“Heh heh, speak freely. You did me such an enormous service last time that a single residence hardly expresses my gratitude. If there is anything you need, please, say it.” The City Lord said it cheerfully, in a tone more courteous than Ye Tianxie’s own. Which was hardly strange. A man who could earn a Hero’s Badge would beyond question one day be a figure who shook the Lost Continent. And Ye Tianxie’s ability — “destroying” the Blood Phoenix at barely more than level ten — was proof enough of that. So the shrewd City Lord naturally intended to show him every possible friendliness.
Ye Tianxie stated his purpose quite plainly: he wanted a prime plot in the heart of the City of Stars on which to open a chamber of commerce, and he was asking for the grant of a superbly located site.
The City Lord laughed. “Is that all? A trifle. Tell me which position you want and it’s yours — any location at all, so long as it isn’t already in use.”
“Then I’m most grateful to you, Lord City Lord.”
It could hardly have gone more smoothly. Did this count as a bonus reward for having “destroyed” the Blood Phoenix?
“Only — land in the central district is not merely scarce, it is extremely expensive.” The City Lord offered the reminder in a way that might have been idle and might not, something thoughtful passing through his eyes.
“Money… isn’t a problem.” It was, all things considered, a magnificently cool thing to be able to say.
The City Lord went on. “In fact, in the northern part of my city’s central plaza, there is a chain commerce house — quite new, but abandoned now for nearly three years. It was originally bought by a merchant from the City of the Lost, and it took some three months to build. But contrary to all his hopes, the disasters born of the Tower of Fate’s agitation reached him. Three years ago, he died in the jaws of a monster that had been affected by demonic energy leaking from the Tower. From that time it has been a masterless commerce house. We reclaimed the land, but we could not bring ourselves to tear the building down…”
“Your meaning is—?” Something turned over in Ye Tianxie’s chest as he asked. Was the City Lord proposing to sell it to him outright?
That would be nothing short of perfect. With a commerce house already standing, he’d skip the enormously time-consuming construction step entirely. Building times in a game world were fairly formulaic — an ordinary structure took roughly a week — but to open a chamber of commerce a full week ahead of everyone else would be an immense head start and an immense advantage.
And the City Lord’s next words sent his heart rate climbing again.
“Brave one who bears the Hero’s Badge, I tell you this because there is a matter in which I need your help. If you can help me, I will sell you that plot, with its chain commerce house, at half price… Would you be willing to hear my request?” And having said it, the City Lord looked at Ye Tianxie with an expectant face.
Ye Tianxie nodded, smiling. “Whatever you need of me, please, speak.”
“Thank you, young man. That you would agree puts my mind considerably at ease.” The City Lord settled back into his chair, tipped his head up, and began, slowly, “This matter is not unrelated to that merchant I just mentioned, the one who died in a monster’s jaws. The City of Stars is a fair distance from the Tower of Fate at the continent’s heart, and the demonic energy that leaks from it cannot obviously affect us here… But since that merchant was killed by a demon-touched monster three years ago, I have carried a quiet dread. It means that although the influence of the demonic energy is not obvious, it is plainly present… and that the longer the time, the more terrible the accumulated effect will become. And at last…”
He sighed lightly. “The City of Stars is not as settled as it appears; a great many unseen dangers are hidden here. Only a month ago, our people discovered a terrible place to the east — a forest stretching for dozens of li, filled with birds and beasts of every kind, and riddled with natural traps like swamps. And for reasons unknown, it is a region of very heavy yin. Every time one walks into it, there is a deathly, oppressive weight to the air. And a place of heavy yin, made dark beneath the cover of the trees, is precisely the sort of place demonic energy is most easily drawn to and lingers… And there we discovered, to our shock, that well over half the beasts in that forest have already been tainted with demonic nature. Even the king of beasts in that forest has been affected by the demonic energy and is turning toward demonization. Before long, perhaps, these beasts, having lost all control under that energy, will come pouring out of the forest and set foot in human lands, and bring some unknown catastrophe down on the City of Stars.”
“And what would you have me do?” Ye Tianxie asked.
“It’s very simple.” The City Lord’s face was grave and full of hope. “I want you to defeat the demonized Golden Sword Lion Beast in that forest. It is a terrible lion. If you can defeat it, then even if the other monsters do leave the forest, we are entirely capable of stopping them.”
“Ding… The City Lord of the City of Stars commissions you to destroy the level 25 Lord-tier boss Golden Sword Lion Beast in the Demon Shadow Forest east of the City of Stars. Quest type: Unique Hidden. Time limit: seven days. Quest reward: Renown +30; the right to purchase the chain commerce house in the center of the City of Stars at half price.”
