You may now begin your worship!"

Lince’s voice was unlike a human’s—indifferent, filled with resonant tones and an oppressive might.

The immense pressure made it hard for Players everywhere to breathe.

In an instant, all the Players were left stunned and bewildered.

However, just as those words fell, the Giant Dragon’s voice changed, chuckling lightly as it said:

"Just kidding, everyone. I hope you don’t mind."

As Lince spoke, the oppressive aura that had filled the air instantly vanished.

Only then did the Players finally let out a collective sigh of relief.

At the same time, many Players were grumbling to themselves.

’Damn, the Chief was really laying it on thick. Anyone who didn’t know better would’ve thought he’d been possessed!’

"’Possessed my ass. Nigredo... The Chief really knows how to play the part. First "Calamity," now "Demon Dragon."’

"’You think he’s just playing around? You have no idea. The Chief’s playing 5D chess right now.’"

"’That little stunt was a clear warning to all the troublemakers among the Players.’"

"’Was it? I think you’re overthinking it. The Chief’s just being a show-off. If I were that powerful, I’d have to flex at least once too.’"

"’Besides, we’re all Players, so it’s natural to speak more freely. Don’t you think it actually makes him seem more approachable?’"

"..."

The Players debated this animatedly in their group chats and private messages, while Lince simply continued with a faint smile:

"I won’t elaborate on the details of this war recruitment. In short, I ask all my fellow compatriots of the Human Alliance to cherish this opportunity."

"The battlefield is merciless. I cannot promise you will all survive, but I have done my best to arrange low-risk tasks for you, such as cleanup and logistics."

"As the Chief, I’ve secured every benefit for you that my authority allows."

"As the old saying goes: ’Rely on a mountain, and it will fall. Rely on a man, and he will walk away.’"

"During this Inference Day, how far each of you can go will depend entirely on your own abilities and fortune."

"Specific combat orders will be coordinated between my subordinate, Phemos the "Earth Bear," and the various Legion Commanders."

"I have said all that needs to be said. To say more would just be showing off."

"With that, I shall now observe from behind the scenes. I wish you all—may fortune favor you in battle!"

Lince’s speech was brief. After he finished, he swept his gaze over the entire Player encampment. Finally, as ripples once again spread across the sky like water, the colossal, mountain-like Giant Dragon vanished into thin air in the blink of an eye.

Sunlight spilled across the land once more. Before the Players could even react, a terrifying sonic boom echoed from the direction of Dawn City.

It was a giant bear, over one hundred and twenty meters tall, leaping down from a mountain peak near Dawn City and landing on a hill in front of the Player encampment.

Amidst a cloud of flying dust, the hill exploded as if struck by a missile.

However, a gust of Magic Wind blasted outward, instantly clearing the surrounding dust and smoke.

At the same time, a large number of Demon Beasts suddenly appeared from within Li Ming City and the forests outside it.

Most of these Demon Beasts were Tierless, but of course, there were also some Middle-Low Tier Demon Beasts among them.

These were the Demon Beasts Lince had assigned to the Player legions.

Their purpose was twofold: to protect the Players and to monitor their actions.

For the nearly eighty thousand Players, Lince assigned eight High Tier Magical Beasts.

Each High Tier Magical Beast was assigned to a legion, and each legion was also allocated five thousand Demon Beasts.

From now on, the Player legions would operate under Phemos’s command.

Under his leadership, they would be responsible for clearing out Giant Demon villages and towns, and even rounding up Giant Demon and Human Race captives.

After all, the main army, led by the Saint Tier Magical Beasts, would soon be attacking the major Giant Demon cities on the primary battlefront.

The smaller Giant Demon villages and towns posed a low threat, making them perfect ’leveling’ grounds for the Players and the Middle-Low Tier Demon Beasts.

The Players watched the Chief’s sudden departure, then turned to the Demon Beasts that were rapidly closing in around them.

They all looked somewhat bewildered.

But soon, at the calls of the Legion Commanders, battalion captains, and squad leaders, the Players began to fall into formation.

At the same time, formations of Demon Beasts began marching into each legion’s camp.

Clearly, both the Demon Beasts and the Player legions needed time to get acquainted with their new comrades-in-arms.

In the process, many Demon Beasts were assigned by the High Tier Magical Beasts and Legion Commanders to individual Players of varying strengths, forming one-on-one battlefield partnerships.

Watching one Entry Tier Player after another gain a Demon Beast as a companion...

Many of the Tierless Players couldn’t help but feel a pang of envy.

"Damn, this looks like it’s going to be a lucrative war!"

"The Chief even assigned Magic Pets to Entry Tier Players? Even if it’s temporary, this will greatly increase a lot of people’s survival rates!"

"So generous! The Chief is way too generous!"

"By the way, after the campaign instance is over, can we still join the Chief’s Demon Hunter legion?"

"But it seems the prerequisite is that we have to be able to get to Dawn City after the war..."

After witnessing the terrifying extent of Lince’s power, many Players couldn’t help but want to latch onto his coattails.

It could even be called pledging their allegiance.

After all, everything from True Game would carry over into reality; the benefits were real and tangible.

Would following the Human Alliance, or even Bright Moon Building, be any better than following the Chief?

Obviously not.

So, at this moment, even some High-End Players were seriously considering the matter.

It was for the best that the Players were thinking this way, which was part of Lince’s calculation when he revealed his form.

Although the Players weren’t particularly strong, having a group of "followers" in the real world was still a good thing for Lince.

From Lince’s perspective, even if they proved useless, it was always better to be safe than sorry.

After all, he might need some lackeys to run errands for him down the line.

If he had to do everything himself, what was the point of getting so powerful?

The arrangements for the Players were complete.

He, meanwhile, was now resting in the stratosphere, more than fifty thousand meters above Dawn City.

Here, Lince used the Power of Space to turn his body almost crystal-clear and transparent, while effortlessly creating a flat spatial plane to rest upon.

He gazed down at the curved horizon, a slight smile playing on his lips, before slowly closing his eyes.

The moment he closed his eyes, his vision fractured into several different perspectives.

These were the real-time battlefield situations being fed to him from his contracted Demon Beast servants.