Chapter 191: Princess Ailin's Invitation

Deep in the Beifeng mine, in the quality square next to the resurrection point, a few skeleton soldiers who had just gone online were carrying weapons and preparing to go down to the labyrinth to brush adventurers.

Recently, the adventurers in the labyrinth were obviously much more active than before, and everyone had a ransom on their heads. Randomly knocking one out not only exploded a pile of equipment, but also had underworld coins to take, so that players practicing in the Cao Planet had returned a lot.

Although brushing mushroom people at the outpost fortress of Cao Planet is also very cool, only experience income without underworld coin income is a fatal flaw.

When passing by the Audience Hall, one of the skeleton soldiers glanced at it quietly, and the soul fire burning in the skull flickered with a touch of surprise.

The skeleton soldier retracted his head and looked at his companion curiously and asked.

Melancholy Fries: "Speaking of which, where has the Demon King gone recently? Why haven't I seen him."

Passerby A No. 1: "I don't know, maybe he went back to the Demon Capital to report on his duties again."

Arctic Panda: "This is too laborious."

Apple-flavored Apple: "Indeed, other NPCs stay in one place, only he is busy running around."

Thinking of this, the reverence of the skeleton soldiers for the Demon King became even stronger.

Of course, not all undead are loyal.

There are also those who want to eat purple eggs.

Pig-headed Knight: "Damn! Where is my cat girl? There is none here! It must have been abducted by that evil guy to do strange things!"

Tauren Warrior: "You're almost there."

Hu Wan: "..."

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

Looking at the noisy skeleton soldiers, Alakto, who was watching the Demon King's palace, sneered and didn't speak.

A group of idiots.

What's so good about cat girls, not as good as one ten-thousandth of Lady Arachinos, I really don't know why that guy has such high popularity.

But speaking of which, he was also curious about where the Demon King had gone, and that noble master didn't take him with him this time.

Thinking of this, Alakto, who was unbalanced in his heart, became depressed again and again.

I don't know if it's because the operation team upgraded the server, although there was no new update announcement recently, but a lot of test codes were issued.

Affected by this, the number of players in the server has increased significantly recently.

And because of the growth in the number of players and the desire of newcomers to become stronger, "RMT" behavior has gradually increased.

Instead of sitting in jail in the nightmare-difficulty labyrinth for a whole day, it is better to buy equipment eliminated by big shots with the money for a cup of milk tea.

Anyway, the equipment in this game doesn't limit the level.

And the operator of "Disaster OL" seems to have an open attitude towards transactions between players, and even set up an official website market to facilitate players to buy and sell freely.

Of course.

Everyone is an adult and must be responsible for their own behavior. The official website forum only guarantees the transaction, not other things.

Especially for businessmen who treat underworld coins as electronic currency, don't expect to complain to the operator if they lose money.

At present, the exchange ratio between underworld coins and RMB fluctuates significantly between 0.01:1 and 100:1. Instead, an "enchanting stone" made of magic crystals that can enchant weapons has become a stable currency, and the price of each is stable at about fifty yuan.

However, having said that, "Disaster OL" is after all in closed beta, and brick-moving parties account for a very small minority. The vast majority of players earn underworld coins not to exchange for money in reality, but to enjoy another life in the virtual world.

Although dog planners occasionally cut leeks, they are still too kind compared to other MMORPG games today.

And from time to time, they will give benefits to players.

Just like now.

In the furniture factory in the industrial zone of Beifeng City, the sound of ding-ding-dang-dang rang from morning to night, and the humming machine ran continuously.

On a huge machine driven by steam, custom steel wires were stretched and twisted into the outer contours of small cylinders, then transmitted to the mechanical grid through reciprocating motion to the cylinder woven from cotton fabric, and then encapsulated one by one with a hot rolling machine, thus forming independent pocket springs.

These pocket springs were counted and cut by a worker after passing through the conveyor belt, ensuring that each board of spring groups had at least sixteen pocket springs, and then sent to the front of the next workstation by the conveyor belt, glued to the base fabric one by one.

The whole set of craftsmanship cycled back and forth like this, forming mattresses with springs fixed, and two spring pads stacked together formed the hot-selling spring mattress in Thunder City.

