Chapter 135 : Grand Speculation on the Settings! The Elite Forces of the Calamity Army Mobilized!
Chapter 135: Grand Speculation on the Settings! The Elite Forces of the Calamity Army Mobilized!
Special Task Force Headquarters.
Zhou Zhengming had barely slept over the past few days.
He was either reporting to the highest-level intelligence chief or constantly attending meetings to discuss and analyze the latest data.
Thanks to Zhou Zhengming’s relentless efforts, within just one week of its establishment, the Special Task Force had already gathered a considerable amount of valuable information and had made a series of decisions and contingency plans based on the current situation.
“Chief!”
A young female member with a high ponytail approached Zhou Zhengming to report. Her name was Feng Ying, one of the most outstanding new-generation elites in the Security Department, specifically assigned to assist Zhou Zhengming’s investigation.
Feng Ying reported, “As per your orders, we’ve already released a series of coordinated smokescreens through the media, the Academy of Sciences, the Patent Office, and other related agencies.”
“Well done!”
Zhou Zhengming nodded with satisfaction.
Over the past two days, the Special Task Force had coordinated extensively with the Security Department.
For example, they released rumors of breakthroughs in black technology fields like virtual reality and artificial intelligence, along with a series of deliberately confusing official actions, and even subtly spread conspiracy theories to mislead public perception.
All of this was to conceal the inexplicable phenomena in the game Twisted Three Kingdoms—phenomena that could not be explained by existing technology. At the same time, they used misleading hints and over-exaggerated denials to forge a direct mental link between Twisted Three Kingdoms and the authorities.
The whole point was to release smokescreens.
Mainly because even the Special Task Force itself had not yet uncovered the truth behind Twisted Three Kingdoms.
If its secrets were exposed too soon or too suddenly, neither government agencies nor the public would be mentally prepared, and chaos would be inevitable.
Secondly, it was also to confuse other factions—especially foreign powers—once the game entered their line of sight in the near future.
This approach bought time both for social stability and for Daxia’s covert investigation and opportunity-seeking.
It was foreseeable—
In the future, various true and false information would continue to be released.
Zhou Zhengming believed that with such full-scale, multi-pronged efforts, at the very least, the game’s secrets could be temporarily covered up in the short to medium term. People would be led to believe that it was a suspected state-level super black-tech project.
Feng Ying continued reporting, “Also, the reservation efforts have progressed to the entire military and various departments. If anyone new is selected for a game slot, we’ll immediately assign them to the Special Task Force’s peripheral units.”
Zhou Zhengming nodded and said, “Remember, the top priority is strict confidentiality. You must strengthen monitoring of all information—no leaks are permitted under any circumstances!”
“Yes, sir!”
Feng Ying returned to her duties.
Zhou Zhengming made himself a cup of sugar-free coffee. While drinking it to stay alert, he habitually refreshed the Twisted Three Kingdoms section of the Starsea Forum to stay updated on the latest happenings within the Abyss Three Kingdoms.
Although it was part of his job, and though he never played games himself, the extensive exposure to forum content over time had sparked considerable curiosity and interest in exploring that world.
Setting aside the game’s bizarreness—
The game itself was undeniably captivating.
Sometimes Zhou Zhengming even thought, if only he had drawn a game slot earlier, he could have experienced it firsthand and investigated more deeply.
The official forum homepage refreshed.
A highly visible, explosive new thread had appeared at the top.
Its title was: “Lord Guan Emperor Appears at Woniu Mountain! Legendary Character from Abyss Three Kingdoms Might Debut!”
Chief Zhou nearly spilled his coffee on the keyboard.
Lord Guan Emperor?
Guan Yu, Guan Yunchang?
No way?
He appeared at Woniu Mountain?
If that wasn’t just clickbait—
Then it was a truly bombshell piece of news.
Zhou Zhengming quickly checked the poster—it was Black-Eyed Rui Ge!
This individual always gave off a hardcore, low-profile, cautious vibe. Normally, he would never fabricate such things. Zhou immediately put down his coffee and clicked into the post.
In the post, Black-Eyed Rui Ge briefly recounted the expedition his team made from the southern route into Woniu Mountain.
They encountered Guan Yu, who was sealed inside a crystal wall.
And also encountered Lady Gan and Lady Mi.
