Chapter : 80

Feeling the room descend, Rocco visibly shivered, but he made no sound. Only Yan Yunqing felt his slightly trembling hand.

Yan Yunqing subtly lowered his arm, grasped the hand Rocco had on the corner of his clothes, and squeezed it reassuringly, while also sending Rocco a message in the chat system.

[Ri'an (Private)]: Show some appropriate unease, be a little willful.

Rocco didn't know why Yan Yunqing wanted him to do this. He silently brewed his emotions and said, "Brother, is this really that Mandiper place you were talking about? It's pitch black.

We haven't been tricked, have we? How could the legendary Chi Bone Sword be here! Why don't we go back!"

This line reading was a bit poor, but it was a bit much to ask a child's acting skills to be as good as his. Yan Yunqing was already very satisfied that Rocco's voice didn't tremble.

After all, the kid's hand holding his was shaking non-stop, like he had Parkinson's.

Yan Yunqing snorted, "I told you not to follow me, to stay at home, but you insisted on sneaking onto my carriage. I'm not mother, who spoils you every day. You just stay quiet and don't bother me."

Rocco pouted. Even though it was pitch black here, he still performed with dedication, as per Yan Yunqing's prior instructions.

"It's all because of your bragging, brother, saying you were about to get a sword made of dragon bone. Otherwise, I wouldn't have hidden from mother and secretly followed you out."

"And look at this crappy place you've brought me to," Rocco said with great disdain.

"I can't even sleep on the beds here. Can't you just buy a bigger house? I feel like the room in that inn is so small I can't even turn around."

Yan Yunqing sneered, "What's the difference between this crappy house and an inn? Fine, if you keep blabbering, I'll throw you out and leave you."

The performance ended, and Lawson closed his mouth.

Yan Yunqing gave this segment a barely passing grade of sixty. The main reason was that Rocco's lines were dry, as if he were reciting from a book. If it had been that Nika, the effect might have been better.

It was just a pity that the [Theft] skill belonged to Rocco, and Nika's physical condition didn't allow her to come along on this adventure with him. He was worried that before he could deal with the enemy, Nika would be scared half to death.

But it was fine. This conversation had basically revealed his and Rocco's identities, rationalizing the fact that he had a child with him.

He just didn't know if this guide had already started thinking in the direction Yan Yunqing had set.

Yan Yunqing subtly glanced at the guide. The guide had remained silent throughout Yan Yunqing and Rocco's performance, standing there quietly, but his eyes were always fixed on Yan Yunqing and Rocco.

Yan Yunqing wondered in his heart: could it be that this person also has night vision? In this pitch-black environment, he could still accurately capture his position?

With a jolt, the pitch-black direction came to a stop. The door in front of Yan Yunqing slowly opened, revealing the magnificent splendor behind it.

The first thing that met the eye was an extremely brilliant, golden high wall built of wealth. On it, a stunning relief mural was carved with various gemstones.

From bottom to top, it depicted two armies on horseback in battle, the strife between different races, a six-winged angel swooping into the center of the battlefield, a giant dragon roaring at the sky, countless arrows aimed at the pointed-eared elves standing under a giant tree, and the gods above raising their glasses to cheer for a brief victory...

—And in the very center, a goddess looked down with compassion at everyone entering Mandiper.

Yan Yunqing's gaze lingered on this relief mural for a while. The mural did not depict the facial features in detail, but Yan Yunqing could still accurately identify Elf King Silf, the dragon siblings Isabelle and Divik, Archangel Theodore, and many other gods he had once slain.

But who are you?

Yan Yunqing looked at the goddess at the very top with a complicated expression. He was familiar with those around the goddess. Who was this goddess?

Of the six great gods, only the God of Light was not on the mural. You couldn't be that Goddess of Light, could you?

The person who carved this mural must be a believer of the new Church of Light, right?

Was this directly replacing the God of Light of the past with the Goddess of Light?

What a slick move. The God of Light would probably be so angry he'd come back to life if he knew.

You have to know, this guy valued his reputation the most. He was petty. The Demon King had fought him once in the beginning, and no one won or lost, but this guy could hold a grudge for several years. In the final decisive battle, he even insisted on a one-on-one duel with the Demon King.

If it weren't for that, the Demon King really wouldn't have had a chance to finish off the God of Light as well.

Yan Yunqing's lips twitched, and he couldn't help but glance at the Goddess of Light again. Putting other things aside, just looking at this mural, it really felt like the God of Light had undergone a gender swap.

So weird.

As weird as Silf suddenly turning into a girl.

These thoughts flashed by in an instant. Yan Yunqing didn't even show it. The guide only thought that he, like everyone else who entered Mandiper, was shocked by this magnificent mural.

"Guest, please follow me."

