[I Have Been Corrupted]
[Therefore, I no longer wish for anyone else to sacrifice]
[If you still refuse to give up]
[For your sake, I will fight with all my might to prevent your sacrifice]
[Pledging my oath to what I once held dear]
The sudden appearance of the prompt startled Mo Zhi.
This is…
Is the Undead Legion communicating with me across dimensions?
Why does it feel like a conspiracy theory?
But with so little fragmented information, she found the Undead Legion’s words rather confusing.
Mo Zhi vaguely recalled that the old thief mentioned the Undead Legion in the DLC he uploaded today.
But she hadn't read it carefully.
“Guys, I remember the DLC mentioned some things, shall we switch out and take a look?”
“I feel like their story is missing something… maybe the DLC can provide some answers.”
With the audience’s agreement,
Mo Zhi paused the game and switched to the Ling Jing game platform.
She decided to show them the origin story of the Undead Legion.
More than defeating the Undead Legion, she wanted to know their backstory.
Such a powerful and devout team speaking such strange words made her feel like there was a mystery yet to be solved.
“Huh?”
Clicking on the *Dark Souls* file, Mo Zhi was surprised to find that the old thief had updated another DLC story ten minutes ago, and…
“This DLC even has boss fights?”
“Is the old thief trying to kill me?”
Mo Zhi felt overwhelmed.
This was too much, old thief!
There were still plenty of unresolved bosses in Dark Souls, and he was adding more.
And judging by the trend, as players delved deeper into the game, he would continue to release DLCs to flesh out the world view.
Paying for one game and getting the content of two.
Do the old thief and his studio not need to eat?
You know, some DLCs for foreign games actually cost money!
Isn’t it too generous for the old thief to give them away for free?
‘Be grateful, my foreign friends said the latest DLCs abroad are paid, only the DLCs in the domestic game section are free.’
‘Oh, really… wouldn’t our foreign friends go berserk?’
‘Berserk about what? Isn’t this what they always do to us? And they go berserk when it’s their turn?’
‘Buying DLCs is voluntary, and not buying them doesn’t affect game progress. These are specifically for players who want to complete the game’s world view.’
‘Cutting foreign leeks, the old thief has really succeeded!’
……
“Is that so?”
Looking at the comments, Mo Zhi felt like she had hit the jackpot, and getting things for free was just great!
“Then what are we waiting for, let’s watch it quickly!”
“What if the old thief’s studio made a mistake and starts charging for it soon? That would be a huge loss!”
Mo Zhi directly clicked on the latest DLC – the Four Knights of Gwyn.
The opening was, as always, grand and epic with mournful background music, making one think it was an opening CG for a new game.
Then, a narrative voiceover began—
“In the chaotic beginning, the world was shrouded in darkness. The upper layers of the ground were filled with endless mist, towering ancient trees, and immortal ancient dragons. Then, from an unknown source, the First Flame was born.
With the advent of fire, the endless darkness was divided into light and dark, life and death.
Nurtured by the flame, the first humanoids began to be born.
Among them, four obtained immense power from the First Flame – the Lord Souls.
Lord Gwyn mastered the power of lightning, Nito the Lord of Death, the Witch of Izalith symbolized life, and the Dwarf King obtained the Ring of the Abyss… then, as if introducing the Lords of Cinder, each was given a solo segment.”
Mo Zhi frowned, this was not much different from what she had read this morning.
However, this DLC was clearly more detailed. So, was it a cut-down version and a complete detailed version?
And a cut-down version for free abroad, while the detailed version is paid?
With a few more boss fights added?
That’s good, this seems to be the most reasonable approach, giving the players complete choice.
Mo Zhi nodded in approval, Lu Li, the old thief, had excellent judgment in his actions.
He didn’t seem like a 24-year-old rookie designer at all, but more like an old hand who had been in the gaming industry for years.
The image of that youthful and sunny face flashed in her mind, and Mo Zhi couldn't help but shiver.
What was she thinking!
How could she start daydreaming? Such a powerful figure was beyond the reach of a small streamer like her.
Quickly shaking off the strange thoughts, Mo Zhi continued to focus on the DLC visuals.
The Sun King Gwyn, along with his giants and knights, joined forces with the Witch and Nito to fight against the immortal ancient dragons.
