Chapter 10

Although most players had already sensed that something was off, there were still a few stubbornly unwilling to believe it. Half an hour later, in the game’s group chat—

"@Lamb, 'conscience game'? Free to play? Do you even hear yourself?!"

"@Lamb, you really deserve to suffer!"

"I was wrong, I truly was. I should've left as soon as the rest of you did."

"Three hundred after three hundred, and now look, not even pretending anymore—straight up asking me to pay two thousand for a gift pack!" wailed someone who’d already spent several thousand.

"Two thousand! Why don’t they just rob me?"

"They could’ve just taken my money, and yet they still gave me a gift pack. I’m at my wit’s end here."

That person kept spamming the chat with their complaints.

"Two thousand?!" Those who’d stopped recharging were startled and asked, curious:

"So, did you pay it?"

"......" A string of ellipses was all that came.

"He said if I paid, I’d jump a hundred levels instantly and get a Kirin mount too."

"Do you know what a Kirin is? That super cool, flying mount!" He posted several screenshots—there he was, shining like a walking lightbulb, flying on a Kirin.

Now it was everyone else’s turn to fall silent.

"I just couldn’t resist, and it’s all because of @Lamb, that jerk." Feeling somewhat guilty, he shifted the blame to Gao Yang.

"This guy must be a shill! Admin, kick him out!"

"I can’t take this anymore, I’m making a video to rant about it!" Encouraged by the first complainer, another player joined in the outcry.

"Which company made this? I’m blacklisting them."

"Let me check... Dreambuilders Studio? What kind of dreams are they building, dreams of scamming players?"

More and more people joined the discussion.

"Does this studio have an official account? I need to go vent!"

"[Link], let’s go together!"

The few players who’d spent four figures banded together and descended on Dreambuilders Studio’s official page—only to fall silent.

The official social media account looked even more pathetic than a personal one: barely more than a dozen fans, fewer than ten posts in total, the latest being today’s server opening announcement, and not a single comment under any post.

If it weren’t for the verified badge, they would have doubted they’d found the right place.

"This official account... is so pitiful," someone actually felt a pang of sympathy.

"Snap out of it! Think of all the money you’ve sunk in—aren’t you the pitiful one?"

"Well, to be honest... it did feel pretty great when I was paying."

...

...

Damn it, can’t argue with that!

But still, they were raging!

Those still fuming left the traitorous turncoat behind and banded together to vent under the official posts.

"If you want to level up, you have to pay for gear, pay to train pets. Without spending, you can’t gain even a single level a day. 'Conscience'? My heart’s gone cold."

"Heartless game, no doubt. Give me my money back!"

"[Screenshot of recharge]—over five thousand, and still not max level. For a 'free' game, don’t you feel any shame?!"

But whether they spammed the comments or flooded private messages, all they ever got was an automatic reply: "Got it QAQ, customer service will pass on your feedback~ Please be patient~"

Patient, my foot!

Getting no response, it was like punching a pillow—their anger could find no outlet, so they returned to the group to vent all over again.

A perfectly good gaming group had turned into a forum for public outrage.

"I actually think it’s pretty good. It really is satisfying—mowing down monsters like grass, got several celestial beasts, and full top-tier gear," someone named "Dreamlike Life" finally couldn’t hold back and spoke up for Gao Yang.

This player wasn’t particularly skilled and usually went unnoticed.

"Oh? So impressive? What level are you?" one of the more vocal critics asked sarcastically.

"Max level already, and it was pretty fast. How about you guys?" Dreamlike Life replied honestly.

That set off a storm.

"Max level???"

"I’ve spent over five thousand and I’m just over two hundred. How can anyone be max level?"

"Yeah, I’m max too—level fifty is the cap, per my own rule."

"Screenshot or it didn’t happen!"

Faced with shock and skepticism, Dreamlike Life quickly posted a screenshot of their equipment tab.

Setting aside all the dazzling gear effects, that LV999 at the top was proof enough.

"May I ask, what VIP level are you?" someone typed with trembling hands.

"Didn’t pay much attention, let me check... VIP10, why?" Dreamlike Life posted another screenshot.

Behind their rainbow-glowing name was a fiery V—exclusive to max-level VIPs.

"Nothing, nothing... By the way, do you need a sidekick?" The group’s tone instantly shifted from flaming the game to worshipping the pro.

"Boss, carry me!"

