These People Are Too Rich

"Sage Lu, it seems there's movement from the Illusion Alliance again!"

Zhong Yi arrived at the Spirit Jade Pavilion with a serious expression.

"Senior Brother Zhong, you'd better stop calling me that... I'm really not used to hearing it."

Somehow, being called a Sage by a peerlessly good person like Zhong Yi made Lu Ze feel a bit awkward, his toes curling involuntarily.

"Then... Early Saint Lu?"

"...Senior Brother Zhong, ever since the Black Yellow Qi entered my body, I've had another epiphany. Perhaps I'll be able to break through very soon."

"Haha, just kidding!"

Zhong Yi let out a dry laugh.

Last time, Zhou Qiaoling mentioned that Lu Ze could already withstand Li Moran's sword techniques;

once he broke through to the Soul Formation stage, he himself would no longer be his match...

"Let's get down to business. 'Eight Directions Venerable' has released a new map and a new mode... It's obviously targeting 'Operation Immortal Abyss Continent'!"

Zhong Yi said sternly.

"Oh? They haven't given up yet."

Lu Ze blinked.

He hadn't expected the people from the Illusion Alliance to be so persistent.

Even though his 'Operation Immortal Abyss Continent' was already incredibly popular, and he had even triggered a saintly phenomenon yesterday, they still hadn't given up.

Sure enough, people have a lot of patience when doing bad deeds.

"Junior Brother Lu, I'm just worried that they might affect your path to sainthood!"

Zhong Yi emphasized with a worried look.

"Are you really not going to go in and take a look?"

Lu Ze nodded helplessly. "Alright, then I'll go in and take a look with you..."

Hearing this, Zhong Yi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Lu Ze's path in the Dao of Illusions had been too smooth, and he was somewhat worried that Lu Ze might stumble due to arrogance.

'Looking at it this way, Junior Brother Lu isn't as arrogant as everyone thinks...'

Zhong Yi thought to himself.

"...to see just how ordinary other people's illusions really are."

Lu Ze stretched and continued.

Zhong Yi: "..."

...

...

Half an hour later.

Lu Ze and Zhong Yi exited the illusion together.

The former had a dull expression, while the latter was deep in thought.

"Senior Brother Zhong, what do you think of the loot-extraction mode in 'Eight Directions Venerable'?"

Lu Ze yawned and asked.

"Although it's not as good as 'Operation Immortal Abyss Continent'... it's an opponent that cannot be underestimated! Junior Brother Lu, you need to be careful!"

Zhong Yi answered with a serious expression.

Lu Ze became interested. "Oh? Why do you think so?"

Zhong Yi briefly organized his thoughts and replied:

"Although Junior Brother Lu's gunfight design is good, the battle of cultivation techniques and moves in 'Eight Directions Venerable' is more easily accepted by cultivators... Regardless of which is superior, the clash of techniques and moves is bound to attract a considerable audience."

"Furthermore, their loot-extraction mode is an imitation of 'Operation Immortal Abyss Continent'. The foundation is there... no matter how bad it is, it won't be that bad."

"Moreover... the quality of their map is quite high!"

After listening to Zhong Yi's analysis, Lu Ze nodded with some approval.

"Yes, the last point makes some sense... Their map somewhat exceeded my expectations."

Lu Ze said.

Map design is a profound field of study.

An excellent map design can often popularize a game mode.

For example, DUST2 in CS from his previous life could be considered a timeless classic in competitive FPS.

Lu Ze originally thought that with the cultivators' shallow understanding of games, their map production would be very superficial.

However, the map in 'Eight Directions Venerable' actually had some commendable points.

One could see many traces of the core designs from Dam Zero and Ascension Base within it.

The gap between this and the illusion maps previously released by the Illusion Alliance was so large that Lu Ze even felt these guys had used some sort of secret technique to deduce it.

However, while the map design was good, there was still some distance between it and the level of Dam Zero and Ascension Base.

"Junior Brother Lu only thinks the map is good? Everything else is...?"

