Chapter 99 Target
Li Wen spread out the parchment map. It was covered in hand-drawn patterns and text of different colors that were constantly changing. The most prominent patterns represented official organizations like the Disciplinary Bureau, identified by a glaring red color. Blue represented transcendent forces of the order faction, such as Sorcery Anomalies Hand. White represented neutral sects or associations that were governed by the Kingdom of Arthur’s Supernatural Control Act.
As for the rest, they were less reputable organizations or gathering places for Transcendants in the shadows. The Wanderer’s Tavern, where Li Wen was currently located, was one of them, identified by the color black.
Besides buildings, all living things in motion were represented by extremely small dots.
Li Wen shifted her gaze to the corner of the map, a vast expanse of gray. This was the Amethyst Sea, near Leicester City. Close to this expanse of gray was the exceptionally conspicuous bright red of Black Raven Port.
“Is it there?”
Li Wen wasn’t very sure. After all, she wasn’t an original player and had never participated in the grand “Treasure Hunt Competition” in Leicester in her previous life. She had only heard her classmates mention it later.
Li Wen hadn’t remembered the specifics very well. She only knew that the so-called “treasure” was closely related to the Path of Creation. The Path of Creation was the most widely spread path for the lineage of creation, and also the path most likely to contain the original text of the lineage.
The treasure hunt in Leicester might be related to the original text of the creation lineage, or it might have no connection at all. But whether it was related or not, Li Wen had to see for herself to avoid regretting it later.
Leicester was currently calm, obviously the “Treasure Hunt Competition” had not yet occurred. However, judging by the time, it should be very soon.
The Transcendants participating in the treasure hunt numbered in the hundreds in Leicester alone, many of whom were Phase Three or above. To fish in troubled waters among such a quantity of Transcendants, even Li Wen had no certain chance of success.
“I need to think of a way.”
Li Wen pondered. If the Bird Association could assist, with the advantages of the Seven Sages and the Floating Island, she could even directly win the competition. But this was clearly unrealistic. Even if Li Wen sought help from Marymana under the guise of being Miranda’s apprentice, she could at most enlist Marymana herself. She alone was clearly not enough to tip the scales.
Moreover, Li Wen didn’t want to do that.
As for Moria? Setting aside whether he had the ultimate power, Li Wen was already deliberately avoiding him, so there was no way she would walk into a trap.
Li Wen considered the major transcendent forces in Leicester. The most powerful among them was undoubtedly Sorcery Anomalies Hand. As an association that was a member of the Magic Committee, Sorcery Anomalies Hand’s reputation was not much less than that of the Bird Association. Second was the Lagovin Family. This family had a long history, and it was said that their ancestors had accompanied Arthur in the journey to unify Arthur. It was the most prestigious family in Leicester City.
Finally, there was the “Wolf Pack Club.” Unlike the previous associations and families that were connected by schools or bloodlines, this was an organization with an unusually loose internal structure. Most of them were illegal or quasi-legal Transcendants, and their quality was relatively not ideal, but what was important was their large numbers.
The Wolf Pack Club managed many of Leicester City’s underground industries, including casinos, brothels, illegal trade, and sensitive drugs, among others. Their club was managed by an unknown Transcendent known as the “Wolf Leader.” He was extremely cautious and rarely appeared in public. Even members of the Wolf Pack Club had almost never seen his true appearance.
Because of this manager, the Wolf Pack Club generally handled matters very smoothly. They rarely came into conflict with other Transcendants – mainly the Disciplinary Bureau, Sorcery Anomalies Hand, and the Lagovin Family. Even if there was a conflict, that member would be stripped of their identity the next day and blacklisted by the club.
However, the Wolf Pack Club was undoubtedly the easiest of the three to utilize. A large number of people meant loose management, which in turn meant they were easily penetrated and controlled. But their Leader of the Wolf Pack was probably more troublesome than the head of the Sorcery Anomalies Hand association.
Li Wen wanted to contact the Wolf Pack Club, but she couldn’t do it in person. It was best for her to hide in the shadows to act more effectively. This person should preferably be a local of Leicester, even if they were a player, they should have been born in or around Leicester, at least have some understanding of Leicester.
Li Wen had already considered this candidate—one of the initial members of the strategy team, the head of logistics.
She had already made a name for herself in Leicester during the beta test. In terms of comprehensive strength, she could serve as a minister in the talent-rich strategy team. Most importantly, Li Wen knew her well and was confident she could persuade her to do this.
The only problem was that Li Wen’s early contact with the other party was likely to affect the fate of the strategy team in this life. She possessed Urd’s Sting, which could easily alter predetermined destinies. This was a double-edged sword; one careless move could lead destiny to flow in the worst direction.
Perhaps due to Li Wen’s rash actions, the strategy team could not be formed in this life, which would be a big problem.
“But there must be some contact. If I keep hesitating, let alone changing destiny and saving everyone, I probably won’t even be able to save myself.”
So, she would treat this contact as a test of destiny. She would let fate see how it dealt with the impact she created.
* * *
Bailu sneezed, a faint sense of unease growing in her heart.
“Are you listening?”
Hearing this, she snapped back to attention and looked at the person speaking.
It was a guy sprawled out ungracefully. If she had encountered him in reality, Bailu would definitely have avoided him at all costs, but in the game… she was inclusive of other players’ aesthetics, not discriminatory.
However, considering the limitations of character creation in this game, if someone looked like this, they were probably… it was hard to judge in reality.
“Ah, of course, I’m listening.”
She replied.
Naturally, that was a lie. Bailu’s mind was completely elsewhere.
It was strange, players always liked to group up. Even for a trivial quest or a weak boss, they would rush to form a team of ten or eight people, and then often argue over trivial matters like the distribution of rewards, eventually parting on bad terms.
Bailu thought, she was already Level 10. She just needed a high-level Mage to “guide her through” to advance to Phase Two. And the person who should have been playing that role, her teacher in the game, the dear Ms. Miranda Atlin, was nowhere to be seen.
She said she would wait for her in Leicester. Could it be that she had been cyber-scammed?
It was not honorable for a Level 10 Mage apprentice to join a pickup group. Bailu had been invited by a classmate with some ulterior motives, but that classmate couldn’t come today, which led to this awkward situation—she didn’t know anyone in the entire pickup group.
Especially when everyone introduced their professions and levels, with others exclaiming “3,” “4,” “2,” a sweating Bailu could only manage to report “1.”
After all, Phase One was also 1.