Rui Ge uploaded several in-game screenshots. One showed a massive red crystal wall inside a cave, faintly revealing a humanoid silhouette whose features couldn’t be clearly seen.
Another image was taken in a small valley, showing an abyssal monster standing among a swarm of crows. It had enormous fleshy wings on its back and appeared as a fusion of two female figures, exuding a powerful presence.
These two images immediately stirred a frenzy among netizens.
“Fr, is this real?”
“Guan Emperor’s making his appearance already?”
“No way, the second test isn’t even over yet, and such a heavyweight character has already shown up?”
“I don’t doubt Rui Ge, but I question the guy in the crystal—on what basis does he claim to be Lord Guan?”
“That monster looking like ‘Nightmare Aberrant Busera’ is supposed to be Lady Gan and Lady Mi? Can the game’s art designers stop being so unhinged? Can’t we have decent-looking beauty characters for once?”
“Oh no! Don’t tell me my Diao Chan will look like this too!”
“Impossible. Absolutely impossible. Lady Gan and Lady Mi turned out this way mainly because of forty years of corruption. My Diao Chan and the Qiao sisters will definitely be fine. Otherwise, the devs have no humanity left!”
“……”
It was clear that Black-Eyed Rui Ge had posted this from within the game, so it was written hastily, merely summarizing the situation without offering any conclusion or opinions.
As a result, the reactions from Cloud Players were mostly skeptical.
No one dared believe that Lord Guan would make an appearance so soon.
The fusion of Lady Mi and Lady Gan into a twin corrupted monster also sparked intense discussion, mostly because the BOSS’s design was far too grotesque.
Zhou Zhengming didn’t dwell on the comments. He exited the thread immediately, hoping to find more valuable intelligence.
Wang Yue had yet to log out of the game.
So Zhou Zhengming began browsing other player disclosures.
Not long after, Chimera Wraith posted a freshly made thread, and Zhou Zhengming’s eyes lit up the moment he saw this player’s ID.
Compared to Black-Eyed Rui Ge, who preferred analyzing strategies and gameplay mechanics, the opinions of Chimera Wraith—who was more of a lore and narrative enthusiast—held greater referential value and could potentially resolve some public doubts.
Chimera Wraith briefly recounted the incident in the post.
She also took the opportunity to respond to some of the Cloud Players' questions.
“……”
“Everyone, there’s no need to be overly suspicious!”
“The Guan Yu we encountered is most likely real!”
“However, don’t celebrate too soon. While this Guan Yu is genuine, he is not the original body of Guan Yu, but one of countless clones or projections.”
“The true body of Lord Guan is not at Woniu Mountain, so recruiting him into the territory for now is out of the question. But I believe that through this interaction, Lord Guan has established a connection with our Lord, perhaps even leaving a hint for future events.”
“Now may not be the best time to recruit him, but there may be opportunities in the future.”
“……”
“We noticed that everyone has many questions.”
“Due to time constraints, we can’t answer them all, so we’ll try to address a few of the most frequently asked.”
“First, what is Guan Yu’s level?”
“Sorry, we don’t know. But judging from the fact that Guan Yu’s true body has cultivated for countless years, his strength must have reached a realm beyond mortal comprehension—possibly even able to battle an Abyssal Evil God directly!”
“Even the clone he left at Woniu Mountain had been suppressing the corruption there for several decades, which alone demonstrates just how overwhelmingly powerful an existence of this level is.”
“I estimate that even if this clone possesses only a sliver of its original strength, its power still rivals the core corruption source of Woniu Mountain. However, as a clone, it cannot absorb or destroy the source, so it could only use a sealing method to suppress the corruption.”
“Second, just how many Guan Yus are there?”
“I’ve previously speculated on similar settings based on multiverse theory.”
“In the past, I suspected there could be countless Guan Yus—Guan Yu from the Oath of the Peach Garden, Guan Yu from the Battle of Guandu, Guan Yu from the Flooding of the Seven Armies…”
“According to this kind of multiverse theory, every timeline node might produce a different version or state of Guan Yu. Players might encounter a young, untested Guan Yunchang, or a mighty and world-renowned Guan Yu.”
“But now, it seems the situation might differ greatly from my initial expectations!”
