Chapter 790: Chain Reaction (4000 characters)

So heavy!

Can't pull it!

This is Su Sheng's feeling at the moment.

What did I hook?

The previous catches, even including that red fish, were all reeled in with a single cast of the rod.

Anyway, I now have 1000 points of strength.

Why can't I pull this thing down??

The other anglers around also noticed this situation.

"What the heck? Why isn't he pulling the rod?"

"Don't know?"

"Looking at this situation, it feels a bit like we're fishing for Earth in reality."

"Bro…" At that moment, the angler who was initially beside Su Sheng walked over.

He had just said half of his sentence when his eyes widened.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit! Roar!!!"

Originally he wanted to ask what was going on, but it turned into a string of curses.

Only seen in Su Sheng's strained expression, a colorful light flashed beneath the water and then sank.

Colorful!!

What did he see?

Don't joke with me, a colorful catch?!

The other anglers who were also paying attention to this scene widened their eyes, and they too saw that fleeting light, which was especially glaring.

"No way?!"

"Bro, your newbie protection period is way too over the top!"

That angler looked unsettled.

He endured the red fish before.

But this time he really can't bear it.

However…

Su Sheng had no time to deal with the other anglers.

Because he had to focus entirely on… playing the fish…

Although Su Sheng is not a professional.

But even if he's never eaten pork, he's seen pigs run.

So Su Sheng went through the motions of playing the fish…

Come on!

Come on!

Come on!

Hook released!

Hook released…

A group of anglers stared intently at Su Sheng's actions.

Some were cheering for Su Sheng in their hearts, while others who felt uneasy hoped for the hook to come loose.

Ding~

System Notification:

…

…

Demon Energy, suppressed.

At that moment, a system announcement sounded.

It turned out to be the battle situation at Baihu Main City and Xuanwu Main City, where many special units of the Demon Race had been slain, so the Demon Energy did not continue to spread this time.

With this announcement appearing, it also meant…

Today's game time is about up.

"Wow, no way, there won't be time to bring the fish up, right?"

"That's a colorful‑grade catch, and so far no one has heard of anyone landing one."

"If we run out of time and can't bring the fish up, we'll suffer a huge loss."

"Anyway, if this fish isn't landed, if it were me I'd lose sleep for a month."

"I even feel like dying."

Now, the anglers around here have abandoned their own fishing spots and all come over to watch intensely.

At this moment, as Su Sheng plays the fish…

Underwater, that colorful catch has been bobbing up and down, already seen several times.

We can now be 100% certain that this is a colorful catch.

However… Su Sheng's complexion looks a bit off.

This fish is probably not going to be landed.

Because…

The fishing rod in his hand was the worst, the cheapest one…

It was normal, nothing special.

But, this was an over-an-hour fishing.

The first catch was a red fish, and then various fish kept biting… this rod's durability… almost nothing left.

Fishing rods are consumables… their durability decreases based on usage count, the rank of fish caught, and the time spent playing the fish.

Once durability reaches zero, it will break directly.

At this point, Su Sheng's fishing rod durability no longer supports reeling in this colored-rank fish.

So, the reason that fisherman previously exchanged Fragment Eleven for a dungeon clear was to obtain that rare-rank fishing rod…

Because it never wears out.

Ding~

Just then, a system notification that only Su Sheng could hear suddenly sounded in his ear.

Crack~

Su Sheng's fishing rod snapped outright.

"Ah?"

"Damn, the rod broke!"

"Not this guy……"

"Holy crap, what a shame, I was just saying we'd see a colored fish today."

"Buddy, you're not using the cheapest rod, are you?" At that moment, the fisherman who had been at the side from the start looked at Su Sheng's broken rod with a bewildered expression.

Everyone looked disappointed, having gotten excited for nothing.

They'd even taken off their pants, and the result is just… this, this, this?

Of course, some people were secretly gloating.

A group of fishermen dispersed, deeply disappointed.

Today's game time was almost up; since there was no excitement to watch, they also packed up and logged off.

It's really a shame; this should have been the first colored fish caught in the whole Contending for the Deer game—if only they'd swapped rods.

