Chapter 80: An Uncouth Writer

On the high-speed train from Shanghai to the Capital.

Ren Qingning was curled up in a spacious seat, wearing an eye mask, sleeping soundly with an adorable look.

Beside him, Huang Wei looked at Ren Daguo with curiosity and asked, “Big Bro, how many words can you write in a day?”

“Normally, six to seven thousand. On a good day, over ten thousand.” Ren Daguo sipped from his thermos, crossing his legs like a veteran cadre.

“Writing that much every day? Your line of work isn’t easy either.” Huang Wei chatted casually. “Where do you guys even get so much inspiration?”

“Massage parlors.”

“Huh?” Huang Wei was stunned.

Ren Daguo blinked and quickly added, “I mean, I have a friend… and most of his inspiration comes from spa houses and bathhouses…”

With a long journey ahead and nothing better to do, the two started chatting idly, mostly about so-called “literary works on relationships.”

“Ding-ling-ling!”

A phone rang. Sitting in the front row, Boss Yan glanced back at them, then pulled out his phone and walked into the train aisle. He pressed the answer button.

“Hello? Speak.”

“Boss Yan, I can’t push any further. Mr. He from the Bell Society was last spotted around Shanghai. He found a Freedom Faction¹ player to treat his injuries. By the time we arrived, they were already gone,” a man said steadily over the phone. “He’s currently missing. My personal guess is that he’s returned to the Xiangjiang area and is likely hiding inside a Star Gate, making him difficult to track.”

Yan Duoduo pondered for three seconds. “Notify our colleagues in Xiangjiang through Shanghai HQ. Have them assist in the search.”

“Understood.”

“Alright, that’s it.”

Ending the call, Yan Duoduo stuffed his phone into his pocket, gazed out the train window, and murmured, “Hopefully, those ghosts will behave and just stay inside their Star Gates… incubating their eggs.”

Since Ren Ye had killed the Songstress in the first act and obtained her identity tag, he could bring one extra person into the second act.

With the Vigil Keeper gaining this advantage, Yan Duoduo was even more concerned that the opposing faction forces might panic and act recklessly.

…

Xiangjiang City

In an ordinary teahouse in the old district, Mr. He sat on the second floor, enjoying a bowl of fatty intestine noodles.

Outside, the sun shone brightly. The streets bustled with traffic and pedestrians, making for a lively scene.

A moment later, he finished his noodles, wiped his mouth gracefully, then picked up a toothpick with his right hand while covering his mouth with his left, picking his teeth.

“Tap, tap!”

Footsteps approached as a young man emerged from the shop owner’s office, softly calling out, “You’re finished?”

Mr. He turned to glance at him and gave a slight nod.

“Then please, come with me.” The young man stepped aside, gesturing politely.

After a brief exchange, the two entered the shop owner’s office together.

The room had its curtains drawn, leaving it dimly lit. Its furnishings were no different from those of a regular teahouse office.

Once inside, Mr. He stood at the doorway, unmoving, while the young man removed a delicate silver bell from his waist and gently shook it.

“Ding ding dang… dang…!”

A crisp sound echoed. Before long, a faint starlight suddenly appeared in the room, gradually expanding and spreading.

An irregular, distorted Star Gate emerged before Mr. He. Unlike a normal Star Gate, however, this one emitted a dim, almost pitch-black glow.

Turning to nod at the young man, Mr. He then stepped forward and entered the Star Gate, vanishing.

…

Cold. Darkness. Tremors…

His vision blurred momentarily before gradually becoming clear again.

When he reopened his eyes, Mr. He found himself standing in a picturesque manor surrounded by lush greenery. There were vegetable gardens all around, a small bridge over flowing water before him, and a wooden house not far away.

The place resembled a rural farmhouse in southern China—brimming with the essence of everyday life.

At the entrance of the wooden house, a group of women were sitting under a banyan tree, singing songs.

They wore white cloth garments, their faces bearing smiles as they sat cross-legged.

“Once, I wandered aimlessly,
On a dark night’s road,
A gentle breeze stung my soul…”

The singing was melodious and very pleasant, but it had a bit of a hypnotic effect.

This unexpected “rural farmyard” was an exclusive Star Gate belonging to a Golden Bell member of the Bell Society. Its area wasn’t large, and the visible part was the active area. The black area visible to the naked eye was the boundary, beyond which one could not go.

As Huang Wei had told Ren Ye before, in Ordered Legacy, if a player gained the recognition of a Star Gate, they would be “completely bound” to it, with the ability to open or close it at will. They could also invite others in and even… change most of the rules within that Star Gate world.

Mr. He could enter this Star Gate with the tacit approval of the Golden Bell member.

Stepping forward, Mr. He crossed the small bridge, paused beside the group of women, and disdainfully remarked, “Singing is fine, but singing opera would be better…”

No one paid him any attention. Mr. He straightened his suit and walked into the small courtyard.

On the left side of the wooden house, a man who looked to be at least in his fifties was wielding a hoe, tending to the vegetable garden.

He wore white cloth clothes with his pants rolled up, his skin darkened from the sun, and he looked quite strong.

Mr. He walked over and softly said, “Mr. Lu.”

Mr. Lu, who was balding and had a sweat towel around his neck, looked just like a regular farmer: “You’re here. How’s your injury recovery?”

“It’s almost fully healed,” Mr. He replied, standing to the side with a composed expression.

“It’s almost autumn harvest outside, while here it’s just the beginning of spring,” Mr. Lu wiped his face with the towel. “Tending the garden, it’s healthy to eat what you grow.”

