Chapter 230 – Heroes’ Outing

As promised, Thousand Mountains indeed stopped bothering Foxy Pear. The evidence was twofold: first, Foxy Pear voluntarily withdrew her refund request, and second, a new post appeared on the Huaxia Forum—

Title: “Help, How to Invite a Girl I Once Camped to Join My Guild?”

Poster: Crimson River

Content: As the title says. P.S. “Camped” means killing her on sight every time—anyone deliberately twisting my words can go squat in the corner and copy The Song of Righteousness by Wen Tianxiang ten times. Also, P.P.S., OP is just posting for a friend, so don’t read too much into it.

The post wasn’t particularly popular. When Fang Zheng saw it, there were only a few scattered replies. But upholding his noble spirit of never abandoning those in need, he logged into an alt account and offered his sincere advice—

#7

Reply by: No Milk is Dad

Content: OP, tell your friend to give up. It’s like smashing a girl’s head with a brick on the street and then confessing, “Hey, I want to date you.” If the girl actually agrees, I suggest your friend take her to the hospital for a brain CT first.

The moment he hit enter, Fang Zheng felt a surge of positive energy rise from the soles of his feet, flow through his entire body, and shoot out from the top of his head, dispersing into the vast universe to convey the kindness and love of Earthlings.

Despite Meng Wenzhi’s repeated refusals, he still ended up meeting his future daughter-in-law before being discharged from the hospital. Since his weapon of choice hadn’t arrived yet, Old Man Meng had no choice but to continue being a PK scumbag. Combined with the IV drip still attached to him, his combat stats were severely nerfed, leaving him no choice but to play dead, embodying the principle of “The enemy may clamor like locusts, but I stand unshaken.” Compared to Meng Wenzhi’s stubbornness, He Jingyan’s attitude remained ambiguous. It wasn’t until she saw Fang Zheng off in the hallway that she casually dropped the line, “Even the fiercest woman yields to persistence.” Fang Zheng spent the whole night thinking about it before finally realizing—this was the dawn of his revolutionary victory.

The day the Ghost Server Deputy Commander returned, the sun was shining, the skies were clear, and even the breeze carried a warm yet refreshing scent of flowers. At first, the gang thought even the heavens were celebrating Birdy’s return—until 3 p.m., when Zheng Xi sold a piece of gear from the new game for 19,000 yuan. Only then did they realize that the wind and clouds had been omens heralding today’s double celebration.

Though April wasn’t over yet, thanks to this massive income, the studio’s net profit for the month had already reached 37,000 yuan—not counting the amount Hou Cong had embezzled. While the sum wasn’t much when split among the four bosses (and might not even reach their pockets, instead being reinvested into operations), considering the studio’s total investment—including space and fixed assets—was just over 100,000 yuan, recouping costs was practically a done deal, and profits were just around the corner! While god-tier gear might not drop every month, once the studio was properly established and built a reputation, that wouldn’t be an issue. Already, many players in the new game were specifically requesting them for power-leveling or gear farming. In Huaxia, though still dominated by veteran merchant alts and not their main commercial battlefield, their superior cost-performance ratio had earned them some word-of-mouth and income.

That evening, the six of them feasted at a seafood restaurant, both to welcome Birdy back and celebrate Zheng Xi’s windfall. During the meal, Zheng Xi solemnly raised a toast to Fang Zheng—his toast consisting of just: “I’m sorry.” Without another word, he downed the drink in one go. Fang Zheng didn’t hesitate either, draining his glass to accept the long-overdue apology. The table shared a tacit understanding: from this moment on, Zheng Xi was truly one of them, ready to share both joys and hardships moving forward.

Having partied too hard the night before, Fang Zheng didn’t wake up until noon the next day. By then, Birdy was already at the computer, grinning at the screen. Fighting off a faint headache, Fang Zheng staggered over and peered at the monitor. “What’s so funny?”

Birdy didn’t answer, just tilted the screen toward him.

