Guan Ya's eyes were half-closed, her pearly teeth biting her plump lips. Her raven-black hair spilled across the white pillows, and her pretty face was flushed as though intoxicated.
One hand gripped her boyfriend's arms, which were braced on either side of her slender waist, while her other hand wrapped around the top of her head to keep it from bumping repeatedly against the headboard.
The thin summer duvet had long since slid from Zhang Yuanqing's hips down to the crook of his knees. Guan Ya's calves hooked tightly around his, her glistening toes slightly curled.
Immersed in extreme pleasure, Guan Ya suddenly noticed that her boyfriend had stopped. Knowing him inside out, she knew he was nowhere near the point of finishing. She couldn't help fluttering her eyes open, her voice sweet, lush, and sultry:
"What's wrong?"
"Lingxi and Queen cleared the dungeon. They're returning in twenty seconds," Zhang Yuanqing said joyfully.
Guan Ya snapped wide awake in an instant. Her small hands slapped his arms repeatedly. "Get up, get up..."
"What for?" Zhang Yuanqing was puzzled.
"Can you finish in twenty seconds?"
"Bullshit, I need at least two hours."
Guan Ya rolled her eyes. "Then there you have it! Won't they come looking for you the moment they're back?"
"That's easy. I'll have Bai Lan—no, Yichuan Mei—stand guard outside and shoo them off." Zhang Yuanqing pressed his lower abdomen firmly against her, pinning Guan Ya to the bed and refusing to let her move. "Besides, they already know about our relationship."
"Piss off! Lingxi has eavesdropping props. I don't want her listening in on us. If you don't get off me, I'm going to stab you with sword qi."
"Go ahead and stab me then. I've already stabbed you for an hour tonight anyway—consider it returning the courtesy."
Amidst their playful bickering, Zhang Yuanqing withdrew from Guan Ya's body like pulling a cork from a bottle of red wine. The two quickly got out of bed, picked up their scattered pajamas from the floor, and dressed.
No sooner had they put on their pajamas and stepped out of the bedroom than Xie Lingxi's voice rang out from the first-floor living room:
"Brother Yuanshi, we're back~"
Zhang Yuanqing also reconnected his mental link to Little Doubi.
Descending the stairs to the first floor, Zhang Yuanqing and Guan Ya saw the three collapsed limply on the sofa. Their clothes were shredded, though the form-fitting nano suits worn underneath were relatively intact. Where the fabric had torn, fresh blood seeped through.
Fortunately, upon gaining experience and receiving the influx of spiritual power, their bodies were brimming with energy. Thus, though exhausted, it was merely physical fatigue.
Zhang Yuanqing took out the Mountain God Scepter and healed their external wounds one by one.
—Now that he had a girlfriend, the scepter's penalty was no longer a headache, but rather a source of spice. There were no animals in the villa either, so he didn't have to worry about developing inappropriate urges toward beasts.
"Since this is a guild dungeon, there's no need to write a mission report. Just give us a verbal summary of your gains and what happened inside, and then go get some rest," Guan Ya said, sitting upright across from the three, fully projecting the authority of a leader.
The three chimed in, reporting their results one after another.
Xie Lingxi's experience was now at 85%, while Queen's had reached 100%, and Li Chunfeng was also at 100%. A single Grade A dungeon had capped the experience of the two who were already close to the ceiling.
Each received a good-quality Transcendent prop and over a dozen spirituality-infused materials.
The rewards of a Grade A dungeon were indeed bountiful.
Li Chunfeng took a sip of water and reported:
"Not only did we resolve the supernatural incident at Dongxing Hotel, but we also unlocked the hidden plotline. The owner of Dongxing Hotel comes from a lineage of spirit mediums.
"Because business had been going downhill, he remembered his family's old trade and returned to his ancestral home to dig up a secret manual, intending to adjust the hotel's feng shui.
"However, being a complete amateur, he mistook an evil-summoning array for a feng shui formation, triggering that series of eerie events. We found the manual, and tucked inside was a map fragment."