“Heh, yes.” Mr. He, the biggest show-off himself, found it ironic that he disliked others putting on airs in front of him.

Don’t be pretentious. Healthy my ass.

Mr. Lu was a Golden Bell, and in the Bell Society, his rank was a full level above Mr. He, the “actor.” He slowly put down his hoe, sat on the edge of the well he had built, and while pressing down the iron rod, he used a porcelain bowl to scoop clear, pristine well water.

The two sat in silence for a while, before Mr. Lu took a sip of water and softly said, “…I received instructions from headquarters. Our side, Xiangjiang, is fully responsible for dealing with Ren Ye’s situation.”

“Mm,” Mr. He nodded.

“Headquarters has already run the simulations,” Mr. Lu added, “The rare legacy from Qingliang Prefecture must be a hidden profession. Divine-system, Scholar-sytem, or… Soul-system.”

Mr. He furrowed his brow, “Are you sure?”

“Headquarters never makes mistakes,” Mr. Lu replied indifferently.

The profession legacies from Star Gates are divided into fifteen major categories, with twelve being common professions and three being rare, hidden professions, as Mr. Lu referred to them.

These three categories are: Divine, Scholar, and Soul system.

According to the current rules, the Divine profession belongs to the Order faction, the Scholar profession belongs to the Freedom Faction, and the Soul-system profession belongs to the Chaos faction.

These three professions are extremely rare and mysterious, with their supernatural abilities often venturing into forbidden areas.

If gods really exist, the first players who would encounter them would undoubtedly be from these three professions.

Mr. He pondered for a moment: “So, what does headquarters want us to do?”

“The best option,” Mr. Lu said with a slight frown, “is to prevent Ren Ye from competing for this legacy, and kill all the Vigil Keepers in Qingliang Prefecture.”

“But the current situation is tricky,” Mr. Lu continued, “We have two players in this Star Gate, and the Vigil Keepers have two as well. You can’t guarantee you can kill or stop them.”

Mr. He nodded.

“It’s not easy to take action in the real world either,” Mr. Lu looked up at him, “Even if Ren Ye leaves the Star Gate in the second act, the protection from the Vigil Keepers will be unprecedented.”

“True. Yan Duoduo’s stance on the Shanghai kidnapping case was very tough, not even hesitating to start a battle on Tongren Road.” Mr. He had been beaten by the Vigil Keepers before, so he knew their attitude well: “I think… we’re already one step behind in winning over Ren Ye. He’s very inclined to join the Vigil Keepers.”

Mr. Lu lowered his head and pondered for a moment. “We need to use Ren Ye’s family as leverage; ordinary people are easier to handle. I had someone check, his father and sister have gone to the Capital with Yan Duoduo.”

“Are you suggesting we pursue them to the Capital…?”

“Absolutely not with the intention of harming them; that would push Ren Ye away for good.” Mr. Lu waved his hand, “We can invite them here, have them drink tea, tend the fields, and wait quietly for the inheritance in Qingliang Prefecture to be decided. If Ren Ye gets the inheritance, we’ll talk reason with him, show him the utmost enthusiasm, invite him to join the Bell Society. If it’s someone from our side who gets it… then it’s even simpler, haha.”

Mr. He looked at him awkwardly. “Going to the Capital, under Vigil Keeper’s protection, and inviting them here… that’s not any easier than just killing them.”

Mr. Lu shook his head: “The approach shouldn’t be about clashing head-on with the Vigil Keepers; we need skill, stealth… We need a very powerful player with special, extraordinary abilities to execute this.”

When Mr. He heard this, he immediately thought of someone—someone he had nurtured for three years for nothing.

“By the way, you participated in the competition three years ago,” Mr. Lu suddenly stood up and said. “I’ve been asking you to investigate that ‘writer’ who decided the final outcome. Do you have any news on him? Has he chosen a faction? If he’s willing to act… there’s a good chance he can steal someone out.”

When this topic was brought up, the proud expression on Mr. He’s face vanished, replaced by fear and shock.

That writer?

A player who could bring fictional characters to life?

A player who was so elusive that even large organizations like the Vigil Keeper, Bell Society, Stray Dogs, and Fraudulent Merchants Association couldn’t find any trace of him?

Mr. He shook his head. “This person has no friends, no faction, and no familiar player organizations. He doesn’t even exchange items with other players—he’s a lone wolf. I’ve only seen his profile once during the competition. He must have been in disguise at that time. Later, when you asked me to investigate him, I searched for a long time… before I found an information dealer who had sold him a ticket to the competition and added him on social media.”

“And then? Why didn’t you report this? It’s such important news!” Mr. Lu was a bit angry.

“We only exchanged two sentences. I said, ‘Hello.’”

“He said, ‘Get lost, your singing is terrible.’”

“I asked, ‘Can we get to know each other?’”

“He said, ‘No, and don’t let your organization contact me. I’m about to go through a career-defining quest. If you disturb me, I’ll break your limbs.’”

“…!”

Mr. He had a black line across his forehead. “This person has no manners. After cursing, he blocked me, and hasn’t used that social media account again. Well… there’s no need to report that.”

…

Inside the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate.

Ten players sat cross-legged, till recounting the life story of the Eternal Peace Princess.

Still reliving the year when renowned scholars and luminaries gathered in the capital of Jing Dynasty, eager to witness whether Huang Zi or Li Mu would claim the title of Greatest Under Heaven.