Chapter 29: The Quest for Fairness: A Deceptive Descent

The term “Fire of Gladness” originated in the previous world’s World of Warcraft 6 (TL Note: A popular MMORPG series by Blizzard Entertainment.), an epic artifact designed by Blizzard Entertainment in 2025, adopting player suggestions to stand alongside Frostmourne.

Beyond the “Fire of Gladness,” there was also an enhanced, upgraded version called the “Fire of Extreme Gladness,” and the ultimate version, the “Fire of Delighted as a Dog.”

These were matched by their counterparts: Frostmourne, the “Frost of Exceptional Sorrow,” and the “Frost of Crying Out Shit” (TL Note: A crude Chinese idiom implying extreme sadness or despair, literally ‘crying out excrement’).

Consequently, the “Fire of Gladness” was merely a virtual item from the previous world; in this current world, especially within Pursue II, it simply did not exist.

****

Naturally, to avoid any coincidental phenomena, I continued to speak.

“Ahem… well, I have a few more questions regarding the demon race intelligence gathering mission…”

“Are Demon Hunter Illidan’s three brothers… Mengniu Dan (TL Note: A Chinese dairy brand), Guangming Dan (TL Note: A Chinese dairy brand), and Wangzai Dan (TL Note: A Chinese snack and beverage brand)?”

“Precisely so!” the deep male voice replied without hesitation, his tone utterly serious.

Clutching my stomach, I pressed on.

“In that case… are Archmage Khadgar’s three brothers Khad-Subtract, Khad-Multiply, and Khad-Divide?”

“Hmm, precisely so!” the deep male voice pondered for a moment before affirming.

“Alright, one last question then…”

“Are the demon race’s new Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse… Rivendare, Riven-Lenovo (TL Note: Lenovo is a Chinese multinational technology company), Riven-HP (TL Note: HP is an American multinational information technology company), and Riven-Top Lane Or I Feed (TL Note: A Chinese gaming slang phrase, literally ‘Top Lane, if not given, I’ll feed,’ meaning a player threatens to intentionally lose the game if they don’t get their preferred role)?”

“Exactly!”

“You can take this information and turn in your quest!” the deep male voice urged, his formal tone tinged with a hint of anxiety.

“Hurry down and pull out the sword! Don’t waste any more time! Remember, for every second you waste, an innocent civilian is being harmed by the demon race!”

“Hahahahaha… Alright! I understand! Just a moment… let me laugh for a bit! Hahahahahahaha…”

I scooped up a handful of rubble created by the explosion and, under Su Yingning’s bewildered gaze, slowly made my way to the edge of the deep pit.

Pushing aside the chains, I peered down.

Below the chains lay a chasm so deep its bottom was utterly invisible.

Blinding three-colored light emanated from the pit, making it impossible to discern anything clearly beneath; one could only vaguely sense the light originating from three sword-shaped objects.

Under normal circumstances, we would never be able to reach the bottom of such a deep pit.

However, a winding spiral staircase clung to the cavern wall, gradually descending.

Its length was unknown, but it surely led to the bottom; otherwise, the designer would be a complete idiot.

Without bothering to enchant them, I casually scattered the handful of pebbles downwards.

Five full seconds passed before the echo of the falling stones returned, accompanied by an angry roar from the man.

“What are you doing?!”

‘Approximately 120 meters deep… unknown level, unknown number of targets, most likely one… a bit troublesome, killing for loot would be difficult.’

I muttered, chewing on the tip of my tail.

Only then, upon hearing my words, did Su Yingning finally react.

“Could it be that…”

“Indeed, worthy of my master, reacting so quickly.”

I instinctively offered a compliment, though Su Yingning’s face noticeably flushed with embarrassment.

After all, as a player, she had proven less discerning than me, an artificial intelligence, nearly falling into the designer’s trap—a significant loss of face for her.

Yes, the game developers were also human.

And as humans, their actions were traceable.

Coincidentally, though I hadn’t played many games, in my previous life, to assassinate a target and stage it as an accidental death, I had indeed played the globally popular World of Warcraft 6.

After a brief study of the game, I utterly crushed his guild and all his hard work, successfully forcing him to jump to his death.

Any excellent online game, even today’s fifth-generation VR online games, can never escape three fundamental principles.

Basic simulation, gameplay appeal, and profound depth.

The first and third points aside, from my current perspective, Pursue II had achieved an impeccable perfection in both.

Let’s just consider the second point: gameplay appeal.

Gameplay appeal refers to the game rules that retain players, keeping them engaged and happy.

And at the core of these rules lies one supreme principle: fairness!

Yes, if an online game doesn’t want to shut down on its opening day, it must be sufficiently fair.

This fairness isn’t just reflected in class balance or the monetization system; it also applies to the fundamental element that runs throughout the entire game: quests.

For quests to be sufficiently fair, it’s simple: effort and reward must be directly proportional!

There are no free lunches falling from the sky!

Even if such good fortune exists, its probability is extremely low!

Alternatively, it requires exceptionally heaven-defying luck and wisdom!

Luck alone is insufficient; one must also possess intellect to achieve it!

Even though online games now occupy the largest portion of everyone’s lives, they are ultimately still online games.

Designers must consider these factors for a game to be successful, for Pursue II to truly earn the title of an “epoch-making VR game dominating game pod apps”!

So, the question arises: could something that completely disrupts game balance and utterly violates the “quest fairness principle”—like sacrificing two hundred players to gain maxed-out divine faction reputation, an unhindered breakthrough to level 180, and an artifact set for which there’s currently no information—truly happen?

Absolutely impossible!

Even if the final reward of this quest truly included these items, an immense price would have to be paid, and countless traps bypassed, to genuinely acquire them!

It wouldn’t be as simple as just listening to a story and having them descend from the heavens!

This quest, from this moment on, has truly begun.