Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 160: "Ascension" Trailer (First Update)

Chapter 160: Chapter 160: "Ascension" Trailer (First Update)

Saturday, 9 p.m.

Gu Fan yawned, filled a cup of water from the nearby water dispenser, and then made his way to the living room.

Lilith was sitting cross-legged in front of the large TV, clutching the controller tightly and concentrating fully on the enemies before her.

Gu Fan silently took a seat on the couch to watch.

It had been four days since the game "Ascension" entered its official testing phase.

Employees from top to bottom at Nitiandang were intensively playing the game while also noting down bugs.

So far, the company’s backend had logged over 170 bugs, ranging in size from small to large.

Small issues like texture errors or clipping, and large ones like game crashes or corrupted files, were all present.

These bugs were giving everyone headaches.

If it were any other game, over a hundred bugs might seem numerous, but they wouldn’t be difficult to handle; just submit and fix them according to standard procedures, and they could always be corrected eventually.

But "Ascension" was different, President Gu had said that some bugs needed to be fixed while others did not!

So, which bugs needed to be fixed, and which didn’t? That became a technical job.

It was like picking red beans from green beans in a pocket.

If the goal was to pick out all the red beans, although tedious, there would eventually be an end to it.

But what if the requirement was to only select the larger red beans? And to leave a hundred smaller red beans among a bag of green ones?

That was pure torment!

Thus, the employees at Nitiandang once again began to question their life choices.

The testing team in particular had never seen such an absurd method of testing. It was only because Su Tong was conscientious, set a good example, and the bonus was substantial, that the others could even bear to continue.

Of course, the good news was that Lilith was also being tormented by this game.

Initially, Gu Fan had her play in the study on the first floor of the villa using a keyboard and mouse, but after she had destroyed a desk and four keyboards, Gu Fan felt that this couldn’t go on.

So he moved the laptop to the living room, connected it to the large TV, and let Lilith play with a controller.

Since the controllers Gu Fan bought were relatively cheap domestic brands and quite durable against falls, it significantly reduced the losses.

On the big screen at this moment, Lilith was controlling the protagonist of the game: a Cultivator wearing a tattered Daoist robe and a straw hat missing a section.

Previously, the game DEMO Lilith had tested used free resources from the editor, and although the protagonist also had an Immortal Cultivation style, he was graceful and at ease, which didn’t match the background of "Ascension" at all.

The image of the official version’s protagonist, however, had undergone radical changes.

The main character’s name was "Li Huanzhen," and he had an English name in the sci-fi world called "Vision Lee."

His tattered Daoist gown was quite interesting, with his left sleeve being quite large and concealing a skeletal hand beneath, wrapped in special dark bamboo scrolls that resembled an oversized wrist guard, threaded with blood-red silk and only visible during certain actions; the right sleeve was a neat arrow sleeve, holding a notched iron sword.

On the protagonist’s back was also a special longsword, which appeared to be made of stone or jade, with a base color that shifted from translucent white to pale yellow, and spots and patterns of deep yellow or black occasionally appearing on it.

Upon closer inspection, it was evident that the sword was not straight, but had a strange, curved arc.

Lilith focused intently on the TV screen, controlling the gameplay with dedication.

After just half a minute, Li Huanzhen’s body swelled and exploded, turning into a large firework display on the screen, and a big character appeared: "Collapse"!

"Ah!!"

Lilith angrily threw the controller onto the floor with a "smack," causing it to bounce up high.

In the game "Ascension," "Collapse" roughly equated to "Death."

However, "Collapse" actually had more implications; in the world of Immortal Cultivation, it represented the breakdown of spirit and the disintegration of flesh, while in the sci-fi world, it signified the crash of AI programs and the mechanical body shattering and exploding.

Gu Fan silently picked up the controller, checked that it wasn’t severely damaged, and handed it back.

Lilith was still furious, "Gu Fan! This modifier you added for me is utterly useless! Why can’t I still defeat the bosses in this game?"

Gu Fan cleared his throat twice, "President Li, these modifications are already quite outrageous. Maybe you should just use the modifier to lock the health."

Lilith’s face was still dark, but gradually her anger subsided, "Fine, I’ll give it another shot."

After speaking, she picked up the controller again to continue her challenge.

Gu Fan had indeed provided Lilith with a special cheat item as she had requested.

This item was the "Relic Sword" she was carrying on her back.

The Relic Sword was an item that existed in the original game content and would normally be obtained mid-game at the Monastery of True Words.

However, according to normal progression, players had to defeat the special mechanism BOSS and cremate the old abbot in the temple to refine his spine into a relic and acquire the Relic Sword.

There were two Relic Swords, one named "Zhen" and the other "Huan."

These swords couldn’t be used in regular combat but could consume life and conviction values to unleash special martial techniques.

