WTYTIAAN Chapter 164

Yan Yunqing’s expression was strange for a moment after hearing this, “The blacksmith whose pants were pulled off… was that you?”

A trace of embarrassment flashed across Merlin’s face, like an overturned palette, all colors taking their turn, before he reluctantly admitted, “Wasn’t there no one else? So I went and worked as a blacksmith for a few days.”

Yan Yunqing: “…A few days? Do you even know how to blacksmith?”

Merlin snorted twice, “Don’t underestimate me, I learned a few tricks with Torin. It’s no problem to fool those heavenly Descendants – those who descended from the heavens who don’t know anything.”

Torin, a goblin who was friends with Merlin. A more common term for them might be “dwarves.” Every goblin was a born blacksmith, and the equipment they crafted was of excellent quality.

Back in the Demon King’s army, there was also a goblin blacksmith team responsible for crafting equipment. Torin was the one who signed a contract with the Demon King and was considered one of the Demon King’s familiars.

Although Merlin was a legendary magician, he was naturally peaceful. Even though he was tricked onto the Demon King’s pirate ship, he didn’t go to the front lines of the battlefield, but ran to the rear to provide logistics for the Demon King’s team. It was at that time that he and the goblin forged a deep friendship.

Yan Yunqing suspiciously sized Merlin up and down, “Don’t screw this up. If those players, um, Those who came from the sky, discover something is wrong with you, and trace it back to find out that you’re the legendary magician Merlin, you’ll have to come up with a reason for you being here.”

Merlin waved his hand, “I won’t be discovered. I even specially changed my face. Forget those Those who came from the sky, even if a few of your former familiars stood in front of me, they wouldn’t necessarily recognize me.”

Yan Yunqing raised an eyebrow, noncommittal.

“Besides, you’re directly using that face. You’re even more likely to be exposed, aren’t you?” Merlin said meaningfully.

Yan Yunqing: “…The village you went to as a blacksmith was in Romunike?”

The only face Merlin would be talking about was Yan Yunqing’s newly created Nolan identity, and Yan Yunqing had only used Nolan’s identity to fool players in the Newbie Village of Romunike. He hadn’t been to other Newbie Villages yet.

If Merlin had seen him, it must have been in Romunike.

Merlin gave Yan Yunqing a look, the specific meaning of which Yan Yunqing had to figure out for himself. “See? You didn’t recognize me, did you?”

He really hadn’t recognized him. When Yan Yunqing was in the Newbie Village, his attention was focused on the players. He wasn’t sure if he had met Merlin’s disguised identity there.

For a moment, the two were speechless.

“What? I thought you were avoiding your former familiars because you didn’t want to return to that identity. Now you’re actively putting on that former appearance. Have you made up your mind?” Merlin asked.

“Made up my mind about what?” Yan Yunqing retorted. “Besides, I put on that appearance just to fish.”

Eternal Church. Since they were walking among the common people in the name of the Demon King, they must have some purpose. Otherwise, there were so many gods’ names they could use, why did they specifically use the Demon King’s?

The Eternal Lord could be called the Demon King, so his reputation wasn’t much better. Compared to the Eternal Lord, there were also small gods who died to protect their believers during the God War. Those gods’ names were much easier to use than the Demon King’s.

Or they could simply do what the Light Church did and fabricate a newly born god, which would be better than borrowing the Demon King’s name and still having to carefully hide it from the Demon King’s former familiars, fearing that they would be discovered and wiped out in one fell swoop.

The Eternal Church must have a special purpose for doing this. Since Yan Yunqing couldn’t figure it out, he simply put on the Demon King’s identity and opposed the Eternal Church. He believed that the people behind the Eternal Church would realize that their ‘faith,’ their ‘god,’ had really appeared, and they would be unable to sit still and expose their flaws.

Merlin’s gaze fell on Yan Yunqing’s face, not letting go of even the slightest change in his expression. However, to his disappointment, Yan Yunqing really didn’t have a single extra emotion, and was frighteningly calm.

Merlin sighed, “I hope you’ll reconsider my previous suggestion.”

“Look, you used to do it so well.”

Merlin stood up, and some documents appeared out of thin air in his hand, placing them in front of Yan Yunqing. “And now, you still have such appeal. Whether it’s humans or other races, they’re willing to do things for you.”

“You naturally have the ability to make others submit, Nolan.”

“Have you ever thought about rebuilding the Eternal Empire?”

…

Yan Yunqing watched Merlin leave a pile of documents and stride away, unable to help but rub his forehead and sigh.

It wasn’t a question of whether he wanted to or not, but rather Yan Yunqing knew that he didn’t have the ability to do so right now.

A level 73 Demon King. What could he use to conquer those level 150 or 160 monster familiars? Not to mention there was still the combat power ceiling, Theodore.

