Chapter 1

Besides the video, the website contained no information, only a blue-green background resembling tree rings.

But because it was a work from Gong Qiying II Studio, even a background pattern could conjure a hundred times the amount of implied metaphor in the minds of players worldwide.

"Holy crap, a new work preview already! Trying to scam my money again?"

In an instant, Shao Shuangyue, who was still feeling sleepy, immediately became excited. She sat up straight and widened her eyes, leaning closer to the computer screen—at this moment, she still resembled a big-eyed beauty. However, this beauty was quickly shattered by unrestrained laughter: "Good, good! I wonder if it's a DLC or a new work preview!"

Without the slightest hesitation, she immediately clicked to watch the CG.

First to appear was a heavy rain at sea, and lightning snakes crisscrossing the dim sky.

Amidst the lightning and thunder, the waves soared to the sky. In the storm, a huge treasure ship flying a dragon flag broke through the layers of giant waves and arrived at a small island covered in dense forest, but silent and devoid of any moving creatures.

And a low, aged male voice served as narration, accompanied by the melodious sound of a xiao (Chinese flute), speaking in a low voice, like an archaeology professor reciting records from ancient, dusty books.

[From ancient times to the present, mankind has been pursuing immortality, seeking to transcend the cycle of fate.]

The treasure ship came to a stop. On the deck, a tall, white-haired old man in golden Mingguang armor, with a dignified aura, pushed away the guards who wanted to support him and strode off the ship, stepping onto the silent island.

[From the lofty emperors to the mediocre vagrants, everyone is yearning and seeking its method from ancient books, legends of the mountains and wilds, unpredictable prophecies, and the results of sacrifices.]

Fully armed guards lit torches, protecting the old man in golden armor as they broke through the jungle. These guards possessed extreme martial prowess; even trees as large as they could wrap their arms around couldn't stop their progress. The entire team was like a bulldozer, carving a path through the deep green forest island, leading directly to the small mountain in the center of the island.

And on this small mountain, a small sapling, like a potted plant, was bathing in the rain and dew of the storm, growing all alone.

[Legend has it that the Jianmu (mythical tree) towers above Lingqiu, the Pan Tao (peaches of immortality) grow beside the giant sea, and the divine tree bears fruit that, when consumed, grants immortality.]

Gazing at the extremely small sapling for several minutes, the disappointed old man personally reached out and lifted the sapling, along with the soil beneath it.

The camera shifted, and this sapling was already located behind a temple in the mountains of the South, worshiped among the mountains and waters. In the background, one could vaguely see a bustling and prosperous city not far away, where the sound of "The Emperor has passed away in Yong'an Palace" echoed distantly.

The busy imperial palace and the quiet temple faced each other from afar, a contrast between movement and stillness.

[Time flies, the world changes.]

Time passed swiftly. Two hundred years flew by. The walls of the newly built temple were gradually covered with ivy and moss, and the solid beams and pillars were gradually decaying and being renovated.

People came and went, voices rose and fell, but that sapling remained unchanged.

Until that day, an old Daoist priest guarding the temple, while carefully tending to this sapling and watering it with spiritual water, stopped breathing with a smile.

[Only the human heart remains 'unchanged'.]

A spiritual light, like a soul, landed on the verdant leaves.

After that, the divine tree sensed the spirit and grew one zhang (3.3 meters) during the day and seven chi (2.3 meters) at night. After three years, it was as tall as a mountain.

[One day, when the divine tree is complete, immortality will have arrived.]

One could see that an incredibly huge divine tree stood between heaven and earth, its trunk and aerial roots supporting the heaven and earth like divine mountains, and its canopy reaching straight into the clouds above, connecting heaven and earth.

At this time, the entire video's tone suddenly darkened, becoming gloomy and hazy, as if one were standing in a cloud of mist.

Originally facing the temple from afar, the bustling and noisy imperial capital, which had been so prosperous in the past, had now been reduced to crumbling ruins. On the former streets, huge wooden centipedes and black-armored soldiers were marching, destroying everything along the way, leaving behind only dried blood and ruins.

[But the era of disaster and turmoil has also arrived.]

Amidst the black ruins of the town, silent people gathered. A tall Confucian scholar, covered in black filth, with bleeding hands, seemed to have been digging in the ruins for a long time. He stared at the ruins of his hometown, and the corpses in the ruins. The Confucian scholar clenched his fists, his lusterless eyes reflecting the flames that were still burning in the ruins.

The camera zoomed out, and countless different armors, as if an army formed by people from hundreds of families, began to approach those black-armored soldiers and giant beasts, charging at each other!

The screen went dark, followed by the clear sound of swords clashing!

The brief CG ended here. The rest of the video consisted of exciting accompaniment music and a series of flashing ink-wash concept drawings—giant wooden root monsters, historically accurate armor and swords, martial artists wielding Qinggong (light body skill) and fighting in mid-air, and steampunk-style giant machines and floating airships.

There were even some spoilers related to the game content that flashed by—a team advancing towards a volcano in the northern wind and snow, a sudden descent, the inheritor of an ancient legacy, a series of sword fighting sound effects, and black wood demon soldiers laughing wildly as they charged towards a fortress in the wind and snow.

As the progress bar gradually approached the end, the low male voice slowly announced the end of the short film.

[Who can bring peace to a chaotic world?]

After this meaningful closing remark, the entire short film ended, and the "Dark Wolf" series logo appeared in the center of the black screen.

Then, wooden roots spread, forming its subtitle.

[The Calamity of Immortality]

For a moment, the room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Then, there was a girl's excited scream, and ecstatic rambling.

"Steampunk! Wuxia (martial arts)! Eastern themes! Oh my god, is the old thief planning to restart the world line of the medieval chaotic world?!"