Chapter 35: Eventually There Will Be a Time to Transform

......

Inside the Pavilion of Clear Wind and Bright Moon.

In a uniquely elegant private room nestled in the southern corner.

The youth with a small mustache drew a delicate, miniature pipe from his robes, and a wisp of pale smoke drifted upward as the ember caught.

He took a deep draw, his gaze wandering out the window.

Seated across from him was a young man in a light blue robe, exuding an air of otherworldly detachment that clearly marked him as someone far beyond the mortal realm.

"Mr. Mu, what are you looking at?" This cultivator actually spoke with deep reverence to the mustachioed youth, who appeared to be an ordinary mortal!

"A slight regret," the mustachioed youth smiled faintly. "The most precious thing in this Jiuhua City cannot be taken away."

"The most precious thing?" The blue-robed cultivator seemed utterly astonished.

"Have you ever heard of Resident Evil?" The mustachioed youth asked with a gentle smile.

"What is that?" The blue-robed cultivator grew even more bewildered.

The mustachioed youth laughed softly. "Haoran, before you became a cultivator, I warned you not to let your status blind your eyes."

"Thank you for the reminder, sir..." Cold sweat broke out across the blue-robed youth's face; even though he was now a cultivator, he still did not dare to be disrespectful in this man's presence.

"In the eastern lane of Jiuhua City, there is a small shop called 'Origin.' It is a very interesting place," the mustachioed youth smiled. "After I depart, you should go and have a look."

"Mr. Mu is leaving?" The blue-robed youth asked in surprise.

The mustachioed youth took another deep pull from his pipe. "Yes, it is time to return to the Imperial Capital."

The blue-robed youth nodded slightly. "The 'Origin' shop you mentioned, sir... is that the same shop that threw Xiao Yulv out?"

"Threw Xiao Yulv out?" The mustachioed youth smiled amusedly. "So the news has already spread?"

Indeed, this matter had already spread through the cultivator circles of Jiuhua City yesterday.

When Xiao Yulv brought men to trash the shop, the onlookers behind him included not only the cultivators of the Liuyun Daoist Palace, but countless other eyes as well!

"Who would have thought that Xiao Yulv, even with Xu Fuwei at his side, wouldn't last three minutes before they were all thrown out! Impressive on the outside, useless on the inside!" Inside the Pavilion of Clear Wind and Bright Moon, a fat man in a wide blue robe spoke so excitedly that spit flew from his mouth.

"Old Xu Fuwei even brought a Thunder Evading Pearl. I heard that back then, the pearl couldn't even withstand a single breath of time."

"Can a roadside shop meant for civilian entertainment really be that formidable?" A young master in black robes spoke up.

"Entertainment?" The fat man in blue asked curiously.

"Aren't they selling biographical novels? They say it's... even more brilliant than 'The Celestial Martial Warrior,' called 'Resident Evil' or something."

He waved his hand boredly. "Which of us grown men would read that? Only that kid Xiao Yulv would run over to join the fuss."

"Then I wouldn't know," the black-robed young master said. "In any case, it seems a hidden figure is residing in that little shop."

"How about... we go and take a look too?"

"Go for what? I heard the crowd is blocking the entrance. Xiao Yulv was thrown out yesterday precisely for causing trouble, do you want us to go make a scene as well?" The blue-robed fat man said, his face a mix of annoyance and helplessness.

"Let's go early tomorrow then. I am getting more and more curious about what could be so alluring!" The black-robed young master slapped the table.

......

Song Qingfeng, Xu Zixin, Wang Tai, and the others could be considered the ones who had watched Fang Qi clear the game the most, especially during the latter half of the stage; they had carefully memorized part of the puzzle-solving mechanisms.

Therefore, regarding the progress of the second half, they were considerably faster than the average player.

Song Qingfeng felt it was time for him to play the game with absolute seriousness, because he was about to complete it!

Clearing the game—this was undoubtedly an exhilarating moment!

Furthermore, if he could finish it today, he would definitely be the very first player in the entire Origin Internet Club to clear the game, aside from Fang Qi himself!

He would surpass everyone; Nalan Mingxue would be left behind him! Xi Qi, Xu Zixin, and the rest would not even compare!

At the mere thought of this, a surge of excitement rushed through his chest!

Song Qingfeng was indeed extraordinarily talented; whether it was slicing Hunters with his knife or fighting the bosses, his combat moves grew sharper and more decisive by the minute.

This also proved that his combat techniques had undergone a earth-shattering transformation!

As a warrior, he clearly discerned that this method of fighting saved both time and effort; if it could be integrated with his martial arts techniques in reality, his combat power would surely multiply!

"Nalan Mingxue has only just started," a brilliant light flashed in Song Qingfeng's eyes. "This time, I might actually have a chance to surpass her!"

