There is One New Rule Every Month Globally

"For example, 'Fortune as Vast as the Eastern Sea' and 'Longevity as the Southern Mountains,' these items are actually from Chang Shi. Oh, right, Chang Shi is the previous owner of the 'Fortune as Vast as the Eastern Sea' prop, the same Wen Ping you guys plotted to kill."

"His original name was Chang Shi, and in this lifetime, he's called Wen Ping."

"He has also come this time."

With a snap of Santa Claus' fingers, a very familiar young man slowly emerged from the shadows, his face full of resentment. If not the Wen Ping whom they had schemed to kill in the Illusory Realm, then who could it be?

"What the hell?"

Shock flashed in Tuberculosis Rabbit's eyes as he took two steps back. "Are you Chang Shi?"

He didn't have much memory of Chang Shi since his memory hadn't fully recovered, but he faintly remembered that there was a teammate named Chang Shi in their past life, just not that this Chang Shi was Wen Ping of this lifetime.

The player they had pitifully plotted to death?

"..."

Even Chen Yi couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth, not knowing what to say, especially upon seeing Chang Shi's face full of deep resentment, he felt even less at ease.

"Yes!"

With some emotion, Santa Claus said, "The original plan was for Chang Shi to obtain 'Fortune as Vast as the Eastern Sea' and find some unlucky person to obtain 'Longevity as the Southern Mountains,' and then have Chang Shi successfully acquire both props and merge them to get the final set effects."

"But unexpectedly, by a twist of fate, the 'Longevity as the Southern Mountains' prop ended up in your hands, Chen Yi."

"In theory, Chang Shi, possessing the 'Fortune as Vast as the Eastern Sea,' should have been impossible to kill, but who could have thought that he would be so easily plotted against and killed within the Illusory Realm?"

"Um..." Tuberculosis Rabbit started somewhat awkwardly, "Sorry about that."

"It's fine."

Chang Shi took a deep breath before shaking his head, "Actually, Tuberculosis Rabbit, you weren't wrong either. It is indeed possible to oppose the deities by concentrating resources in one's hands. What's more, I don't blame you. It's you all who allowed me to experience what true love is for the first time in dozens of lifetimes."

"Even if I died, I am content."

"I am fulfilled, and do not feel this life has been in vain."

"Eh?"

Suddenly remembering something, Tuberculosis Rabbit asked in confusion, "Wasn't Wen Ping utterly slain? What's this state now?"

"Hey!"

Exasperatedly slapping his forehead, Santa Claus exclaimed, "Look at me, I got so carried away I forgot! Chang Shi, ah, Chang Shi is already dead, in the same state as me, half-dead."

"Back then, wasn't part of those with potential asleep, preparing to reincarnate and join the core game upgrading?"

"The plan was for everyone to reincarnate and await the launching of the core game. We extracted nearly all the divine power of dozens of deities to maintain the normal operation of the core game, but still required some manual intervention."

"However, afraid that the deities would exploit any loopholes, we set many rules. Once the core game started, it could only proceed according to the rules, with no one able to exploit loopholes, though we did leave some backdoors."

"At the time, some people voluntarily chose to give up their lives, joining the core game as half-dead NPCs, you know, like me, after all, it's a waste of resources for us with less potential to occupy them."

"And Chang Shi is already dead. After all, being killed by Chen Yi and wanting to resurrect is quite difficult. If it's by Chen Yi's own hand, although Chen Yi has the title of 'Absolutely Irresurrectible' upon slaying members of an Alien Race, it's not too hard."

"Except that Chang Shi died under the rules of the core game, in the duel between the players holding 'Fortune as Vast as the Eastern Sea' and 'Longevity as the Southern Mountains,' it's a rule we were afraid someone would abuse, which we set with very high authority,"

"Oh right, if I remember correctly, that part of the plan was set by Chang Shi himself."

"Dying under that rule naturally meant he couldn't be resurrected, leaving him only to become a spectator like me, accompanying you all to face the true final battle."

"Also, about that Jiang Chenglu, I went off on a tangent earlier. After finishing his retreat, the first thing Jiang Chenglu did was to seek you out, Chen Yi, to die by your hand, using his own life to help you develop faster."

"It is said that Jiang Chenglu had a woman he cherished dearly, and their child was about to be born. Jiang Chenglu hoped to end all the wars before his child's birth, so that the first thing his child would see upon entering the world would be peace."

"Worried that his own capabilities were insufficient, he made a gamble with you."

"Unfortunately, dying at your hands, Chen Yi, and trying to revive later caused Jiang Chenglu to exert a lot of effort. Avoiding the 'Absolutely Irresurrectible' trait is not a simple matter, and perhaps for this reason, Jiang Chenglu suffered consecutive defeats on the battlefield outside."

Frowning, Chen Yi spoke in a grave voice, "Dead?"

"Not quite, but it's not going well for him. It looks like if no new planet ascends soon, he probably won't last more than a week."

"So your purpose for coming here was just to tell us this?"

"That's about it." Santa Claus paused for a moment before saying, "The gods that Jiang Chenglu slew during his last assault weren't the true deities, but their spokespeople. However, at the climax of the battle, those twelve spokespeople became possessed by their respective deities, and despite their sudden surge in power, Jiang Chenglu still managed to cut them down."