LWGP - Chapter 125
Chapter 125: Goblins
After a three-second stun, the little fox's fine, snow-white fur stood on end. It leaped up and pointed an angry fox paw at Wang Jiu.
"You old fox, are you bullying me because I can't read? This is clearly a slave agreement!"
Wang Jiu leaned against the table and glanced at it. "Yes, it is. You ate my golden rat and now you want the Mutated Dark Crystal on me. For being so greedy, don't you think you should pay a price?"
The little fox's eyes flickered, and it said innocently, "Grandma, what are you talking about? Bai Bai has no such intentions. I truly want to pledge my allegiance to you."
With that, it suddenly dropped to its knees again and grabbed Wang Jiu's slender waist. Its fleshy paws touched the willow-like waist that felt like it could be snapped with ease. An intoxicating, living fragrance wafted into its nose. It subconsciously looked up and saw an indescribable spring scene through the slightly open gap of her black pajamas.
Stunned, the little fox suddenly covered its bleeding nose and quickly turned the tables. "Grandma, you're so lecherous."
Wang Jiu: "…"
What kind of family raised this bizarre little fox?
With a flick of her finger, the little fox was sent flying, its head smacking against the homestead's rain cover.
It landed face-first with a thud.
How could you bear to strike such an adorable little fox?
Its nose reddened, and its eyes welled up, on the verge of tears.
Wang Jiu gave it no chance to blubber. She tossed a cage over it, then kicked it into a corner of the homestead.
"Think it over. When you've made up your mind, call me to sign the agreement. I never force anyone. In the end, everyone who signs an agreement with me does so willingly."
Willingly, my ass!
The little fox was furious. It stomped its feet in the black cage, its fur bristling with anger. Soon, it escalated to crying, throwing a fit, and threatening to hang itself.
But Wang Jiu ignored it. She went back to her room to change, only to realize she didn't really have anything to change into—the shirt from before had been torn, leaving only one. And that was the one she had just taken off.
So, she had no clothes to wear now?
"What a terrifying world." Helpless, Wang Jiu could only continue wearing her pajamas, though she activated the cosmetic effect so nothing would be exposed.
When she came out of her room, Pan Jinlian, who had already placed the 100 new Garden Fields for her, submitted the collected materials to the warehouse. Wang Jiu took them out and put them in the Workshop to craft furniture.
Previously, when crafting furniture, the low level of the homestead and materials limited her options. Now that both the seeds and the homestead had been upgraded, she discovered that the available furniture choices even included houses.
"Clear Shadow Cottage, Elegant Wind Bamboo Retreat, Ripple Song Courtyard…"
Wang Jiu had never been one for interior design. While her experience and perspective gave her a certain aesthetic sense, she didn't like to waste time on it. In this, she was just like the Old Lady. So, she contacted Qiao Xuejing directly.
"Where are you? I just harvested a batch of materials, and the new Garden Fields are down. I see a lot of materials piled up in the Workshop. You didn't use yours for decorating before. Were you saving them to build a house?"
Qiao Xuejing replied, "Yeah. You said before that you didn't care about the decorating style, but I've passed by your residence before. The architecture leans towards a modern, minimalist style, but the courtyard is more of a Suzhou-style garden. I think you're the type who doesn't like fuss in daily life but enjoys pleasing yourself when it comes to leisure and aesthetics. I've made a design plan for you and listed out a lot of the furniture. This way, the decorating style will be more cohesive. But I'm by the river right now. I can give it to you later?"
Although it was the apocalypse and only a few days had passed, with most people still struggling for basic necessities, Qiao Xuejing felt that a sense of ceremony was still important.
"It's fine, I'll come find you."
Wang Jiu's homestead now had nearly 200 Garden Fields. As she left, she commented, "The house is still too small."
System: "You just fought four battles today. Take it easy. You need to protect your kidneys."
Wang Jiu: "It's fine. Kidney deficiency won't affect my performance."
The System paused, not quite understanding what she meant. But not wanting to expose its lack of in-depth knowledge of Earth culture, it began searching for information in silence.
On her way to the river, Wang Jiu started spending funds to purchase various territory facilities. The people in the territory soon discovered four new ten-meter-tall, spire-topped towers around them. They were different from the previous watchtowers, clearly more advanced, with a one-meter-diameter prismatic crystal embedded in each.
