Ragnarok Eve
The player known as Sword Pointing to the Sky is ranked number one in the holographic online game “Voyage in the Void” and has maintained this position since the game’s public beta release, never falling from grace and remaining a role model in the hearts of players.
When the game first launched, Sword Pointing to the Sky chose the human race, which had the slowest initial leveling and worst talents, and picked the most difficult path of sword cultivation among the cultivators.
Fans of cultivation novels often favor sword cultivators, but in such a holographic online game, few choose this path due to the difficulty of leveling up.
The only way for sword cultivators to level up is through combat, and specifically by defeating stronger opponents. Unlike the fairy race’s meditative cultivation, the demon race’s player hunting, or the monster race’s moon worship ascension, sword cultivators must fight and win alone. Sword Pointing to the Sky had to defeat stronger players or bosses solo to gain experience and level up, as the game’s lore depicts sword cultivators as solitary and lonely.
Early in the game, while other players quickly reached level 20 through various tasks, Sword Pointing to the Sky was being dominated by bosses. While others teamed up to defeat wild bosses, he was solo fighting, repeatedly facing death.
His various deaths were recorded by passing players and mocked on the official forums.
Despite this, Sword Pointing to the Sky didn’t give up or start over with a new account. He believed in the fragrance that comes after the bitterness and that such a difficult class would be the strongest in the later stages.
He continuously honed his skills, contemplating how to defeat bosses with his sword and limited abilities.
During this tough period, he met Ling Yun Jiu Xiao, the number one beauty and summoner in the game. Some gaming articles describe that she felt pity for Sword Pointing to the Sky being killed repeatedly and offered to team up, which he refused. Consequently, she ended up attacking him alongside the boss.
However, she accidentally weakened the boss with a powerful move, drawing its attention. As it was about to kill her, Sword Pointing to the Sky had a breakthrough, discovering the sword cultivator’s method of cultivation and unleashing a one-hit kill skill on the boss, defeating it and also starting a romance.
Later, when someone asked Sword Pointing to the Sky for the secret to sword cultivation, his answer was considered cheesy: “Sword cultivation is lonely, but loneliness doesn’t mean indifference. It’s the lonely guardianship that is the way of the sword cultivator.”
While many teased him for his cheesy answer, some sword cultivators found through practice that they couldn’t team up to level up, and had to maintain a solo mode to protect teammates and gain a lot of experience, dismissing the need for such sentimental talk.
Despite the criticism, Sword Pointing to the Sky continued on his path to the pinnacle, and his relationship with Ling Yun Jiu Xiao also continued to flourish without any ambiguity with others. The reasons for their eventual breakup were unclear, but rumors suggested it was due to a discrepancy in gender identity upon meeting in real life, which Sword Pointing to the Sky could not accept.
Putting aside personal matters, Sword Pointing to the Sky remained a benchmark player in the game, although this benchmark has repeatedly fallen.
On that day, the entire player base of “Voyage in the Void” witnessed how Sword Pointing to the Sky was killed over and over again, as if swatting mosquitoes.
That day, Ling Yun Jiu Xiao returned to the team, took over the leadership of a 30-player team, and “Sword Pointing to the Sky” assisted from the outside as usual.
Ling Yun Jiu Xiao analyzed the battle tactics of Yuan Cun Feng on the War Drum Plains and the skirmishes with the alt characters. She split the team strategically: players with metal attribute and lightning spells were not to attack directly but to assist from the sidelines. The main force was composed of water attribute ice series and earth attribute players. The lightning and fire series specialists were tasked with amplifying the strength of the sword cultivator team led by Sword Pointing to the Sky.
Her attack strategy was audacious. She decided to forego the traditional tank’s role in drawing aggro, as Yuan Cun Feng was not an ordinary boss. He moved freely, attacking anyone, and if he could kill with one slap, he wouldn’t bother using a second. Instead of drawing aggro, the demon and monster races, known for their life-draining and energy-sapping abilities, stood at the frontline to break “Yuan Cun Feng’s” defenses, returning to their original combat styles.
By abandoning the main defense and focusing entirely on attack and healing, it was a battle of offense without concern for defense, an all-or-nothing fight to take down Yuan Cun Feng.
No one criticized Ling Yun Jiu Xiao for reckless commanding. After the battle on the War Drum Plains, the players knew conventional methods wouldn’t scratch Yuan Cun Feng, and a novel approach was necessary. Her bold, innovative strategy and excellent command ensured the healers and attackers worked in sync, grinding down the boss.
