Here, Millions of Words Are Omitted

Zhu Kui's face was strange upon hearing that he had become a disciple of the Ascension Gate Sect. He quickly reacted, puffing out his chest and giving Lu Bei a proud look.

"That's right, it's me."

"Pfft, who are you trying to fool!"

Lu Bei was stunned for a moment before returning a smile of admiration.

The two brothers knew who was who, and Lu Bei didn't expose him. He chuckled and started chatting with Zhu Bo, his words full of admiration for the disciples of the Ascension Gate Sect.

His attitude suggested that if he had a recommendation, he would join on the spot.

Before his transmigration, Lu Bei had seen posts about the Ascension Gate Sect on the official forums, but he didn't have a strong impression. It wasn't until Wei Mao mentioned that the Ascension Gate Sect was involved in tomb raiding that he recalled a few keywords.

Before discussing the posts, we must first talk about the players who made them.

As everyone knows, players are a peculiar bunch. How they play and what they play isn't important; the most crucial thing is to have fun.

Most players enter the game to fight monsters, level up, and complete quests. There's a small exception: they don't enjoy fighting monsters and only take on quests when they feel like it. Their enjoyment in the game comes from exploring the map.

Due to the hyper-realistic full-immersion technology, the Kyushu world quickly attracted a large number of players who enjoyed adventure. They called themselves Life-Skill Players and were endlessly enthusiastic about exploring new worlds.

A world full of spiritual energy, every frame is a vibrant and picturesque fairyland. A casual screenshot could easily be used as a desktop wallpaper, leaving the real world far behind with a series of hairpin turns and a head start.

Life-Skill Players were deeply engrossed in it. When they discovered the business opportunity of uploading videos, they combined their hobbies and work, becoming a very unconventional type of professional player.

There were those who did tourism, those who made gourmet food, those who raised spirit pets, and those who specialized in filming beautiful NPCs...

Oh, I almost forgot about the fishermen.

Among them, the channel with the highest click-through rate was the thrilling channel of Ruin Exploration.

While they called it exploring ruins, everyone understood what was really going on. Ruins were rare and hard to come by, and most were controlled by renowned sects, who called them 'Secret Realms' for their own disciples to explore. This group of players, lacking resources, could only excavate small 'ruins.'

Soon, the Ascension Gate Sect, a sect with a less-than-stellar reputation, entered their sights.

According to players' discoveries, they summarized a quick path to encountering Ascension Gate Sect NPCs. When creating an account, they would fill in their interests as archaeology and history, and list idols like Hu Bayi and Indiana Jones. This would guarantee they'd meet one or two Ascension Gate Sect disciples in the newbie village.

Strictly speaking, the Ascension Gate Sect was not a traditional sect but a loose alliance. It had no requirements for disciples' backgrounds. As long as someone vouched for them, they could introduce them, and after paying a membership fee, anyone, human or demon, could join.

Internally, there were many true and false ruin clues that could be purchased with money. They also bought back Magic Treasures and Cultivation Manuals excavated from ruins, sold rare Feng Shui Arts books for breaking formations, and even rented out professional guides. For a fee, one could find experts to lead them into tombs.

A peculiar alliance, its reputation worsened daily due to the mixed quality of its members, leading to its exclusion by mainstream cultivators.

The post Lu Bei had read was from a disciple of the Ascension Gate Sect. This guy was a professional Content Creator who regularly went tomb raiding, focusing on a suspenseful route. However, due to intense Involution, his follower count was neither high nor low.

He became famous after a ruin excavation where he struck it rich, obtaining a Top-tier Cultivation Method and an Offensive and Defensive Integrated Magic Treasure. His rank on the Regional Power Ranking surged to the top fifty, sparking a trend of Grave Robbing.

Professional players envied and hated him. They envied his incredible luck but cursed him for wasting his potential, having randomly allocated his stats early on, which prevented him from fully unleashing the true power of the Top-tier Cultivation Method later.

If it were them...

One million words of reply content omitted here.

Back to the main topic, this post was repeatedly dug up for a long time. It was posted in version 1.0, and it was still visible in version 3.0.

Reminded by Wei Mao, Lu Bei found the Ningzhou map in his study and quickly pinpointed the general area.

The game hadn't even launched yet, let alone version 3.0, he didn't even know when version 1.0 would arrive. He mused that Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures belong to the virtuous, and this tomb... no, this treasure was meant for him.

