In the player town.
A bustling wave of construction was underway. Under the direction of Tao-chan and Bing Lin, fifty to sixty players were busy erecting houses.
A crisp, energetic, and youthful voice rang out over the noisy construction site, easily cutting through the surrounding clamor:
“Quick! Reinforce the pillar on the left! Hurry up with the roof on the right! Everyone, speed it up! Before the version update brings in five thousand newcomers in two days, we need to build as many houses as we can! Don't leave out a single one!”
The speaker had a clear voice. From a distance, one might mistake him for a cute young girl, but the other players all knew that the person standing before them was no girl, but a young boy.
As for his appearance—
He had waist-length golden hair styled at the top to resemble fox ears, though they weren't actual animal ears, just hair meticulously shaped into the outline of fox ears.
Any player who played Minecraft would immediately recognize where this character came from. That's right—it was the famous “Jiu Hu.”
Aside from lacking the fluffy fox tail and signature outfit, his appearance was practically identical to Jiu Hu's.
His game ID was Tao-chan.
“Hey, Guild Leader, why are we putting in all this effort?”
A player carrying a wooden plank grumbled as he walked past.
“When the newcomers arrive, can't we just let them build their own houses? The reward for grinding this main quest isn't even enough to give me half a level. This is pure coolie labor.”
Tao-chan rolled his eyes, placed his hands on his hips, and gave him a look that clearly said, You're way too naive.
“Idiot!”
“Think about it—where are the new players going to stay when they arrive? They can't just sleep on the grass, right?”
“By building the houses in advance, not only do we push the progress of the main quest for town development, but second—this is called an early-game investment for late-game passive income!”
The player looked completely baffled. “The new players will be penniless with barely any Merit Points. What's there to make off them?”
Flicking his long golden hair, Tao-chan took a few steps forward and began pacing like a CEO lecturing his executives:
“New players will indeed be poor initially, but they have something else—labor! With just the dozens of people in our guild, even if we worked for another month, we couldn't build houses for five thousand people. But once those five thousand arrive, we make them do the heavy lifting while we handle design and planning. The efficiency will tenfold instantly!”
“As for the houses—” He stopped in his tracks, turned around, and held up a finger. “The main quest never said we have to hand them over to new players for free.”
“We can play it like this: First, anyone who joins our Rose Heart guild gets free housing, but they must follow guild assignments and participate in daily construction and quests. Second, those who don't want to join? They can rent. If they can't afford the Merit Points, they can owe us and pay later once they earn them. Third, those who want to buy outright? We sell! Prices are negotiable.”
“And for those who think it's too expensive and still don't want to join—” Tao-chan spread his hands. “Then they can stay on a hotel basis. We charge them a dozen Merit Points a day for lodging. It's cheap enough that they won't mind, making it a steady stream of revenue.”
He paused, his eyes narrowing into twin crescents. “And think about it. There are five thousand slots this time, but what about next time? Or the time after that? When open beta hits and tens of thousands of players flood in... just how many Merit Points will that be?”
“Besides, think about it! The more houses we build, the more people live in them, and the more Merit Points we generate. When the guild pays weekly dividends, the more you'll receive! Then you can do whatever you want and buy whatever you like. With a steady stream of Merit Points rolling in, you won't have to worry about gear at all. Plus, this game has no top-up function! How else are players going to trade Merit Points? Through real cash, of course!”
By this point, his tone was brimming with the confidence of someone about to become the richest player in the game.
The surrounding players were left dumbfounded, some already counting on their fingers.
“Hiss... put that way, Guild Leader, it actually makes a lot of sense...”
“A constant stream of Merit Points, never having to worry about equipment... and since there's no top-up system, trading Merit Points between players can only be done through cash...”
“Ah, this... just how much money would that be?”
“Hiss... isn't that a bit too ruthless? People haven't even entered the game yet and they're already saddled with a mortgage?”
“Guild Leader, you really are a black-hearted merchant—no wait, you truly are a visionary!”
“From now on, we might as well just call you Boss Tao.”
“Guild Leader's vision is huge.”