As for the team of sword cultivators led by Sword Pointing to the Sky, they were the most striking presence. A line of expressionless, cold-faced sword cultivators in flowing white robes, their swords whistling through the air, creating effects dazzling enough to talk about for days.
This battle was called the fight of the century, with an exceptionally intense battlefield. Before the fight commenced, many players who hadn’t logged in for a while reactivated their accounts upon hearing the news, and that day “Voyage in the Void” hit a record high of online players, doubling the previous record.
However, the live event turned out to be thirty players attacking what seemed like thin air. Not only was there no defense to break, Yuan Cun Feng didn’t even engage in combat.
He lay in the lava, slowly closing his eyelids under the initial assault of the sword cultivators, comfortably falling asleep.
No matter how the players attacked, they couldn’t make Yuan Cun Feng open his eyes. Meanwhile, the nearby lava monsters, pitifully caught in the players’ powerful attacks, were killed outright.
Qing Qing Zi Jin: I’ve played Voyage for many years and have never seen a Feng Lianzhu like this. Are you sure this is Feng Lianzhu?
Da Ming Bai: You upstairs are surely an old player, still thinking of Feng Lianzhu as it was at level 30? Let me tell you, this isn’t Feng Lianzhu; it’s a mutated version called Yuan Cun Feng. He even has a second form, a tyrannical dragon mode; that’s his full form. Check the forum’s sticky post for details; Tu Qin Yuan Hua, that old dog, has uploaded a video of Pan Long being tortured.
Dushu Zuiqiang: Why does Tu Qin Yuan Hua hate Pan Long so much in the end? It’s like they’re deliberately tormenting Pan Long.
Love Is What: Cough cough, I know this matter.
Where There’s Gossip, There’s Me: Let’s hear it.
Pan Long-Xiao Feng: Can you not spam? The Sword God and the others are busy fighting monsters.
Tu Qin Yuan Hua: Pan Long, forget it, a thirty-person team throwing their ultimate moves around, blindingly flashy, was nice at first, like fireworks. But after a while, not to mention my Feng God sleeping, even I was getting sleepy. @Love Is What, speak up, tell the earlier story, let’s see who’s the embarrassing one.
Why Do People Grow Wisdom Teeth: Wait, what’s Feng God? I’ve heard of Sword God, Ling God, Martyr God… but never Feng God?
Charm is Limitless: That’s a god self-proclaimed by Tu Qin Yuan Hua. Ever since Yuan Cun Feng blood-washed Pan Long, he’s been Tu Qin Yuan Hua’s Feng God.
Love Is What: Are you all done talking? I’ll start the gossip. Actually, it’s just something that happened a month ago. The leader of the Pan Long gang, Xiao Nie, used an alt to deceive for romance. While having a love affair in Serene Bamboo Valley, the gang leader’s wife also used an alt to catch him cheating. Somehow it turned into two girls ganging up on the scumbag Pan Long-Xiao Nie. They fought until it affected Feng Lianzhu, triggering the boss battle mode, and Feng Lianzhu killed them instantly. Later, that Xiao Nie shamelessly took out his frustration on Feng Lianzhu. Getting caught cheating and getting beaten is one thing, but why take it out on Feng Lianzhu? Blocking us and torturing the beautiful Feng for an entire night, such a lack of grace.
Where There’s Gossip, There’s Me: What does this have to do with Tu Qin Yuan Hua?
Love Is What: You don’t know? The connection is significant. When the leader of the Pan Long gang’s wife was so angry she left the gang, Tu Qin Yuan Hua inexplicably led his people into a fight against Pan Long, but they never won since Pan Long’s gang was too powerful. It’s said Tu Qin Yuan Hua is the gang leader’s wife’s lapdog, who stood up for his goddess when she was wronged, but still couldn’t win. Later, the gang leader’s wife changed her name, created a new gang called Phoenix Approaching, with Tu Qin Yuan Hua and the mistress who was deceived in romance, all claiming to be irreconcilable with Pan Long.
Lollipop: Ah, the love and hate stories of the gods are so exciting.
All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix: @Love Is What, it’s fine to inform, but it must be accurate. I am no longer Pan Long-Xiao Feng, I am All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix. Please don’t refer to me as the Pan Long gang leader’s wife, but as the leader of Phoenix Approaching.
Love Is What: Yes, Leader Feng!
Colorful Ballpoint Pen: Wait, so the scumbag Pan Long-Xiao Nie got caught cheating in Serene Bamboo Valley and took out his frustration by killing Feng Lianzhu. After some time, Feng Lianzhu mutated into Yuan Cun Feng and massacred the whole Pan Long gang? So Feng Lianzhu actually turned into a tyrannical dragon and avenged itself?
ou Blindly Found the Point: I think you’ve found the truth.
