Chapter 134: Warmth

From the moment he logged into the game in the afternoon until he left the Illusion Realm, a full six hours had passed. Seeing that it was already eight o'clock in the evening, Ye Chen was suddenly struck by a wave of hunger. Dingyuan the Monk and the others were no better off. Once they had finished their business, the five of them tore up their return scrolls and teleported straight back to Lieshan City. Aside from Long-Face, who ran off excitedly to show off in the streets, Ye Chen and the other three logged off immediately to eat and rest.

No sooner had Ye Chen removed his helmet than he was startled by the sight before him: thirteen girls were gathered in a circle around his bed. What was going on?

"Wow, Ye Chen, you finally logged off! If you hadn't, I was about to bite off your little brother," said Li Yuetong, who was the only one capable of such bold, aggressive talk.

"Yeah, yeah, Ye Chen, do you know we've been waiting here for over half an hour? If Big Sister hadn't said you were likely on an important quest, I would have yanked your helmet off myself," added Liu Liu.

"Ye Chen, you really are something. You just recovered and you're already pushing yourself so hard. I couldn't even send you a message; you had me worried sick." Lingyue, ever the thoughtful one, said this while pulling a bowl of steaming preserved egg congee from an insulated food warmer nearby. She said softly, "Drink this quickly; you must be starving after all these hours."

Ye Chen chuckled, took the bowl from Lingyue, and took the opportunity to squeeze her small hand, causing the shy girl to blush faintly.

The surrounding women felt the somewhat strange atmosphere and immediately felt like they were third wheels. Jealousy flared, and they secretly muttered "adulterers" under their breath. The second sister, Zui Xiangsi, couldn't take it anymore and shouted, "Alright, alright! Stop showing off your affection; I'm going to throw up. Little Ye, hurry up and tell us what you did this afternoon. How did you jump from level 29 to 38? Do you have any idea how the top players in Lieshan are in an uproar because of you? Some even tried to file official complaints, though they were rejected. The forums are filled with speculation. Satisfy my curiosity!"

The other women chimed in, their faces filled with eager curiosity. Even the eldest sister, Jian Qingcheng, and Lingyue were no exception.

"Ahem, today's events started back before I lost consciousness..."

Just as Ye Chen cleared his throat, intending to savor the legendary experience of being surrounded by beauties while he told his story, Zui Xiangsi lost patience. She plopped down on the edge of the bed, snatched the bowl from his hands, and barked, "Cut the chatter and get to the point!"

Flesh and blood could only take so much. Ye Chen grabbed the bowl back, finished the congee in one gulp, and glared at Zui Xiangsi. "Second Sister, stealing a man's meal is like killing his parents. If you dare do that again, I won't be so polite."

Zui Xiangsi was stunned for a moment, then beamed. "Ever since our Little Ye regained some of his memories, he’s become much more manly. Big Sister likes it."

"You aren't even necessarily older than me; for all I know, I could be your older brother," Ye Chen laughed, the words slipping out before he even realized it.

"Is that so? Then should I call you Brother? My good—Brother—" Zui Xiangsi drew out the last word, her tone sweet and her expression bewitchingly charming. It made Ye Chen’s bones feel like they were melting, but noticing Lingyue’s jealous gaze, he quickly straightened up and said, "No, no, Second Sister, don't call me that. I can't handle it; you’re my savior, after all."

"Then stop talking nonsense and get to the point." They say a child's face changes as fast as the weather in June, but Zui Xiangsi’s face changed even faster.

Ye Chen scanned the room and saw everyone staring at him. If he didn't spill the beans, the consequences would be dire. He said, "Actually, it’s nothing complicated. It can be summed up in two words: Illusion Realm!"

At the mention of the Illusion Realm, the women’s eyes lit up. As veteran gamers, they knew exactly what those words represented. Jian Qingcheng nodded and said, "I suspected as much. I thought it was either an impossible quest or a new map, but I didn't expect it to be the Illusion Realm. But Ye Chen, you were in a team with Dingyuan the Monk and his group, right? As far as I know, their elite team is slightly stronger than our Qingyu in terms of levels and not bad in other areas either. How did you manage to take the lead and get more experience than them?"

Ye Chen immediately explained the situation with the Demon's Heart, and the women were struck with sudden realization, followed by indignation. "Those guys are despicable! They actually made our Ye Chen gamble all his experience on that? If you had failed, wouldn't you have dropped back to level zero?"

"Exactly! How terrible. Ye Chen, don't team up with them again next time."

Jian Qingcheng frowned slightly. "I know Dingyuan the Monk's team; they always claimed to value loyalty. I didn't expect them to be so fragile when faced with real profit. I’m afraid Dingyuan the Monk must be disappointed. That ascetic monk is actually a decent guy."

Ye Chen nodded. "The monk is a good person. His team has already disbanded, leaving only the most loyal and honorable brothers. I've recruited them."