The guide walked in front, and Yan Yunqing and Rocco followed behind him, bypassing this high relief wall. At some point, music began to play all around. It was very soothing light music, making this magnificent place seem less like a casino and more like a five-star hotel on Blue Star.

Before Yan Yunqing could even take in the scene, a burst of noise shattered the soothing atmosphere."

"No—I still have some! I still have money! Let me in—I still have money! I still have things to mortgage! I'm about to win money! Let me in!"

The voice was hoarse and unpleasant, yet it sounded incredibly sharp in Yan Yunqing's ears. Yan Yunqing looked in the direction of the voice.

A short, fat man was clinging to the counter, refusing to leave. Two men in black robes were holding his legs, trying to drag him away by force.

"Sir, all your belongings have been mortgaged. You are now penniless." The bunny-eared girl standing in front of him smiled sweetly, but the words that came out of her mouth were chilling.

"Even you yourself have become the property of our Mandiper. I'm sorry, we cannot continue to handle the mortgage procedures for you."

The bunny-eared girl waved her hand, and the two men in black robes pulled the man who was still clinging to the counter down with a single, forceful tug.

"Sir, please enjoy your last bit of free time." The bunny-eared girl said with pity, "From now on, you will only be one of the master's many collections."

Yan Yunqing's steps paused. What she said seemed to have a deep meaning.

The man seemed to have just realized the danger. Fear had just crept onto his cheeks, "No, I—"

However, before he could finish a complete sentence, his mouth was covered by the men in black robes and he was dragged away.

The man struggled desperately, but to no avail. In the end, he could only stare at the magnificent crystal chandelier above with his turbid and bloodshot eyes, being dragged away like a dead dog. An unknown fate awaited him.

The faces of the people in black and white attendant uniforms around them showed no expression, as if they were already used to this scene.

This was indeed a very cold and heartless place.

The bunny-eared girl standing in front of the counter with an elegant smile also saw Yan Yunqing and Rocco being led over by the guide.

The rigid smile on her face widened a bit, and she said to Yan Yunqing very cordially, "Sir, welcome to Mandiper."

Only upon getting closer did Yan Yunqing realize that this bunny-eared girl was not wearing fake ears. The long, fluffy ears on her head were her own, and they would even sway slightly with her movements, which was particularly eye-catching.

This was a bunny-eared beastman.

Yan Yunqing looked at the other party's ears a few more times. The bunny-eared girl didn't mind at all and still maintained that rigid smile.

"I want to participate in your 'Midas Touch' competition." Yan Yunqing still used the image of an ignorant young master, arrogantly lifting his chin at the bunny-eared girl, "Tell me how to participate."

The bunny-eared girl's expression did not change, as if she had heard too many such remarks recently. She smiled and said, "Sir, if you wish to participate in our 'Midas Touch' competition, you must first become a 'Midas Touch' of our Mandiper."

"Do you need me to briefly introduce how to become a 'Midas Touch'?"

Yan Yunqing glanced at the mission list. The notification [NPC attacked, health decreasing!] had disappeared, and the number was still 11. It seemed there was no immediate danger to their lives, so Yan Yunqing was not in a hurry.

"Hmph, it's just a Midas Touch. What's so difficult about it?" Yan Yunqing waved his hand, "I don't want to hear that nonsense. I just need to know what's the fastest way to become a Midas Touch here?"

His arrogant words seemed ridiculous and ignorant in Mandiper, but the bunny-eared girl did not mock him. Her gaze swept over a magic gemstone button on his collar. After confirming its authenticity, she did not hesitate to start with the highest-level game.

"Sir, if you wish to quickly become a 'Midas Touch,' you can enter the top-tier game in Mandiper. It can help you quickly win the honor of a Lucky Star. After winning the honor of a Lucky Star for three consecutive days, you can become a 'Midas Touch' of Mandiper."

"However, there is also an entry threshold for the top-tier game in Mandiper. Of course, I believe that with your strength, sir..."

Yan Yunqing impatiently interrupted her long speech, "Stop with the nonsense. Just tell me how many gold coins are required to be eligible to enter."

"Assets converted to over ten million gold coins are required to be eligible to enter the top-tier game, sir."

Yan Yunqing almost choked on this ten million gold coins. It was so easy to become a Lucky Star in this top-tier game, so the entry qualification was ten million gold coins.

You should know that to become a Lucky Star, you only needed to win thirty million gold coins.

It seemed that the entry threshold for every gambling game in this top-tier game would not be low.

Yan Yunqing looked at his backpack. To be honest, it wasn't that he couldn't take out ten million gold coins, but thinking about what he had to do later, he suspected that he wouldn't be able to get this ten million gold coins back at all.

