Chapter Sixteen: Journey to the Sea Two
Lu Yibei ultimately accepted the new identity of “Golden Toad Boy.” To avoid giving Zhang Hainan, the Wordless Book, and the yet-to-be-met guardian—”God of Wealth”—the impression that he was greedy for money, he provided the reason of “being able to take over the ‘Love and Magical Girl’ account of Golden Toad Boy.”
It sounded somewhat absurd, but if it were Lu Yibei, there was a hint of reason in it.
In fact, he initially refused to take over the Golden Toad Boy account. After all, he had always treated his account and the characters within as lovingly as a wife. Taking over someone else’s account felt like a betrayal, but…
When the Wordless Book showed him the Golden Toad Boy account, heavily modified with a deep blue-green modifier, fully equipped and with all skins, his eyes went wide, nearly gluing himself to the mobile phone screen.
Brother Yinchuan, I can feel your deep affection…
Rest assured, from now on, I shall take good care of your wife!
Lu Yibei thought secretly, gently touching the mobile screen with his fingertips, stripping the top-notch accessories worn by Yu Yinchuan on other characters and stuffing them all onto various “Bai Xiaohua” characters.
Though he admitted that Yu Yinchuan’s love for “Love and Magical Girl” was no less than his own, the unfortunate truth was that people’s XP was different…
Once your wife is in my hands, of course, she has to be styled to my liking!
After adjusting Yu Yinchuan’s game account according to his own preferences, Lu Yibei nodded contentedly, ready to enjoy a round of gaming when a hand, wrinkled and worn, quietly rested on the mobile screen and pressed down slightly.
Looking up, he saw Zhang Hainan’s grim face, and his heart skipped a beat.
“You little rascal, have you forgotten we’re still here? We haven’t finished the serious business yet; what are you playing around with? Put that down!”
Reluctantly, Lu Yibei complied with Zhang Hainan’s command, “obediently” putting away his phone, then turning to the Wordless Book, earnestly asking, “Wordless Book, may I ask what Brother Yu was primarily engaged in before his disappearance?”
Most tasks assigned by the Siye Society guardians were traps; it was best to clarify things before proceeding with work.
“Just leave everything to me? For the Siye Society, for world peace, I will face fire and water, risk everything, and not disappoint the organization’s expectations!”
“Did I not say?” the Wordless Book replied calmly, “Help the God of Wealth spend money…”
As she spoke, she cast a glance at Zhang Hainan.
Noticing the Wordless Book’s gaze, Zhang Hainan nodded and added, “Yu Yinchuan has been working for the God of Wealth outside Z Country for a long time. Most of his previous tasks involved rescuing rare spirit energy items, providing aid to spirit users and deities outside Z Country, procuring materials, and recruiting talent…”
“Executing these tasks inevitably incurs large expenses, so the God of Wealth regularly allocates funds for him to use during missions.”
“Ah?” A hint of disappointment flashed in Lu Yibei’s eyes. “I thought the so-called spendthrift meant spending at will, but it turns out it’s like this?”
As if seeing through Lu Yibei’s thoughts, the Wordless Book interjected, “The funds allocated by the God of Wealth are fixed. If there is a surplus, you can spend it as you like; I’m sure the God of Wealth won’t mind.”
Hearing this, Lu Yibei’s eyes lit up. “So as long as I can accomplish the tasks without spending money, whatever is left over will all be mine?”
Isn’t that simple?
If I want to save money, I can buy things and just not pay, right?
Especially rare spirit energy items, many of which have been stolen. During missions, I can just snatch them back from those criminals, right? Lu Yibei thought secretly.
The Wordless Book nodded, “Theoretically, yes.”
“Hmph!” Zhang Hainan shot Lu Yibei a glare, “Don’t get too happy! Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking. When the time comes, sporting the identity of Golden Toad Boy, if you do something illegal or violate Siye Society regulations, watch out for the God of Wealth’s retribution.”
“To be honest, that guy is quite skilled at exploiting the value of a calamity-grade urban legend and maximizing benefits. In these respects, that old fellow is way more cunning than me!”
More cunning than you? Then that means he’s thoroughly inhuman? Lu Yibei couldn’t help but shiver.
Although Zhang Hainan didn’t explicitly say what the God of Wealth would do, from his words, Lu Yibei envisioned being repeatedly sold off as goods by the God of Wealth, and when he had no value left, being dismantled and sold for parts and the core of the urban legend.
