Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 84 - 79: The Return Order’s Expedition!

Chapter 84: Chapter 79: The Return Order’s Expedition!

"Did we succeed?"

"Did we clear the ultimate trial?"

Zhao Haiping looked at his hands, recalling the intense pain in his palms and the numbness in his arms when the Eastern Barbarian General had knocked his twin blades away. But now, those sensations had completely vanished.

The players had all departed from the roles they were assuming, moving freely through this historical slice in a state similar to that of souls.

Meanwhile, all their negative statuses had also been removed by the special powers of the Return Order Expedition, and they had returned completely to the initial state they were in when they first entered the historical slice.

Meng Yuan, too, had left the theater in his spiritual body and approached the other four.

Immediately thereafter, they saw everything around them start to reverse!

The fire gradually extinguished, the collapsed beams and columns rebuilt the theater, and the fallen people stood up again...

Soon, the historical slice had returned to its original state.

Yet, the process didn’t stop there; the thieves still invaded the city, and the County Magistrate and others went to meet them in battle, but the development of the entire historical slice was no longer as the players had acted it out before.

They saw Yang Xinyan leave the theater and finally resolve to seek out Gao Ze and inform him of the plan to set the theater ablaze; they saw Gao Ze ultimately die in battle, falling along with the Eastern Barbarian General; they saw Su Xianjun and Yang Xinyan smiling at each other through the blazing flames, joining together in death...

All of this unfolded rapidly before everyone’s eyes like a carousel, appearing natural and reasonable.

Huo Yunying suddenly realized, "This is the true historical scene! According to the game’s settings, true history has been restored!"

Scene by scene unfolded before everyone, and the five fell into silence.

Chu Ge reflected mournfully, "This is real history...

"Honestly, when compared to the real history, the key figures didn’t perform as well as the players.

"Gao Ze couldn’t defeat the Eastern Barbarian General without injury, battling until he was covered in wounds before perishing alongside him and other village militia; Yang Xinyan fought desperately, but he still couldn’t defeat the Wandering Warrior; and Su Xianjun, his singing wasn’t as good as Meng Yuan’s...

"But they were the greatest of people, and no matter how many times players try to simulate—whether a thousand times or ten thousand—they could never reach their heights.

"They are true heroes!"

Zhao Haiping nodded in agreement, "Yes, after all, we can simulate countless times, and we can also gain the power of the Return Order Expedition through the game mechanics, while they, in real history, were just ordinary people with flesh and blood, fear, and hesitation.

"Creating a great legacy with a mortal body, maybe that’s the true essence of ’leaving one’s name in history’..."

Huo Yunying patted Meng Yuan on the shoulder, praising him, "Impressive!

"If it hadn’t been for your portrayal of Su Xianjun, this ultimate trial might have failed. After the demon possessed him, that Eastern Barbarian General’s vigilance and combat power greatly increased. If it hadn’t been for your singing that detained him, imagine the consequences if he had rushed out on his warhorse before setting the fire."

Xia Ruoling concurred, "Indeed, even with a Return Order talent backing you, to perform the way you did takes a lot of behind-the-scenes effort."

Meng Yuan paused for a moment, "No, I think you four were more ferocious; I merely coasted to victory."

Chu Ge smiled, "You’re being too modest! But you’re right, everyone did great!"

The praise from everyone was sincere and heart-felt.

This was the 100% pain sensory ultimate trial instance, and although it was largely similar to simulated trials, the appearance of demons added some variability, and it was only through everyone’s countless times of speedrunning and flawless experience that they successfully cleared the trial.

Their first attempt at a multiplayer instance and achieving such good coordination was indeed a cause for celebration.

"So, what should we do next?"

As Zhao Haiping raised this question, the real history had just concluded. The entire historical slice froze again, and several lines of text appeared in everyone’s perspective.

[Ultimate Trial: A Legacy Sealed Until the Coffin Closes]

[Cleared!]

