Chapter 184: Rising New Star

Rising Tide would certainly not arbitrarily adjust the game difficulty for closed beta testers, as poor experiences caused by such arbitrary changes could easily lead to a flood of negative reviews for the game.

However, it was different for those contracted streamers. Bound by their contracts, the gaming experience was secondary, while promotion was the top priority.

Lightning Studio had never expected that someone could directly clear a Hell-level Instance.

Their original plan was to let these streamers experience the game’s difficulty first, and then release a Hell difficulty challenge mode to the general public. But they never imagined that before the challenge even began, someone had already cleared the beginner village.

On a golden planet.

Lightning Studio, using an entire planet as its base, was a move that could be described as Heaven-Reaching.

And within the Galactic Domain, Myriad Realms Game Company had countless such game studios, their production capacity absolutely monstrous.

In a refined and bright office, a creature of bizarre appearance scurried over to a female species.

“Director, the Hell-level beginner village has been cleared ahead of schedule. This… should we continue with our subsequent challenge plan?”

The female creature was tall and slender, her proper attire giving off an aura of authority. She slowly tapped her fingers on the crystal desktop, pondering for a long time before speaking thoughtfully:

“Since the beginner village has already been cleared, this challenge no longer has a reason to exist. However…”

“However what?”

The subordinate looked up, asking in confusion.

The female creature did not respond immediately but instead raised her eyes to look at the person before her: “Go and bring me the information on the person who cleared the Hell-level beginner village.”

“Yes!”

After the subordinate left, she rubbed her temples with a complicated expression, unable to understand why someone could still break through even after setting the Punisher at the Eighth Rank.

“Hah, some people said back then that the Eighth Rank was too difficult, that no one could possibly succeed in the challenge. And now, before the challenge even started, they’ve been proven wrong.”

Thinking of this, she felt somewhat amused.

But the shock in her heart was indeed overwhelming.

“The closed beta qualification is limited to those under forty years old. Using Lava Crystals to suppress the Punisher’s Realm to the Peak of the Seventh Rank, a Peak Seventh Rank under forty facing the Punisher is reasonable.”

“But…”

“I specifically instructed those below to find young Prodigies in their early twenties as closed beta testers. Surely no one would clear the Instance by pushing the age limit?”

After a few minutes of contemplation, her subordinate quickly printed the information and respectfully presented it to her with both hands.

“Director, please take a look.”

“Mm, you may leave for now.”

Holding the document between two fingers, her eyes immediately fell upon the two characters: Jiang Yan.

Unfamiliar.

Name: Jiang Yan

Age: 19

Home Planet: Blue Star

Current Residence: Tianyuan Star

Currently signed a short-term contract with Myriad Realms Game Company.

“Hiss—”

“Only nineteen years old!”

She exclaimed softly. Jiang Yan’s age was completely different from the scenario she had imagined of someone clearing the Instance by pushing the age limit.

Jiang Yan at nineteen certainly did not rely on the accumulation of years.

She speculated it must be due to Talent.

“Tsk tsk tsk, truly a heaven-sent genius.”

The Director’s gaze was profound, her eyes resting on the last line.

“He’s already signed a contract? Then the challenge can indeed be canceled. Making some moves around him would achieve the same effect.”

“Perhaps, this is an opportunity!”

A true powerhouse should not only focus on immediate gains and losses, but also know how to utilize everything available to achieve the ultimate goal.

Short-sightedness and superficiality are significant obstacles to success.

Although the challenge event went bankrupt, a rising new star emerged.

…

“My stomach hurts a bit, I’m slipping away first.”

Ignoring the bullet comments trying to stop him, Jiang Yan directly exited the live stream.

Waking up from the Game Capsule, the sky was already bright.

At this moment, Jiang Yan was unaware that he had ruined someone else’s Challenge Match. With an expectant look, he prepared to open the rewards obtained from the game guide.

“Zhuozhuo,” which he got from Mo Yu, was now floating in front of him.

