Game of the World Tree

Back on Earth, along the second ring road within the imperial capital, inside an ordinary residential building.

An excited-looking teenage boy around seventeen or eighteen years of age stared disbelievingly at the text message he just received on his smartphone.

After double checking it if its truly genuine and not a scam text, his face then filled with expression of utmost joy.

His name was Ji Dong, a high school graduate who had just finished his college entrance exam and was awaiting for his admission.

Currently, he was holed up at home.

As a reward for getting into the Imperial University, his father and mother had gifted him the most popular Virtual Pod.

Therefore, nowadays, he is completely engrossed in VR games and can’t tear himself away from playing them…

Holding his smartphone, he couldn’t contain his happiness as he rolled around on the bed.

The contents of the text message were simple and concise:

“Congratulations! You have been selected as a player for the third round of closed beta testing for ‘Elven Kingdom.’ Your invitation code is: 130-114-504.”

Imagine him being chosen as a player for the third round of ‘Elven Kingdom’ closed beta testing!

Naturally, he was wholly astonished.

Elven Kingdom was a cutting-edge VR-MMORPG that had gained immense popularity within the last few months, sweeping through the entire internet like storm.

With its futuristic technology, unbelievable mind acceleration, close-to-real game modeling and physics engine, lifelike NPC system, with unprecedented freedom and engagement, ElvKing had easily left its competitors far behind, becoming the hottest topic of the gaming world…

Heck, some even joked that it was not actually a game but were in fact just masquerading as one and is actually a program that aliens built to let one’s brainwaves traverse into a different world and some crack-head conspiracy enthusiast and alien believers had truly believed such rumors.

Early on, even before his college entrance exam had concluded, Ji Dong had seen many videos about the game on various video sharing websites, which had piqued his interest in this game called ‘Elven Kingdom.’

However, it was unfortunate that he was busy studying for his entrance exams when the first round of beta testing applications opened.

In any case, even if he had signed up during the first round of beta-testing, he likely would not have been selected for the initial batch of closed beta testers. This is because the number of slots for the first closed beta-test was extremely limited, and numerous streamers and professional gamers were also competing for these slots.

For instance, the first beta-test had only accepted 300 applicants, while nearly 800,000 people had applied!

The odds of being chosen back then were incredibly slim and those who were selected were truly fortunate.

Afterwards, the second round of closed beta-testing had expanded the playerbase further up to 900 slots.

At that time, Ji Dong promptly reapplied once more since he had just finished his college entrance exam.

However, the second application process was even more brutal, with three million applicants vying for mere 900 slots!

As a result, the probability of being selected became even smaller…

And as expected, Ji Dong once again didn’t make the cut.

After a period of time, the official announcement for the third closed beta had finally came and on this round, ‘Elven Kingdom’ had opened up additional 9,000 slots!

This news thrilled many people including him.

These days, many users would constantly refresh the official website of ‘Elven Kingdom’ as the first thing they did in the morning. Almost all VR gamers in the country had been eagerly waiting for a new round of closed beta testing with bated breath.

Excitedly, Ji Dong had also decided to apply for a third time yet again!

However, when he saw the message; “You are the 14,346,755th player to apply for ‘Elven Kingdom.’ Thank you for your participation,” his heart immediately sank…

Although there were indeed more slots available, the sad thing was that the number of applicants had also even further drastically increased!

What the hell—14 million applicants!?

It was truly mind-boggling.

Despite the Virtual Pod’s creation and the advent of the neural network ushering in a new gaming age, and in spite of virtual online games already amassing tens of millions of simultaneous players a year before, the occurrence of a VR game attracting over ten million participants while still on its initial beta testing phase was truly unprecedented!

It’s a remarkable feat considering that Ji Dong hadn’t even applied on the last day of registration.

By the actual deadline, it is estimated the total number of applicants for this third closed beta would already exceeded 20 million!

Moreover, it is rumored that there were even many foreigners amongst them…

They too have watched ElvKing videos that the chinese players posted online and gone to great lengths just to participate as well.

A good game was indeed appreciated everywhere.

Not to mention that the quality displayed in ‘ElvKing’ videos was so impressive that it easily overshadowed any other virtual online games currently out in the market.

With its fantasy theme, it naturally appealed to many foreign gamers, stirring their intense curiosity and enthusiasm…

There were even a few foreign gaming experts who strongly urged the ‘Elven Kingdom’ developers to open an international test server.

Unfortunately, the typically reserved developers of ‘Elven Kingdom’ never responded to such requests.

Ultimately, the number of applicants for the third closed beta had reached a staggering 22 million upon its closing date!

Although the odds were better compared to the second closed beta, such numbers was still quite terrifying.

Fortunately, this time, Ji Dong’s luck had finally come around.

Just when he thought that all hope was lost, he promptly received a text message confirming his selection, making him one of the lucky 9,000 applicants selected!

July 25th, exactly 12:00 pm.

After having thoroughly studied various strategy posts on the game’s official forum, Ji Dong, who had diligently done his homework, finally welcomed the third closed beta of “Elven Kingdom” amidst his eager anticipation.

He checked the time, unable to contain his excitement, and immediately entered his virtual pod. He then launched “Elven Kingdom” that he had already downloaded.

“Initiating… Elven Kingdom!”

【❗】

Game connection successful…

New version discovered, ‘Elf Kingdom’ 1.3.

Updating version…0%…01%…02%…

—Update successful.

