Chapter 86
Wu Yue didn’t want to admit it was because Edith had surpassed expectations—he simply wanted to meet the Lu Chuan she spoke so highly of.
Of course, he already knew Lu Chuan—also known as [Arrival of the God of Wealth].
In fact, anyone who still doesn’t know [Arrival of the God of Wealth] by now is the one falling behind the times.
He had descended like the Purple Star itself into the Star Guild, quickly stormed the Newcomer Rankings and took the top, becoming an S-rank player. He had even completed the Divine Challenge Dungeon alongside Shen Li, helping Shen Li secure his spot on the Master-Ranking leaderboard.
Of course, what drew even more attention was the Golden Luxury Estate that Lu Chuan had created within the Star Guild.
That had dominated social media topics for over half a month.
Since Edith said she had come into this dungeon with Lu Chuan, and now the person wanting to cooperate with him was also Lu Chuan, Wu Yue couldn’t help but give it some serious thought.
Clearly, once a player’s reputation reaches a certain level, whether good or bad, it becomes useful.
Meanwhile, Lu Chuan was also relentlessly chipping away at Dongyang’s foundations.
Those who had gathered around him and then been split off into Dongyang’s ranks were not only quietly growing their own power but also racking their brains to climb higher.
Now, given Lu Chuan’s instructions, they only had to think for a moment to realize that following them had no downside.
After all, who would ever complain about having too many supplies?
As a result, the Dongyang players guarding the supply warehouse suddenly had to face scenes that were practically no different from an NPC uprising.
“I already agreed to fight that so-called [Megalodon03] for you. Don’t you think you should at least give me enough food for a month and some durable weapons? What, you expect me to go bare-handed against him?”
“A month’s worth we can’t give, but at least half a month’s, right?”
“If you don’t give us anything, I’m not moving. I bled for Dongyang, I carried a gun for Dongyang. You can’t treat me like this.”
“We’re all risking our lives for Dongyang—are you saying we can’t even get a bite to eat?”
On and on it went, leaving the Dongyang player guarding the warehouse completely at a loss. All he could do was repeatedly send for the captain.
As a core member of the guild, entrusted with guarding such an important place, he’d never expected the once orderly NPCs to suddenly demand supplies. Worse, they were being perfectly reasonable—he had no grounds to refuse. But he also knew that if everyone drew supplies at once, even just three days’ worth could strip the warehouse bare.
What the hell had gotten into these NPCs?
Damn it, even if they carried a month’s supplies and hundreds of weapons, they still wouldn’t stand a chance against Ocean Heart’s [Megalodon03].
Cannon fodder should act like cannon fodder. Since when did NPCs think they had the right to demand benefits?
Cursing in his heart, he couldn’t help letting some of his irritation show on his face.
If Lu Chuan had been there, he would’ve shaken his head in secret.
In moments of mass agitation like this, you had to keep your emotions steady. If you got swept up by the mood or tried to fight against it alone, you were guaranteed a miserable end.
The power of a crowd was immense.
A single spark could ignite a prairie fire.
Sure enough, the contempt on the Dongyang player’s face was clearly seen by the NPC “cannon fodder” before him.
“What’s that look?”
“We risk our lives for Dongyang, and you look down on us?”
“Look down on who? How much of this stuff came from us going out there, searching, and handing it over piece by piece? Now we just want a share of our own things—how is that wrong?”
“Unless you’ve been skimming the supplies yourself, is that why you won’t hand them out?”
“It must be, it has to be!”
“They’ve definitely been using our blood and sweat to enjoy themselves.”
“Screw this, I’ve had enough of this crap.”
“Yeah, same here!”
The crowd surged. They didn’t even wait for Dongyang’s true leader to arrive.
No one knew who threw the first punch, but in an instant the scene spiraled out of control.
Fists rained down on the Dongyang player.
Had his powers or items not been sealed, these cannon-fodder NPCs would’ve been nothing to him. But with almost all his abilities locked, and even unlocked items unusable in this dungeon, he was forced to brawl bare-handed.
