"Is there something wrong with your algorithm? Ye Tian has already left, so why hasn't the frequency changed?" Wang Linchi muttered after killing another BOSS that had just spawned.

This was the seventh day. Ye Tian had gone north of the City of Simplicity, while Wang Linchi was stationed in the south.

Initially, the BOSS spawning frequency did decrease, changing from every three minutes to every five. However, after he killed two waves of BOSSes, it shifted to killing one BOSS then resting for a minute. Now, three BOSSes spawned every minute. Ye Tian was faring slightly better, with two BOSSes spawning for him every minute. Wang Linchi had one more, likely thanks to the Saint Master's efforts.

The Saint Master, in his killing frenzy, grew stronger with each kill. Although Soul Absorption couldn't gather much from each individual, the sheer number of kills added up. His size had doubled, which subsequently slowed his growth rate. The Stitched Giant View had already been destroyed by the Saint Master; it hadn't been sturdy to begin with, and coupled with an increase in cards, the stacked damage and effects against Demonized Creatures became increasingly horrifying.

"I knew it. The pressure from all the servers is concentrated on me," Wang Linchi complained.

Until now, very few BOSSes had been killed in other main game cities and game servers, though there were some exceptions. Thus, to eliminate as much of the threat as possible, it all came down to Wang Linchi and Ye Tian.

However, why are the condemnations and calls for my punishment on the forum getting more severe? Looking at the situation on the forum, Wang Linchi had a strange feeling, as if someone wished for his demise. The way this is going, I can't even bear to look. The forum was filled with accusations of Calligraphy Linchi plugging in, game imbalance, and demands for him to be taught a lesson. But Wang Linchi hadn't had any conflicts of interest with these people at all. They didn't fight the monsters themselves but blamed him instead. This was rather ridiculous. It wasn't just him; Ye Tian was also affected, albeit to a lesser extent.

Upon closer inspection, Wang Linchi noticed something amiss. Isn't everyone with a bit of strength or outstanding combat prowess getting the same treatment? I thought I was the only one, but it seems there are other unlucky souls. Given this situation, it seems more like a premeditated public opinion attack rather than just someone stirring the pot. This made Wang Linchi think of those Ye Tian had mentioned—those who had thrown in their lot with the Abyss. Come to think of it, that seems highly probable, Wang Linchi thought, his eyes narrowing. Anyone with a less resilient mentality would be crushed by such public opinion.

No wonder the Qiu Ran Ke Family haven't logged on. They said they were going for a check-up, but they're probably trying to stay away from the internet now, Wang Linchi mused, understanding the cause and effect. They had been fine when they teamed up earlier, but then they suddenly stopped appearing after a couple of days. He suspected they had been verbally abused by someone.

As a game, it naturally had a friend function. Wang Linchi glanced at the 99+ red dot on his friend list and outright ignored it. When he first cleared the Abyss Difficulty dungeon, many people had added him as a friend. But he never even opened the friend list, let alone accept friend requests. Without even needing to guess, he knew that if he were to open it, an avalanche of verbal abuse in the friend request remarks would greet him. There would always be envious and jealous people.

Later, I'll draw up a list of everyone who's cursed me and settle the score with all of them, Wang Linchi thought. He wasn't a magnanimous person, to be cursed unprovoked. Even if the other party was innocent... no, if they cursed him without distinguishing right from wrong, how could they be innocent? Wang Linchi respected freedom of speech, but people should be responsible for their words, not just spout off whatever came to mind and be done with it. This time, it wasn't like the Soul Aspect World; he had no reason to tolerate such things here.

As for not being able to doxx them right now, it didn't matter. With the Abyss's erosion approaching, the fusion of virtual and reality was probably near. I wonder if I can report them? A thought suddenly flashed through Wang Linchi's mind. He searched the forum and indeed found the report function. Unfortunately, it only lets you report discussions on the forum, Wang Linchi thought, feeling a bit deflated; he had hoped the violator's in-game character could also be held accountable. But on second thought, this seemed more in his favor. Otherwise, if people got swept up in the tide and guided by public opinion, wouldn't a ton of people end up reporting him?