【Update Log V1: Optimized the game resurrection feature. The “Perfect Resurrection Attempts” have been replaced with a resurrection coin system, where perfect resurrection requires the use of resurrection coins. Resurrection coins can be exchanged in the Contribution Store. The higher a player’s level, the more resurrection coins are consumed during revival.】

【Update Log V2: Optimized the exchange and jobclass systems. “World Tree” has been set as a redemption point. Players can now directly pray to the World Tree in the Chosen City, to access the exchange store and jobclass interface without needing to go to the Temple to find the Goddess statue.】

【Update Log V3: Optimized the punishment mechanism. The severity of punishment is now linked to a player’s level. The higher the level, the more severe the punishment a player will receive.】

【Update Log V4: Optimized the face creation mechanism. When creating a character, a score is given to the character’s appearance. The system’s base score for a character is 60 points, and characters with scores below 50 points cannot be created.】

Resurrection coins? Exchange system? Punishment mechanism? Face customization?

Ji Dong raised an eyebrow.

Since he had done some research beforehand, these terms sounded somewhat familiar to him. However, with him being a newcomer, he still found them a bit unfamiliar…

Nonetheless, he didn’t pay much attention to it.

Accompanied by a soothing background music, Ji Dong’s surroundings briefly dimmed before brightening once again.

He suddenly felt a wave of dizziness which then accompanied by a rapid shift as if he was being pulled into a black hole. This sensation lasted for a couple of seconds and before he could even realized what was happening, Ji Dong already found himself in the character creation interface.

“I’m in!”

Ji Dong’s heart rejoiced.

In Elven Kingdom the only available race to choose from was the elves, but their appearances could be intricately customized.

However, Ji Dong was a bit puzzled.

Why did the developers decide to implement a scoring system for one’s appearance during character creation? And why wouldn’t they let someone create a character if their avatar’s score was too low?

“Is it to prevent people from making ugly avatars? ElvKing’s developers are really a bunch of perfectionists, huh? Hey, it’s just an appearance, it’s not a big deal…”

Ji Dong mentally quipped.

Of course, he was definitely going to put effort into creating his avatar’s appearance.

After all, who wouldn’t want their in-game character to look handsome? After all, it’s almost like raising your own daughter or son.

…Well maybe except for some weird eccentric players.

After spending half an hour crafting a handsome face that he was extremely satisfied with, and after the system scored his avatar’s appearance at 65 points, Ji Dong finally clicked “Confirm.”

Afterwards, he set his in-game username as: “Deformation Ji Gang”

The screen then briefly dimmed, and Ji Dong finally entered the game!

With a sudden blur and an indescribable sense of weightlessness washing over him, the cinematic opening of Elven Kingdom began playing before Ji Dong’s eyes.

Actually he had seen this particular opening cutscene countless times on video sharing websites, so he initially intended to skip it.

But due to some inexplicable impulse, he restrained his impatience and decided to rewatch it all over again…

Accompanied by familiar yet captivating music, one breathtaking scene unfolded one after another before Ji Dong’s eyes.

The imposing World Tree, the picturesque elven city, the grandeur of the Silver Civilization, and the unfortunate conflict known as the War of the Gods…

This in-game storyplot had become ingrained in Ji Dong’s memory from watching it countless times.

However, Ji Dong noticed that this version seemed to be trimmed down compared to the one circulating online; it had been shortened somewhat.

“They cut down the opening scenes?”

Ji Dong was a little bit curious as to why the devs did that.

Yet, just as the War of the Gods concluded, with the World Tree withering away and Ji Dong thinking that the opening sequence was about to end…

The cutscene then took a drastic turn!

The opening movie surprisingly didn’t end here like he expected.

The background music suddenly grew intense, and the visuals presented an unprecedented never before seen scenes—

The prayer of the Saintess, as light flicker atop the towering World Tree!

In an instant, three hundred Chosen Ones descended one after another!

They battled creatures in the forest, fought goblins in ruins, defeated the incarnations of deities, and reclaimed the Holy City of Florence. They laid the foundations, brick by brick, for the City of the Chosen Ones!

Then… nine hundred Chosen Ones descended for a second time!

They defeated several orc hunting parties, rescued the captive elven race, fought alongside a black dragon, and battled hordes of orcs…

The Elven Forest was reclaimed, the incarnation of the goddess descended, the World Tree revived, and all living beings paid homage to the goddess…

Then the Chosen Ones embarked on their journey out of the forest!

They explored Rivendell, subdued the Spider Queen in the catacombs…

They delved into the world underground, befriending the dark-dwarves…

As Ji Dong watched those magnificent scenes and thrilling cutscenes unfold, accompanied by the heart-pounding background music, he was left utterly flabbergasted.

Being a gaming enthusiast who frequently watches ElvKing videos, Ji Dong naturally recognized these segments… this familiar scenes…

They were, without a doubt, the game events experienced by the players of the first and second closed beta-tests!

The developers had actually transformed players’ gaming experiences into the opening movie for the third closed beta-test!

What’s more, these edited cutscenes were seamlessly integrated with the earlier opening cutscene, fitting them together perfectly, as though they were truly a segment of an epic legendary tale!

It could even be said that it was a story drawn by the players, a fantasy movie starring the players themselves!

In an instant, Ji Dong felt a profound sense of epic grandeur and a sense of belongingness…

And at the end of the cinematic scene, his field of vision then suddenly went dark once more.

Then…a string of golden characters entered his peripheral vision:

—O’ Chosen One, are you ready?

In that moment, Ji Dong felt his blood utterly boil.

— —