Chapter 78: This Place is Waiting for You

The second level of the Eternal Peace Princess Tomb.

After exchanging passphrases, Ren Ye recognized Little Wolf Warrior.
“…You came looking for me. Did anyone else see you?”

“I observed for quite a while inside. After confirming that everyone had gone far away, I came to find you,” Li Yan replied softly. “But to be safe, let’s move deeper in and find a secluded spot to talk.”

“Alright.”

“You okay?” Li Yan took out a small bottle of bruise ointment from his pocket. “Here.”

“Thanks.” Although Ren Ye sounded polite, he grabbed Li Yan’s wrist tightly. “Wait.”

“What are you doing?” Li Yan froze in surprise.

“Even though I feel a sense of trust toward you, how can you prove you’re truly one of us?” Ren Ye asked cautiously.

Li Yan blinked. “When we were at the Xinyuan Spa, I saved your dad, remember? And now you’re doubting me?”

“Why can’t I doubt you?” Ren Ye was already prepared for another fight.

“Alright, you’re a cautious guy,” Li Yan said with a helpless nod. “Fine, I’ll test you too. Let’s make sure neither of us mistakes an enemy for an ally.”

Li Yan turned around, bowed solemnly, and recited:
“Hidden Agent of Old Prince Huai, Li Yan, greets the young lord. May our Prince Huai and the Heavenly Pardoned One restore the great fortune of the Great Qian Dynasty.”

The moment Li Yan finished, Ren Ye felt an inexplicable sense of closeness between them. Immediately after, a cold voice echoed in his ears:

[You have found the hidden agent left behind by Old Prince Huai—Chief Historian Li Yan. Would you like to acknowledge them?]

Hearing this, Ren Ye finally relaxed. He grabbed Li Yan’s hand and shook it firmly. “So it’s really you, comrade! But I choose not to acknowledge.”

As Ren Ye declined, the peculiar sense of connection faded. Standing across from each other, he grinned and said, “Chief Historian Li, continue your infiltration.”

“…If I keep infiltrating for another two years, I might just become the head of the Court Faction,” Li Yan quipped before urging, “Come on, let’s move to a better spot to talk.”

…

After some time, the two followed a corridor and found a remote burial chamber. The room was piled with decaying food and stone statues of livestock.

From the burial items displayed, anything associated with living creatures was replaced with stone sculptures—a stark contrast to typical royal tombs.

Could it be that the Eternal Peace Princess was compassionate and avoided burying live creatures with her?

Respectable!

Inside the chamber, the two lit a small oil lamp for illumination, keeping an ear out for any movement outside as they spoke softly.

Leaning against the wall, Li Yan nibbled on coarse dry rations and asked quietly, “You’re the Heavenly Pardoned One, aren’t you?”

Ren Ye hesitated for a moment. “Why?”

“Do you have paranoia or something?!” Li Yan shot him a side glance. “I already revealed myself as an agent, and you’re still playing coy. What’s the point?”

Scratching his head, Ren Ye mulled it over before deciding not to conceal it any longer. “Fine, I’m the Heavenly Pardoned One—the chosen one.”

“That’s all I needed to hear,” Li Yan said with a long exhale.

Ren Ye looked at him curiously. “Is that so important? Why do you know about the Heavenly Pardoned One?”

“It’s absolutely important. This tomb has always been waiting for the Heavenly Pardoned One. To be exact… it’s been waiting for you,” Li Yan replied as he chewed his food. “I… I’ve been waiting for you too.”

“What?!”

Ren Ye stared at him in shock. “Waiting for me? What do you mean?”

“Someone is secretly watching us. There are certain things… I can’t say much about, or it will break the rules,” Li Yan said, shaking his head.

Ren Ye pondered for a moment. “You mean ‘the Eye of the Gate,’ right? It’s secretly observing us, so… you don’t dare speak freely?”

“Exactly.” Li Yan nodded in confirmation.

Ren Ye rubbed his chin. “I think you’re trying to trick me.”

“Why would I trick you?” Li Yan retorted with a smirk.

“Dude, there are 11 players in this Star Gate, divided into three factions. Everyone’s presence is necessary for the game to continue,” Ren Ye said, analyzing Li Yan’s expression carefully. “So why would you say this tomb is waiting for me? If it’s really waiting for me, why bother with the other 10 players? Why not just open the door and let me in right away?”

Li Yan, no fool himself, immediately realized Ren Ye was probing for more information. But he had no intention of hiding the truth. “Here’s the deal—without the Heavenly Pardoned One, we probably wouldn’t make it past the eighth level. It would be impossible to clear the Princess Tomb. If the right person isn’t present, the doors simply won’t open.”

Ren Ye sensed that Li Yan knew a lot of hidden details, so he quickly followed up. “…Hypothetically, just hypothetically! If the Heavenly Pardoned One died in the first act, what would happen to the other players? Without access to the tomb, how would the mission proceed?”

