I Forged the Myth of the Ancient Overlords-Chapter 84 - 083. A Thousand Ways to Die_1
Chapter 84: 083. A Thousand Ways to Die_1
Chapter 84: 083. A Thousand Ways to Die_1
“Impossible!”
Xu Duchong found it unbelievable.
In a normal game, someone would have definitely completed it and posted a guide within a day of release, and an interactive video that essentially doesn’t require gameplay should be cracked in minutes, right?
How could it be that no one had completed the true ending even after two days?
Xu Duchong didn’t believe it; he immediately went online to search for the video “The Day of Great Joy”.
He then discovered the top-rated answer on “Got It?”.
“…The complexity of this video is hard to imagine. Although the total length may be just over an hour, the branches it contains far exceed the gameplay time of a typical single-player game of fifteen to twenty hours. And that’s just the parts players have already explored. It’s hard to imagine how much effort ‘Motionless’ has put into this during the time without updates, because the shooting of the video material alone would have taken at least a month…”
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No one had completed it; only those who hadn’t were blowing smoke about this video.
After reading a few answers, Xu Duchong opened the video again to try some options suggested by others that supposedly allowed for steady progress to the later stages.
But the third choice was different.
When the carriage stopped yet again, instead of the options “Get out and check” or “Stay in the carriage”, there were only “Use the light” and “Continue forward”.
Xu Duchong thought for a moment and chose to shine the light.
He saw the light pierce through the thick fog, revealing a grotesque monster with the head of a fish and the body of a person in front of the carriage.
The slow emergence of the thing from the fog made Xu Duchong’s scalp tingle.
“Is this thing real? Or just a prop?”
He couldn’t help but immerse himself in the situation.
Interactive videos, especially those with great agency in exploration and mystery, easily engross viewers. Combined with being alone in his dorm room and the video’s realistic lighting, Xu Duchong felt as if he were truly there.
Moreover, the video seemed to have some sort of magic that captivated his gaze.
After examining the statue and directing the carriage to detour forward, he had not walked for even a minute before he saw the same statue looming in the dark fog before him.
Exactly the same, it was the same one he had seen before.
“Ghost Hitting the Wall?”
Having chosen to examine the statue and continue forward, he quickly found himself in the same loop.
Not one to be easily thwarted, Xu Duchong repeated the process three or four times before the screen suddenly plunged into darkness.
“[To escape the endless cycle, you may need to find a way to break through.]”
[BAD END: 27]
Only then did Xu Duchong realize that he had unknowingly strayed from the game guide he was originally looking at, much like the detailed plan he had made for his summer vacation, vowing to wake up at eight every morning to study for four hours, exercise for three, have two hours of leisure, and post it on the wall, only to wake up the next morning and find that lunch was already prepared, as if some mysterious force had taken away his attention.
Xu Duchong even felt that the video might employ some psychological tactics to create this illusion.
He went to the bathroom to wash his face, refreshed himself, and went back to continue the video.
This time, Xu Duchong didn’t look for a guide directly. Instead, he first checked other people’s experiences and some live videos.
Then, he was back on the misty carriage ride.
An hour later, Xu Duchong took a long breath. After seeing the fish-eyed, bizarre-looking person, he was finally able to leave the mist behind and head toward Dried Water Town.
It was then that he realized his palms were drenched in sweat, and cold sweat involuntarily broke out on his forehead, something not even a calculus exam had induced.
Because Xu Duchong knew that the interactive video had no save function; each choice would lead to unknown consequences and one wrong step could mean starting all over again.
Some classmates might ask, can’t you just jump to the previous video node in an interactive video? Isn’t that a natural save point?
Xu Duchong initially thought the same, and so did everyone who watched the video, but later, people discovered that the random options in the video title seemed to be truly random. Even with the exact same actions, going back to the previous node might not restore things to how they were before.
The video seemed to have a will of its own, avoiding any attempt by viewers to game the system.
Xu Duchong was extremely cautious. He didn’t even glance at QQ or WeChat, focusing solely on exploring the virtual Dried Water Town alone.
Now, he felt as if he had truly become Cui Siter, adventuring through this eerie little town with Lu Ban by his side.
As they entered Dried Water Town, Xu Duchong breathed a sigh of relief. According to the plot description, they just needed to attend the wedding to clear the game. They had succeeded at least halfway.
As Xu Duchong caught his breath, he suddenly felt someone blowing on his neck while wearing headphones.
Immediately after, a soft whisper floated through the air.
The camera moved, and Xu Duchong glimpsed a woman in red in the shaking camera frame.
“Damn, a bridal gown. Could this fucking be the bride’s ghost?”
Xu Duchong shook his leg to relieve the tension.
In such an immersive video, the sudden appearance of something like this could scare the hell out of anyone.
And he still had to pay attention for any options that might come up, lest he missed them and was thrust into the next segment of the story.
He saw the camera move again, then looked back to the front, to the mansion entrance hanging with two large red lanterns, as if everything before was an illusion.
“The two of you.”
At that moment, a flat voice suddenly came from behind his stereo headphones, causing Xu Duchong to shudder uncontrollably, goosebumps crawling up his back. He trembled slightly as if he were suffering from PTSD.
“Damn, scared me to death…”
As he cursed out loud to ease his fear, he saw the pale-faced, red-lipped butler-looking figure behind them, a chill blowing between his legs.
At this point, options suddenly emerged on the screen.
[Follow the person]
[Refuse the person]
“I’ve definitely got to follow, right? No, that’s not right. This person looks really creepy. If I follow, there might be trouble. I should choose the safer option… Or is this reverse psychology? Because he looks creepy, should I follow him?”
Xu Duchong quickly made up his mind and was ready to choose [Follow the person].
Just as his mouse hovered over it, he felt a tap on his shoulder.
Xu Duchong instinctively turned his head only to see a face right next to his shoulder.
“Fuck!”
He hastily recoiled, tumbling off his chair, his whole body shaking violently, like an elder stricken with Parkinson’s.
“Are you overreacting? Or were you doing something naughty in the dorm by yourself? Let me check to see if you’re developing normally.”
Xu Duchong then realized it was his three roommates who had just returned from the internet café and even brought some late-night snacks for him.
“Don’t scare me like that… You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
Xu Duchong hurriedly got to his feet and turned to look at the computer screen.
He saw how he had, in fright, accidentally chosen [Refuse the person], and at that moment was lying in a pool of blood, everything going dark before his eyes.
A chilling laugh came through the screen, along with a line of text.
[The nights in Dried Water Town are cold, you stayed outside, witnessed certain abnormalities, and lost your life. Next time, find a warm room.]
[BAD END: 59]
