Upon hearing this, the players immediately calmed down.

The ability to ignore protective formations and freely enter any place in the game was almost equivalent to a Divine Artifact. It was natural that conditions would be attached to this.

Many people were already contemplating how to win favor with Lin Bai and acquire the status of a reporter.

...

"Lin, the Storekeeper, have you ever heard of cameras or cell phones at the Righteous Door?" Crazy Man persisted in his quest to learn more about the Righteous Door.

"Perhaps! The Righteous Door has many treasures. I have limited energy and can't know them all." Lin Bai furrowed his brows slightly, providing a vague answer. He looked at Crazy Man and smiled, saying, "Little Crazy, I know you yearn for the Righteous Door, but to enter it, you must make yourself outstanding. Asking me about the Righteous Door now is meaningless."

"Oh!" Crazy Man absentmindedly responded. Lin Bai's words were vague, but they revealed a lot of information.

The official background for the Righteous Door seemed to borrow heavily from modern elements. Even though this made an Immortal World game feel incongruous, Crazy Man accepted it.

After all, there were no similar games on the market. It was a monopoly.

If he wanted to continue playing the game, he had to accept this crappy setup.

Maybe it'll give me a surprise in the end! Crazy Man comforted himself.

...

Lin Bai put the press pass away again.

Suddenly, his eyes brightened, and he couldn't help but swallow, thinking to himself, I'm going to be rich!

Lin Bai took out the voice recorder and scanned the Players gathered around. He smiled and said, "Do you remember the Lightning Storm before? To prevent any accidents from happening again, let's have a drill in advance! Mad Man, you organize the Heavenly Descendants, start with ten people."

"HOLY SHIT!"

The moment Crazy Man saw the voice recorder, he understood what Lin Bai intended to do. His face changed slightly, and he couldn't suppress his outburst.

Lin Bai's energy-storing bracelet grew slightly warm as a current of electricity flowed into it.

Crazy Man knew the power of Lin Bai's Palm Thunder. Truth be told, he didn't want to charge Lin Bai's voice recorder at all.

The Righteous Door even possesses high-tech items, making Lin Bai seem more and more like a villain. It's highly probable they're the masterminds, just like in the movies—the kind who aim to rule the world to achieve their own goals... If that's really the case, then the roles we Players are taking on are likely those of saviors, helping the natives save the world! Boosting Lin Bai's strength at this juncture would only mean creating more obstacles for ourselves in the near future. Every bolt of lightning that strikes a Player in the future will be one they themselves chanted into existence. How ironic! What the hell is this? Who was that idiot who claimed that chanting tongue-twisters together could deplete Lin Bai's Inner Strength due to an official bug designed to limit him? This is clearly a cheat the game gave him, and an unbeatable one at that! In any other game, Lin Bai's mana bar would definitely be off the charts...

...

"Any problems?" Lin Bai looked at Crazy Man and asked with a smile.

"Lin, the Storekeeper, I'll take care of it," Silver volunteered, since all the Players were live-streaming. The live-stream comments were diverse, and naturally, some had figured out the voice recorder's 'bug'. However, not every Player was like Crazy Man, thinking so far ahead.

You won't let him use cheats? If the developers enable them later, you won't be able to stop it anyway! For now, it's better to curry favor with Lin, the Storekeeper, grab the benefits, and worry about the future later. Who cares what happens then?

Lin Bai, looking displeased at Crazy Man, nodded to Silver with a smile, "Great, you organize it. Little Deng, assist Silver."

"Alright, Master," Dumbelldore responded promptly.

I'm Lin Bai's direct disciple. The stronger the Righteous Door becomes, the more benefits I'll receive. As long as I'm enjoying the game, who cares if the world is engulfed by a deluge later? Perhaps, after I get my hands on the Righteous Door's resources, I'll even become a key figure in resisting Lin Bai!

Sycophant! Crazy Man suddenly realized what was happening, and quickly plastered a smile on his face, sidling up to Lin Bai, "Lin, the Storekeeper, I'll do it, I'll do it! I was just overwhelmed by the greatness of the Righteous Door and didn't react in time..."

...

The natives didn't understand the purpose of the voice recorder and, at first, didn't grasp what Lin Bai was trying to do.

But when the Players lined up and unevenly began to chant the tongue-twisters, bolts of lightning shot from Lin Bai's palm, charring tall trees in the forest black and scattering the startled birds and beasts.