Many people, while packing up, were still sighing…

Really, what a shame.

But, Su Sheng didn't mind too much.

He casually threw the remaining half of the rod into the water.

Although he felt a bit regretful, he wasn't a true fisherman, so it wasn't as exaggerated as those fishermen imagined.

He just frowned at that system notification.

Ding~

System Notification:

Related to the garrison.

Respected garrison lord, your garrison has attracted the gaze of the demon race due to special circumstances.

Evil around it has already begun to spread silently.

Please stay on guard!

Before the game time ended, a system message popped up like this.

And then there was nothing after that…

What exactly is this vague system notification??

Su Sheng's face fell.

"Alright, brother, don't be upset, keep trying next time—though it's indeed a shame."

That fisherman who had been at the side from the start came over to Su Sheng and offered comfort.

He saw Su Sheng silent and speechless, and instinctively thought it was because the rod broke and they lost a colored-rank fish.

Su Sheng looked up, gave the fisherman a smile, and said, "It's fine, I was just thinking about something."

"Really?"

Seeing the bright smile before him, the fisherman wasn't quite convinced.

This guy can still smile—has he gone completely crazy?

Anyway, if it were me in this situation, I'd probably be crying with a miserable face.

"Really nothing?"

He couldn't help but ask again.

"Alright, game time's almost up—I really am fine to log off."

"Besides, the game has an emotion detection system; if my emotions were too intense, I probably couldn't even talk to you right now."

Hearing that, the fisherman also nodded thoughtfully, as if it were indeed true.

"Then I'll log off first—see you if fate allows."

Su Sheng smiled, packed everything into his backpack, and chose to log off right where he stood.

Anyway, being in town, he didn't need to pull out a tent or anything.

…

After logging off, Su Sheng was still thinking about that final system notification.

Has it set its sights on his garrison?

That's probably… related to YiSiLanDiEr.

Last time YiSiLanDiEr appeared, he already said that as long as he shows up, his aura will attract the attention of some Demon Race.

However, before that, the Demon Sealing Barrier isolated them, so these Demon Race have no presence as far as the Domestic Server is concerned.

So after YiSiLanDiEr mentioned it last time, nothing has happened.

Until this time, the Demon Tribe Invasion DLC.

Only then did an impact appear.

Looks like this should be a chain reaction brought on by the Demon Tribe Invasion DLC.

Unable to figure it out, Su Sheng simply stopped thinking about it.

I asked Lin Huan and Chen Guan, the two Deputy Presidents, and they didn't receive any similar notice.

But both said they didn't receive it.

It seems only I, as Chairman, can receive this notice.

Since they didn't receive it, I told them the situation at Su Sheng's bar.

Both of them also furrowed their brows, with nothing on their minds.

"Tonight when we go online, I'll arrange personnel to check the nearby area," Lin Huan said to Su Sheng.

"Good."

Su Sheng nodded: "I'll also take a personal stroll tonight."

In any case, for now there's no clear goal besides leveling up, so this conveniently gives us something to do.

…

It was a normal workday, with nothing extra happening.

After work, I went online to play the game.

Su Sheng, wearing that set of gear, appeared at the fishing spot by the Riverbank.

"Hey, brodei, you're up early today."

Su Sheng hadn't even recovered when a greeting sounded in his ear.

Su Sheng froze, then realized it was that fisherman from yesterday.

After a quick glance…

Su Sheng just stared.

Holy shit!

All I saw was that fisherman already ready, leisurely sitting at the fishing spot and casting his line.

That fast? I didn't even delay much.

When the time came, I logged on almost exactly on schedule.

But they had already started fishing.

Really fast.

Looking into the distance… along this fishing spot, row after row of fishermen had all taken their seats and put out their rods.

This…

Su Sheng still underestimated the allure of a colorful catch for these fishermen.

Originally this remote corner wasn't a prime fishing spot.

But after the colorful catch that Su Sheng didn't reel in yesterday, everyone practically swarmed to this spot.

Meanwhile, the previously superior spot now has hardly anyone.

Tsk tsk tsk…

The fishermen's madness.

