Chapter 20: New Forces, An Accident at the Hospital

With the formal establishment of Han City, a new force emerged: the Urban Kings.

The Urban Kings had not yet built their headquarters; their members gathered in tents.
“Big brother, you must help me take revenge! The Sacred City—those people killed everyone in my team,” pleaded a player—the same captain who had been held up by other players during the previous quest. Standing behind him was the unlucky player who had been the first to be expelled from the Sacred City by Ye Jiu.

Captain Wang Lu and Vice Captain Nine Kills watched the two silently.

“Don’t worry, little brother. The Sacred Judgment Team has made too many enemies. True, they haven’t offended Han Crown, the Tycoon Team, or Han Yu’s Team, but their cannon tower killed a player who didn’t matter—except that player happened to be the younger brother of someone from Blood Sea Team. You tell me, won’t Blood Sea seek revenge? I’ve also heard Liu Tao just reached level twenty-five,” Wang Lu said from the largest imperial chair, surveying the players below.

“Big brother, are you serious? But last time, didn’t Blood Sea take fourth place—does that really matter?” someone replied, disbelief written across their face.

“Hmph, fourth place. If not for some nonsense, they wouldn’t have claimed first, but second would have been guaranteed. Yet a fool appeared, snatching points. Blood Sea’s players said they wouldn’t be happy if Han Yu manages the next tournament, but lately, someone crossed their path and killed one of their brothers—right as their city was falling. If Blood Sea goes out, they can fight freely; but they didn’t choose to leave, and the teleport gate is gone. Without it, they can’t jump to the main city, and Sacred City’s player levels won’t change; the gap will widen. If they play solo mode, after death they’ll return to the Resurrection Hall, so they’re not afraid of being blocked—they can go home. Repairing the city and the teleport gate both cost money; the city can be rebuilt immediately with enough funds, but the ruined teleport gate needs at least half a month. Block Sacred City for half a month, and they can’t come and go… Without a city, Blood Sea can attack directly; with a city, they’ll need siege equipment, and if they don’t have any, they’ll have to wait for the game’s punishment. Let’s see what Sacred City and Blood Sea choose. I’ve heard Blood Sea is already blocking Sacred City with their players.”

“All right, I won’t say more. I’ve just reached level twenty-one, and I’ll join the fourth tournament. As for your team—handle your own affairs, solve them yourself. I’m founding my Urban Kings. Escort them out,” Wang Lu stood and spoke gently, motioning for them to leave.

After they left, Nine Kills listened as Wang Lu spoke, “The newly bought plot—let’s grit our teeth and build. But granting expansion rights requires a top-tier player, and buying land needs an intermediate level. Strange… The highest level player now is still below thirty. Nine Kills, do you think the rumors about Han City players possessing Void-tier equipment are true?”

…

Blood Sea Team, within the newly built Blood Sea City, in a certain room.

“Liu Tao, let’s cooperate. I’ll keep Han Yu occupied, you kill Ye Jiu, then kill Han Yu—I’ll share the rewards with you,” Li Tian said to Liu Tao, negotiating.

“All right, but I have one condition: have your girlfriend send players to guard my territory. I don’t need your rewards,” Liu Tao replied.

“Fine, no problem. But what about the other teams? I heard Han Crown’s squad allegedly got a Void-tier item…” Li Tian was confident at first, but then wavered, believing the gossip.

“Do you think they’d be foolish enough to announce if they got Void-tier gear? Our team all uses the same class. It’s got a few drawbacks, but not as many as all-class teams early on. And those women—they’re playing all classes. I didn’t join the first tournament, but now I’ve caught up. Their early growth is slow, and later on, they’ll fall further behind.”

“Okay, I’ll follow your lead. Let’s go level up. See you in four months.”

…

In reality, late at night.

Han City Hospital, dim corridors alternating with red warning lights. On the bench outside the emergency room sat a plump, sturdy woman with dark skin and a deathly pale face, her cheeks streaked with tears. She gripped her phone anxiously, covering her mouth with one hand, sobbing quietly. The tears that fell to the floor echoed through the silent corridors like a ghostly wail.

“Tian’er! Your father’s illness has worsened. A nurse—I don’t know if she made a mistake—picked up the wrong medicine bottle, and now he’s feverish and coughing, his blood pressure spiking. I’d just come back with food and saw him struggling to get up, yanking out the IV and trying desperately to press the emergency button. Now the chief surgeon is performing emergency surgery… Son, wait for the doctor to come out.”