He couldn’t beat them, he really couldn’t beat them.

He couldn’t rely on his personal charm to conquer everyone, could he?

If it were when he was playing the game, Yan Yunqing could perhaps try it. The worst that could happen was deleting the account and starting over. But now he was really here, what could he use to start over? He was just afraid he would really be ‘restarted.’

Even if his familiars agreed, the two great empires of Bato Vita and Romunike wouldn’t agree. Not to mention there were so many small countries around, which had all been peaceful for over a thousand years.

If he were to rebuild the Eternal Empire, it would mean that the world would once again be swept up in a wave of war, and the land would hardly be able to withstand the pain brought about by war.

That was why Yan Yunqing had established ‘Flame’ before the players arrived, in order to minimize the players’ influence on this world. He could also use the power of ‘Flame’ and the players to continue exploring the origin of the game.

Compared to rebuilding the Eternal Empire, Yan Yunqing wanted to figure out the origin of all this even more…

Why he had traveled into this different world, and bound to the Homecoming game system, and even… had he really just happened to play that construction game by chance?

Was his becoming the Demon King a coincidence, or was it predetermined?

Yan Yunqing couldn’t help but sigh again in melancholy before opening the documents Merlin had sent him. The first page was an investigation report.

About the Eternal Church.

Crap, his head hurt even more.

Yan Yunqing skimmed through it and learned that Isabel and the others had discovered another clue, which was still the auction house, and even his old friend.

Augreir Auction House.

It still involved internal personnel of the Eternal Church, selling dragon scales and blood at the auction house. The amount sold each time wasn’t much, so it was difficult to attract too much attention, but it had happened too many times.

The investigation report stated that almost every month, there would be one or two auction items containing these things, a small bottle of dragon blood, or a few scales each time.

The investigation report also mentioned that the dragon blood and scales were collected very fresh. Each time the dragon blood and scales were auctioned off, they seemed to have just been collected from the dragon.

That Eternal Church stronghold was imprisoning at least one living dragon.

Yan Yunqing frowned slightly. No wonder Merlin gave him the investigation report. Since the other party still had a living dragon in their hands, they couldn’t just rush into the stronghold and wipe out those Eternal Church believers like they had done before.

He had to consider the possibility that the other party might become desperate and, without thinking, simply perish together with the imprisoned dragon.

This was asking him to think of a solution too.

Yan Yunqing flipped through it again. The investigation report didn’t specify the suspected targets or the location of the stronghold, indicating that these were still being investigated, probably because they were hidden too deeply and difficult to find.

And the most recent auction was in three days.

What a problem he had been given. Yan Yunqing put the documents aside, thought for a while, and opened his panel, looking at the player identity [Rian] within it. He decisively switched over.

*

Re-logging in as a player, Yan Yunqing got up from the carefully prepared lying-corpse spot. These days, he would often switch to his player identity to take a look, and by the rankings on the level leaderboard, add points to his level, subtly controlling it within the top ten.

Not so conspicuous, but enough to keep his level from falling behind the top line of players.

Most of the players with the highest level had already broken through level 15, and could freely leave the Newbie Village, gradually integrating into the surrounding real villages.

With ‘Flame’ acting as a buffer, the arrival of the Those who came from the sky wasn’t particularly abrupt. The first batch of players to come out of the Newbie Village was small, and didn’t cause too much of an impact on ordinary people.

Yan Yunqing was very satisfied with the current progress. He was just about to use his player identity to go to that auction house to investigate when a private chat appeared in his chat panel.

[Big A Bro (Private)]: Big boss, you’re online?

Yan Yunqing paused, remembering that this was one of the two people he met when he first started out as a player. From the information revealed in the chat, he should be a game content creator.

He had also misled the other party’s understanding of him and created a persona of an official GM.

[Rian (Private)]: What is it?

Yan Yunqing thought this [Big A Bro] just wanted to chat with him and build a relationship, but who knew the other party sent a long message.

[Big A Bro (Private)]: Big boss, we got a clue to a hidden quest here, and we wanted to ask if you’re interested in joining? But it’s not in Bato Vita 01, but in the Newbie Village of Romunike. We all speculate that this quest is very likely related to the gameplay after the game.

[Big A Bro (Private)]: Maybe it’s even related to the main quest afterwards. Are you coming, big boss?

When sending these two messages, [Big A Bro] was a little uneasy. After so many days of observation, he was also sure that [Rian] was probably not a game official GM, because his login was too regular, his level was steadily increasing, but he didn’t often hang out in the player circle, which wasn’t the same as the GM he had expected.

But even if [Rian] wasn’t a GM, he must be a game QA (tester), or a professional player with inside information.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense that this [Rian] was never seen in the Newbie Village, but his level could always stay at the forefront without falling behind. He must have some information that ordinary players didn’t know.

