Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest

Morning, January 25, 768 in the Tianqi calendar.

Fanor continent, within the Norland Empire.

Songyuan Territory - On the outskirts of Red Maple City, dozens of vague figures suddenly appeared on the originally inaccessible gravel plain.

Their bodies are initially translucent.

The spiritual threads glowing with white light circled, intertwined and intertwined their outlines, gradually "stitching" them into complete bodies like dolls.

Eventually, they become just like normal people. And their originally cloudy and dull eyes gradually lit up, looking at everything around them with a sense of confusion and curiosity.

…

"..."

"Where the hell did you come from?"

"Is this still domestic?"

Thomas, whose full ID is the "Adventor" of "Thomas the Tank Engine", felt a strong sense of shock in his heart and looked around.

He still remembered, just ten minutes ago.

I should be lying in the fully immersive somatosensory cabin, immersed in enjoying the official version of "Mount and Blade III" finally released thirty years after the delay, and the continent of Calradia, which has been divided for many years, is about to be unified.

However, just as he led his eighteen wives and one hundred and eighty biological sons to continuously attack the city and land, and finally reached the capital of the Western Empire, his eyes suddenly fell into deep darkness.

The screen of "Mount and Blade III" disappeared, and the semi-real feedback touch also fell silent and turned into a cold state, but Thomas's consciousness remained quite clear.

He wanted to get out of the "deep dive of consciousness" - according to the safety regulations, the fully immersive somatosensory cabin launched by the "Next Generation Black Technology Company" in 2077 should have early warning and emergency avoidance devices.

But there is no doubt that there is a bug in the situation in front of Thomas - the somatosensory cabin should interrupt all connections with himself in the cabin and "awaken his consciousness", but nothing happens.

Thomas, who was still a little panicked, found himself in the ever-changing and beautiful scenery in the next second.

And in front of him, a brand new game interface appeared at the same time.

【Traveler in a foreign land——】

[Welcome to the world of "God's Destiny"...]

[Congratulations, sdeam user "Thomas the Tank Engine", you have obtained internal testing qualifications]

[This internal test is a closed file deletion test - duration: 7 days]

[Please create your "Adventurer" template]

【……】

"...?"

"..."God's Destiny"? Internal testing?"

That is a completely different UI from "Mounting and Blade III". An interface with a certain medieval magical style appeared in front of Thomas' eyes, which made his young mind a little confused and a little shocked at the same time.

He had a vague suspicion that this was some kind of usurpation virus that some game manufacturer had planted in the basic logic code of "Mount and Blade III" in order to compete for players.

For example, when it is detected that the player has played for a certain period of time or performed a specific action, the current game process will be terminated, and another game will overwrite the touch permissions of the somatosensory cabin and forcefully pull the player into another game. Something like that...

Thomas once heard his grandfather say that when they were playing PC games in that era, "XX Blue Moon" and "OO999" would suddenly pop up in the lower right corner of the screen. They were the originators of such games... But Thomas was still the first. This is the first time I have seen such a "black technology" coverage method, directly bypassing the control authority of the somatosensory cabin and this kind of viral game, it is simply unheard of!

"How can we make a virus game with this technology..." Thomas complained inwardly, but he couldn't help but be a little curious about the game manufacturer that made this "God's Destiny".

There was an option for "Developer Details" on the UI interface, so Thomas reached out and touched the brightly shining bar.

The scene in front of him quickly changed, and a new interface emerged, describing a new content——

["God's Destiny" is based on the 'matryoshka brain' developed by the next-generation black technology company as the core system, evolves on its own, and maintains operation... All NPC characters in the game have independent consciousness, and have characteristics similar to those of modern people. The same or even higher wisdom...]

"..."

"Yeah, it turns out it's our own game." Thomas suddenly realized.

"Next generation black technology company", in the gaming circle that Thomas has been involved in for more than ten years, he remembers that it was a technology company that emerged about ten years ago.

But this company has always remained quite mysterious. Until now, no one knows where their headquarters is. Although it does hire employees on the periphery to participate in social activities, it has always been an unknown mystery who are the core senior executives.

What made this company suddenly famous was the birth of real "black technology" - they suddenly demonstrated the so-called "complete consciousness submersion" technology to the outside world through mainstream media means. Since then, "immersive body sensing" "Cabin", "immersive helmet" and other things were born in response to this, which caused quite a sensation at the time.

But it didn't attract too much attention from the upper echelons. Because in the era when black technology companies entered the public eye, similar technological products had been invented, and the immersive somatosensory cabin was still a relatively niche luxury product until now due to its high price.

Thomas now understands what kind of game has such awesome technical means.

It turned out that the state official set the fire! .jpg

He was complaining in his heart. Although he was a little unhappy about being forcibly suspended from the game process of "Mount and Blade III", Thomas did become somewhat interested in "God's Destiny".

Thomas gave the instruction to return to the previous interface, and with the mentality of giving it a try, he clicked the "Enter Game" option.

