Inside the tavern at night,
Li Xing's participation made the atmosphere even livelier.
Standing off to the side, Uncle Turner felt a headache coming on when he saw the town's youngsters acting up again.
After hearing the jumble of questions they were asking, Angie Turner decided he couldn't let them keep tarnishing Hunter Town's image.
He called out toward the group of young men in the tavern.
"Li Xing, haven't you been traveling all this time? Since they doubt who you are, why don't you tell these little brats a story you saw or heard on your travels?"
Seeing the confused looks on everyone's faces, Uncle Turner explained his reasoning.
"Someone might be able to make up an identity on the spot, but a story isn't something you can just come up with in no time. Tell us one none of us has heard before, and I reckon these brats won't doubt who you are anymore!"
Everyone readily agreed with Uncle Turner's suggestion.
"Yeah! Tell us a story we haven't heard before, traveler!"
"If you can tell us one, we'll welcome you and believe what you said about your travels!"
"Yeah! Yeah!"
Just like that, the whole tavern began clamoring.
But Li Xing, the center of everyone's attention, was panicking like crazy!
What am I supposed to tell them?
I've only ever played Warcraft III. I don't even know what Azeroth is, so what can I tell them?
Besides, all I know is that I've transmigrated into World of Warcraft, but I don't know where I am on the timeline! I can't just tell them about things that haven't happened yet! What am I supposed to do?
Pandaria!
I saw the Pandaria trailer, so I only know a little about it. But I was a student back then and didn't have the money to play World of Warcraft. How would I know the secret stories of this world?! Li Xing thought, on the verge of breaking down.
Feeling everyone's expectant gazes on him, Li Xing's mind began racing! He said to the crowd,
"Don't rush me, everyone! Let me think about which story to tell you first, all right? I've got a lot of stories in my head, so just give me a moment!"
Warcraft, Warcraft!
If I'd known this would happen, I'd have played more of the campaign back then. I played so many custom maps that now I don't even know whether the orc invasion has started.
How am I supposed to tell a story? I can't just tell them a story from another world!
Every world has a different setting. They'd see through me easily.
Li Xing pondered the problem.
Suddenly, he recalled something embarrassing from his childhood.
He had still been in elementary school then and had only just discovered Warcraft. He hadn't figured out how to play it at all.
Then one day, he saw the Lord of the Rings trilogy playing on television and naively assumed Warcraft had been made into a movie! Without thinking, he took the Lord of the Rings trilogy for a World of Warcraft film adaptation.
Only years later, when he talked with a classmate who played Warcraft, did he learn they weren't the same thing!
But who knew any better back then?
He was a little kid from the East encountering Western fantasy for the first time. Both had mages, orcs, and elves, and the main plot was a war between humans and orcs.
The plots seemed close enough that he mistook one for an adaptation of the other.
He had been utterly convinced that The Lord of the Rings was Warcraft, and Warcraft was The Lord of the Rings.
That ignorant yet confident display had led to a clash with a classmate who really knew the subject, creating a piece of embarrassing history for him!
Thinking of that embarrassing past suddenly gave Li Xing some inspiration.
Maybe I can make a few changes to the story of Middle-earth and tell it to the villagers!
Once the thought occurred to him, the more he considered it, the more workable it seemed!
So he began making preparations.
Everyone in the tavern watched Li Xing hurry to the counter, borrow a table and a chair from the owner, and take an empty wooden mug.
Then,
they saw
Li Xing carry the table, chair, and empty wooden mug over to a corner of the tavern.
Once everything was set up, he sat in the chair facing the crowd.
Li Xing promptly picked up the mug and suddenly slammed its base against the tabletop.
Smack!
The sound startled everyone in the tavern. The whole place fell silent!
Then Li Xing lowered his voice and began his story.
"Everyone, today I'll tell you a story about The Hobbit!"
"Our story took place on a continent called Middle-earth.
That continent was far from peaceful. The great Dark Lord Sauron used his knowledge and abilities to forge nineteen rings!
He gave three of them to the three peoples of the elves, seven to seven dwarf kings, and nine to human kings, lords, and other nobles.
The rings all contained magic and could protect their peoples!
But a dark lord was never going to be kind, just as every maker of devices would leave a back door in the devices he made!
The Dark Lord Sauron also forged a One Ring for himself!
He used it to rule the other nineteen rings, intending to control their bearers!
From then on, the peaceful world of Middle-earth was gradually shrouded in darkness.
By the time the peoples of Middle-earth realized what was happening, it was already too late.
Rather than submit to the darkness, humans and elves formed an alliance to resist Sauron's rule!
They assembled tens of thousands of warriors and fought a decisive battle against Sauron's dark army!
On hearing this introduction, everyone in the tavern stopped chatting of their own accord. With Li Xing's distinctive storytelling style, they were drawn straight into the world of Middle-earth.
Li Xing looked at the listeners throughout the tavern, at the eager eyes fixed on him!
He adjusted his breathing and asked everyone present, "I imagine you all have a question! Why did those people accept the Dark Lord's rings? Were those kings all fools?"
He watched as everyone nodded and turned their inquisitive gazes on him.
Li Xing went on to explain.
"That was what made Sauron so clever!
He disguised himself as a wise man, won everyone's favor, and fooled them all. With his magic, he became the greatest mage in Middle-earth. Just like that, he became an honored guest of the kings of every people! Every leader felt honored to meet him! So when those leaders received the rings he had made, they put them on without worry, glad to have them.
However, on the battlefield,
Sauron, who possessed the One Ring, was far too powerful.
With one sweep of his staff, he sent hundreds of people flying to their deaths. The allied army simply couldn't withstand his counterattack.
But heaven never bars every road. A dramatic moment arrived!"
With that, Li Xing stopped!
"Little Bai... Li Xing, why did you stop? Keep going!"
After catching Li Xing's piercing stare, the eager listener immediately addressed him differently.
"Yeah! Why did you stop?" Uncle Turner was puzzled too.
Li Xing looked at the crowd, caught between impatience and curiosity.
"Well, my throat's getting a little scratchy..."
Everyone immediately understood, and the owner shouted,
"Enough with the nonsense! This one's on me, take it! Hurry up and tell the story. If you can't finish it, you aren't leaving today!"
The owner set a freshly filled mug of beer in front of him and glared at him impatiently.
Li Xing took a quick sip and resumed his story.
"The human prince Isildur, trying to save his father the king, at the moment his father was about to be killed by Sauron,
happened to pick up his family's treasured sword, Narsil the Holy Sword, which Sauron had stepped on and broken. With the damaged holy sword, broken in half, he cut off the finger on which the Dark Lord Sauron wore the One Ring,
and the ring fell off.
Without the Ring, the Dark Lord Sauron vanished amid a series of explosions. That was how Sauron was defeated."
At that, the tense looks on everyone's faces turned to relief.
Seeing this, Li Xing continued.
"The One Ring that had fallen to the ground naturally ended up in Prince Isildur's hands!
The members of the alliance feared the power of the Dark Lord Sauron and his One Ring, and they agreed to take the Ring to Mount Doom to melt and destroy it.
But when the prince and the group reached the mouth of Mount Doom,
the human prince Isildur was tempted by the One Ring. He changed his mind and sought to claim it for himself!
And so the plan to destroy the Ring failed."
At this point, everyone in the tavern looked disappointed.
Some listeners even cursed the prince's greed.
Only when the tavern fell quiet again did the story continue.