Chapter Fifty-Six: The Young Heiress

Two days later.

“My lord, please, I beg you, stop tormenting me. I’ve said it already—those super amazing mounts you want just aren’t available right now. You’ll have to wait a while longer.” Shadow, unable to withstand Li Ren’s relentless verbal onslaught, finally began to plead for mercy.

After returning from Skull Mountain to Luoyun City, Li Ren had spent another full two days on the road. By now, he was utterly fed up. He swore that he would get himself a mount—any mount—before anything else. With such a vast map, how could he possibly manage without one? Otherwise, he’d run himself into the ground. And let’s not forget, in a month he’d have to march on Yuxiao City, and his subordinates were still stationed at Skull Mountain. Without a mount, it would be another grueling two-day journey. He’d rather die than endure that again.

“If you can’t get me a top-tier one, can’t you at least find something decent? As long as it can carry me and runs faster than I walk, that’s enough!” Li Ren’s standards had dropped yet again.

“But there’s really no point, my lord. Those mediocre mounts aren’t even faster than you on foot. The journey to Skull Mountain would take at least three days on one of them—and that’s if you even make it.” Shadow looked utterly miserable.

“That’s none of your concern.” Hearing it would take three days, Li Ren’s enthusiasm was instantly deflated by half. But since they were still in the midst of their quarrel, he refused to admit defeat.

The queen, meanwhile, sat nearby, watching their bickering with a bored expression.

“Hey, my lord, don’t you have the Ring of Deceit? Why not just teleport to Calf Village and then head to Skull Mountain from there? The city guards in player towns won’t attack you anyway.” Lantis lounged lazily in her custom-made chair, which resembled a single-seat sofa—perfect for idling away the hours.

Just as the two were about to argue themselves in circles over the mount issue, everything went suddenly silent.

“Ahem, my lord, I have some matters to attend to. Perhaps I should go take care of them now?” Shadow coughed, immediately putting on a formal tone as he asked the city lord for leave.

“Yes, yes, you go take care of your business. Oh, and now that you mention it, I also remembered I have some things to finish as well. I’ll be off too.” Nodding rapidly, Li Ren vanished in a flash of white light.

“Tsk, these two, still so obsessed with saving face, hmph!” Watching as Shadow also dissolved into a white glow and disappeared from the city lord’s castle, Lantis adjusted herself into an even more comfortable position in her chair.

Both Li Ren and Shadow, upon teleporting away, felt like banging their heads against the wall until they died. How could they have overlooked such a simple solution? There was already a teleportation array right in their city, and Calf Village was very close to Skull Mountain—stepping through was practically crossing the entire player region in an instant.

Li Ren’s very first stop when he emerged from Skull Mountain had been Calf Village, after all.

But at least, for now, this trivial matter was resolved. No more agonizing over long journeys or mounts.

Luoyun City wasn’t particularly large, and with little else to do, where else was there to go after teleporting away? As for Shadow’s destination, Li Ren had no idea. He himself, after a moment’s thought, headed towards the commercial district.

He decided to take this opportunity to check in on the Violet Cloud Pavilion’s guild shop. It had only been established after he left, and in all the coming and going, he had never visited or seen how it was doing.

Strolling leisurely, and with the Ring of Deceit making him indistinguishable from an ordinary player, he made his way into the now bustling commercial district.

The entire commercial area had been planned out in the southeast corner of Luoyun City, a square section right beside the teleportation array—perfect for convenience. Whoever stepped out of the teleportation portal would immediately be greeted by the sight of this thriving market, and the sheer crowd would naturally inspire a sense of trust, stimulating spending—an effect not to be underestimated.

The Violet Cloud Pavilion’s premises were located in the cluster of shops closest to the teleportation array. Ever since his return, Li Ren had been too preoccupied with mount discussions with Shadow to pay any attention to the shop.

Of course, the result was predictable—the queen had effortlessly outmaneuvered them both.

Now, seeing the shop assigned to Luoyue, Li Ren felt a secret sense of awe.

Good heavens!

What was Lantis thinking? The Violet Cloud Pavilion now occupied the largest storefront among those near the teleportation array. If he recalled correctly, that shop had been priced at no less than five hundred thousand gold coins. How had Luoyue and the others managed that kind of expense?

Yet, looking at the packed crowds and the booming business, Li Ren decided to observe for a while.

As guild leader, he could enter freely, unlike the ordinary customers who had to queue up.

Stepping inside, the sight of the bustling, shoulder-to-shoulder crowd eased his worries somewhat. The shop’s design eschewed ostentatious, useless decorations for a simple, welcoming aesthetic. Every counter was purposefully placed, maximizing the limited space.

Looking around, he saw that the staff behind the counters were all, without exception, beautiful women. If the Violet Cloud Pavilion had one thing in abundance, it was pretty girls—and that resource certainly wasn’t going to waste.

As he surveyed the scene, a female player nearby called out in surprise, “Guild Leader!”

Turning, Li Ren recognized her as one of the team members who had accompanied him on the guild-establishment quest. He smiled and asked, “Is Luoyue not here?”

“Hmph! Guild Leader, you only ever ask about Sister Luoyue—you never spare a thought for the rest of us,” the girl teased, giggling.

Li Ren felt a little embarrassed, and at her words, all the other beauties who had been busy restocking shelves and bringing out new goods shot him mock glares.

With all the playful scolding, he could barely keep his composure.

Male customers in the shop immediately felt their jealousy skyrocket.

But with two skeletal guards stationed at the door, none dared act on it, choosing instead to pour all their resentment into their glares. If looks could kill, Li Ren would have died a dozen times over. He could practically feel the effects of skills like “Aura of Envy and Jealousy” and “Curse of Loneliness and Despair” being cast his way.

“Bone Brother!” A familiar voice called out just in time to rescue Li Ren from his predicament.

It was Softwater, the sweet little girl who, as it turned out, had never left Luoyun City.

Li Ren immediately made his way over to her. Every shop had a small area set aside as a storeroom, accessible only to guild members with certain privileges.

As Li Ren disappeared inside, a few sharp-eyed onlookers began to suspect that the rise of the Violet Cloud Pavilion might have something to do with this mysterious figure. But so what? This was just Li Ren with the Ring of Deceit, after all.

Business continued as usual. Piles of gold coins steadily flowed into the Violet Cloud Pavilion, which were then converted into materials—some for the guild’s upgrade tasks, others crafted into goods for sale.

“How did you manage to get such a big shop? Can you really afford it?” Li Ren asked Softwater, his concern genuine as he looked at her adorable face.

Half a million was no small sum.

“Don’t worry, Bone Brother. Sister Lantis is really nice. She’d originally arranged a smaller shop for us, but so many people came to buy things that it was too cramped. So we moved here, and even more people started coming! And Sister Lantis said she discussed it with the city lord, so we only have to pay half price—just two hundred and fifty thousand!” Softwater beamed.

“Only two hundred and fifty thousand… just ‘only’?” Li Ren thought wryly.

Two hundred and fifty thousand gold coins! What a fortune! Not being directly involved in managing the shop, he had no idea of the scale of profits involved.

Even this little girl could refer to two hundred and fifty thousand as “only.” Maybe he really hadn’t seen enough of the world.

Softwater’s innocent words dealt Li Ren’s ego a gentle blow, shattering it into pieces.

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