Preparations

"Hmph! You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit."

Mo Rui's charm ability had been completely resisted. Enraged and embarrassed, she grabbed the boy by the throat, her tone vicious.

"Speak! What are you doing at Lone Star City's military camp?"

"Take a guess. If you get it right, I'll tell you. If you get it wrong, then please keep guessing."

Though his throat was being held, Xuan Sheng looked completely relaxed, as if the person being restrained wasn't him at all. He even deliberately sniffed the alluring woman's enchanting scent, wearing a shameless expression.

"If I guess right, why would I still need you to tell me?!"

They had clearly made an agreement beforehand, yet this man had still gone running to Lone Star City's military side. That made Mo Rui feel deeply threatened, while also filling her heart with indignation.

If her soul weren't under this man's control, why would she need to put up with this?

A man like him—she could crush him to death with one finger!

"All right, let go. It's not as if your information will be exposed, so why are you so nervous?"

Looking at the unwillingness and resentment in Mo Rui's purple eyes, Li Xunsheng sighed helplessly.

"I just went to clear out some kobolds. For some reason, those guys suddenly appeared near Lone Star City. I didn't do anything else. Can't you trust me a little more?"

"Hmph! Trust."

Her slender hand reached directly into Xuan Sheng's pocket and seized a mottled badge.

"How do you explain this? Have you joined the military?"

Mo Rui was no ignorant little girl. The Lone Star City military would never casually issue a badge like this!

Soldiers who possessed such things had usually made enormous contributions to the military!

"It's just equipment. Do you know so little about outsiders like us?"

Seeing Mo Rui making such a fuss over everything, Xuan Sheng felt as if he had been caught by an unreasonable girlfriend who refused to let go of some trivial matter. In short, he was extremely exasperated.

As everyone knew, "outsiders" generally had extremely flexible moral boundaries.

When it benefited them, they were naturally willing to help the righteous locals.

But if the villainous older sister was—cough, if she had enough charisma, then going against the entire world wasn't necessarily out of the question.

There were simply too few "outsiders" in Lone Star City right now, which was why Mo Rui was so nervous, terrified that her information would be exposed.

Once this woman gained a deeper understanding of their habits, she wouldn't be so worried.

"All right, let go. I want to rest early and prepare for tomorrow's opening... Oh, right. Did you buy any ingredients?"

"Hmph. All kinds of food are being restricted now. I only bought a small amount."

After probing him with a secret demonic technique and vaguely sensing that the man before her hadn't lied, Mo Rui released him and sat back down on the sofa with her long legs crossed, fuming.

"Food distribution has already started being restricted?"

Xuan Sheng frowned. The situation was developing even faster than he had imagined.

The players in the various beginner villages had yet to reach the main cities, yet the related measures had already been implemented?

"That's right. I still haven't found out the exact reason, but that's the current situation. Even obtaining supplies has become somewhat difficult."

Mo Rui brushed back her purple hair, confusion flickering in her eyes.

Her intelligence network had yet to fully penetrate human society, so she was just as baffled by Lone Star City's actions.

"If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you won't have trouble finding it next time."

"That's because a large number of outsiders will soon be arriving in Lone Star City."

Judging from the time, there were about four days left.

As the first batch of players was rapidly eliminated, the competition in the beginner villages would ease slightly. If some players began taking desperate measures and quickly gathering currency by ambushing other players in the wilderness, they would definitely be able to collect one Silver Coin by the second week.

In other words, the second batch of players arriving in Lone Star City would probably already be enormous in scale.

"A large number?"

"So many that this city might not be able to handle them... That's all I can say. I'm going to rest. You'd better prepare as well. If you have the channels, gathering some food as soon as possible might help a lot."

Li Xunsheng had his own dependents to support him, so unlike these players, he didn't need to worry about food.

"You're sure?"

It was rare for this man to speak so seriously about something. Mo Rui instinctively felt that his words were extremely important... If she followed his advice, perhaps she really could...

"You're the boss, so you call the shots. I'm just a lousy employee. Good night, boss lady. I'm going to rest."

Xuan Sheng raised an eyebrow at the tempting boss lady. After spending most of the day in the kobold camp, he was exhausted. After eating some rations and taking a bath, he lay back down on his small bed.

"Ah... Completely relaxing like this really is enjoyable..."

He closed his eyes, and the body here gradually fell into a dream... But his consciousness as a god traveled into another world...

Inside an empty cavern, a hunched old woman gripped the Mysterious Iron Rod tightly and stared unwillingly at the divine stone before her.

More than twenty years had passed since the last time the god had descended...

As the first clan chief after the god's descent, she had relied on the god's blessing—that strange black iron rod—to live to an age that her ordinary clansmen would never have dared imagine.

But no one knew what kind of torment she had endured to prolong the life of this withered body...

Every muscle and every inch of bone in her body constantly cried out in pain, tormenting the decrepit old woman who was already nearing the end of her life...

But none of that mattered.

As long as she could see the god again, everything would be worth it...

Over the years, she had watched her tribe grow increasingly prosperous. Under the god's blessing, they enjoyed harvests year after year, no longer needing to toil for food or risk their lives fighting vicious beasts.

Over the past twenty years, the tribe's population had nearly doubled again! It had surpassed five hundred!

Moreover, nourished by the fruit bestowed by the god, every new member of the tribe far surpassed the younger generations of other tribes, both physically and mentally.

They would only grow stronger... And all of it came from the god's blessing...

However, as that honored one fell silent once more, more and more clansmen—especially the newborns—began to question the god's existence.

That was something she absolutely could not accept!

The god had helped them so much, yet these younger generations not only failed to understand gratitude, they had even begun questioning the god's existence and challenging the god's dignity...

To prevent their faith from being severed, and to ensure that the god would not be angered by the clansmen's disrespect upon the next descent, she had to persevere.

She had to hold on until the god descended again... and pass on this faith... to a suitable member of the tribe...

Only then could she swallow her final breath without regrets...

A fervent fire flickered in the eyes of the old woman dressed in an unknown animal hide as she once again straightened her ruined body...