The next morning, after everyone finished their morning routines, it was precisely 8:30 AM. They had breakfast downstairs and, like many office workers, logged in punctually at 9 AM.
...
Upon logging in, Chen Xue formed a team, gathering everyone from the Scarlet Moon Knights into a single squad. This facilitated mutual assistance and allowed for immediate reinforcement if anyone was PKed.
"Does anyone need equipment repaired, brothers?" Mo Yin cautiously asked in the team channel. "The people from Prosperous Dynasty have once again blocked all four city gates of Cloud County, deploying over 50 people at each gate, totaling more than 200 individuals. Prosperous Dynasty is said to have over a thousand members now, so Ghost King is determined to use twenty percent of his forces to blockade us. If anyone needs equipment repaired, you can trade with me. I'll sneak into the city, repair it, and bring it back to you."
"Not for now," Chen Xue replied with a smile. "Ding Chi, Zhang Jun, and I all have equipment durability above 50%. What about you, Lin Zhao?"
"Me neither," Lin Zhao shook his head with a smile. "My equipment is higher level with greater overall durability. I still have over 70% left. I won't need to resupply for the entire day."
"That's good then."
At this moment, Ding Chi frowned. "Prosperous Dynasty using this method to block us is essentially declaring to all players in Cloud County the absolute dominance of Prosperous Dynasty over Scarlet Moon Knights. This isn't good. If we let Prosperous Dynasty suppress us like this, no one will dare to join Scarlet Moon Knights, leading to a situation where we're like rats crossing the street, everyone shouting to kill us."
"That is indeed a concern," Chen Xue said. "Our recruitment progress has also slowed down these past two days. People either complain about our low wages or feel that Scarlet Moon Knights can't survive in Cloud County anymore and fear being implicated if they join."
Lin Zhao smiled faintly.
"What are you smiling about?" Chen Xue pouted. "If you have something to say, just say it."
"Okay," Lin Zhao nodded. "Actually, my personality is quite simple. I won't bully others, but I will never allow myself to be bullied. With Prosperous Dynasty being so arrogant and overbearing, Scarlet Moon Knights should find an opportunity to retaliate. If they only have 50 people blocking the gate, seven or eight of us could try to charge, killing as many as we can. This would first let Ghost King know that Scarlet Moon Knights are not to be trifled with, and second, it would let all players in Cloud County know that if Scarlet Moon Knights dare to challenge Prosperous Dynasty, we must have the strength to do so."
"That's possible," Chen Xue nodded and smiled. "I'll try again to see if I can recruit a few more people today. If we can gather ten people, with Lin Zhao's strength of being able to fight 1v20, we can make a charge!"
Lin Zhao was somewhat speechless. "20 is an exaggeration. I can fight at most ten right now."
Chen Xue rolled her eyes. "You get a little sun and you want to shine!"
"Hahahaha~~~"
...
In the morning, Lin Zhao continued to solo train, killing monsters of levels 46-49. His level couldn't be too high, otherwise, the level suppression would be too severe, preventing him from killing quickly, which wasn't the optimal leveling strategy. After lunch, he continued training in the afternoon. It was around 2:30 PM when he heard a "ding" and received a message from Chen Xue: "Lin Zhao, come over here for a bit. I have two new members of Scarlet Moon Knights to introduce to you. Both are beauties~~~"
Lin Zhao exclaimed, "Beauty? Hmm, I'm coming right over."
At that moment, Chen Xue was already starting to feel a little annoyed.
In the afternoon, the forest where Chen Xue, Ding Chi, Rong Xing, and others were leveling was bathed in warm sunlight. As Lin Zhao emerged from the jungle with the Qinglu Sword and Zhanlong Sword on his back, he saw everyone standing there. From another direction, two female players were approaching. One was a level 39 high-level Starry Sky Mage, appearing young and beautiful, around 20 years old, with the ID Lu Li. Beside her was a level 38 Nomad girl holding a staff, named Qing Ning. Both of their levels were quite high.
