Chapter 163: Making Storms and Rains at Will

“I used to doubt it when Thief Without a Trace told me how formidable Brother Ye’s scouting and stealth abilities were, but today I am truly convinced. With just this single trick of yours, I doubt a second person could be found in the entire Liesen City.” Wandering Dragon stepped forward to give Ye Chen a warm embrace before laughing out loud.

“Exactly! I’ve told you all before about Brother Ye’s divine skill, but none of you believed me. Do you believe it now? If not for Brother Ye today, we would have been completely screwed over by those hybrid thieves. Thinking about it now still gives me the chills—that was a close one, we almost wiped,” Thief Without a Trace said with lingering fear.

Wandering Dragon nodded heavily as well, cursing, “Those bastards really went for the kill. It looks like they hate us in Wandering Dragon to the core.”

“What? Does Brother Wander regret it?” Ye Chen asked with a light smile. If Wandering Dragon were to harbor doubts and hesitate at a time like this, then Wandering Dragon would never amount to much.

“Regret? What a joke!” Wandering Dragon laughed proudly. “With all due respect, Brother Ye, this time our entire Wandering Dragon guild is moving into the Four Districts not to mess around with small-time operations. Dominating Liesen City is merely the first step. In the future, Wandering Dragon intends to compete for supremacy across the Five Districts, and if possible, perhaps even vie for hegemony over the Central Plains. Such a grand ambition destined us to trample other guilds beneath our feet. Persuading people with virtue is complete nonsense. What does our God’s Descent preach? Reverence for strength! If you want them to submit, you have to beat them into submission. That being said, why would we care about offending them?”

“Brother Wander is mighty!” “Brother Wander is霸气 (dominant)!” “Brother Wander will unify Liesen City!” “Brother Wander will unify the Four Districts!”

Hearing this, the surrounding Wandering Dragon players instantly felt their blood boil, throwing their heads back and roaring at the top of their lungs. This left Wandering Dragon feeling a bit embarrassed, as it sounded rather like he was just bragging about himself.

Lifting his gaze, he saw no trace of mockery on Ye Chen’s face. Wandering Dragon’s smile returned, and he said loudly, “Brother Ye has done Wandering Dragon such a huge favor today, so from now on, you are the brother of Wandering Dragon of the Wandering Dragon guild. If Brother Ye ever needs anything in the future, just say the word. Whatever Wandering Dragon can do, I will never refuse.”

While Wandering Dragon’s words sounded exceptionally bold and generous, a careful analysis revealed certain reservations. He spoke of being a brother to Wandering Dragon the person, and of what Wandering Dragon the person could do—he never said the guild of Wandering Dragon as a whole. What the guild could accomplish was clearly left as a caveat; many things within the guild’s capacity were not necessarily within the personal power of Wandering Dragon alone.

Ye Chen did not dwell on the matter. Naturally, he wasn't naive enough to think that by doing Wandering Dragon a moderate favor, the guild would willingly go through fire and water for him. Besides, he had his own objectives for eliminating those thieves; winning Wandering Dragon’s favor was just a convenient byproduct. As long as Wandering Dragon could look out for Green Feather after he eventually left Liesen City, that would be more than enough.

Amidst their pleasantries, the remaining dozens of Gold-Swallowing Beasts had been thoroughly decimated. Wandering Dragon had lost another seven or eight members in the process, but overall, it was a resounding victory. Barring any accidents, the remaining seventy or eighty Wandering Dragon members would all be able to acquire a decent Martial Soul within the newly opened Martial Soul Secret Realm, which would translate into a massive advantage for the guild.

