While thinking, Rookie couldn't help but look at Pengpeng, his face full of approval. "The fact that you were able to enter here by relying on your own will is really impressive. As expected of the best among players."
Seeing the approving look from Rookie, Pengpeng was first stunned, then he smiled and calmly accepted the praise. "That's only natural. My king doesn't keep idle people under him."
This simple sentence was the blueprint Pengpeng had always been striving for.
Rookie's initial impression of Pengpeng was actually quite accurate. Among such a massive group of players, Pengpeng's initial aptitude could only be considered below average.
Because of this, when he was in the Eternal Guild, he was basically a nobody.
If he hadn't met Little Bug, his path would have been no different from the countless ordinary players in the player base.
He would still have been a nobody. Maybe he would have made some friends in the game, maybe not.
Maybe he would have been pulled up by a big shot and become a small leader, or maybe he would have just quit the game after playing for a while.
But what was certain was that his gaming journey would most likely have been as plain and uneventful as most people's.
It could be said that the appearance of Little Bug completely changed Pengpeng's gaming journey, and even changed his life.
The chain reaction caused after Little Bug appeared allowed Pengpeng to inherit the legacy of the Eternal Guild and become its guild leader.
Whether in terms of management or personal strength, Pengpeng's aptitude was ordinary. The reason he was able to become the guild leader was entirely because he benefited from the advantages brought by Little Bug and 007.
So not long after becoming the guild leader, Pengpeng had already begun to feel overwhelmed.
He knew he had no advantage in management or strength, so he chose another path, taking a people-friendly approach and building good relationships with the players in the guild.
Because of this, quite a few players, although they knew that the guild under Pengpeng wouldn't have much development potential, still chose to stay out of respect for him.
This stage could be considered Pengpeng's first trial, and he managed to hand in a passable answer for it.
At that time, Pengpeng hadn't actually changed much. He was still as insecure and timid as before. It was just that because of his identity as guild leader, he didn't show it.
So becoming the guild leader could only be considered as changing his gaming journey. It clearly couldn't be called a change to his life.
The trial that truly changed his life was after he became the first zombie player under Xu Yuan.
In fact, before Pengpeng was infected by Xu Yuan and became a zombie player, the players in his guild had already begun to drift apart.
After all, when Xu Yuan slaughtered the Eternal Guild, he didn't touch Pengpeng, and even allowed his streaming behavior.
So the players subconsciously felt that after joining Pengpeng's guild, Xu Yuan would become their backer.
But ever since Xu Yuan wiped out the Eternal Guild, in order to deal with Null, he had been idling on the beach fishing for a long time and hadn't made a move again.
On top of that, the officials even released an announcement about removing HIM.
So the hearts of the players in Pengpeng's guild gradually scattered.
Just as the guild was about to fall apart, Xu Yuan's reappearance gave Pengpeng a new lease on life.
After Xu Yuan reappeared, Pengpeng became the first zombie player, and also the first zombie player to follow Xu Yuan.
At that time, zombie players were equivalent to a new race. Their enemies changed from monsters to players, and their behavior patterns completely changed. It was an entirely unknown new field.
So leading the zombie players well and carving out a path for them was by no means an easy task.
At that time, Pengpeng was under immense pressure. He didn't want to let Xu Yuan down, nor did he want to let Little Bug down.
He wanted to carve out a place for himself, to grow stronger, so that one day he might have another chance to meet Little Bug again.
He wasn't crushed by the pressure. Instead, he turned all of it into his own driving force.
Not knowing how to operate a new faction, he searched for games with dual factions, went to those games' forums, studied how others managed them, and recorded every detail to use for himself.
Not knowing how to make the players under him stronger, he spent all day on game forums, studying various in-game mechanics and not letting a single detail slip by.
He not only gained a deep understanding of all kinds of game "mechanics," but also simulated and designed many sets of plans to improve player strength.
Then he personally put those plans into practice, and through constant trial and adjustment, eventually found the optimal solutions.
Not knowing how to manage people, he downloaded many e-books about talent management and read them over and over whenever he had time.
———
During that period, Pengpeng's time was packed to the brim. In a short time, he absorbed a massive amount of knowledge. He felt that even during the college entrance exams, he had never been this serious.
Clearly, his efforts didn't go to waste. Every bit of effort brought him huge returns.
The operational strategies he learned didn't just apply to his own faction, they also improved his overall perspective.
The study of in-game mechanics to strengthen players not only allowed his players to thrive in the game, but also elevated his own understanding of the game to a whole new level, and his personal skills improved a lot as well.
The knowledge of talent management gave him a discerning eye, allowing him to quickly identify those with potential and talent in a crowd.
This not only helped him gather a group of elites in the game to build a strong team, but also expanded his social circle, letting him meet many like-minded friends.
These connections formed an extensive information network, allowing him to always obtain first-hand information.
All the knowledge he learned not only made him much stronger in the game, but also greatly improved himself as a person.
The more he learned, the less inferior he felt.
Whenever he felt he was worse than others, he never spiraled internally. Instead, he found the areas where he fell short and worked to learn and improve.
If he truly couldn't surpass others in a certain field, he would take another path and make himself excel in other areas.
Because of this, when a top player like Black Blade appeared in his team, Pengpeng wasn't completely overshadowed.
He even became the one who could guide Black Blade.
None of this involved luck. It was entirely the result of his steady, step-by-step hard work.
No talent, only sweat.
Because of that, he had no need to envy others, because he himself was already a legend.
So at this very moment, facing praise from a genius like Rookie, Pengpeng didn't need to be modest at all. This was something he deserved.