"Arcane Flame Towers! They look so high-class."
"They must be really powerful!"
Of course they were powerful. Each one cost 500 gold!
Wang Jiu bought four and placed them in plain sight, then bought another four hidden ones in other locations. She could have purchased an equipment workshop, but she had devised a rental system for the territory warehouse. In the early stages, this could drive the equipment supply for the entire territory, allowing her to postpone the construction of the 2000-gold equipment workshop. So, what should she buy?
Wang Jiu bought three workshops: a fashion workshop, a medicine workshop, and a food workshop. After these purchases, the territory's 8000 gold in funds were completely spent.
But Wang Jiu's personal account now had 1500 gold. She glanced at the shop limit for a level-two territory.
20 shops?
That few?
Although it was a small number, it was expensive. Unlocking a single shop slot cost 100 gold, and you had to supply your own bricks and cement.
Wang Jiu decisively mocked the System again but still transferred the 1500 gold to the territory funds to unlock 15 shop slots.
System: "No one is opening a shop right now. What's your hurry?"
Wang Jiu ignored it, as she was almost at the river.
Looking out, it was the same stretch of river on the edge of the novice village. The water was clear, and the distant landscape was open and serene. In the river… a group of people were chattering away.
Not everyone had a bathroom and a shower. The first day of the game was fine; people could make do. But starting from the second day, issues of eating, drinking, and sanitation became a bigger problem than dungeons and bosses.
Thus, this river had long become 443's bathing pool. It was inconvenient at first, given the difference between men and women. However, because the village tyrant of 443 was a woman, and the territory rules were a complete replica of the entire criminal code—with an additional third of text—it made some of the less scrupulous men and women a bit wary, thus avoiding the conflicts that were commonplace in other territories.
But on the riverbank, there was a pile of discarded dirty clothes. When a crowd gathers, it's human nature to gossip.
"Hey, why do you think that little fox is clinging to my Master?" Wang Shu suddenly asked.
"Don't ask. If you ask, there's only one answer."
"Hmm… I just feel like she's less of a fox and more of a tiger."
The group had suffered a great loss at Wang Jiu's hands. Although they had benefited later, they still felt resentful. So, when this topic came up, they couldn't help but mutter a few things.
"Stop talking, private chat," Qi Shuanghan said cautiously, but he couldn't resist the urge to gossip either.
"What's there to be afraid of? We're far from there, and we're not saying anything bad."
While the group in the water was arguing, on the other end of the river, Qiao Xuejing could hear their conversation. Her expression was a bit odd. She glanced at Wang Shu but didn't tell him that Wang Jiu was on her way.
Li Li scrubbed her arms and glanced at the commotion over there, pouting. "A bunch of cowards. If they have the guts, they should say it to the Lord's face."
Mei Qingshu ruffled her short hair and rolled her eyes. "She wouldn't get angry even if she heard."
Li Li: "Huh? She doesn't seem like someone with that much patience."
Mei Qingshu smiled. "She doesn't have patience, but that doesn't mean she's angry."
Li Li didn't understand for a moment, but Mei Qingshu didn't want to dwell on the topic. Instead, she impatiently flicked her damp short hair. "So annoying, there's no shampoo!"
Indeed, basic supplies like shampoo were currently unavailable.
"We have hemorrhoid cream, but no shampoo."
Li Li's attention was quickly diverted. "And body wash, conditioner, facial cleanser, toner, lotion, serum…"
Looking at her haggard reflection in the water, Li Li lamented, "Ah!! This really is the apocalypse!"
Mei Qingshu, who had the soul of a straight man, commented, "I didn't notice until you said it, but you do look very different these past two days compared to before."
Li Li's face darkened. "Sister, 99.9% of the women in the world are like this. You can't be so harsh."
Mei Qingshu had a realization and pointed at Qiao Xuejing. "So she's the 1%?"
Li Li: "…"
If you keep this up, I'm going to quit the Short Winter Melon's team. I'm a core member, you know!
Suddenly cued, Qiao Xuejing gave an elegant and modest smile, but then she heard Leng Rong's cool voice from a distance. "What, you don't want to leave?"
Jiang Ming: "No, why do you say that?"
