Chapter 6 Why Acting is Important_2

If the acting isn't up to scratch, one can't even entertain the thought of getting close to the emperor, let alone assassinating him and clearing the mission.

"It's just ridiculous, now I'm convinced, this game really has 100% realism, no discount at all.

"The average player really can't handle it.

"Could it be that I have to learn acting from a teacher to play a game?

"Forget it, I'll try a few more times, if it doesn't work, I'll exit and study the other three newbie instances.

"Maybe professions like foot soldiers and Rangers don't require such high acting skills. The assassin career is just too high a bar."

Zhao Haiping calmed his mind and once again started the game.

In fact, if this had been a conventional virtual reality game, such difficulty would surely discourage the vast majority of players.

But the technological prowess of this game is just too high!

Whether it's the 100% lifelikeness or the super high intelligence of NPCs, it's currently in a league of its own. Compared to it, other virtual reality games on the market with about a 50% realism just seem like child's play, not attractive at all.

So, after adjusting his mindset, Zhao Haiping's desire to take on the challenge grew, and he dove back in to attempt to clear the instance.

...

At this moment, Meng Yuan was watching the players' performance from a God's-eye view with a little Lolita named Shanke.

Players were only aware that the probability of being selected for internal testing this time was extremely low, but they had no concrete idea of how low.

Meng Yuan, on the other hand, had a clear grasp of the data.

Up to now, the number of people worldwide signed up for Dark Sand's internal testing had exceeded one hundred million, yet only a mere ten thousand had won testing qualifications.

Truly one in a ten thousand chance!

The hundred million signups were within Meng Yuan's expectations, as the game's exposure had been immense, with top news and social networking sites giving it super recommendations, plus the signup was free and had no barriers to entry. Many players clicked to sign up with the mentality of 'nothing ventured, nothing gained.'

The reason why there were only ten thousand spots for internal testing was, of course, deliberate.

Dark Sand is not just a game, it is not limited by server capacity, but it relies on the power of the Return Order Ability for its framework.

The UI inside and many designs similar to games are just packaging intended to convince players that they're in a game.

There are only so few people Meng Yuan can truly bring into historical snippets and complete missions with, because the more people there are, the more scattered his power becomes.

Therefore, picking two or three players with strengths in all areas to enter historical snippets is the best choice.

The reason for this internal test is mainly to filter for the most talented players.

Building Trial Illusion for each player doesn't consume much power, but ten thousand is already about the limit. To further increase the number of people, one would need to find a way to obtain power from historical snippets to further enhance the Return Order Ability.

As for the screening and selection rules, it mainly looks at the players' performance in other virtual reality games and their occupations in real life.

Players with a large number of action, puzzle game Platinum trophies from other virtual reality games, true core gamers, are more likely to qualify.

In addition, those whose real-life professions are actors, history buffs, athletes, martial artists, and other special careers, also stand a better chance of getting testing qualifications.

Indeed, police, military, firefighters, and the like would also be suitable, but their jobs are too important. Meng Yuan wouldn't want this game to impact their day-to-day work, otherwise, it could cause upheaval in the world before historical specters even invade.

The entire screening process is naturally completed through the power of the Return Order Ability. Although there might be some deviation, it's generally reliable.

This standard is meant to select those most suited to enter historical snippets and help Meng Yuan complete his Return Order mission.

However, judging by the players' performances in Trial Illusion... there's a slight gap from what Meng Yuan had anticipated.

So far, Zhao Haiping's performance has been the best; after all, he has succeeded in killing two Red Armor Guards.

The other players' situations were even more pitiable.

Some people got cramps in their legs due to excess tension while walking on the stairs and rolled straight down;

Some were exposed because of their incoherent speech in the hall and were dragged out to be beheaded;

Others fancifully tried to snatch weapons from Red Armor Guards and were killed by a flurry of swords before they even entered the hall.

The circumstances in the other three Trial instances are similar; they just differ in how they die.

In short, the degree of tragedy is roughly the same, while the forms of tragedy are diverse and colorful.

Players like Zhao Haiping, who managed to persist in front of Emperor Yanling and come up with excuses in face of his questioning, are in the minority.

Meng Yuan clearly understands that players like Zhao Haiping are already top-notch in reality.

Yet even so, they still haven't found any way to clear the instance.

Shanke produced a steamed bun in her hand and took a bite, "I told you it's a waste of time. Trial Illusion is for screening Return Order Talent, and the difficulty is extremely high. You shouldn't get your hopes up too high for them.

"Moreover, as their role of assistants, in the Illusion Realm, they can at most obtain one Return Order Ability, which further increases the difficulty."

Meng Yuan sighed lightly and retorted, "Haven't you realized that despite the players' tragedies, they're still performing better in the Trial Illusion than I, the genuine Return Order talent?

"At least most of them have roughly guessed the objective of clearing the instance."

Shanke was momentarily at a loss for words: "... You make a good point."

Meng Yuan was unsure deep down about whether these players could truly clear the instances.

The players, entering as "assistants," are essentially being lent a portion of the Return Order Ability by Meng Yuan.

Those talent skill cards seen by the players are actually a unique packaging of the Return Order Ability. If it were Meng Yuan entering a historical snippet, he would be able to carry three from the start, and as his ability increased, he could carry even more.

But as assistants, players can currently only carry one.

This undoubtedly further increases the difficulty of clearing the Trial instances.

Now, Meng Yuan could only hope that the selected players, with their extraordinary talent and diligent effort, could bridge this gap.

On the bright side, the players who could stand out under such rigorous conditioning would rely purely on their skills, which would mean they were really strong!

Meng Yuan continued to watch patiently, looking forward to the players' performances.

As a Guide, Shanke could watch the actions of all players at the same time. Only when there's progress would she show Meng Yuan, serving as an intelligent observer system.

So far, Zhao Haiping has been the quickest to get into the zone, so Meng Yuan naturally took a bit more interest in him.