Realm Walker

"What's so special about the Yin Yang Town dungeon that she felt she couldn't submit it directly to the database?" Ling Jun asked, eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Is she planning to let the Fu family pocket the intel?"

Fu Qingyang picked up his knife and fork and resumed his breakfast. "Even if that were the case, it would be perfectly reasonable."

Guan Ya wasn't just a member of the Five Elements Alliance. She was also a direct heir of the Fu family. Prioritizing family when something valuable turned up was both logical and expected. Fu Qingyang himself suspected his cousin had stumbled onto something extraordinary inside the Yin Yang Town dungeon.

The two continued eating, chatting idly between bites.

"When are you rolling back to the capital?" asked Fu Qingyang.

"I'll stick around for a year or so. Going back means dealing with all the girlfriends again. It's too annoying."

"Give it a year, and you'll have just as many girlfriends here in Songhai."

"They're not all girlfriends, really. I just enjoy the company of women. We talk about romance, about life, and I give them little gifts now and then. It's all very platonic, but they always insist on calling themselves my girlfriends. Honestly, it's exhausting."

"Like father, like son!" Fu Qingyang sneered.

Ling Jun huffed indignantly. "You can insult my dad all you want, but don't lump me in with him. That man treats fatherhood like a breeding program for Spirit Realm Walkers. I'm nothing like him. I pursue romantic connection, the meeting of souls. And if, on rare occasions, passions run too high... well, even the spirit craves the union of flesh."

At that moment, one of the bunny girls returned carrying a laptop, setting it down carefully beside Fu Qingyang. He unlocked the device, opened his inbox, and downloaded the email Guan Ya had sent.

Over the next several minutes, Ling Jun watched his transformation happen in real time. Fu Qingyang, who had been lounging with casual ease, quietly straightened his spine. The neutral expression on his face hardened, and the tranquility in his eyes slowly sharpened into something piercing.

This was rare for Fu Qingyang. In Ling Jun's experience, only two things produced this reaction: either something monumental had happened, or something had genuinely shocked him. The stone-faced man didn't break composure for anything less.

"What does the report say?" Ling Jun probed.

"Guan Ya says there are hidden questlines within Yin Yang Town. Teams of different strength levels will encounter different plots. Their group triggered the hardest questline last night, one which had never been cleared before."

"That's it?"

"She estimates that the difficulty of that questline is close to S-rank."

"I didn't realize Yin Yang Town was hiding something that deep. Still, there are countless Spirit Realm dungeons out there, and tons of them have yet to be cleared. It's not exactly top secret material."

Fu Qingyang glanced at him, his tone flat. "The enemy they faced was Li Xianzong."

Ling Jun sprayed a mouthful of milk across the table. Fu Qingyang, ever the germaphobe, frowned.

Ling Jun wiped his mouth carelessly and pressed on, "Was there a strong fighter on the Lawful team?"

Fu Qingyang shook his head. "Yuanshi killed Li Xianzong himself."

Ling Jun froze for a long moment, then exhaled a sigh heavy with disbelief. "That kid... his rate of progress makes my scalp tingle. When we were his age, we were about the same level, right? Give him another year or two, and he'll be standing shoulder to shoulder with us. The so-called Four Young Masters might need to become five."

His expression brightened almost immediately. "Ever since the Evil factions started their trials, our Transcendent-tier rookies have been getting their teeth kicked in nonstop. Finally, someone punched them back. Ha! I can already picture the faces of the Evil Walkers when they hear about this.

"Although, Elder Sun is definitely going to be unhappy again. Elder Sun is so—Ahem, I'm done with that meme."

Fu Qingyang cast him a quizzical look. "Hmm?"

Ling Jun sighed. "Elder Sun came out of the Spirit Realm a while back and browsed the forums. He suddenly got all worked up about how the younger generation of the Taiyi Sect was slacking off, so he summoned Yuan Ting to the capital for some personal training. A few days ago, he even posted a video of the special drills on the Taiyi Sect's official site. Nobody's dared to use that meme since."

"One can hope," Fu Qingyang said mildly.

He picked up the laptop and left the dining room.

In her report, Guan Ya had given a detailed account of Yuanshi Tianzun's performance inside the dungeon, including every notable moment, and had specifically mentioned the existence of a hidden item. She hadn't described the item in detail, but she made it clear that Yuanshi Tianzun had turned certain defeat into victory precisely because of it.

What Fu Qingyang needed to do now was "polish" the report. Make certain edits. He would preserve the facts that Yuanshi Tianzun led the team to clear the dungeon and killed Li Xianzong, while scrubbing any trace of the hidden item.

