Chapter 2914: Degeneration of Stranded Players
The effect of the Perfect Potion began to fluctuate.
For ordinary players who take Evolution Potions over a long period, the potion's effectiveness gradually diminishes, and the increase in Evolution Rate slows down more and more. Especially for A-grade players, once the Evolution Rate exceeds 90%, they might need to consume piles of potions just to raise it by a single point. It can be said that from the very start of evolution, ordinary players have been constantly consuming drugs.
Thanks to the Perfect Potion, Xu Huo's Evolution Rate had been steadily increasing, and he didn't need to supplement with large quantities of potions. Although he had long known that potions after P7S might experience fluctuations, he truly hadn't expected them to enter such a disordered state. From now on, taking the Perfect Potion would likely come with significant variability in both side effects and Evolution Rate flexibility.
Of course, this was still far better than the Evolution Potions with aftereffects that ordinary players consumed.
Xu Huo had no immediate plans to leave King's City, which made the stranded players extremely uneasy and also caused some anxiety among the Allied Forces. Although his actions were, to a certain extent, beneficial to Zone 031, no one wanted an outsider to take charge of their home—especially since he forced the Allied Forces to abandon human experiments, which effectively weakened Zone 031's future.
Zone 031 already had a small population, and many people pinned their hopes on the children. While rushing growth might cause some losses, solving the immediate predicament was more urgent.
The stranded players were fighting for their personal rights, and the players who had become Archons would certainly not yield. To survive, they would strictly follow Xu Huo's demands.
But the Allied Forces were different. Their overall strength wasn't strong; once a generation of leaders stepped down, the next could quickly take over. Everyone's fate was closely tied to Zone 031, and no matter who held power, they would make decisions beneficial to the zone.
Therefore, they wanted Xu Huo to leave even more than the stranded players did. Once certain legal provisions were made public and took root in people's hearts, they would gain support from a portion of the population, making it much harder to abolish them later. Not everyone was willing to sacrifice the present for the future.
Of course, it wasn't just the children and ordinary people making sacrifices; the players of the Allied Forces were also among those being sacrificed.
The fusion of Zone 014 with the game was accelerating, but the boundary with the game hadn't been completely broken yet. Low-level Instance players didn't matter much; the real chaos would begin only when a large number of C-grade and above players arrived and cleared the instances.
Xu Huo would decide when to return based on the situation. Additionally, before going back, he had some preparatory work to do.
Previously, the Magician had said he would contact him again to send him a magic puppet, but until now, there had been no word from him.
Although he didn't know where the man had gone, Xu Huo still tried to contact him. Whether the Magician would reply was left to chance.
Sitting on the king's throne, he also began to sort through his commonly used items in advance.
"Do you want something to eat?" Lou Fei entered from the main hall's entrance.
Xu Huo had been locked in the king's treasury for about ten days. After coming out, he only ate some dry rations, and with so many matters to attend to, he hadn't had time to eat properly.
"Is there anything ready? Have them bring some over," Xu Huo said.
Soon, players carried in a table, and steaming hot food filled it completely. Without standing on ceremony, he sat down and began to eat.
Lou Fei stood opposite him, seeming to hesitate for a long time before finally asking, "Did you clear the instance?"
"Of course I cleared it," Xu Huo said. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be sitting here eating properly right now."
According to what was said before, if he couldn't clear it, he would destroy the twelve main cities.
Lou Fei was very puzzled. "Since you could find a teleportation device, why not just leave through the teleportation channel?"
"That was the last resort," Xu Huo said. "Clearing the instance is naturally the best option."
"But the stranded players in the main city were quite bold. Even with the cross-wormhole teleportation device placed inside the city, there were still people who wanted to kill me."
"Those people had already found a way out," Lou Fei said, knowing full well that many had risky methods of leaving, but the outside might not be better than here, so there was no need.
However, Xu Huo was too wealthy. If they seized his legacy, they could live like royalty in any stable district outside. What did it matter if Zone 031 was destroyed?
"You actually expected player factions to be reasonable?" Xu Huo said with slight surprise. If Xu Huo really had backers, did they think those people would investigate the truth and seek proper vengeance?
"Before you came out, the Archons of the twelve main cities had already fought among themselves," Lou Fei said. "Under the balance of power, no one could defeat the others, so they could only temporarily cease fire."
"So many fools exist," Xu Huo remarked.
Lou Fei laughed at that. "You might not understand this psychological state. Many stranded players are already showing symptoms of degeneration."
"People may have infinite fantasies about things they've never possessed, but for things they once had and lost... when they see others having what they don't, instead of striving for it, they want to make others lose it too."
"Moreover, once degeneration sets in, it's irreversible. Some people endure pain just wanting to see others in even greater pain."
"Is the degeneration rate among A-grade players that high?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow.
"A-grade players have typically been in the game for a very long time. Some people might not reach A-grade even after ten years. During that time, the amount of Evolution Potions they consume is incalculable. The more potions they drink, the higher the chance of degeneration," Lou Fei said.
"Other districts might not have such a concentration, but those of us who can remain stranded are probably not the most capable. We've been in the game world for far too long."
"After becoming players, human lifespans generally extend to around two hundred years. How could degeneration begin in just twenty or thirty years?" Xu Huo took a sip of water and looked up at the person across from him.
"We've been stranded for too long," Lou Fei said. "It's hard to exchange for useful potions from the game shop anymore."
She paused and added, "Evolution is like walking a path where you can only move forward and never stop. Once you stop, the body quickly develops problems."
"Someone like you probably can't understand the straits ordinary players face."
Xu Huo didn't comment further. Instead, he asked, "Do you want to know why I killed those people outside the main hall when I came out of the king's treasury?"
"I do have some doubts," Lou Fei said. If he was just venting anger, why not kill everyone instead of picking and choosing?
"Very simple—because they wanted to kill me," Xu Huo said. "That was determined by the trait."
Lou Fei first showed understanding, then a hint of strangeness. "Do you trust the trait that much? The game's judgment is probably based on changes in a person's emotions. Why don't you think it was just an instinctive reaction born from fear?"
"Trait judgment isn't necessarily accurate, but the players who were preparing to act were definitely in a life-or-death mindset," Xu Huo said, looking at her calmly. "The ones who died, and those of you who stood by and watched, all violated the agreement with me."