Chapter 207 – Back at the Top

Since they had become teammates, it was only natural to exchange pleasantries. The gentle healer of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce, Rain Ceases, was the first to speak: “It’s past twelve already, you guys logged in pretty late.”

Though Rain Ceases’ tone seemed casual, every member of the Ghost Server squad except their leader could clearly hear the roar hidden beneath that casual surface—You guys said you’d log in at ten, what the hell?!

“We logged in at ten. The Demon Refiner was even earlier, at nine-thirty,” replied Coffin Shop, who was usually tight-lipped. Surprisingly, there was a faint trace of emotion in his typically indifferent voice—though it was unclear exactly what it was, it was noticeable.

Rain Ceases was puzzled: “Then why did you just get here?” Under normal circumstances, as soon as you wanted to enter the Azure Kingdom, you’d immediately receive the gathering quest. There shouldn’t have been any detours.

Mad Lad: “Because our Demon Refiner fell in love at first sight with a certain world boss and started relentlessly pursuing it.”

Mocha: “You call killing someone ‘pursuing’?”

Scholar Lu: “And it took two hours just for one world boss?”

Drink Your Sister: “We said ‘pursuing,’ how could it be that brutal? It was the Demon Refiner’s capture attempt. Have none of you ever pursued a girl before?”

“…”

Your Uncle: “They seem to have gone silent…”

Mocha & Scholar Lu: “No need for narration!”

After listening to all this, Don’t Stop the Meds, whose curiosity as a fellow Demon Refiner had reached its peak, couldn’t hold back any longer and chimed in: “What kind of god-tier boss takes two hours to capture? Show it to us.”

“No.” The Ghost Server Legion Leader refused outright, his tone resolute.

Don’t Stop the Meds felt his face sting: “Reason?”

Ghost Server Legion Leader: “Can’t show you.”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “So, I’m asking you for the reason!”

Ghost Server Legion Leader: “We failed the capture attempt~~~~”

…Why did he even bother asking? Why?!

The Dutch Chamber of Commerce members also belatedly realized that the faint emotion in Coffin Shop’s voice was pure exasperation.

In the following hours, the Dutch Chamber of Commerce leader worked hard to calm his mind. By the time the quest progress surpassed the 9,000 mark, he finally felt a sense of peace.

Objectively speaking, even though this teammate had been forced upon him by fate and had shared their hard-earned 5,000 plants, he had to admit that sometimes, forced partnerships… well, could be sweet. For example, after fifty minutes of teamwork, if they had still been a ten-man squad, the quest progress would have barely reached 7,000. But now, the progress was already at [Gather Whiteleaf Chrysanthemums (9,234/10,000)].

As the saying goes, many hands make light work… Wait a minute. Don’t Stop the Meds looked at the quest progress again. Based on the average speed of ten people gathering 1,000 plants in twenty-five minutes, even with the Ghost Server’s addition, the progress should have been hovering around 9,000. Moreover, given the Ghost Server’s notoriously lazy attitude, whether they could match the diligence of his own team was questionable. How could they have gathered over 200 extra plants? Normally, a single person gathering non-stop could collect about four plants per minute, meaning they had essentially added an entire extra person’s worth of labor!

Unable to figure it out, Don’t Stop the Meds stopped gathering and zoomed out his view to see his entire team on the screen. Rain Ceases was in the northwest corner, gathering as gracefully and steadily as ever, with no change in speed. X and Scholar Lu were below him, not only failing to speed up but seemingly slowing down. Mocha, Little Willow, and War of the Gods were evenly distributed in the southwest, showing no difference from before. The only one near him, Rain Through the Woods, was diligently gathering even faster than before. As for the farthest members, Dutch Souvenir and Thousand Mountains… When the hell did those two start PKing each other?!

Whoosh—

Something seemed to have zipped across the screen. =_=

Whoosh whoosh—

Whoosh whoosh whoosh—

Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh—

You can enter my world, you can walk around in my world, but you can’t run around… Can’t you see the “Caution: Slippery Floor” sign?!