Dungeon clearance reports were essentially strategy guides. Once uploaded to the database, any official Walker with sufficient clearance could access them, and that included potential Dark Rose moles and black sheep who had dealings with Evil-class Walkers.

By bypassing Li Dongze and sending the report directly to him, Guan Ya had left the decision of what should be released in his hands.

***

On the sixteenth floor of a luxury residential tower in the heart of Pangxie City in Jiangsu Province, a woman sat on a plush single-seat sofa on a spacious balcony. Her features were striking and bold, and silver hoop earrings dangled from her lobes. Before her, a compact laptop was placed on a small glass table.

The pale white of her skin contrasted with the dark frames of her sunglasses and the red of her lipstick, giving her an image of effortless, heart-stopping glamour.

At the moment, she was typing a reply to Guan Ya: Got it. I won't mention the robe in my report.

Queen set down her phone and resumed typing away at the keyboard. The mission report could wait. She had more important business: posting on the internet.

After entering Yin Yang Town, I discovered there were actually two official colleagues in our party. You'll never guess who. That's right, Yuanshi Tianzun and Guan Ya from the Songhai Branch. Yuanshi Tianzun! The celebrity himself! I finally got to meet him in person. My first impression? He's a very handsome young man—

She deleted the words "young man", choosing a different word instead.

... a very handsome guy in his early twenties, clean cut, and better looking than I expected. The first challenge we faced was the Cursed Cat... I can't go into details since those belong in the official report, but I'll say this much: it was incredibly dangerous, and we only survived because of Yuanshi Tianzun.

The second challenge involved a widow, and supposedly a really promiscuous one. One of our teammates was seduced and almost did the deed with her. Once again, it was Yuanshi Tianzun who pulled us through without a single casualty.

Now here's the part you need to sit down for. The big reveal. The third challenge pitted both Evil and Lawful teams against a boss together. You will absolutely never guess who was leading the Evil team: Li Xianzong!

What are the odds, right? These two, running into each other inside a dungeon. If Li Xianzong had been a woman, I'd have suspected they were star crossed lovers.

This fight was brutal. Li Xianzong earned every point of his ranking on the bounty list. He was the most ferocious Evil Walker I've ever encountered. By the end, for reasons I can't disclose, the enemy became virtually unbeatable. Our side's combat strength was gutted, and our only option was to run.

I'd already given up. I was prepared to die in that dungeon. But then... I have to say this. Yuanshi Tianzun deserves every ounce of his reputation as the genius who cleared two S-rank dungeons. His power, his intelligence, and his methods are all beyond anything you can imagine.

He led us to stage a comeback, defeat the Evil team in the PvP segment of the dungeon, and he killed Li Xianzong with his own hands. AHHH... I am absolutely in love with this man!!

Queen proofread the post, fixed a few typos, and hit send.

For the next while, she lounged against the sofa, sipping her coffee with lazy satisfaction. The laptop's speakers went crazy, constantly pinging with notifications as her post gained traction. At peak intensity, several replies rolled in every second.

Queen smiled to herself. Just as I predicted. The engagement is off the charts. This post is definitely getting pinned. Another two weeks, and I'll have enough points to apply for forum moderator...

She continued to sip her coffee at a leisurely pace, and by the time she finished it, half an hour had passed. She set down the cup, refreshed the thread, and checked the replies. The forum had exploded, and an administrator had pinned the post and highlighted it in red.

⤷ Long Road Ahead: This has to be fake. OP, riding coattails for engagement is one thing, but at least make it believable. Say something like "Li Xianzong ambushed Yuanshi Tianzun again but our clever hero escaped disaster one more time."

⤷ Jiang Yang: OP is probably a Yuanshi Tianzun fangirl writing fan fiction to rehabilitate her idol's image and boost morale for our side.

⤷ Betel Nut and Cigarettes, Infinite Power: For real, this is way too over the top. All three challenges were cleared because of Yuanshi Tianzun? So the rest of the team was just dead weight? I've never had a squad leader that clutch. Then again, someone who's cleared two S-ranks back to back is rarer than a national treasure, so fair enough that I've never met one. Legitimate skepticism, no hate.

The next dozen replies all questioned the post's authenticity.

Then, as more people discovered the thread and joined the discussion, some of Queen's closer online acquaintances began chiming in.