With that, he glanced at Queen.
Queen opened her hand, and an ancient book with dog-eared edges appeared on her palm. Her eyes darted around as if searching for something, and she laughed:
"Correction—we didn't find it; your son did."
Zhang Yuanqing gestured. Little Doubi, who had been lounging on Xie Lingxi's lap, deftly balanced the secret manual on his head and scampered over to present it to his master.
"Good job." Zhang Yuanqing picked up the ancient book with one hand while rubbing Little Doubi's head with the other.
The book was quite thin, spanning merely a dozen pages, adorned with arrays, incantations, and seal script annotations.
Zhang Yuanqing skimmed through it and quickly lost interest. They were merely Transcendent-stage spells. While they blended Night Walker talismans with Witchcraft Master curses—an impressive innovation by ancient practitioners—their tier was simply too low.
Tucked inside the book was a damaged map made of grayish-brown parchment, indistinguishable whether it came from animal or human hide. It appeared to be a mere corner torn from a complete map.
Drawn upon it were square grids, wavy lines representing roads, and annotated place names.
"The cartographic method is the classic 'grid cartography,' which originated in the Jin Dynasty. The precision of this map is fairly high, likely drawn during the Tang or Song Dynasty," Li Chunfeng said, pushing up his glasses. "I don't recognize the place names annotated on it, which rules out a national or provincial map. At most, it's a municipal or county map. For now, it's impossible to pinpoint the exact location."
*What on earth is grid cartography?* Zhang Yuanqing was utterly baffled, inwardly marveling at how convenient it was to have a Scholar on the team. Maintaining a calm facade, he nodded and said, "Let me check the item information."
[Name: Mysterious Map Fragment]
[Type: Map]
[Function: Positioning]
[Description: An ancient map passed down through history. Origin unknown, region unknown, but it once triggered a storm of bloody warfare in distant antiquity.]
[Remark: A 'storm of bloody warfare' implies that it is very important. Those with high intellect, please ignore this remark. If you happen to be a Fire Master, my purpose is hereby realized.]
*What's going on? Even the Spirit Realm is roasting Fire Masters now?* Looking at the remark, Zhang Yuanqing was full of unspoken retorts.
At the same time, he recognized the importance of the map. If the complete map could be assembled, it might lead to a treasure.
Such was the advantage of guild dungeons. Solo cultivators could only obtain items and resources from regular Spirit Realms, whereas major guilds could reap precious treasures from exclusive dungeons.
"This is probably a quest item for an associated dungeon." Zhang Yuanqing stowed the map into the guild warehouse and said, "Let's see what the second guild dungeon is."
Hearing this, Guan Ya and the others straightened up, waiting with bated breath.
Zhang Yuanqing opened the guild interface and selected dungeon generation.
[Ding! Generating Spirit Realm, please wait...]
[Guild Spirit Realm generation complete.]
[Number: 3704, Crazy Training Camp.]
[Difficulty Rating: B]
[Type: Multiplayer (Non-lethal)]
[Main Quest: Defeat your opponents in the training camp and claim first place.]
[Remark: Non-Spirit-Realm items cannot be brought inside.]
[Description of Spirit Realm No. 3704: This is a training camp designed to train special military units, gathering remarkable individuals and specialists from across the nation. The team that wins the championship in the competition will receive a massive cash prize and divine artifact items.]
"A non-lethal B-grade dungeon is quite rare," Li Chunfeng breathed a sigh of relief.
Xie Lingxi and Queen also let out a long breath, feeling immensely relieved.
Their luck was good—they had drawn a non-lethal dungeon. Even if they were killed inside, they would return to reality safe and sound, which was uncommon for Grade B dungeons.
Generally speaking, Grade S and Grade A dungeons were invariably lethal. Grade B dungeons were common for regular elites and were mostly lethal as well. Only below Grade B were non-lethal dungeons typical.