Zhong Yi was suddenly a bit puzzled.

In his view, the map was actually the weakest of the three advantages of 'Eight Directions Venerable'.

Yet in Lu Ze's eyes, he didn't seem to care about the clash of techniques or the essence of loot-extraction at all.

"Then let me give you a little pointer..."

Lu Ze pinched his chin, suddenly feeling that Zhong Yi had great potential to be a game designer, so he patiently began to explain.

When creating 'Operation Immortal Abyss Continent', Lu Ze deliberately chose not to use cultivation techniques and moves as the combat gameplay, unlike 'Naraka: Bladepoint'.

The reason was simple.

The explosive popularity of the loot-extraction genre was centered on diverse player culture.

If the clash of techniques relied on cultivation base to one-shot opponents, it would lose the fun of the game;

if it was made like 'Naraka: Bladepoint', with blow-by-blow mind games, then sneaky players, campers, and even CS players would lose a considerable amount of survival space.

With such a design, the addition of 'loot-extraction' would make the illusion feel more like exploring a secret realm, thereby losing the fun of a game.

As for the plagiarism of the loot-extraction elements...

Lu Ze wanted to laugh even more.

The cultivators who made 'Eight Directions Venerable' always looked at problems through the values of cultivators.

What is most valuable in the eyes of cultivators?

High-tier techniques, supreme holy relics, heavenly materials and earthly treasures...

Therefore, the red-tier items in 'Eight Directions Venerable' were all these things.

Even the 3D models were made according to the real objects.

The problem was, setting aside their effects and uses, what difference was there between these things and ordinary books or plants?

Finding a Heaven-tier technique in an illusion with an extravagant description but that cannot be cultivated, versus finding a dazzling, radiant Star of Africa, which one gives players a greater sense of achievement?

The top-tier red items Lu Ze made all had flashy designs, even incorporating some sci-fi elements.

Cultivators didn't need to understand them at all, or even know what they were used for.

Even if it was just a doll, just looking at its appearance, a cultivator would know it was a red item. Looting it just felt great!

Not to mention the loot-extraction mechanics that used grid squares to represent item size, and where rarer items took longer to search.

When players saw a 3x3 or 3x4 item, they would subconsciously tremble with excitement, and the thrill naturally followed.

So although 'Eight Directions Venerable' copied it, they didn't copy the essence.

Lu Ze wasn't afraid at all.

After Lu Ze's pointers, Zhong Yi gradually understood the gap between them.

"So that's how it is... To think there are so many details hidden behind an illusion. No wonder you could prove your Dao through illusions! As expected of Junior Brother Lu!"

Zhong Yi sighed with heartfelt emotion.

"However... they did one thing absolutely right."

Lu Ze said frankly.

"Oh? There's actually something that Junior Brother Lu thinks is good?"

Zhong Yi was surprised.

Lu Ze looked at the announcement in the illusion, which had a plain interface but offered generous rewards.

"The spirit stone rewards they're giving away... are so damn high!"

"These guys are way too rich!!!"

...

...

Luofeng Continent, Illusion Alliance Base.

As elders, Blood Crow and Rakshasa kept their eyes constantly fixed on the status of 'Eight Directions Venerable'.

The two of them were the main force behind the creation of 'Eight Directions Venerable', so they naturally paid extra attention to it.

At this point, 'Eight Directions Venerable' had been online for three days.

The transition from the pleasant surprise on the first day to the desolation on the third day left the two of them completely baffled.

There were many players on the first day, a full five times more than the previous player count of 'Eight Directions Venerable'!

This was enough to show the sheer appeal of the Treasure Hunting mode!

However, by the second day, the numbers experienced a severe drop.

By the third day, most players were simply idling to get their playtime rewards, claiming their Spirit Stones and immediately leaving.

Right now, there were only four days left until the rankings for the Illusion Realm rewards were announced.

The two of them racked their brains, yet they still couldn't figure out exactly where the Treasure Hunting mode of "Venerables of the Eight Directions" had gone wrong.