"Let me introduce them," Chen Xue stepped forward and smiled. "These are two new players who have just signed with Scarlet Moon Knights. Lu Li, level 39 Mage, from Xicheng. Qing Ning, level 38 Nomad, also from Xicheng. They are good friends and play games together to supplement their income. Fortunately, both have very high talent and are already self-sufficient. Now, welcome them to Scarlet Moon Knights!"
"Welcome! Welcome!" Everyone applauded enthusiastically.
"Let me introduce our side," Chen Xue stepped forward, gently placing a hand on Lin Zhao's shoulder armor, and smiled. "This is Lin Zhao, the Grand Commander of Scarlet Moon Knights, and in the future, our Commander for everyone." Da Feng Novel Network.
"Bai Yi, I know you!" Lu Li smiled and nodded. "The number one person in Cloud County, your name is widely known."
Qing Ning nodded and smiled. "Greetings, Grand Commander!"
Lin Zhao felt a little embarrassed and scratched his head. "We're all family now, there's no need to be so formal in the future~~~"
Rong Xing, Yao Guai, Mo Yin, and the others also smiled knowingly.
Afterward, Chen Xue introduced Ding Chi, Zhang Jun, Rong Xing, and the others to the two new beauties, then added them to the party and began leveling together. Lin Zhao continued to solo train, as solo training was the most efficient.
...
Before dinner, Lin Zhao diligently trained and finally reached level 42, taking another step closer to the promotion threshold of level 50. Once he reached level 50, the "apprentice" part of his "Apprentice Sword Hero" title would be removed, something all Sword Hero players at this stage greatly desired. The reason for choosing Sword Hero was its power and coolness, but with the word "apprentice," it lost some of its charm.
Dinner was, as always, sumptuous.
Wang Ju cooked a table full of delicious food, both meat and vegetables. Xiao Juzi also returned and ate with them. However, Xiao Juzi always looked a bit timid when she looked at her elder sister Chen Xue, who seemed very strict.
Chen Xue also glanced at the little girl. She actually wanted to get closer to Xiao Juzi; she liked the girl very much. But Chen Xue herself had only recently transitioned from being a young girl to a young lady, and she had no idea how to interact with children. Moreover, Chen Xue was serious in her work and her speech carried that seriousness, which she couldn't change in a short while.
Not long after, Xiao Juzi and her mother finished their meal. Xiao Juzi returned to her room to do her homework, while Wang Ju went upstairs to tidy up a few rooms. Downstairs, only a few official members were having dinner.
"One more thing," Chen Xue looked at Lin Zhao and said, "I want to recruit another girl for the studio, so I need your permission first."
"Ah?" Lin Zhao was taken aback. "What kind of girl?"
"Previously..." Chen Xue pursed her red lips, feeling there was nothing shameful to hide. She smiled and said, "After I retired from the special forces, I knew nothing but killing and fighting. So later, I ended up dancing in a bar in Xicheng. I had a close friend who danced with me, and she's also playing 'Tian Xia' now. Her name is Luo Man. She contacted me yesterday and said she's willing to join Scarlet Moon Knights. It's too lonely to log in and play games alone, and she doesn't fancy the simps she's met in the game. So she asked me to ask you if she can join?"
"Let's see her personal strength first," Lin Zhao looked at Chen Xue. "If she's just joining the Scarlet Moon Knights guild, then Chen Xue, you can make the decision, as you are one of the key figures in Scarlet Moon Knights. But if she's joining the studio and will be with us day in and day out, then we need to be more strict. What kind of personality does she have, and what's her strength in the game? I want to know all of this."
