Lu Aqi was much calmer seeing the man in green robes this time. He finished sipping the tea, licked his lips, and thought to himself, ’As expected of tea brewed with Spiritual Spring Water. It really is something else.’

Setting down his teacup, Lu Aqi finally took the secret letter. He then gestured for the man in green robes to sit, saying, "My lord, you must be weary from your long journey. Please, sit and rest. Come, try my Spirit Tea!"

"Very well!"

The man in green robes didn’t stand on ceremony. He sat down next to Lu Aqi, poured himself some tea, and took a sip. He couldn’t help but nod, saying, "This tea is not bad!"

"Of course it’s not bad. Please, my lord, help yourself!"

As he spoke, Lu Aqi had already opened the secret letter. It didn’t contain many words. The gist was to praise him for a job well done, state a massive demand for Fasting Pills and Piyao Pills, and urge him to find the Spiritual Artifact rice cooker as soon as possible.

After putting down the letter, a smile appeared on Lu Aqi’s face. He cupped his hands toward the man in green robes and said, "Please, I must trouble you to report back that this subordinate has already found the Spiritual Artifact rice cooker. It is likely on its way to the Prince Mansion as we speak."

"What? You’ve already found it? And it’s on its way to the Prince Mansion!"

The man in green robes’ eyes lit up at his words. "Well done! Your efficiency is impressive. Can you tell me where you found it?"

"Finding this rice cooker took quite a bit of effort. I mobilized the entire Red Tiger Camp and conducted what was practically a grid-by-grid search of Kaiyuan and Clear Water counties. The manpower and resources expended during that time were immeasurable. Fortunately, heaven does not disappoint those who try, and this subordinate was finally able to locate the Spiritual Artifact rice cooker!"

"Excellent, excellent. You have performed a great service this time. The Prince will surely reward you handsomely."

"Serving the Prince is this subordinate’s duty... Oh, right, my lord, there is something I wish to report to you!"

"Report to me? Strictly speaking, I am not your superior, nor do I hold any official post. However, I am able to speak with the Prince, so if you have something to say, you can tell me."

Lu Aqi cupped his hands and said, "It concerns Chen Chong. That man was arrogant, conceited, foolish, and ignorant. He provoked Wang Shanhe at the foot of Black Stone Mountain and was killed on the spot. His actions led to the destruction of six warships as well. I have already written a report on this matter, but it is likely still in transit. I am telling you first, my lord, so that you may relay it to the Prince. This way, we can prevent some treacherous villain from filing a malicious report first."

"I do know of that fleet. The Prince sent them out to sea, apparently to search for Mengbai Island. But who is this Wang Shanhe?" 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"This Wang Shanhe is precisely who I wanted to tell you about next, my lord. He is a Divine Being, capable of Moving Mountains and Flying in the Sky. He commands a Fire Dragon Ship and summons a Mountain Giant Frog. His methods are Beyond Imagination. As for the Black Mountain Stronghold, I dare not take the credit—it was Wang Shanhe who destroyed it by Moving Mountains!"

To Lu Aqi’s surprise, the man in green robes remained completely calm upon hearing about Wang Shanhe, showing no surprise at all. He listened quietly and then said, "From your description, this Wang Shanhe must be a Play... oh, no, an Alien! He must have a territory, right? Do you know where it is?"

"In the direction of the river valley?"

"Have you managed to plant any spies inside?"

"Well, this subordinate did try to arrange for some spies to infiltrate, but... everyone I sent got lost."

"Got lost? He must have some defensive measures in place. That’s not surprising. There are many things you people don’t understand!"

’We don’t understand?’ Lu Aqi saw the man in green robes’ calm demeanor and guessed that the Prince Mansion must possess some top-secret information. He thought for a moment, then added, "That Wang Shanhe is still at Black Stone Mountain..."

The man in green robes cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Alright, I understand the situation. You don’t need to say any more. For the time being, just keep your troops stationed here and await orders. I’m off!"

As he finished speaking, the man in green robes’ figure vanished instantly.

Lu Aqi narrowed his eyes and sighed with emotion, "Strange and powerful people are appearing one after another. What in the world is happening to this land?"