Fang Zheng squinted. The interface was unmistakably Huaxia, but what was with the neatly divided player formations on either side of a river? Had Huaxia updated again? Turned into a turn-based game?

A message in the World chat snapped him out of his confusion—

[Huaxia] Rain Ceases: The Commander just returned and is weary from travel—he shouldn’t venture out yet.

[Huaxia][Frostbite Canyon] Ice on Fire: As the saying goes, “He who breaks his word often, can he stay lean?”

[Huaxia] Rain Ceases: Another saying goes, “A gentleman does not impose on others.”

[Huaxia][Huaxia Summit] Water Phantom: To go back on one’s word is not the act of a gentleman.

[Huaxia] Rain Ceases: You misunderstand—this is not going back on one’s word, merely choosing another day.

Great. Not only had the game turned turn-based, but the skills had also been replaced by verbal sparring—and it seemed classical Chinese provided a damage buff.

Since the players were incomprehensible, Fang Zheng switched to studying the environment. This was an open-world map, and judging from the earlier dialogue, it was clearly in the Holy Light Sanctuary server’s territory. The player formations matched this: the left side of the river was entirely Dutch Chamber of Commerce, while the right was a mix of various factions—Five Peaks Pavilion, Huaxia Dominion, War Banner, Meteor, Iceborn, Silence, The Mercenaries… The only way to gather players from so many different servers was—Fang Zheng looked up and, sure enough, the Dimensional Rift in the distance was glowing brilliantly.

At first glance, it seemed like the servers had finally united against Holy Light Sanctuary. But why were they spamming chat instead of attacking? What kind of tactic was this?

Just as he was puzzling over it, Birdy minimized the game and maximized a browser tab that had been shrunk at the bottom of the screen.

It was an ordinary post from Huaxia Forum’s casual section—

Title: “Post-Lover’s Constellation, Huaxia Feels So Empty—Anyone Else?”

Poster: Ronin of the Shogunate

Content: Finished the endgame dungeons, Lover’s Constellation is over, and now I have no idea what to do. Hanging around AFK every day is so boring [yawn][yawn][yawn]

#1

Reply by: Brother Blade of the Fields

Content: +1

#2

Reply by: Lord Mengchang

Content: +2

#3

Reply by: Little Sun

Content: You could work on your Life Skills.

#4

Reply by: Meng the Twelfth

Content: Same. Currently farming endgame dungeons, hoping for a purple weapon. Also, OP, are all your gear purple? If not, shut up and go run dungeons—posting here won’t get you more boss kills!

#5

Reply by: Carefree Girl

Content: Hey, not everyone’s a dungeon-crazed maniac like you. So what if the gear isn’t god-tier? Can’t live without it? Gaming is supposed to be relaxing—you’re treating it like the Olympics.

#6

Reply by: …

Content: …

“It’s just a normal, forgettable post,” Fang Zheng said, baffled as to why Birdy had shown it to him. It wasn’t trending, hadn’t been pinned, and was clearly destined to sink without a trace.

Birdy smirked. “Keep scrolling.”

Confused but obedient, Fang Zheng scrolled down—until a familiar name caught his eye.

#17

Reply by: Little Lucky Charm

Content: Everyone, don’t argue! I think OP just wanted to vent about how quiet the game’s been lately—it’s not meant to be a serious discussion. But I still want to tell OP: as long as we players keep our passion alive, the game will never lack fun and excitement! Like in our guild, since our Commander and Deputy have been busy, we haven’t had any major events. But just logging in daily to chat and kill minibosses is plenty fun!

#18

Reply by: Rock N Roll Will Never Die

Content: That ID looks familiar… Are you from Ghost Server Legion?

#19

Reply by: Little Lucky Charm

Content: Yeah! You know me??? I’m so touched TAT

#20

Reply by: Rock N Roll Will Never Die

Content: Mostly because your Commander is too infamous =_=

#21

Reply by: Little Lucky Charm

Content: Right, right—he and the Deputy topped Holy Light Sanctuary together! Somehow I feel proud, hehehe…

#22

Reply by: Grave Sweeping Scroll

Content: I can confirm—even without the summit, your Commander has left an indelible mark on our hearts.

