In his study, beside a broad solid wood desk, Fu Qingyang sat facing a 30-inch ultra-large monitor. From the wall-mounted speakers came a restrained yet sharp argument. He was holding a conference call with six participants. Aside from him, Baihui, Water God Palace, Central Court, White Tiger Battalion, and Scarlet Fire Gang had each sent an elder to attend.
Who could have imagined that a walkthrough for a Transcendent-stage S-tier Spirit Realm would prompt the elders to convene a meeting specifically to discuss it?
After all, elder-level Spirit Realm walkers were high-tier figures capable of easily destroying an entire city.
They rarely managed daily affairs and seldom showed themselves. Most mundane matters of the mortal world could no longer pique their interest. Only when major incidents occurred, or when thorny, difficult decisions had to be made, would the elders step in.
Like this walkthrough for Jinshui Amusement Park.
"If not handled properly, Spirit Realm No. 6203 will become a second Sheling Tunnel for the Night Wanderers. But Sheling Tunnel was, after all, a trial realm—at most reducing the number of new Night Wanderers born. Realm 6203, however, will decimate the Night Wanderers in the Transcendent stage. The Taiyi Sect shares our roots. It is only right that we pass the walkthrough to them, and doing so is also for the good of the Five Elements Alliance," said the elder from Baihui.
Within the Five Elements Alliance, Baihui was closest to the Taiyi Sect, bound by marital ties. The Great Elder's daughter was the Taiyi Sect Master's sixth wife, and their son, Ling Jun, was a Saint-stage Wood Demon (Beast King) apprenticed under Baihui's alliance chief.
"The walkthrough can be given to the Taiyi Sect, but the terms of the deal must change. We don't just want money; we want Night Wanderer walkthrough materials and props. As for the clearance level of the materials and the quantity of props, that's up for further discussion," said the Central Court elder.
The Baihui elder's tone grew slightly heavier. "That will make it look like we're looting a burning house, damaging relations between our two sides."
"Given the difficulty of Spirit Realm No. 6203, I see no problem with naming a steep price. Heh, even if it were us back in the day encountering such a realm, we'd have a headache too."
The "conference room" fell silent. No one could deny the value of this walkthrough.
A few seconds later, the Water God Palace elder said in a grim tone:
"According to the report from a Water Ghost in Yan Province who cleared Jinshui Amusement Park, three people survived that realm. Among them was a young girl named Xie Lingxi. Word is she followed that Night Wanderer all the way through to clear it.
"I've looked into her. She belongs to the main line of the Xie family in Sanzhuang Province. So, we are not the only ones holding the walkthrough."
The White Tiger Battalion elder disagreed, his voice resonant and forceful:
"Whatever the Xie family demands will definitely be more than what we ask. Furthermore, when it comes to the Haunted House segment, the only ones truly holding the method to clear it are those with the walkthrough in our hands. As far as its value is concerned, I don't think there's any need for further debate.
"What concerns me more is that the author of the walkthrough explicitly warned us: Spirit Realm No. 6203 forces walkers to slaughter one another. That goes for the hidden quest, and it goes for the sure-death trial targeting Night Wanderers.
"If one of our organization's members happens to be in the group, they could very well be screwed over and killed by a Taiyi Sect Night Wanderer during the Ghost Bride segment."
In a fratricidal realm like this, an information gap could rewrite the outcome and alter fates.
The conference room fell silent once more.
At this point, Fu Qingyang said calmly, "Elders, I have a question."
"Speak!"
"Yuanshi raised a hypothesis in the walkthrough. He believes character roles are assigned based on human nature. We could refuse to give it to the Taiyi Sect and reserve the walkthrough exclusively for members of the Five Elements Alliance. But what if the person who receives the walkthrough is assigned the role of an evildoer?" Fu Qingyang spoke with neither subservience nor arrogance. "As we all know, an orthodox profession does not equal benevolence."
The Water God Palace elder said grimly, "You're right. What else is on your mind?"
Fu Qingyang said calmly, "The Taiyi Sect shares our roots, after all. The walkthrough must be given, but its contents should be modified: remove the author's hypothesis and insert a claim that roles are assigned completely at random, misleading the readers.
"After that, strictly inspect the clear reports. The moment anyone within our organization—or the Taiyi Sect—is discovered to have been assigned the evildoer role, arrest them immediately. Look at it from another angle: this is actually a powerful tool to help us weed out the bad apples."
Mutual slaughter was the Spirit Realm's built-in mechanic and could not be altered. The walkthrough had to be given regardless; they were allies, after all. If the captain ultimately won, all the better. If an evildoer won, the official organizations would avenge the fallen and snuff out the menace.
"But this is only a conjecture after all."
"Which is why it is merely an arrest."
Seeing that the other elders had not objected and were lost in thought, Fu Qingyang continued:
"After this incident, the Taiyi Sect will undoubtedly attempt to poach him. And the Taiyi Sect possesses a wealth of Night Wanderer realm walkthroughs and profession lore—advantages we cannot match. I believe we must win his loyalty properly. I intend to win him over with virtue."
