Little Pink Starfish

Because time was too tight, there was only so much Pei Sen could do before the server launch.

And with his speculations about the Gate of Eternity‘s integration level, he couldn’t truly relax. But for the players, the opening of a new server meant a brand-new carnival.

Especially since Bix Magic Cube had done a round of pre-launch promotion, many players had already customized their characters and selected professions, just waiting to enter the game.

Over the long run, the number of Bix Magic Cube players had steadily increased. For instance, in this launch of the Gate of Eternity, most of those joining the new server were genuinely new players. The veterans who had chosen to start in the Yali Continent weren’t willing to delete their characters. After all, leveling got harder the further you progressed. The veterans had spent months reaching level 60 and had poured time and effort into their characters—they couldn’t just abandon them.

Besides, once you hit level 60, you could visit other servers anyway, so why start over? Yali Continent already had countless guides on leveling, classes, and systems—why go through all that trial and error again on a new server?

Compared to Yali Continent, Qinghun Era had a different appeal. Its class entry system was notoriously difficult. Players had invested immense effort just to become Qinghun Scythe members—how could they give that up easily? On top of that, Qinghun Era had attracted a sizable population of players seeking a relaxed lifestyle. A world like Gate of Eternity, with its complex class trees and rich lore, clearly wasn’t for them. Naturally, they had no desire to relocate.

To this day, Qinghun Era remained the most unique of all Bix Magic Cube servers. Its player base had grown steadily. Pei Sen remembered a particular statistic: the average age of players on Qinghun Era had reached 49—just shy of 50.

Which meant that beyond the younger, traditional gamers, a large number of older players had made it their home. They weren’t in it for the game itself, but because Bix Magic Cube—this deeply immersive online world—offered them a new lifestyle.

Older people were particularly susceptible to trend waves. Just like how square dancing had taken off across parks, when your old friends and siblings were already playing the game—how could you not join? An immersive game like this gave them back the feeling of youth, a kind of allure they simply couldn’t resist.

So, most players entering Gate of Eternity were either new, or those who had chosen mages in Yali Continent, struggled through a few months, and gave up. Or perhaps players who had failed Qinghun Era‘s entry trials and, devastated by the idea of rebuilding reputation, abandoned ship and fled to the new server.

They had all pre-made their characters and were just waiting for launch.

“The new server has a reminder when customizing characters: you can’t choose a purely Eastern or purely Western appearance… looks like another interesting world setting.”

“The new character creator is a pain in the ass. I spent days on mine—looks okay for now, but who knows what it’ll look like in-game. I’ve heard a lot of people say the face you build never matches how it shows up once you’re inside.”

“Yeah, the proportions get wonky. Up close it looks good, but once you’re in—boom, monstrosity.”

“Hahaha, I want to be a monster. I made something so freaky I could scare a toddler without makeup.”

“Dude, don’t do that. The Bix Magic Cube NPCs are insanely smart. You might end up unable to accept any quests.”

“Or just get treated like a monster and killed… Didn’t you hear about when Qinghun Era first launched? The foreigners almost got mistaken for mobs because of the Eastern theme!”

“No worries, the devs gave us a disguise card and a rename card at launch. If it gets bad, just use those.”

Exactly. Those were the same cards the system had given Pei Sen when he first arrived—each account came with one.

“Crap! It’s open! It’s open! Get in, get in!”

As soon as the clock hit launch time, forums practically froze. The homepage barely refreshed—everyone was focused on the new server.

“Year 1176 of the Eternal Calendar: The Anser Empire and the Xia Dynasty clashed at the Blackrock Wastelands in the epic Battle of Blackrock. The gods watched this earthshaking conflict unfold. In the end, both sides suffered immense losses. The scars of war were etched deep upon the Anser Empire and Xia, wounds unhealed, hatred unresolved.”

Ding.
“You have been born as a member of the exiled ‘Bix Race’ in the world of Gate of Eternity. The Bix Mark has been branded upon the back of your hand. As one of the exiled, my heart shall always remain faithful to my homeland.”
Note: Players may use the cube-shaped brand on their right hand to summon the character panel and player inventory. The mark can also be used to revive at a resurrection point. Outside of combat, the mark accelerates wound recovery. Players can also use the brand to open the in-game forum and communicate privately.

New players were confused. What was all this? A new server gimmick? This didn’t exist on Yali Continent.

In Bix Magic Cube, you could open your panel or inventory just by thinking the command—why did Gate of Eternityrequire a mark?

Still, it wasn’t a big deal. The action was the same—just slightly more involved.

As new players arrived at different regions of Gate of Eternity, following directions to report to Bix Merchant Alliance and Cube Trading Company, several veteran players also boarded the Time Train.

They were the ones who had completed their advancement quests. Like Pei Sen, they could now travel freely between servers.

Among them was BraisedSpicySnack, though he was the only one in his party to have completed the task. The others would need a few more days.

Besides him, the train carried four or five more players—all part of the original wave of high-levelers.

Ding.
“Player has arrived—‘Gate of Eternity.’”
Ding.
“You may now activate your advanced-level main quest: ‘Rise.’ Accept? (Yes/No)”

BraisedSpicySnack blinked and looked at the others. Even if they didn’t know each other well, they were all familiar faces.