A level 25 Lord-tier boss? With the attributes Ye Tianxie now possessed, he was confident he had the strength to take on even a level 30 Lord boss. How could he possibly decline a quest that looked, from any angle, like no challenge at all? He nodded easily. “Very well. Rest assured, I’ll have it done in the shortest possible time.”
“Hearing you say that truly gladdens me.” The City Lord chuckled. And just as Ye Tianxie was preparing to leave, something seemed to occur to him. He caught Ye Tianxie’s arm, frowning. “There is one thing I ought to warn you of… According to that merchant’s dying words three years ago, he was killed by a half-demonized lion… but the lion did not seem to be the Golden Sword Lion Beast. It seemed to be something that ought not to have been there at all — an Immortal Spirit beast!”
“An Immortal Spirit beast? There’s an Immortal Spirit beast in that forest?”
“No one has ever seen an immortal beast appear there. We have deliberately searched these past years and never found one. Perhaps it was only the merchant’s delusion. But if it truly exists… an Immortal Spirit beast already demonized three years ago would be terrifying beyond words. I hope you do not encounter it… With your present strength, facing an Immortal Spirit beast, there would be almost no possibility of escape.” The City Lord said it gravely.
“Very well. I understand.”
Leaving the manor, Ye Tianxie picked up his communicator and connected to Su Causeway in the Misty Rain. “Feifei, have you finished your class change?”
And then he stopped short.
Because he had called Su Feifei… and not Zuo Pojun or Murong Qiushui, who were with her.
What did that mean — an act performed without a thought, entirely on instinct? Had he, without noticing, begun to think of her as someone close to him?
Every day when she woke, the first thing she did was make breakfast, and then wake him in her own particular way… In front of him, she never once played the young mistress. She never troubled him over anything, never disturbed him, and even when he was in the game world from dawn to dusk, she would never drag him out unless it was time to eat. Different delicious meals, punctually, every day. The house kept spotless and orderly. And in the evening she’d remind him, on schedule, to go and wash…
He had been enjoying that feeling without ever noticing… and gradually, she had been printing herself onto his heart. To have shared a life like that — even for only a few days — was enough to remember for a lifetime.
“Mm, all done. Tianxie, where are you?”
They regrouped at the entrance to the Class Change Hall, and Su Feifei waved the staff in her hand at him, laughing. “Guess. Guess what class I took.”
“Priest.” Ye Tianxie answered almost without hesitating.
“Ah? How did you get it first try? That’s no fun at all… Did you two tell him?” Su Feifei glared at Zuo Pojun and Murong Qiushui.
“No, no. Absolutely not.” Zuo Pojun waved his hands hastily.
Murong Qiushui: “Oh… I swear by the bright moon above that I have not spoken a single word to Second Brother in the preceding 375 seconds. The stars and the sun may bear witness for me also.”
“Then… I was plainly an apprentice fire mage before. Why would you guess I’d become a priest?”
“A meeting of minds.” Ye Tianxie lowered his brow, looked into her eyes, and smiled as he said it.
Su Feifei froze. Zuo Pojun and Murong Qiushui froze too.
Su Feifei’s lips moved slightly, feeling stirring and swaying in her. Those four words, and the look in his eyes just then, sent her heartbeat climbing — and that sensation was one she found herself wanting to sink into. Then she broke into a smile, a smile like a hundred flowers opening at once, radiant beyond compare. “Hmph! Aren’t you clever. So where are we going to play now…? Ugh! I’m only level 10, I’m so far behind all of you. Tianxie, take me leveling, please?”
“There’s a quest that looks rather dangerous. Care to come along? If we complete it, the problem of the commerce house’s location is perfectly solved. Mm — more perfectly than any of you imagine.” Ye Tianxie said it with a smile.
“Ah? Really — what quest? I want to come with you. I’m only level 10, but… but I’m a priest. I can protect you.” Su Feifei moved excitedly to his side, her voice dropping noticeably on the last words.
Zuo Pojun thumped his own chest. “If Second Brother’s willing, I’ll go anywhere. Heh. Fighting shoulder to shoulder with Second Brother has always been the finest thing there is.”
Murong Qiushui tilted his gaze, autumn light rippling across it. “Ahh, at last I shall witness Second Brother’s heroic figure once more. My heart is currently beating at 3.7 times its ordinary rate. I truly cannot wait another second.”
“Stock up on potions and gear… We leave immediately.”
…
…
【Author’s note: Mm, things have been quiet for a while now, haven’t they? What follows is a small climax — the strongest big boss of the early game is about to appear. Its HP is a six-figure number, its combat power is more than ten times that of the Amethyst Battle Tiger, the strongest thing we’ve seen so far, and it one-shots absolutely anything it touches. Including Tianxie. Have a think about how to kill the thing. Mm… actually, this big boss is rather small.】
(End of Chapter 145)