Li Yan took a sip from his water flask and replied, “If you were to die, the other players would likely reach the eighth level, receive their rewards, and successfully clear the game. In simple terms, you’re the key to triggering hidden levels. Only with you present can we fully explore the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate.”

“…!”

Upon hearing this, Ren Ye felt not elated but increasingly uneasy and anxious.

Before entering, he had known that the Star Gate was calling for him. But now, having reached the second act, he discovered that what had been waiting for him was a princess’s tomb.

He carefully reflected on it in his mind, going over the histories of his ancestors, but he couldn’t find any extraordinary secrets in his family history!

Why would this tomb be waiting for him? Ren Ye couldn’t make sense of it.

“You can’t die. If you’re gone… I’m gone too,” Li Yan said quietly, looking at Ren Ye. “Sigh, as for why this tomb is waiting for you… I’m not sure. I’ve been investigating for a long time, but I couldn’t find anything.”

“A long time?” Ren Ye immediately caught the key point. “The first and second acts together have only been nine days or so. Why would you say a long time?”

“Uh…!” Li Yan looked at him. “I’ve been stuck in this cursed place for a while. Out of the eleven players, there’s me and one other special case… but I can’t tell you right now.”

“Damn!”

Ren Ye’s eyes reddened with anger. “We’re comrades, and you’re still keeping secrets?”

“I’ve told you, someone’s watching us. I can’t speak carelessly, it’s against the rules,” Li Yan waved his hand, his face serious as he warned. “But don’t think that just because you’re the Heavenly Pardoned One, you have any special privileges. You can’t cheat. On the contrary, the difficulty for you to make it to the end is far greater than for other players. If you die along the way… Prince Huai’s faction fails, and everyone following you dies.”

Ren Ye fell silent.

“To give a simple example, besides me, you should be able to recruit two teammates, or three?” Li Yan asked.

Ren Ye didn’t beat around the bush. “Two. Besides you, I’ve already recruited the Songstress, and I plan to recruit the Princess.”

“You’d better recruit the Princess. She’s no ordinary woman,” Li Yan advised, before quickly adding, “Look, from the surface, Prince Huai’s faction seems to be the central one, but in reality, both the Opportunist Faction and the Court Faction have opposing missions. Moreover, the Opportunist Faction not only has the option of winning alone but can also join the Court Faction. In other words, the Star Gate assumes that this faction will be fighting against us two-on-one.”

“We’re only four people at most, and we’re supposed to fight seven.”

“How hard is that? Is this fair?” Li Yan looked at Ren Ye. “It’s because of you that Prince Huai’s faction’s difficulty has been ramped up. Do you understand?”

Before meeting Li Yan, Ren Ye had many things he couldn’t figure out. Now, after hearing him, things became much clearer.

At least now he knew that the path ahead wouldn’t be easy, and he had to be extra vigilant. Otherwise… one wrong move, and it would be a disaster.

“I won’t rush to reveal my hidden identity. I’ll observe a bit more,” Li Yan whispered. “From yesterday until now, I think… that No. 3 and the No. 7 woman are likely working together. They’re probably from the Court Faction and are likely recruiting teammates now.”

“I agree. I’ll recruit the Princess. If that doesn’t work… I’ll invest an extra two hours every day. I’ll manage to get through to her,” Ren Ye paused. “Let’s not rush to reveal ourselves. We’ll observe a bit more and push the mission forward.”

“Mm.” With that, Li Yan prepared to leave. “Little brother, remember my words: always think things through twice, because you’re carrying several lives on your shoulders…!”

“Wait!”

Ren Ye called out and immediately pulled a letter from his pocket. “You know a lot, help me analyze the contents of this letter and see if it’s real or fake.”

Li Yan took the letter and held it up to the coal lamp.

The faint flame flickered as his eyes scanned the paper.

After a while, Li Yan looked at Ren Ye with a strange expression and suddenly asked, “Where did you get this letter?”

“That day, we had that fight with the Bell Society at the apartment building across from the Xinyuan Spa,” Ren Ye didn’t hide anything. “During the brawl, when several Vigil Keepers were attacking Mr. He, this letter fell from him. Someone picked it up, saw that it was related to Qingliang Prefecture, and passed it on to me. But since this letter came from the Bell Society, I can’t be sure if it’s real. Please help me check.”

Li Yan’s eyes slid over the paper until they stopped at the bottom right corner.

His expression grew even stranger as he softly said, “Do you know… what I did after leaving the first act?”

Ren Ye shook his head.

“I posted an advertisement selling Star Gate information in a player group. Then Mr. He contacted me, and we arranged to meet in Shanghai,” Li Yan looked at him. “After we met, I gave him the information, but they played dirty… they double-crossed me, killing my possessed body again.”

Ren Ye was stunned.

Li Yan shook the letter. “This paper you have is the one I gave him.”

“You sold this information to him?!” Ren Ye immediately pressed. “And then I got it? So… it’s fake, right?”