"Recruited them..." The women had been nodding along, but at that last sentence, all thirteen girls, including the eldest sister Jian Qingcheng, froze. They stared at Ye Chen in disbelief. Zui Xiangsi even widened her eyes and asked, "You said you recruited who?"

"Dingyuan the Monk and his teammates," Ye Chen confirmed.

The room erupted into a frenzy of chatter.

"Alright, alright, be quiet!" Jian Qingcheng’s expression was also slightly agitated. She tried to suppress the tremor in her voice as she asked, "Who exactly did you recruit? Did you make it clear to them what your relationship with Qingyu is?"

"I recruited Dingyuan the Monk, Huzi, Long-Face, and Huo Hu."

As soon as Ye Chen finished speaking, the room exploded once more. Even Zui Xiangsi whispered in disbelief, "The first, fifth, and seventh-ranked players in Lieshan City—the three top masters—have actually been recruited by Little Ye?!"

"Wow, and if you add Brother Ye Chen and Sister Qingcheng, our studio now holds half of the top five ranking spots! That’s amazing!" the little loli Lin Ziyi exclaimed.

The women were unexpectedly emotional; a few even had tears in their eyes. Though the eldest sister, Jian Qingcheng, scolded them for being weak, her own eyes were red, and she showed a rare moment of vulnerability.

Ye Chen realized the reason immediately: it was the memory of lost glory.

During his time there, he had learned of Qingyu’s past. Scheming and betrayal had broken these girls' hearts. Watching their studio decline from glory while unscrupulous rivals climbed higher had left them with no choice but to bite their teeth and endure. Now, he seemed to have given them hope—the hope of glory.

The girls' tears touched the softest part of Ye Chen's heart.

*Linghu? I will crush you, cripple you, and dismantle you, Ye Chen vowed.*

*And for the girls of Qingyu, I will lead you to the pinnacle of 'God's Arrival' and make everyone who betrayed you regret it for the rest of their lives.*

*This is a man’s promise.*

The resolute expression on Ye Chen's face made both Jian Qingcheng and Zui Xiangsi tremble slightly. They exchanged a glance before looking away. Zui Xiangsi pressed, "Little Ye, you haven't answered: did you explain our relationship to them?"

"I did. I told them I am a member of Qingyu, and they had no objections. However, they haven't officially joined yet. When I return from Dragon City and form my team, they will join. They even expressed interest in forming a guild with Qingyu as the core. I didn't agree to that immediately, as I need to discuss it with everyone first."

Dragon City, forming a team, building a guild. The three pieces of information were a lot for the women to digest. Jian Qingcheng frowned and said, "Forming a team is your personal business, and you can decide when to do that. We can discuss the guild later, but I don't think now is the right time. We don't have the foundation to compete with the big families yet; exposing our edge too early won't do us any good. For now, we should focus on the team. Of course, if we can further expand our influence and recruit many high-level players, we could build a guild, but as it stands, being at the top of the rankings isn't enough."

"One last question: Dragon City. Ye Chen, do you know what kind of place that is? Setting aside the massive, flying lizards there, even getting to the alien continent where Dragon City is located is a massive problem. The monsters along the way aren't something current players can handle. If you have a quest related to Dragon City, you’d better wait until you're at least level 60. Otherwise, it's far too dangerous," Jian Qingcheng advised with concern.

Ye Chen gave a wry smile and told them about the Golden Dragon's Reverse Scale. Of course, he didn't mention the quest to find the Martial Soul for 2058. When they heard that failing the quest would result in a permanent loss of 100 attribute points, they all gasped. Such a quest couldn't be abandoned; they had to see it through to the end.

"Ye Chen, let's form a team when you use that dragon scale to teleport. Some teleports allow parties to go together. If we can follow you, we can help you with the quest. Doing this alone is far too dangerous," Jian Qingcheng suggested after a moment of thought.

The other women agreed. Ye Chen felt a warmth in his heart, but he shook his head. "It's no use; it's a single-person teleport. I'll be fine, so don't worry." The dragon scale was indeed for one person, and even if it weren't, he wouldn't let these girls risk their lives for him.

"How can we not worry? That’s Dragon City! Those dragons could blow you away with a single breath. How about this: we pool our earnings from this period and try to get you a set of high-attribute Bronze-grade gear, and maybe a few Silver-grade accessories. What do you think, Big Sister?" Zui Xiangsi asked Jian Qingcheng.

"No problem. The dungeon guides Ye Chen has provided us are worth far more than that. I don't think the other sisters will object. Of course, if anyone is having trouble, they can speak up."

The two spoke so quickly that Ye Chen couldn't get a word in. As soon as Jian Qingcheng finished, the other girls expressed their support. Touched, Ye Chen waved his hands in refusal. "No, really, there's no need. Thank you all for your kindness, but I've already acquired a Silver-grade set. You should keep your money for yourselves."

Silver-grade set. As soon as the words left Ye Chen's lips, the room fell into a dead silence.