⤷ Little Pig George: First of all, Queen is not a Yuanshi Tianzun fangirl. She doesn't even follow the Four Young Masters, let alone Yuanshi. Also, knowing her, she wouldn't fabricate something like this for clicks. That said, if this post is real, I'm clearing my schedule for the day and settling in with popcorn.

⤷ Passionate Jenny: I remember Queen posted last week that her next dungeon run was coming up soon. I think she's telling the truth. Holy crap, if this is real, things are about to get wild. Yuanshi Tianzun is a beast!!

⤷ King With a Condition: Perhaps this isn't the time, but I need to know. The teammate who was seduced by the widow and almost did the deed... Are we talking full penetration? Was she pretty? Dewy? Don't get the wrong idea. I'm about to enter the Spirit Realm soon, and this is strictly academic research.

The two camps argued back and forth, driving engagement to a fever pitch. Then, one by one, the Songhai Branch Walkers entered the fray.

⤷ Li Dongze: Oh my god, there was nobody else strong on your team? And Yuanshi really killed Li Xianzong? Oh my god, oh my god, I'm so excited I could bash your skull in.

⤷ Wang Fei: Isn't this guy Yuanshi Tianzun's direct superior? What does he mean by this? He didn't know? That makes the whole post pretty suspect.

⤷ White Dragon: I can't speak to whether the post is real, but I do know Yuanshi was scheduled to enter the Spirit Realm soon, and it was supposed to be a multiplayer dungeon. We discussed it just yesterday.

⤷ Green Vine: Queen isn't from Songhai. She couldn't have known Yuanshi was about to enter the Spirit Realm. The post is most likely real. Otherwise it's one hell of a coincidence. How did he pull it off? This is genuinely shocking.

⤷ Champion Fist: Damn it, I bet five million that Yuanshi and Li Xianzong were evenly matched. I'm ruined.

Once his Songhai Branch colleagues joined in the discussion, the skepticism died down fast. People continued to debate while refreshing the database for the strategy guide. Yin Yang Town was a Transcendent-tier dungeon, and any official Walker at the Transcendent tier could search for it. Even those without clearance to view the full report could still see it listed.

By noon, a forum administrator posted an official thread:

【#Yuanshi Tianzun and Li Xianzong clash in Yin Yang Town. Li Xianzong falls#】

The official forum erupted.

***

In her suite at the Huayu Hotel, Xie Lingxi scrolled through the official forum in a state of barely-contained glee. She had been glued to the computer all morning.

As a non-official Walker, she couldn't register an account and thus couldn't comment or post. But just reading the threads and comments about Brother Yuanshi was enough to send her over the moon.

He truly is worthy of being the man I admire. He got his revenge so quickly. I knew it. Given Brother Yuanshi's potential, there's no way Li Xianzong could keep him down.

She scrolled contentedly through the deluge of posts and comments, soaking it all in.

Before this, all those official Walkers had been armchair analysts, clicking their tongues about the gap between Brother Yuanshi and Li Xianzong, acting all disappointed, like he'd let them down.

Hmph. Now it's all "His Excellency Tianzun" this and "His Excellency Tianzun" that. How shameless. Brother Yuanshi's popularity is skyrocketing. The Evil organizations are definitely going to raise his bounty... Also, that "Call Me Queen" woman seems to be from our province. Going on and on about being in love with Yuanshi Tianzun... How annoying.

Just then, her female assistant approached with a phone and murmured, "Miss, the head of the family wishes to speak with you."

Xie Lingxi's eyes never left the screen. "Tell him that, thanks to his guidance, I've already severed all ties with Yuanshi Tianzun."

A middle aged man's voice erupted from the speakerphone.

—What? Lingxi, how could you be so foolish?

"Wasn't that what you wanted, Dad?"

—I...

The man on the other end choked, then softened his tone.

—Can you salvage things?

"I can try, but..." Xie Lingxi heaved a sigh. "Dad, you're going to have to open your wallet. Two items and ten million in cash."

She could feel his stunned anguish through the phone.

***

Headlights sliced through the darkness as a white sedan pulled up outside the Shijing Farmhouse Inn.

Xiao Yuan, all sharp features and sultry eyes, killed the engine and stepped out. She stood by the car and surveyed the brightly-lit inn nestled in the dark countryside.

She was dressed in light colored jeans, a black tank top, and a windbreaker. Her outfit highlighted her long legs, rounded hips, narrow waist, and generous chest, with every curve accentuated to devastating effect.

Shijing Farmhouse Inn was a black market she knew well, another gathering spot for Evil-class Walkers.