Leng Rong: "When she just walked past, your eyes followed her."
Jiang Ming looked sheepish, rubbing his nose awkwardly. "I just think that little fox wasn't exactly wrong to claim her as an ancestor."
Who would have thought that Wang Jiu, who was covered in blood and dark energy during the fight, would emerge from a bath as a beautiful and virtuous woman, capable of both commanding a nightclub and presiding over a funeral hall? Her temperament was graceful, her charm captivating.
It was no wonder Jiang Ming was stunned. Soon, the people in the river were also stunned, because they were in the middle of a heated discussion on a certain topic.
"Holy shit! This video is amazing!"
"It's not the video that's amazing, it's the talented people on social media. Goddamn 'Jason vs. Kayako!' 'Sadako Emerges, Nevernight Is Cast in Shadow!' 'Winter Is Coming, the Demon King Descends!' 'The Rat Plague, the Peerless Cat Demon,' hahahaha, hic!"
Mei Qinghe, who had just hiccupped, suddenly changed his expression and dove into the water with a splash. Only then did everyone see Wang Jiu standing on the riverbank.
Everyone: "…"
Winter is coming.
But it wasn't some Kayako, Sadako, Demon King, or Cat Demon. She just stood there, her expression faint. She glanced at them without a word, then flicked her finger. A three-meter-long blade of energy from Weeping Blood shot out, slicing their pile of clothes in half. Then, amidst the dead silence of the crowd, she slowly walked to the other end.
Not long after, Qiao Xuejing and the others saw her.
Li Li, who had quickly gathered her clothes, said sheepishly, "We weren't talking nonsense, you know."
"Oh." Wang Jiu casually found a spot to sit. There were many old women, little girls, and young women by the river. It was supposed to be a cheerful affair. People didn't get completely naked; they just went into the water with their clothes on to wash away the filth.
This was a basic human dignity.
Qiao Xuejing had already finished washing. She put on her trench coat and came over, handing the design plan to Wang Jiu.
"Take a look first. If there's anything you need to change, let me know."
Qiao Xuejing was also drying her hair. Seeing a little girl doing homework on a rock next to her, she moved to the other side to sit down. She had barely wiped her hair a few times.
"This is wrong here. You got 9 wrong."
Qiao Xuejing subconsciously tensed up. That many mistakes? She looked closely and saw Wang Jiu pointing a finger at the little girl's workbook.
"You got 9 wrong out of only 15 problems. How do you have the nerve to peek at mine?"
"Also, your handwriting is a bit ugly."
The little girl: "!"
She was about to cry. Her grandmother happened to come over. "Grandma, this big sister is bullying me!"
The old woman came over to look, but Wang Jiu calmly wrote out a series of problems in the notebook.
Her handwriting was neat and beautiful, and the problems were simple yet progressively more difficult.
The old woman expressed her gratitude and then scolded her granddaughter.
The granddaughter was on the verge of tears.
Wang Jiu, on the other hand, calmly discussed the homestead with Qiao Xuejing. There were only two main points.
"You handle it."
"Our sizes seem to be about the same."
Qiao Xuejing keenly sensed that Wang Jiu's true intentions were not what they seemed. "My figure isn't as good as yours, Captain. I'd like to give you clothes, but unfortunately, I don't have any others."
Wang Jiu: "The one you're wearing is nice."
Qiao Xuejing silently clutched her trench coat tighter and said faintly, "It is not worthy of your jade-like body, Captain."
In these times, a piece of clothing was worth a fortune. Even the cool and celestial Qiao Xuejing was spouting nonsense.
Wang Jiu glanced at her and smiled gently. "Whether my body is jade-like or not, have you seen it?"
Qiao Xuejing: "…"
She blushed, but she still wouldn't give up the clothes.
Very determined.
"It truly is the apocalypse. I suddenly feel like my charm has greatly diminished."
Wang Jiu sighed, handed the design plan back to Qiao Xuejing, and stood up. The soft pajamas clung to her figure, and when the wind blew, it created a graceful silhouette.
Not long after she left, Qiao Xuejing and the others also departed. They heard that Mei Qinghe's group, whose last set of clothes had been cruelly destroyed by Wang Jiu, were left with only their underwear. In the end, they had to buy clothes made from game materials from Wang Shu at a high price.