Due to the betrayal of Seath the Scaleless, they learned of the ancient dragons’ only weakness – their scales, and together they eliminated almost all the ancient dragons.
Only a few lingering bloodlines remained, no longer posing a threat to them.
Afterward, Gwyn used the power of the Lord Souls to establish the magnificent Age of Fire, creating a glorious civilization with Anor Londo as his royal city.
He also dispatched his Silver Knights to spread fire and light to every corner of the world.
In the eyes of later generations, Gwyn and his contemporaries were regarded as divine beings.
During this period, the nameless Dwarf King obtained the power of the Dark Soul from the Lord Souls and distributed it among his descendants, the humans, who multiplied endlessly.
The story of the Four Knights of Gwyn was woven into the myths and legends passed down by word of mouth, along with those of the gods.
The Sun King Gwyn appointed four highly respected warriors from his knightly order as the Four Knights of Gwyn.
One of them was the soul of the Undead Legion – Artorias the Abysswalker.
As soon as he appeared, the entire audience cheered, “So cool!”
Artorias’s attire was very similar to that of the Undead Legion. No, it should be that the Undead Legion worshipped Artorias, hence they modeled their attire after his style.
This Wolf Knight, known as the Abysswalker, possessed an indomitable will and exquisite sword skills!
In his early days, Artorias traveled to every corner of the continent to hone his skills, where he met his close friend, the Great Wolf Sif, and they quickly became loyal partners and comrades.
In the early Age of Fire, they also befriended the talking white cat, Elizabeth, as lifelong friends, discussing their hopes for the future together.
He was even deeply admired by Ciaran, another of the Four Knights of Gwyn.
His charisma shone brighter than the fire in the world of Dark Souls.
Time flew by, and the peak of the Age of Fire gradually faded with the passage of time. The kings' power originated from the fire, and the glorious civilization they created with this power would also turn to dust as the fire extinguished.
The Age of Darkness was inevitably approaching.
The Abyss emerged in that era; it was the opposite of fire.
The Great Serpent Nashandra, in the ancient sorcerer kingdom of Oolacile, tempted the locals to excavate ‘treasures’ from underground.
However, they accidentally awakened Manus, the Father of the Abyss.
The Abyss gradually corrupted the minds of the people of Oolacile, turning them into inhuman monsters. As the entire kingdom fell into peril.
Gwyn, realizing the threat of the Abyss, dispatched Artorias to Oolacile to hunt down the Abyss.
Artorias, noble and helpful, immediately took his best friend – the little wolf Sif – to Oolacile to fight the Abyss upon learning that the Abyss was harming innocent allied people.
With the conviction of facing death, they embarked on this irreversible journey to fight the Abyss, carrying the silver amulet.
The once prosperous town was already in ruins, and the Abyss had gradually corrupted most of its residents into terrifying monsters.
The thing called the Abyss was like a gaping maw, slowly devouring Oolacile. To help the surviving people resist the corruption of the Abyss, Artorias, unable to bear it, left the silver amulet in the town.
To protect those who had not mutated, this was the beginning of tragedy.
The Abyss invaded the city.
A knight went to stop it.
Even a hero could not resist the darkness.
Ultimately, it was corrupted.
So it flows, like time.
Artorias had ventured into the Abyss, observed it, and finally fought a desperate battle in the Abyss's cavern.
He even made a pact with an Abyssal demon, just so that the curse generated by the pact would not harm the undead.
Alas,
Manus, the Father of the Abyss, was ultimately too powerful. Artorias, unable to resist the corruption of the Abyss without the silver amulet, could not defeat his enemy.
Despite being hailed for his knightly honor, he resisted the corruption of the Abyss with his iron-like willpower.
Unfortunately, his left arm was almost crippled and severely injured, and the greatsword in his hand gradually eroded his will under the corrosion of the Abyss. Suffering immense physical pain, Artorias, with his consciousness blurred, fought his way with Sif to the vicinity of the Abyss cavern’s exit.
To protect his beloved companion, Artorias used his Great Shield of Artorias as a defense for Sif, hoping the shield would protect Sif and buy him time.
With his mind on the verge of collapse, Artorias carved a bloody path, slaughtering all the mutated beings he encountered along the way, and finally reached the arena, but by then he was no longer able to resist the erosion of the Abyss.