#23

Reply by: Blue Skeleton

Content: Are you sure you didn’t mean to say “shadow” instead of “mark” and mistyped?

#24

Reply by: Trick or Die

Content: Doesn’t matter. The ones who really want to cry now are the Dutch Chamber of Commerce. “Because I glanced at him once on the Flagship, I could never forget that demonic face.”

#25

Reply by: Nicknamed White Dragon Horse

Content: Speaking of the Flagship and Dutch Chamber of Commerce… I feel like I’ve forgotten something super important…

#26

Reply by: Big H

Content: Shit!

#27

Reply by: Soldiers in Snowfield

Content: Holy shit!!

#28

Reply by: Silent Hill

Content: What the actual fuck!!!

#29

Reply by: March to Liangzhou

Content: “What do you mean ‘if’? If it enrages even a second earlier or later, I’ll let you kick my head like a soccer ball”

#30

Reply by: ice Iceborn

Content: Yao Yao—that’s what they call you, right? Remember the head soccer match by Daming Lake? @Not Eating Meds But Loneliness

What had been a normal, forgettable thread took a sharp turn into chaotic hilarity after Little Lucky Charm’s appearance and his casual mention of Holy Light Sanctuary.

“Does Your Uncle know about this?” Fang Zheng asked.

Birdy thought for a moment. “The post only got bumped back up today, and the mass pilgrimage to Holy Light was spontaneous. So he’s probably still blissfully ignorant at work.”

Fang Zheng nodded. “Then no need to tell him. I’ll remind him when he logs in tonight—from now on, if he sees Yao Yao, he should take a detour.”

After reading the post, Fang Zheng eagerly logged into the game. But when he crossed the Dimensional Rift, the Huaxia Classical Literature Battle Royale was still raging—

[Huaxia][Silent Fortress] Insidious: Not a brawl, but a match. You lot—cowards.

[Huaxia] Scholar Lu: You are not Yao—how do you know Yao’s pain? Not a ball, but a head.

Fang Zheng couldn’t take it anymore. Whoever had started this trend was evil—at this rate, they could open the Dimensional Rift eight hundred more times and still not reach a conclusion!

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Yao Yao, get out here~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Yao Yao, get out here~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Yao Yao, get out here~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Dishonorable people deserve to be called out thrice~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The World chat fell silent.

After a long pause, someone timidly chimed in—

[Huaxia][Silent Fortress] Left Eye Sees Ghosts: Ghost Legion, the tone is set—don’t force it.

Fang Zheng raised an eyebrow—

[Huaxia][Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Hehehe~~~~

Both player formations collectively shuddered with a sense of impending doom…

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: I love forcing things~\(≧▽≦)/~

[Megaphone] [Huaxia Summit] Milk is Mom: Yao Yao! You had the guts to make a bet, now have the guts to log in! Don’t hide behind the scenes—I know you’re in stealth! Hmph! You had the guts to make a bet, now have the guts to log in! Don’t hide behind the scenes—I know you’re in stealth! Pah! Log in, log in, log in log in log in! Log in, log in, log in log in log in~~~~~~~

The World chat fell silent again.

This time, completely.

No one dared to interrupt this cursed megaphone spam. It felt like even brushing against its edges would invoke the wrath of the Curse Gods.

Countless tiny telepathic electromagnetic waves collided in the air above Holy Light’s open-world map, the barely audible static carrying the remnants of the players’ goodwill—

[Should we stop him…?]

[But we came here to force him out…]

[I’m starting to feel bad…]

[Why hasn’t Yao Yao shown up yet? I kind of want to hug him…]

Yao Yao had never suffered such humiliation. There are limits to what a man can endure—finally, after having his hair thoroughly drenched in Ghost Legion Commander’s verbal spit, he snapped—

[Megaphone] Don’t Stop the Meds: Fuck it! Fine, take the damn head!!!