Seeing Lu Yibei looking scared and slightly pale, Zhang Hainan shook his head and reassuringly said, “Actually, you don’t need to worry too much about not being able to complete the task. This year is already over half gone; nearing the end of the year, most of the tasks assigned by the God of Wealth to Yu Yinchuan have already been completed…”
“The only one left now is the regular task of providing aid to the spirit users and deities outside.”
“Wait?” Lu Yibei caught the hint in Zhang Hainan’s words and interrupted, “If there’s only one regular task left, does that mean there are still unconventional tasks?”
He had been mingling within the Siye Society for quite some time and was well aware of the dangers of “unconventional tasks;” he almost had a reflex reaction to these terms.
“Exactly!” Zhang Hainan interjected, “Recently, those guys helped by Golden Toad Boy have been disappearing in large numbers, suspected to have been abducted by an unknown spirit energy organization, and he also went missing while investigating it. Currently, it seems he’s in a dire situation…”
“Got it, I understand!” Lu Yibei’s expression turned blank. “So after I replace his identity, not only won’t I have the privilege to spend freely, but I also have to help continue investigating the disappearance case? Oh right, I should also investigate why he went missing, right?”
“In addition, you need to monitor the movements of various factions in the Free City, and report to me promptly if you notice anything unusual,” the Wordless Book added.
Monitoring the surrounding areas of the Free City was the main reason she chose Lu Yibei to adopt the identity of Golden Toad Boy; she certainly wouldn’t overlook this.
“Isn’t that just working for free?” Lu Yibei frowned.
“Hey—! You little brat, do you not know gratitude?”
Zhang Hainan raised his hand, ready to strike back, but the Wordless Book pressed down on his hand, gently shaking her head in a signal, then turned to Lu Yibei and said, “Investigating the kidnapping case will inevitably involve buying information, paying ransom, and secretly setting up faux trades. The God of Wealth will provide funds for this, of course.”
“How much?” Lu Yibei asked.
“Approximately…” The Wordless Book recalled, raising her hand, showing five fingers.
“Fifty million?” Lu Yibei probed.
“You’re usually quite clever; why did you suddenly act dumb?” Zhang Hainan smacked the back of Lu Yibei’s head. “The trading targets are all spirit users or urban legends; don’t you feel it would be cumbersome to use cash?”
“Could it be… gold?” Lu Yibei’s voice trembled uncontrollably.
“Exactly,” the Wordless Book nodded. “About five tons. If that’s not enough, you can apply to the God of Wealth. How much you can apply for depends on your abilities.”
“!!”
Upon hearing this, Nanling Yaohua, who had been watching the show from behind Lu Yibei, widened his eyes, bowed his head, counted with his fingers for a while, then vigorously shook his head, straightening up and continuously patting Lu Yibei’s shoulder in a hint.
“…”
Lu Yibei suddenly fell silent. After taking a few deep breaths, he said expressionlessly, “That’s not a lot; let’s get back to the main topic. When do I set off? How about an hour from now? If I ask Liao Zhai Tavern for help, I should be able to reach the destination in about two hours, right?”
“To tell you the truth, as soon as I think of those spirit users and deities being kidnapped, and likely suffering at present, my heart aches. I can hardly wait to rescue them and uphold justice!”
Although he usually didn’t consider himself particularly greedy, since the funds received were strictly for task-related use and couldn’t be frivolously squandered, the offer was simply too generous.
Once the funds are in place, shouldn’t I first buy a fleet of super-large vehicles to try out? Lu Yibei thought.
With the spirit patterns ability “borrowed” from Zhang Yu through the family mark, he also had a chance to experience becoming powerful through spending in this world full of urban legends.
“How about reconsidering? After all, your character setups aren’t very compatible,” Zhang Hainan remarked sarcastically.
“No need, really no need, I think this one is just fine!” Lu Yibei said earnestly. “What kind of character setup do I even have? Since we debuted, what we’ve focused on is adaptability, isn’t it?”
“But this time you’re leaving Z Country; aren’t you afraid?” Zhang Hainan asked again.
“Afraid? When have I ever feared calamity?” Lu Yibei lifted his chin slightly, patting his chest.
