After that, whenever anyone else extended an olive branch to Wang Buyu, she would refuse outright. Yet her ears would instinctively prick up, as if she were a rabbit that had heard a hunter approaching and was helplessly waiting for all those unspoken “hurtful words” to come crashing down.
That was until she met the Invincible Black Whirlwind at a gathering of top players.
With more than thirty thousand points—there was simply no way to spend them all—Qi Xu had bought everything she wanted and still had twenty thousand left.
Most of the items had some sort of team-oriented function, making them completely useless to Wang Buyu. She... had never been able to truly fit into a team.
After finishing her exchanges, Qi Xu had originally intended to use some method to wake Shadowkill. But when she saw Baby Buyu squatting there unhappily, hugging her knees like a heartbroken kitten, she simply crouched down beside her.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart? We won a complete victory. How can you still be unhappy?”
Wang Buyu immediately put on a smile and shook her head vigorously. “Nothing, nothing. I’m happy. Thank you, Whirlwind Boss, for bringing me along this time.”
“Little liar!”
With the corners of her lips raised, Qi Xu reached out and poked Wang Buyu’s cheek.
Wang Buyu’s face instantly turned bright red.
“Do you want to come with me to District 88? Everyone on my team is easy to get along with. The food I brought out—was it good? If you come with me, I’ll have Master Chef prepare more of your favorite dishes for you tomorrow.”
Wang Buyu really liked people whose words and thoughts were exactly the same. But she was genuinely afraid of joining a team.
She also felt that taking too long to answer would seem disrespectful, and her fingertips began to tremble with nervousness. But in the next moment, her hand was firmly clasped by the Invincible Black Whirlwind.
“I can’t hear your thoughts. Whatever concerns you have, just tell me directly. Whether it’s a hassle or a problem, we can figure out a way to solve it together, all right?”
Only then did Wang Buyu nod. “I... I’m not very good at dealing with people. And there’s also the Monster Merchant—the Black-Haired Monster Merchant in our district. It has helped me so much, and it even saved me before. If not for it, I might not have survived until today. So I... I...”
“There’s no rush. Go back to District 999 first and discuss it with the Black-Haired Monster Merchant. Take some time to think it over yourself. There’s no hurry, but I’ll keep waiting for you.”
Qi Xu wondered whether she could ask the three Monster Merchants in her own district if there was a way to bring the Black-Haired Monster Merchant over as well.
If the problem could be solved by spending some money, then it wasn’t really a problem.
The only trouble was that they were still a Level One Guild, and all ninety-nine spots were already filled. Once she returned, she would have to find a way to level up the guild first. Otherwise, it would be terribly awkward to coax someone over only to find that they couldn’t even join the guild.
Wang Buyu left with a deeply moved expression. If not for the bond between her and the Black-Haired Monster Merchant, she might already have agreed to join the Invincible Black Whirlwind.
After all... being with her gave Wang Buyu an overwhelming sense of security.
She even began to fantasize: What if the Invincible Black Whirlwind’s teammates were people just like her?
Only after Wang Buyu had left did Qi Xu look somewhat helplessly at Shadowkill. It didn’t seem right to leave him here alone, but who knew how long he would sleep?
There was still a mountain of things to do after returning...
Qi Xu took out a serving of rice topped with braised pork ribs and planned to fill her stomach. If Shadowkill still didn’t wake up after she finished eating, she would have to resort to a rather violent and inhumane method.
But as it turned out, Master Chef’s cooking was simply too delicious. The moment the rich aroma of the ribs spread through the air, Shadowkill’s fingertips twitched.
Qi Xu immediately relaxed. She ate with great relish, then took out a cup of wild mutant blueberry juice to cleanse her palate.
Before she had even finished her meal, Shadowkill woke up. His throat was hoarse, and he called out aggrievedly, “Whirlwind Boss...”
Qi Xu elegantly wiped her mouth. “The points have already been transferred to you. Bye-bye!”
Without the slightest intention of comforting him, Qi Xu ran off.
Shadowkill wore a completely bewildered expression. He had no idea what had happened. All he knew was that he had been knocked unconscious by a giant black snake.
Could it be that his teammates had rescued him? That didn’t make sense. If he had really been rescued, Endless Longevity would definitely have been waiting nearby to manipulate the situation and demand a share of the benefits. How could they have left without a word?
It was only when he saw the points in his account that Shadowkill’s eyes widened instantly.
He had enough to exchange for a Guild Card! No wonder Endless Longevity had run away so quickly!
After leaving the treasure map secret realm, the first thing Qi Xu did was check whether the White-Robed Beauty was still outside the service area.
She couldn’t sense its presence. After looking at Bian’s message, she discovered that it had already left long ago.
Aside from some customer service staff from the Sales Team, everyone else in the service area had gone out to fight monsters. Even the Three Little Ones, Bian, and Chinese Master Chef had been dragged out by Sister Cut You to battle.
Ever since becoming the captain of the Combat Team, Dongfang Yuan had looked at every single rookie equally and wanted to take them out for some training. Even the pets that players had failed to bring into the special spaces were dragged into battle...
The Sales Team had no combat missions, but every night, under Sister Cut You’s supervision, they still had to do several sets of strength exercises before they were allowed to sleep.
That was why it was rare to see an idle person—or pet—in the gang during the day, making the place seem unusually quiet.
Qi Xu had been sensible enough to get some sleep first. The injuries on his body had healed, but the exhaustion from repeatedly overextending his mental strength had yet to fade. He badly needed a proper rest.
In the middle of the night, half-asleep and half-awake, he sensed that the Three Little Ones had returned. He rolled over, pulled them into his arms, and continued sleeping.
It was not until he heard the reveille the next morning that Qi Xu blearily opened his eyes. He quickly washed up and changed clothes.
The Three Little Ones were fidgeting anxiously beside him. Little Seven was frantically stuffing energy stones into its mouth, making Qi Xu feel somewhat dazed. Had the poor thing really gone several days without eating?
The next second, he heard Battle Wolf 006’s howl of anguish and finally understood why.
With such a serious-minded combat team captain, combined with such a meticulous deputy inspection captain, it was perfectly reasonable for the pets to be driven into this state!
As soon as Qi Xu opened the car door, the Three Little Ones dashed toward the pet formation. He then realized that everyone was already standing in formation—not a single one of the ninety-nine people was missing.
“Come on, let’s show the gang leader what we’ve accomplished over the past few days!”
“Yes!”
Dongfang Yuan shouted with impressive flair, leaving Qi Xu quite surprised.
Why had he assigned Battle Wolf 009 to Sister Yuan as her deputy? Because he had assumed she might not like dealing with trouble and might not be particularly good at leading and training a team. His original intention had merely been for her to guide the core experts through the finer points of combat.
But now it seemed he had truly underestimated Sister Yuan!
Not only could she lead a team, she did an excellent job of it. Even Big Shell’s little head had poked out of its shell and was held perfectly straight...
And Bian, Lai Cai, Master Chef, and Gua Gua—all of them possessed special abilities, but their physiques were not particularly robust. Yet there they stood, as straight and disciplined as model soldiers!
...........