Ultimately, Artorias was consumed by the Abyss, completely losing his sanity. He killed a mutated being in the arena and then encountered Mo Zhi from the future.
“No matter who you are, please stay away from here.”
“Soon, I will be consumed.”
“By ‘them’… by the darkness… the spread of the Abyss must be stopped!”
“Ah… ah—————” – Artorias.
At the last moment, he was still using his last shred of sanity to urge Mo Zhi to leave him, who had lost his mind, lest he harm innocents. But ultimately, consumed by darkness and losing his reason, he still swung his greatsword and charged at Mo Zhi.
At this moment, Mo Zhi’s eyes held no fear, only heartache.
She didn’t retreat and involuntarily swung the Irithyll Straight Sword in her hand.
Accompanied by the tragic and sorrowful background music, she could have chosen to quit at this point, and then when *Dark Souls* was officially cleared and her three stats increased, she would return to the DLC to face this boss outside the main story…
But she didn’t retreat!
In the CG, which was like a slideshow of his life, she experienced Artorias’s entire life!
A tragic and heroic life!
He was the glory of a knight!
He was the faith of the Farron Undead Legion!
He was a great hero to whom all players paid solemn tribute!
At this moment, she finally understood why the Undead Legion swore by wolf blood to monitor the Abyss for life.
They were all inheritors of the spirit of the Great Wolf!
Therefore,
She did not want him, or them, to continue to endure the torment of the Abyss and fall into the corrupted depths.
They were all admirable great heroes in their lives.
She wanted to give them the final dignity – to defeat them honorably!
The handsome knight who once followed glory and upheld justice was long gone, leaving only an evil and suffering knightly shell that wanted to tear everything apart.
Only by defeating him, by defeating them, could these guilt-ridden and sorrowful souls find release.
Seeing Mo Zhi’s determination, the audience was moved.
‘Mo Zhi, I respect you as a true warrior!’
‘So manly, challenging Artorias at this time is definitely ten times harder than fighting the Undead Legion!’
‘I won’t say more, I’ll support the streamer with real money to liberate Artorias’s soul!’
‘Thank you, thank you, streamer, for giving them the final dignity!’
……
The audience also had flesh, blood, and souls. After experiencing Artorias’s life in an immersive way, they all knew that doing this was the ultimate respect for him.
But Mo Zhi didn't have to do this now.
She could have easily defeated Artorias after clearing the game with her extremely high stats.
But… would players still have the same initial intention at that time?
Mo Zhi’s actions showed them the true intention of a player, and her deep love and respect for the game.
Countless gifts flew into the sky.
Mo Zhi lingered no longer, tightened her grip on her sword, her eyes resolute, her steps decisive, moving forward without hesitation.
Like a superhero.
……
Truly worthy of being called a woman who dares to challenge the limits!
Two hours later,
Relying on countless attempts and memorized patterns, Mo Zhi successfully defeated the Abyss-corrupted Artorias, ending the suffering and despair of this soul.
“You are strong, human.”
“Indeed, your kind are not merely pure darkness.”
“I implore you, the spread of the Abyss must be stopped.”
“Ah, Sif… you are here… cough… all of you, please forgive me…”
“I have failed all of you, I couldn’t do anything…” – Artorias.
With his lingering consciousness, he still thought of his beloved companion and the mission to stop the Abyss and save the people.
He truly…
“Sob sob… !!”
Mo Zhi tilted her head and wiped away tears from the corner of her eyes. She hadn’t cried even after being tormented by Artorias for two hours.
When she heard his voice again, Mo Zhi finally broke down.
“Hoo—”
Taking a deep breath, Mo Zhi composed herself and slowly said, “To be honest, the old thief made Artorias’s character come alive; he shaped Artorias’s soul.”
“He is a true hero!”
‘You are our hero too!’
‘Your spirit has also inspired me!’
‘No wonder you’re so popular!’
‘Before, I thought Mo Zhi’s sudden rise to the top streamer tier was all due to riding the coattails of the old thief’s games, but I was wrong. With this kind of spirit, you were bound to become popular!’
‘Salute to Artorias! Salute to the Farron Undead Legion! Salute to Mo Zhi!!’
……
ps: A 4000-word chapter, just for the satisfaction!