[T/N: New year BONUS chapter 🥳🥳]
"The king's will is my guiding star; my heart aligns with its path!"
Hearing 007's solemn declaration, Xu Yuan finally put his concerns to rest.
The evolution of 007 into a Death Knight was fueled by one word: faith.
Initially, 007's faith was solely focused on Xu Yuan. After their separation, that faith shifted to a small bug Xu Yuan had given him as a keepsake.
Despite enduring unimaginable torment, it was this unwavering faith that kept him going.
Xu Yuan believed that 007's faith would persist, no matter the challenges ahead.
With that reassurance, Xu Yuan stopped overthinking and opened the system interface.
The recent massacre of over 60,000 players from the Eternal Guild had provided him with a significant haul of kill and fear points. His kill points had skyrocketed to over 70 million.
"Huh? That's less than I expected…"
He had assumed the Eternal Guild would contribute a larger bounty of kill points. Yet the results were underwhelming.
Then again, it made sense. Most of the players on the Radiance Guild side had already been wiped out multiple times by the Ender Dragon. Their kill points were reset to zero with each death.
Later, they had been preoccupied with preparations for the war and had no time to replenish their points.
As for the Eternal Guild players, they had spent most of their time feeding 007. The bulk of the kill points they had initially provided was a one-time boon. After that, the contributions had dwindled.
Only the remnants from Yonghui's faction had managed to offer a modest amount.
Although it didn't meet Xu Yuan's expectations, the accumulated kill points were more than sufficient to unlock Epic Siege III.
"Well, guess I'll start with Epic Siege III after the server goes live again."
Xu Yuan wasn't sure what the game update would bring, but the fact that GM 303 had been forcibly ejected from the game was proof that something significant was in motion.
The developers wouldn't let this slide without taking action.
If they weren't sending another GM to erase him, they were surely working on alternative strategies. Perhaps a server shutdown to try to eliminate him, enhancements for the players, or even the introduction of new game mechanics or monsters specifically designed to counter him.
Xu Yuan didn't know for sure, but he was certain of one thing: the update wouldn't be a simple maintenance patch.
Delaying his plans until after the update was the safest course of action. A rollback or reset during the update would ruin any progress he made beforehand.
For now, he had a tentative plan: once the servers reopened, he would activate Epic Siege III and retreat to a seaside area with 007 and the Ender Dragon.
Fishing, farming, building houses, and raising pigs—he planned to embrace a quieter side of the game for a while.
It wasn't about taking a vacation. His real goal was to distance himself from the endless slaughter and chip away at NULL's volatile personality.
Bringing NULL into the physical realm was inevitable, but it had to be done when he was fully prepared. Anything less would be a recipe for disaster.
This was Xu Yuan's current top priority.
As for the game's update, the immediate threat to him seemed minimal. The only real danger left was Entity 303, and Xu Yuan believed their encounter wasn't far off.
He needed to be absolutely ready before that happened.
Once Epic Siege III was activated, he wouldn't have to worry about kill points for a while.
——— ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NovᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet
The announcement of the game's update caused an uproar among players.
The forums exploded with speculation:
"Breaking! Is the server shutdown an attempt to erase HIM?!"
"GM vs. HIM: GM defeated, update incoming—what does it all mean?"
"Server shutdown imminent—join the HIM discussion here!"
"HIM is trending everywhere, even on international forums!"
"Vote: Should HIM be removed or stay in the game?"
Although the update announcement was the main topic, most discussions inevitably circled back to HIM.
"GM gets annihilated by HIM, and suddenly there's an update? Are they planning to erase HIM during maintenance?"
"Doubtful. HIM doesn't have any data to erase, right? Unless they shut the servers down permanently…"
"Resetting the server might work, but no one would stand for that!"
"Doesn't this prove the devs can't handle HIM?"
"Guess we'll only know after the update…"
"Honestly, I don't want HIM gone. The game's way more interesting with HIM around!"
"True. HIM doesn't bother regular players, and we get front-row seats to the chaos. Ha!"
"Petition to keep HIM in the game!"
Despite their fear of HIM, many players didn't want him removed. He had become the game's defining feature—a living legend that sparked endless discussion.
Even players on external platforms were catching wind of HIM's fame. His name was spreading like wildfire across the internet.
An hour passed quickly.
The game began its shutdown countdown.
[Server Shutdown Countdown: 00:03]
[Server Shutdown Countdown: 00:02]
[Server Shutdown Countdown: 00:01]
With the countdown's end, the game world was plunged into darkness.
Xu Yuan's vision blacked out. He didn't know how much time had passed before he finally regained consciousness.
When he opened his eyes, he found himself in an endless void.
Nothing but infinite darkness stretched out before him.
"So this is what the game looks like after a shutdown…"
Xu Yuan stood there, contemplating.
What was his purpose in entering the game?
With the Demon King System and HIM's appearance, the system clearly wanted him to evolve into the ultimate antagonist.
But to grow into HIM, bloodshed was inevitable.
Sure, players could respawn, but the overwhelming disparity in power would eventually break them.
Just like the members of the Cloud Soaring Guild—most of them had already quit the game.
If he continued slaughtering, more players would quit, and the game itself might face shutdown.
If that happened, all of Xu Yuan's efforts would be meaningless. Spending eternity in a lifeless void? He'd lose his mind.
But if he stopped killing, his strength would stagnate. Even if the game persisted, his life might not.
Caught between survival and purpose, Xu Yuan felt a headache brewing.
He didn't want to drive players out of the game; he just wanted to survive.
But the players would never see it that way.
Their goal was simple: conquer the game.
Even if they couldn't defeat HIM now, they would bide their time, grow stronger, and return with vengeance.
As he mulled over his dilemma, a faint light flickered in the distance.
Xu Yuan didn't hesitate. He flew toward the light.
The journey through the void seemed endless, but the light grew closer.
When he finally arrived, he realized the source wasn't an exit—it was a glowing, transparent cube.
As he approached, the cube shifted positions.
Xu Yuan chased it, only for the cube to teleport again.
After several attempts, he noticed a pattern in its movements. Predicting its next location, he teleported ahead and grabbed it.
At that moment, a system notification appeared:
[Spend 100,000 Faith Points to unlock Cube Permissions?]
"A Faith Points item?"
"What is this thing…"
Xu Yuan frowned, opening his system panel to check his Faith Points. With 130,000 points in reserve, he had more than enough to unlock it.
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