Chapter 22
Why is it only her? Is it because she is the game’s producer? Why did "Wanjie" appear on the Star Network? What is it that can influence reality...
“Ding dong!”
The sudden sound jolted Ye Bai back to reality. It was the alarm she had set to prevent herself from getting lost in the vast sea of information on the Star Network and missing her scheduled online time.
After all, her territory was in the early stages of development, and she needed to prepare for upgrading to a level 1 village. Every moment counted. Ye Bai had made it a habit to log in at the crack of dawn each day to assign tasks to her villagers.
She shook her head, as if doused with cold water, and her mind cleared once more.
Another secret she couldn’t afford to reveal had surfaced. The matter of her identity still posed a risk. Regardless of the reasons, the most important thing for her right now was singular—
That was to leverage the unique characteristics of "Wanjie" to truly possess the power that matched her identity as ‘Bai Ye,’ allowing her to live freely in this era.
...
Another day dawned in the game, and under the sunlight, Ye Bai surveyed the entire state of her territory through the Tree of Creation.
Now, the list of buildings in her territory no longer featured just a lonely compost factory; it had expanded to include several other structures.
Residential Houses X12, Blacksmith Shop X1, Warehouse X1, Cellar X1, Wells X2
These buildings were, of course, not clustered together but were strategically divided into different zones by Ye Bai’s careful road planning.
Roads also had levels: dirt roads, cobblestone paths, slate roads... Currently, Ye Bai was using the dirt road, which required no resources other than labor and tools. Walking on a dirt road increased basic movement speed by 5% compared to traversing the bare ground.
The entire territory was centered around the Tree of Creation, with the dirt roads intersecting in a cross shape, dividing the area into four major zones.
First was the residential area, located in the southeastern part of the territory. Inside, four dirt roads crisscrossed to form a ‘井’ (well) shape, dividing it into eight large blocks and a central area. The residential houses were built around the edges of these eight blocks, each capable of accommodating three houses, forming a standard 3x3 small plot combination.
Ye Bai constructed a total of eight residential houses in this 3x3 layout along the roads, leaving the central block, which was not connected to any road, as an empty space for a future small garden or sculpture.
This arrangement was not only for aesthetic planning but also because, once the territory level increased, the villagers would have demands for their living environment. It was essential to reserve space for gardens and sculptures to enhance the area’s attractiveness.
The largest block at the center of the ‘井’ shape was reserved for functional buildings serving the residents, such as a Market, Herbalist’s Shop, and Bathhouse. For now, only a well had been dug to meet the residents' water needs.
Corresponding to the residential area, the southwestern zone was designated as the future industrial area. A blacksmith shop had already been built, and along the central road, there was a warehouse to facilitate the turnover of goods within the territory.
The northwestern part of the territory was still empty, destined to become the military zone. Further out was the location of the energy crystal mine, connected to the industrial and military zones by the central road, ensuring that the mine could be protected while also providing materials to the industrial area.
Finally, the northeastern zone was designated for agriculture, featuring fields where the first batch of crops had been planted, along with the first building, the compost factory.
The compost factory would significantly impact environmental attractiveness. The best planning strategy was to place it, as Ye Bai did, far from the residential area but close to the farmland.
As for the cellar for storing grain, it was built near the residential area, close to the central ‘cross’ road, similar to the warehouse.
Just as Ye Bai was admiring her flourishing territory, a long-awaited server-wide announcement suddenly appeared.
[Server Announcement]: “Congratulations to the player ‘Zeta’ from the Xianying District, Ruìlán Star, for becoming the second lord in the entire server!”
In that moment, it was as if the universe had erupted once more, reminiscent of the last announcement when Bai Ye became a lord. Players across the cosmos were once again stirred into a frenzy.
This was the first player to assume the role of lord since the official decoding of the players’ passwords!
Instantly, the Star Network was ablaze with discussions.
Ye Bai extracted the key information: Xianying District, Ruìlán Star... Without a doubt, Zeta was clearly a powerful figure from the cosmic-level civilization of the Ruìlán Empire, and judging by the timing, they must have been a lord who started in the wilderness.