Afterward, Su Sheng prepared to turn and leave.

"Bro, remember to buy a good fishing rod next time you fish."

Just as Su Sheng turned to leave, the fisherman who had taken Su Sheng's fishing spot from yesterday spoke to him.

"I know."

Su Sheng waved his hand indifferently and then left directly.

…

"Your Majesty YiSiLanDiEr, are you there?"

Su Sheng came to the town center and looked up at that huge Primordial Tree.

He called out.

Whoosh~

There was no response from the tree, but the Primordial Tree's aerial roots intertwined and spread out, forming a staircase.

During this time the Primordial Tree's attributes haven't changed; it still shows as a Primordial Tree, but its volume has increased by about twenty percent.

"I know, what do you want from me?"

Having arrived at the treehouse atop the Primordial Tree, Su Sheng still hadn't spoken.

From inside the treehouse came YiSiLanDiEr's voice.

"I didn't expect you to come so soon; I thought there would still be some time." YiSiLanDiEr's voice continued, and then the old scholar's figure appeared at the treehouse doorway.

"I can't feel the specifics clearly, but I can sense it's vaguely in the east."

YiSiLanDiEr gazed deeply toward the east.

"Understood, having a direction is already good enough." Su Sheng nodded upon hearing that.

Afterward, he opened the Guild Channel.

He posted a new announcement.

All members who temporarily have no tasks started exploring east.

Report any abnormality found.

Today's exploration is a group activity; regardless of any extra discoveries, each person is rewarded 100 contribution points.

"Go, be careful." YiSiLanDiEr looked at Su Sheng and said.

"I will." Su Sheng nodded.

…

Just…

Su Sheng had just come down from the Primordial Tree when he bumped into Tie Chui Airen.

"Your Majesty, Iron Hammer?"

Su Sheng looked at Tie Chui Airen with doubt.

"This old brat's follow-up trouble has come, right?" Tie Chui Airen said bluntly.

"Yeah."

Su Sheng also didn't hide anything.

"Ah... Demon Race."

"Really endless entanglement."

"Do your best."

Afterward, the Iron Hammer Dwarf King turned and left.

…

Then today, players active in Yanhuang Town discovered this strange scene.

The members of the Yanhuang Guild didn't know what to do today, all running outside.

And they all went east.

They also didn't know what was east.

This attracted many curious players who also followed and began exploring east.

Su Sheng saw this scene, didn't stop them, and even hoped those guys helping with exploration would spot the anomaly and report it to him.

But it's a pity.

A whole day's time.

Directly resulted in nothing gained.

Until the moment when the game time was about to end.

Yesterday's system notification appeared again.

It's the same, just saying that its base was being watched, and then some anomalies were slowly occurring.

Su Sheng wondered…

I don't know; if these anomalies aren't handled, will they eventually turn into a Demon Siege?

Headache…

Since nothing was found, I could only log off for now and continue tomorrow.

Of course it's a bit of a waste of everyone's time, but there's no choice; if it turns into a Demon Siege.

Although I'm confident about Yanhuang Town and the Yanhuang Guild, if the attacking force is of that level Demon Siege, Yanhuang Town would be insufficient.

So if we could directly nip this anomaly in the bud, that would be best.

The next day, logging in…

Su Sheng continued heading east, searching everywhere.

Just two hours after game time started, a private chat came in.

"Chairman, Yanhuang Town has a situation, hurry back."

"The main gate is blocked."

It was Zhu Meng Junjie.

Su Sheng raised his eyebrows, wondering if the anomaly had already begun?

Then directly used a return-to-city scroll.

After returning to the city, Su Sheng hurriedly rushed to the main gate.

"Ugh…"

After seeing the situation at the front, Su Sheng couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, "What the hell is this?"

Just see, at some point, a large clump of thorns had grown at the main gate of Yanhuang Town.

Those thorns were dense and bore sharp spikes, sealing off the entire main gate of Yanhuang Town.

At this time, many players were blocked at the main gate, curiously watching the scene, not knowing what was happening.

After all, the Yan Huang Base is still open.

Besides the players of the Yanhuang Guild itself, there are still many other players.