Free Web NovelChapter 96: Chapter 96: Visit
Long Ming overheard their discussion and was speechless for a moment.
He never thought he’d end up on the three major guilds’ blacklist, with a kill order on his head.
But he didn’t care much. Even if he had to do it all over again, he’d do the same thing.
Long Ming then turned and walked toward the counter to find Xiaoqi and settle his bill.
However, when he reached the counter, Xiaoqi was nowhere to be seen.
Just then, a young woman behind the counter asked with a smile.
"Sir, how can I help you?"
"Where’s Xiaoqi?"
"Sister Qi is over at the club."
"Thanks."
Long Ming turned and walked toward the club.
He soon arrived in the club’s main hall, where he was immediately greeted by the sight of Xiaoqi and An Qing arguing.
"It doesn’t matter what you say. Your Fifth Rat Group’s earnings are always dead last. In the end, the other four groups have to clean up your mess and hand over extra shares. Have you no shame?"
"I already told you, it’s not on purpose! We just have really rotten luck."
"I don’t think it’s bad luck. I think you guys just aren’t good enough."
"What did you say?"
Xiaoqi glared at An Qing angrily.
"I’m just stating a fact. Bad luck once is excusable, but you can’t have terrible luck every single time. I really don’t understand how the bosses ever chose you."
"You..."
Xiaoqi’s face instantly flushed red with anger.
"Forget it. I’m done arguing with you. It’s a waste of time."
An Qing smirked contemptuously and turned to leave.
Xiaoqi watched An Qing’s retreating back, seething and grinding her teeth.
None of the nearby staff dared to make a sound, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.
"Xiaoqi."
At that moment, Long Ming walked up to her.
Xiaoqi was startled to see Long Ming. She quickly composed herself and asked in confusion.
"Long Ming, you logged off?"
"Yeah, could you ring up my bill for me?"
Long Ming gave a slight nod.
"Okay, let me calculate that for you. You played for a total of 40 hours and 13 minutes and used two nutrient shots. I’ll waive the extra minutes, and after your twenty percent discount, the total comes to 8,000 Mountain Coins."
Xiaoqi glanced at the timer and quickly calculated the price.
"Okay. I’m off."
Long Ming took out his phone and paid the bill.
"Take care."
Xiaoqi replied with a smile.
Long Ming gave a slight nod, then turned and left.
After Xiaoqi watched Long Ming get further away, her smile vanished. She looked at a young, pretty waitress beside her.
"Argh, Xiaomeng, why didn’t you give me a heads-up? Mr. Long Ming saw our whole argument. This is so embarrassing."
"Sister Qi, I didn’t notice either," Xiaomeng replied innocently.
"It’s all An Qing’s fault."
The more Xiaoqi thought about it, the angrier she became.
...
「Nighttime. Rented Apartment.」
Long Ming lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. His mind kept returning to Civilization Paradise.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong with the game.
First, those people from the three major guilds weren’t actually players. They were the regular armies of the three major cities.
It was one thing for ordinary players to be playing a game, but for a regular army to join in was another matter entirely.
’This is just too absurd.’
’What kind of person pulls an entire army into a game? And who even has the authority to do something like that?’
The game itself had also been bizarre from the very beginning.
He felt that, given Mountain City Mountain’s current level of technology, they shouldn’t have been able to develop a game like this.
Moreover, the world inside the game was unbelievably realistic. Even the materials and data it generated didn’t seem to be fabricated from thin air; they felt completely real.
Long Ming started to wonder, ’Is there some hidden conspiracy at play here? Or does this game hold some dark secret?’
’But that doesn’t seem right, either. If the game really holds a secret, shouldn’t the people from Mountain City Mountain be exploring it in secret? Why open it up to the public?’
’Could this be related to the Wisdom God my father mentioned?’
As Long Ming thought of this, his expression grew conflicted. His father’s status had been too low to get close to the core of Mountain City Mountain, so the information he had left behind was sparse.
But Long Ming didn’t dare to start asking questions rashly now, because his own status was even lower. He was also still very weak. If he started snooping around, he’d likely get noticed, and then he could be snuffed out at a moment’s notice.
He sighed helplessly at the thought and slowly closed his eyes.
...
「The next morning.」
Long Ming was fast asleep in his bed.
KNOCK KNOCK~
Hearing the knocking, Long Ming groggily opened his eyes, fumbled for the phone beside him, and glanced at the screen. It was 9:30 AM.
He rubbed his aching head. ’I overslept again.’
KNOCK KNOCK~
Hearing the persistent knocking, Long Ming got out of bed, a confused look on his face.
’Who’s looking for me this early in the morning? Could it be Xiaopang?’
He quickly left his room, walked to the entrance, and opened the door.
When Long Ming saw the figures standing at his door, a look of surprise crossed his face.
"What are you all doing here?"
"Mr. Long Ming, apologies for visiting unannounced. I hope we’re not disturbing you," Xiaoqi said, holding a fruit basket, with Cloud Fish and Johnny beside her.
"Not at all."
"May we come in, then?"
"Please, come in."
Long Ming invited them in, feeling a bit awkward.
It wasn’t that he didn’t welcome them, but his rental was too plain, and he had nothing to offer his guests.
After Xiaoqi and the others came inside, they glanced around the spartan living room and were inwardly surprised.
They hadn’t expected Long Ming to live in such a modest place.
"Have a seat. I’ll get you all a glass of water."
Long Ming gestured for them to sit.
"Okay."
The three of them didn’t seem to mind, walking over to the sofa and squeezing onto it.
Long Ming brought over a few glasses of water, placed them on the table in front of them, and asked quizzically.
"You came looking for me so early in the morning. Is there something you need?"
Cloud Fish and Johnny both looked toward Xiaoqi.
Xiaoqi spoke, an embarrassed look on her face.
"Mr. Long Ming, you probably saw me arguing with An Qing yesterday, didn’t you?"
"I did."
"Well, the reason we were arguing is that the Fifth Rat Group always comes in last, which is why she was mocking me! I came here today to ask for your help."
"Ask for my help? With what?" Long Ming asked, perplexed.
"Here’s the situation. The Star Wish Guild is running a major raid tomorrow. Our five bosses are leading teams, and the Rat Group has to participate. But our Fifth Rat Group is too weak; we don’t have many elite members. So, I was hoping to ask you to carry us," Xiaoqi implored.
"Well..."
"Don’t worry, I know you’ve already met your quota for this week. We can count this raid toward next week’s quota," she quickly added.
"No, that’s not it," Long Ming explained. "I just mean for something like this, you could have just sent me a message. You didn’t need to come all the way over here."
"That wouldn’t do. Coming in person is the only way to show our sincerity."
"Alright, then. Can I ask you a question?"
"What is it?"
"Which boss do you report to?"
"Me? I report to Boss Luoxue."
"Oh, I see."
"Well, we’ll be heading out then."
"Wait, stay for lunch. I’ll treat you all," Long Ming invited.
"No, that’s alright. We still have things to do. We’ll treat you next time."
The three of them quickly refused Long Ming’s offer and headed for the door.
They could tell from his living situation that his finances were tight; there was no way they could let him pay for their meal.
"Alright then. Take care."
Long Ming didn’t insist, and saw them out.
"Bye!"
The three of them then left.
Long Ming watched their retreating backs and fell into thought before closing the door.
