Arrogant Before, Fawning After (Part 2)

Watching Bai Qingxue's confident smile, Shi Feng was already secretly chuckling to himself.

The wool comes from the sheep's back; if one wants to make money, one naturally targets the wealthy. The Snake of the Void, belonging to a first-rate guild, was undoubtedly an excellent choice.

According to the intelligence Shi Feng possessed, the Snake of the Void had already conquered over a dozen virtual games. However, the emergence of God's Domain had caused a sensation in the virtual gaming world, being hailed as humanity's "Second World," which led to the collapse of other virtual games. Subsequently, countless large financial groups had rushed into God's Domain like madmen to cultivate their own guilds and establish their own forces, hoping to secure a position in the virtual financial sector. Naturally, the Snake of the Void had also entered God's Domain, looking to grab a slice of the pie from the mouths of countless financial sharks.

Moreover, the Snake of the Void was not only well-funded but also had a solid background, with over a thousand gaming experts under its command. These thousand individuals held an incredibly resounding reputation in God's Domain, known as the God-Slaying Army. It was precisely because of the existence of these thousand experts that the Snake of the Void had been able to establish a significant virtual empire, ruling over eighty large cities with populations exceeding a million in God's Domain, making them true overlords.

The territory of the Snake of the Void at its peak was equivalent to the size of the entire Star-Moon Kingdom, whereas Shadow Studio at its peak had only established ten cities with populations of less than a million. Even so, their status in reality was already that of a behemoth; the status of the Snake of the Void was simply unimaginable.

One must know that the Star-Moon Kingdom was not small among the hundreds of kingdoms in God's Domain; it could be considered upper-middle tier, which showed just how formidable the Snake of the Void was.

With such a powerful and wealthy guild, how could Shi Feng not want to cooperate? However, the risks of working with Bai Qingxue were too high. Bai Qingxue possessed a vast amount of intelligence on God's Domain, and given her unusual status, he had to be careful. That was why he had deliberately revealed some flaws, especially regarding the recipe for the Basic Strength Potion, to observe Bai Qingxue's reaction. If things headed in a bad direction, he would naturally wash his hands of it.

But the current situation was undoubtedly what Shi Feng had hoped for.

"Since you've said as much, my price isn't high: twenty silver coins," Shi Feng said calmly.

Right now, twenty silver coins were the entire assets of a small guild, and for an ordinary guild, it would be a bone-deep injury. Even a hundred-man gold-farming group would need two or three days to save up that much, and the income from a single run of the normal Dead Silence Forest was only one or two silver. However, he felt this price was very reasonable; the Dead Silence Forest dungeon was quite special, and being able to clear it would lay a solid foundation for the future.

Hearing Shi Feng casually demand twenty silver coins, Zhao Yueru gasped, nearly jumping up in anger. She glared at Shi Feng and snapped, "Why don't you just go rob someone? That would be faster."

"If robbing could get me this much money, I'd do it too," Shi Feng laughed. "You have to understand, this is the Dead Silence Forest. It contains a large number of skill books that can arm players and allow them to rapidly increase their strength. If you can clear the Dead Silence Forest a step ahead of others, the benefits for future development go without saying."

"You... can't you make it any cheaper? This is twenty silver coins! Even our Snake of the Void can't just pull out that much money at once." Zhao Yueru was thoroughly annoyed with Shi Feng, but thinking of the importance of the Dead Silence Forest, she still softened her tone.

"Sorry, the price is non-negotiable. If you don't agree, I'll have to consider cooperating with another guild." Shi Feng stood firm. He had already shown enough sincerity to Bai Qingxue; if this didn't work, he would have to consider the Assassin Alliance. The Assassin Alliance was also wealthy and powerful; they had spent over twenty silver to buy the Level 5 Bronze Greatshield earlier.

"I understand. Twenty silver it is. However, we need time to raise the funds. After all, the Snake of the Void's sphere of influence is not near White River City, but in the royal capital, Star-Moon City. We don't have many members near White River City. Give me one day; here is seven silver as a deposit, and I will give you the remaining fifteen silver as compensation in a day." Bai Qingxue hadn't expected Shi Feng to be so greedy, and twenty silver coins was a strain for her as well. However, clearing the Dead Silence Forest was too important to delay, and she knew that silver coins were most valuable in the early stages, so she offered a bit more as interest.