In the distance, the battle before the other door was also nearing its end. Out of the nearly one thousand players from various major factions, fewer than 100 remained. Witnessing this scene, Wandering Dragon couldn't help a look of undisguised delight. This meant that the benefits the other major guilds, rogue alliances, and elite studios could salvage from the Martial Soul Secret Realm would at best barely equal those of Wandering Dragon. Furthermore, those nearly one thousand fallen players were all elites of their respective factions; their losses were catastrophic. In this single instance of the secret realm, the levels of elite players across all major factions had collectively dropped by one level, while Wandering Dragon had suffered virtually no losses. It was a clear shift in the balance of power.

And all of this had been orchestrated single-handedly by the man beside him named Ye Chen. The mere thought sent a subtle shiver through Wandering Dragon. Twirling the clouds with one hand and turning the rain with the other, a lone player had practically manipulated all the major and minor factions of Liesen City in the palm of his hand. Such a figure must never be lightly offended—he could only be befriended.

Looking at Ye Chen’s calm and composed profile, Wandering Dragon secretly resolved to cultivate a strong relationship with this man. However, since it would be difficult for Wandering Dragon to directly rope in a character of this caliber, he could invest some thought into the Green Feather Studio behind him. By extending care and protection to those female players, he figured he could surely win the man’s goodwill. It was a classic indirect strategy, and Wandering Dragon felt rather proud of his own cleverness.

***

Although Ye Chen had no idea what Wandering Dragon was thinking, he could guess most of it, which happened to align with his own objectives. Otherwise, who knew how long his journey across the alien continent would take? Leaving the girls of Green Feather behind here alone genuinely worried him. Although their technical skills were quite good, even surpassing Wandering Dragon’s elite players, they were isolated and lacked support. Compared to Silver Fox, a formidable enemy with hundreds of members, they were still far too weak. Sheer numbers, at times, truly constituted a massive advantage.

Bip, bip, bip...

While the Wandering Dragon players were busy clearing the battlefield, Ye Chen’s communicator suddenly rang. Opening his friends list, he saw it was Big Sister Sword Allure calling, and he quickly answered.

“Ye Chen, we’ve found the place you mentioned. When are you coming to rendezvous with us?” Sword Allure’s voice was somewhat neutral, yet pleasant to the ear.

“Soon. Wandering Dragon is clearing the battlefield right now. Once I part ways with them, I’ll head over. You guys should hunt for a few more Martial Soul Cards there in the meantime; you can never have too many of those.” Sword Allure and her group had actually emerged from the second door of the tunnel long ago, but following Ye Chen’s instructions, they had all consumed Ghost Soul Pills before stepping out. Thus, they remained completely hidden and went unnoticed by anyone. After all, the wrath of the major factions was not something just anyone could withstand; it would have spelled an absolute catastrophe for Green Feather. Avoiding their line of sight was by far the best course of action.

“Alright, we’ll wait for you.” With that, Sword Allure hung up the communicator, never one for idle chatter.

Once Ye Chen closed his communicator, the Wandering Dragon players had finished cleaning up the battlefield and were regrouping into their respective squads. In the distance, the survivors from the major factions had also dispersed after clearing the battlefield. Having barely survived, they were certainly not foolish enough to fight a desperate battle to the death with Wandering Dragon. The real battlefield would wait outside, while inside the Martial Soul Secret Realm, they only cared about securing sufficient benefits.

Watching the players from the various factions depart in small groups, Wandering Dragon returned to Ye Chen’s side and asked with a smile, “Brother Ye, will you be coming with us, or are you going to find the female warriors of Green Feather?”

Green Feather had never shown themselves, but Wandering Dragon was hardly foolish enough to think they hadn't entered. Recalling Ye Chen’s stealth and speed-boosting pills, it wasn't hard to piece together what had happened. Moreover, Wandering Dragon fully understood Ye Chen’s protective actions; Green Feather was merely a small-scale studio and truly couldn't withstand the fury of the major factions.