Quickly moving his mouse to adjust the view, Don’t Stop the Meds soon caught sight of that shadow—Refined Into a Demon 715.

The next three minutes were a spectacle.

The Demon Refiner darted between the Whiteleaf Chrysanthemums at an astonishing speed. By the time others had gathered one plant, he had already collected two.

At first, Don’t Stop the Meds thought his speed was due to using a Speed Scroll, but he soon realized that the increased movement speed was just the icing on the cake—the real key was his precise and rapid selection of gathering targets!

Precision: he always chose the nearest Whiteleaf Chrysanthemum and moved in a straight line between them, never wasting even a millimeter of movement.

Speed: he required zero reaction time to move from one plant to the next, as if the locations of all the plants were already imprinted in his mind, eliminating any need to search.

Even more terrifying was that his gathering speed per plant was faster than anyone else’s! This meant his proficiency in the Gathering life skill far surpassed the others! No gear, scroll, or potion could make up for this—it had to be the result of countless hours of practice.

Gathering was a hybrid mouse-and-keyboard operation, and with these three speed factors combined, any pause in coordination would be glaringly obvious. Yet, the Demon Refiner on the screen maintained a fluid, almost bot-like efficiency for a full 180 seconds, as if the rapid clicks of the keyboard and mouse could be heard through the monitor.

No wonder there were over 200 extra plants. This wasn’t “many hands make light work”—it was more like someone had secretly poured gasoline on the fire!

The stunned Boss Yao forgot his self-imposed rule of “never engaging with the Ghost Server again” and cleared his throat: “Uh…”

As if telepathic—or perhaps just sharing the same hobby—Milk is Mom instantly responded: “Hmm?”

“Your Demon Refiner…”

Don’t Stop the Meds was still searching for the right words when the entire Ghost Server-Dutch Chamber of Commerce joint team spoke in unison, already understanding his meaning—

“Gathering? He’s a professional!”

At 1:30 PM Beijing time, light snow had just stopped outside, and in Huaxia Online, the weather shifted from clear to moderate rain.

The dense, rapid raindrops seemed to veil the screen in mist. Amid the pitter-patter of rain, the Dutch Ghost joint team completed gathering the Whiteleaf Chrysanthemums! The dizzy, numb, and cramped teammates felt as if they had finally crawled out of a dark tunnel and glimpsed daylight again, nearly moved to tears and eager to celebrate.

Don’t Stop the Meds even broke his usual aloofness to extend an olive branch, kindly asking the Ghost Server about their next steps.

“First, a thirty-minute break for everyone to eat, then we’ll continue.” For the Ghost Server Legion Leader, mealtime was sacred.

“Okay,” Don’t Stop the Meds nodded in understanding. “Then we’ll go turn in the quest first.”

Fang Zheng was surprised: “Your team doesn’t need lunch?”

Before Don’t Stop the Meds could answer, his teammates beat him to it: “We’ll just eat some bread, can’t delay the progress!”

Don’t Stop the Meds was touched. Fang Zheng, meanwhile, was genuinely envious and even used an honorific for the first time: “Boss Yao, your team’s discipline is truly impressive!”

Hearing the sincerity in the praise, Don’t Stop the Meds felt a little embarrassed: “You flatter us. It’s mostly because everyone holds themselves to high standards…”

Indeed, the more formidable the enemy, the stronger the bond between allies. After a warm farewell, the two teams parted ways again. Fang Zheng watched the Dutch Chamber of Commerce team disappear into the horizon before turning back to check on his own squad, only to find their seats empty, with only lines of text in the party chat bearing witness to the earlier chaos—

[Party] Mad Lad: Are those two ever gonna stop? Laozi is starving!

[Party] Little Lucky Charm: I feel like the Legion Leader might actually like Don’t Stop the Meds.

[Party] Polly: Oh?

[Party] March to Liangzhou: I feel like your Legion Leader might miss lunch.

[Party] Little Lucky Charm: Legion Leader, I didn’t say anything!

[Party] Little Lucky Charm: Legion Leader, I didn’t say anything!

[Party] Little Lucky Charm: Legion Leader, I didn’t say anything!