Although Xu Zixin had reached the Hunters at the same time as Song Qingfeng back then, Song Qingfeng was ultimately more experienced, so the gap between their progress had slowly widened again, and she was currently straining to catch up!

High in spirit, Song Qingfeng advanced with unstoppable momentum, finally reaching the BOSS room within the last remaining bit of his game time!

"Song Qingfeng is about to clear the game?!" In the entire internet cafe, everyone's gaze converged on him.

After so long and having experienced so much, a player was finally about to complete the game; this was the supreme event of the internet cafe!

Watching the burly Tyrant before him take slow, heavy steps toward him, Song Qingfeng's heart hammered with intense excitement!

"Is that the Tyrant?!" Aside from Xu Zixin, who also had hope of clearing the game, Liang Shi, Xi Qi, and almost all the other players gathered around, and even Nalan Mingxue was paying close attention to this battle!

Song Qingfeng followed Fang Qi's strategy, starting with the shotgun to deplete the Tyrant's health in its first phase, and upon reaching the second phase, he dodged the Tyrant's attacks while using the Magnum to find openings to strike.

Because the movie version of Resident Evil had appeared, everyone's combat skills had received a significant boost, and combined with Song Qingfeng's diligent daily training, his close-quarters combat skills were now exceptionally high!

His movements were incredibly agile and swift, with barely any wasted motions; compared to when Fang Qi killed the Tyrant, it was even more pleasing to the eye!

"So strong!" Seeing Song Qingfeng counterattack decisively under the Tyrant's claws, causing the Tyrant's health to drop bit by bit, the breathing of the surrounding crowd gradually grew rapid.

"This marksmanship, this dodging technique, it's even better than the boss back then!" A warrior laughed aloud.

"What? The boss plays this too? How come I've never seen him?" Nalan Mingxue asked in confusion; after all, very few people saw Fang Qi playing games these days.

"The boss was the number one master here back then, he cleared the game days ago!" At the mention of this, several veteran players immediately began to chatter endlessly.

"The first person to kill a Hunter with a knife was also the boss. If we hadn't seen him do it, who would have thought of such a technique?"

"You should know that the strategies for the Tyrant and all the various bosses were also pioneered by the boss!"

"He plays this too?" Nalan Mingxue glanced at Fang Qi, who was slumping in a Ge You-style slouch nearby, her elegant brows furrowing slightly.

Ever since she arrived here, she had never seen Fang Qi play games, yet she had not expected him to have such a history.

"The first person to knife-kill," "the first to clear the game," "the pioneer of history"—these terms undoubtedly proved that Fang Qi had indeed walked ahead of everyone before. A hint of doubt flickered in Nalan Mingxue's eyes: "Did he really clear it that early?"

"Is it about to end?" The crowd saw that the Tyrant had already been beaten to a critical state by Song Qingfeng, and the helicopter had descended, waiting only for the rocket launcher to be thrown down to end it all!

Many present had witnessed the power of the rocket launcher, and even those who hadn't had learned of this super weapon that could blow the Tyrant to pieces from the miraculous descriptions of the veteran players. When the rocket launcher fell from the helicopter, everyone watched the screen with expectant eyes!

On the screen, Song Qingfeng had already pulled the trigger!

Whoosh!

As the screen filled with dancing flames and the protagonist Chris departed on the helicopter, Song Qingfeng felt as if a voice in his heart wanted to cry out!

"I've finally cleared it!" Song Qingfeng stood up from his seat, pumped his fist fiercely, and stared at the screen.

A story had finally come to its conclusion, but an unforgettable, thrilling, and moving experience would remain forever in the depths of his heart, to be savored for a long time.

Recalling his experiences over these past days, there was the excitement of obtaining new weapons, the thrill of defeating powerful enemies, the joy of discussing the plot with friends, the deep emotion of being saved by teammates at the cost of their lives, and the hardships faced when encountering difficult problems.

It was just like a tiny caterpillar that, in another entirely different world, had smelled the fragrance of flowers, seen the rainbow, experienced the wind and rain, and finally spun silk into a cocoon, emerging as a butterfly to fulfill its life at the most brilliant moment.

When he truly brought the entire story to an end, a profound touch resonated deep within his heart.

"Your computer time has reached its limit, please come back tomorrow."

Looking around at the dense crowd that now hemmed them in on all sides, the memory of this singular moment seemed to freeze within the hearts of everyone present, binding them all as witnesses.

Long afterward, when the Origin Internet Cafe was no longer defined by Resident Evil alone, and when that classic game had begun to sweep across the entire world, Song Qingfeng would look back on this very hour, recalling the vivid sequence of images from the moment they watched the boss beat the game to the triumphs of their own completions.

"That remains the scene most worth savoring," he would say.

A sudden outburst of cheers erupted from within the cafe!

...

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