Find it. I left everything there... Zhang Yuanqing stared at the words for a long time without speaking.
"Brother Bing, you really gave me a tough puzzle!" Zhang Yuanqing sighed deeply and shifted his focus back to the "clues."
"A lifetime, two brothers—this was Brother Bing's catchphrase in the second year of middle school. If it was just emotional expression, it wouldn't be part of a cipher."
"'Lu 203'… a string of numbers. Is it a code?"
"What does 'find it' refer to exactly?"
Zhang Yuanqing frowned, pondering for a long while, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.
He felt like he had gained a lot of clues, yet somehow got nothing at all... he silently complained to himself.
But this fits the classic detective novel trope: To prevent secrets from leaking, his assistant A Bing left cryptic clues only the two of them could understand. When certain conditions are met in the future, the great detective Zhang Yuanqing would naturally understand.
After all, right now the great detective was still a weakling.
"The so-called 'everything' should be related to the Demon Lord character card Brother Bing sent me, related to his disappearance, and his abnormal behavior during university. Since it concerns a figure at the Demon Lord level, I'm really curious what 'it' actually is."
Zhang Yuanqing tore the note into pieces and left the room, heading to the bathroom.
Flush...
The toilet swallowed the shredded paper.
——
Uncle Lei was very busy with work. Work could numb him to some extent and ease the pain of losing his son. This, in turn, highlighted how hard life was for Aunt Zhou, a housewife.
Zhang Yuanqing bid farewell to Aunt Zhou, left Yinping Residential Area, and stood by the roadside waiting for his ride while thinking:
"I definitely can't tell the Sect Chief or Elder Si Ji about this. I have to investigate it myself. The clues are so limited, being anxious won't help. Right now, the most important thing is the second Spirit Realm mission.
"Leveling up is what matters most."
Zhang Yuanqing grew ever more aware of the importance of strength.
"If a multiplayer Spirit Realm isn't a death-type, it's a punishment-type, with experience points deducted upon failure. If I mess up, my strength might even regress…"
"The reward depends on the dungeon's difficulty and the player's performance. My experience is currently at 52%. I wonder if this second Spirit Realm will let me jump straight to level 2."
In theory, that was impossible.
He had heard around that single-player Spirit Realms usually gave generous rewards if you survived, so leveling up wasn't slow.
But veterans like Guan Ya and Li Dongze had been stuck at level 2 and 3 for a long time. There were two reasons: one, the dungeon levels were not high, and the tasks not difficult, so the rewards weren't as crazy as S-level ones.
Two, multiplayer dungeons have wins and losses… to put it simply: sometimes you get stuck with useless teammates who drag your score down.
Just then, the ride finally arrived. Zhang Yuanqing opened the door and got in, heading home.
"Grandma, I'm back from class."
He called out towards the balcony.
"Your uncle came by. He hopes you can see him after you get back," his grandmother, cleaning the mop, replied.
"No, I'm too tired after class, I don't want to sing or dance with him."
"I heard your aunt gave him some money recently."
"Grandma, I did visit him…"
——
Ten minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing left his uncle's place feeling satisfied. He went back to his room and opened the forum. The post reposted yesterday from the official Night Wanderer forum was still pinned at the top, but below it was a new post.
Moment of Silence — A Colleague Died in a Multiplayer Spirit Realm
Clicking on it, the post said a colleague from some branch received an S-level dungeon mission "Golden Water Amusement Park" yesterday. He notified his superiors before entering, but never came out. It's been over 24 hours since he entered.
[User "Bitter Days": I'm about to enter a multiplayer Spirit Realm soon, and I'm so scared…]
[User "Call Me Queen": There probably won't be a strategy guide anytime soon. You're on your own. But since there are so many multiplayer dungeons, you probably won't be that unlucky.]
[User "Long Time to Come": Queen, the odds are small, but if it happens, it's death for sure. S-level Spirit Realms are extremely hard to clear. Dragging it out for a year or more could crush countless players.]
The news caused quite a stir and panic in the forum.
[User "I Have Illness": Among the transcendents, are there any really talented colleagues? Wild freelancers count too. People with a good track record are more likely to be assigned to S-level Spirit Realms. They might be able to clear them. Bitter Days, you should focus on watching those people.]
[Bitter Days: Great idea!]
With a huge player base, many who were about to enter dungeons liked this suggestion.
Genius players at the same rank were seen as more valuable than elders or stewards, who couldn't enter lower-level dungeons.
"Yinshan Ghost School and Xin Feng Reservoir have been cleared. Golden Water Amusement Park is a multiplayer Spirit Realm open to all professions. Although it's S-level, theoretically it should be more likely to be cleared than Night Wanderer's exclusive Spirit Realm. Long Time to Come obviously didn't study math well."
Zhang Yuanqing scrolled through the comments and gave his opinion.
At that moment, a message popped up from Wang Qian, a mole in the Zhishe Palace.
Wang Qian: "Can you get your hands on the old guide for Golden Water Amusement Park?"
Zhang Yuanqing: "Are you entering a Spirit Realm soon?"
Wang Qian: "My next dungeon is a Musician-exclusive one, and not soon. I want to tell you that if you get the old guide, you can make some money."
