The same night after I returned to the workshop.
“What? You’re going to Beijing tomorrow?!”
He Yi erupted as she rose to her feet with a clenched fist. Then, she relaxed and said in an easy tone, “Then I’ll pack my luggage and join you and Yiyi…”
This time, it was Murong Mingyue who rose to her feet and slapped the table. Her 34Es jiggled visibly as she complained, “Have you no shame, CEO? Tomorrow’s the monthly meeting with the people of our company! All the major shareholders will be attending as well! You may as well resign now if you’re not going to attend it!”
He Yi looked at her and said slowly, “You will be replacing me. Guess who’s the one who’s going to resign if she says the n-word (E/N: No. She means ‘No’. Too dangerous to put it in the footnote, I need y’all to know that!) .”
Murong Mingyue sucked in a deep breath before replying, “My CEO is wise. That is exactly what I was going to suggest…”
Me: “…”
I went online and booked a ticket for He Yi.
……
The next day, very early in the morning, Lin Yixin’s Porsche was already roaring beneath the apartment. When I opened the window to take a look, I saw her standing beside her car and raising a plastic bag above her head. “I’ve bought us breakfast. Let’s eat on the way, shall we?”[1]
I helped He Yi carry her luggage downstairs and threw everything into the trunk. Then, we entered the car and took off.
I didn’t speak much as I ate Lin Yixin’s breakfast and looked outside the car window.
“What’s wrong? You look more serious than usual.”
Lin Yixin examined my expression through the back mirror while driving.
He Yi answered, “Tang Feng’s the one who summoned Lu Chen to Beijing. I think it has something to do with the game, and he’s asking for Lu Chen’s help to resolve it…”
“Oh?”
Lin Yixin blinked. “That doesn’t answer much, but at least we’ll know exactly what this problem is when we get there.”
“Mn!”
……
We were just in time to catch our train. A while later, I sat in the middle of the two girls. Lin Yixin cut an orange for me like a good wife, and He Yi listened to music from her earphones with her eyes closed.
I took out my phone to check if there was any new news about the game. A lot had happened during the seven days I was stuck in the Purgatory. For example, there were new Lower Divine Armaments, Seventy-two Ghost Armaments, level ranking and more.
Beep!
Suddenly, a small popup notice appeared on the lower right corner. It stated—
Latest News: Player “Breeze and Rain” has leveled up to 255 and triggered an ascension! He has become a god and Chaos Divine Throne Guardian! The abilities he obtained are—Unusual Physique, Flight and Mount Armor Transformation[2]!
……
“God damn, Breeze and Rain just completed his ascension!” I chuckled.
Lin Yixin immediately leaned over to take a look. “Really? He ascended?”
He Yi also removed her earphones, opened her eyes and looked toward my phone screen. “That is some impressive luck. It’s not like we don’t have our fair share of ninth-promotion players, but not one of them has ascended via leveling…”
Lin Yixin looked at me and asked, “Little Cheat, Unusual Physique is a common skill among divine players, right? Is it good?”
I nodded. “Oh, absolutely. It is a skill made to bully weaklings. Anyone whose Attack is below a certain threshold will be nullified completely. Even if that isn’t the case, it still has a 50% chance to at least nullify them. I wouldn’t have been able to kill a Divine Rank boss and two Quasi-Divine Rank bosses in the Purgatory otherwise…”
Lin Yixin shot me a cheeky grin and grabbed my hand. “So, you’ve been fighting in the Purgatory for 7 days now. What equipment did you get during this time? Tell us now, or else…”
I thought for a moment before answering, “I didn’t get as much as you think, really. Personally, I got the Middle Divine Armament Dihai Shield, the Ancient Divine Armament Scarlet Dragon Armor, the Ghost Armament Rising Cloud, and the Middle Divine Armament Ring of Spiritual Tongue. As for other items, I got the Soul Scourge Whip of the Twelve Divine Armaments, the two Middle Divine Armaments Sun and Cyan Peak Halberd, the Lower Divine Armament Flame God Armor, and finally the Ghost Armament Purple Cloud Armor. It’s an okay haul, I suppose[3]…”
Lin Yixin’s complexion had turned a shade of purple while I listed my haul. “You… you dropped this many top-tier pieces of equipment in 7 days, and you’re telling me it’s just ‘okay’, you shameless bastard!? How much money did Lost Leaf owe you to rig the game for you this much??”