The cost of each mattress is less than 1000 underworld coins, which is 10 silver coins if rounded, and more than half of it is labor cost, followed by cotton.

As for steel and coal, because production is subsidized by the Demon King, the price is so cheap that it can almost be ignored.

At present, the mechanization level of the entire production process is not high, and many processes require manual participation, but its production concept is far ahead of the average level of this world, and even things like assembly lines born in the early 20th century have been pointed out.

The craftsmen of Thunder City would never have thought that the exquisite mechanical structure in their eyes only used thirty or so refugees who had just finished safety training.

Many of these people were farming before, and it was their first time entering the factory, and they hadn't even been in contact with this kind of machine before.

Once they are proficient, I'm afraid the efficiency can be even higher!

At the entrance of the factory, several zombie factory managers were gathering together to discuss something.

Because they didn't bring translation crystals, the workers working nearby didn't know what they were discussing.

"Damn, did the dog planner get the numbers wrong?"

"What's the situation?"

"The orders in the NPC store suddenly skyrocketed dozens of times."

"I saw it too, it seems that the Demon King's palace suddenly placed an order for ten thousand mattresses."

As soon as this sentence came out, the zombies gathered around were shocked and couldn't help but exclaim.

"Damn! How many?!"

"Ten thousand?!"

"Does that guy's palace have so many beds?!"

The profit of each mattress is about 1000 underworld coins, wouldn't ten thousand pieces be ten million?!

Even if the numbers in this game have been inflating since the server opened, no player has seen so much money!

Several players counted with their fingers, and instantly couldn't stay calm. When they looked at the workers next to the machine, their eyes wished they could pop out green light.

That ghost look was really a bit scary.

If they hadn't been together for a while, these workers working might have really been scared by their dead bosses.

The labor force in Beifeng City is limited. In addition to rolling wages, if you want to further improve productivity, you can only continue to improve production craftsmanship.

For example, what they have always been doing—integrating underworld text technology into it and using more automated equipment to replace the links that originally required manual operation.

Just when several players were discussing how to improve the productivity of the Great Cemetery, Robert, as a ghost, floated on the side, looking at these restless corpses who couldn't stay idle, unable to understand.

Honestly, having observed for so long, he still didn't understand what these so-called undead of the Great Cemetery were thinking.

They are all dead and still so hard-working, how hard-working must they be when they are alive?

In short, he really didn't know how to evaluate it.

Just when the players were busy studying how to improve the productivity of the Great Cemetery, their supreme Demon King was not idle either.

At this moment, it is lunch time. The Demon King sitting in the restaurant of the Dawn's Embrace Hotel is holding a knife and fork to decompose the steak on the plate. That nobility and elegance are no less than the royal family members of the Campbell Principality, and even more so... just like a painting.

The head chef of the restaurant stood respectfully opposite him, introducing him to the parts of the meat and the cooking methods, and even talked about the environment of the ranch to the mood of the cow, but his eyes were always subconsciously attracted by Mr. Kelin who was dining.

Worthy of being a noble of the Empire!

Compared with this gentleman, the tycoons and nobles of the Campbell Principality are simply barbarians in the Wan Ren Mountains!

He has worked in this hotel for more than twenty years, and this is the first time he has entertained such a noble guest!

In fact, not only the head chef of the restaurant, but Sarah, who was standing behind Luo Yan, was also the same, always subconsciously peeking at Luo Yan's back.

But she wasn't because of anything noble or not, she just felt that the Demon King was a bit different from usual today.

How to say?

Although he usually has charm when he eats, today he gives her a completely different feeling.

In fact, Luo Yan did have the component of deliberate performance, but it was not for a chef to see, but a rehearsal done in advance for the next performance.

The Demon King Academy has etiquette courses, whether it is the etiquette of Hell or the etiquette of surface humans. After all, there will often be high-level demons captured by Imperial nobles.

According to statistics, polite demons are more likely to survive. Over time, higher institutions in the Demon Capital have opened this course.

In fact, the demons of Hell originally came from the surface, and the difference in etiquette in high society is not as big as imagined.

Including aesthetics, many things on both sides have commonalities.

Seeing that his pretentiousness didn't seem to reveal any flaws, Luo Yan felt slightly relieved and focused on enjoying the food on the plate.

