Elf Kingdom: Game of the World Tree

"Don't be so discouraged. For a game of this scale, there's definitely more than one designer, and the planning takes a really long time, but you're doing it all alone."

She comforted him.

"No, no... even so, it's still terrifying, and that's precisely why... I want to enter the game for inspiration. I want to learn the storytelling techniques of the 'Elf Kingdom' and understand this world."

Mao Mo said.

"You'll definitely succeed!"

Cao Lingxuan made a cheering gesture.

Mao Mo smiled,

"I think so too."

Cao Lingxuan:...

"Alright, enough with the talk; it's time to get to work. Let's start gathering material! Hmm... first, let's begin with the newbie tasks!"

Mao Mo clapped his hands and said.

He stretched a bit and then ran toward the quest point.

Cao Lingxuan was stunned for a moment, but quickly followed.

However, after running a few steps, she mumbled somewhat oddly,

"Starting with the newbie tasks? Isn't this just an excuse to play the game?"

Under Mao Mo's guidance, Cao Lingxuan officially embarked on her quest journey.

According to Mr. Black Cat, quests were the most reliable way for beginners to advance in the 'Elf Kingdom.'

Initially, it was a bit dull, having to do chores, but when the level got higher, you could take on tasks from NPCs, which was also Mr. Black Cat's goal.

Though Mr. Black Cat said newbie tasks would be tedious, the girl, who rarely played games, found them quite interesting.

Collecting berries in the forest, searching for magic materials...

To her, the scenery in the 'Elf Kingdom' was so exquisite that the process of completing tasks was also a form of sightseeing.

The scenery was fantastic.

And the most wonderful part was that while enjoying the scenery, all you felt was ease and pleasure in your five senses, with no fatigue or exhaustion.

This made Cao Lingxuan even more captivated.

Additionally, watching her experience points increase bit by bit and feeling her body grow stronger was a marvelous experience.

The joy of leveling up was amazing!

Of course, there were some downsides.

That was the fact that there seemed to be too many players...

It was fine in the forest.

But when taking a quest... it was a disaster.

Even so, Cao Lingxuan, unknowingly, played with Mr. Black Cat until it was dark.

And it wasn't until the sun set and night fell that the girl suddenly realized she originally planned to play for only an hour or two, but ended up playing for nearly a whole day...

"Oh no! The draft!"

Cao Lingxuan slapped her thigh and then hurried to remind the laid-back man,

"Mr. Black Cat! We forgot to work on the draft! We're running out of time!"

After saying this, she felt quite regretful, *

*How did I manage to forget about this while playing?!*

*Honestly, I had set the stealth pod to remind me, but this stupid machine didn't alert me!*

However, upon hearing her words, Mao Mo remained as leisurely as ever,

"Don't worry, we still have plenty of time. In a while, we'll head back to the hotel in the town and work directly in the game."

Cao Lingxuan:...

There's hardly any time left!

The submission deadline is looming!

And working in the game, what's that about?!

Oh... right... in 'Elf Kingdom,' it seems you can open external software.

But is the gaming environment suitable for work?!

And... Mr. Black Cat, aren't you just looking for an excuse to play the game longer?!

There were countless things Cao Lingxuan wanted to complain about in her mind.

Seeing her changing expressions, Mao Mo chuckled,

"Xiao Cao, don't worry. Just log out or... check the real-time in reality."

Real-time?

Cao Lingxuan furrowed her brow.

She opened her mouth but eventually looked at the real-time without realizing it as he suggested.

When she opened the external link and checked the scheduled time in the stealth pod, she immediately frowned,

"3 PM? Is this machine's time broken?"

But Mao Mo just looked at her with a smile.

Cao Lingxuan:...

She felt... something was off somewhere.

After a moment of silence, the girl immediately decided to log off, and when she crawled out of the stealth pod, she was instantly dumbfounded,

"Why is it still daytime?!"

"Because the time in the game is different from reality."

On the other side, Mr. Black Cat's aged voice resonated.

He also took off his helmet, sat up from the stealth pod, and said with a smile,

"Xiao Cao, this game employs mind acceleration technology. Our minds operate four times faster in the game compared to reality, which means... the time flow in the game is quadruple that of reality. So, while it felt like a day in the game, only a few hours passed in reality."

"Hey, in the 'Elf Kingdom,' our time is extended fourfold, so we don't have to worry about running out of time to create in the game!"

"Haha, with this game, we'll never have to worry about being rushed again."

"Alright, let's quickly get back in the game. Our bodies are still in the wild; don't let anyone steal our gear. Let's play for another half-day and then start working!"

After saying that, Mao Mo swiftly reclined back.

Cao Lingxuan:...

She looked at him speechlessly and shook her head.

However, she also chose to log in again.

"Quadruple speed, huh..."

"If that's true, we do have time. Let's... play a little more, just one more level!"

She murmured to herself.

...

Three days in the Segis World...

At the hotel of Amway Trading Company.

A male and female player sat in the room, sporting dark circles under their eyes, staring blankly at the drawing software interface, their hands tirelessly gesturing in mid-air...

"Only three hours left to submit, Xiao Cao, speed up!"

"I'm drawing, I'm drawing, I'm already out of time! Who was the one who said we'd only play half a day?!"