Chapter 76: Meeting in the Game

In the initial version of Apex, there weren't too many legends available to play. There was Gibraltar, who could deploy shields, Lifeline, who could heal and summon supply drops, Bloodhound, who could track opponents, Bangalore, who could summon airstrikes and release smoke bombs, Wraith, who could phase shift, and the robot who could use hooks.

Of course, there was also the last character, a paid legend who could release poisonous gas.

With only this many characters, there was also one mysterious character that hadn't been updated yet but would be in subsequent seasons.

What is a Season Pass?

So far, Bronie hasn't released any news about it, but everyone could anticipate the fact that characters would have a fee, after all, don't online games have places where they charge money?

But players found that as long as they played long enough, they could eventually unlock new characters.

And the performance of characters wouldn't affect the game's balance; each legend had its own unique abilities and was irreplaceable in a team.

So, regarding this payment model, netizens were actually worried that Haxxor Bunny might lose money.

"Su, if you steal my airdrop again, I'll be angry with you!"

In the Elysian Realm, Kevin became obsessed with this game. He, Su, and Kalpas formed a team and were currently playing ranked matches in the game.

From parachuting, to fighting after landing, and then fighting while running, this game mode was quite interesting.

At least in the civilization of the previous era, Kevin had never played this kind of game mode.

"Whoever sees it first, gets it. Also, I'm much better at sniping than you."

"Say, what's the name of the red weapon gun in the airdrop?"

"Mastiff shotgun."

"Is this a sniper rifle?"

"My sniper rifle has a close combat weapon to protect myself, isn't that reasonable?"

"But you already have Wraith's phase shift!"

"Is that okay? Doesn't your robot also have the flexibility of a grappling hook?"

Su just dismissed him.

At this moment, a teammate's voice suddenly appeared in the voice chat.

"Ah! I'm down!"

"What are you two talking about? Didn't you see me down?"

Kalpas used Bloodhound to kill many enemies, but couldn't withstand being outnumbered. In the face of a concentrated attack from multiple opponents, his gun, no matter how accurate, couldn't withstand being focused on and output under the open sky.

Apex was a game with relatively long death timer, and each character had evolving armor, increasing the armor's health based on the damage dealt, up to 25% more than the original health.

By the time they reached the finals, the three-person squad already had full red armor, except for the special sniper rifle, Kraber, that only appeared in airdrops. Other weapons were impossible to take down people with a single move.

Then the three of them started drifting.

As one of the Flamechasers, their combat power and reflexes were top-notch, but even so, they could still feel the pressure from the players of this civilization.

From parachuting, to picking up guns after landing, to fighting while running away from the DoT circle and being blocked by opponents outside the circle.

The pace of the whole game was so fast that from the moment they landed from the plane, they were almost constantly fighting, without a break.

And every new game brought a different experience, so the three of them quickly became addicted.

Kosma really wanted to play along, but he was bad at speaking and didn't dare to invite people.

Fortunately, Griseo could play with them. With Sakura joining later, they reluctantly formed a team and had a blast playing.

On the first day of the game's release, forums and video websites online seemed quieter.

The online player count exceeded tens of millions and was still steadily rising.

Luckily, Bronie had prepared well in advance, otherwise, no one would be able to play the game, wouldn't that be awkward?

But for Eden, a game like this didn't seem as interesting as Civilization.

It was just okay to accompany Elysia and play together.

Girls, in fact, didn't really like fighting, and Elysia preferred interacting with everyone.

Unfortunately, she couldn't see the opponents' reactions when she defeated them, which took away a lot of the fun.

It was better to play around with Kalpas in the Elysian Realm.

"Bronie!"

Bronya sat in front of the computer, manipulating the mouse frantically on the mouse pad.

When Bronie came over, Bronya greeted her but still focused on the game.

Yes, Bronya was also playing Apex and quickly became addicted, starting her parachuting journey with Sin and Isabella.

"Don't get too addicted to playing games. Remember to complete your homework and come over for meals."

Bronie reminded her.

"Yes, Bronie, when will Bronya be able to make interesting games like Bronie?"

Bronya was envious. By waiting only ten seconds for a match through ranked matchmaking, Bronya knew that this game was very popular now, even after several hours, players' enthusiasm remained high.

In this map called the Kings Canyon, in Skull town with a sense of strategic design, as long as one parachuted into this area, the sense of accomplishment when they walked out of it was truly high.

Complex terrain, abundant loot, and countless players as greedy as themselves, as well as crazier opponents after leaving Skull town.

It was obvious that such a design was meant to drive the pace of the whole game and enhance player interaction.

"If you really want to do it, why not just start? Although it's possible to fail at the beginning, what can't defeat you will eventually become your stepping stone."

"Those who can't defeat Bronya will eventually become Bronya's stepping stones? Did Bronie also come this way?"