If he could invite such a big boss into their team, they might be able to complete the hidden quest faster.

After all, time during the closed beta was money!

Yan Yunqing was a little surprised. According to [Big A Bro]’s meaning, he had joined that quest in Hawthorn Village?

He had expected that the few players who took the quest would seek help from other players, but he didn’t expect that someone was already planning to cross Newbie Villages.

These Newbie Villages in the Homecoming game were all established by Yan Yunqing and his team, so he naturally knew that there were no fast passages between the Newbie Villages, which were the so-called teleportation arrays.

And this world itself was a real world. If he wanted to get from one Newbie Village to another, he had to really travel. Had [Big A Bro] already found a way to travel?

[Rian (Private)]: You’re going to the Newbie Village in Romunike? How are you going to get there?

[Big A Bro (Private)]: When I was exploring the neighboring city, I found a post station where you can rent carriages and magical beasts to travel. I have a few other players here who will come along. If we pool our money, we can get to Romunike.

Yan Yunqing thought that this [Big A Bro] was indeed someone who could become a content creator with millions of followers. His brain was very active. Other players were still taking quests in the Newbie Village step by step, but he had already inquired about the post station prices in the neighboring city.

That neighboring city must not be someone he arranged, so it could only be a real otherworlder.

[Rian (Private)]: I’m pretty busy here. I won’t go with you for now. If you have any problems, you can ask me in private.

Yan Yunqing didn’t mind taking care of such a smart player who could also think outside the box.

[Big A Bro] was a little disappointed that he couldn’t bring the big boss to complete this hidden quest together, but after getting a promise from [Rian], he still felt like he had made a profit.

This was a big boss who had someone on the inside!

[Big A Bro] agreed and closed the chat panel with satisfaction, meeting [He Kou Wang]’s expectant gaze. He calmly shook his head, “The big boss refused, saying he was busy and told us to go by ourselves.”

“Ah, A Bro, didn’t you say that this big boss shouldn’t be a GM?” [He Kou Wang] couldn’t help but ask.

“What do you know? Maybe he’s busy testing the game mechanics?” [Big A Bro] stroked his chin, concealing his merit and fame. “Just now, I deliberately revealed to the big boss that this hidden quest is very likely related to the upcoming game play, and even related to the main quest afterwards. But the big boss didn’t have any reaction, and only asked how we were going to the Newbie Village of Romunike.”

[He Kou Wang]’s eyes flickered with clear and foolish light, “Ah, could it be that he didn’t believe it?”

“Idiot,” [Big A Bro] knocked on [He Kou Wang]’s head. “It’s obvious that the big boss knows what’s going to be launched in the next game, and maybe even knows what the hidden quest is, so he didn’t react at all, but only asked how we were going to the Newbie Village of Romunike!”

“Ah?” [He Kou Wang] was still a little confused.

[Big A Bro] lovingly stroked [He Kou Wang]’s head, “Let me ask you, if I told you that I knew a hidden quest about the upcoming game play, what would your reaction be when you heard it?”

[He Kou Wang] hesitated for a moment, “I would ask about what kind of gameplay?”

[Big A Bro] snapped his fingers, “That’s right. For this kind of hidden quest about the future gameplay and the main storyline, even if you’re not too curious, you’ll at least ask a question or two. But the big boss didn’t ask anything, and his reaction was mediocre, as if he already knew, or at least understood, some of the future gameplay.”

“He definitely has someone inside the game studio!”

“And he promised that we could go to him when we encounter difficulties. It’s estimated that this big boss even knows almost the entire hidden quest plot.”

…

Not knowing that his casual refusal had caused [Big A Bro] to make up so much, and the process was all wrong, but the result was, to some extent, right.

This Augreir Auction House was in a prosperous city in Romunike.

There was the empire’s largest trading port, next to the longest river running through the two great empires, the Dukieloman River. The two great empires often traded through this river.

The cities through which the Dukieloman River flowed all flourished due to the river’s transportation and trade.

The city of Slani Lipa, where the Augreir Auction House was located, flourished for this reason. That was why the Augreir Auction House, which was only famous in its own country, could be stationed in Slani Lipa.

After all, Slani Lipa was a commercially developed city, and the Augreir family’s main business was also transportation and trade.

Yan Yunqing, with the identity of the player [Rian], came to this city, and before entering the city, he saw a long queue outside the city, waiting to accept the city guard’s strict inspection.

Yan Yunqing observed from a distance for a while. Most of the teams lining up outside the city were small merchant caravans, and a small number of them looked like small nobles with some wealth in their families.

There wasn’t a single person with tattered clothes who looked more like a commoner.

Was it because this city was too developed, so the average level of wealth in the city was higher than in other cities?