“You guys got the quest too?”

“Yeah. New main quest?”

“Our main quests on Yali Continent have been missing for ages. I heard Qinghun Era never stopped having theirs.”

“So our theory was right—level 60 is a new beginning. We hit this server and boom, main quest.” One player said excitedly. “Come on, if we haven’t added each other yet, let’s do it. We’ll tackle this together.”

They were high-level players, sure—but not all their team members had crossed over yet. So after friending up, they accepted the quest and started reading through its contents—only to find themselves quite surprised.

“Main Quest: Rise.”
“Unlike in Yali Continent, in Gate of Eternity, the Bix are a race in exile, scattered across nations and struggling to survive. They do not possess their own homeland.”
“Gate of Eternity is ruled by powerful gods and strict empires—Anser and Xia—who do not permit the rise of other mighty nations. For the Bix to carve out a place for themselves, they must face harsh trials and bitter conflict.”
“As one of the Bix, you may conceal your mark. You already wield considerable power. Now it’s time to use it for the Bix cause.”
“For rise, for homeland, you must contribute your strength.”

Main Quest: Shadowed Blade.
Step 1: I am a blade hidden in the dark.
“Players may choose a faction within either the Anser Empire or Xia Dynasty to infiltrate. Convince them with your strength, rise through the ranks, and claim power.”
“Note: Please take care to disguise your identity and avoid arousing suspicion from NPCs. Failure in infiltration results in quest failure. (No penalties; you may attempt again with another faction.)”
“Upon completing Step 1, players will receive position advancement, story points, loot chests, currency, and experience.”

BraisedSpicySnack read through the lengthy instructions twice before looking up. Everyone around him wore the same eager expression.

As players who had spent a full year in Bix Magic Cube, they were nothing like the newcomers. They understood this immersive world. They knew exactly how smart the NPCs were.

New players might still think of NPCs as quest givers, background characters—nothing more. But these veterans had already learned the truth: the NPCs in this game were just like real people.

They had different abilities and levels of intelligence, yes—but they lived full lives. They weren’t dummies who stood still repeating one line forever.

These players knew how to interact with NPCs. They knew what could and couldn’t be said. They’d learned the rules.

Bix Magic Cube wasn’t a game. It was another world.

“Damn, this mission is intense—I love it.” A nearby female player was thrilled. “Yali Continent basically never gave you this kind of roleplay freedom. Once you hit level 60, you were treated like royalty wherever you went—no challenge at all.”

“Yeah, from the description here, even advanced classes aren’t top-tier in Gate of Eternity. They’ve got gods. There’s a ceiling—and it’s high.”

“Still, with so many supernaturals around, advanced players should be welcome in most factions. At worst, they’ll be kept under observation first.”

BraisedSpicySnack thought for a moment. “Interesting. This main quest gives us a lot of freedom. There’s no faction list—we have to investigate on our own.”

“That’s even better. Makes it way more fun.”

After a brief strategy session, the players split up. They had friended each other already, so now it was time to explore the world and dig up intel. Once their full parties had arrived, they could decide which faction to join.

Sure, Gate of Eternity had advanced classes all over and legends walking in the streets. But even if half the population were supernatural, there were still plenty of normal folks and lower-tier powers.

Advanced players were valuable assets—no faction would outright reject them. At worst, they’d be monitored until proven trustworthy.

Which meant the high-level players who had taken the Time Train to Gate of Eternity had a wide playing field ahead of them.

And since Bix Magic Cube was such a slow-leveling game, this elite group would stay relatively small for a while—giving them plenty of time to build influence and power.

If they succeeded, they would have long-term impact on the game’s development.

Pei Sen had gone to infiltrate quietly—and the game system immediately sent advanced players to do the same. Bix Magic Cube was a brilliant student, quick to apply what it learned.

“One word from someone in power can achieve more than a million commoners ever could,” Pei Sen had recently realized.

Just like the original timeline—Yali Continent had tons of players, yet ended poorly. But with him and Eagle around, players and Lanno natives were coexisting wonderfully.

To Pei Sen, “integration level” was really about how much players influenced each world. The more influence, the deeper the integration.

Chaos and fights among the lower ranks didn’t count for much.

“So, what’s with the mark thing?” Pei Sen asked Bix Magic Cube, watching new players report in.

This time, players arrived much more subtly than on other servers. They were scattered, entering the world from thousands of resurrection points, then finding their way to the Merchant Alliance or Trading Company that he and Eagle had established.

Bix Magic Cube: “Didn’t you say you and Eagle were going to challenge Gate of Eternity? The gods in this world draw power from faith.”

Pei Sen, puzzled: “So?”

Bix Magic Cube: “Honestly, most of the faith here isn’t sincere. Just saying it out loud counts. Whether it’s devout or not doesn’t really matter.”

Pei Sen: “…… Wait—you’re not saying…”

Bix Magic Cube: “So, players can offer faith to you and Eagle. Even if they’re not devout—it’s fine! Just slap the ‘follower’ label on them and it counts.”

Pei Sen: “?”

Faith works like that?
Is becoming a false prophet in this world really that easy?!