And when Lin Bai pressed the play button on the voice recorder, unleashing another barrage, Daojing and the others' faces turned extremely ugly in an instant.

Many Golden Core Taoists who had participated in the first siege against Lin Bai were so terrified they nearly wet themselves. If Lin Bai had possessed this Magic Treasure back then, none of them would have made it back alive. The press pass isn't the Divine Artifact; this voice recorder is!

Finally, when five hundred people chanted "Cui Thick Leg" in unison, hundreds of Palm Thunders shot from Lin Bai's palm. They rained down upon the forest, felling an unknown number of trees.

The dread of the Huilong Observant Taoists completely turned into relief. Their dissatisfaction with Lin Bai vanished into thin air. Compared to the Righteous Door, which had mastered the very laws of existence, what was the Heavenly Dao Sect? Nothing!

...

"HOLY SHIT!"

"HOLY SHIT!"

"This game is unplayable!"

"Anyone still want to try and take down Lin Bai? Step up and sign up!"

"Without Nascent Soul cultivation, however many face Lin Bai, that's how many will die!"

"Team up? Outsmart him? It's completely hopeless, isn't it?"

"Maybe a lightning rod would work?"

"A lightning rod won't cut it. You'd need at least the kind of protective suit high-voltage electrical workers wear."

"All useless! The cheat the officials gave Lin Bai is too overpowered. We really have to protest on the forums this time. A BOSS of this level shouldn't appear so early in the game!"

"The poster above has a point. Lin Bai hasn't actively killed any Players so far. What difference does it make when he appears? Which game's final BOSS isn't tough to beat?"

"It's different! You know the BOSS is right there, but you just can't take him down. And you have to watch him get stronger and stronger. Isn't that frustrating?"

"What's infuriating is that you guys are the ones who powered him up!"

"The most critical point is that Lin Bai instills this oppressive feeling that all your efforts are futile. What's the point of playing games? It's the joy of constantly leveling up, growing step by step, challenging bosses, and ultimately achieving victory. And now? The game company has successfully snuffed out that joy."

"Yes, that's exactly it! It's like I worked my ass off, beat everyone to become a manager, and then the guy who started at the same time as me turns out to be the chairman's son and inherits the whole company instantly. Do you know how disheartening that is?"

"Pursuing realism? The game company is just contradicting itself. How is any of this plot realistic? Fine, let the Immortal World have tech products. But since when does a CEO go to the front lines to compete with sales reps for performance? You can't just throw in some pretty scenery and call it realistic. At the very least, your storyline needs to be logical, right!?"

"If this goes on, the Beggar Gang will be pointless too. Before, they could at least play a supporting role, shout a few slogans. Now, they're just extras holding cameras to film Lin Bai's show. There's absolutely no gameplay experience!"

"There has to be a limit to everything! The game company probably doesn't even get who the main characters are supposed to be, right? If all the Players quit, how the hell are they going to make money?"

"The development in 'World of Gods and Demons' next door is much more normal. Everything unfolds naturally; Players grow, NPCs adapt to Players. That's what you call realistic!"

"The game designers for 'Immortal World' must have shit for brains."

"We want to see Players shine, not Lin Bai!"

"Protest! Protest!"

"+1"

"+1"

...

The appearance of voice recorders and video cameras finally provoked public outrage.

The 'Immortal World' forums were flooded with posts demanding the company change the storyline and nerf Lin Bai. Players who hadn't even entered the game yet, along with those in the game but not part of the Beggar Gang, were all whipping up various frenzied discussions.

Players even initiated a boycott of advertisements endorsed by the Beggar Gang, starting a trend of no longer giving any tips or rewards to Beggar Gang Disciples...

Their slogan was: Don't let the game company ruin the game!

...

Perhaps the commotion stirred up by the Players was too significant, or perhaps the appearance of high-tech items like voice recorders was simply too incongruous.

That very day, a rare announcement appeared on the official 'Immortal World' forum:

"1. The game has no bugs. In pursuit of realism, there is no officially predetermined storyline. All plot developments are generated organically as events unfold, and any individual's decisions can potentially alter the course of an event.

2. All NPCs can be killed. Provided you have the capability, Players can also become the final BOSS.

3. Seven days from now, the fifth batch of Pioneer slots will be released. Two hundred thousand individuals will be chosen at random."

The moment this announcement was released, all voices on the forum deeming the game unreasonable vanished instantly.