It was equivalent to throwing this ten million gold coins into the water. Even if Yan Yunqing regarded money as dirt, he would still feel a little heartache at this time.

He stood there stiffly, not speaking, considering whether this ten million was worth it. For a moment, the air was a little quiet, which was extremely awkward.

The bunny-eared girl didn't notice the awkward atmosphere at all. She still had a proper smile on her face. Seemingly seeing Yan Yunqing's unwillingness, she changed her tone, "If it's difficult for you, sir, you can also enter the high-tier game and the mid-tier game, which require one million gold coins and five hundred thousand gold coins respectively."

When Yan Yunqing heard this, compared to ten million, it seemed that one million was acceptable?

He was just about to say let's go for the high-tier game, but Rocco subtly tugged at his sleeve. Then, Rocco's private message came through the chat system.

[Rocco (Private)]: Xiao Ai is in the primary game. Big brother, let's go find Xiao Ai in the primary game first.

[Rocco (Private)]: She was the first one to enter Mandiper, so she's more familiar with this place.

The words "let's go for the high-tier game then" that were about to come out of Yan Yunqing's mouth directly turned into, "Oh, what about the primary game? Ten thousand gold coins, right? I'll go to the primary game."

Bunny-eared girl: ...?

The bunny-eared girl couldn't help but look at the magic gemstone on Yan Yunqing's bow tie again, feeling very confused in her heart: he can even wear such an expensive magic gemstone as a decoration, so why is he so stingy as to choose the low-tier game?

Her smile even stiffened for a moment, and the look in her eyes towards Yan Yunqing was not as eager as before. But she still had a smile on her face and nodded, "Yes, the threshold for the primary game is only one hundred thousand gold coins."

When Yan Yunqing saw that the other party kept looking at the bow tie on his chest, he looked down. This was a cosmetic set he had paid for in "Demon King" before.

Although it was a formal dress, the tailoring was more inclined towards everyday wear, so Yan Yunqing had chosen this set to wear in.

What was this thing on his chest? Oh, it seemed to be a useless magic gemstone? He vaguely remembered that this kind of gemstone could be inlaid on a weapon to enchant it, but it also depended on the quality of the gemstone.

However, the fashion sold in "Demon King" were all beautiful but useless. They didn't have any attribute bonuses, so Yan Yunqing was sure that the magic gemstone on his clothes only looked rare and expensive, but it was actually useless.

There couldn't be a fool who had taken a fancy to his decoration, right?

Yan Yunqing tentatively took off the magic gemstone and said to the bunny-eared girl, "I didn't bring too much gold with me this time. This can be used as a mortgage, is that okay?"

The bunny-eared girl looked at the somewhat bare collar after Yan Yunqing had taken it off, feeling quite uncomfortable. This scene was a fatal blow to someone with OCD.

She smiled, "Of course, you can. The value of magic gemstones has always been very high. If you want to mortgage this gemstone, we can offer a price of eight hundred thousand gold coins. What do you think?"

Yan Yunqing didn't quite understand the market price of this magic gemstone, but since it was a mortgage, it must be lower than the market price.

Besides, his gemstone was just a decoration, which was almost the same as a plastic product to Yan Yunqing. Being able to mortgage it for eight hundred thousand gold coins was a pleasant surprise.

"Alright, then let's mortgage it for eight hundred thousand." Yan Yunqing casually tossed it, and the magic gemstone landed in the bunny-eared girl's hand. The bunny-eared girl hurriedly caught it, almost letting the gemstone slip out of her hand.

This time, her smile really almost couldn't be maintained. She looked at Yan Yunqing in shock, really not understanding this young noble's way of doing things.

He looked very rich, but he couldn't even enter the top-tier game. Even if he couldn't go to the top-tier game, he would at least choose a high-tier or mid-tier game, right?

Why did he choose a primary game? But looking at his attitude towards this magic gemstone, it seemed that gold coins had no attraction to him at all.

What a contradictory person.

The bunny-eared girl properly put away the magic gemstone, took out a blue bracelet from a small basket, operated it a few times, and placed it on the tray in front of her.

"Sir, this is your proof of identity. It can support all your consumption behaviors in Mandiper, including the chips on the gambling table. Please be sure not to take off this bracelet in Mandiper."

"Of course, we also have physical chips here. If you prefer this, sir, you can also exchange them at the counter before use."

The bunny-eared girl looked at Rocco next to Yan Yunqing, "Does this little gentleman also want to go in with you?"

Yan Yunqing said yes, "My brother. Does he also have to wear a bracelet?"

The bunny-eared girl nodded, took out another smaller blue bracelet, operated it a few times in the same way, and placed it in the tray. "Everyone who enters Mandiper needs to wear a bracelet. This is an important basis for our attendants to better serve our guests. Please be sure not to take it off."