Chapter 53: Players Searching for a Way Out

"Lao Feng, what level are you?" 【Bitter Melon Vine】 asked.

"Level five," 【Madman】 said. "Inner Gong value 550, Blade Technique proficiency 600. How about you?"

"I'm about the same," 【Bitter Melon Vine】 said. "In three days, the second batch of closed beta testers will arrive. Just grinding like this isn't a solution; we can't pull away and establish a level advantage."

"We need to find a place to grind," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 said. "Theoretically, killing monsters increases levels faster."

"Where should we go to kill monsters?" 【Shangguantiezhu】 said.

"Xishan," 【Will or Won't】 said. "There are Fierce Beasts on Xishan. I've asked around; the City Lord's Mansion buys back Fierce Beasts. Their fur, meat, and bones can all be exchanged for money. The buy-back prices at the Yingbin Building and the fur shops outside are even higher..."

"Are our levels good enough?" 【Silver】 asked. "The forum says Fierce Beasts are very hard to fight; if you go up, you'll be killed in seconds."

"Whether we can or not, we have to try. We must prove our value," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 said. "If we can't level up quickly and learn higher-level techniques, the status of Dark Guard is worthless. NPCs have their own thoughts. Our behavior in applying to be Dark Guards earlier must have already offended the City Lord; she is simply brushing us off. This morning, Lao Mi and Gengmi were called away by the City Lord and haven't returned all day. I suspect they were sent to carry out a mission. They are the true beneficiaries of the hidden profession."

"..." Several players who were grinding stopped. The reason analyzed by 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 made them somewhat dejected.

"Is it too late to quit the Dark Guard now?" 【Silver】 asked.

"I went back to the Mo Family Sword Hall today and was kicked out," 【Bitter Melon Vine】 said. "The other party's reason was that since we entered the City Lord's Mansion, it is inappropriate to have further ties with the martial arts hall. Moreover, it is said that if you quit the Dark Guard, your Martial Art will be crippled..."

"Crippling Martial Art? Even the Basic Martial Arts that don't have any Skills are crippled? That's too unreasonable!" 【Shangguantiezhu】 said in astonishment. "That means if we want to change professions, there's no choice other than deleting our accounts!"

"Although I don't know why the boss of the Kitchen God Rice Divination revealed this news to us, there is a high possibility that we were set up by him," 【Bitter Melon Vine】 said. "Right now, almost all the closed beta players in Jiamu City are gathered here. Although we are nominally Dark Guards and have freedom of movement, it looks more like we are being centrally managed..."

Centrally managed?

That term doesn't sound very good!

"Did Deng Li Buduo leak our identities?" 【Silver】 frowned.

"It wasn't him. At the time, when the boss of the Kitchen God Rice Divination talked about the Dark Guard matter, Deng Li Buduo's expression also looked like he was hearing it for the first time," 【Bitter Melon Vine】 said. "I even have a feeling that the great god Deng Li Buduo was also used by that NPC."

"No way?" 【Jingbuyi】 said. "Is Lin Bai that shrewd?"

"Have you suffered few losses from NPCs?" 【Will or Won't】 glanced at him sideways and said, "If you want to play this game well and still follow previous experience, you will definitely take a huge tumble."

"The difficulty is so high, I kind of don't want to play anymore," 【Silver】 suddenly felt listless.

"If you don't want to play, there are plenty of people lining up. The game's popularity has been hyped to the heavens," 【Bitter Melon Vine】 said. "Once you start streaming, even if you don't do anything in the early stages, just streaming the unique life in another world will make you a fortune. This game world is made too realistically. Many people have already predicted that 'Xianxia World' is very likely to become the next profitable trend."

"Stop talking about this nonsense. What do we do now?" 【Shangguantiezhu】 asked.

"One method: quickly raise our levels, defeat the instructor, and find a way to gain the trust of the City Lord's Mansion to get ahead in the City Lord's Mansion. The second method: also raise our levels, then leave the newbie village and go to a higher-level city to develop," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 said.