"Her strength in the game..." Chen Xue smiled. "She can't compare to you, but she's about the same as Ding Chi. She's a Templar Knight who mainly focuses on defense. She's an excellent choice for the team's MT in the mid to late game. Her strength is significantly better than Zhang Jun's. As for her personality... she's quite easygoing. Firstly, she's very beautiful, so she's sunny and cheerful. Secondly, having worked in a bar, she's seen all sorts of people, so in terms of personality... she can be a little extreme at times, but as long as you few men don't provoke her, there shouldn't be any problems. She's actually a very kind girl..."
"Is she pretty?" Ding Chi, grinning, asked the question he had been holding back for a long time.
"Very pretty," Chen Xue smiled slightly. "About the same as me."
"Damn..." Zhang Jun's eyes widened. "Then isn't she world-class beautiful?"
"Hmph..." Chen Xue chuckled. "You know how to talk, but you won't win me over, Zhang Jun. I like boys with more hair..."
Zhang Jun looked as if he had been struck by lightning. Lin Zhao and Ding Chi on the side simultaneously ran their fingers through their hair, wearing smug and intentionally irritating expressions.
"Alright," Chen Xue said, "Lin Zhao, you decide. You are the Lord of Scarlet Moon Knights, you have the final say on this matter."
"No problem," Lin Zhao smiled. "I trust you, Chen Xue. The people you recommend will definitely be good. Moreover, it's even better if it's a girl; otherwise, I'm afraid you might get lonely. It's good to have someone to liven things up."
Chen Xue smiled and nodded. "Since that's the case, then let her come over these few days."
"Mm, you see."
...
In the evening, Lin Zhao continued to solo train, clearing one forest after another. However, he hadn't triggered any more quests. 'Tian Xia' was extremely stingy with its quest system; whether or not you could get a quest was entirely up to luck. So, he persevered until past 11 PM. While killing monsters, Lin Zhao received a message from Ding Chi: "Ah Zhao, there's something you should see."
"Huh?" Lin Zhao's expression turned serious. "What is it?"
"First, take a look at this chat log screenshot."
Ding Chi sent over a chat log. It was a conversation between the beautiful Nomad Qing Ning from Scarlet Moon Knights and a stranger. The stranger was a member of Prosperous Dynasty, named "I Can Shoot Very Well," whom they knew. The chat log was quite offensive—
I Can Shoot Very Well: Yo, our little Qing Ning has joined Scarlet Moon Knights? Tsk tsk...
Qing Ning: What's wrong? Is there a problem with joining Scarlet Moon Knights?
I Can Shoot Very Well: Yes, what are you joining Scarlet Moon Knights for? For the men there? We have plenty of men in Prosperous Dynasty too, hundreds of them, aren't they enough for you, you little *? Damn it, you have my friend ID, and you dare to join my rival guild? You think you're special, huh?
Qing Ning: We just teamed up to level once, can you stop cursing?
I Can Shoot Very Well: I'm cursing you! Stop pretending, acting like a pure white lotus on the surface. Who knows how wild you are offline? If you dare, have your Scarlet Moon Knights people return to the city. I'll be waiting at the city gate. Anyone who comes, I'll kill them! Especially you, Qing Ning, after I kill you, I'll let my brothers have some fun on your corpse!
Qing Ning: You're not human!
I Can Shoot Very Well: Hahaha, I'm not human, what can you do to me?
...
After reading the chat log, Lin Zhao frowned.
"What should we do?" Ding Chi asked. "Hesitation is not a sign of a gentleman, but in this situation, even a gentleman can't endure it, right?"
"Endure my ass!" Lin Zhao said calmly. "Let little Mo Yin sneak over. Find out which gate this person is at. Let him wait for an hour to confirm it's not an ambush. After one hour, we'll all return to the city to resupply. After repairing our equipment and replenishing our potions, we'll start charging the gate. No matter which gate he's at, we'll kill them all! Since Lu Li and Qing Ning have joined Scarlet Moon Knights, I won't let them be bullied. Verbal bullying is not allowed either!"
"Understood!"