The victory came so abruptly that the protestors were left stunned. Rallying was one thing, but they couldn’t actually chop off Boss Yao’s head. So in the end, the two sides reconciled, deciding the soccer match would still happen—but without the heads. Instead, it would be a genuine friendly match to bury the hatchet.

Since it was a real match, they had to sit down and discuss details—when, where, and whether to add other activities to this rare offline meetup. The more they talked, the more excited they got. By the time they were forcibly teleported back to their own servers, the proposed venue had escalated to the Forbidden City Summit—courtesy of some idiot with a heart full of lard.

Over the next two days, they continued discussing in a forum post. But with everyone chiming in—either derailing the thread or shitposting—and the sheer complexity of organizing a large-scale event involving funds, schedules, and logistics, no concrete plan was formed. Many great ideas die this way—full of promise, but lacking execution.

Perhaps unable to bear it any longer, the veteran merchant alts stepped up. After thorough discussions (or, more likely, discussions aimed at identifying and avoiding landmines), they finally drafted a feasible plan:

Title: “Huaxia’s Largest Offline Meetup Since Launch—Join Us!”

Poster: Fair and Square

Content: Since Huaxia’s open beta over a decade ago, countless passionate players have joined this family—and countless brothers have left due to circumstances beyond their control. Huaxia has seen glory and decline, but now it thrives once more. We may not be the game’s most legendary generation, but we are certainly its luckiest—we endured the desolation of Lv. 55, fought through the trials of Lv. 70, battled in unprecedented cross-server PvP, and reunited in the warmth of Lover’s Constellation!

Some may say that’s the end—no more excitement, no more drama. Wrong! We will stamp a big fat “X” on those pessimists’ faces!

Because the Huaxia Gold Merchant Alt Association, in collaboration with Journey Travel Agency, presents the purest, most hype, most zero-profit player meetup since the dawn of time!

Event Dates: May 1–3

Location: XX Hot Springs Resort, XX County, XX City, XX Province (exact coordinates in attached image)

Cost: XXX yuan (since attendees are from all over, travel costs vary and are not included)

Schedule:

Day 1:

• 9:00–11:30 AM: The honest and dependable Iron Abacus (Dragon Soars Tiger Roars) will greet everyone at XX County Bus Station. The reliable Silk Road Merchant (Wandering the Four Seas) will escort arriving players in batches to the resort.

• Before noon: Early arrivals can relax or explore the resort’s scenic surroundings.

• 12:00 PM: Lunch at the resort (10 per table)—a welcome feast where players can reminisce, plan futures, find allies, and identify enemies →_→

• Afternoon: Optional team-building games (no extra cost). Highly recommended for bonding (and further ally/enemy identification →_→).

• 6:00 PM: Dinner at the resort.

• Evening: Free time—resort amenities include mahjong, KTV, and nearby natural attractions like Ironthorn Mountain and Cat Ear River. (Note: Some areas require in-game currency to unlock.)

Day 2:

• 8:00–9:00 AM: Breakfast (sleep in if you want, but adjust your schedule if you oversleep).

• Late morning: The main event—the soccer match! Born from the Flagship incident, featuring guild leaders and officers. Want to see if their soccer skills match their PvP prowess? Come cheer for the pretty-boy cheer squad!

• Post-match: Freshen up before a lavish lunch and an afternoon of blissful hot springs! Ironthorn Hot Springs are rich in minerals, and the resort blends indoor and outdoor pools for the best of both worlds.

• 6:00 PM: Dinner.

• 8:00 PM: The Huaxia KTV Battle Royale! Whether you’re a mic hog, tone-deaf, or a song god—just sing! Off-key is the new meta!

After soccer, hot springs, and karaoke, you’ll enjoy the best sleep of your life. On the final morning, we’ll cap off the trip with a youthful rafting adventure down Cat Ear River.

Games may exist in pixels, but the camaraderie of gamers transcends dimensions.

“Three bowls of wine when brothers meet, a smile erases rivalries.” What are you waiting for? We’re only missing you!