Had he refrained from fighting back, he might’ve endured. But once he raised his fists, his position collapsed completely.
“He’s hitting us!”
“Dongyang’s beating people!”
“When they recruited us, they said we’d be like family—this is family?!”
“Forget it, grab the supplies and run!”
By the time Dongyang’s leader rushed over, he found utter chaos—people shouting, some prying at locks and battering the warehouse doors with stones. Any later, and the place would’ve been stripped clean.
“Stop! What do you think you’re doing?!”
“Enough! Stop now!”
“If you don’t, don’t blame me for what happens next.”
Pulling out a powerful item, he finally managed to cow the rioting NPCs into quiet.
After hearing the full story, he frowned deeply.
“Three days’ worth of supplies. Take that first, and go find [Megalodon03]. Don’t engage right away—wait until I confirm its real identity. Then you can come back to claim weapons.”
He had skill, this leader. He quickly restored order, though at heavy cost, giving away a large share of supplies.
“Captain, they’re just NPCs. You didn’t have to give in like that,” one player muttered.
“What do you know?” the leader snapped. “We’ve only got a handful of items and a few men. If we don’t use their strength, what, you think we can challenge Wu Yue head-on like idiots? If we did, you’d all be eliminated one by one! Something’s off in the group lately anyway. I suspect someone’s directing these NPCs from behind. Keep close watch. If they can’t find Wu Yue, scatter them with different tasks. Divide and conquer—only then will this rabble amount to nothing.”
“Yes, sir.”
Following Edith, Wu Yue finally met the famous Lu Chuan.
He’d long known Lu Chuan was young, but hadn’t expected him to look even younger than in the newspapers.
“Truly, heroes are born young,” Wu Yue couldn’t help but admire. “The reputation is well-earned. No wonder Edith speaks so highly of you. But this dungeon isn’t as simple as you think.”
Lu Chuan studied Wu Yue, noting the soldier’s air about him—clearly someone well-trained.
“Mr. Wu Yue, you already won a medal in the last tournament and cleared it. Why join this one again?” Lu Chuan asked. He had a feeling Wu Yue’s answer would be unusual.
“Because I want to fight the King again,” Wu Yue replied plainly. “In the finals, it’s not actually one-on-one duels—it’s taking turns to challenge the King. He ranks us based on how strong a fight we put up. The ranking doesn’t matter to me, but the King’s strength is terrifying. Facing him once is worth years of training outside.”
Another battle with the King?
Lu Chuan sighed inwardly. Exactly what he’d most hoped to avoid had come true.
After all, one of the dungeon’s win conditions was “Defeat the King to clear.”
“If I may be blunt,” Wu Yue continued, “the easiest way for you to clear is by following the dungeon’s second rule—kill twenty advanced NPCs. By the third round, small teams will collapse, and cannon-fodder NPCs will be gone. The remaining advanced NPCs will stand out. If you just take down as many of them as possible in rounds three and four, you can clear.”
“That’s a sound strategy,” Lu Chuan said, shaking his head. “But we don’t intend to use it. We came here to grow stronger. A high dungeon evaluation gives us lots of points to boost stamina, speed, strength, and so on. If we only wanted a low-rank clear, we wouldn’t need to be here.”
“Then what’s your plan?” Wu Yue frowned. “You’re only two people. Edith might, with luck, make top three. But you—I don’t see much combat ability in you at all.”
To Wu Yue, Lu Chuan was full of openings.
Of course, Lu Chuan wasn’t a sword-wielding fighter type, so naturally his raw combat power didn’t compare. And with powers sealed in this dungeon, even his special abilities were useless.
“We’ve never planned on fighting alone,” Lu Chuan smiled. “Even advanced NPCs need to eat, don’t they? As long as the dungeon limits them, we’ll have ways to deal with it.”
He paused, then added with a smile, “But for this, we’ll need your help, Mr. Wu Yue.”
Wu Yue looked at him in confusion.
Lu Chuan briefly explained his plan.