—Of course, this applied to multiplayer Spirit Realms; solo Spirit Realms were lethal without exception.
"Then get a good night's rest, and enter the Spirit Realm tomorrow morning," Zhang Yuanqing said.
"Tomorrow morning already? I wanted to spend a few more days with Brother Yuanshi," Xie Lingxi whined coquettishly.
Guan Ya said coldly, "A dungeon like this only takes a few hours. It'll probably just be a single team match. Go with peace of mind—I'll keep Yuanshi company."
Xie Lingxi pouted.
"Go upstairs and rest," Zhang Yuanqing said, remaining seated as he waved them off.
Once the team members went upstairs, he immediately pounced on Guan Ya, showering her face with kisses. "Sister Guan Ya, hurry, help me take down the swelling."
"No! Lingxi might hear us."
"Heh heh, I knew you'd say that. Look, what's this!" Zhang Yuanqing pulled out Little Red Riding Hood. "We can play inside."
"..."
Just as Zhang Yuanqing was about to open the prop's inner space, he heard a loud, clear "Ah-ba!"
Looking down, he saw Little Doubi propped on the edge of the coffee table, wide dark eyes staring unblinkingly at him.
Expectation twinkled in those bright, spirited eyes.
"Oh," Zhang Yuanqing said. "Forgot to mention: there's no gaming console here. The console is at your great-grandmother's house. You can play again next time we go there."
Upon hearing that, Little Doubi dropped to the floor and rolled onto his back, kicking his chubby little legs frantically as he wailed at the top of his lungs.
The next morning.
After finishing breakfast, Zhang Yuanqing had just sent Xie Lingxi and the other two into the Spirit Realm when he saw someone pinging him in the "Protagonist Squad Struggle Group."
[Xiahou Aotian: @Yuanshi Tianzun, not bad progress! Entering the second dungeon already.]
As a guild member, he also received notifications from the Spirit Realm.
[Zhao Chenghuang: I hope we can enter a Saint dungeon this week. I am ready.]
Zhao Chenghuang was looking forward to the "Return of the Dead" guild dungeons.
The difficulty rating of a guild dungeon was scaled according to the level of its members. Since Yuanshi Tianzun was a Saint, the guild dungeon difficulty would be at least Grade A, and very likely Grade S.
His current experience was at 40%. A single Grade S dungeon would yield at least 20%, which meant he could advance to Level 5 within two months.
[Sun Miaomiao: If we enter a Grade S dungeon, we might even get top-tier props!]
Ever since she struck it rich in the underground palace of Qinfeng Academy, she had fallen in love with that thrill. High risk brought high reward—hovering on the brink of life and death to seize top-tier props was incomparably exhilarating.
[Zhao Chenghuang: Did something happen in Songhai recently? And something involving the Taiyi Sect? I asked my great-grandfather, but he wouldn't tell me. Normally, he only keeps secrets from me when it involves matters of extraordinary gravity.]
[Sun Miaomiao: Huh? Your great-grandfather wouldn't tell you either? Same with my grandfather! Grandfather hasn't been in a good mood lately, and he even scolded me, telling me to mind my own business.]
*Huh, how do they know? The security clearance for this incident is exceptionally high. Even Level 7 elders might not have access, and the Saints involved signed non-disclosure agreements...* Zhang Yuanqing typed:
[Yuanshi Tianzun: Where did you hear that something big happened in Songhai?]
[Sun Miaomiao: Yuan Ting told us, of course! Though he doesn't know the exact details either. He just said it was juicy gossip, a massive incident that would shake the entire official faction if it got out.]
*Yuan Ting... of course.* The corner of Zhang Yuanqing's mouth twitched. He felt that Yuan Ting's "infiltration" of the official organization was far superior to Dark Night Rose's. Failing to recruit Yuan Ting as an asset was truly Dark Night Rose's biggest oversight.
