Chapter 80

Survive.

After watching colleague after colleague die—dragged to their deaths by their spirit realm game characters—and seeing how the Warring States Game Studio treated its employees, Su Wangchuan was left with only a single thought in his mind:

Survive.

From this moment on, gold farming was no longer his goal in spirit realm.

No matter how much money was in his account, it was useless.

Once a person died, the account vanished.

He would take nothing with him.

What he needed to do was become stronger.

At the very least, strong enough not to be killed so casually.

Returning to the game, he immediately sought out Lin Xun and asked for help.

After learning that Su Wangchuan had obtained a walnut wooden bow and intended to cultivate Hundred Paces Piercing the Poplar, Lin Xun arranged to meet him at the docks early the next morning.

Early the next day.

Sure enough, a ship was already waiting at the docks.

It was a medium-sized cargo vessel over ten meters long. Inside the hold sat more than thirty miners, men and women alike—clearly players making a living in Huishui County.

“Why haven’t we set off yet?”

“What time is it already?”

“Shh.”

“I heard from the ship boss that a big shot is traveling with us to the water stronghold today. Don’t let him hear you.”

“That’s right. People from the Yulong Gang love tossing troublemakers and unruly types into the river to feed the fish. Last time someone from our studio kept mouthing off and offended an inner disciple. They tied him up and threw him into the river on the spot—account deleted!”

“Tsk tsk…”

As the people in the hold whispered among themselves, Lin Xun and Su Wangchuan had already boarded the bow of the ship, followed by Chen Ergou, who was carrying hundreds of arrows on his back.

Today, Chen Ergou was acting as an attendant, responsible for assisting Su Wangchuan’s training. His face was full of excitement.

The ship’s boss was also a Yulong Gang member—an inner disciple—and he hurriedly bowed to the two of them with a flattering smile.

“Elder Lin, Room Master Wangchuan, it’s an honor for me to have you aboard.”

“Old Qian, the ship boss.”

“He’ll take you over and pick you up again in the afternoon.”

“There are our own people by the mines, and the surrounding waters are very safe. I won’t go with you… If you want to return earlier, just have Old Qian make another trip.”

Lin Xun held considerable status in the Yulong Gang. With just a casual remark, Old Qian immediately nodded repeatedly, smiling from ear to ear.

“Yes, yes, yes. If the Room Master wishes to return, just say the word. I’ll bring you back at once.”

“Thank you, Senior.”

Su Wangchuan clasped his fists politely.

Lin Xun could casually call him Old Qian and issue orders, but Su Wangchuan could tell that the ship boss was an inner disciple with Quasi-Martial Artist cultivation. He himself was still one step away from becoming a martial artist, so keeping a low profile and remaining humble was wiser.

“I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare.”

“You’re far too courteous, Room Master.”

Old Qian refused the courtesy in a panic, bowing repeatedly, clearly flustered.

He had long heard that Su Wangchuan was personally recommended into the Yulong Gang by Elder Lin.

And not long after Su Wangchuan joined, Room Master Zhang fell.

Now Su Wangchuan had not only taken over the Weapon Room, but was said to have rendered meritorious service and received rewards from above. From the Gang Master down to the Hall Masters, everyone was very satisfied with him. His status and connections were far beyond what an ordinary inner disciple could compare to.

Moreover…

There might come a day when he would need to ask Su Wangchuan for help.

Naturally, he had to serve him carefully.

“All right.”

“I’ll see you off here.”

“Have a smooth journey.”

Lin Xun waved from the docks.

The ship boss clasped his fists respectfully and ordered the crew to loosen the ropes and raise anchor.

Set sail.

There was no way Su Wangchuan would stay in the pitch-dark cargo hold with over thirty miners. He stood at the bow with his hands behind his back, watching the docks gradually recede as the cargo ship steadily cut through the green waters, entering a misty landscape like a fairyland. His restless mood eased slightly.

Chen Ergou set down the bundles of arrows and attended him carefully.

“Room Master, would you like something to eat?”

“Mm.”

Su Wangchuan took the meat buns and surveyed the green mountains along both banks of the river.

Behind him came deliberately hushed chatter:

“Who exactly is that guy?”

“A Yulong Gang elder personally escorted him onto the ship.”

“No idea.”

“Aren’t you Yulong Gang members? Do you know who he is?” Someone with a strong sense of curiosity directly asked a Yulong Gang outer disciple.

These players were not qualified to enter the hall or the Weapon Room, so naturally they had never seen Su Wangchuan.

“Never seen him.”

“But he should be a player like us.”

Someone with sharp eyes actually guessed Su Wangchuan’s player identity.

“How can you tell?”

“Didn’t you notice how many arrows he brought? That’s something only players training Archery would do. NPCs wouldn’t carry that many arrows at once…”

“And Elder Lin himself is a high-level player, so this person is probably a colleague from the same game studio as Elder Lin.”

Hearing this, Su Wangchuan could not help glancing sideways, quickly casting a look at the speaker.

A perceptive person.

His future achievements would not be limited to being a miner.

After Su Wangchuan glanced at him, the man immediately fell silent, as if frightened.

The cargo ship traveled onward.

The ship boss, Old Qian, came over and quietly reminded him:

“Room Master, the waters ahead have abundant aquatic plants and are a convergence of currents. Fish tend to gather there. If you want to practice archery, that area is actually quite ideal.”

Su Wangchuan’s eyes lit up. Following his gaze, he saw that the water ahead grew greener, with dense aquatic plants below. Bubbles could be seen rising on the surface.

“Thank you for the guidance, Senior Qian.”

Su Wangchuan immediately took out the walnut wooden bow and nocked an arrow.

Twang!

The walnut wooden bow carried tremendous force.

Drawing it to seventy percent strength was at least three times the full force of an ordinary wooden bow.

The arrow shot out like lightning, piercing the water’s surface. A moment later, a crucian carp was struck and flipped belly-up, floating to the surface.

“It hit!”

The players in the cargo hold had been watching Su Wangchuan’s movements all along. Seeing him hit his target with the very first arrow, many exclaimed in surprise.

“He hit it from that far away.”

“What precise archery.”

“And he still needs to practice this?”

The players discussed animatedly.

“That’s at least thirty meters, right?”

“These martial artists are terrifying…”

Su Wangchuan ignored the noise and silently summoned the Status Panel to take a look.

The experience value for Hundred Paces Piercing the Poplar did not move at all.

He drew the bow several more times.

The experience value still did not budge.

Chen Ergou, brimming with excitement, had already borrowed a fishing net and scooped up all the fish that had been struck.

“What’s going on?”

“No experience gain?”

Su Wangchuan frowned inwardly.

“Is it because Archery has already reached Practice Makes Perfect, or is it that Hundred Paces Piercing the Poplar requires hitting living targets beyond a hundred paces to gain experience?”

He pondered silently.

But while the ship was in motion, hitting a target beyond a hundred paces—while also accounting for refraction errors from the water’s surface—was far too difficult.

Targets were hard to lock onto.

Unless the fish leapt out of the water.

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