Tao-chan's tail—though he didn't actually have one—was practically wagging with pride from all the praise. He raised his chin, looking utterly proud. “Naturally! Stick with me, and I guarantee you'll strut around this game like kings!”
After speaking, his gaze unconsciously drifted toward the direction of the Temple Square.
Over there, Bing Lin was leading another group of players in constructing something else—not a house, but a giant statue of the Goddess.
This task had been specifically assigned to Bing Lin by Lilith: to erect a statue of the Goddess in the center of the Temple Square to serve as the spawn and resurrection point for new players.
After all, having two hundred people squeeze into the temple for Class Advancement had already been a nightmare. If it were five thousand... just imagining the scene was as horrific as a morning peak-hour subway rush.
Right now, at the center of the Temple Square.
A group of players were hurriedly lifting a five-meter-tall divine statue into position.
“Blue Silver Entangle!”
“A bit more to the left! It's crooked, it's crooked!”
“If you shout 'crooked' one more time, you come lift it! Do you know how heavy this thing is?!”
“I'm calling out directions! Don't you have eyes?!”
“I do! But my eyes are blocked by a rock right now!”
“Then use your feelings! Feel it!”
“Feel my ass! You come try feeling it!”
“Alright, alright, stop arguing! Give it one more push! To the left—yeah—hold it steady—”
“We need more Mages to cast spells! Preferably those who know entangle spells!”
“Okay, okay!”
“Alright, stop!”
The players dusted off their hands and took two steps back. Everyone paused, looking up at the towering, holy statue before them, their faces brimming with accomplishment.
Bing Lin nodded softly, confirming the project had wrapped up perfectly. She turned and stepped into the Temple of Light, preparing to report the completion to Lilith and claim her exclusive reward.
Before long, clad in a pure white gown, Lilith slowly walked out of the temple.
A crowd of players instantly swarmed around her, their faces full of anticipation as they scrambled to take credit:
“Miss Lilith! We finished the quest! The statue is one hundred percent complete!”
“Take a look! Absolutely flawless craftsmanship!”
Looking at the bright-eyed God-Chosen Ones before her, Lilith couldn't help but curl her lips into a smile.
She still remembered when she first met them—their bizarre speech and strange behavior had left her utterly lost. They spoke erratically and acted recklessly, lacking even a shred of the solemnity expected of legendary heroes.
Yet, after spending nearly a month with them, she realized that these God-Chosen Ones were actually very pure-hearted without any ill intent. When it came to work, their efficiency was staggering, and their enthusiasm was beyond her comprehension—they were just simple construction tasks, so why did every single one of them act like they had struck gold?
“Thank you, God-Chosen Ones,” Lilith said sincerely, gently lifting her skirt to offer a polite bow.
The next moment, a crisp system notification sounded simultaneously in the ears of all players present:
[Ding—]
[Quest "Build Goddess Statue" completed]
[EXP +2000]
[Merit Points +200]
“Yay! Quest complete!”
“Miss Lilith! Next time there's a quest like this, make sure to come to me first! I'm at your beck and call!”
“Me too! Me too! I won't even charge overtime!”
“What the heck is overtime pay?! Do you think this is a day job?!”
“Either way, just call me if there's a quest!”
The players vied to speak all at once, their enthusiasm overflowing.
Looking at their eager faces, Lilith nodded seriously, even if she couldn't quite fathom where this fiery enthusiasm stemmed from.
“Alright, I will keep that in mind.”
With that, she turned and walked toward the newly erected statue.
The five-meter-tall angel statue stood quietly in the center of the square, bathed in the afternoon sunlight. As she drew near, a faint warmth seemed to ripple across its stone surface.
Lilith reached out her fair, slender right hand and gently touched the pedestal of the statue.
The pure power belonging to an angel flowed from her palm, slowly infusing into the entire statue.
Hum—
Faint ripples of holy light expanded outward as the entire statue lit up with a soft golden-white glow, its carved patterns shimmering brilliantly.
A moment later.
The divine statue was fully activated.
A brand-new player spawn point and resurrection point were officially established.
Rate on N.U.