He suddenly felt a pang of regret, thinking he had been reckless. Perhaps he shouldn’t have told the man in green robes about the Divine Being. But too many people already knew about it, so it was impossible to hide. Failing to report what he knew would also be an offense against the Prince. And whether he offended the Prince or the Divine Being, he certainly couldn’t bear the consequences.

After a moment of thought, Lu Aqi sighed and said, "I have a bad feeling that something is about to happen. Forget it. I think I’ll be ’gravely ill’ and bedridden for a while. I’ll just push all my duties onto Yue Gang."

「Far away, in a certain place.」

A heavy ebony door isolated the room from all the noise of the outside world. This was a study. The walls were inlaid with deep-hued rosewood bookshelves, all filled with books. In the center of the room stood a bronze incense burner shaped like a celestial crane, as tall as a man. It was unclear what kind of incense was burning inside, but wisps of smoke drifted from the gaps between the crane’s feathers, filling the entire study with a unique fragrance.

Directly opposite the door was a wide rosewood desk, on which the Four Treasures of the Study were neatly arranged.

Behind the desk, a man sat upright in a high-backed official’s chair. He looked to be about thirty years old, dressed in a yellow robe and wearing a formal cap. He had a scholarly and refined air, yet also possessed a natural, imposing authority.

He held a Fur Brush with a serious expression, yet the large characters he wrote were crooked and ugly.

The figure of the man in green robes appeared out of thin air before the desk.

The man in the yellow robe tossed down his Fur Brush and said nonchalantly, "You’re back? There should be a lead on that Spiritual Artifact rice cooker by now."

The man in green robes said, "That Lu Aqi reports that the rice cooker has been found and is on its way!"

A smile spread across the face of the man in the yellow robe. "Good. Once we obtain that Spiritual Artifact rice cooker, our biggest problem will be solved. We can proceed with our preparations without restraint."

"There’s one more thing. The fleet you sent to investigate Mengbai Island seems to have been wiped out by a Player named Wang Shanhe!"

"We haven’t received any intel from Mengbai Island in the past two days, so I don’t know what the situation is there... Forget it. It was just one fleet. If it was destroyed, it was destroyed. We don’t have time to get entangled with a minor Player right now."

The man in the yellow robe stood up, paced a few steps, and continued, "The Chaos Secret Realm might open ahead of schedule. This is the first collision of the Multiverse, and the rewards will be incredibly generous. We have the first-mover advantage and must be fully prepared. This is the most important matter at hand. Today, I will issue an order to recall all our forces. After we return from the Secret Realm, we will dispatch troops to attack Mengbai Island, and also that... what’s-his-name..."

"Wang Shanhe!"

"Right, and that Wang Shanhe. It won’t be too late to deal with them all at once then!"

The man in green robes nodded. "You have a point. In that case, should I still go and assassinate Yan Bingzhang?"

"Don’t go. Those old geezers aren’t fools. They’ve surely made preparations and are just waiting for you to show up. Although you have Continuous Blink, your direct combat strength isn’t that high. If you capsize the boat, the loss will outweigh the gain!"

"Alright, then I’ll rest for a few days! By the way, how about you grant me a few more beauties? No lolis this time, though. I want to try an experienced older woman!"

The man in the yellow robe snorted. Just as he was about to scold the man in green robes, a golden light flashed before him, and a Scroll appeared.

"New intelligence!"

The man in the yellow robe hastily opened the Scroll and saw a block of text.

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Intelligence 1: The Chaos Secret Realm is expected to open at noon in three days, synchronized across the Multiverse. At that time, purple flames will descend from the sky, tearing open an entrance to the Secret Realm at a random location. Please note, the entrance will only remain open for half a day.

Intelligence 2: The Player forces on Qixia Mountain have surpassed 300,000 troops, and their food supplies are critically low.

Intelligence 3: A Player in Kaiyuan County, Golden Sparrow Country, has built a Toilet House, the first modern, eco-friendly toilet on the Eastern Continent.

Note: The above intelligence comes from the S-Class Talent [Real-time Intelligence] and has been randomly compiled and released by the system.

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