Chapter 31
The “Li Family Village” dungeon ended.
Lu Chuan and the other guild players were ejected by the system as if thrown out like trash.
Most remembered only that a terrifying figure had appeared during the ritual. The guildmasters only knew Executors had been present; dungeon mutation? They were clueless.
The sudden appearance of Executors meant they might lose control of the shared Territory Dungeon dungeon.
Vice presidents of the major guilds tried to contact the NPC who gave them the dungeon key, only to be scolded.
“What were you thinking? You even summoned that?”
“No keys anymore. Don’t come to me again.”
“Stay away from each other for now!”
The NPC closed their doors. The guilds had no choice but to announce the permanent closure of the “Li Family Village” dungeon. Future Lord titles would have to be earned from other dungeons.
The vice-guildmasters personally checked on Shen Li, Lu Chuan, and others, asking about Executors and the dungeon, but got no useful information.
Lu Chuan pretended ignorance, claiming he had stayed until the end, passed out, and didn’t know what happened afterward.
The vice-guildmasters suspected nothing. After all, knowing everything would be abnormal.
“Such a shame about this Lord dungeon. We’ll have to try for the title next time.”
“I already got the title, probably for persisting to the end,” Lu Chuan said sheepishly. “I only realized during dungeon settlement.”
The vice-guildmasters and Shen Li were stunned.
Starry Shasha opened her panel, exclaiming, “It’s true! Lu Chuan rose to fourth on the Newcomer Ranking List!”
The vice-guildmasters and Shen Li quickly checked their own panels.
Rank 1 – [Hand of Rebirth] – A-class, Resurrection Guild
Rank 2 – [Messiah] – A-class, Noah Guild
Rank 3 – [Eye of Rebirth] – A-class, Resurrection Guild
Rank 4 – [Arrival of the God of Wealth] – A-class, Star Guild
Rank 5 – [Hula Hoop] – A-class, Ocean Heart Guild
Rank 6 – [Grand Duke of Demons] – A-class, Abyss Guild
Rank 7 – [Berserker Queen] – A-class, Abyss Guild
Rank 8 – [Lucky Star] – A-class, Star Guild
Rank 9 – [Three-Sea Chocolate] – A-class, Ocean Heart Guild
Rank 10 -[Angel’s Joke] –A-class, Noah Guild
Not only had his ranking risen, but his player level was directly rated A-class by the system.
Three dungeons, and already A-class?
The vice-guildmaster’s eyes glowed with excitement.
Lu Chuan, feeling the intense stare of the older leader, was slightly uneasy.
“Lu Chuan, you’ve really made Star Guild proud!” the vice-guildmaster said. He hadn’t heard such good news in ages. His usual authoritative demeanor vanished entirely.
Now, there was no need to act high and mighty in front of Lu Chuan—he wanted to honor him.
Knowing some questions weren’t worth probing, the vice-guildmaster briefly discussed the dungeon situation with Lu Chuan before leaving.
As long as Lu Chuan stayed in Star Guild, everything else could wait.
The other guilds had mocked Star Guild for having no successors—now he could return the favor.
Seeing the vice-guildmaster leave with a spring in his step, Lu Chuan knew he had earned some face for him.
That’s how it works in the workplace: whether you do the job well or not is another matter, but if you gain face, you’re right in your boss’s good graces.
Lu Chuan glanced at his game panel. Sure, it was a little disappointing that he hadn’t made much money in the last dungeon and had even spent some out-of-pocket, but at least he had earned the Lord title and snatched an S-class item from Wang Feng of the Abyss Guild. All things considered, it wasn’t a bad haul.