The surrounding scene changed again, and Thomas felt as if he was suddenly on the bottom of the sea, with strands of threads flowing with strange light lingering and circling around his body, but there was no suffocating feeling.

And new content appeared on the panel in front of him.

Thomas looked at it and found that the content was actually very simple - it was the standard three-piece set of "your name", "your gender" and "your model".

Enter "Thomas the Tank Engine" and confirm that it is successful. No one is grabbing the same ID as Thomas, so he can proceed with the next operation with confidence.

Considering that this may be an open-world RPG online game from a first-person perspective, and that it is a "closed file deletion" test, Thomas first honestly chose "male" and quickly completed the modeling according to his ideal appearance and body. .

After that, he couldn't wait to click "Finish", and buzz - the scene in front of him changed again.

…

[Welcome to the world of Apocalypse, Thomas the Tank Engine. 】

[According to the intelligent allocation, your destination is the Fanor continent, within the Songyuan Territory of the Nolan Empire. 】

[Wish you a happy game——]

…

Fanor continent, within the Norland Empire.

Thomas felt that after he had finished tinkering with the model and given the "finish" instruction, his eyes suddenly fell into complete darkness, and the whistling sound of wind could be heard from time to time in his ears. It was as if someone had stuffed him into his body. He got out of the back compartment and bumped along in the long, lightless tunnel.

This made him a little uncomfortable, at least in his physical experience in the real world. He knew that being "abused" like this would cause severe dizziness and nausea.

It wasn't until these strange feelings disappeared and Thomas's closed eyes seemed to catch some penetrating light that he slowly opened his eyes.

Miraculously, he didn't feel the discomfort that existed in his habitual memory. And when he opened his eyes, he did see a whole new world——

A fortress-like city, its towering walls stood at the end of Thomas' vision. And where they are now is the gravel land on the outskirts of the city. The place is full of pits and traces of devastation, and it seems that it has experienced many wars over and over again.

Thomas looked around curiously, and at the same time, he saw dozens of people in civilian clothes around him looking around curiously.

Some of the "civilians" had faces full of excitement and shouted loudly as if no one else was watching:

"Fuck, this game is too real?!"

"Ah...this wind! This grass! This air!"

"...This is really not time travel? Really?"

No, buddy... this is just a game... Thomas complained in his heart, but he also knew that those "civilians" were actually players just like him.

But the shouts of those players did attract Thomas' attention. He then turned his attention to himself, and then he was surprised to find that he really felt like he was in the real world.

The slight squeezing and cooling feeling when the wind blows over his cheeks, the heavy feeling when his feet are on the ground, and the faint feeling of hunger in his belly, etc... Thomas raised his arm, pinched his face, and sent it back Quite real pain!

Oh my god, this is so real... Thomas sighed.

This game...is really no different from the real world!

While sighing, Thomas suddenly heard a rustling sound coming from the other side, so he turned around to look.

That was a group of players who were violently pulling down their pants. They took off their pants and said with sorrow and anger:

"——Bad review! Why can't you take off your pants in this game!"

"..." Thomas held his forehead. He subconsciously moved farther away from the group of players and walked toward the fortress city at the end of his field of vision.

He walked in the target direction for about a minute, but no prompts or tasks were triggered.

This game seems to have no guidance... Is it a bit like a classic Souls game? There will be some hints of landmarks left on the visible map. We have to find ways to reach that "landmark" before the corresponding plot or task will be triggered... Thomas guessed.

The only obvious thing that can be called a "landmark" is probably the outline of the fortress city in front of us. That might be the "Novice Village", where basic buildings such as adventurers' unions, shops, blacksmith shops, etc. should be there, Thomas thought to himself.

This is my intuition as a veteran RPG player. While following his intuition and moving towards the target, he tried various commands to see if he could trigger something else.

Soon, Thomas discovered that when he gave the "system" instructions in his mind, the previous game UI would appear in front of him, and the option to "exit the game" was optional.

Fortunately, okay, it's not Kayaba Akihiko... Thomas thought happily, and then tried other commands.

After giving the "panel" command, the panel in front of Thomas changed again, and new content emerged.

[Thomas the Tank Engine (lv.1, Adventer)]

[Race: Human]

[Rank: Enlightened One]

[Health: 50/50, Mana: 25/25]

[Physical attack: 10, spell attack: 10, defense reduction: 5]

[Attributes: Strength 5, Constitution 5, Agility 5, Wisdom 5, Divinity 5, Perception 5, Resistance 5, Luck 5]

[First destiny: None]

[Main occupation: None]

[Destiny skills (0/8): None]

[Occupational skills (0/8): None]

[Character expertise: None]

[Status: None]

[……]

Uh… Is this my panel? Thomas browsed through it attentively and got some information.

His level is lv.1, which should correspond to some extraordinary strength - "destiny", which is the extraordinary system of this world.

But no matter destiny, skills, skills or expertise, Thomas's panel is still empty at this time, nothing.