"We've already offended the City Lord, so how can we get ahead?" 【Silver】 said. "I choose the second one."

"The second one means we defect as Dark Guards. Referring to normal plot development, it is very likely we will become wanted criminals," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 said.

"Streaming as a wanted criminal might not be a way out. Maybe we could even create a version of wilderness survival in another world..." 【Silver】 said, eager to try. Realizing that streaming could make money, his train of thought seemed to have opened up as well.

"Wilderness survival in another world probably won't be easy; this world is too unfamiliar to us," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 said. "Regardless, we must level up first. Brothers, we are now in the same boat, so let's support each other! At least within three days, pull the level gap away from the second batch of Pioneers."

"Definitely," 【Shangguantiezhu】 said.

"Hurry up and grind. Tomorrow we go out of the city to fight Fierce Beasts," 【Lazy Cancer Indefinite】 had become the leader of all the Dark Guard players and ordered as a matter of course. "Take turns logging off to browse the forums and collect first-hand information. It would be best to find data on fighting Fierce Beasts."

The players all agreed.

"How is it? You've been watching for so long, is there anyone you need?" In the room next to the training ground, Xu Longyun asked Lin Bai beside her with a smile.

Behind them, several Dark Guards glared at Lin Bai.

"No," receiving the Negative Emotion from the Dark Guards, Lin Bai ignored their hostility, shook his head, and smiled.

After coming out of the medical hall, he came directly to the City Lord's Mansion.

No matter when, intelligence is the top priority.

To understand the game's dynamics, Lin Bai's only way was to eavesdrop on the players' private chats.

The City Lord's Mansion was where players gathered, naturally a good place to learn news.

As expected, he obtained several important pieces of information: the second batch of closed beta, the opening of streaming, and the players' hostility toward him...

The last item could be ignored.

With the help of the system, there would only be more and more people hostile to him; he couldn't hate them all.

One should be open-minded; living well oneself is enough.

"I heard you were busy in the medical hall all day?" The City Lord asked with a smile.

"When I sent Zhou Jiang back, Lin felt deeply the insufficiency in medical skills, so I specifically went to the medical hall today to exercise my medical skills," Lin Bai heard the City Lord's hint and said nonchalantly. "If I encounter such a situation in the future, I won't be at a loss."

【Resentment from Zhao Tong, Li Long, Li Jin; +1+1+1】

"Shopkeeper Lin is thoughtful." Xu Longyun looked back at the few Dark Guards, shook her head, and smiled. "The Remnant City plan has already begun to be pushed forward. Shopkeeper Lin, now we can be considered tied together. We should be open with each other, don't you think?"

"Understood. If there are any changes, I will share them with the City Lord in time," Lin Bai smiled, stood up, and rose. "Lin is just a mortal; I rely on the City Lord's care more. It's getting late, and Lin should go back to look after the shop. I won't disturb the City Lord tonight."

"Shopkeeper Lin, please go ahead." Xu Longyun stood up as well and ordered, "Zhao Tong, see Shopkeeper Lin off for me."

"Li Jin, what do you think Lin Bai discovered?" After Lin Bai left, Xu Longyun's brows immediately furrowed, and she looked suspiciously at the players who were still diligently grinding.

"This subordinate does not know," Li Jin said. "After Zhou Jiang woke up yesterday, I interrogated all the members in the mansion, and no one had any contact with Lin Bai... The skills Lin Bai possesses are like the legendary Divination Technique, or perhaps the Soul Bewitching of the Demonic Path. City Lord, Lin Bai acts strangely and does not look like a righteous person. Please be more wary of him."

"I have my own judgment." Xu Longyun pondered for a moment, her gaze fixed on the players, and said, "Report all abnormal changes in the city to me in time. Lin Bai coming over definitely wouldn't be just to take a few looks at them for no reason..."

(End of chapter)