Images of the Ruìlán Empire flashed through Ye Bai’s mind, and she quickly grasped the reason.
“No wonder they are a civilization of Gestalt consciousness…”
The Ruìlán Empire, having emerged as one of the two cosmic-level civilizations in the form of a dictatorship, was capable of standing against the Kain Federation, composed of oligarchs and great scientists, without relying on the traditional imperial system of Ye Bai’s era.
The Ruìlán people are a rare group among carbon-based life forms, possessing the unique ability of memory sharing. They operate under a highly efficient Gestalt consciousness system, which, unlike hive minds, has clear hierarchical divisions. The cognitive abilities of lower levels are transparent to those above them, resembling a pyramid structure where individuals become increasingly powerful as they ascend.
At the very top is the emperor of the Ruìlán Empire, who embodies the collective knowledge and abilities of the entire race and determines the direction of civilization’s development.
In a hive mind, one is all; in Gestalt consciousness, all is one.
This is a civilization where rebellion and conspiracy are impossible. An emperor cannot make decisions that would be deemed wrong by their kin, as their will is a summation of the collective will of the people.
The ideologies of ‘Empire’ and ‘Federation’ are the two main currents in the universe, influencing many civilizations. The Qilong Empire and the Panxing Federation of the New Humanity are examples of civilizations still exploring their paths, while the Ruìlán Empire and the Kain Federation have reached their complete forms.
Thanks to Gestalt consciousness, the Ruìlán Empire’s efficiency in accumulating experience is exponentially higher than that of other civilizations. Players born in the wilderness can gather all their experiences from entering dungeons, with every detail meticulously compiled into a single individual. Thus, even with a sparse start in the wilderness, this civilization managed to devise a strategy to clear dungeons within just ten days.
At this moment of universal astonishment, the protagonist of the event, ‘Zeta,’ had already chosen a resource-rich location based on her knowledge and experience, hastily establishing the territory of ‘Ruìlán Village.’
Zeta was one of the candidates for the next emperor of the Ruìlán Empire.
In a typical imperial system, a candidate for emperor gaining such an advantage would likely be excitedly plotting how to seize the opportunity to become the next emperor.
However, as a Ruìlán, Zeta did not feel that way. Whether or not she became emperor did not affect her ability to realize her life’s value as a Ruìlán. If it was determined that her becoming emperor would be most beneficial for her people, she would ascend the throne without hesitation; conversely, she could just as easily relinquish the position.
What was frightening was that all candidates for the Ruìlán Empire’s throne shared the same awareness as Zeta.
Zeta reached out to touch the Tree of Creation, opening the territory management page and scanning through the Development Direction and Development Strategy sections.
In the initial state, there were three points of productivity and three strategy slots available, indicating that Zeta was not in a standard dungeon but in an elite-level dungeon, just one step below nightmare difficulty.
Suddenly, a flash of light crossed Zeta’s azure eyes.
“Please develop your territory first. There are 157 kin within two hundred kilometers of you, and they will rush to your aid immediately after changing jobs…”
Still within the game, Zeta received a message from her kin. Not only that, but she could also vaguely sense the direction of these kin, something no other civilization in Wanjie could currently achieve.
Because all Ruìlán who reached level 5 received the same talent—Level 5 Talent: Telepathy!
...
Ye Bai quickly snapped back to reality from the shock, her first thought being the risk of the location of Bai Ye Village being leaked. She concluded that, for now, it should still be safe.
The game territories in Wanjie were vast beyond imagination, and the influx of so many players from across the universe showed no signs of overcrowding.
From the previous server announcement regarding the ‘Galaxy District, Blue Star,’ it seemed that due to the unique nature of the Star Network, this Wanjie had effectively ‘merged’ the entire universe. Given this situation, players registered in the same star system would likely encounter each other more frequently.
The solar system primarily consisted of interstellar travelers, so the number of players registered in Wanjie from here should not be too high. Even if the number of players registering in the solar system increased after Bai Ye drew the universe’s attention, Ye Bai, starting in the wilderness, would not encounter any towns within a thirty-kilometer radius, let alone other players who also began in the wilderness.
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