Qing Qing Zi Jin: Truth +1
Lollipop: Truth +2
Tu Qin Yuan Hua: Truth + ID number, ah, my Feng God has moved, he’s moved, Feng God has finally woken up!
After an extended assault with no success, Ling Yun Jiu Xiao noticed that Yuan Cun Feng seemed to particularly enjoy the high temperatures of volcanoes, lounging in the lava as comfortably as if in a hot spring. She furrowed her brows and instructed her teammates, “Change the target, water attribute players unleash your ice spells. We’re not attacking Yuan Cun Feng, we attack the environment, freeze the volcano!”
True to her reputation as an inventive high-level player, Ling Yun Jiu Xiao broke from tradition. Instead of attacking the boss, she targeted the map itself.
The high-level players thought this made sense; the volcanic map seemed to bolster Yuan Cun Feng’s strength. The alts hadn’t suffered so badly on the War Drum Plains; at least there Yuan Cun Feng had fought back. The current ineffectiveness of their attacks could be due to a map-based buff.
So, the group shifted their formation. Ling Yun Jiu Xiao switched her equipment and summons, donning frost armor and summoning the Snow Mountain Goddess. She nodded to her teammates.
Under her command, the ice attribute players activated the divine ice formation “Frozen Throne.” The spiritual energy that permeated the game was instantly drained by the formation, transforming the entire volcano into an ice mountain with Yuan Cun Feng frozen within, turned into an ice sculpture.
“Voyage in the Void” has a unique setting where the game map is filled with spiritual energy that adjusts according to different maps. Players can absorb this energy during battle, and so can bosses. This feature adds a layer of strategy to the game, whether in PVP or PVE; players must account for the spiritual energy levels. The game’s top sorcerer, Heruo Daoren, once said that a master’s duel would ultimately evolve into a battle for spiritual energy. Whoever controls more spiritual energy could claim victory.
The Lava Monster was only a level 60 boss, residing in a low-level map without much spiritual energy. The “Frozen Throne” formation had a dual purpose: it not only sealed Yuan Cun Feng but also drained the spiritual energy, cutting off his retreat and forcing him to fight with his own strength. Players, on the other hand, could replenish their spiritual energy with potions, increasing their odds of victory.
“Well done,” Sword Pointing to the Sky praised upon seeing the success of the “Frozen Throne,” flying over on his sword to Ling Yun Jiu Xiao. “Even if he can break out of the ice mountain, he will have expended most of his strength, giving us a chance.”
The handsome sword cultivator looked at the beautiful summoner and gave a bitter smile, “If only you were always like this.”
Ling Yun Jiu Xiao did not respond to his comment about feelings and instead merged the Snow Mountain Goddess into the ice mountain.
The Snow Mountain Goddess was a summon that Ling Yun Jiu Xiao and Sword Pointing to the Sky had captured together years ago. It was suited for icy terrains and could transform into the appearance of a player’s beloved to bewilder them. It was a high-difficulty summon that could only be captured by a couple, often leading to players mistakenly attacking their own teammates, unable to distinguish between them and the Goddess.
When the Snow Mountain Goddess entered the ice, she transformed into the elegant, long-haired, green-robed figure of Feng Lianzhu!
Players watching the live broadcast were stunned. How could Feng Lianzhu’s favorite person be himself? Was he that narcissistic? Wait, wasn’t the Snow Mountain Goddess’s transformation supposed to only affect players in a couple? How could it work on a boss?
They saw the Snow Mountain Goddess, now in the guise of Feng Lianzhu, move through the ice to confront Yuan Cun Feng. She reached out her icy arms and embraced him. Yuan Cun Feng remained motionless, whether unable to resist in the ice or unwilling to resist at the sight of himself, and allowed the Snow Mountain Goddess to attack.
The temperature of a player held by the Snow Mountain Goddess would drop rapidly. If it fell below the body’s tolerance, the player would die. No one knew the lowest temperature the Snow Mountain Goddess could reach. The official game data claimed absolute zero, capable of freezing even molecules and atoms, but players knew this was an exaggeration. The Snow Mountain Goddess herself had a minimum temperature limit; she would die if it dropped too low, making absolute zero impossible.