“My current hypothesis is that when one’s strength or Fate reaches a certain threshold, the character will awaken their divinity and resonate with or link to their other selves across timelines. Ultimately, this leads to a core body that gathers nearly all Fate and resembles a deity, along with countless clones or projections.”
“Even if these clones or projections are destroyed, they pose no harm to the core body.”
“Although our interaction with Guan Yu was brief—”
“It still yielded many clues.”
“Guan Yu revealed that his true body had exhausted its Fate while battling an Abyssal Evil God. Now, he has been tainted by corruption and fallen into slumber. This is one of the reasons why the projection at Woniu Mountain is becoming weaker and is about to fail in suppressing the mountain’s corruption source.”
“We have reason to suspect that aside from their differing cultivation durations and power levels, each clone can also draw power directly from the core body. And if the true body is fully corrupted and falls, the remaining clones might also face catastrophic threats.”
“Of course, the above is just one of my small speculations on the setting!”
“The current game progress is far too low, and the intelligence gathered is woefully insufficient. Too many details remain unexplained.”
“We’ll continue investigating and researching. If we uncover any major new findings, I’ll definitely make a separate thread to update and elaborate. Those interested can stay tuned.”
“Third, why is Guan Yu sealing the corruption at Woniu Mountain?”
“I saw that many players are concerned about this question. After all, given Guan Yu’s strength, even if he’s just a projection, he should be able to dominate the entire Woniu Mountain region.”
“Why did he seal himself together with the core corruption zone to prevent its spread?”
“I believe that not only Guan Yu, but many top-tier figures within the Abyss Three Kingdoms are actively resisting the Abyss. Not only are their true bodies fighting on the front lines, but they’re also sending clones across various time-space zones and Abyssal Dreamworlds to prevent the corruption from spreading.”
“This is most likely to prevent the Will of the Abyss from further devouring time and space, thereby suppressing or weakening the power of the Abyss.”
“It’s not just us Players fighting against the Abyss faction.”
“Countless natives are also burning their Fate to resist the Abyss.”
“Given that we are all human, there may be many opportunities for cooperation!”
“……”
This post by Chimera Wraith addressed many of the hot topics from netizens in detail. Although most of it was speculation based on limited intel and undoubtedly included many inaccuracies, it undeniably offered significant referential and thought-provoking value.
Zhou Zhengming’s expression grew increasingly grave as he read.
He realized that the world of Abyss Three Kingdoms was far more complex than he had imagined.
The top-level existences of Abyss Three Kingdoms were also far more powerful than expected.
At this moment—
Wang Yue logged out.
Zhou Zhengming was overjoyed.
After all, Wang Yue was also a member of Black-Eyed Rui Ge’s team. As a firsthand participant in the operation, he could provide many details that hadn’t been shared in the forum.
This session had lasted nearly twenty hours.
After logging out, Wang Yue first devoured a hearty meal to calm his rumbling stomach, during which he directly recounted the entire operation.
In fact, the general situation matched what Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Chimera Wraith had described. The only difference was that after a full team wipe, their group had recuperated in Luoshui Base Camp for seven to eight hours.
Repair what needs repairing.
Train what needs training.
Turn in what needs to be turned in.
In this mission, Wang Yue made a significant contribution. Not only did he outperform other Tier-One Players in multiple battles, he also directly located the cave where Guan Yu was sealed, which earned him a higher share of Essence.
As for the events before and after contact with Guan Yu—
They were mostly consistent with the forum posts already exposed.
“I’m level 10 now!” Wang Yue said. “I could have barely pushed into Tier-Two, but in order to solidify my foundation, I spent nearly half of my Essence to train skills. Now, aside from Windstep, both Shadowstep and Qi-Slash have been upgraded to max level, and I’ve even learned a new green-quality skill—Flashstep.”
Three max-level skills.
Over thirty attribute points gained.
Although Wang Yue’s panel stats were still behind top-tier elites, among Tier-One Players, he was definitely among the best. This rate of growth was quite impressive—he would likely reach the top tier soon enough.
As planned—
He would log off to rest for several hours.
Then Wang Yue would log back in to once again challenge the Corrupted Twin Form.
Zhou Zhengming asked, “Are you confident you can defeat the monster formed by Lady Mi and Lady Gan?”
