Ten Thousand Ways To Eliminate Players
Chapter 38 - 038 Dark Dumbledor

Chapter 38: 038 Dark Dumbledor

Dumbelldore posted the incomplete poems written by Lin Bai. Limited by his own literary skills, he could never complete the fill-in-the-blanks Lin Bai had given him on his own. To quickly find the answers, he could only rely on the resourceful netizens. The stir caused by Lin Bai was too significant. All Dumbelldore could do was seize the early opportunities while it was still the internal beta and before everyone had a chance to react.

Just like many people who frequented the game forums, as soon as Dumbelldore’s post went up, a crowd swarmed in:

"First."

"’If life were only like when we first met,’ such a beautiful line. I’m taking it for myself."

"I prefer ’Meeting is hard, and parting is also hard...’"

"The original poster didn’t copy the full poem! May their entire family be cursed!"

"The person above is blind. The OP already said the poem is from the ’Heavenly Remnant Collection’; it’s supposed to be incomplete."

"If this poem was written by an AI, I suspect the game company’s goal in developing this game is to rule the world. You ignorant humans are merely helping the game company complete its final tests. For the sake of all humanity, I request that the government immediately launch an investigation into the game company and destroy all destabilizing factors..."

"The poster above is an idiot. Confirmed."

"What follows ’If two affections are...’? Game writers, please reveal the answer! Releasing such lines is torture for literature lovers like me."

"’If two affections are but for a fleeting moment, it must be full of moans and groans.’"

"Poster above, get out! This is obviously part of the game’s plot. The writers will definitely not reveal the answer."

"Where are the literary giants? The experts in classical literature? The contemporary poets? Come out and complete the poem! AI is issuing a cross-disciplinary challenge; humanity cannot lose."

...

After browsing the post for a while, Dumbelldore shook his head and closed it. Among the numerous replies, not a single one offered a serious answer. All the literary figures seemed to have vanished without a trace, not daring to show their faces. It seems the NPC’s poem really is quite skillful.

Dumbelldore was about to close the forum and return to fooling around in the game when, just as he was about to exit, a highlighted post caught his attention.

"Addictive Brainwashing Song Echoes Through the Alternate World! Marketing Guru Develops New Gameplay!"

A sense of foreboding welled up in Dumbelldore’s heart, and he clicked on the post with trembling hands. Just as he’d feared, what popped up was a short video of him singing and dancing at the entrance of Chef’s Divine Food Stall. In the video, his name was clearly visible above his head. The ’big shot’ who posted it had even thoughtfully added music to the song. And with that, the addictive song sounded even catchier.

The moment he saw the post, Dumbelldore’s mind buzzed, and his heart seemed to stop for half a beat. His face darkened. "Damn!"

Even though it’s a game character in the video, in such a popular game, I’m afraid I’m going to have a spot on the hall of fame. The thought of what might happen when he encountered other Players in the game made Dumbelldore feel the urge to delete his account. It’s too embarrassing!

He continued reading. To his surprise, the post was actually praising him:

"Is fighting and killing the only fun in the Immortal World?

Can lifestyle Players only plant flowers, grow herbs, and fish?

No!

You can also do business in the game world!

While most people are still scrounging for Copper Coins to change their class, Guru Dumbelldore has already pioneered a new way to play. Using modern marketing methods to gather wealth from NPCs, he mobilized the resources of an entire city right from the start, beginning the game at the pinnacle of life!

Facts prove that as long as you’re bold and your moves are slick, you can completely skip the newbie stage from the very beginning of the game..."

"Worshipping the guru!"

"+1."

"The guru is awesome!"

"I’m hooked! Guru Dumbelldore is practically a musical genius. The melody of ’You love me, I love you, Chef’s Divine Food Stall welcomes you’ is stuck in my head now."

"Don’t say anymore, I’ve already started singing along!"

"The dilapidated signboard, the uneven couplets, the addictive brainwashing song... this marketing campaign would make a fortune in the real world, yet the guru used it for a game. Truly rich and willful!"

"I’m from the @#R Advertising Company. Guru Dumbelldore, please PM me. My email is 33444@#￥@qq.c... Our company promises an annual salary of one million."

"I can’t wait to get into the game! Begging for the public beta!"

