translator: xiin
editor: apricot
The dark grey holographic internet cafe was bustling, with people constantly coming and going.
The light rain outside didn’t seem to have affected the customers’ interest in getting online. As soon as anyone closed their umbrellas and stepped through the main door, they would be able to see the eye-catching LCD screen that had been set up right in the center as it played Creation Era’s version 3.0 expansion trailer in a loop, over and over again.
From time to time, someone would stop and watch for a while, but more often, they seemed already used to seeing it and quickly passed by. They would then head to the counter and collect their holographic cabin data card that they’d reserved early in the morning, before making their way to the corresponding cabin and logging in.
It hadn’t been raining when Jiang Shi went out, so he didn’t have an umbrella to shield him. By the time he walked through the door of the internet cafe, his body was already covered with the remnants of scattered raindrops.
His slightly damp hair fell down over both sides of his face, adding a touch of fragility to his already eye-catching appearance. This caused customers who’d come for the purpose of going online to subconsciously glance over a few extra times.
“Hello, do you have a reservation?”
The girl on duty at the front desk had to secretly pinch herself twice in order to make sure her blush wasn’t too obvious. Seeing Jiang Shi shake his head, she couldn’t help lowering her voice even more. “In that case… I’m sorry, but our internet cafe uses a members-only reservation system. If you didn’t make a reservation ahead of time, then I’m afraid there aren’t any extra holographic cabins that can be used to go online.”
“Things are quite high-end now.” Jiang Shi casually tidied up the damp strands of his hair and smiled slightly, “That’s okay, maybe I can phrase it another way. Is Bi Binghuo here? I’m looking for him.”
“Oh, you know our boss? Please wait here for a moment!” The front desk girl’s face was burning because of that one smile, and she turned away quickly to make a call.
Jiang Shi wasn’t in a hurry, either. His fingertips, which were placed on the counter, gently tapped a few times along with the surrounding background music.
A burst of cheers suddenly came from the viewing hall nearby.
Jiang Shi blinked slowly, then walked over, following the noise.
The first thing he saw was the intense, ongoing boss fight that was being displayed on the central holographic projection area.
Creation Era’s World Cup Series was in full swing,
The top eight into four guild ranking match was taking place that afternoon, and the results of this game would determine which teams would win the right for their guild to enter this year’s finals.
Many of the watchers were still holding their data cards.
However, it was obvious that at this point in time, they would rather let their online time go to waste than miss out on watching a match burning with white-hot intensity.
Jiang Shi glanced over the battle situation.
Judging from the state of survival of the players in this game alone, it seemed that the fights had been quite tragic.
Amongst them, the Nocturnal Team, which was ranked 10th, was basically in a state of complete annihilation, and their resurrection countdowns were quite impressive.
The game setting where repeated deaths increased the player’s resurrection time had essentially cost them their qualifications to enter the finals.
This also meant that the three teams ranked 8th, 9th and 11th were fighting even more fiercely for kills and points.
They were located relatively far away from the boss spawn point. It appeared that they had directly chosen to give up on the huge amount of points they could gain by killing a map boss and instead opted for a conservative strategy that was focused on maintaining their rankings.
On the other side, the boss fight had also entered its final stage and had likewise reached another white-hot peak.
At present, three of the four major bosses on the entire map had been killed. The last one remaining was Bruce the Death Hunter.
It was located near the Ice Field Region.
There was a flurry of dazzling skills flying around everywhere, and the four teams that had already arrived at the scene were clearly very anxious, wanting to end the game before any more teams found the boss.
Amongst the four teams at the scene, Blood Rose and Crusaders were currently 1st and 2nd in the rankings, while the other two teams were 4th and 6th. However, the overall difference in points between these four teams wasn’t that big. Whichever team managed to obtain the huge amount of points that came with killing Bruce the Death Hunter would undoubtedly be able to stand at the top of the rankings and also receive an important medal of honor that came from coming first in the match.
After being surrounded and attacked by four teams, Bruce the Death Hunter had already reached a very precarious 30% HP, and its health was still dropping at a very alarming rate.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
As for its aggro, it was temporarily fixed on the Blood Rose Team’s knights.
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“Who is Crusader’s commander? I have no idea what their people are doing; they’ve just been circling around the periphery killing individual players. At this point in the game, the tiny amount of points from player kills is completely meaningless!”
“What do you know? It’s called going for low hanging fruit at all times!”
“I think they should be trying to increase other teams’ resurrection cooldowns, right? The last round of group fighting will definitely be very messy, so it’s good to have less people stirring shit up.”
“Is that so?”
“But then again, why can’t I find Fish God?”
“Oh yeah! Crusaders are blocking people around the periphery, but it seems like it’s been a while since Fish God last appeared?”
……
“The ‘Fish God’ that you guys mentioned, are you referring to ‘Gentle Fish’?”
The group of people who were intently watching the battle situation in the competition were startled to hear a voice suddenly sound out from behind them.
“Yeah, who else could it be?” The spectator who replied originally answered very impatiently, but after seeing that person’s appearance clearly, they choked a little and cleared their throat. Even the tone of their voice also softened, “You don’t even know this? Are you new to Creation Era? A newbie?”