This made Thomas more certain of his goal and walked towards the fortress city at the end of his vision.

At this time, the players who "descended" nearby with Thomas also began their own attempts.

Soon, Thomas also discovered that the panel also had the functions of "Player Forum" and "World Channel".

[Player Forum] is a place for players to post communication posts or strategies. But now that the players have just landed, there are very few contents in it, most of which are sharing of some feelings at the beginning of their landing.

[World Channel] is a "chat room" for players to communicate in real time. But the real "World Channel" has not yet been opened. Thomas saw that only the players who landed in the area of ​​"Fanor Continent-Nolan Empire-Songyuan Territory" were communicating enthusiastically in it.

But through the sharing of players who landed in other birthplaces in the "Player Forum", Thomas also roughly knew that in addition to the "Fanor Continent" where he was, there were also players who landed on the "Storm Continent" and "Broken Continent".

It is said that the players who landed in the "Storm Continent" and "Broken Continent" have come into contact with the local giants and dwarves respectively.

On the "Fanor Continent" where Thomas is, there are also players who have landed in the "Golden Country Trade Federation", "Holy Tower Church", "Elf Forest" and "Dark Principality", and they seem to be exploring the content of the game in full swing.

This makes Thomas look forward to entering the fortress city in front of him, looking forward to what kind of NPC he will meet and what kind of tasks he will trigger.

While thinking about this, he found that most players were also moving towards the fortress, that is, the consensus of the "Newbie Village" has gradually been established in the minds of the players.

Just as Thomas and other "descenders" were getting closer to the fortress city, suddenly, a thick cloud of dust rose in the players' field of vision.

Then, they heard the sound of "da, da——" horseshoes, and several figures in white robes were galloping towards them quickly.

Thomas, who saw this scene from afar, had a bright light in his eyes.

Natives! That might be the first contact with the NPCs in this game world! Is this the guide to the main task? Thomas is looking forward to it.

The group of people in white robes quickly rode in front of the players, tightened the reins, and stopped the horses.

At this time, Thomas saw clearly that these people in white robes seemed to have some kind of sacred patterns on their robes. Their identities should be clergy of a religious organization in this world?

Thomas, with a slight thought, detected the NPC in front of him according to the game habits.

The "detection" function really exists, and Thomas's panel quickly gave him feedback.

[Maiyev Seville (lv.?, Elite NPC)]

[Race: Human]

[Rank: Extraordinary]

[Health:?, Mana:? ]

[Physical Attack:?, Spell Attack:?, Defense Reduction:? ]

[Attributes:? ]

[First Destiny: Glorious Destiny (?)]

[Main Occupation:? ]

[……]

Damn, I can't see almost anything! This means that the gap in strength between me and the human NPC in front of me should be quite huge... Well, the only thing we know is that he is a transcendent with the destiny of [Glorious]?

Thomas analyzed this, and then he heard the transcendent in front of him, named "Maiyev Seville", say:

"Sure enough, what the high priest said is right. There are indeed suspicious refugees here."

...Suspicious refugees? Are they talking about us? Thomas was a little confused, and two figures suddenly rushed past him.

They were two players who picked up a handy wooden stick from somewhere and attacked the transcendents in front of them!

Maiyev's pupils shrank slightly. As a "Paladin", he did not draw his sword, but just stretched out his hand in the air, and a bright golden ring appeared in front of him.

——Dang! The wooden stick seemed to be attracted by some strange power, and then it hit the ring drawn by Maiyev heavily. The ring burst out a string of tiny sparks, and the two attacking players suddenly rolled back.

All the players' attention was immediately drawn to the two players who were courting death.

They landed heavily on their buttocks, seemingly knocked unconscious by the recoil. According to other players' detection of them, they had lost a quarter of their health, while the extraordinary person named "Maiyev" on the other side was unscathed.

The two players who were looking for death then rubbed their buttocks and stood up, with some inexplicably excited smiles on their faces, and ran back to the player team.

"According to the teachings of the high priest before his departure and the commandment of the "Holy Court" that civilians cannot be injured, I did not attack them."

Maiyev said lightly, "They were injured by their own power."

Yeah, we all saw it... Thomas nodded secretly. He knew that there were always players who liked to do such suicidal things. As a senior RPG player, he was not surprised by this.

However, the man named Maiyev just now, his ability to draw that golden ring and be able to counterattack, is it the skill of [Glorious] Destiny? Oh... It seems quite strong?

"But." Thomas then heard Mayyev say:

"It is their behavior just now that makes you more suspicious... However, I will forgive you. This is the sacred mercy of the High Priest."

"Now is a war period. The place where you are now is the main battlefield of our war with the Dark Principality."

"It is forbidden to stay here. This is also the decree of the Imperial War."

After a pause, Mayyev turned over and dismounted, and walked to the front of the "civilians" on the opposite side.

"So, in accordance with the instructions of the High Priest, please follow us into the city."

Mayyev said:

"The Red Maple City Church will provide you with safe shelter."

...