[World Returns to Fire: According to the intel I gathered, Demonic Eye seems to have been broken out. That night, No. 3 Prison of Pingchuan City was attacked by Fear Heavenly King. The Grand Marshal, who was staying in Songhai, rushed over to deal with it and was lured away by the Soldier Master sect.]
*Demonic Eye was rescued?* Sun Miaomiao and the other two were taken aback. As a Heavenly King of the Soldier Master sect, Demonic Eye was an elite among Dominators. Letting such a terrifying figure escape was tantamount to returning a tiger to the mountains.
*Without anyone noticing, World Returns to Fire has already built an intelligence network. This Fire Master has some real skills!* Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself.
[Zhao Chenghuang: Who did it?]
*Far as the horizon, close as your screen—it was none other than yours truly...* Zhang Yuanqing stayed quiet, feeling a little guilty.
[Xiahou Aotian: I know Demonic Eye. The guy specializes in killing corrupt officials. In a novel, he'd be this protagonist's underling. But what does this have to do with the Taiyi Sect?]
[World Returns to Fire: Read fewer trashy novels. I don't know the specific details, but Yuanshi Tianzun definitely does.]
No sooner had he said that than they saw Yuanshi Tianzun send a photo to the group.
In the photo, Fu Qingyang, Elder Red Tassel, Yin Ji, and the others were all huddled under the same quilt, their heads propped up, staring rigidly at the camera.
Sun Miaomiao and Xiahou Aotian sent a string of question marks.
World Returns to Fire and Zhao Chenghuang replied with a string of ellipses.
#Yuanshi Tianzun recalled a message#
[Sun Miaomiao: Am I seeing things? I think I just saw an unbelievable photo.]
[World Returns to Fire: You didn't see wrong.]
It truly was unbelievable.
If this photo ever leaked, it would without question be the official faction's biggest scandal of the year.
[Yuanshi Tianzun: It went like this: with the goal of rescuing Heavenly King Demonic Eye, Dark Night Rose orchestrated an operation to hunt down three official elders. To that end, Dark Night Rose deployed a demigod-grade prop—a ghost city.]
[Yuanshi Tianzun: The photo captured them shivering under the quilt inside that ghost city. When the Grand Marshal and I rushed in to rescue them, I took it along the way. My fingers itched and I couldn't resist. Please forget you ever saw it.]
*You really have a death wish, don't you?* Except for Xiahou Aotian, the other three mentally roasted him.
*So that's what happened.* Since even the Grand Marshal was involved, it was understandable why the incident was classified.
Information concerning demigods inherently carried an aura of secrecy.
But what Yuanshi Tianzun posted next made the group members doubt their own eyes.
[Yuanshi Tianzun: The Grand Marshal killed Dark Night Rose's Grand Protector. This Grand Protector's true identity was a former elder of the Taiyi Sect, Spirit Realm ID 'Shanhe Yongcun.']
The minds of Sun Miaomiao and Zhao Chenghuang, both members of the Taiyi Sect, buzzed with shock.
They had never heard of the figure named "Shanhe Yongcun," but the words "former elder" were enough to shatter their composure completely.
[Xiahou Aotian: No wonder it had to be kept secret. They're saving face for the Taiyi Sect. A dignified elder turning out to be an executive of a secret organization!]
[World Returns to Fire: It's not just a matter of saving face. If this gets out, grassroots members of the official faction will lose their trust and sense of security in the organization. An elder-level figure turned out to be the Grand Protector of Dark Night Rose—has this secret organization penetrated so deeply?]
Sun Miaomiao and Zhao Chenghuang thought the exact same thing. If word of this spread, the official faction would face a crisis of confidence, especially the Taiyi Sect. No wonder their elders had kept strictly silent.
*We absolutely cannot let Yuan Ting find out...* The two swore silently in their hearts.
[Yuanshi Tianzun: But the one who truly made this matter taboo isn't Shanhe Yongcun, but someone else.]
The faces of the four in the group shifted. There was an even deeper secret?
Who was it?
Chapter 522