“Hello, due to our negligence your husband’s condition worsened. The issue has been resolved, and we won’t charge you for this surgery or medical expenses. We apologize,” the deputy chief, impeccably dressed and wearing elegant glasses, bowed deeply, as if to say, ‘I won’t charge you, you should be grateful.’

With that, the deputy chief ignored her, walking to a hidden corner and glancing at the nurse who’d erred.

“You—next time, don’t rush. If you must, don’t let her notice. I heard her phone call; she seems to have a son, probably poor. Try to squeeze more out of them—I thought they had no children. Reduce his medication a bit, but don’t let anyone find out.”

…

Hua Tian heard her mother recount her father’s troubles, and after some thought, realized she had to focus on her game progress. The championship must be hers—at least… right now, it was best to fill all the warehouses.

“Mom, I understand. I’ll make the money, don’t worry.”

With those words, Hua Tian completely changed her routine. She no longer logged out at night, resting in short bursts when tired. Through a month of gaming, she discovered that eating in the game suppressed hunger in reality, repeatedly proving it was harmless. Though amazed, she didn’t eat in real life, but that couldn’t be helped.

She logged in immediately.

Buying some supplies for the night, she went to the newly built vice captain’s office and organized the tournament materials. She discovered that skills, techniques, pets, and pet abilities could all be brought in.

She took up pen and paper, planning: either farm equipment and skills, or practice techniques.

With a hundred percent drop rate, it was easy for her, but which was more cost-effective?

Thinking of the Dead Wall, she remembered the mother serpent. Would she have to go again? But it only dropped belts—should she farm the men’s exclusive?

The Sun River Highlands were nearby; perhaps she’d encounter them again. Practicing techniques required time, which was scarce, so it wasn’t worthwhile.

Skills—her level wasn’t thirty, so even if she got them, she couldn’t learn new ones; and even if she reached thirty, she’d need forty for new skills!

Pets, then! Decision made, she went to look for players, glanced at the desolate, quiet street, and heard chilling beast cries from the forest beyond the city. She hurried back to her room to sleep.

For the first time, Hua Tian slept within the game world. Though technically it was her office, the intermittent rumbling in the silence made her realize something. She summoned her chat, seeing her Cute Sprite pop out, peeking with a resentful, cold gaze.

“I remember, you promised you’d buy me clothes. Where are they?”

Hua Tian, startled, spat the fruit she’d been eating onto the sprite’s face. “Oh shoot, I forgot! Eh, it’s so quiet—sorry, honestly, it wasn’t on purpose. Here, let me give you a tissue!”

She held out a tissue, but Cute Sprite, her pretty face now smeared with fruit pulp and saliva, didn’t accept it. Instead, she shook her face dry, then glared with even more resentment, giving Hua Tian a final look and turning away with an air of indifference. Hua Tian, unsure how to appease her, was left speechless. After a while, Cute Sprite turned back with concern, met Hua Tian’s gaze, then quickly turned away again as if to say, ‘I’m not talking to you, hmph!’ Every minute she repeated the gesture, a kind of sulky, playful act.

Hua Tian could only resolve to buy the clothes tomorrow; she rarely played at night and seldom went out, so it would have to wait. In the real world, her village was plagued by wolf packs at night, appearing in the hills behind her house or around the village. Everyone had developed the habit of going out in groups, armed, to defend themselves. Huge, domesticated dogs patrolled the perimeter, ferociously hunting the wolves and driving them away. With little else to do at night, the village settled into a routine of early sleep and early rising.

After endless coaxing, Cute Sprite finally offered: “I have a remote skill. You bargain with the lady, you pay, and once you’ve bought it, give it to me. I can fetch it myself.” Hua Tian, tearful, immediately lost a hundred million team coins, buying a high-end sprite outfit. Lacking gold, Cute Sprite frantically clicked to buy accessories, failing each time and growing more frustrated. Aside from clothes and a handful of food recipes, Hua Tian couldn’t afford anything else. Though Cute Sprite was dissatisfied, the exquisite, beautiful clothes delighted her, and she danced about happily.

Having endured so much, Hua Tian finally was allowed to stroke her soft, silky fur and rest comfortably.

Tomorrow, she’d go looking for pets. Going alone was dull—she’d better team up. With that, she turned off the lights and went to sleep.