The price… was a bit steep—measured in gold.
Coincidence? Or a setup?
Why did it feel like another trap?
When Wang Jiu returned to the homestead, her meal was ready. Worried the little fox was hungry, she brought a large bowl of food and placed it inside the cage.
The little fox: "!"
Ah, you demon! I'll never be on the same side as you!
Wang Jiu didn't try to persuade it. She put down the food and went back to her room to sleep.
At two in the morning, a well-rested Wang Jiu left the homestead and soon arrived at the sewer area. The rat tide here had already been cleared out, but as soon as Wang Jiu arrived, she felt something was off. The sewers were filthy, but the filthier or cleaner an environment, the easier it is to leave traces. There were footprints in the mud on the ground.
"Three toes, quite a few of them, not human, group weight around fifty or sixty catties… probably a small-statured race."
Wang Jiu judged from the depth of the footprints, frowning slightly. Had someone beaten her to it?
Another race?
As Wang Jiu pondered, she went deeper. About fifteen minutes later, she reached the mining area where the rat tide had been most concentrated. Although the Mutated Dark Crystal was in another fork, it had originally been excavated from this mining area.
But Wang Jiu didn't go in directly. Instead, she waited outside the tunnel entrance and observed for a while.
It really was another race.
Goblins, experts in mining.
Wang Jiu watched for a while and found that this mining team of about a hundred was mostly composed of mining goblins with average attributes over a hundred. There were also two mining team sub-captains with average attributes of seven or eight hundred. They didn't seem very strong; Wang Jiu could take them on by herself. But she still felt a sense of danger.
She didn't dare to act rashly, only hiding secretly and carefully observing her surroundings. Soon, she noticed a consistent totem on the goblins' armor. The totem had an eye that would blink every so often, its gaze covering the entire mining area.
Wang Jiu was hiding in a blind spot outside, so it hadn't noticed her. But she deduced its nature—a racial ability.
Another power was supervising and protecting these goblins.
The rat tide alone was so terrifying. Goblins should have a higher innate aptitude than rats. Their race must be much more formidable than the ones on Tuoluo.
Although she was much stronger now, after some consideration, she gave up the idea of attacking these goblins.
Firstly, her spirit power hadn't fully recovered. Secondly, she felt that these goblins were very intelligent. They had taken over this mine so promptly after she had dealt with the rat race, which meant they were aware of the current situation. Yet, they weren't afraid of her coming to the mine at all, and they hadn't even sent important personnel to protect it. This meant they were confident that if the mining team was attacked, their forces could arrive in time to take her down.
Hmm, the risk was a bit high.
Wang Jiu made a decisive choice to retreat and left.
Just as she left, the totem eye on the goblin guard captain's chest blinked, flashing with a strange light.
Wang Jiu had just stepped out of the sewer when she suddenly saw a vast golden light in the sky.
Magnificent and boundless.
Eternal Night had descended at two in the morning!
She was still under the protection of the novice village, but seeing this Eternal Night again, she still felt its endless terror, an irresistible force with no visible end.
It was the same destructive radiance, descending upon the entire Earth, causing cataclysmic changes to the surface. Various dungeon vortexes were destroyed.
A thought suddenly occurred to Wang Jiu—the arrival of Eternal Night might not just be to slaughter the living beings of Earth, but more likely to destroy the dungeon vortexes that could help them gain resources and grow stronger.
It wanted to sever Earth's future.
The commotion from Eternal Night was too great. There wasn't a single boss that didn't tremble in fear. And soon, it left.
This time, its descent lasted for two minutes.
Then it vanished, leaving behind a world in ruins.
But the next day, when Wang Jiu woke up, she saw that although mountains had collapsed outside the novice village, wild grass still grew on the ground.
There was wind, soil, green plants, and the bustling residents of the territory.
Someone suddenly said in the territory channel.
"Huize Mountain has been leveled."
Everyone was shocked. Did that mean all three dungeons on Huize Mountain were gone?
Keep in mind, there were still two Nightmare Dungeons there that hadn't been cleared. Wang Jiu had plans for them.
"One is left, the island dungeon."
This was good news for some, but not for Wang Jiu.