“I played during the first season, so I shouldn’t be considered a newbie.” Jiang Shi glanced at the fierce battle situation on the holographic projection and raised his eyebrows meaningfully, “It’s just that it’s been almost five years now. I didn’t expect that Gentle Fish would actually still be playing.”
“Of course! Fish God is indeed an ancient god who has persisted from the initial version of the game until now! The only others like him who are still on the rankings would probably be Spring God and the rest, right?”
When speaking of this, the audience couldn’t help but ‘tsk’ emotionally. “If I think about it carefully, Blood Rose and Crusaders have also been fighting each other for a full five years. They’re really old enemies, hey!”
After he finished speaking, he saw that Jiang Shi was watching the holographic projection without speaking. So, he took the initiative to tack on another sentence. “However, there really has been a lot of old players returning recently. The ‘game as reality’ concept that Creation Era came up with is pretty good, and they’re also willing to spend on marketing. The rewards for returning players are really plentiful; it’s a good deal.”
Jiang Shi finally let out a brief laugh, “Indeed, I also feel like it’s a good deal.”
While they were talking, Bruce the Death Hunter’s HP had already been ground down to below 10%.
Someone at the scene was already shouting out in excitement. “The boss has gone berserk!”
This was like a signal. The holographic scene that had originally been relatively peaceful suddenly became lively.
The four teams present were clearly unwilling to let go of this final opportunity. They all went full throttle at the same time, and a string of kill prompts immediately flashed across the screen.
Dazzling skill effects were also mixed in with Bruce the Death Hunter’s berserk attacks, and the scene instantly became very chaotic.
And in the midst of this chaotic atmosphere, it only took Jiang Shi one glance to catch sight of a fleeting black figure flashing by in an easily overlooked corner.
The corners of his mouth curved up slightly with interest.
A mechanical formation had been silently put in place and completed without anyone noticing.
The ID above that character’s head was none other than ‘Gentle Fish’, whose name had been brought up earlier.
That figure wandered around at the very edge without approaching, with an unwaveringly straight back. As the mechanical arms moved, several precision machines left their initial placement point and shuttled accurately into the crowd,
They simultaneously avoided the sweep of surrounding skills––
––Wandering quietly, keenly waiting for an opportunity.
Jiang Shi knew without a doubt what this person was waiting for.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, a sharpness that wasn’t easy to catch lurking in the depths of his gaze.
8%, 5%, 3%, 2%, 1%…
Bruce the Death Hunter’s HP was just about to reach zero when a hand suddenly patted Jiang Shi on the shoulder, causing him to startle in this tense environment.
“I was wondering who was looking for me. I didn’t expect that you really, actually came back!”
Jiang Shi looked back, and the direct faceful of smoke he received caused him to frown slightly.
Before he could speak, there was a wave of shouts from around them that almost blew off the roof.
The outcome of the match had already been determined during that moment of interruption.
Jiang Shi glanced to the side and scanned over the statistics displayed on the projection. It showed that the Crusaders Team had created a large gap in the score between them and Blood Rose after snatching up the boss kill.
They scored first in this round!
Mixed in amidst the cheers from fans of the Crusaders guild were also a few curses from Blood Rose fans. “Gentle Fish, that old thief! He only knows how to play dirty tricks all day long!”
Hearing this, Jiang Shi was amused.
If they really had to talk about it, hadn’t this person always been famous for his dirty heart from as early as five years ago?
His thoughts only wandered off for a brief moment before he pulled his attention back, glancing at the man in front of him.
His smile was very friendly. “Boss Bi, long time no see. I suddenly wanted to go online today. I wonder if you still have a holographic cabin available?”
“You brat, you left without a word back then, and now you want me to open the back door for you as soon as you’re back?” Bi Binghuo was looking Jiang Shi over even as he spoke, and he pinched his cigarette butt amidst the billowing smoke. “But I heard Jiang Yan mention that you’d left the country back then to receive treatment… for that.”
He reached out a hand and gestured meaningfully at his head, raising his eyebrows. “You know I’ve been chasing Jiang Yan for a few years. Now, you come over to my place wanting to go online as soon as you’re back. If she finds out, won’t she kill me?”
“Don’t worry. Since I came back, it means that I’ve recovered. Also, my sister already has a boyfriend, so you shouldn’t keep thinking of her.”
Jiang Shi put his hands into his trouser pockets and leaned casually against the wall at his back. His smile was as innocent as a lamb. “Today, I just want to get a card for two hours and log in to take a look. She won’t find out.”
“I know about her boyfriend, and I’ve even seen him in person. You don’t have to purposely stab at my heart.”
Bi Binghuo appeared very torn, his brows twisting as he thought for a moment before finally slapping a panel. “Fine. Have Little Guo set you up for two hours! Over there in Area E, cabin 666 is the cabin I keep for myself. Speaking of which, back then when you were in zone one, that was… oh, it would indeed be a pity if you really didn’t play anymore.”