The elders didn't usually care about poaching, but this newcomer Night Wanderer truly was special.
The Central Court elder mused, "The boy is quite capable. Having cleared two S-tier Spirit Realms back-to-back, he'll be a Saint at the very least in the future. Win him over with virtue? How do you plan to do that?"
Fu Qingyang stated his idea in a calm voice: "Hurry up and approve his bonus and merits."
For the third time, the conference room fell silent.
The Baihui elder gave a cough, pretending the "win him over with virtue" line had never been uttered, and said:
"I have a piece of intelligence here regarding that young man. The Taiyi Sect compiled data on the recently altered Spirit Realms and discovered that the vengeful spirits in the dungeons were all entrusted with the same quest by Lady Sandao: to locate a young man.
"That young man's name has four characters. Combining that with the details of the Sheling Tunnel walkthrough, it isn't hard to deduce that Lady Sandao is looking for Yuanshi Tianzun."
"Lady Sandao is looking for him?" Fu Qingyang's stern face betrayed astonishment.
The elders were equally startled.
The Baihui elder chuckled. "That lad held something back in his Sheling Tunnel report. The Taiyi Sect is investigating this matter and might seek him out soon. Keep an eye on it."
"Understood."
***
"Elder Sun has lost his mind!"
In a private captains' group chat, Yuan Ting sent this message in deep grief and indignation.
In the group were Night Wanderers scheduled to enter a Spirit Realm in the near future. Driven together by anxiety over the recent realm mutations, they had formed a temporary group chat to discuss how to cope with terrifying S-tier and A-tier realms.
"Come on, not that bad..."
The captains in the group chimed in with replies:
"The Five Elements Alliance and the Taiyi Sect share the same roots. At most, it'll cost a little something. Getting a mission guide for Jinshui Amusement Park shouldn't be hard."
Even though that guy named Yuanshi Tianzun was indeed an exceptional prodigy who would go far, the Taiyi Sect was hardly lacking in talent either—they had no shortage of geniuses in both the Transcendent and Saint stages.
Besides, the Five Elements Alliance and the Taiyi Sect were allies; rounding up, Yuanshi Tianzun could practically be considered half Taiyi Sect anyway.
Yuan Ting: "You guys have no idea. I heard from Li Dongze that Jinshui Amusement Park is a guaranteed death trap for Night Wanderers."
"What?!" The captains in the chat were alarmed.
While they might not necessarily enter Jinshui Amusement Park, as long as they remained in the Transcendent stage, if they didn't run into it this time, what about next time?
"If it's guaranteed death, that guy is a Night Wanderer too—how did he survive?"
"Exactly. As long as there's a walkthrough, we'll be fine."
Yuan Ting: "I heard from Li Dongze that the Five Elements Alliance's Council of Elders is currently in a meeting, and they don't seem very willing to hand the walkthrough over to our Taiyi Sect. You know how elders' meetings go—dragging on for ten days to half a month before reaching a verdict is totally normal. But many people in this group can't wait that long."
"Ah... Elder Sun has truly lost his mind!"
"Elder Sun really has lost his mind!"
The captains were filled with righteous indignation.
***
Hearing that a serious disagreement had arisen, Zhang Yuanqing pondered briefly and grasped where the conflict lay. He chuckled and said, "Who cares? In any case, that's for the higher-ups to fret over. As long as they don't shortchange my merits and bonus, I'm good. Decurion, I've been really strapped for cash lately."
It had been half a month since he joined the Five Elements Alliance, and payday hadn't arrived yet; he was still a broke student.
"Decurion, now that I've cleared an S-tier Spirit Realm, how about we get together tonight? My treat, but you'll have to spot me first, and I'll pay you back once the bonus comes in." As Zhang Yuanqing spoke, he looked toward Wang Tai, who wore a wooden expression. "Brother Wang Tai, you should come too."
"No," Wang Tai shook his head.
"That's no way to be. You need to chat with everyone, join dinners, deepen camaraderie, and expand your network. After dinner, I could even take you to a 'seafood merchant' to unwind."
"I have social anxiety."
"Social anxiety? Oh heavens, there's actually social anxiety in this world? What is there to fear? What are you afraid of?"
"I'm afraid of people like you."
"..."
At this point, Li Dongze, standing nearby, smiled and said, "A group dinner sounds fine, but you don't need to treat. Group Two has an important guest to receive tonight. That guest specifically named Wang Tai to host her, but you know Wang Tai's personality—he can't handle that kind of scene at all. So after discussing it with Guan Ya, I decided we'd accompany him.
"Since you're here, you might as well join us."
"An important guest?" Zhang Yuanqing asked curiously.
Finding a chance to chime in, Guan Ya said with a radiant smile, "The heiress of a Spirit Realm walker clan."
A wealthy young miss? Zhang Yuanqing chuckled lecherously at once and nudged Wang Tai in the ribs. "You thick-eyebrowed, big-eyed fellow—it's not like you have an enormous nose either—how'd you manage to hook up with a miss from a distinguished family?"
Wang Tai remained deadpan. "You don't need to repeat what the Decurion and Guan Ya already said."