[Party] Passing Master: Sigh. I don’t think spamming will erase the evidence.

[Party] Drink Your Sister 3X: 438, the quest is already done, why are you still gathering?

[Party] Refined Into a Demon 715: The earlier gathering was for the quest. Now I’m gathering for Demon Refining. This plant doesn’t exist in the original Huaxia, so it might have special effects. Want to help me gather some?

And then, silence.

While the Ghost Server Legion was having lunch, the bread-munching Dutch Chamber of Commerce returned to the Azure Kingdom. Under the guard’s lead, they met the king and queen, presenting the large bundle of Whiteleaf Chrysanthemums. As the queen beamed with joy, the king readily agreed to let them meet the prince. Soon, they were led to the courtyard of the prince’s palace. As the palace doors slowly opened, the handsome prince appeared in front of them—his hair the same sea-blue they had been searching for!

[System] Mite: Thank you for the Whiteleaf Chrysanthemums. They have brought my mother comfort and restored my father’s smile. So, speak your wish—whether it be gold or titles, I shall ask my father to grant it!

The players wanted neither gold nor titles—they only wished to rescue the Mermaid Princess trapped in the dungeon. But of course, they couldn’t say that to the very culprit in front of them. The system helpfully provided a prompt: “Request an audience with the princess?” The Dutch Chamber of Commerce naturally chose “Yes”—why else would they have traveled through all seven colors of the rainbow?

Clicking “Confirm” played a cutscene, dramatically recounting how they had bravely helped Prince Arthur of the Emerald Kingdom drive away the evil sorcerer (turned witch, disguised as stepmother, transformed into a demon) and saved his kingdom. They added that the sorcerer had fled to the Azure Kingdom and might be hiding in the prince’s palace, meaning the princess was in grave danger and they needed to see her immediately to ensure her safety.

One minute later, the cutscene ended. If it needed a title, “Bald-Faced Lies” would have been perfect.

[System] Mite: So that’s what happened…

As the prince “understood,” the players’ hearts leaped into their throats. After all, every bit of effort since picking up that damn stone had been for this moment!

[System] Mite: Yesterday, I received a letter from Arthur. He did mention his kingdom had faced turmoil but was saved by brave warriors, and that these warriors would come to me under his guidance, seeking my aid. However… the letter mentioned twenty warriors, not the number present here. I’m sorry, but I cannot trust you. Please leave.

When the Ghost Server squad arrived at the prince’s palace, they didn’t see any guards—just the Dutch Chamber of Commerce’s elite team lined up in formation.

[Local] Don’t Stop the Meds: Good afternoon.

[Local] Milk is Mom: So we need a twenty-man party?

[Local] Don’t Stop the Meds: You get it.

The Dutch Chamber of Commerce, now reunited with their Ghost Server allies in their own YY channel, watched the short film Bald-Faced Lies again. This time, after the screening, the prince finally delivered the “bonus scene,” thanking them for the warning and promising to increase palace security. He also invited them to a banquet that evening, where he would appear with the princess.

In theory, the princess should still be in the dungeon. But since the prince said so, who were they, as players, to question an NPC? So everyone followed the prince into the palace. Night soon fell in the Azure Kingdom, and as they waited in the hall, the prince and princess appeared hand-in-hand after a few minutes.

Except… she wasn’t the Mermaid Princess.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, the players learned from their conversation with the prince that he and the princess had been childhood sweethearts, betrothed in their teens and married as soon as they came of age. There had never been any story of a prince drowning and being saved by a beauty. There was only one explanation—Prince Mite was not the prince they were looking for, just one who happened to share the same hair color.

The banquet ended without any new quest clues. The empty-handed group was assigned guest rooms in the palace to rest.

Your Uncle: “I told you, the quest progress is only at 65%, with two kingdoms left. No way we’d find the mermaid this early.”

X: “When did you say that? Tch, Monday-morning quarterback.”

Rain Through the Woods: “Trust me, he definitely said it in his heart.”

X: “Ha, if he’s such a prophet, why doesn’t he tell us where the new quest is?”

Your Uncle: “…”

X: “Cat got your tongue?”