[The historical slice altered by demons has been twisted back to its true state, and under the effort of the Return Order Expedition, the sealed history has finally seen the light of day once more.]

[But the battle is not over yet.]

[The barriers of this historical slice have been broken, and while the Return Order Expedition’s power can now penetrate deeper into this slice, the demons will not relinquish control of this historical slice so easily.]

[Resist the demon’s assault, clear all the demons in this historical slice!]

After these rows of text disappeared, the historical slice underwent changes again.

The local village militia and laborers all gradually vanished, turning the small county town into something akin to a ghost town.

Subsequently, as if enduring years of erosion, the houses and city walls within the county began to decay as if they were relics sealed away for years.

Within this empty city, only the five players remained.

Then, the sky also became grim and dark.

And this gloom was different from before.

Previously, one could feel that it was nighttime, but now, it was as if the sun had disappeared from this world, as if the whole county town had been peeled away from the real world, like an isolated island suspended above purgatory!

The crowd rushed to the city walls and looked into the distance, only to see the horizon filled with swirling sandstorms and black mists.

It seemed as if countless demons were ready to stir!

Zhao Haiping, Chu Ge, Huo Yunying, and Xia Ruoling couldn’t help but glance at each other.

They had thought that defeating the Eastern Barbarian bandit possessed by demons marked the end, but it was only the beginning!

After rectifying the altered slice of history, it meant that the barriers constructed by the demons for this historical slice had been broken, but the demons wouldn’t just let it go; they would reclaim this battlefield at all costs!

Although the demons attacking now weren’t particularly powerful, their numbers would be far beyond imagination.

Clearly, this was not something a few players could handle.

"What do we do now?" Everyone was somewhat undecided, and the system didn’t offer any further hints.

After a moment of silence, Meng Yuan said, "What else can we do? Let’s call for reinforcements!"

...

At the same time, players experiencing the usual Trial Illusion had a notification pop up in their fields of vision.

[Ultimate Trial Completion!]

[The barriers of this historical slice have been breached, Return Order Expedition gameplay officially begins!]

[Would you like to accept the summon now, enter this historical slice, and fight side by side with other returners to combat the demons?]

The players had been playing this instance for many days and were a bit tired of it.

But the moment they saw the notification, their spirits lifted, and they snapped awake!

Those top-notch pros had succeeded, and they broke the ultimate trial with 100% pain sensation on their first attempt!

The official announcement mentioned, "Return Order Expedition" network team battle gameplay had begun!

Could anyone possibly refuse the summons?

That was impossible!

The players accepted without hesitation.

Afterward, their forms turned into streaks of white light and were transported to the historical slice where Zhao Haiping and the others were!

...

The sandstorm grew stronger, and the black mist seemed to spread continuously.

In the distance, hidden by the black mist, they could faintly see many troops of Eastern Barbarian bandits approaching the county town!

The bandits all emitted black vapors and their eyes were pitch black, akin to hollow voids.

They approached from every direction with a single target in mind, to reclaim the county town, to reclaim this slice of history!

But just then, a shooting star streaked across the sky.

The somber sky seemed to be instantly torn asunder, bringing a glimmer of light.

Following that, the shooting star fell into the county town, transforming into a warrior-looking character.

Clearly, this was a player who had been summoned to provide support!

This warrior-player looked around in disbelief: "This is the new instance for Return Order Expedition? The atmosphere is killer! Although it still uses the small county town’s artistic resources, the details have changed significantly, full of an epic feeling!"

Shortly afterward, he noticed Zhao Haiping and others.

"Hey, aren’t these the top players? Can I get an autograph from you all after this?"

Then, more and more shooting stars crossed the sky, becoming denser and denser!

Dozens, hundreds, thousands of players transformed into shooting stars tore through the gloomy sky, continuously landing within the county town.

Soon, the earthen city walls were filled with players.

And this was not over yet; more players were still being summoned!

Seeing this scene, Chu Ge and others finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, the players were never fighting alone!

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