"Jiang Yuan, where are you right now? I'm coming to settle the score with you! Hmph!"
In the friend list, the avatar of Hamster Pudding suddenly started flashing. Opening the chat window, Jiang Yuan could feel her fury even through the screen. He could guess with his toes that Hamster Pudding must have figured out his involvement in clearing the 40-player raid for the Wending Guild in such a short time—she was coming to demand an explanation!
"Oh! Isn't this our great Guild Leader Pudding? Why so fiery? Calm down, getting angry all the time isn't good for a girl's skin!" Jiang Yuan quickly tried to soothe her.
"Hmph! I just want to beat you up right now! Spill it—where are you?"
Seeing her instant reply, Jiang Yuan thought, *This girl's really holding a grudge!* But instead of dodging, he sent her his coordinates.
Before long, Hamster Pudding, dressed in a water-blue dress, found Jiang Yuan wandering alone in Peace City.
"Ouch! Easy... that hurts!"
She punched him right away, hard enough to make him yelp in pain.
"You're so biased! Why'd you give the strategy to Wending Cangsheng but not to me?"
Hands on her hips, eyes wide, she glared at Jiang Yuan and demanded angrily.
"How could I leave you out? Here!"
Jiang Yuan forced a smile and handed over the strategy.
"Pfft! Giving it now is useless! Our guild's dungeon CD is already used up this week!"
Hamster Pudding snatched the strategy from him, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it furiously to vent her anger.
"Uh... sorry!"
Hearing that their guild had failed the 40-player raid and wasted a precious CD, Jiang Yuan felt a bit embarrassed and quickly apologized.
"Hmph! How are you going to make it up to me?"
She wouldn't let it go, her big, watery eyes fixed on him.
"What do you want as compensation? How about I send you a cooler photo? Guaranteed to be refreshing—half the clothes you're wearing!"
The thought of a certain someone in a bikini by a pool popped into Jiang Yuan's mind, and he said it with a sly grin.
"Get lost!"
She didn't expect him to bring that up again. Blush creeping onto her cheeks, she shot out her right hand, grabbed the softest part of his waist, and twisted it a full turn!
"Ahhh!!!!"
Jiang Yuan froze like he'd been electrocuted, letting out a pig-like scream!
"Hmph!"
She held the pinch for a few seconds before letting go, his face already beet red.
"Boss, mercy, I surrender! I'll agree to whatever compensation you want!"
Jiang Yuan raised his hands in surrender—he was genuinely scared of her.
His "Boss" suddenly sparked an idea in Hamster Pudding, giving her a perfect way to make him pay up!
She blinked her big eyes, clasped her hands behind her back, and gave him a sly smile. "Really? Anything?"
Seeing her "mischievous" look, Jiang Yuan quickly added cautiously, "As long as it doesn't cross my bottom line!"
"Don't worry, it won't at all."
She patted his shoulder and continued, "I want you to join my guild. That way, our chances of clearing next week's raid are way higher!"
Jiang Yuan sighed in relief—at least she hadn't demanded something crazy like a live-streamed headstand shampoo or cross-dressing cosplay. Just joining the Genesis Guild was simple enough, so he nodded immediately.
"Ding! You have left the guild 'Wending Tianxia'!"
Leaving a guild required 24 hours before joining another. Watching him quit without hesitation, Hamster Pudding nodded in satisfaction. After agreeing to invite him tomorrow, she hummed a tune and skipped away.
"Hmph! Fickle woman!"
Seeing her complete mood swing, Jiang Yuan made a face at her retreating figure and muttered under his breath, afraid she'd hear.
No sooner had she left than an NPC dressed as a servant rushed up to Jiang Yuan, panting. "Honorable warrior, I've finally found you!"
An NPC seeking him out on its own caught Jiang Yuan off guard. "Who are you?" he asked.
"I'm the steward of the city lord's mansion. Honorable warrior, did you seek out my master a few days ago?"
Jiang Yuan then recalled the scene at the city lord's mansion a few days back.
"What, is your master available now?"
He shot the steward a sideways glance, still annoyed by the guards' attitude back then.
"The master has sent me to invite you to the mansion for a chat."
The steward bowed slightly, much more polite than the two guards at the gate.
"Sorry, I'm busy right now."
After the steward spoke, Jiang Yuan replied flatly and walked past him.
"Honorable warrior, please wait!"
The steward hurried ahead to block him, forcing a smile. "I know some clueless fools at the mansion were rude to you the other day. I promise to punish them severely when I return!"
Since the steward was so humble, Jiang Yuan felt petty holding a grudge. "Forget it, they're just earning a living. Lead the way!"
