Ashen Dragon

Chapter 291: Chapter 214 Preview
 

The room was filled with gaming pods.

Mantou was sitting at his computer desk eating a takeaway meal, listlessly browsing a certain gaming platform.

“‘Flashback 12,’ ‘The Walking Dead: Destiny,’ ‘Dwarf Sequence’…”

“What the heck is all this? Enough material for another trash review video. Can I get some injury compensation, damn it?”

Mantou bit into a chicken leg and couldn’t help but say:

“When will ‘Elzegai’ officially launch? I’m bored to death lately. Hey, I wonder how Noodle is doing. I miss riding on the back of a wyvern.”

As he was chewing on his chicken, a game notification popped up in his “special attention” list. It turned out to be an announcement from the mysterious ‘Elzegai’ official account.

“Elzegai” will officially enter open beta in three days! Version 1.0 [Northern Wind and Cloud] is about to launch!

“Hehehe, finally!”

Mantou rubbed his hands together, wiped the oil from his mouth, and clicked on the link without hesitation.

As soon as he clicked on the video, the screen was still dark; the video hadn’t even loaded yet, but countless bullet comments had already taken over the screen.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry!”

“Wuhuuu~”

“I’ve been waiting so painfully for you!”

“Do you know how I lived through this past year?”

“Closed beta veteran in tears, I’ve been playing ‘Elzegai’ since I was little.”

“Odog, get lost! I still haven’t grabbed a spot!”

“Damn, it’s not just me who’s unlucky.”

This time, ‘Elzegai’ opened a full fifty thousand spots for the open beta, but in less than three hours, these spots were snatched up by eager players. If it weren’t for the game requiring ID verification, even the open beta slots would probably be sold at sky-high prices.

Some players who didn’t get a spot said on the forum: “Being European is only the entry threshold for this game.”

Mantou looked at the bullet comments of players lamenting and begging the officials to release more spots, and couldn’t help but show a schadenfreude smile: “Hehe, fortunately, I made my move decisively during the closed beta. This is what you call skill.”

His ugly smug face was undisguised.

As the soothing yet dynamic music intro started, the screen suddenly lit up. First, a deer munching on grass appeared in the center of the screen, followed by a sudden upward pull of the camera.

A pack of wolves running across the ground, goblins hunting, and even hill giants wandering appeared successively. Dense forests, snow-covered barren lands, and rolling mountain ranges came into view, and the music gradually grew grander.

“Big production!”

“Big budget!”

“Isn’t that Stormy Ridge?”

“Hill Giant, the newbie killer, bringing tears to veterans once again.”

“Hill Giant: Do you like my big stick? Take this!”

“Whoa, is this in-game footage?”

“Veteran player promises, 100% real!”

The narrator’s voice also timely appeared: “This is the Anzeta Great Wilderness, located in the northwest of the Elzegai West Continent, surrounded by the majestic Ancytica Mountains, and because of the year-round cold climate, it is known as the ‘Land of Eternal Winter.’

“Orcs, giants, goblins, and even giant dragons coexist on this vast, desolate land.”

Mantou picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, stuffed it into his mouth, chewing with gusto, and still managed to speak with a mouthful of oil: “This really complements my meal!”

The narrator’s tone suddenly paused.

“Like every place, this land also hides countless darkness, endless sins.”

“Oppression.”

The scene shifted to show an emaciated serf shivering in the cold wind, being ruthlessly whipped by his master, and finally collapsing in the snow.

“Damn, this is so realistic.”

“Poor NPC.”

“Time for players to liberate them!”

“Rebel against the Northern tyranny, Anzeta belongs to the Kingdom!”

As bullet comments kept flooding in, the somber voice of the narrator continued.

“Slaughter.”

The scene flashed again. In a dark castle, several naked variants were tied to stone pillars, chanting eerie psalms. The mad Vampire Duke revealed a hideous smile, summoning a sky-high blood fog, draining countless humans to dried husks.

“This boss is creepy.”

“Hahahaha, isn’t this that old pervert who molested rogue beasts?”

“Detailed molestation discussion.”

“Jumped up with excitement, seeing myself in the trailer, I’m the best-looking dead husk.”

“With all that wrinkly skin, how can anyone tell what you look like?”

Amidst the continuous torrent of bullet comments, the background music grew even heavier.

“Pillage.”

The scene shifted again, a white snowstorm raged across the wilderness. Hundreds of Frost Giants moved southwards amid the howling wind and snow, causing the ground to quake.

“Chaos.”

The scene suddenly darkened. In the deep, dark cavern, filthy bloodstains and severed limbs were scattered everywhere. Hideous demons gradually emerged from the darkness, letting out wild, discordant roars.

And deep in the cavern, on a stone throne covered in twisted human faces, a Fallen Giant revealed a sinister smile.

“Is this a new boss preview?”

“Damn, looks like we’re going to battle abyssal demons.”

“Finally, some new intel, veteran player in tears.”

“Abyssal demons?”

Mantou mixed the pickles with rice and gulped it down, still keeping a close eye on the screen.

Suddenly, the screen went black again, and the music suddenly grew intense.

The voice-over became forceful.

“But new forces are rising, a new era is coming.”

The screen brightened again, showing wyvern knights soaring in the sky, fiercely pursuing a group of giant eagle knights, with a heated aerial battle underway.

Mantou’s eyes widened, forgetting even to eat: “Isn’t that me? The officials really have a keen eye for talent!”

“You will change this world.”

Players either cast dazzling spells, shot arrows, or transformed into brown bears, battling a variety of enemies. Among them were human armies, vampire variants, and dragonified monsters.

Factories rose from the ground, steam trains puffed white smoke, mechas marched on the land, and cannons drew graceful arcs across the sky—all changes brought to this world by the players.

“Or… destroy it.”

A long roar echoed from afar, and the music became overwhelmingly grandiose.

A massive red dragon flapped its wings, bringing with it endless flames, slowly flying over, dyeing the entire horizon red. Countless scorched remains lay on the ground, and ashes danced in the air—this was the Scourge scene where Cassius destroyed tens of thousands of allied forces during the Triel battle.

“Elzegai—Northern Wind and Cloud.”

Finally, the screen froze on the dragon breath flames from the red dragon, with golden letters spelling “Elzegai” in the center, prompting a new wave of bullet comments.

“What a spectacle!”

“This dragon looks cool. Is it the final boss?”

“Whose barbecue joint is this?”

“Brother Kai’s grand entrance at the end of the trailer!”

“Ashen Kingdom forever! Destroy the Northern tyranny, Anzeta belongs to the Kingdom!”

“Hehehe, Lord Cassius, thinking…”

Mantou finished his last bite of food, swallowing it hastily. He knew he would be busy from now on.