According to the game’s mechanics, once embraced by the Snow Mountain Goddess, a player would lose the will to resist, and without a teammate’s reminder, awakening would be impossible, leading to certain death. The only way to win a solo encounter with the Snow Mountain Goddess was if one’s own resistance to cold surpassed hers, enduring until the Snow Mountain Goddess was frozen to death by her own power.
Seeing the Snow Mountain Goddess embracing Yuan Cun Feng, Ling Yun Jiu Xiao clenched her fists in anticipation of victory.
She raised an eyebrow and said to Sword Pointing to the Sky, “You’re going to lose.”
Sword Pointing to the Sky smiled, “As long as we can defeat this boss, it’s fine.”
Inside the ice mountain, Yuan Cun Feng showed no intention of resisting. As the temperature dropped, the lava monsters inside the ice had already frozen to death and disappeared, waiting to respawn, while Yuan Cun Feng and the Snow Mountain Goddess were still locked in their deadly embrace.
The current record for a player enduring the “Embrace of Death” attack was one minute, and that player became known for having the highest defense in the game. But now, three minutes had passed, and Yuan Cun Feng was still alive, as Ling Yun Jiu Xiao had not received a combat notification, which was proof!
After another minute, cracks from frostbite began to appear on the face of the Snow Mountain Goddess.
“What!” exclaimed Ling Yun Jiu Xiao. “The Snow Mountain Goddess can’t hold on any longer, she…”
Before she could finish her sentence, the Snow Mountain Goddess turned into ice crystals, killed by her own powers, completely dissipating.
Yuan Cun Feng, looking at the disappearing figure of “Feng Lianzhu,” slightly moved his neck within the ice mountain.
Tu Qin Yuan Hua: My Feng God has tilted his head, the head-tilt kill! I guess he’s about to activate the tyrannical dragon mode!
Amidst the astonishment of the player Tu Qin Yuan Hua, Yuan Cun Feng let out a sky-shattering howl. The deafening roar instantly killed the fragile mages, and sword cultivators with average equipment died immediately.
Within the nearly mournful roar, Yuan Cun Feng transformed.
A black dragon appeared within the ice mountain, its massive wings spreading wide. Under the terrifying dragon’s presence, the ice mountain melted.
Pan Long-Xiao Qi: Oh my, this tyrannical dragon is smaller than the one in the main city before. Can he control his own size?
The tyrannical dragon from Serene Bamboo Valley could flatten the Lake of Misfortune with a single sit, yet the tyrannical dragon before them was still able to bathe in a volcano.
His long tail whipped, striking the lava with force, causing the volcano to erupt. The nearby players who were attacking Yuan Cun Feng were drenched in lava from head to toe, leading to a group wipeout.
Members of Phoenix Approaching: Go Feng God, invincible Feng God!
Long Ri Tian: Are you from Phoenix Approaching even serious? Our player faces have been smashed into the volcano, and youโre actually fans of a bug-level NPC? This is outrageous!
Tu Qin Yuan Hua: Feng God is our guild leader’s guiding light, the spiritual idol of Phoenix Approaching. We just like Feng God who sweeps through Pan Long, what about it?
Casually Take a Stroll: Umm… your Feng God seems to have really gone mad, flinging lava everywhere, and even desecrating corpses. Ah, my goddess Ling Yun Jiu Xiao, she’s been turned into a sieve…
Sword God’s Little Fan Girl: My male god has turned to ash, wuwuwu, I don’t want to see Sword God in such a sorry state, wuwuwu!
Elder of the Void: Your Sword God lost face during public beta, not just this once. The most important thing now is, after the tyrannical dragon Feng killed all the players attacking him, why is he still rampaging? Lava is flying everywhere, the herbs in the next map are all destroyed, how are life players supposed to gather now!
Da Ming Bai: So why is he still attacking indiscriminately?
All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix: I think I know why.
Pan Long-Xiao Nie: You know nothing! What are you doing, going to find death?
Where There’s Gossip, There’s Me: Oh my, the leader of Phoenix Approaching has charged into the battle. She’s taken out a conch horn, what is she shouting?
Tu Qin Yuan Hua: Relaying our guild leaderโs words: Feng Lianzhu, the one who just died was not you, it was an illusion, fake, snap out of it.
Pan Long-Xiao Nie: Could this work? My god, the tyrannical dragon has stopped attacking, he’s turned back into Yuan Cun Feng and continues to soak in the hot spring!
The game fell silent, and no one spoke in the public chat. Everyone quietly watched the Void Mirror. After the player All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix fearlessly shouted a sentence, the previously rampaging tyrannical dragon calmed down instantly. He flew in front of All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix, extended a small front paw that seemed particularly tiny compared to his body, gently patted All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix on the shoulder, then flew back into the lava, transformed back into Yuan Cun Feng, and contentedly squinted his eyes to soak in the hot spring.