He made a "go ahead" gesture and stopped, letting the steward walk ahead.
"Honorable warrior, this way."
The steward caught on and led the way toward the city lord's mansion.
Soon, they reached the gate, where the steward barked at the guards, "You blind dogs! Open your eyes—this warrior is the city lord's honored guest!"
"Honorable warrior, we failed to recognize your greatness. Please forgive our offense!"
The two guards knelt, kowtowing and begging for mercy.
"It's in the past. Please, get up."
Jiang Yuan bent down and helped them up.
"Thank you, sir! Thank you!"
They showered him with gratitude as he pulled them to their feet.
"You're both docked a month's pay. If it happens again, you're out!"
The steward glared sternly.
"Yes, yes!"
After kowtowing to Jiang Yuan, they did the same to the steward. Jiang Yuan felt a pang of sympathy, recalling a video he'd seen online about the struggles of working folks.
"Honorable warrior, follow me!"
Having scolded the guards, the steward turned back with a smile, his seamless shift worthy of an Oscar.
Following him through the outer courtyard and winding through seven or eight corridors, Jiang Yuan finally met Peace City's lord, Song Shichang, in an elegant back garden.
[Second-Stage Loose Immortal: Peace City Lord] Level 120 HP: 100,000,000 ?????? (Due to large level gap, details unavailable.)
Jiang Yuan stared for a few seconds, and the city lord's info appeared in his mind. He was puzzled by the "Second-Stage Loose Immortal" prefix—what did that mean?
"Greetings, honorable warrior. I am Song Shichang, lord of Peace City. How may I address you?"
The city lord smiled warmly.
"Call me Jiang Yuan."
Jiang Yuan cupped his hands in a traditional greeting, neither servile nor arrogant.
"So, Warrior Jiang Yuan, I hear you visited my humble abode a few days ago?"
Hearing the obvious question, Jiang Yuan nodded and got straight to the point. "I've uncovered some intel about the demon race and wanted to inform you."
"Please, have a seat! Someone, bring tea for Warrior Jiang Yuan!"
Song Shichang stood, pulled out a chair, and gestured for Jiang Yuan to sit, then ordered the maids.
"Meow!"
Just then, the Persian cat "Mimi," who had followed Jiang Yuan, jumped onto the table and let out a long cry!
Since leaving the Abyss Rift with Jiang Yuan, Mimi hadn't eaten, and remembering his promise of treats in the Lost Land dungeon, the starving cat was now protesting loudly.
"Sorry, I forgot about you!"
Jiang Yuan scooped Mimi into his arms, stroked its head apologetically, and turned to Song Shichang. "Where can I buy dried fish in Peace City?"
"No need to trouble yourself, warrior. We have some here."
Song Shichang called a maid. "Bring some dried fish for the cat—as much as possible!"
Soon, the maid set down a full basin of dried fish and a bowl of water by Jiang Yuan's feet.
"Meow!"
Seeing the fish, Mimi's sapphire eyes lit up. It leaped from Jiang Yuan's arms and began feasting.
With Mimi taken care of, Jiang Yuan got down to business with Song Shichang.
"Warrior Jiang Yuan, just two days ago, the town of Anyang, 200 miles from here, was suddenly attacked by demons!"
As Jiang Yuan sat down, Song Shichang dropped a bombshell.
"Really? How bad is it?"
Jiang Yuan asked, surprised.
"I just got word—heavy losses!"
Song Shichang's face was grim, and he sighed deeply, worried about Anyang.
"City Lord, a few days ago, I stumbled upon a rift the demons use to reach this world."
Jiang Yuan then detailed his accidental entry into the Abyss Rift and encounter with the demon vanguard.
"So that's it. The passage between demons and humans was sealed by immortals and buddhas. I wondered how they appeared—they found a new path!"
Song Shichang slapped his thigh in realization.
"Where is it? Please tell me, and I'll send scouts immediately!"
"It's deep in the Shade Forest, around here."
Jiang Yuan dipped his finger in tea, drew a rough map on the stone table, and pointed to the marked spot.
"Good! I'll dispatch men now. One more favor—could you help?"
Song Shichang nodded, summoned a guard, gave orders, then looked at Jiang Yuan with a hint of request.
"Go ahead."
Jiang Yuan gestured for him to continue.
"To guard against demon attacks, Peace City's defenses can't be moved. So I hope you can lend a hand at Anyang and clear out the demon forces soon."
"Ding! Accept main quest 'Demon Extermination at Anyang'?"
As Song Shichang finished, a system prompt rang in Jiang Yuan's ear.