Objectively speaking, the craftsmanship of the chef at the Dawn's Embrace Hotel is still good.

Although it can't compare to the craftsmanship of his personal chef 【Little Fish Cake Juice】, it has a unique flavor in terms of the level of this world.

If his actions here go smoothly, he might consider stuffing some chefs from the Great Cemetery into the back kitchen of the hotel, maybe he can also lead a trend in the food field.

Picking up the napkin to wipe his mouth, Luo Yan looked at the eloquent head chef and gave his evaluation of today's lunch.

"Not bad."

Getting Mr. Kelin's positive evaluation, the chef's face was instantly filled with joyful red light, his expression was extremely proud, as if he had won some incredible award.

Especially when the servant lady standing on the side threw a gold coin into his hand, he bowed again excitedly, wishing he could stick his chest to his knees. "... It is my honor to prepare lunch for you, and I wish you a pleasant day again, respected sir!"

Luo Yan didn't want to watch his funny performance and waved his hand to signal him to retreat.

Watching the head chef exit the door and quietly close the box door, Luo Yan picked up the tableware on the table again, and at the same time said to Sarah behind him.

"You sit down too, no one else will disturb us later."

He specially ordered two steaks, one of which was prepared for Sarah.

Sarah sat opposite him cautiously, cut a piece of meat with a knife and fork, sent it into her cherry mouth, and chewed it carefully.

Because she couldn't see the ears hidden in the hood, Luo Yan couldn't guess her evaluation of today's lunch at all just by looking at the expression on her face.

"How is the taste?"

Hearing the Demon King's inquiry, Sarah was slightly stunned, hesitated for a moment, and then answered cautiously.

"I feel... your kitchen is still more delicious."

Luo Yan smiled when he heard this and said quite proudly.

Reading the original text!

"That is natural, after all, my servants are experts in all walks of life, and their experience and knowledge are not something a chef who has never left Thunder City in his life can compare to."

Looking at the Demon King who seemed to be in a good mood, Sarah sat uneasily for a while, and finally opened her mouth cautiously.

"Demon King... may I ask you a private question?"

"Oh?" Luo Yan looked at her unexpectedly and said with interest, "What question."

Sarah asked in a low voice.

"Do you prefer life on the surface?"

"That's not it, it's just work." Luo Yan replied casually and elegantly cut a piece of steak and sent it into his mouth.

In fact, whether it is the surface or the underground, it makes no difference to him.

The civilization level of this world is quite backward, and even if you enjoy it, the things you can enjoy are quite limited.

By comparison, he is still looking forward to the players in Beifeng City moving more good things from his hometown.

At that time, he can also take it back to the Demon Capital to show off.

Looking at the relaxed Demon King, a happy smile suddenly appeared on Sarah's face, and even the originally boring food suddenly became delicious.

Looking at the hood that was moving, a smile also appeared on Luo Yan's face.

"Take off your hat when you eat, there is no one else here."

Sarah stopped her movements and said in a low voice.

"But... I feel more secure this way."

It seems that she still can't fully relax on the territory of surface humans.

Luo Yan didn't force it.

"Then it's up to you."

Since Mr. Kelin moved into Queen Street, three days have passed, and the rumors about that gentleman have fermented into countless different versions.

Some say he is the son of an Imperial prince and has a fief overseas comparable to the New World. Others say he is the illegitimate son of the Imperial Regent, so it is inconvenient to reveal his title and the source of his wealth.

No matter which version of the rumor, it is enough to hook the appetite of the citizens of Thunder City.

It is precisely because of this that the Dawn's Embrace Hotel has been bustling with visitors for the past three days, and the inside and outside of the door are crowded with celebrities from Queen Street.

Among them are well-known drama actors, court poets, famous painters, as well as businessmen who do big business, and rural nobles around Thunder City.

In order to create an opportunity to meet Mr. Kelin by chance or attract the attention of the latter, some of them didn't even care about modesty and made a lot of jokes by showing off.

However, it is a pity that Mr. Kelin has never appeared in front of the public, not only dining in a separate box, but also booking a whole floor of the hotel, not giving those who run around and drill for profit any chance to approach him.