Wang Yue replied, “We’ve made a lot of preparations over the past few hours. This time, Ye Li Meng, Lone Boat, Mad Blade Old Wang, Artist General, and Niu Shisan will all join in. I think we won’t have much trouble.”
That’s good.
According to the current intel—
Only by defeating this powerful corrupted monster—
Could Players continue interacting with Guan Yu and advance the storyline.
Zhou Zhengming was very focused on the interaction between Players and Guan Yu, as well as the situation within the core pollution zone.
“What’s your opinion on Guan Yu’s appearance?”
“I basically agree with Chimera Wraith’s view. While there may be some errors due to incomplete intel, it’s probably the most accurate and reasonable explanation so far.”
Zhou Zhengming frowned deeply, clearly in thought.
Wang Yue asked, “Chief Zhou, what’s wrong? Do you think there’s something off?”
Zhou Zhengming said, “My instincts tell me that this Abyss Three Kingdoms is not that simple. Its complexity far exceeds what we’ve seen so far, and it’s highly likely just the tip of the iceberg of a much more vast world. I can hardly imagine how immense the full Abyss World might be.”
Wang Yue was taken aback. “Why do you think that, Chief?”
Zhou Zhengming answered, “There’s no way the Abyss World consists only of the Three Kingdoms Plane. If the few hundred years of the Three Kingdoms period can sink into the Abyss and become one Abyssal Plane, is it not possible that the rest of humanity’s history and myths have also formed other planes?”
Wang Yue was briefly speechless.
In fact, Players had already speculated about this.
Many suspected that the number of Abyssal Planes might be limitless.
It was just that the Three Kingdoms happened to have sunk exceptionally deep and produced stronger Abyssal Creatures.
Zhou Zhengming continued, “According to the current intel, the Land of the Stars contains tens of thousands of races. Each race may have its own history and legends—could those histories and legends have also been corrupted by the Abyss, forming countless other planes?”
“That’s not even the most concerning part.”
“The Stars and the Abyss seem to be in some kind of direct opposition.”
“The Stars send Lords to conquer Abyssal Planes and purify Nightmare Corruption, while the Abyss must be constantly eroding the Stars.”
Zhou Zhengming paused and went on, “This suggests that the power of the Abyss goes beyond just corrupting history. What if we ourselves exist within one historical fragment? Is it possible that one day, the Abyss might descend upon our real-world reality?”
If reality were to be corrupted by the Abyss—or invaded by the Stars—the consequences would be unimaginable.
Wang Yue said, “I think... maybe it won’t get that serious, right?”
Zhou Zhengming replied, “Our job requires bottom-line thinking. No matter how unlikely something seems, we must always consider the worst-case scenario. After all, there’s growing evidence suggesting that Twisted Three Kingdoms is not just a simple game.”
Chief Zhou’s concern was not without reason.
Wang Yue suddenly felt a heavy burden.
This game that currently seemed inconspicuous, hadn’t even caused much impact on society yet, and was only popular on the internet—might one day truly reshape or even bring catastrophe to the real world.
Wang Yue immediately said, “I believe the Land of the Stars may hold many answers. The top priority is still to secure a Follower Slot.”
Zhou Zhengming nodded in agreement. “The latest batch of special funds has been approved. Don’t worry about anything. No matter the cost, you must obtain one of those slots.”
“Of course, your in-game identity must remain confidential. At the very least, no Players should be able to tell you’re an official agent.”
Wang Yue replied, “Don’t worry, Chief Zhou. I’ve been in this line of work for over a decade. I know exactly what to do and when. I’ll never draw unnecessary attention to myself. Twisted Three Kingdoms is still just a game—for now.”
Hearing that—
Zhou Zhengming finally relaxed.
……
At this time, Player Arthur King had already successfully reached level 6.
Upon learning that one of the most powerful historical figures of the Three Kingdoms had appeared at Woniu Mountain, he became extremely excited. He even released a dedicated video introducing Guan Yu to his Western audience who weren’t familiar with Three Kingdoms history.
Naturally, this matter quickly stirred overseas discussion and attention.
“I didn’t know Daxia’s history was this fascinating!”
“I just finished reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Every character has so much depth—vivid and distinct. It’s the perfect source material!”
“If not for the increasing wave of news, I wouldn’t believe Daxians could develop such a groundbreaking game!”
“Whether it’s the technology or the narrative format—it’s a total game-changer for the industry!”