Jiang Shi smiled but didn’t continue the conversation. After saying thank you, he went to the front desk to find the girl on duty and set up his card.
The dark gray holographic internet cafe was divided into five areas: A, B, C, D and E. The further back one went, the higher the grade.
As the owner of the internet cafe, Bi Binghuo naturally kept the best location for himself, with a top of the line holographic cabin. Those who could afford the cost of a cabin in this area were either office workers who had some ability in real life or professional players who had high requirements for their holographic cabins.
Jiang Shi couldn’t help but feel a little emotional as he made his way over.
Back then, when he’d led his old friends to explore the game, he’d never expected that Creation Era would become an outstanding game that enjoyed worldwide popularity five years later.
Now, not only had it led the e-sports industry into the holographic era, it had also spawned a series of secondary industries, where some professional game players relied solely on the virtual world for their income and survival.
More and more people were starting to join Creation Era to make money, effectively turning this virtual world into a parallel time and space for humanity.
[Game as reality].
Just like the concept that Creation Era was marketing, this holographic game had truly ushered in a new era.
However, Jiang Shi didn’t think too much about it for the time being.
He had just finished multiple rounds of treatment and returned to the country. The reason why he came to this internet cafe not too far from home on a whim was mainly due to the text message that the Creation Era developers had sent to all old players, inviting them to return.
A major game update took place every two years, and this year, Creation Era just happened to be ushering in their second major upgrade.
Version 3.0 expanded on the previous versions, raising the level cap and adding a third rank of skills. It also integrated all the zones together and simultaneously provided excellent benefits to incite old players who’d left the game to return.
As the internet cafe spectator had mentioned earlier, it was a good time to come back to the game.
Jiang Shi’s actions were smooth as he laid down inside the holographic cabin and swiped his data card to go online.
He followed the system prompt and scanned his pupils, successfully inputting his personal data.
Instead of creating a new account, Jiang Shi directly went in and activated an inactive account that hadn’t been logged into in a long time.
Confirm login.
Just as the familiar character model formed in front of his eyes, a system message popped up––
=
Dear Creation Era player, it has been 1,866 days since you’ve last logged in to the game. The returning player benefits system has been successfully activated.
All game data from zone one to zone ten has been integrated together in version 3.0. In order to improve your gaming experience, all returning players are given the option for a free name change. If you pass on this opportunity and login, you will need to buy a name change card and complete the process in order to change your name.
Will you use this free opportunity?
[Yes] or [No].
=
Jiang Shi’s gaze lingered on the choice for a moment.
Although a name change card wasn’t something that could be considered expensive, it would be a waste not to use what the message called a ‘free gift’.
He didn’t hesitate too much and chose [Yes].
Message after message continued to pop up.
[Please enter the game ID you would like to use ___________]
[The game ID you would like to use is ‘Main Storage Account’. Are you sure? [Yes] or [No].]
[New game ID change successful. Entering the game…]
[Game loaded.]
The scene in front of Jiang Shi darkened.
Immediately afterwards, even as the scene lit up again, a system prompt rang out clearly in the depths of his mind––
“Welcome back to the Land of Creation.”
—
The author has something to say:
Let me write about the matter of side CPs at the start, in the hopes that people don’t ask later on –
There are side CPs, such as Jiang Shi’s sister and her boyfriend, but their story won’t be expanded on and written about separately.
xiin: i’ve always wanted to translate a gaming novel by 青梅酱 + i LOVE Jiang Shi’s character. actually, i love the entire premise of this novel & it unfolds pretty much like the novel description implies things will go. (personally, i think this novel should be much more popular than it is on JJ… might have something to do with the sort-of-weird novel cover?) it’s an easy, fun read, and hopefully you all will enjoy Support Is King as much as i do~
also, on another note – sorry about disappearing last year, RL ate me up. things are more stable now, so … i’m back? will be trying to finish off a couple of the novels i dropped before over the next few weeks & translating novels that i found myself re-reading multiple times during my one hear hiatus. thank you all for your support over the years & i’m really glad to see you all again! <3
Thanks for the chapter and welcome back ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Welcome back! And thank you for the chapter 🤩
WELCOME BACK XIIN!! thank you for the chapter <33
Welcome back and thanks for the chapter
Welcome back~ <3
Welcome back xiin! We missed you (and your translations).
And this seems interesting. Looking forward to how it plays out.
Welcome back and thanks for sharing another one of you favorites. Looking forward to it ❤️❤️❤️
WELCOME BACK ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
I’ve been really craving a genre like this, since I just binged the entirety of Winter Moon (Webtoons) in a day LOL
Welcome back! I hope you were all right in your real life!
Thank you for your translation of new gaming novel 💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛
Welcome back! It’s appropriate we welcome back an old gaming god at the same time as god xiin
haha, i’m not a god but i did find it fun the title of the chapters is ‘welcome back’ too
New esports danmei to gush over… Wheeeee 😍😚
I really like your translations 😭
Thanks and wb! . Hope things remain stable. I had a feeling life got crazy when updates to some novels I was reading stopped since you were always very consistent. Time to go back n finish those now.