"How so?"
"The Night Wanderer exclusive Spirit Realm is acting strange, no need for me to repeat that. Golden Water Amusement Park is a multiplayer transcendent Spirit Realm with the largest player base. On the black market, its old guide has already sold for 300,000."
Spirit Realm dungeon guides were "strategic resources," a foundation of official organizations, accumulated by countless official players' blood and sweat.
Zhang Yuanqing had never even seen 300,000 in his life.
Wang Qian continued:
"I know a channel collecting old guides. You're an official organization member; if you can get the old guide, I can help you sell it, taking 27% commission."
"I have one!"
Seventy percent would be 210,000… Zhang Yuanqing typed impulsively but immediately retracted the message.
Wang Qian sent a question mark.
Zhang Yuanqing: "I have one, but I won't sell it."
Wang Qian: "Why?"
Zhang Yuanqing: "I don't want to make money like that."
Wang Qian didn't insist. It was clear Zhang Yuanqing came from a good background and had a moral bottom line. This was good—nobody wants to deal with cold-blooded, ruthless people.
"How much is the new Golden Water Amusement Park guide worth?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
"An S-level dungeon guide is sky-high, no fixed price, depends on negotiation. But I guess with your clearance, you probably can't access S-level guides."
S-level transcendent Spirit Realms were different from trial tasks.
Wang Qian: "I have patients to see. Talk later. If you change your mind, contact me. I'm short on money lately."
Wang Qian's doctor's salary wasn't high, and moral restrictions blocked most ways to get rich quick.
After this chat, Zhang Yuanqing recalled the Golden Water Amusement Park guide Li Dongze gave him.
His interest in this dungeon grew.
He exited the chat app and opened his email to download the attachment.
[Golden Water Amusement Park, Spirit Realm ID: 6203, Difficulty: B, Type: Multiplayer (Punishment Type)]
[Main Task: Experience two or more amusement park rides.]
"After entering, the Spirit Realm will prompt you which rides to try. This park has roller coasters, giant swings, pirate ships, haunted houses, Ferris wheels, detective mystery houses...
"Most rides test team cooperation. The gameplay is...
"The most dangerous is the haunted house's 'ghost wedding.' The ghost bride will pick the most handsome male player as her groom, and that player is immediately eliminated. So, upon entering, all males must repeatedly shout: 'I'm ugly!'
"When all males scream 'I'm ugly!' the ghost bride picks randomly. Then it's down to luck. Female players are safest and can clear this ride directly."
Zhang Yuanqing carefully read all the rides. Seeing the ghost wedding rule, he thought the elimination here was mild compared to the ghost bride in trial tasks.
Though the old guide was just for reference, not to be fully trusted, it still helped quickly understand the dungeon. No wonder someone was willing to pay 300,000 for it.
Suddenly, Zhang Yuanqing's expression changed. He quickly scrolled to the top of the document.
Golden Water Amusement Park, ID: 6203...
Lu 203?!
He froze for a long time.
Was it a coincidence?
"Lu 203 refers to Golden Water Amusement Park? Brother Bing has a foothold there? No, impossible." Zhang Yuanqing shook his head.
Spirit Realm dungeons are randomly assigned; this alone made no sense. What if I don't enter Golden Water Amusement Park? Then Brother Bing's plan is wasted.
Unless Brother Bing can predict which Spirit Realm I will enter.
If my future Spirit Realm is predictable, then my missions aren't random. Entering the Sheling Tunnel suddenly feels terrifying… Zhang Yuanqing felt a chill crawl up his spine.
——
After dinner, Zhang Yuanqing washed up early, closed the curtains, turned off the lights, locked the door, and lay on his big bed staring at the electronic clock on the bedside table.
The Spirit Realm mission would come before midnight for sure.
He held five or six blue pills in his hand, feeling time flow slowly.
After some unknown time, he heard a familiar prompt sound in his mind:
[Ding, Spirit Realm map activating. Entering Spirit Realm in 60 seconds. Your dungeon is "Golden Water Amusement Park," ID: 6203.]
[Difficulty: S]
[Type: Multiplayer (Death Type)]
[Main task: Experience two or more amusement park rides.]
[Note: Non-Spirit Realm items cannot be brought in.]
[Spirit Realm 6203 description: One day, an indescribable character arrived at Golden Water Amusement Park. Surprised to find such fun toys after a long slumber, she happily tried every ride. Before leaving, she entrusted the spirits in the park to find a young man named XXXX.]
It really was Golden Water Amusement Park. Zhang Yuanqing's mind raced like ten thousand horses galloping at once.
No time to think more. He swallowed a blue pill and dialed Guan Ya's number.
According to regulations, he had to report his dungeon to his superior and colleagues, especially in this sensitive time.
The call was answered quickly. Guan Ya scolded:
"Every girl whose sweet dream is disturbed deserves a big feast as compensation."
"I'm going into the Spirit Realm soon. The dungeon is Golden Water Amusement Park..."
"What?! Your multiplayer Spirit Realm is Golden Water Amusement Park? Hello, Yuanshi? Hello, hello..."
Guan Ya received no further reply.