I shrugged. “Calm down, Yiyi. It’s just how life is…”
“Life, my ass! Take me with you the next time you go to the Purgatory!”
“Do you have any idea how difficult it is to survive there? It’s no trip to Zhouzhuang, you know?” I rolled my eyes at her.
He Yi chuckled beside me. “Enough, you two. Though, you have to admit that the sheer amount of great equipment you dropped in the Purgatory is magical, Lu Chen. Of course, this is a good thing for both us and the China server. Right now, Lu Chen is without a doubt the number one player in the entire Heavenblessed game, and no one, not even Breeze and Rain possessed the power to threaten you!”
Lin Yixin nodded. “Yeah. Both his equipment and in-game skills are super good, and with buffs I suspect he can 1v3 me, Li Chengfeng and Candlelight Shadow…”
However, I shook my head and said, “It will be very difficult. Chengfeng’s technique is on the same level as mine. If he manages to keep me busy while Yiyi lands a sneaky Extreme Break when I’m not looking, I’ll be lucky to survive Dragon Tooth Arm from Candlelight Shadow. Nonuple[4] damage is no joke, man…”
“Oh? You’re being surprisingly humble.”
“But of course. A true hero is as receptive as an echoing canyon…”
“If that is true, then do you mind removing your hand from my and Sister Eve’s leg? That uncle in the front row is watching you, you know…”
Me: “…”
I removed my hands from their legs, but slithered my arms across both their waists. I declared, “So? Let him stew in jealousy…”
“So shameless…”
“…”
……
When it was almost noon, we tried out the train’s boxed lunch.
When I was done eating, I clapped my hands together and concluded, “This tastes absolutely terrible!”
Both girls nodded in agreement.
After I was back at my seat, I asked, “I’ve been busy killing mobs in the Purgatory or hiding from bosses for the past couple days, so I didn’t really have the chance to check out what’s happening outside. Can you girls tell me?”
He Yi started, “The main cities have been retaken, and Dark Moon City is developing nicely. There were Resource Bag drops during the siege, and Xu Yang, Li Chengfeng and more brought back a lot to our guild. As a result, our Dragonlight Cavalry including the main guild and subguilds is at least 150k strong, and our Dragonlight Archers number 70k as well. Also, we never stopped creating more Brave General Horseshoes, and the goal of course is to equip everyone with it. Finally, our Holy Mages are approaching the 100k mark as well. In summary, we are er… around 50% stronger than Candle Dragon…”
Lin Yixin chuckled. “You’re too humble, Sister Eve. In my opinion, Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls absolutely possess the power to kick two Candle Dragons’ asses. Why else would Warsky Alliance form a temporary alliance with Candle Dragon?”
“Huh? Warsky Alliance is allied with Candle Dragon now?” I exclaimed in surprise.
He Yi nodded. “Mn. Just the day before yesterday, they have formed a military alliance with each other. It’s probably because they felt threatened by us. It doesn’t matter though. We’ve also formed an alliance with over 100 middle to small–sized guilds[5] across all three main cities in response to their alliance…”
I smiled. “Good to hear. They can do whatever they want. Oh right, are there any news regarding the outer lands recently?”