Ye Chen had no intention of concealing anything from Wandering Dragon. They were all smart people, and denying the obvious would only make one look foolish and deepen the estrangement. Nodding calmly, he replied, “I won’t be tagging along with you guys for the rest of the journey. Besides, with Wandering Dragon’s strength, you won't encounter any real danger on the periphery of this secret realm. Let me offer you a friendly piece of advice: don't waste Martial Soul Cards on Martial Souls below the Bronze tier. With the secret realm just opening, this is a rare opportunity; trying to capture Bronze Martial Souls in batches later on won't be nearly as easy.”

Hearing this, Wandering Dragon, Thief Without a Trace, and the others instantly lit up. Although official descriptions of Martial Souls were sparse, rumors suggested their grading system matched that of equipment. One only needed to see how valuable Bronze equipment was to realize that Bronze Martial Souls were undoubtedly exceptional treasures.

“Does Brother Ye mean that Bronze Martial Souls are currently abundant in the secret realm?” Wandering Dragon Clears-the-Stars, who had initially felt somewhat disappointed upon hearing Ye Chen was leaving them, hurried over to ask.

“Mm, since it’s just opened, their refresh rate is quite high. Of course, the main reason is also that very few people managed to get in this time. If you guys search the periphery thoroughly, securing a Bronze Martial Soul for every single person should be no problem at all,” Ye Chen nodded and said.

“By the way, what did Brother Ye mean by the periphery? Could this Martial Soul Secret Realm be that enormous?” Thief Without a Trace couldn't help asking.

***

“Yes, it’s huge—immense, perhaps vastly exceeding your imagination. According to myth and legend, this Martial Soul Secret Realm is boundless. My deduction is that the Martial Soul Secret Realm of other cities might even be the same one as ours, just with different entrances situated very, very far apart.” This was not mere guesswork; it was the absolute truth, spoken directly by 2058.

Hearing this, Wandering Dragon and the others all wore altered expressions. The same secret realm implied fierce competition and combat, and potentially even a battlefield between cities.

How could Ye Chen fail to guess what they were thinking? He reassured them, “You don't need to fret over this right now; it's merely my deduction. Besides, even if it’s true, that's a matter for the distant future. After all, high-grade Martial Souls are no simple commodities—they are even more troublesome to deal with than monsters. Trying to fight your way through the siege to reach the territory of other cities within the secret realm will certainly be harder than outside. I only mention this so you can mentally prepare yourselves. As everyone’s levels increase in the future, we will inevitably have to push deeper into the interior of the Martial Soul Secret Realm, and by then, we may very well have to clash with experts from other cities.”

A brilliant gleam flashed in the eyes of Wandering Dragon and the others upon hearing this. Acquiring such intelligence in advance would undoubtedly prove to be a significant advantage. Wandering Dragon couldn't help asking, “Brother Ye is truly knowledgeable. Did you happen to discover these secrets in the library as well?”

“Mm, just deductions pieced together from fragments of text. Don't take them too seriously; just being prepared is enough,” Ye Chen said with a laugh. “Wanderer, you could always visit the library yourself; you might just reap an even greater harvest.”

“Forget it, forget it. My humanities grades were always failing back when I was in school. Asking me to read that kind of stuff is basically asking for my life,” Wandering Dragon shook his head repeatedly with a look of sheer terror.

Everyone burst into loud laughter.

“By the way, Brother Ye, do you have any pointers regarding the selection of Martial Souls? What our brothers understand in this regard falls far short of yours, and we’re genuinely terrified of ending up with some useless trash Martial Souls.” Wandering Dragon looked at Ye Chen with hopeful anticipation, wishing to obtain more detailed information.

Ye Chen pondered slightly. There was no real need to keep this information strictly confidential anyway. After all, once the Martial Soul Secret Realm opened up, players would soon research the attribute classifications of Martial Souls thoroughly. Using this soon-to-be-common knowledge to win a favor from Wandering Dragon seemed like a pretty good deal. With that thought, he gave a slight nod.

Seeing this, Wandering Dragon and the others let out a cheer, quickly calling over the other high-ranking members of Wandering Dragon to listen in.