His game panel now showed the following stats:
Name: Lu Chuan (ID: Arrival of the God of Wealth)
Age: 22
Charm: 80/100 (As the fourth-ranked newcomer, you’re a golden prospect in everyone’s eyes)
Stamina: 55/100 (The new dungeon left you exhausted, awaiting rest)
Speed: 81/100 (You believe running fast is important, so you boosted it a little more)
Intelligence: 90/100 (Your cleverness is widely recognized)
Luck: ??? (Suspected extraordinary influence, cannot be confirmed)
Sanity: 61/100 (You have a preliminary grasp on restoring sanity)
Items:
Cursed Puppet (C-rank)
Holy Bible (Church’s gift, used)
Butler’s Gold Watch (B-rank)
Seal of Contract (B-rank)
Witch’s Potion Key (rare)
Cross of Godslaying (S-class, cooldown three dungeons)
Territory: Golden Tower (can bind upon returning to the dungeon)
Skills: Eye of Wealth / Eye of Truth (upgradable)
Titles:
Deceptive Gambler (obtained; increases chances of unlocking NPC storylines)
Godslaying Lord (obtained; binding it to a territory will attract some divine ire and repel certain monsters)
Achievements: 3 rated S or above, fourth on the Newcomer Ranking List (you are a rising star)
Game Points: 2 million (currently exchanged into 20,000 God of Wealth points)
Wealth: Including territorial assets, roughly estimated at 1–2 billion; actual wealth subject to player assessment.
Lu Chuan had still received an S-class evaluation in the previous dungeon, as expected. After all, he was the only one to claim a title and destroy a god statue. Moreover, to leave the Li Family Village leaders with some compensation, he paid for a fruit shop and a large piece of gold himself.
By any measure, he had done the post-dungeon work to the utmost extent possible.
If that still didn’t earn an S-class rating, he would have gone straight to the main system to make a fuss.
Fortunately, the final result was satisfactory.
Next to him, Shen Li and Starry Shasha looked at Lu Chuan, all cheerful and triumphant, and wondered if they had even played in the same dungeon.
Although they had lost consciousness in the latter stages, Lu Chuan had managed to get the title. Shen Li suspected he was hiding something, but since the vice-guildmaster pretended ignorance, he didn’t press the issue.
Sometimes, it’s better not to think too deeply.
After all, if pushed too hard, what if Lu Chuan decided to join another guild?
Shen Li didn’t ask further. Starry Shasha, however, did, “Brother Lu, does this mean the Li Family Village business… we can’t continue it?”
Shasha showed promise.
Lu Chuan felt a rare flicker of interest.
As expected, education should start young.
Unlike Shen Li, whose worldview was already set, Shasha still had potential to be guided.
Look, she already understood the value of earning money.
Though it was more likely because she had worked hard cutting, washing, and selling fruit in the shop, at least she grasped the importance of wealth.
For a girl, making money is the best kind of self-improvement!
“I left them little notes, gave them a large chunk of gold, and handed over the fruit shop lease. With Little Xia helping in the shop, it should keep running. Even if they can’t cultivate the orchard for a while, running a fruit chain store works too,” Lu Chuan said with a smile. “I don’t know if future players will visit, but I’ve done all I could. The village chief should understand our intentions.”
After such a disaster during the ritual, the village chief would certainly know investors couldn’t be retained.
Given the circumstances, leaving them these resources was more than sufficient—he had done all he could. The village chief could only accept it, and might even be grateful.
Starry Shasha nodded, half understanding.
As for making the dungeon’s storyline entirely reasonable, that was the main system’s problem—Lu Chuan had no interest in worrying about it.
“Brother Lu, now that you’re fourth on the Newcomer Ranking List, according to our guild’s reward system, you should have many options,” Shasha reminded him.
“I know,” Lu Chuan said, smiling. “I’ve already figured out the guild’s reward system. I’ve sent my financial subordinates to handle the paperwork. Guild rewards, medical reimbursement, lost wages, nutrition fees—whatever is due, I’ll take every bit!”
*
At the same time, in the Abyss Guild:
Wang Feng checked his space and found the “Cross of Godslaying” missing, prompting an investigation into who might have stolen it.
Dungeons teleport players back with their items. Since the Executors’ appearance defied dungeon logic, the system wouldn’t covet their possessions.
The only possibility: someone had stolen it while inside the dungeon.
Who could it be?
Most likely, Shen Li.
During the Executors’ arrival, the only person with enough strength to steal the item was probably Shen Li.
But Shen Li wasn’t the type to sneakily steal.
And if someone could have taken it, they could have easily killed Wang Feng as well—so why didn’t they?
Or perhaps, the item was destroyed by the Executor when Lu Chuan used it to strike the vessel?