Your Uncle: “I have a guess, but it’s not a good one, so I won’t say it.”

Entire Ghost Server: “Uncle, you’ve matured!”

Before the echoes of their voices faded in YY, the guest rooms suddenly lit up as countless soldiers holding torches rushed in, surrounding the players’ beds!

[System] Prince’s Guards: They’re the ones who killed the princess! Capture them!

Your Uncle, while achieving maturity in self-restraint, had also unlocked the new skill [Telepathic Misfortune Control] TAT

From the guarding soldiers, the imprisoned players learned that the princess had been murdered in the middle of the night, and eyewitnesses claimed the culprits were them! It didn’t take a genius to figure out it was the work of another sorcerer. The key now was escaping. Thus, Rain Through the Woods, the Dutch Ghost’s sole escape room enthusiast, took action. After turning the cell upside down, he found the key items—two small sticks—and used them to start a fire on the straw bedding. When the guards opened the cell to put out the flames, they made a violent break for freedom!

For the next few hours, the Dutch Ghosts engaged in a battle of wits with their pursuers throughout the Azure King’s palace. They had to both clear their names by finding the real killer and evade the relentless guards while winning over wavering maids. During this time, the quest progress rose from 65% to 71%. By evening, not only had they proven their innocence and regained the prince’s trust, but they had also narrowed the suspect down to the princess’s personal maid—and surpassed Five Peaks Pavilion, War Banner, and Huaxia Dominion on the progress leaderboard, reclaiming the top spot!

[System] Quest updated: “Capture the Princess’s Maid Hiding in the Palace”!

“This afternoon felt like running a marathon,” Don’t Stop the Meds remarked, massaging his sore fingers. He joked with his Ghost Server allies, “It’s almost six. Are you guys going to take another dinner break?”

Surprisingly, this time the answer was “NO.” The Ghost Server’s explanation? “The fire of passion is burning—might as well let it burn a little longer before it goes out.”

Not just Boss Yao, but the entire Dutch Chamber of Commerce was moved, convinced their spirit had inspired their allies. By 10 PM, the quest progress reached 77%, just two steps behind Iceborn and Silence’s 79%—

Don’t Stop the Meds: “We’ve been at this since morning, and everyone’s exhausted. The results speak for themselves—reclaiming the top spot is only a matter of time. I suggest we rest now, recharge, and resume at 7 AM sharp tomorrow.”

He didn’t need to discuss this with his own team, so the suggestion was mainly directed at their allies.

However—

Fang Zheng: “7?”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “If that’s too early, we can do eight. Definitely not ten, though =_=”

Fang Zheng: “7 isn’t impossible… just maybe… 7 PM?”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “Did I mishear, or did you misspeak…”

Fang Zheng: “Tomorrow’s Monday.”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “You have work?”

Your Uncle: “Uh… I do.”

438: “I can’t play during the day either. I’ve been going crazy these two weekends. My mom said she’s gonna supervise my winter break homework tomorrow.”

Passing Master: “I actually texted my boss to ask for leave, but got rejected TAT”

“So,” the Ghost Server Legion Leader shrugged, “I have to wait for them to log in at night to continue the quest together. Otherwise, the progress won’t sync, and we can’t play together~~~”

Don’t Stop the Meds thought about it for a moment. He understood the Ghost Server’s reasoning, but given that future quests would likely require a twenty-man team, if the Ghost Server skipped the daytime, the Dutch Chamber of Commerce would also have to operate at night. But: “If we only have nights, we’ll never reclaim the top spot, let alone get the First Kill for this quest chain.”

Fang Zheng: “Not necessarily.”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “Meaning?”

Fang Zheng: “Remember the Flagship?”

Don’t Stop the Meds frowned, deep in thought. The word “work” did seem to have come up at some point during the Flagship quest…

[“Work? How dare you bring up such a shameless request at this critical moment? Do you think the others don’t have work?!”

Insidious & One Night Resurrection & Silent Hill & Liaodong Iron Cavalry & Snow Drifter & Divine Strategist & Others: “Yeah, we all have work!”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “See?!”