“One more thing…”
“Old man, shut up! This is a matter for us young people; you don’t need to interfere!” Lu Yibei said, pulling the Wordless Book and heading towards the Moon Cave entrance, “Miss, let’s discuss the details regarding Golden Toad Boy’s tasks, shall we?”
Watching the two leave, Zhang Hainan was dumbfounded.
“???”
He suddenly began to doubt whether he had been tough enough while filming the video earlier, to the point where Lu Yibei, that little b*stard, wouldn’t even call him ‘senior’!
——
After leaving the Moon Cave, the Wordless Book detailed the tasks Lu Yibei needed to complete on his journey to the Free City and handed him a document.
Glancing through the material presented by the Wordless Book, Lu Yibei was secretly astonished.
The total of all the documents exceeded three hundred pages, covering the information about the missing deities and spirit users investigated by Golden Toad Boy, the informants or operatives secretly established by the Siye Society around the Free City, as well as brief information about various local spirit energy organizations and urban legends.
Among these documents, one particular file, spanning over thirty pages, caught his special attention.
Bai Rouming Island Tethys Laboratory? An asset of the Solar Eclipse Elders’ Council? Isn’t that the place where Time Princess was headed after leaving Yumen?
I wonder if she has arrived there yet?
If necessary, perhaps I can find a chance to collaborate with her later? Lu Yibei thought.
Just as he was secretly plotting, the Wordless Book interrupted his thoughts. “By the way, just now you said you were planning to go to the Free City via Liao Zhai Tavern?”
“Uh, yes, I’m quite…” Halfway through his sentence, noticing the unusual look in the Wordless Book’s eyes, Lu Yibei paused, quickly realizing, “Oh! I’m already dead and can’t appear before Hu Boss in the identity of Calamity anymore.”
If he didn’t show up in the identity of Calamity, it was highly unlikely Hu Boss would help.
Although Liao Zhai Tavern was once a dilapidated post station…
Though Liao Zhai Tavern’s teleportation abilities were unparalleled…
Hu Boss hated others using his painstakingly managed tavern as a mere transportation tool; even the General had to use coercion and temptation to use it. What was a mere Golden Toad Boy to him?
“Good that you know. So if you want to go to the Free City, you can only take the regular flight routes,” the Wordless Book said.
“I have a question!” Lu Yibei raised his hand secretly, “Is it possible—just a possibility—that when I take a flight, I can sneak into the cockpit for a few minutes of small operations?”
“Sure,” the Wordless Book rolled her eyes, “I can arrange for a few members of the Assassins’ Anonymous to meet with you; they have ample experience in hijacking, and you can learn from them.”
Assassins’ Anonymous? Lu Yibei’s eyes twitched slightly, weakly saying, “Forget it, senior, just pretend I didn’t say that…”
“Yes, I’ve already told you everything that needed to be said,” the Wordless Book nodded. “So let’s leave it at that, shall we? If there are no issues, we can depart tomorrow?”
“Wait a minute, senior!” Lu Yibei thought for a moment, “There’s one more question.”
“What is it?” the Wordless Book frowned.
“What will happen to Huacheng once I leave?” Lu Yibei asked worriedly. “If I sever my connection with the earth veins of Huacheng, the urban legends in Huacheng will lose the restraint of their king of urban legends and will likely cause considerable trouble, right?”
“I can’t manage the matters of your urban legends, nor is it convenient for me to interfere…” the Wordless Book replied coldly. “However, I heard that yesterday, the first generation of peach blossoms in Huacheng bloomed out of season; perhaps you can inquire about that.”
Peach blossoms? Stinky Sister! A slight glimmer appeared in Lu Yibei’s eyes. “Thank you, senior, for the information. If possible, can I have an extra day or two? I want to return to Huacheng first and set things right before setting off.”
“Sure,” the Wordless Book nodded, “but try to avoid contact with unrelated people and urban legends as much as possible.”
“How about I arrange a flight to Queen’s City the day after tomorrow? Once we arrive, we can take a ferry, and it’ll only take half a day to reach.”
“Why not go directly to the Free City?” Lu Yibei asked in confusion.
“Service is suspended,” the Wordless Book explained casually. “If you look over the materials I just gave you, you’ll understand what’s going on.”
Lu Yibei, “…”
Why do I have a sudden bad feeling?
Even direct trains and planes have been suspended…
This Free City is a bit too “free,” isn’t it?
