The Boss Farms in a Cosmic Horror Game [Infinite]

The hit game Deep Sea recently made headlines when the account [RabbitsAreTheCutest], belonging to one of the top ten players on the server, was suddenly deleted overnight. The whole server was in an uproar.

A month later, the open-world, full-dive adventure survival game Boundless launched worldwide and became a global sensation. While players were immersed in exploring the world, no one noticed a lone figure appearing in a remote land nestled between the mountains and the sea.

Mo Xiaotu, once a top-tier player, had transformed into an utterly ordinary farmer. She found a quiet patch of land and devoted herself to raising pigs and growing crops, shutting out the world.

While others formed parties to tackle dungeons, she harvested and planted crops. While others ran around the map until they dropped, she lounged in her shed and basked in the sun. Life couldn't be better. After so many years of dungeon runs, if she hadn't gone through that ordeal, she never would have discovered the joys of farming.

Ding-dong. A notification suddenly sounded in Mo Xiaotu's mind. "Your farm storage is full. Please replace it in a timely manner."

She stretched luxuriously and sighed, "Another peaceful day..." But no sooner had the words left her mouth than an unwelcome guest barged into her yard, wrecked her fields, ate her sheep, and trampled her house.

Mo Xiaotu stared, dumbfounded, as her little courtyard came crashing down. "This is the last straw!" How dare someone destroy the home of a former combat powerhouse? She'd make them pay!

But Mo Xiaotu's attempt to look cool lasted less than three seconds.

"Weren't you just talking big? Why do you fall apart at the slightest touch?" As she plunged rapidly downward, she suddenly landed in a pair of steady arms. A warm voice brushed softly past her ear.

"I haven't worked out in ages, so I'm a little rusty with my skills..." Mo Xiaotu's attempt to show off had failed, and she was as mad as a pufferfish.

"If you're so unwilling to let it go, how about I put you back down so you can take it on again?"

"If you're so tough, you do it! Quit yapping!" Mo Xiaotu bristled.

Nie Boze, architect of Deep Sea, had a little-known habit: every so often, he would log into the backend accounts of various dungeon bosses to observe players' combat techniques and data up close.

Before long, an account named [RabbitsAreTheCutest] caught his eye. Its owner's fighting style was completely at odds with her nickname. Players had dubbed her "Bugs Bunny." Her combat stats were explosive in every battle, forcing him to keep a close eye on her and apply targeted... nerfs.

But after that night, the little rabbit suddenly disappeared. Just as he was hesitating over what to do, an email arrived on his phone:

The Boundless development team invites you to collaborate.

The full-dive adventure game Boundless transforms into a horror game. The Old Ones arrive, and the game world and the real world begin to undergo the same corruption and mutation.

Looking at the polluted, mutated land, Mo Xiaotu hefted her hoe and sighed. "I'm so tired. I really just want to farm!"

[Reading Guide]

1. Contains Cthulhu elements. Some scenes may be mildly frightening.

2. A seemingly harmless but actually maxed-out berserker farmer x a scheming, universally adored beast tamer; top-tier player x game architect.

Theme: Persevere and keep striving