"No, according to the legend, this game made me rise to the top in one go. I'm a genius, so succeeding the first time is only natural."

Well, Bronya felt she had been bragged about. Sometimes Bronie just didn't know what humility was.

But looking at these games in her hands, Bronya was also very sure that her sister Bronie was indeed a genius.

Good at observing human hearts, good at discovering joy.

"Of course, I also believe you have the same talent, but talent still needs diligence to nurture. Otherwise, it's like a seed that's been dried out by the wind, it will never bloom."

"There's still a lot to learn, but Bronya will work hard!"

"As long as you're happy."

Interest is very important for learning, but when this thing is related to your life, it's also full of efficiency.

Just like Bronie herself.

Her abilities needed data to activate, the more detailed the information she knew, the faster she could activate, and overall, there was definitely a difference compared to those who relied on logic.

In the dangerous Sea of Quanta, if you didn't have any abilities, you'd definitely end up dead.

So Bronie also endured her displeasure and forced herself to study diligently.

Actually, Bronie didn't want Bronya to go through such a terrible experience. The past is behind them, and it's best to focus on being happy in the present and future.

So Bronie reached out and patted Bronya's head gently.

"I've made my selection. The pre-delay on the Revenant's ability is quite long, but the robot is even more agile than the Revenant. Gibraltar's shield also offers plenty of maneuverability, and I've made some modifications to the base code in the game engine."

"Hmm? Bronya, I'm not sure I understand."

"Under specific circumstances, a character's flexibility greatly increases. For example, with the sliding option, regardless of whether you're on flat ground or a slope, it increases ground movement speed. Also, sliding after wall running can cancel the post-wall run action delay and accelerate."

"Although Bronya trusts Bronie, she doesn't feel capable of performing such maneuvers at the moment."

"You're playing solo in a team of three, right?"

"Yes."

Since Bronie recommended the robot, Bronya decided to give it a try.

Every character needs to be tried out, but adjusting to different characters takes time, so Bronya hadn't played as the robot yet.

After all, its ultimate ability didn't seem aggressive; it seemed more like a team support type, which Bronya didn't prefer.

"Watch and let me show you! Besides being a genius at game development, I'm also a genius at playing!"

Bronie took over Bronya's computer, and Bronya obediently moved aside to make room for Bronie.

Then, Bronie entered the settings interface and changed the mouse scroll wheel to jump and move forward.

"Why..."

"Because the mouse scroll wheel can trigger multiple clicks with each scroll, and agility relies on precise commands within one to three frames. Pay attention, we're targeting Skull Town!"

"There are many players landing in Skull Town. It's a complex area with rich resources, so many players choose it, making it the most intense fighting area on the entire map."

"I know. I intentionally designed it this way so everyone can feel the fun of this game intuitively. But after the season pass is released, a meteorite will fall on Skull Town, and then map resources will be redistributed."

"Why?"

"We need to consider this from the perspective of the game developer and the game's lifespan. If players jump to the same place every day, they'll eventually get bored. So, distributing resources evenly, although it may reduce initial fights, will allow everyone to have other ways to play. This time, our teammate is someone named Otto. Isn't that a coincidence?"

"Do you know him?"

"His IP is also from Austria. Maybe he really is Schicksal's Archbishop. In a few days, when I give a lecture on Honkai, I'll tell you about Otto's past love affairs and how he became the Archbishop."

Bronya didn't quite understand, but she was deeply impressed.

Mr. Otto was the first to choose a character, and he immediately locked in Bloodhound.

It seemed that he valued intelligence, but who wouldn't like a character who could see through walls, activate a big ability, and kill enemies with red eyes?

Bronie also liked Bloodhound at the beginning.

Next, Bronie locked in the robot, and another random teammate chose a healer.

"Um, actually, a healer isn't necessary in this game, but Lifeline's airdrop can supply based on the items in your backpack, so it still has its uses."

"I see."

Bronya nodded, and at this moment, the random teammate handed the parachute command over to Bronie.

And Otto?

He was marking a location.

It seemed like he really wanted to stay away from Skull Town.

Then Bronie marked Skull Town, and Otto's marking behavior stopped.

"Are you serious?"

The voice chat in the team expressed doubt.

The game has been online for a while, and the most discussed topic is naturally the infamous Skull Town.

No other meaning, it's just that landing there guarantees purple armor, plus all kinds of accessories, and once you leave Skull Town, you become a god of war. Who wouldn't like this kind of gameplay?

"Don't worry, let me show you my skills! Even if I die, it's okay. After all, there's resurrection, and I'll definitely resurrect you guys."

The young voice silenced the two, and at this moment, Otto really wanted to parachute alone, but he didn't dare to jump too far.

But if he jumped too close, he would definitely encounter players outside surrounding Skull Town, and he alone couldn't beat three people.

