Chapter 728: Where’s the Loading Bar?
Old Song logged out of the game pod and stormed off to the group chat to demand an explanation.
“Fuckin’ hell, what kind of crappy developer is this! I just started playing, and it cuts off right after the beginning! When the hell can I buy it!” Old Song typed angrily.
Someone replied: “Didn’t they say it’s just a trial version? The official release is next week. If you can’t wait, Old Song, why not just head to the experience store? 2333”
Old Song asked: “Where’s the experience store?”
That person answered: “In the capital. Old Song, aren’t you in Tianjin City? Just take the high-speed rail, easy peasy!”
Old Song: “Hmph, it’s not out of the question…”
Another group member quickly tried to dissuade him: “No, don’t go, don’t go. Old Song, you don’t know this, but every time a new game trial starts, Thunder Game’s experience store is completely packed. People start lining up from seven in the morning. If you go now, you won’t even get a whiff of playing.”
Old Song: “…”
He had just opened the app to book a ticket, but hearing that he wouldn’t get to play even if he went, he awkwardly closed it.
Someone teased: “What’s up, Old Song? Weren’t you reluctant at first? Now you can’t wait to play?”
Old Song: “Hmph, the beginning was pretty good. Couldn’t find any major flaws. But to judge it properly, I’d need to finish the whole game to give a review. A good start doesn’t guarantee a good ending. I’m taking a serious and responsible attitude to conduct a comprehensive evaluation and experience of the game…”
The group chat flooded with 2333 emojis, instantly filling the air with a cheerful atmosphere.
…
At the experience store.
In Lin Xue’s field of vision, young Nathan’s face on the back of the motorcycle gradually morphed into adult Nathan’s face, and the surrounding scenes shifted in her memory.
This was Nathan’s youth. No crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes, faint stubble, a bruise under his right eye, but full of youthful vigor.
“Whoa, how’d he go downhill! Uh, cough, cough, not downhill, just turned into a handsome uncle.” Lin Xue complained.
A heavy punch slammed into Nathan’s face, knocking him backward until he fell against a chair.
This was a prison in Central America. Surrounded by a crowd of inmates, Nathan was brawling with a muscular, bald prisoner.
Next came a tutorial on close-quarters combat, including punching, dodging, and breaking free from grapples.
The controls themselves weren’t hard at all—just timing your dodges or counterattacks. Even with Lin Xue’s reflexes, it was manageable, especially since she’d chosen Explorer Mode, which was basically difficulty-free, just for the story.
But Nathan’s moves were numerous. For punching and breaking free, there were at least several different animations. Lin Xue couldn’t figure out exactly how many, but it made the combat feel more realistic, like adapting to each move.
The system determined the most suitable fighting style based on the positions and stances of both fighters, making the whole combat system feel more authentic.
In first-person view, every punch from the opponent seemed to land on her own face, and the slight vibration on her face made Lin Xue feel a phantom pain.
After a flurry of varied fighting, the prison warden, Vargas, grabbed Nathan’s right fist and pulled him away.
Lin Xue was dumbfounded: “Hey, what gives! He was beating the crap out of me just now, and you didn’t stop him! The moment I start hitting him, you pull me away! You’re playing favorites, you bald bastard! So unfair! I was getting pummeled on the ground for eight hours, and you didn’t come over!”
The bullet comments were in hysterics: “Hahahahaha, Ah Xue looks so cute when she’s angry!”
“Ah Xue’s mind blown by the referee playing favorites!”
“Like a cat of a maiden! WRSNDM”
“Friendly reminder, the trial version ended before this, so I’m watching the livestream. The graphics quality difference is huge, sucks!”
“After getting used to the pod’s graphics, looking at a computer screen is garbage. Chen Mo, you cliffhanger bastard, hurry up and release the rest!”
After being locked in solitary confinement for who knows how long, Vargas brought Nathan out and, with ill intent, told the other guards he was going to “do something exciting.” The guards laughed and said, “Have fun,” filling the air with a gay vibe.
But at the end of that path, the plot took a sudden twist.
Listening to Nathan and Vargas’s conversation, Lin Xue was baffled.
“So… these two are in cahoots? They came here for treasure?”
“Uh, so this time it really is about finding Henry Every’s treasure, a pirate who pulled off the biggest heist in history and got away with it… Over four hundred million dollars in gold and jewels!”
“‘I am imprisoned in the highest cell of the Spaniards. I hope one day you will find a way into this hellish place, bear my cross, and uncover the riches of this paradise.’ Tsk, that’s some fancy wording, classy!”
Next came a more complex climbing sequence. This time, Nathan had his own grappling hook, and it incorporated pushing boxes, swinging on the hook, and releasing the hook mid-slide. Lin Xue occasionally let out a few screams.
Especially when swinging on the hook, Nathan was suspended in midair. Lin Xue felt like she was on a roller coaster, needing to jump at the exact right moment at the end to grab the wall ahead.
There were also a few completely unexpected scripted collapses, like a wooden scaffold on the wall giving way, which scared Lin Xue badly.
“Damn, Nathan, you’ve got some serious luck. The last guy who played it this risky probably has grave grass three meters tall. I bet even the monkeys on Flower-Fruit Mountain aren’t as crazy as you.”
Although the whole scene was a spiral upward structure, Lin Xue didn’t get lost. The indentations, protrusions, and special features on the walls served as excellent guides. What seemed like a very open environment was actually a linear path. Occasional stuck points had corresponding hints to ensure players didn’t waste time on wrong routes.
Moreover, when Nathan could reach a climbable spot, he would extend his arm in midair. All the player had to do was jump when his arm was out, which greatly reduced the difficulty.
Finally, they reached Bunis’s cell, entering the game’s first puzzle.
Along the way, Nathan had also found some old letters, like the guard’s records and Bunis’s letter to his son.
Since it was the first puzzle, it wasn’t hard. Folding the letters revealed the symbols for Sagittarius and Scorpio. Then, based on the numbers corresponding to the symbols on the wall—XII—they opened a stone and obtained a cross.
“Wow, the touch feels so real! Fellow stream viewers, you should experience this too. It really feels like holding a cross.”
Lin Xue was pleasantly surprised. As she turned the cross over, her hand felt different textures. It was a fun sensation, much more refined than previous VR games.
After examining it for a while without finding anything special, Lin Xue had Nathan put the cross away and prepared to head back.
It took a lot of effort to push open the cell door. This time, they were returning, but Nathan took a different route.
As she climbed, Lin Xue wondered: “This game is so awesome, but where’s the loading bar? From the sea, to the orphanage, to the prison—there’s been no loading screen the whole time?”
Genius remembers this site address in one second: