"What the hell is going on? Could it be that some update has been made to the game mechanics? ”

The black-clothed swordsman's brows furrowed, and instead of continuing to approach, he kept a certain distance.

He was carefully observing the painting style of the medieval towns and streets around him, and he felt that it was a campfire that was completely out of place.

"Or is it that the third layer has been conquered, and what will happen to the previous layer in terms of setting changes? But it's not right.,When I attacked the second layer before.,I didn't see any changes in the first layer, right? ”

The black-clothed swordsman just felt a little strange, but he didn't immediately mention any vigilance, let alone any precautions.

But he can't be blamed for this, because this is a town that is a safe zone, and there have been players who have refused to take action and cowered in the town to survive.

I haven't seen any targeted measures taken by Akihiko Kayaba, so naturally there will be no suspicions now.

It is even more unlikely that someone will open their minds and directly associate this with the truth of the invasion of another world or something.

The shadows that were constantly materializing around the campfire did not seem to be particularly numerous, and it did not mean that they were constantly rushing in line, and there was a tendency for dense people to teleport all the time, but there was a feeling of sparseness.

And the people who appeared are not said to be crowded, but can only be said to have barely managed to get together twenty or thirty people for the time being.

It seems that their professions are very inconsistent, whether it is clothing or weapons, but each of them seems to carry a little spark and some heat from a campfire.

It's like a buff has been added.,It's unclear what the effect is.。

But after each shadow solidifies and becomes a real person, the surrounding scene will be slightly distorted again.

It was as if the temperature of the flames had distorted the air, and the distant scenery seemed distorted as a result.

"Well, that's ......"

After the black-clothed swordsman carefully observed for a short while, he faintly saw that some famous people were coming.

It seems that these strange "NPCs" are all part of some kind of scene projection, and each person in turn is responsible for the role of "projection node", and every time one more person comes, the scene projection that seems to come from another world far away becomes clearer.

The light source responsible for the projection appears to be the most central campfire, replacing the original location of the portal.

Around it, the area that has been replaced by projection coverage is slowly expanding.

The outline could be faintly seen, it seemed to be a huge sacrificial ground, surrounded by magnificent and dilapidated structures, domes, and steps, and there was a faint huge throne on the front, but not one, but at least four or five......

The throne was mostly empty, and there seemed to be a very thin figure on one of the seats, which was indistinct.

Around the sacrificial ground, there were also other figures, and by touching the spiral sword that was stuck diagonally in the campfire, the figure gradually disappeared, and the space on this side became solidified.

There were also figures standing silently, or sitting upright on the steps around them, motionless, silently watching what was happening.

“……”

“……”

The black-clothed swordsman's brow furrowed, and he couldn't understand what was going on. Of course, he didn't suspect anything, but just took it for granted to speculate on the truth behind such a phenomenon with normal logical thinking.

Is this a new map, a new feature, or just a new game mechanic in the safe zone?

But Akihiko Aoba didn't even issue a notice, which is a bit excessive, right? And now that a month has passed, the player has only reached the third layer, and the hundred floor is still far away, he shouldn't be so quick to make trouble!

And the portal in the town has been replaced, wouldn't it be very inconvenient? This is the status of the core hub of each layer of the transportation network, and if it is gone, it will definitely cause great inconvenience to players.

I just don't know what mechanism Akihiko Kayaba intends to use to replace the functional mechanism of the portal square.

But as he pondered, those who had been silently transferred through the campfire seemed to be aware of his snooping.

Whistling! It seems to be a sharp tearing sound that cuts through the air!

The cold light flashed, and the intertwined blades first burst out with sparks, and then bounced violently!

“……！！”

Rolling on the spot, and then the black-clothed swordsman who was far away from the cold sweat came out, if it weren't for his experience, and he didn't have any friends at all in this game, he honed his high vigilance as a lone ranger.

Then I'm afraid that I will be killed directly by a sword just now - if it were someone else, I wouldn't be able to react at all.

The person on the opposite side was a knight in full armor, armed to the whole body, holding a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right hand, and his face was also protected by the armor, and he couldn't even see whether it was a man or a woman.

It's just that the cold aura can't be faked at all.

and the swift charge and attack just now, all in one go, precise and ruthless, and fierce and fierce!