Its round head was quite endearing, and Jiang Yan couldn’t resist tapping on its skull.

Bong bong!

A crisp and pleasant sound.

“Zhuozhuo, show me my account.”

Soon, Zhuozhuo’s eyes flashed, and a Light Screen projected out, displaying clear data.

The ten Cloud Core Coins from the signing fee made up the bulk, while the rest came from Jiang Yan’s live stream revenue share.

What he didn’t expect was that he could also earn commissions when others reserved the game through his live stream, and the amount was quite substantial—a full 600 Star Core Coins, equivalent to six million Galactic Coins.

Jiang Yan thought about it; the number of viewers in his live stream room was indeed quite high at the time, especially after he killed the Punisher, when the viewership multiplied several times over. The number of reservations likely surged during that period.

However, six million was merely a drop in the ocean compared to the massive population base.

What Jiang Yan truly cared about was that mysterious grand prize package.

[Hell-Level Guide Gift Pack]

“You will receive a Personal Flyer with the ability to [Pierce Holes].”

“Delivery within three days. Please correctly fill in your personal address (or location).”

“What does ‘Personal Flyer’ and ‘[Pierce Holes]‘ mean?” Jiang Yan asked Zhuozhuo.

Living up to its reputation as a super-intelligence, Zhuozhuo quickly provided an answer.

“[Pierce Holes] allows the flyer to traverse spatial barriers, exceeding the speed of light to travel rapidly through the Universe.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yan was greatly delighted. He never expected that merely completing a guide for a newbie village could yield such an incredible treasure. Once he possessed it, wouldn’t he be able to travel freely through the Universe in the future?

At that moment, however, Zhuozhuo poured cold water on his excitement.

“The Personal Flyer has relatively weak defensive capabilities and average speed. If encountered by interstellar pirates, the probability of escape is 20%. Please do not rashly navigate the Universe before reaching the Eighth Rank in strength.”

Jiang Yan’s enthusiasm was dampened. Stroking his chin, he murmured, “It seems that only by reaching the Eighth Rank can one preliminarily possess the ability for interstellar travel. Otherwise, it’s all just empty talk.”

Although encountering pirates wasn’t guaranteed, if it did happen, Jiang Yan’s current strength would make it difficult to handle.

“Zhuozhuo, open the Myriad Realms Market.”

The Light Screen transformed, displaying a dazzling array of products.

“My Spirit Platform has reached the Cave Heaven Realm, and I’m currently lacking a Spiritual Power attack technique.”

“And… I also don’t know what Martial Skill Grades are available in the Myriad Realms Market.”

“Zhuozhuo, first help me filter spiritual-type Martial Skills by quality, from high to low.”

The Light Screen changed, with rows of spiritual-type Martial Skills neatly arranged.

The Martial Skill names, prices, grades, and descriptions were clearly listed.

Unlike Blue Star, the Martial Skill classification here adopted a simple First to Ninth Rank system, with intensity increasing from low to high.

At the top of the list was a Tenth Rank spiritual-type Martial Skill called “Uneven Xuan Sea.”

Its spiritual attacks were grand and sweeping, but the consumption was immense.

As for the price…

Jiang Yan’s mouth twitched:

“One, two, three, four, five, six…”

The dozen or so zeros that followed made Jiang Yan realize just how insignificant his signing fee was.

“Zhuozhuo, convert everything into Cloud Core Coins. I don’t want to see so many zeros!”

Jiang Yan said firmly.

The numbers shifted, and the price column looked much more reasonable now.

Though still unaffordable.

“Forget it, Zhuozhuo, limit the price to within ten Cloud Core Coins.”

Finally, Jiang Yan saw a spiritual Martial Skill in the marketplace that he could actually afford.

Annihilating Cloud Slash

Description: Split Spiritual Power into segments of intangible substance, then propel them outward by activating the Spirit Platform.

Note: This Martial Skill places an extremely high burden on the Spirit Platform and is not recommended for repeated use within a short period.