As Wu Yue listened, his frown gradually eased. When he looked at Lu Chuan again, his eyes had changed.
Alright then… maybe he understood now why Lu Chuan had risen so quickly. He wasn’t a swordsman type at all. Most likely… a demon-type.
——
“That’s the one we’re looking for, right?”
“Looks like it. All the features match the portrait.”
“Shh—he noticed us.”
“Ahhh, he’s coming over!”
“Run!”
…
“Huh? He didn’t kill us—why did he just walk away?”
“Ahhh, everyone check your packs—he robbed us! He stole all our supplies!”
Inside Dongyang’s tent.
The leader listened to the cannon-fodder NPCs all babbling at once, their story jumbled. Only after asking several times did he piece together the truth:
The cannon fodder had indeed found Wu Yue, but Wu Yue spotted them instantly. Strangely, instead of killing them, he robbed them of all their supplies.
So the NPCs slunk back empty-handed.
Utterly baffling.
If only one person said it, fine—but they all told the same story. That was strange.
“Xiao Wang, take them back there. Go check again—see if it’s really Wu Yue.” The Dongyang leader gave the order.
“And bring supplies with you. I want to see if he really robs them.”
“Yes, sir.”
This time, Dongyang’s core players brought some NPCs and deliberately carried packs of supplies, as if Wu Yue wouldn’t notice.
The result was the same. Wu Yue beat them down, didn’t kill them, and robbed them blind.
They returned battered and bruised, crying louder than before.
“One man can’t possibly use that much—he’s really stealing supplies?” The leader hesitated. “Could it be… he’s secretly keeping a team somewhere?”
Unbelievable as it was, Wu Yue had indeed appeared. And after repeated skirmishes, he was moving steadily toward their camp.
Same as before: he robbed, but didn’t kill.
But if someone challenged him without bringing supplies, Wu Yue beat them within an inch of their life.
Supplies or your life—the choice was theirs.
“No, we can’t let him keep closing in. He’ll draw stronger players to us.” The Dongyang leader slammed his fist. “Stop him, whatever it takes. Kill him if possible. At the very least, hold out until the third round when the number drops to 500.”
There were only about 600 contestants left. But the fewer there were, the slower eliminations became—anyone who’d survived this long had some skill or self-defense methods.
“Boss, we can’t beat him bare-handed.”
“Yeah, we need weapons.”
“Fine, then give them weapons.” The leader gritted his teeth and approved it.
And so, supplies and weapons flowed out like water.
That night, Lu Chuan, Wu Yue, and their men tallied their spoils.
A twisted version of Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats—borrowing all the same.
Dongyang’s supplies and weapons were being drained bit by bit, almost half gone already.
Wu Yue and Lu Chuan worked in perfect sync, stripping Dongyang bare as easily as picking fruit.
The piles grew so large even Wu Yue struggled to carry them.
Outside, his reputation was changing: “the iron rooster who strips the ground bare,” “the hoarding freak,” and more. Wu Yue endured it all through gritted teeth.
All because Lu Chuan told him to.
Lu Chuan’s reasoning had convinced him, “Follow my plan, and you’ll fight the King again. Go against me, and sorry—you’ll have to wait until the next tournament.”
Wu Yue didn’t want complications, and Edith’s strength couldn’t be ignored. It looked like two choices, but in truth, only one: cooperate with Lu Chuan.
And cooperating with Lu Chuan was a one-way road. Once on it, he had to follow Lu Chuan’s rules—otherwise, worse things would await.
“Dongyang’s supplies are nearly drained. They won’t waste more on me. You’ll need another plan,” Wu Yue said.
“We’ve hoarded enough. Contestants are dwindling, and air-dropped supplies are fewer.” Lu Chuan smiled. Their stash wasn’t just from Dongyang; they’d also quietly kept some finds without turning them in.
Living off Dongyang’s camp while secretly stockpiling—by now, their supplies rivaled Dongyang’s.
“I estimate in two or three days, the second round will end. That’s when we strike.” Lu Chuan’s eyes gleamed. “When the third round begins, there’s a high chance my ideal item unlocks.”