"Boss, which server are you on? Let’s play together!"

"Boss, let me stand next to you for a screenshot!"

"Great pic, I’m stealing it!"

Others were even more direct, sending friend requests immediately.

"I’m on East China Server Six, you’re welcome to join my guild," Dreamlike Life, never the center of attention before, was a little flustered but extended the invitation.

"Wait, isn’t this a single-player game? There are guilds?"

"I didn’t see a single other person while leveling. And now you say there are guilds? I don’t buy it!"

"It’s real!" Dreamlike Life scrambled to post another screenshot. "After reaching max level, I found a token in my inventory."

He posted it.

[Mountain-Opening Order: With this token, you can create a sect. Upon successful establishment, you’ll be eligible to participate in the Immortal Sect Tournament. Every disciple of the top-ranking sect will receive server-exclusive privileges for a month, including accelerated leveling. The sect leader can also rename the server.]

This ignited a new wave of excitement.

"Exclusive privileges? Rename the server? That’s awesome!"

"For real? If I win first place, I’ll rename the server to 'Dreambuilders Close Down Soon'!"

"Honestly, despite all the spending, the perks are amazing—one privilege after another!"

Someone spotted an opportunity.

"So, if I join the top guild, I can get max level without paying? Plus other privileges!"

"Good point. The perks here really deliver. Someone hurry up and make the number one guild, I want freebies!"

"Don’t be dumb—Dreamlike Life can make a guild, can’t he?"

Reading this, quite a few who’d already closed the website started to reconsider playing.

They might rant and rave, but the fact that they’d poured so much money into the game meant they were serious about playing.

"@Dreamlike Life, hurry up and make a guild, I’ll help you conquer the world!" someone urged.

"How dare you address the boss by name? Call him Guild Master! Guild Master, I happen to be in your server, invite me!"

"I’m not in your server, but I’ll reroll just for you!"

"Wait! There’s a free server transfer once, right?"

"For real? I’m hurrying back to join the Guild Master!"

"From today, @Dreamlike Life is my big brother!"

For the first time in his life, Dreamlike Life was getting tagged by so many people. Flushed with excitement, he typed, "I’m still thinking of a name. What should I call the sect?"

"How about Summit of the Gods? Sounds powerful."

"I think Godslayers is even cooler!"

"Stop arguing, listen to me! Pretty Boy Alliance!"

"Why not Avengers Alliance?"

"Justice League works too!"

"Ignore them, boss. Whatever you choose will sound great! Go for it!"

A chorus of copy-pasted support followed. Dreamlike Life rested his fingers on the keyboard, hesitated, then typed four bold characters: Riding the Wind Through Clouds.

Who doesn’t have a slightly over-the-top dream?

He posted the chosen name for everyone to see.

"Perfect! The boss lives up to his name! Hurry and invite me, I want to fight for you!"

Another round of copy-pasting erupted; nobody cared about the name—they just wanted into the guild.

Dreamlike Life carefully noted down their names and sent invitations. To his surprise, he found several others in the group who were on the same server, though scattered across different starter villages—yes, every new player started in their own beginner village.

No wonder people thought it was a single-player game.

After some effort, Dreamlike Life managed to gather everyone into his guild—or rather, his sect, since that was what it was called in this game. The basic sect could only hold ten members, so he immediately spent 8,888 to buy a construction order and upgraded it to the maximum level.

Now, everyone in the group was gearing up for the Immortal Sect Tournament—some grinding levels, some poring over the rules to give Dreamlike Life advice, others recruiting new members from different groups.

Everyone’s actions revolved around him and his sect.

What a wonderful game—if you’re willing to pay.

Dreamlike Life was in love with it, eager to send money straight to the developers in thanks.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know their bank account, but...

Dreamlike Life thought of his cousin, equally unskilled but even more addicted.

Decision made: he’d recommend the game to him!

It was just perfect for them.

After all the group chatter, the situation had turned and twisted, ultimately settling on everyone developing the guild together. The instigator of all this—Gao Yang—was still stuck in a meeting, entirely unaware of the upheaval.

When Gao Yang finally finished and returned wearily to his desk, he discovered he’d been kicked from the group. The admin even sent him a private message:

"Shill, get lost!"

Gao Yang: ??????

Are people really this ungrateful these days?

Not only did they not thank him, they kicked him out?

What a pack of ingrates!