That seemed more likely.
The dungeon was ruined, yes, and Wang Feng lost an S-class item, but he had successfully stopped the rise of the Star Guild. All in all, it wasn’t a total loss.
“Major General, the Newcomer Ranking List has updated! [Arrival of the God of Wealth] from Star Guild has jumped to fourth. Our guild’s two ranked players have dropped!”
Wang Feng’s face darkened. Seeing the name [Arrival of the God of Wealth] made him feel like his heart was bleeding.
What a joke. He had spent an S-class item, lost the shared special dungeon, and still couldn’t stop Arrival of the God of Wealth from rising?
“Major General, the Senior Officers’ Joint Meeting decided that our [Grand Duke of Demons] and [Berserker Queen] must also secure titles quickly to regain ranking.”
“Major General, can you attend the meeting? The officers want to know exactly what happened in the dungeon—no details can be missed!”
“I’m going.” Wang Feng threw off the covers, helped up by his subordinates.
Could Star Guild’s luck really be turning?
The news of Lu Chuan rising to fourth spread quickly across the five major guilds.
Previously, the only rapid rise had been the sibling pair from Resurrection Guild. Now, with [Arrival of the God of Wealth] surging, the next dungeon could push him even higher, potentially to first.
The Newcomer Ranking List may not matter much internally, but externally, it’s crucial for recruiting.
The leaderboard gives regular players hope—they may lack skill, but seeing newcomers rise quickly inspires ambition. Staying on it also grants better system perks.
According to statistics, the longer a player remains on the Newcomer Ranking List, the higher the chance of entering the Expert leaderboard. Future dungeon runs and item acquisitions also trigger storylines more easily, increasing achievement potential.
With his current rank, Star Guild would spare no effort cultivating Lu Chuan. Even when their previous geniuses were alive, the highest rank achieved was fifth.
The Resurrection Guild was most shocked by this news.
Especially Wu You, who couldn’t reconcile Arrival of the God of Wealth with the young man he had previously met.
That man had seemed hardly like a rising superstar—constantly negotiating, refusing to concede, meticulous to the point of being annoying.
Yet now, that same man was fourth, threatening the positions of their two top geniuses.
If only they had done everything to recruit Lu Chuan earlier!
Similar thoughts rippled through the remaining guilds.
Sometimes, missing an opportunity is worse than being trapped.
Next year, they could have recruited a super talent, only for a rival to seize him. Lu Chuan’s dazzling performance left HRs of other guilds sleepless.
Please, Lu Chuan, can you ease up a bit?
Impossible.
To appear diligent, Lu Chuan had his financial subordinates work overtime in front of the vice-guildmaster and hand him documents for signing.
This made him look busy, while actually having little real work, showcasing his loyalty in front of leadership.
After all, overtime unseen by the boss is the same as doing nothing.
“Director, ever since you rose to fourth on the Newcomer Ranking List, those who used to make reimbursement procedures difficult have suddenly changed their attitude.”
“Yeah, yeah, a lot of people have asked me to find out news for them. If you want to transfer, whatever conditions you request can be met.”
“Why tell the director that? Our director is loyal to Star Guild—he won’t be leaving.”
“Exactly! What would we do if the director left?”
The financial staff weren’t about to let Lu Chuan go. If he left, how would they enjoy such good times?
“Don’t worry, I won’t abandon the empire I’ve worked so hard to build,” Lu Chuan said with a smile, giving his subordinates reassurance. “But don’t slack off either—you still need to do your work.”
“Of course!”
Outside the hospital, the vice-guildmaster watched Lu Chuan chatting happily with a group of financial staff and felt very satisfied. “Shen Li, look, Lu Chuan is a very good young man. Even though he just joined our guild, his loyalty to us surpasses many players born in the guild. As his mentor, you mustn’t hold back—help him properly.”
Shen Li opened his mouth to say something but finally chose silence.
He simply didn’t have the ability to teach Lu Chuan; it was more likely the other way around.
Lu Chuan propped his chin on one hand and glanced online. Discussions about him were dominating the forums.