After all, he had only brought so many items. He’d thrown useless ones into Edith’s system space, and the system wouldn’t unlock his most destructive ones. That left an 80% chance the next item would be The Seal of Contract.
His favorite.
To speed things up, Lu Chuan ordered his men to start quietly removing NPCs loyal to Dongyang who refused to switch sides.
So, in the teams sent after Wu Yue, numbers dwindled. Naturally, Wu Yue got the blame.
With a powerful enemy outside, internal conflicts went unnoticed.
Dongyang never cared about the surrendered low-tier NPCs anyway, and so missed their little tricks.
Like rats, they stole away the last grain from the storehouse.
Time slipped by.
[Detected: only 503 contestants remain in the Blood Kingdom Showdown. Third round beginning.]
[Last three eliminations starting now.]
At that cue, Lu Chuan’s men struck first, eliminating the three NPCs guarding Dongyang’s warehouse.
Wu Yue appeared at just the right moment, drawing off the core player’s attention. Meanwhile, others set fire to the place.
[500 contestants remain. Third round begins. Contestant abilities/items are randomly unsealed.]
“Put out the fire! The warehouse is burning!”
“Help!”
[Third round rules: continues until the top 100 advance to semifinals. From now, no more supply drops. To eat—take from others.]
Dongyang’s players panicked and scrambled to fight the fire.
But the warehouse had already been seeded with accelerants. Saving it was hopeless.
By the time the flames were quenched, the warehouse was nearly destroyed.
So many mouths to feed, and no supplies.
Everyone grew cautious. They had scraps of rations left, but nowhere near enough to last the third round. To survive, they’d have to rob others.
But who would let themselves be robbed?
The once-scattered cannon-fodder NPCs gathered quietly together—the surrender faction.
They no longer needed to hide.
“You’re not fit to be our leader. You don’t care about us.”
“That’s right. You can’t even provide supplies. The resources we worked for, you squandered. We won’t follow you anymore.”
…
When it rains, it pours.
Dongyang’s leader hadn’t expected mutiny right after losing the supplies. Just a bunch of brainless low-tier NPCs, and yet—
“Who are you swearing loyalty to?” His eyes turned cold. Maybe they had a traitor in the guild. Otherwise, how could cannon-fodder NPCs unite against him?
[Item unlocked: The Seal of Contract.]
It came.
Lu Chuan’s eyes lit up. He’d known it had to be this—or else the Infinite Divine Pistol.
Perfect timing.
“Of course, to me.” Lu Chuan beamed, tearing off his disguise as he stepped forward with Edith and Wu Yue.
“Hello. First time introducing myself.” Lu Chuan flashed a brilliant smile. “I’m Lu Chuan of the Star Guild. Sorry for hiding so long.”
The Dongyang players gasped.
Lu Chuan of the Star Guild?
The legendary God of Wealth? Here, in this dungeon, hidden in their ranks all along until now?
“It… it looks like the real thing. I’ve seen him in reports.”
“A player that strong—why only show himself now?”
“We’re really up against [Arrival of the God of Wealth]? I was planning to buy a house in his Golden Estate…”
For players outside the top five guilds, Lu Chuan’s name was practically mythic.
His very presence changed the entire dungeon’s tone.
Although their player levels might not be much lower than Lu Chuan’s, they themselves knew well the gap between them. On one side was a player who had reached S-rank even before clearing his newcomer dungeons, and on the other side, players who could only slowly accumulate experience in a mid-sized guild. The difference between the two was like heaven and earth.
Seeing the shock on these people’s faces, Lu Chuan felt as refreshed as if he had just taken a sip of ice-cold Sprite in the middle of summer.
Yes, yes, that’s exactly the feeling.
[Host, you truly are wise and mighty. Just showing your face alone was enough to subdue them—winning without even fighting!] #888 seized the opportunity to flatter shamelessly.
Author’s Note:
Lu Chuan: Show off successfully, check.
