When the objective 'to rest and prepare for the next raid' appeared on the Pandamonium App, Xiong Da noticed that there was a mini panda notification blinking in his inbox. As a person who disliked notifications annoying him all day long, he tapped on it to check what it was.
Actually, he just wanted to press on that cute panda icon that was carelessly fluttering around at the corner of the Pandamonium App while holding on to an email. (The mini Panda Icon carried more letters if the notifications were not cleared and there was once Xiong Da was so busy that the mini Panda was hidden by a stack of letters as if it was being drowned by it.)
"Is it a new curated list?" Xiong Da thought to himself as the Pandamonium App would sometimes create specialised lists for Pandarens to buy based on their buying patterns and behaviours, which was hauntingly accurate for the most part. (It would be 100% accurate if the System did not throw in the occasional curveball to make the customers less vigilant about them being studied)
Because of these lists, the Pandarens discovered the increasing multitudes of services that were being offered by Jin's store. Xiong Da believed it to be the kind of notification informing him about some special deals which could prove useful for the next phase, as it coincided with the new task. From personal experience, he could say that they were strikingly close to search engines and wondered what new items they would have in store for him to try out.
However, to his surprise, it was not a customised shopping advertis.e.m.e.nt, instead, it was a banner for help.
"Assist in the war efforts against the Seven Cities! Contribute your Demopolis Raid Points, Raid Emblems or even Panda Coins to strengthen Demopolis' defences!" The banner stated and Xiong Da was instantly intrigued by it. If anything, he could potentially turn the tide of this particular dungeon instance with the seemingly near infinite Panda Coins residing in his wallet.
Did Boss Jin create this event to cater to the likes of him?
As he clicked on the banner, he was linked to a special page in the Pandemonium App which was beautifully designed by none other than Kiyu. There was a large progress bar at the top of the page with various milestones being set by Jin.
"Hey, guys. Check this out." Xiong Da said to his fellow Pandawan teammates via the app by sending them the link. "Looks like there is something that can give us an edge in the second phase of this ridiculously crazy raid." The rest quickly clicked on it, to check what Xiong Da was referring to.
Upon reading the details, they realised that if they were to contribute their resources, they would have an easier time in the upcoming fight. After participating in the raid for a few days, they had seen how crumbled the entire place was thanks to the previous infighting and there were not many defensible areas left that they could make use of.
Kiyu's 'Call For Help' page stated that if they were to collect 250,000 raid points, they could instantly change the city's landscape to something suitable like a stronghold. And that was only the raid points' portion. If they were to contribute emblems, military vehicles could be issued for ease of transport as well as an increase in mobility.
Likewise, for Panda Coins, they could be converted into either temporary raid points or temporary emblems that could be used to contribute to the respective progress bars. However, it was heavily emphasised that none of those temporary points could be used to redeem items.
Despite the versatility of the Panda Coins, they also had a separate progress bar and inserting money would result in additional support for the NPCs and even call some of the other dungeons minions that would fight alongside them upon hitting certain milestones.
In summary, achieving the three different progress bars would bring extensive perks for their battle against the Seven Cities Armies. This was something similar to a collaborative effort where their hard earned points would be used for the entirety of the raid instance.
And right below the banner page, Kiyu had prepared some expected 'frequently asked questions' with the appropriate answers.
Q: "Can I only donate Demopolis Raid Points, Raid Emblems or Panda Coins right now or is it possible to do so during the second phase?"
A: All three currencies will be accepted at any time during the second phase.
Kiyu's tip: Pandarens might want to prioritise achieving the very first milestone of the Raid Point section before the battle as the current interval allows the city to change without much interference. Should the goal be hit during the "rest and prepare" mission the city would instantly receive basic foundation upgrades for the upcoming second phase.
Q: "Can I get a refund if a milestone is not hit?"
A: Refunds will automatically be processed in the respective currency at the end of the raid if a milestone has not been met. However, once the next milestone has been achieved within the progress bar the customer has donated to, that currency will be considered 'spent'. Any 'unspent' currency will, as stated, be naturally returned.
Q: "It was hard getting my raid points/emblems, Panda Coins, why should I donate them?"
A: For the benefit of the entire raid!
Boss Jin's remark: I can assure everyone that the rewards for winning the entire instance will outweigh the charity we ask for.
More FAQs were below these answers, but the Pandawans reading it had also noticed that there were bubble notifications for the people contributing at the side of their Pandamonium App.
Many had doubts about just how many customers would be willing to give up their points as they were all earned with the Pandarens' sweat and blood. Not to mention, the redemption store had quite a lot of items that were very enticing even for even the Pandawans. So, to see Pandarens actively give up their points for the raid was somewhat heartening.
The bigger the contribution, the bigger the bubble mention. It was supposed to motivate his customers. Although the sum needed was large, if everyone chipped in a bit, it would be easy enough to reach…
However, their dear Sir Spendalot had decided to completely wreck this system by chipping in the largest portion into the fray. The Panda Coins which he had been rewarded for assisting in the construction of the Tree Mall were frivolously exchanged for Raid Points and then donated towards the progress bar, allowing the entire raid instance to achieve the first milestone of rebuilding the foundations of the city.
"Heh, I knew he would do that." Both the Pandawan Team and Jin thought the same and chuckled to themselves. Still, the large celestial 'whale' otherwise known as Xiong Da didn't stop just there, as he liked to exceed people's expectations, especially Jin's. (In most games, people who spend a lot were called a 'Whale', as they were known to be whaling for the game.)
Not only the first milestone of the Raid Points Progress Bar had been fulfilled, but also the one for the Raid Emblems, as well as the Panda Coins' initial milestone, providing the entire Pandarens team with the perks of having a brand new city defence foundation, a truckload of jeeps and motorcycles at their disposal as well as some experimental batch of guns for the current guards.
The bubble mention instantly filled the entire screen indicating Xiong Da's major contribution. To further thank him for his epic donation proportion, Jin, who had been watching all of this from the sidelines, had decided to project a holographic form of him, over the entire city, just as they had done for King Rex.
Suddenly, everyone saw the innocent looking Xiong Da smiling down at his phone, before subsequently realising that he was being projected in holographic form for everyone to see their benefactor. The fl.u.s.tered look on his face caused Ruo Ying to laugh loudly and hug him from his back.
The nearby inspectors also rushed and hugged him, thanking his generosity to the raid instance, allowing everyone to see the big hippo cultivator being loved by his friends dearly via the giant hologram.
And because of Xiong Da achievement in hitting all three milestones, everyone who logs in for the second phase had been given a free defensive temporary inscription courtesy of the Dungeon Supplier.
As was to be expected, everyone went bonkers.