"Zhen" could cause an enemy’s AI to become confused, or even trigger a BUG. When used on a BOSS, it would result in a high toughness-reducing effect and minor damage.

"Huan," on the other hand, could cut open a rift to another world, banishing weaker enemies directly. When used on a BOSS, it would deal substantial damage and a small toughness-reducing effect.

In the normal game process, players could only choose one, and they still needed to consume various materials and items to upgrade them afterward.

By the time it was fully upgraded, the game would also be nearing its end.

In the beta version Gu Fan gave to Lilith, he directly placed the "Zhen" sword in her inventory at the beginning, with max level damage effect by default.

This meant that, early on, Lilith could easily hack through enemies with the brute force of the "Zhen" sword, significantly lowering the difficulty of defeating BOSSes.

And when Lilith progressed in the game to the Monastery of True Words, she could acquire the other sword, "Huan," using both of the swords that were legendary in the narrative.

Unexpectedly, even after going to these lengths, Lilith was still stumbling through the game, getting stylishly slain by various BOSSes.

Fortunately, despite "crashing" countless times along the way, Lilith was gradually getting better, and it seemed like two or three more days would be enough for her to clear the game.

Gu Fan returned to the sofa and sat down, took out his phone to refresh, and found that the promo for "Ascension" had already been released on the official platform’s media account.

This time, the promotion for "Ascension" was more comprehensive than the previous few games. Although the game was scheduled for release on February 1st, a Saturday, early promotional activities could already officially begin.

...

Meanwhile, Instructor Ding also came across the promo video for "Ascension."

"Hm? A new game from Nitiandang is out!

"Well, a game in the action genre? Looks like Nitiandang is going to pull off something big this time!

"Action games are great, I have quite the talent for action games. Hey, wait, it’s developed by the All-encompassing Engine? Isn’t that the official engine that’s always being promoted but has never taken off, the one that’s all bugs?

"I’ve got a bad feeling about this...

"But since it’s a Nitiandang title, I’m still looking forward to it. After all, Nitiandang’s games have never had any bugs!"

Instructor Ding, with excitement, clicked to watch the video.

The video started with the Nitiandang game logo, the official platform’s "Rated for 18 and older" sign, and a small text disclaimer stating "The current footage is from in-game development and does not represent the final product."

Next, a distant landscape appeared on the screen.

It seemed like a typical Immortal Cultivation World game, with mountains stretching on capped with snow, traditional Huaxia-style buildings standing tall, and mythical beasts carved onto the majestic flying eaves.

In the distance, you could faintly make out some floating islands, cliffs adorned with green pine and cypress, and a wooden suspension bridge connecting two peaks.

However, the twilight sky emitted a strangely deep red hue, adding a sense of eeriness to the entire world.

The next scene shifted to a figure wearing a bamboo hat atop a sharp rooftop, as a blood moon slowly rose behind him.

In the temple at the mountain summit, a giant Buddha statue collapsed thunderously, and an old monk with a withered face burst into flames, extending his right hand behind his neck in a bizarre gesture, seemingly pulling out something amid the blaze.

"Do you want to see the reality of this world, or the illusion?

"Or perhaps... reality is also an illusion?"

A piercing cry of a crane rang out, and a Cultivator riding a giant crane emerged among the clouds, holding a talisman that could summon thunder and lightning in his hand. With a flick of his fingers, thunder struck towards the boy in the tattered Taoist robe.

In the dark cavern of flesh, a bizarre creature with a body torn asunder writhed with fleshy tentacles, and faces of flesh appeared on the walls in sync with its chanting.

The boy in the tattered robe waved the sleeve of his left arm, and a black bamboo slip threaded with crimson silk unfolded. Each slip acted like a narrow pentagonal plaque, transforming into a ribbed shield to block the attacks from the front.

Then, with his left hand reduced to bare bones, he violently plucked out his own heart and crushed it. Blood splattered on the bamboo slips, instantly erupting into fierce flames that engulfed both himself and the scene before him.

At the summit’s pavilion, a general clad in heavy armor spoke through the flesh writhing under his armor, "Only Ascension can save this world!"

At the end of the video was a Flesh Monster that looked terrifyingly large, like a giant octopus with many tentacles, but upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a conglomerate of various monsters. Each tentacle resembled different types of giant snakes, elephant trunks, or tails, and some even wielded massive weapons that launched relentless attacks.

Atop the Flesh Monster, one could vaguely discern a small head, but it was unclear whether it was human or beast.

The sounds of clinking and clanking rose as the boy in the tattered robe swung his iron sword swiftly, blocking the continuous onslaught of attacks. Sparks flew through the air, creating a dazzling display.

Finally, following the last intense clash of blades, the video came to its end.

Two large artistic characters appeared on the screen: Ascension!

However, around the two characters, there were faintly visible small green characters flashing, seemingly engaged in a data upload.