She had already cleared the island dungeon. Clearing it again would yield far fewer rewards than before. And with Huize Mountain gone, it meant there were no more mountain dungeon resources around the 443 territory. They would have to spend more time and energy searching for new ones.
Xie Lu: "We'll have to split up and search."
Mei Qinghe: "Does the Lord have any arrangements?"
Wang Jiu: "No, free activity. If you find something, you can report it."
If it was just searching for dungeons, there was no need for a group activity.
Wang Jiu glanced at the 50 Mystic Realm Fragments in her inventory, then thought of the Golden Boss corpse in the Nanluo River section. She made a decision.
The former could be dealt with anytime, but the latter could easily be snatched by others. The sewer mine was already a painful enough loss.
After washing up and eating breakfast, Wang Jiu was ready to make her move, but this time…
"Wait!"
Wang Jiu turned to look at the little fox.
The little fox was clutching the bars of the cage with its two paws, looking extremely haggard. "I'll sign with you, but you have to let me eat the Mutated Dark Crystal!"
Despite its haggard state, it was fierce.
Wang Jiu smiled and took out the Slave White Paper. "Seeing as you're somewhat cute, I won't bully you. As you wish, you will become mine."
The little fox was stunned. "What do you mean?"
"I'll keep you, but I won't pay you. Everything you earn belongs to me!"
Holy shit! Just as the little fox was about to explode, Wang Jiu placed the Mutated Dark Crystal on the table and smiled at it.
Wang Jiu gently pinched its small pink ear with two fingers, her breath like orchids. "What if I get a second, a third, a fourth one in the future… Could I possibly give them to someone else?"
The little fox's ears perked up, and it looked at her with suspicion.
"Really?"
Wang Jiu smiled. "I never lie."
The little fox: "…"
If I could get out of this cage, I would never believe you! You damn old fox!
In the end, the little fox did get out of the cage. It reluctantly followed Wang Jiu out of the Gobi Territory, its head hanging as if its father had just died.
However, because of the agreement with it, eighty to ninety percent of the Slave White Paper's contract power was consumed.
It couldn't be helped. Its status was high, requiring a significant amount of contract power.
An hour later, they appeared on the bank of the Nanluo River. Bai Bai, having already eaten the Mutated Dark Crystal, surveyed the surroundings and pouted. "These Eternal Night experts are truly terrifying. They blew up a perfectly good river into a hornet's nest. The water has become so much murkier."
After the bombing, the river had been split, diverted, or the terrain reshaped. The river section had turned into swamps and lakes. Wang Jiu looked at the chaotic and devastated area around her. It was muddy everywhere and difficult to walk. To get to the inner lake area, they had to trudge through sticky marshland.
"There are a lot of monsters soon, and their levels aren't low. I can feel the aura emanating from inside."
"Aura?"
"Well, last night when Eternal Night struck, the Golden Boss corpse hidden in the river was blown to the surface, exposing its aura. You have no idea, many of us creatures evolve by eating. Its corpse is incredibly tempting to us."
"Are you implying that if I get it, I should still give it to you to eat?"
"No, that's not what I mean. But if you insist, I won't refuse."
Wang Jiu chuckled. "I haven't seen you evolve at all after eating the golden rat and the Mutated Dark Crystal."
Was that a taunt?
Bai Bai's face flushed. "It's not that fast. It takes time, okay? But…"
It deliberately paused, wanting Wang Jiu to suffer a little setback so that she would rely on it in the future, which would in turn improve its own status.
But unexpectedly, bubbles started gurgling in the swamp ahead, and from below, ferocious and swift mud buffaloes shot out!
You've heard of a clay ox disappearing into the sea, but never a water buffalo into the mud.
A large herd of them burst out from the swampy mud like a swarm of hornets, instantly surrounding Wang Jiu.
This wasn't the herd they had seen by the river before. Had they changed so suddenly?
System: "Under the Eternal Night crisis, some species will mutate when they encounter drastic environmental changes, and they will gain an environmental advantage."
What was this herd's advantage?
Swamp miasma!
At the same time, Wang Jiu realized she had been hit with a negative status effect.
—Transfer Aggro.
Someone had used a skill on her, concentrating the group aggro of the ferocious buffalo herd on her, while they… were rapidly breaking through the swamp on another path!
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