Ye Ci’s relationship with NightAndDay was a peculiar one.
They were not friends. He had ordered an attack on Upwards Ho! in the past, and Ye Ci had said something to him. They did not know each other very well, and it was not possible for them to improve their relationship, especially when Wandering Clouds was still in Tang Dynasty.
She and NightAndDay were not overly close, but were not distant as well. And Ye Ci did not know why NightAndDay came looking for her.
And this curiosity drove her to accept his voice call.
NightAndDay did not beat around the bush, “Gongzi, do you want to form an alliance between our guilds?”
Ye Ci was shocked. The question was too sudden for her, “Why is that?” she asked after a short pause.
“Golden Era.” NightAndDay went straight to the point.
Golden Era. It’s Golden Era again.
Ye Ci took in a deep breath. She knew that Golden Era would cause a large ripple with their arrival, but she did not expect the major guilds to be affected so soon, especially a huge guild like the Tang Dynasty. Ye Ci came to the realisation that she had greatly underestimated the capabilities of Golden Era.
“Night, you are a guild with millions of players, while Upwards Ho! is a guild with only tens of thousands of players. Even if it’s against Golden Era, don’t you think you should be talking to guilds like the Wolf Pack, Conquering the Heavens, or Iron Blood? Why me?”
NightAndDay could hear Gongzi You’s cold, distant voice. It was as if the entire crisis had nothing to do with her. He pursed his lips. It’s not that easy to have dealings with her after all.
“I’ll be frank with you, Gongzi You. Golden Era will never rely on sheer numbers alone this time. They won’t be able to affect the game in any meaningful way. I think they have something more sinister in mind.” and he continued after a slight pause, “I’m sure you’ve heard of what happened to the leaderboards. Nobody was able to prove that it was their doing, but I’m sure that you know what’s going on. Besides…” NightAndDay continued, “There have been some… Assassination attempts that I think you know better than me.”
Ye Ci raised an eyebrow. It’s natural for the leader of a major guild to know about the leaderboards. But the assassination attempts on the top players of all four continents? Curious. It seems that Golden Era’s notoriety is worse than I thought.
“And?” Ye Ci neither confirmed nor denied his words.
“And?” NightAndDay chuckled, “I’m pretty sure it’s just a small taste of what’s to come.”
“Fate is ultimately a PVP game with a main quest line. If they fall behind in terms of progress, Golden Era’s efforts in taking over the leaderboards will be wasted. Their main force are still not sufficiently leveled enough, but I’m sure they will eventually work their way up like a major guild. I’m seeking to work with you because Upwards Ho! had always been surpassing the major guilds in terms of dungeon clearing. I know that you play a big part in making that a success. That’s why… I want to buy guides from you so that we can have a huge lead before Golden Era can establish themselves properly in the game.” he let out a long sigh, “This is why I contacted you.”
Ye ci brushed her fingers against the Secret Cloak as she listened to NightAndDay. She could tell that he was sincere, and his analysis of Golden Era was quite accurate while not as in-depth.
Ye Ci had also pondered the same question. And she arrived at a similar conclusion as NightAndDay. She did not forget about the Mithril ore vein, but not many knew about its existence.
“I’m just someone running errands for the guild. You can talk to Remote Depths.” Ye Ci gave her answer after a long thought. She did not want to involve herself in inter-guild relationships as she was not entirely familiar with the management of her guild. That was why she decided to leave the matter to Bai Mo and Timely Rain.
“I’ve thought about it as well, but…” NightAndDay grimaced, “I don’t think they’d want to talk to me. Our guilds have a rather rough relationship.”
Ye Ci laughed. Timely Rain and Bai Mo were sensible people who would not allow their personal feelings to cloud their judgement when it came to guild matters, “Night, I’m sure you know that you won’t gain any upper hand from a deal with me. If you want to buy my guides…”
“Money is not an issue as long as we’re the first guild to get it.”
“I cannot guarantee that.” Ye Ci narrowed her eyes, “Do you think that you’re the only one who would think of something like this? We’ve maintained a pretty healthy relationship with Wolf Pack and World Conqueror. So…” a cunning smile appeared on Ye Ci’s lips, “I can only guarantee that the highest bidder will get it.”
“And what if Golden Era is the highest bidder? Will you sell it to them as well?” NightAndDay did not give an immediate response.
Ye Ci snorted, “I might be a merchant, but I have my own principles.” She would never sell any dungeon clearing guides to Golden Era no matter how much money they were willing to offer. She knew that selling them to Golden Era would only lead to her demise.