Tsk, this reversal of black and white is getting more and more blatant, Wang Linchi thought as he saw that earlier trending thread again—the post by the player who had been killed by the anti-harassment system. It was now filled with even more fabricated stories, all painting him as an unforgivable villain.

So the Game System doesn't do anything at all? Wang Linchi suddenly realized the Game System wasn't intervening. He then found the feedback interface and reported the issue immediately.

Five minutes later, after Wang Linchi had slain the BOSS, the Game System finally responded. The response was short, but Wang Linchi couldn't help but smile when he read it:

[List has been recorded, contributions will be settled after the event]

The implied meaning was that if these players had contributed significantly in this event, the Game System would turn a blind eye. However, if they not only failed to contribute but also caused trouble and hindered progress, the Game System would not let them off easily. As for how accounts would be settled, Wang Linchi didn't much care. The Game System would enact its own retribution, and he would enact his. As long as they weren't dead, Wang Linchi definitely wouldn't let them off the hook later.

It seems the Game System is aware of the Abyss's erosion. Even though there's no actual infiltration yet, it knows about the traitors. But how will the Game System respond?

While Wang Linchi was contemplating, he suddenly noticed a thread in the forum gaining popularity rapidly:

[Bad news, Wanxuan City has been breached! All functions of the main city are unusable, and all NPCs are dead!]

Upon seeing this, Wang Linchi immediately opened the post. The situation was simple: some players had collaborated with the native inhabitants to disable Wanxuan City's Protective Barrier, then allowed the enemy to invade. More critically, because the main game city had been breached, players belonging to Wanxuan City couldn't resurrect after death. They were all confined in a dark space.

The initial replies to the thread were empathetic, with many players expressing sympathy. But as time passed, instigators began to steer the discussion, turning it into one of mockery and gloating. Reading this, Wang Linchi found it rather outrageous. They're really going all out, he thought. Those actively swaying public opinion were probably a minority, but once someone initiated, others would naturally follow suit to vent their anger.

I wonder how the Game System will react, Wang Linchi mused, believing it certainly wouldn't abandon a main city like Wanxuan City. Just as he was thinking, Wang Linchi noticed that the BOSS respawn frequency seemed to be slowing down. This gave him a bad premonition. Not three minutes later, his premonition came true.

[Emergency task issued, forcibly accepted]

[Retake Wanxuan City]

[Rewards: Event Points x 100,000,000, Choose-your-own Top-Level Equipment Fragments x 100, Choose-your-own Top-Level Skill Fragments x 100, Secondary Ban Exemption Permit x 1 (distributed in advance), 0.1% of Wanxuan City's after-tax dividends]

[Please be prepared, teleportation begins in five minutes]

Upon seeing the task, Wang Linchi was shocked. They were directly sending him to save the day. No way, just me alone? How can I win? he thought. Not only would he have to face the enemy, but he might also have to deal with traitors. Even if he were a god incarnate, he could at most take on five opponents at once. Moreover, the Secondary Ban Exemption Permit had already been distributed, clearly indicating he should plug in. It was obviously a dire situation; otherwise, the Game System would never allow Wang Linchi to plug in.

[Number of players summoned for this emergency task: 193...]

When he first looked, it was 193 players. A refresh later, it became 372. The number of players was evidently skyrocketing. Wang Linchi was relieved to see this; it wasn't just him alone. Otherwise, even if he fought relentlessly until the end of the event, he wouldn't be able to retake Wanxuan City by himself.

He suspected that if they couldn't retake the city before the event ended, Wanxuan City might become a stronghold for the Abyss in God-given World. It wouldn't disappear when the event concluded; instead, Demonized Creatures and Abyssal Demons would constantly emerge, enlarging the corrupted area and potentially even affecting reality. The main game cities are probably one of God-given World's defense lines against the Abyss. Losing one would inevitably allow the enemy to pour in, he theorized.

[Teleportation begins, please do not move...]

Five minutes passed in a flash. Wang Linchi obediently followed the advice and did not move. Then, a beam of light appeared, and he and the Saint Master were instantly transported away from the southern front lines near the City of Simplicity.

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