Partly because he was new—no one knew his background, leaving much to speculate on. Partly because he had joined Star Guild, the weakest of the five major guilds, and emerged victorious, performing a legendary reverse takeover.
“So many people are talking about me. Back in my world, I’d be cashing in on this,” Lu Chuan sighed. “But in this world, there are other ways to make money too.”
With that thought, he summoned his subordinates.
“Prepare an interview for me,” he said. “Pay the highest fees for it—exclusive news sells for a premium.”
His staff were shocked. “Director, this is only a small sum…”
Even if a little leaked from their financial director, it would exceed this amount many times over.
“Even a mosquito has meat,” Lu Chuan said. His subordinates lacked investment awareness. “I want to use this interview to spread the word that I’m buying land and building houses. Ordinary people can also buy my properties!”
His subordinates froze.
In the player city, houses had only ever been sold to players and their families. Even the financial staff would have to start as low-level players to qualify for purchasing.
“What a huge market,” Lu Chuan said with delight. “Since no one else is occupying this lane, I won’t hold back.”
*
Evil World, Dungeon:
[Executor Number 9, Merit Points -0.01]
The main system alerted.
Crack.
No. 18 bit through the mountain in front of him, almost chipping his teeth.
“Senior… your merit points… decreased?” No. 18 stammered. “Did you meet another senior?”
The Executor ranks were vast, nearly 300 with names. Among them, Number 9, ranked ninth, was undoubtedly elite among elites.
The top 20 Executors shared a fundamental difference from the rest: immortality granted by the system.
In theory, as long as merit points were sufficient, they existed on a different dimension. Ordinary death was like a human tripping on the street—they could get up with no problem.
However, they were tightly bound by the main system and could only act within rules. Venturing into unrelated dungeons caused dungeon anomalies.
Other than higher-ranked Executors having ways to kill Number 9 and deduct merit points, No. 18 could not think of any other possibility.
Could it have been a life-or-death battle with a top leaderboard player?
“Nothing much,” Number 9 said, unwilling to elaborate. “The main god issued a new task. We’re heading to an S-rank dungeon. A top player’s sanity has dropped below the passing line, unable to maintain human form, causing dungeon anomalies. We have to bring him back.”
“Aww, we get a new pet again?” No. 18’s attention shifted quickly. “I hope this little pet is strong—at least top 300—so our team gets some fresh blood.”
“Senior, you also think the recent top leaderboard players aren’t very good, right? I remember the previous ones—some could smash the top fifty easily.”
“…Senior, why are you laughing?” No. 18’s tail trembled in fear.
He wasn’t human, so he wouldn’t get distracted by beauty.
“Nothing,” Number 9 said, stepping on No. 18’s back. “Maybe you can look forward to the next batch of top leaderboard players.”
*
Li Family Village.
Several days had passed since the sacrificial ceremony.
Many visitors seemed to have lost memories of that day and left town with the guides in a daze.
Boss Jin and his siblings were gone.
But Boss Jin left the fruit shop and a large sum of gold.
The gold was enough to buy the shop outright.
Little Xia had worked in the shop long enough to understand operations and sales.
“Dad, is Boss Jin really not coming back?” the village chief’s daughter asked, disappointed. She had hoped Boss Jin could lead the village to prosperity.
“The ceremony went wrong, angering the gods. Everyone was punished. It’s normal that Boss Jin didn’t stay. At least he left the shop; that’s more than enough. We can’t ask him to risk his life,” the village chief said, shaking his head. Recalling the events made him shiver—let alone outsiders.
“Dad, which god appeared that day?” she asked.
“I’ve checked the Shrine’s ‘Servant God Record’ several times. It’s not listed. Maybe it was an unknown powerful god. Our village has held so many ceremonies, perhaps one of the gods had already set their eyes on us,” the village chief replied, looking older and weary.
His daughter had no solution; their path to wealth had been lost due to the failed ceremony.
“At least we have the fruit shop. That’s something to try,” the chief said, patting his daughter’s shoulder. “Ultimately, the village’s future depends on us.”
She remained silent, sighing.
In the Li Family Village shrine, the Servant God Record’s pages slowly turned in the wind.
On one page, the god’s depiction changed, gradually taking the form of Number 9.