“Alright then.” NightAndDay smiled, “I will talk to Remote Depths.” and he ended the chat.
Ye Ci immediately gave Bai Mo a call after the conversation and relayed what happened to her cousin, “You’re just one second faster than him. He just called.” Bai Mo laughed.
That’s fast. Thought Ye Ci. It seems that he’s really serious about this.
“Just leave guild affairs to us.” said Bai Mo when Ye Ci remained silent, “Tang Dynasty was not the only one who gave us such an offer. Wolf Pack, World Conqueror, and even Battle Spear came looking for an alliance as well. And it’s all because of Golden Era. I did not reject their proposal. We can benefit from this.”
Well, since Bai Mo and Timely Rain have made their decision, there’s nothing for me to worry about. Thought Ye Ci. And when asked about Golden Era’s assassination attempt, Ye Ci held no details back from Bai Mo, “The largest haul I got out of that fight are three Secret Cloaks. It’s not a lot, but it’s better than getting none at all.”
Bai Mo was worried, “I wonder what they will do next.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Ye Ci was unfazed, “We’ll see how it goes.”
The two ended their conversation after some small talk, and Ye Ci took in a deep breath before clicking open her Pet storage. Ol’ Six was fast asleep. This was Ye Ci’s first interaction with a high-tier life form like a Dragon, and was her first time putting a Super Pet Core to use. She did not know what were the signs that would be shown by a pet that was evolving in tier.
But when she clicked open the stats window, Ye Ci could see a word under Ol’ Six’s status: Evolving…
It was apparent that Ol’ Six would advance into the next tier when it woke up.
Ye Ci could not summon Ol’ Six as it was fast asleep, but she had a large number of consumables left. This led her to make the decision to continue leveling up in the Mist Forest with Ol’ Four.
Time passed quickly, and Ye Ci had exhausted her supplies three days later, but Ol’ Six showed no signs of waking up. Ol’ Four on the other hand, was at the same level as Ye Ci.
She decided to head back to Red Lake City to replenish her supplies and to hand over the two other Secret Cloaks to Bai Mo.
And just like Ye Ci, Bai Mo was impressed by the stats of the Secret Cloaks. With the officers of the guild busy with administration work, Ye Ci decided to head to the guild’s workshop instead. She was looking for Yolan, who was a Master Builder despite her status as an NPC. She was also a servant of Ye Ci, which meant that she would obey her commands without question.
The time has come for her to put Yolan to good use. The woman would soon walk up onto the stage that was the history of Fate.
By Ye Ci’s suggestion, Bai Mo had recruited a number of Builders into the guild, but they were still at a lower level that could only build common houses. Their abilities could not hold a candle to a Master Builder like Yolan. Of course, they were not entirely useless as they could still build structures according to the blueprints created by Yolan.
Yolan’s room was packed full of blueprints and construction materials. She no longer had to mind what her tribesmen think of her since she arrived at Red Lake City, and she was finally able to show her talents as a builder.
The NPC was drawing a new blueprint as Ye Ci walked into a room. She coughed lightly to attract the NPC’s attention.
Yolan immediately stood up and bowed at Ye Ci, “Mistress.”
“You’ve created quite a number of blueprints, Yolan.” Ye Ci nodded at her with a smile.
Yolan was embarrassed when she was complimented by Ye Ci, “It’s just a small hobby of mine, Mistress. I wasn’t able to do much due to my bad health, so this is the only thing I can do.”
Ye Ci shook her head, “Whatever it is, as long as it’s useful, then it is good. Your tribe might think lowly of what you’re doing here, but to me, it’s all very useful.”
Yolan’s eyes immediately brightened up, “Really?”
Ye Ci continued to sift through the blueprints on the table before her. She was not well versed in construction, but she could tell that the blueprints were all made by an expert. The designs of the wall, its ramparts, and its defences were drawn down to its most tiny detail. The wall that was being designed by Yolan was greater than even the defences of Red Lake City.
“Where can this fortification be built?”
“I’ve designed it based on the defences of Red Lake City. It can be built on any map with some slight modifications.”
“Oh?” Ye Ci narrowed her eyes, “Are you sure about that?”
“Yes, mistress.” Yolan nodded in confirmation.
Ye Ci let out a laugh, “Come with me Yolan. I need you to tell me if I can build a fortress at a particular place.”
Excitement filled Yolan’s eyes, “You’re building a fortress, mistress?”
Ye Ci raised an eyebrow at the NPC, “Come with me and you’ll see.”
Happiness washed over Yolan as she followed Ye Ci to the teleporter.