Yan Yunqing studied for a while, and silently followed the end of the team. In front of him was a servant from a small merchant caravan.

He reached out and gently patted the arm of the big brother in front of him, “Sir, can I ask, why are so many people queuing up in front?”

The servant in the merchant caravan turned around, stunned by Yan Yunqing’s young appearance, and then replied, “Because the Slani Lipa Festival is coming soon. These people are here to participate in the Slani Lipa Festival!”

The big brother sized Yan Yunqing up and down, “Don’t you know? Then what are you here for?”

Slani Lipa Festival?

This really involved Yan Yunqing’s blind spot of knowledge. Although his previous range of activities was very wide, it was all related to monsters, magic, and swordsmen. This kind of festival named after the city sounded like a special local custom. How could Yan Yunqing, who had basically never been to Romunike, know about it?

He calmly replied, “Oh, I’m from out of town, I don’t know about these things. Is there anything special about this Slani Lipa Festival?”

“From out of town?” The big brother was a little puzzled, but he still answered Yan Yunqing’s question, “There’s nothing special. Every year at this time, Slani Lipa City holds the Slani Lipa Festival. The surrounding small towns will send goods over to sell. During this time, many big bosses from outside will come to buy things, and some noble lords will come to play.”

“In recent years, the city lord of Slani Lipa has spent a lot of effort to attract those noble lords. Last year, there were many more performances to watch, which were very interesting.” A younger boy, who was also queuing up on the other side, leaned over and gave Yan Yunqing popular science, “There are also some fun things that not only don’t cost money, but also give you money if you win. Do you think the city lord’s brain is broken? How can you do business like this?”

Yan Yunqing analyzed from the boy’s few words that this Slani Lipa Festival was similar to the annual amusement park, promoting commercial trade by attracting tourists, and ultimately increasing the city’s per capita GDP, allowing the rich to drive the poor –

This city lord was quite business-minded?

No wonder this place could become Romunike’s number one commercial city, even though the Dukieloman River didn’t only flow through Slani Lipa City.

The boy babbled a lot to himself. The middle-aged man who had answered Yan Yunqing’s question at first fell silent. Whether it was appearance or the feeling he gave, he wasn’t as eloquent as this boy.

Yan Yunqing chatted with him a few words, and he got a general understanding of the Slani Lipa City.

“Speaking of which, you don’t even know about the Slani Lipa Festival. Why did you come here?” The boy curiously looked at Yan Yunqing. “You don’t look like a nobleman either?”

[Rian]’s identity was a player, and the player’s initial fashion was only a set of initial coarse linen clothes. Although Yan Yunqing’s temperament could also make a burlap sack look like high fashion, a burlap sack was a burlap sack, an unchangeable fact.

Obviously, Yan Yunqing, wearing coarse linen clothes, looked no different from ordinary commoners. Of course, judging from this temperament, he looked more like a rich kid wearing commoner’s clothes and going out to play.

Of course, the boy didn’t have that much experience. After seeing the cheap clothes on Yan Yunqing’s body, he only regarded Yan Yunqing as a commoner, and didn’t think there was a possibility of a visit in disguise.

The middle-aged man next to him pulled the boy’s arm, and a trace of nervousness appeared on his honest and dull face, signaling the boy not to talk nonsense.

Yan Yunqing curved his eyes, “Me? Hmm… Perhaps you’ve heard of ‘Those who came from the sky’ (The Heaven Descended)?”

The middle-aged man and the boy were both stunned. The boy was the first to react, and his eyes lit up: “Those who came from the sky! I know! That legend – War and calamity descend, the world is destroyed, only Those who came from the sky can save everything!”

“Eh, could it be that you are – Those who came from the sky?” The boy was a little excited, “Although I have recently heard that Those who came from the sky have appeared, I always thought that was just a lie to trick children – so there really are Those who came from the sky?”

Yan Yunqing reservedly nodded, not feeling that it was a shameful thing to fool people with a player’s disguise, after all, he was indeed a player.

It was just a player who also worked as an NPC.

However, this Those who came from the sky prophecy was really widespread. It felt like everyone on this continent knew about it, but no one could accurately say what the prophecy was talking about.

“You Those who came from the sky, um, are you any different from us? How did you become Those who came from the sky?” The boy asked like a curious baby.

Yan Yunqing smiled brightly, but didn’t answer the question.

To add a point: Although these ordinary people knew about the prophecy and the existence of Those who came from the sky, very few people knew that Those who came from the sky didn’t belong to this world, but were visitors from outside the sky.

Only people with high levels were qualified to know this.

No matter how strange the players behaved in the eyes of the people of Ermann, they would ignore this point and treat these behaviors as the Those who came from the sky’s strange personality.

Even Merlin was like this.

How could a normal person go and pull off a blacksmith’s pants when they first meet?

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