Considering his current strength, Lu Bei dared not take risks and had no intention of finding a partner. He planned to get closer to the Zhu brothers first. When the time was right, he would find some Cannon Fodder NPCs to explore with.

Ideally, the Zhu brothers would help introduce him to the Ascension Gate Sect. With his aptitude, he could learn some Feng Shui Reading and Formation Breaking skills, making treasure acquisition even more secure.

"Brother Lu, you really don't mind the Ascension Gate Sect's bad reputation?"

"Bad reputation? What do you mean, those prejudices?"

Lu Bei shook his head in surprise and said, "There is no right or wrong in the world, so there is no such thing as right or wrong; it's merely a matter of perspective. Others might think the Ascension Gate Sect has done all sorts of evil, but they never consider the deeper meaning of the Ascension Gate Sect's survival to this day."

"Is that true?"

"Of course."

Lu Bei spoke eloquently, "Ruins are a good thing. Renowned Sects may verbally disdain them, but they've fought fiercely over them in private."

This statement wasn't baseless. The National War in version 2.0 started because the Huangji Sect discovered a ruin outside Wu Zhou's territory, invaded enemy land, was brutally suppressed, and then had their own borders invaded in return.

"The Ascension Gate Sect has a bad reputation simply because they didn't get permission, and some of their disciples acted unscrupulously, seeing any mound as a ruin. This gave the major sects a handle to criticize them, leading to Public Condemnation. It's no wonder their reputation is so poor..."

"Uh, I'm just stating facts. Don't be offended if you two hear this, but some mounds really shouldn't be disturbed. It's Bad Karma."

"Brother Lu speaks the truth. We brothers feel the same way. Please continue."

"Furthermore, even if we take a step back, the treasures hidden within ruins have been hidden from sunlight for hundreds or thousands of years. Treasures Gathering Dust will eventually decay and turn to Kitsuchi, which is such a waste."

Lu Bei lamented with grief, "The hard work of the predecessors, buried underground and unable to shine brightly. Every time I think of this, I feel a pang of distress. I imagine those predecessors would also deeply regret this in the afterlife."

"Exactly."

Zhu Bo clapped his hands in approval and raised his cup, drinking it down in one gulp. The atmosphere at the table instantly became lively.

Zhu Kui, however, was not part of the lively atmosphere.

Zhu Kui had always felt that tomb raiding was too immoral and that the long-sleeping ancestors should not be disturbed. Treasures Gathering Dust was pure nonsense; it sounded good, but if the deceased truly regretted it, they would have taken their cultivation methods and treasures with them to the grave in the first place.

He shouldn't do anything too immoral. If he wanted to live comfortably and earn Extra Income, a little bit of immorality would suffice, like the business of Passing Off Inferior Goods as Superior and Profiteering.

However, Zhu Bo always managed to bring hidden income to their family's merchant firm, and their Uncle Zhu Ting benefited greatly. He enjoyed the profits that came with it and didn't dare to speak rashly in front of his elder brother and uncle.

"Brother Lu, since you're interested, I won't hold back. With me as your guarantor, I can introduce you to the Ascension Gate Sect. What do you say?"

"Brother Bo is too kind. I'm deeply grateful, but I don't know how to repay you, so..."

Lu Bei hesitated for a long time, unable to finish his sentence. He raised his cup and drank it all in one go.

No words were needed; it was all in the wine.

After a pleasant evening, Lu Bei escorted the two brothers to the door, waving goodbye reluctantly several times.

In the carriage, Zhu Kui sighed, "Big Brother, this isn't what we agreed on. That kid is our jinx. If you weren't pushing him away, why are you bringing him into this venture?"

"The Ascension Gate Sect has a bad reputation, but that's fine by me. However, my uncle can't be involved. If I bring Lu Bei into the Ascension Gate Sect, aren't you afraid he'll try to drag his name through the mud?" Zhu Bo chuckled.

"I see, but..."

Zhu Kui frowned, "I still think that kid has ulterior motives. If you're going to go tomb raiding with him, you need to be careful."

"Relax, how old is he? He can practice a good saber technique, but can he understand tomb raiding better than I do?"

Zhu Bo laughed at the remark. "Life or death will be my call. If he dares to get any clever ideas, he'll be courting death, bringing about his own destruction."

"That's true."