"You...... Damn it! ”

The black-clothed swordsman quickly retreated, closing the distance, he subconsciously wanted to say something, but then found that he couldn't say anything.

"Ashes without fire......

These people are definitely not players, and none of them are NPCs, as the display on each person's head is the same...... They are all nameless, with only one common name.

Isn't this the most common sense thing, a humanoid or a group of monsters designed to have civilization?!

But that's not the point, the point is why do monsters spawn and appear in the safe zone? And the attack just now completely subverted his common sense, and he could do it within the safe zone?!

This shouldn't be! It's so undeserved...... Could it be that Akihiko Aoba is planning to kill them all?!

Vaguely thinking of something, the black-clothed swordsman only felt a chill down his spine and a creepy, he didn't know the specifics, but he knew that it might be about to change again.

Perhaps the level of trouble and shock of what is happening now is definitely not much weaker than what happened on the day of the official launch of the server before.

But he couldn't do much for the time being, the knight in front of him was approaching step by step, and behind him were several people who were also holding weapons, slowly surrounding...... Ashes without fire.

If it weren't for the fact that the other monsters didn't seem to be able to move around at will, they all stood in place, but I'm afraid they would all rush up now.

But even if they were motionless, they all turned their heads, and the kind of cold gaze they threw at this side made the black-clothed swordsman feel chills all over.

- Are these really just monsters simulated by data? Is it just a virtual stereoscopic object, whose behavior is manipulated by an AI program?

Why did he suddenly feel that these so-called ashes seemed to be real beings with corresponding entities, and their minds were not AI programs, but real souls?

"Hmm...... Damn it! ”

The black-clothed swordsman turned around decisively, and then he sprinted with all his strength, and continued to stay here, no matter how strong he was, he would be hacked to death by the sword.

Besides, the current situation is so wrong, he must inform the other players before it causes even more serious consequences.

Without hesitation, the knight immediately carried the shield in his left hand behind his back, and the dual-wielding knight's sword sped up and began to pursue the enemy. The same was true of the ashes behind him, who began to run wild with their weapons.

Agility and dexterity, speed and speed are different, but the physical strength of the knight in full armor is naturally not too weak, so it is also not much slower, but hangs tightly on the black-clothed swordsman.

They are all ashes from another world, desperate for "firewood" – that is, "firewood" that can continue to burn and ignite the fire of continuity for their world!

To be more specific, it is only human nature and soul that can become the fuel of the first fire, and since the original salary king Gwen, many noble kings have continued the first fire-

Use themselves as firewood to burn everything so that their world can continue.

It's just that in the long cycle of reincarnation and the change of times, the whole world has been squeezed over and over again, and there is not much firewood left to continue to invest...... Even if it is used repeatedly, the first flame is irrepressibly weakened.

What used to be a burning sun is now nothing more than a candle in the wind, so weak that it can barely continue the world and the age of fire.

So - loot is needed! Invasion required! Need more!

Even if the whole of the other world is plundered as firewood and burned in the initial furnace, as long as the first fire can be rekindled and the light shines again on the world, then everything is worth it!

Transcend good and evil, just to survive...... Just like natural selection between living beings, the laws of survival can also appear between worlds!

So, kill as much as you want! Plunder to your heart's content! For the continuation of your own world, to capture more souls, to seize more firewood!

No mercy, no sighs.

There will be no sympathy, no soft-heartedness.

In the eyes of the undead, this is the real "apocalypse", the last ray of life in their world at the end of the day......

So, everything is prey, everything is firewood!

Therefore, there was no possibility of negotiation from the beginning, and they only had the idea of killing the prey on the other side, taking their humanity and soul away, and sending them back as firewood.

……

……

"Run! Run——! It's dangerous here! ”

The black-clad swordsman wasn't stupid enough to run back and bang on the door, not to mention whether he could wake up the people in the room without permission, the risk of being blocked alone was enough to make him give up the idea.

He's just running wildly through the streets, hoping to meet players who also got up early in the morning and be able to warn them before they know it.

Several players had just turned out of the street corner in front of them, and then they heard his shouting voice, subconsciously looked over, and then discovered the identity of the person who was yelling.

And then—

"What, isn't this the cheater?"

"What is he doing?"

"Tell us to run...... Say it's dangerous here? Haha, is it because you can't stand the pressure of public opinion and are you crazy? ”