Three minutes passed without any sign of aggression from Yuan Cun Feng, and everyone finally relaxed.
Love Is What: Let me summarize. After Pan Long-Xiao Nie was caught cheating and mercilessly tortured an NPC, Feng Lianzhu couldn’t bear the humiliation and evolved into a tyrannical dragon, robbing Pan Long and Tian Long Valley. When players were helpless against the tyrannical dragon, the former Pan Long gang leader’s wife and current leader of Phoenix Approaching, All Birds Pay Homage to the Phoenix, calmed the tyrannical dragon with a single sentence, ending the catastrophe across the three realms. What is this, the mess made by prodigal husbands, and the ex-wife has to clean it up?
I’m Crazy for Potatoes: Emmm… If you hadn’t skipped so many parts, I might have believed it.
Heruo Daoren: That’s not the point, is it? The real question is why “Voyage in the Void” suddenly has such a boss? Thirty players couldn’t take it down, and the game throws in a bug-level monster, how can people still play?
I’m Just Here for the Show: Wow! A legend from the old days has appeared.
Sword Pointing to the Sky: @Game Administrators, we need an explanation.
You Blindly Found the Point: Wow! The ashen Sword God has spoken!
Science Freak: Could it really be an artificial intelligence awakening?
Amidst the players’ varied discussions, the game announced a new update:
[System Announcement: The game will update from 0:00 to 23:59 tomorrow. After this update, the game’s maximum level will be raised to 120, and new dungeons such as Tian Long Valley for level 120 will be opened. All players are requested to log out by 0:00, or they will be forced offline.]
Heruo Daoren: So the appearance of such a hard-to-beat boss is to attract old players back and increase traffic for the game update?
Confused Life: I think Ruo God makes sense, this is a conspiracy.
Quarrel Expert: So Sword God and the others are just cannon fodder in this conspiracy?
Martyr in Twilight: I don’t think Sword Pointing to the Sky would be content being cannon fodder.
Martyr God Yan Yan Fan Club President: Oh my god! What day is today? Even Martyr God has come back! I remember Martyr God retired from the game many years ago.
Soar Straight Up for Ninety Thousand Miles: With such a fuss on the forums, how could we not come back and leave Sword Pointing to the Sky to stand alone?
Screaming Chicken: Ahhh! Soaring God, Soaring God! My Soaring God! Even you have come back, oh my, Yuan Cun Feng, I love you, because of you, so many gods have returned, this is the “Voyage in the Void” of my dreams, I miss the era of the gods so much!
Sword Pointing to the Sky: @Ling Yun Jiu Xiao @Heruo Daoren @Martyr in Twilight @Soar Straight Up for Ninety Thousand Miles, after the update, let’s team up to reach level 120, and then fight again!
Numerous ancient gods are attracted back to the game by Pang Kirates, seeing through the game company’s ploy of using a monster to draw players in. They accept this as a challenge issued by the game. There is no boss that can’t be killed, only players who don’t try hard enough. The tyrannical dragon Feng Lianzhu is now the public enemy of the entire game.
However, there’s one guild that stands out.
Phoenix Approaching Guild Announcement: Effective today, Phoenix Approaching’s guild guardian beast is confirmed to be the tyrannical dragon Feng Lianzhu, our slogan is “Hand-slay the scum man”!
While Pang Kirates comfortably sleeps in the volcano, the game has descended into chaos.
At this moment, he receives a system message: [The host Pang Kirates has gained adherents, earning 57 points. For every additional adherent, Pang Kirates will earn 1 point.]
The soundly sleeping fat dragon glances at the system message in a daze, rolls over, and continues sleeping.
Author’s Note:
Fat Dragon: This world is too dangerous, how could they let… such a tiny person like Feng Lianzhu come here, I won’t go back, I will help him kill everyone, that’s decided.
Feng Lianzhu: …all these enemies are here because of you, you go back, and I’ll be safe.
–
See you tomorrow evening at six o’clock~ Mwah (ใฅ๏ฟฃ3๏ฟฃ)ใฅโญ?๏ฝ
Translator’s Note:
Translating the game world takes more time because of the game names, itโs really hard coming up with a plausible one, the ones in pinyin are practically insane level for me, so it stuck like that, sorry if it switches from english to pinyin from time to time.
Awww, Pang Kirates..
Definitely not because you like the lava, it was super cute when he went on a rampage though.