"Guru Dumbelldore, wait for me! Once I’ve saved enough coins, I’ll come to Jiamucheng to find you..."

"I want to go into the game world to play and write novels simultaneously! I’ll publish them in the real world, and my readers will never have to worry about me discontinuing updates again!"

"Such ambition from the poster above! If it were me, I’d open a tutoring center in the game world. Let my students study while they sleep, guaranteeing every single one gets into a top-tier university!"

"I’m going to enter the game world, use the NPCs’ intellect, and conquer the Nobel Prize."

...

I’m really done for this time!

Browsing through the posts, Dumbelldore’s mouth went dry, his breathing became ragged, and his embarrassment was beyond measure. He’d never expected his careless boasts to be exposed. Who’s such a jerk?

If this had been any other game, what happened would have just happened. But in this game, the NPCs were progressively more intelligent. How could a shrewd person like Lin Bai let someone else take credit for his work?

Dumbelldore wanted to post an explanation on the forum, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Looking at those adoring posts, despite his embarrassment, he felt a secret delight, a feeling he’d never experienced before... Yet, Dumbelldore understood even more clearly that once Players discovered he had stolen an NPC’s creative idea, the more famous he was now, the more infamous he would become later...

Delete my account or not?

If he didn’t, he would face the constant, embarrassing risk of social death—a Player who had stolen an NPC’s glory... Deleting his account meant the hard-won relationship he’d built with Lin Bai would have to start from scratch. Who knew if Lin Bai would even accept him as an apprentice with a new face?

A Super NPC! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

"I must have been possessed! Why did I have to steal an NPC’s credit?!" Dumbelldore finally sighed. "Let’s take a gamble! The marketing strategy for Chef’s Divine Food Stall is completely modern. Lin Bai is from ancient times; even if he spoke out, not everyone would believe him. Probably no one is bored enough to believe what an NPC says, right?"

In the end, wishful thinking prevailed. It wasn’t just because Lin Bai was such a strong backer. It was also because he was reluctant to let go of his "Dumbelldore" account, which was rapidly rising to "Great God" status. Having played many games, he naturally knew how much real-life benefit making a name for himself in such a destined-to-be-sensational game could bring...

However, thinking about Lin Bai’s peculiar ideas and unconventional behavior, Dumbelldore felt uneasy again. After all, among the multitude of NPCs, Lin Bai shone like the Bright Moon. He couldn’t guarantee that Lin Bai only interacted with him, and Players were capable of asking anything.

Suddenly, a spark of inspiration flashed through Dumbelldore’s mind. No, wait, there is a solution! For the sake of realism, all NPCs are disposable. No one would probably investigate the reason if an NPC is killed in the game. Strictly speaking, Lin Bai isn’t exactly a good person either. Killing him could even be considered ridding the people of a scourge.

Once this idea emerged in Dumbelldore’s mind, it became impossible to shake off.

Kill Lin Bai.

This was the only way to preserve his reputation without deleting his account.

Damn this realism! I almost forgot this is just a game. Who hasn’t killed in a game before? Why should I have such a huge psychological burden? I must be getting too caught up in this. Aren’t there evil-path Players in the game? Don’t they kill people? Killing is inevitable sooner or later. Think about all those shooting games, those strategy games... even the plumber dies so many times, life after life! Why agonize so much over a game character? When I betrayed the Blacksmith, I didn’t feel this much of a psychological burden...

Dumbelldore convinced himself with various reasons. Finally, he relaxed completely, murmuring to himself, Let’s get along happily as long as we can. If there’s a risk of a leak, I’ll just kill my master. Worst case, I’ll walk the evil path. No matter how shrewd Lin Bai is, he wouldn’t be wary of his own apprentice, right? But first, I need to learn all his Skills.

...

Having made up his mind, Dumbelldore logged back online. He jogged quickly back to Chef’s Divine Food Stall, calling out enthusiastically to Lin Bai from a distance, "Master, I’m back!"

After spending so much time on the forum, the sky had completely darkened by now.

[Resentment from Dumbelldore +1, +1, +1, +1...]

While Dumbelldore was still far off, a series of notifications popped into Lin Bai’s mind. He looked quizzically at the approaching Dumbelldore.

What the hell? He logged off for a bit, and now he hates me? What got into this guy?

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