She'd recently learned that Tianlingling's black market had been wiped out, with dismembered corpses strewn everywhere, left to rot before anyone noticed. Evil Walkers who frequented that underground bar had eventually discovered the scene and called the Public Security Bureau. Only then did the authorities go in to clean up.

After passing through a rigorous screening process, Xiao Yuan entered the farmhouse, crossed the bustling main hall under a gauntlet of admiring stares, and made her way to the rear courtyard to meet the owner.

The owner was a plainly dressed village woman, black hair streaked with silver, somewhere north of forty. She sat beside the courtyard well, making tofu skin.

"It's Xiao Yuan."

The woman glanced up, then looked back down at her work. "You rarely visit. What have you been up to these past few years?"

The woman was a member of the Psychic Assembly and had once been Xiao Yuan's mentor. She had treated her quite well, but their ideologies had diverged, and Xiao Yuan never joined the Assembly.

She had always felt guilty about it, and seldom came to visit.

"Working at a hotel," Xiao Yuan answered flatly. "Sis Yan, I'm here to buy some intel."

The woman didn't respond, but continued to work the tofu skin.

"I want information on Li Xianzong," Xiao Yuan said, laying out her requests. "His recent plans, the areas he's been hiding in. The more detailed, the better."

She planned to sell Li Xianzong's intel to Yuanshi Tianzun. That guy still owed her money. Until the debt was paid, she couldn't afford to let Li Xianzong harvest him.

"There's no need for that anymore," the woman said without looking up.

Xiao Yuan frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Li Xianzong was killed inside a dungeon."

The news hit Xiao Yuan like a slap in the face. Spirit Realm Walkers dying in the Spirit Realm was as natural as generals falling on the battlefield. There was nothing unusual about it. But hearing it still felt absurd. Such a powerful genius, dead just like that? Yuanshi Tianzun's luck was almost too good.

"Does this news come from the Bing Zhu Sect?" Xiao Yuan asked carefully.

"No. From the Five Elements Alliance."

"Hmm?"

The woman finally raised her head, dried her hands, and said in a serious tone, "It's all over the Five Elements Alliance forums. Yuanshi Tianzun and Li Xianzong entered the same dungeon, and the Bing Zhu Sect's prodigy was slaughtered."

Xiao Yuan stood frozen as the woman continued at an unhurried pace.

"Yuanshi Tianzun's bounty just went up again. He's up to fourth place now. The reward is very generous. If you need money, you could try hunting him down. Songhai and Jinshan City aren't far apart."

The woman sighed deeply. "A lot of people are losing sleep over the fact that the authorities have produced a genius like that. Everyone's afraid of another Fu Qingyang."

She finished and studied the stunned Xiao Yuan, her brow furrowing slightly. "What's wrong?"

This guy... Xiao Yuan snapped back to her senses, took a deep breath, and said offhandedly, "Got it. If the opportunity comes up, I'll hunt Yuanshi down."

***

Lying on his bed, Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes. The sun hung low in the west, its dying light painting the sky the color of blood.

It was six-thirty in the evening.

He sat up, brimming with energy. Power coursed through every fiber of his being. He could have punched an Asura, stomped a Marshal, and scared off the Taiyi Sect Master with a single roar. He had never felt so good.

Slipping on his sandals, he padded out to the living room. The sound of Grandma stir-frying food drifted out from the kitchen.

"Grandma, I'm starving! Hurry up!" Zhang Yuanqing whined.

Grandma ignored him entirely.

He greeted Grandpa, then retreated to his room.

Picking up his phone, he switched off airplane mode and checked his unread messages.

Guan Ya had texted him at noon, letting him know she had finished writing the strategy guide and reminding him to get some rest.

Zhang Yuanqing closed the messaging app and opened the official forum with barely-contained excitement. The screen displayed a wall of posts singing his praises. His mood soared instantly, the corners of his mouth curling upward as he lost himself in the adulation. Half an hour evaporated without him noticing.

Queen really knows what she's doing, putting on a show for me like that. Humans really do need their moment in the spotlight. Basking in glory is the cure for all hardship...

***

After dinner, Zhang Yuanqing returned to his room and sat down at the desk. He opened his Inventory and took out the Chronicle of Sixty Years of Cultivation.

A figure who had lived in the same era as the Three Paths Mountain Goddess had left behind his personal notes. Who knew what secrets they might contain? Perhaps they could unlock some of the Spirit Realm's hidden mysteries, even if only a fraction of them.

Carefully, Zhang Yuanqing flipped open the brittle, yellowed cover.