r18novel Chapter 1 Covering the Sky? Start—Wait, where's the game interface?
Chapter 1 Covering the Sky? Start—Wait, where's the game interface?
[The first player in the game "Covering the Sky" to become a Great Emperor?]
[Hilarious! He just stole the path of the later Wenchang Emperor and spent two lifetimes and thirteen thousand years grinding his way up, right? I could have done it too!]
[Is it really that powerful to achieve the Great Perfection of the Mixed-Blood Holy Body and attain Dao through an unconventional method while dragging along a Dark Supreme? It's as weak as it gets!]
[Yeah, they shamelessly relied on the Empress Dowager's help to get ahead!]
……
Li Xian, sitting at his computer desk, remained calm as he watched the barrage of sarcastic and disdainful comments in the video.
"Covering the Sky" is a next-generation full-sensory simulation game developed by "Perfect World" over 19 years. It is the first truly meaningful "second world" in human history. When you dive in, you become a person in that world, and your sense of touch, pain, and emotions are all real.
On its first day of launch, 137 mainstream media outlets across the country listed it as "the infrastructure for digital survival".
Li Xian used this game to create more than a dozen high-level completion materials, and quickly became a rising star in the gaming world.
For example, what's playing right now is the hidden item he luckily got from creating a blind box account—the first-generation divine body at the start.
He attained enlightenment in the most impossible and arduous environment during the final stage of the mythology after the Emperor's reign, relying on the power of faith.
He then used the power of the Nine Apertures Saint Spirit to reincarnate in his third life and take the top spot in the game.
As for the story of the Mixed-Blood Holy Body, it's in the top three in terms of popularity, but in Li Xian's heart, it's definitely number one.
After all, it was amazing that the first Holy Body married the Western Queen Mother.
Cao Cao was overjoyed.
"What? The Western Queen Mother's Dark Turmoil 9-0 Godlike, Carry Game, and you Li Xian's rating is 2.9, you're just a pure AFK carry dog."
To this, Li Xian could only say—
Why are you so concerned about data?
Does this mean the streamer's efforts will be wasted on Xiaoming Sword?
Did I lead a team to run the Starry Sky Ancient Road?
Did you teach the Queen Mother of the West how to become invincible in my bed?
There's also the example of Wenchang Dadi's path to enlightenment; without the elixir of immortality, it's very difficult to live a second life on your own, okay?
And you've been using tens of thousands of years to give a dog the path to enlightenment?
Summon the Black Emperor!
"Complaints aside, the tips I've earned are pretty good. If I save up a bit more, I can buy a house in Southern Metropolis Daily."
Li Xian stroked his chin and muttered to himself.
His main source of income is not actually tips, but rather making Inception DVDs.
"Dream Inception" is industry slang; its formal name is Neural Flow Perception Storage Film—it replays someone else's neural traces in your brain, essentially stealing someone else's life experience.
These videos are very expensive, and most bosses order them by privately messaging the streamers.
However, those who sought out Li Xian all asked for a start with the Dao of Desire.
Just outrageous!
What respectable person would indulge in worldly desires?
Suddenly, the live stream assistant sent a message—
After a long and heated online battle, the farce finally ended with the owner of "Wolong Fengchu" offering a reward of 10 million RMB.
The requirements are simple: three.
First, you must quickly reach the Great Emperor level within 500 years.
Second, one must fight to eliminate a Dark Supreme amidst the turmoil on the path to immortality in the Big Dipper.
Third, one must start with an ordinary physique; even a little bit of divine or holy blood won't do.
"Persisting in five hundred years—perhaps the Desolate Heavenly Emperor could accomplish that?"
"As for cultivating for two hundred years, is it really necessary to fight the Dark Supreme or even a sublimated Ancient Emperor?"
"Still a mortal start, a player with an absolute need for special resources, and a late-game hero?"
"This is completely out of line!"
Li Xian stared at the screen and tapped her fingers three times on the table.
"However, five hundred years..."
"A version set more than nine thousand years after the death of the Azure Emperor, where you can start by riding on the coattails of the main characters; the Golden Age aligns perfectly with the ruthless person's magic; and the resources of the Heavenly Mandate Holy Body are incredibly abundant..."