And interestingly, the more reserved Mr. Kelin is, the more interested those people who surround him like flies are in him.

Thanks to this, the hotel staff earned a lot of tips by revealing the details of Mr. Kelin's daily life.

And the fanaticism of those people for him is no longer limited to mattresses, but even extended to teacups used for drinking tea.

In fact, this fanaticism is not entirely due to vanity.

The money of the citizens of Thunder City is not blown by the wind, especially these richest people, who are actually very smart in their hearts.

Just as they have always imitated the Andes family and the Campbell royal family, their current imitation of Mr. Kelin is likely just an attempt to ride the "hype" wave.

They don't need to spend too much gold coins to get a topic of conversation that everyone of the same status is interested in, and gain a huge psychological advantage when talking to other potential business partners.

In terms of common economic terms, it is the so-called "consensus."

It is precisely because of this that although they didn't see Mr. Kelin, they wouldn't lose money.

Because of well-known reasons, the Dawn's Embrace Grand Hotel gathers celebrities from all walks of life in Thunder City. Even without Mr. Kelin's participation, they can find opportunities for resource complementarity by surrounding Mr. Kelin.

This is the power of the circle.

However, everyone knows in their hearts that these small profits can only be considered an appetizer compared to that story about the Kelin family.

They are like hungry diners, waiting for the chef to serve the main course.

As for the present, it is just to accumulate more capital for themselves to negotiate at the table when the main course is served.

Through You You's eyes, Luo Yan quietly watched the performance of the guests in the hotel, while patiently waiting for the real big fish to take the bait.

And just as he expected, on the fifth day of his arrival in Thunder City, Ailin Campbell, the most noble "prominent person" in this city, finally couldn't hold back her curiosity about him and sent him an invitation letter stamped with the royal fire lacquer seal.

Living room of the luxury suite.

Holding this heavy letter, Watching Watching Pangke, standing at the door, felt his legs trembling, as if the thing in his palm weighed a thousand pounds.

"Sir, your letter... a letter from the Campbell family."

His voice was trembling, and he couldn't speak clearly.

However, unlike him who was terrified, that noble Mr. Kelin was calm, just ordered in a casual tone.

"Read it to me."

The expression on Watching Watching Pangke's face was like constipation, he stammered for a long time before saying with difficulty.

"I, I am illiterate..."

He had never been so thankful that he was illiterate.

After all, that was the royal fire lacquer seal, even if it was Mr. Kelin's order, he didn't dare to overstep and open this letter.

Luo Yan didn't make things difficult for him, just gave Sarah a look.

The latter didn't take the Campbell family seriously at all, reached out and took the envelope, tore it open, and read it out generously.

The content of the whole letter is very long, but summarized, there are only two meanings: one is to express reverence for Luo Ke Sai Ke Lin, and the other is to invite him to attend the evening party the day after tomorrow.

Watching Watching Pangke had already retreated to the door.

Looking at the closed door, Sarah said with a hesitant expression.

"Do you intend to keep the appointment?"

Luo Yan said lightly.

"Why not?"

Sarah: "But..."

"I said, don't worry about her status as a god-chosen one. This time our contest with the Campbell family has nothing to do with force. She doesn't even have a chance to draw her sword."

For auctioning her pocket watch to save the refugees outside the city, Luo Yan suddenly looked at this little girl with admiration.

This guy might be a "good person."

And as everyone knows, good people can't be behind-the-scenes black hands.

However, it can be a good chess piece...

Thinking of this, Luo Yan took out a handful of colorful diamonds from his arms, placed them gently on the walnut table like glass marbles, and looked at them carefully in the twilight light.

The story of "Special people need special care" is finished, this time he intends to tell a story about "Forever and Ever."

Which one is good?

Luo Yan thought for a long time, but couldn't make up his mind.

But at this time, his heart moved, and he recalled the hurried glance he had on the street of Thunder City before.

He vaguely remembered that Grand Duke Campbell's eyes seemed to be green, and as the saying goes, daughters are like fathers, so Ailin Princess must be the same.

His heart suddenly had an idea, Luo Yan immediately took a fancy to a diamond about the size of a pigeon egg, emitting a emerald green luster, smiled and picked it up into his palm, weighing it gently.

"Just you."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 192 =====