He let out an exhausted sigh. "I have no connection to the Xie family in Sanzhuang Province. I can't fathom why the Xie family's young mistress wants to see me."
Guan Ya teased, "With that memory of yours that never remembers faces, even if you had a connection, you've probably forgotten it. Regardless, it's a good thing. Work hard, Wang Tai—aim to become a matrilocal son-in-law of the Xie family."
"Oh heavens, what an enviable vocation," Li Dongze joked with a smile.
The Xie family? Zhang Yuanqing's heart skipped a beat. He hastily asked, "What's the story behind this Xie family?"
When it came to briefing his subordinates on common knowledge, Li Dongze was never one to lag behind. He explained, "Like the Fu family, the Xie family is a prominent clan of Spirit Realm walkers. Every year, quite a few Musicians emerge from their ranks, making them formidable in strength. The Xie family isn't an official organization, but they follow orthodox professions and maintain longstanding ties with both the Five Elements Alliance and the Taiyi Sect."
Basically a rogue martial sect that was pacified and co-opted by the imperial court, Zhang Yuanqing understood. Inwardly, he thought: *Could this Xie family miss you're talking about be a green-tea bitch who loves playing weak and pitiful?*
An heiress of the Xie family, a semi-official organization, specifically asking for Wang Tai by name—with all the criteria matching, it was most likely Xie Lingxi.
*Did that girl seriously track me down to my doorstep?*
Zhang Yuanqing furrowed his brows and pondered for a moment, deciding to go meet the little green tea.
With her family background, if she set her mind to investigating him, she could definitely uncover Yuanshi Tianzun. No, she wouldn't even need to investigate—just browsing the Five Elements Alliance's official forum would make it clear that 'Wang Tai' was Yuanshi Tianzun's pseudonym.
Since avoiding her was impossible, he might as well face her openly. For one thing, the Xie family counted as semi-official, far more trustworthy than rogue walkers or small underground factions.
For another, given his current standing and fame within the organization, there was no need to hide like a turtle retracting its head; besides, Xie Lingxi didn't necessarily mean him any harm.
*A good chance to test what that little green tea is really after,* Zhang Yuanqing thought.
He idled at work until evening, when the dying sun burned red like blood. Zhang Yuanqing sent a text message to his aunt, asking her to inform his grandparents that their beloved grandson wouldn't be returning home for dinner.
Then, riding in Li Dongze's business van, he headed toward their destination—Huayu Hotel.
On the way, his aunt texted him in accusation: "What did you do today to make my mom so furious?"
"Nothing at all," Zhang Yuanqing replied.
"Bullshit! She already called you a scumbag of the family—that's clearly my brother's title of honor!"
*I really didn't do anything, just let the audio of a dirty video play out loud...* Zhang Yuanqing brushed it off casually: "I'm the heir to Uncle's mantle, after all. Sooner or later, this honorable title was bound to pass from uncle to nephew upon his demise. Enough talk, I'm off to meet a pretty young girl."
"A young girl?" His aunt sent a string of bloody knife emojis.
Huayu Hotel was a five-star establishment, with standard rooms starting at 1,500 yuan and suites over 3,000, fully equipped with a gym, bars, wellness spa, buffet, and more.
Among the guests passing through the revolving doors, aside from workplace elites, were mature beauties in form-fitting dresses with heavy makeup.
The revolving restaurant on the hotel's top floor had been booked out entirely for the evening. Zhang Yuanqing and the others took the elevator up and, guided by hotel staff, arrived at the restaurant entrance.
A server pushed open the double doors for them. Inside the spacious, luxurious restaurant, the lighting was soft and the carpet thick and plush. Four pretty waitresses stood respectfully on either side of the entrance.
By the massive floor-to-ceiling window stood a slender, graceful young girl, gazing out at Songhai City cloaked in night.
She wore a sweet sailor suit—a white top tied with a black bow at the collar and a black knee-length skirt. Her long, straight black hair draped silky-smooth over her shoulders. Soft ceiling lights cast a gentle glow over her face, making her skin look as smooth and warm as jade, refined and ethereal.
Pure, well-behaved, and pretty, she embodied every lovely quality of a girl in the bloom of youth.
Hearing the doors open, the girl turned her head to look. Her eyes lit up, and a radiant smile bloomed across her face.
She scampered over in delight, calling out, "Brother Wang Tai~"
Li Dongze raised an eyebrow, looking at Wang Tai beside him in sheer astonishment.
He realized he had to re-evaluate Wang Tai's relationship with the Xie family's heiress; who would have thought this subordinate of his was secretly a master of picking up girls?
Guan Ya let out a "Whoa," shooting Wang Tai a teasing, sidelong glance as she lowered her voice:
"I underestimated you, future matrilocal son-in-law of the Xie family."
Wang Tai wore a look of utter bewilderment, completely unable to grasp what was happening.
At that moment, they saw the Xie family's young mistress completely bypass Wang Tai, stopping directly in front of Zhang Yuanqing. She took hold of the hem of his shirt and chirped sweetly:
"I found you, Brother Wang Tai."
Chapter 64