In terms of time, it's just right.
There was nothing I could do; the boss was giving me too much.
"A five-hundred-year-old speedrunning emperor? That's got potential."
After silently typing the three words 'need extra money'.
Li Xian did a Thomas Flair, lay down in the latest generation game pod that the official team had sent him, and slammed the lid shut.
Cover the Sky! Activate!
……
Perfect World Headquarters.
Upon receiving an anomalous data report, the observer's expression changed drastically, and without hesitation, he immediately reported it to his superiors.
"Mr. Chu, something terrible has happened! A player has died inside the game pod."
"What happened?"
"That's the big streamer we're closely monitoring, Li Xian. The one who's topped the game rankings multiple times."
The observer swallowed hard and spoke rapidly:
"In the 17.0.1 Kowloon Coffin Closed Beta, for players with the special condition of 'Depersonalization Disorder,' the Deep Dive cap has been increased from 90% to 90.85%..."
"While this level of depth might lead one astray into the metaverse's black hole and the digitization of underlying rules, we've implemented a safety circuit breaker mechanism..."
"But the circuit breaker in Li Xian's cabin did not trigger."
"Moreover, the gaming pod spontaneously combusted; it only took 11.4 seconds from the detection of the anomaly to the explosion."
The gaming pod spontaneously combusted?
If a player dies, can the new version still be launched normally?
President Chu slumped into his chair.
"Who made this feature?! The International Convention on Virtual Gaming clearly stipulates that the immersion level should not exceed 90%, so why add something like this?!"
"It's Mr. Ye, who was recently diagnosed with a mental disorder. He said that people like him are chosen by God and should be given special care..."
President Chu's eyes widened, his anger rising:
"That kid who faked his degree and chugs coconut juice at parties instead of drinking alcohol! Ye Hao~"
……
Inside the game pod.
Li Xian felt that everything in front of her became very bright, as if boundless light was emerging, and she felt a warm sensation somewhere.
However, the area in front of the grave is in good condition.
It doesn't affect his ability to create a character; he still has basic professional qualities as a streamer.
"Hehe, Boss, I'm definitely taking your bounty~ My beloved little house, come and pamper you!"
With that in mind, Li Xian no longer hesitated and directly clicked the button to enter the game interface.
Is it a speedrun?
It has to be fast!
The next second, he felt himself melting.
Sight, hearing, and touch disappeared one after another, and the whole world turned into a white expanse.
……
Cold, shivering...
I opened my eyes groggily, and all I could see was darkness.
There were many people around me, and a sense of helplessness, panic, and despair permeated the air.
"This... should be inside the giant bronze coffin."
"Looking at this group, they seem to be the main characters?"
Li Xian gradually adapted and felt very relaxed.
There was no danger inside the bronze coffin, after all, it was protected by a Heavenly Emperor-level figure, so the journey was smooth sailing.
He straightened up, coldly observing the chaos around him, and secretly explored the changes in the new version.
——Attribute diagram!
no response.
——Main Menu!
no response.
—Game settings!
Still no response.
Li Xian called out several times in his mind, but no interface appeared.
He couldn't help but click his tongue.
But then I thought about it and it wasn't surprising—the touch of my hand was so delicate, I could clearly feel the metallic particles on the bronze coffin wall, the sweet, fishy smell in the air, and even the heat of the person next to me breathing on my face.
In previous versions, even with 90% depth diving, pain perception had a decay factor, so you wouldn't feel truly hungry, and the environmental smells wouldn't be reproduced to this extent.
"This brand-new version is incredibly immersive."
"It's like it truly blots out the sky!"
"If I were to erase my memories of my original world now, I'm afraid I would really believe I've traveled to another world."
"According to the unspoken rules of filming Inception, it must be done in one continuous shot. Moreover, with over 90% of the time spent in deep immersion mode, even if I spent tens of thousands of years in the world of Shrouding the Heavens, it would probably only take about ten days in reality."
"After you've attained enlightenment, just silently say 'Exit the game.'"
"Now—speedrun, speedrun like crazy!"
With that in mind, Li Xian no longer hesitated.
Annoyed by the surrounding noise, he shouted impatiently:
"jump over!"