"I really don't know where you get your confidence from. Could you be cheating?"

"Just watch my gameplay!"

Parachuting, diving, landing, all in one breath.

Looking at the dense trails in the sky, Otto felt his scalp tingle.

He knew about Skull Town from several previous games. It's so popular, and according to insider information, it's a limited-time map deliberately created by Haxxor Bunny and will be deleted later.

"Being so excited isn't my style, but since you said so, I'll take a good look."

Otto chose to land near Bronie, and in Bronya's eyes, Bronie quickly picked up a gun from the ground.

"With the Peacekeeper, after aiming, you can narrow the bullet spread. With only 150 health after landing, two shots are basically a kill, let's start with one."

Watching Bronie control the grappling hook, agilely navigating through the three-dimensional buildings, sliding and killing upon landing, all in one go, the white armor instantly upgraded to blue.

"Be careful! Second enemy!"

Bronie didn't panic, but slid away from the window directly, skillfully climbed onto the roof in mid-air. At this moment, Otto's scan was in place, watching the room full of people turn into chaos, Bronya finally realized how intense Skull Town was.

"Ah! I'm critically wounded and down!"

"Not good! I'm down!"

Two teammates fell in succession, which didn't surprise Bronya. After all, it was normal.

[Polite Blast Fist killed Otto]

[Silent Frost killed Raiden Homu]

"They're even finishing us off..."

"Finishing you off is because resources are limited, bullets are not enough, so you have to get extra bullets from the opponent."

As Bronie spoke, she also pulled out an R99 from another box and took out batteries and arc stars from the box.

Then Bronie threw a grenade on Otto's box, scaring off the surrounding players, and then jumped onto the box to pick up the box's brand, using the explosive force of the grenade and the pulling force of the grappling hook, Bronie controlled the robot and disappeared from the scene.

In the enemy's view, Bronie seemed like a dirty thing suddenly appearing and disappearing.

"Cool~"

Bronya couldn't help but praise.

"Your skills, aren't they something a player should have when the game just started?"

The random teammate was already calculating his 6, but Otto felt something was off.

"Hmph, is this it? Isn't this just something you can do easily with your hands?"

This sentence directly silenced Otto, no, he couldn't argue with a child.

"But the team that just killed you, each of them was quite accurate, and the Revenant, the sniper, was quite accurate... If I hadn't been able to maneuver in the air, I'm afraid I would have died here."

"Yeah, I didn't expect so many game masters in this game. I just showed up and got killed. It's definitely not because of my poor skills."

Otto certainly wouldn't admit that he was incapable, but according to Bronie's speculation, it's probably because when he scanned, he exposed his position, and there was only one team around, so the heroic trio definitely targeted him.

"I said I'd lead you guys to fly, and I will. Next, it's my battle with those three."

"Aren't you going to run away!? They're so accurate, could it be they're using cheats?"

Homu couldn't help but quip. Games always have cheaters in multiplayer games, even childish games have cheating players, not to mention shooting games!

"Relax, if there really are cheaters in this game, then I'll definitely meet that cheater and have a good chat with him. But for now, watch me play!"

...

Sitting in front of the computer, Su listened to Kevin's indifferent reports through voice chat, and cautiously watched out for enemies around him.

Because just now, a player controlling a robot slipped away from under his nose like a big black rat. Just as he aimed to kill the opponent, the opponent seemed to predict it, directly disconnected the rope, and performed a gorgeous turn in the air, fleeing to the depths of Skull Town.

This seamless operation directly shocked Su.

He never expected that the character's operation in this game could be so flexible.

"Kalpas, Kevin, we might encounter tough opponents soon."

"Yeah, I saw it too. Using grenades to force us to take cover, compress our field of vision, then picking up the teammate's card, and using the explosive force of the grenade to speed up their escape. This player isn't simple." Kevin also said so.

"Very well! Finally, there's an opponent worthy of my fight! I'm almost tired of playing this game!" Kalpas was excited.

"No, the opponent is likely to run away. After all, there are three of us here, and only one lone wolf on the other side. Skull Town doesn't have many people left, and if we don't leave soon, the surrounding players will come to surround us."

Su's judgment was correct, which is also the mindset that a normal player should have.

This made Kalpas somewhat disappointed.

"Tch, just an interesting chase?"

As soon as Kalpas's voice fell, a sound of grappling was heard.

The robot's ultimate ability is to create a usable zip line, and because the skill is simple, the cooldown is very short.

But unexpectedly, this zip line was not used to escape, but was thrown onto the roof above Su's head!

"Kevin, Kalpas, it seems that the opponent doesn't intend to run away, but has declared war on us!"

"Every era has its heroes, even in games, such spirit is commendable, we can't run away!"

"Hahaha! Come on! Let me see what you're made of!"

At this moment, Kalpas activated the scan, and the three of them began to act!