Lin Yixin chuckled. “Oh yes. In fact, the outer lands are the busiest of all places…”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
Lin Yixin held my hand before explaining, “Little Piglet has conquered nearly all the forces in the outer lands, meaning that he’s now truly the king of the outer lands. If it wasn’t for the fact that Protective Umbrella is an ally of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls, Dark Mercenaries would’ve attacked them as well. It’s why your foreigner friends, Warscar and Hickey, couldn’t stop contacting Eve in the past couple days…”
He Yi laughed. “Yes, that is true. The Dark Mercenaries guild is incredibly powerful these days, and both Warscar and Hickey are deeply worried for their safety. That being said, Little Piglet had never harmed a hair on Protective Umbrella. I think it’s because he respects you, Lu Chen. After all, you were the only one who extended him a helping hand when everyone else tried to see him exiled.”
I sighed. “I understand how it feels to be abandoned by everyone.”
“Mn.”
He Yi continued, “Not only did Little Piglet conquer most of the player forces of the outer lands, he also conquered over half of its maps. Thanks to the Heaven Suppressing Necklace and the Crimson Dragon Arm, he was able to challenge practically every boss there was to be challenged, and he didn’t stop until he reached the edge of Dragon Domain. Today, his weapon is a Middle Divine Armament, and even the lousiest equipment on his person is a Lower Divine Armament.”
“Holy shit! He’s that powerful now?!” I exclaimed in surprise again.
Lin Yixin pursed her lips and said, “Right now, there are only five people in our server whose chances of beating him are over 50%, and you are one of them. Not even I qualify among the five…”
I asked, “Oh yeah? Who are the other four, then?”
Lin Yixin explained, “Obviously, you have the highest chance out of everyone to beat Little Piglet. Candlelight Shadow’s Dragon Tooth Arm can potentially one-shot Little Piglet before he lifesteals back to full health. Warsky is the same as Little Piglet in the sense that his lousiest equipment is a Lower Divine Armament, and his Immortal Blade just underwent an evolution three days ago. Farewell Song is another player who can chain-stun Little Piglet to his death. Finally, your Lian Xin’s Origin Force Field + Ice Spiral Matrix combo is the bane of all fighters. I encountered her 7 times in the champion arena, and she actually managed to beat me 3 times. Uuu…”
I broke into a smile and tightened my grip reassuringly. “Well, Lian Xin’s solo dueling skill is first-rate, and Origin Force Field is the perfect counter to Charge, positioning, burst movement and many more strengths of a cavalryman!”
“Mn…”
……
We chit-chatted a bit longer before we finally arrived at Beijing!
The girls only carried their gaming helmets and left all the heavy lifting to me. Oh well, I had expected this.
The moment we exited the platform and entered the pick up area, a couple of people immediately raised their arms and called out, “Over here, Lu Chen!”
I was surprised. I wasn’t expecting my receiver to be Hot and Sour Noodles, Uncle Zhang Chun!
Zhang Chun was the chairperson of the CGL committee. We might be incredibly influential players in the game, but he shouldn’t have to lower himself to receive us at all…
……
“Why are you here, uncle?” I stared at him.
Zhang Chun clapped my shoulder with a grin on his face. “You weren’t expecting this, were you?”
“Of course not! By the way, you look more handsome than usual!”
“Really?”
“Nope!”
“I knew it…”
1. T/N: but why? Just eat it when you reach the train station or before you drive… ☜
2. T/N: basically the same as Lu Chen’s Fusion Armor, but slightly different name ☜
3. E/N: Dear author, while I understand your need to skip through 7 days of fighting Devil Gods, Ancient Lions and many more devils… He must have gotten something from these Quasi-Divine Rank bosses, right? Riiiiiight?! You can’t off-screen several bosses and not make them drop anything! 🙁 ☜
4. E/N: We are quickly approaching the “words you’ve probably never seen” territory with these ridiculous bonuses. xD ☜
5. E/N: While that may seem insignificant before the might of Warsky Alliance, remember that their guild also consists of many subguilds. These small/medium size guilds are probably enough to fight against 90% of these two subguilds, and ASDS subguilds and main guild can fight Candle Dragon and Warsky Alliance ☜