“I’ve signed up too!”
“Hope the devs give our country more slots!”
“I want to become a knight serving the Lord, offering my loyalty and strength, and fight alongside the Calamity Army to purge the Abyss!”
“Arthur, can you level up faster? With your current power, you can’t even participate in something this important!”
“Yeah! Maybe the better Western Players perform, the more slots we’ll get!”
“Fake. All fake. This game doesn’t even exist. Think about it—there’s no way Daxians have this level of virtual reality tech!”
“There’s definitely some Daxia government conspiracy behind it!”
“……”
Arthur King looked over his fans’ comments. Many were ridiculing his level and power.
He was quite helpless in response.
He really had tried his best.
He was already level 6. Though his pace wasn’t slow, it was still incredibly hard to catch up with first-test elites like Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Ye Li Meng.
“Don’t rush, everyone!”
“Today I’m heading to the Woniu Mountain map to level up!”
“There’s a Stone Monster Valley there that spawns high-level mobs. They’re not too hard to kill, and the experience and loot are great. I’ll hit level 10 in three days and break into Tier-Two within five. May the Lord bless me with smooth progress!”
Arthur King reassured his fans.
Having rested enough, he immediately entered his newly purchased luxury Gaming Capsule and resumed the game.
When Arthur King woke up.
He appeared in the barracks of the main city of Luoshui.
By now, the barracks had already undergone renovation. Over a dozen barrack buildings had been transformed into more than a dozen multi-story buildings, and other territory facilities were also being continuously improved and modified under the efforts of the native workers.
After playing the game for a few days.
Arthur King had already fully experienced the charm of this game.
He believed this game would definitely become the next global-dominating super online game, potentially attracting tens of millions, or even more players to join.
It might even become humanity's shared spiritual home.
The opportunities within were simply too vast!
Although he had entered the game a bit late, there was still a chance to seize the initiative—at the very least, he could strive to become a representative of the Western player faction, or even the leader of a Western faction or guild.
Just thinking about it was enough to make one excited!
The benefits within were simply enormous!
He had to quickly level up while the number of players was still low!
Arthur King didn’t idle around Luoshui City, nor did he immediately take action with his companions. Instead, he went straight to Kiba Grand Restaurant.
Now, the first thing players did after logging in was go to the canteen to eat—it could both fill their stomachs to restore energy and prevent weakness, and also grant a beneficial attribute buff for upcoming actions.
In addition—
Whenever a task was successfully completed,
Or a significant breakthrough was achieved,
Players liked to come here to treat others to a meal.
This made Kiba Grand Restaurant a place of daily fortune.
Aji and Aba, the two pigmen chefs from the Land of the Stars, were silently raking in huge profits, and the commission they earned was no less than that of the newly arrived alchemists and forgers.
Arthur King already had five or six stable companions.
Their common trait was that they all came from Western countries, and this had become the foundational team for his pursuit of dreams.
Woniu Mountain was too dangerous.
Arthur King decided to spend money to hire one or two Chinese players around level 10. But he ended up with a cold reception—not a single level 10 or above player accepted his invitation.
Could it be that these players didn’t enjoy slaying with blades?
No—it was because they had more important things to do!
Ye Li Meng, Black-Eyed Rui Ge, and 42 Tier-Two Players, along with 87 level-10 players, were all gathered at Shansang Ancient City at this moment.
"This expedition allows only victory, not defeat!"
"Move out!"
Ye Li Meng raised the Thousand-Skull Hammer in his hand and shouted.
"Fourth Calamity shall triumph!"
"Fourth Calamity shall triumph!"
This elite force of the Calamity Army was fully equipped, brimming with battle spirit and soaring morale, as they once again ventured deep into Woniu Mountain.
It turned out that after the previous failure, Black-Eyed Rui Ge had already realized that with just the twenty-something people he organized, it was difficult even to defeat the Corrupted forms of Lady Gan and Lady Mi, let alone break through the Core Corruption Zone.
But now—
With full preparation,
The elite forces of the Calamity Army were all deployed.
Including Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Ye Li Meng, many had gained results from the Enlightenment Tower, and their overall strength had significantly increased!
The goal of this expedition was only one!
To break through the Core Corruption Zone completely!
To fully unveil the true face of Woniu Mountain!