Insidious & One Night Resurrection & Silent Hill & Liaodong Iron Cavalry & Snow Drifter & Divine Strategist & Others: “So can we continue at 7 PM?”

Don’t Stop the Meds: “…” ]

Dammit, even Iceborn and Silence have members who work, so they can only push at night too!

3:15 AM Beijing Time

“Did Iceborn log off yet?”

“Just did.”

“How far behind are we?”

“Still 2%.”

“So after we take down this maid, we’ll see the light of victory?”

“Fuck, she transformed—another sorcerer! Can’t the villains in this world come up with something new?!”

“This one’s tough…”

“Victory is within reach. Hang in there, push through!”

“Come on, guys, give it your all~~~~ heave ho~~~~”

“Legion Leader, stop singing, save your energy…”

…

5:10 AM Beijing Time

[System] Quest updated: “Track the Evil Sorcerer Fleeing to the Sapphire Kingdom”!

“God, we’re finally at the top. We practically threw our lives into climbing the leaderboard.”

“At this point, even if my boss slaps me, I don’t wanna go to work. I’m so tired TAT”

“According to intel, Iceborn started logging in around 6 PM and officially began at 7.”

“Then we’ll start at 7 too, go head-to-head in speed.”

“Tch, kinda looking forward to it.”

“Are you done? If so, I’m logging off. I can still sleep for an hour.”

“Go ahead, Passing Master.”

“Okay, bye, everyone.”

“Your Uncle, you should sleep too~~”

“…”

“Uncle?”

“Zzz… zzz…”

Beijing Time,12:00 PM. Clear skies in Huaxia Online.

[Constellation] Wandering Miracle Doctor: Doesn’t today’s Lover’s Constellation feel a bit quiet?

[Constellation] The Wind Rises: More than quiet—it’s desolate.

[Constellation] Ice Porcelain: Where is everyone?

[Constellation] Manicurist: They’re here, just none of the big names.

[Constellation] Brother Whirlwind: Yeah, Iceborn, Silence, Dutch Chamber of Commerce, Five Peaks Pavilion, Huaxia Dominion, Outer Flame, Ghost Server Legion… none of them are online.

[Constellation] Money Worship Clan: Feels like something weird slipped in there =_=

[Constellation] Zero-Degree Water: I’m not a Ghost Server fan, but objectively speaking, taking down an NPC is impressive!

[Constellation] Spring Breeze Doesn’t Get It: Does the entire Huaxia even have Ghost Server fans? =_=

[Constellation] Green Chair Spirit: Too bizarre to stan!

[Constellation] Born in 1994: Just passing by, ignore me…

[Constellation] One Leaf Blinds the Eye: Never heard of this legion before. Small in numbers, but suddenly rising. The Huaxia Forum is full of posts about them now—great marketing.

[Constellation] Young Marshal of the Northeast: Not marketing at all. Pure word-of-mouth. It started building during Cross-server PvP. Even then, I knew they’d blow up.

[Constellation] Festive Lantern Superfan: Didn’t see the Cross-server PvP, but two of their members in Sky Arena were really strong. They’re the ones who beat the Festive Lantern God >_<

[Constellation] Festive Lantern Superfan: But my heart will always belong to my one true god!

[Constellation] Blizzard: If we’re talking Sky Arena, our team has the most to say. When we faced the Ghost Server members’ team, our healer DC’d—and they didn’t even field their own healer! In all my years of gaming, I’ve never met such sportsmanlike opponents!

[Constellation] 17 Moon Street: Doesn’t sound like the Legion Leader I knew from the Flagship…

[Constellation] Indian Mane: Their Demon Refiner played in the Vanilla Forest zone. He straight-up captured the Golden Phoenix—the purple-tier pet every Demon Refiner in the zone was hunting—and he was the one who caught it. If that’s not elite, what is? If that kind of legion doesn’t rise, who will?

[Constellation] Reeking of Demon Aura: Miracle Doctor, didn’t you go to Las Vegas? Any glorious Ghost Server achievements there?

[Constellation] Wandering Miracle Doctor: Don’t make me relive it!!!