"Fine. Here is the map of the Dead Silence Forest, along with the points to note when fighting the boss."

Shi Feng knew that Bai Qingxue was telling the truth; it wasn't easy to come up with twenty silver coins on the spot. Unlike the Assassin Alliance, which had a significant presence in White River City and much more liquid capital than Bai Qingxue, he sent an email to her containing a detailed introduction to the Dead Silence Forest. With the strength of Bai Qingxue and her team, they should be able to clear the normal difficulty easily.

After receiving the Dead Silence Forest guide, Bai Qingxue took a brief look and was secretly shocked.

She hadn't expected the Dead Silence Forest to be so terrifying. There were thirty-six small paths, thirty-three of which were dead ends, and there was even a Dark Night Ranger lurking in wait. The guide also provided detailed information on the boss's moves and casting times. Twenty silver was truly a bargain; if she had sent people to explore and clear it bit by bit, the cost would have been far more than twenty silver.

Suddenly, Bai Qingxue's perception of Shi Feng changed again. She felt that Shi Feng was no simple person; he was definitely a top-tier expert. Only a top-tier expert could have such a profound understanding of a dungeon. However, in her memory, there didn't seem to be any top-tier expert who was a Swordsman and resembled Shi Feng.

"Three days from now, our Snake of the Void is preparing to take on the first 20-man team dungeon for level 5, the Dark Moon Graveyard. Would you be interested in joining?" Bai Qingxue looked at Shi Feng with her beautiful eyes and issued an invitation. She had already acknowledged Shi Feng's strength, and if he were present for the level 5 team dungeon, it might be easier.

Heizi, standing to the side, had his eyes wide open. He was absolutely awestruck by Shi Feng. He hadn't expected Shi Feng to be so capable—he had handled the goddess in a few short moves and even made her want to invite him to a dungeon. What a great honor this was! How many men dreamed of running a dungeon with Bai Qingxue?

However, Zhao Yueru was in a foul mood upon hearing this. Shi Feng was just a closed-beta tester; at most, he had experienced a few more days of God's Domain and knew a bit more about the Dead Silence Forest. But the 20-man team dungeon had only appeared during the open beta and hadn't existed in the closed beta. Shi Feng couldn't possibly know anything about it. Besides, Shi Feng wasn't some incredible expert; asking him to come was just a waste of a spot.

Shi Feng thought about it. 20-man team dungeons dropped many good items, especially the Dark Moon Graveyard, which dropped many excellent pieces of equipment for Swordsmen. The stats on dungeon gear were definitely stronger than those from wild bosses. Since he couldn't organize twenty members himself, going with Bai Qingxue wouldn't be a bad idea.

"Fine, but you have to reserve a few spots for me. Also, all equipment for the Swordsman class and any forging designs must be given to me first," Shi Feng agreed with a nod.

"Can't you be a little humble?" Zhao Yueru looked at Shi Feng, pouting. She felt Shi Feng was going too far. When Qingxue invited others, they would usually agree without a second thought, sometimes even refusing the gear. Shi Feng, on the other hand, not only accepted but demanded priority on gear without any modesty at all.

Bai Qingxue hadn't expected Shi Feng to be so different from others. He wasn't pretentious at all, and his bluntness was actually quite interesting. She glanced at the team members behind Shi Feng; although they were a bit inexperienced, their gear was decent enough to barely manage a 20-man team dungeon. She said, "That's fine. Let's add each other as friends so we can stay in touch."

"Sure. Just contact me a few hours before the dungeon run, and I'll be there on time." Shi Feng accepted Bai Qingxue's friend request.

Afterward, Shi Feng and his group left the Small Stone Pond and headed toward the Dark Moon Valley.

As they passed by the entrance to the Dead Silence Forest, Cixin from the Assassin Alliance suddenly called out to Shi Feng.

"Brother Ye Feng, I almost didn't recognize you in this getup. I didn't expect you to know such a big shot as the Ice Goddess. Don't forget about me, your brother, in the future!" Cixin walked up and joked.

"How could I? Miss Bai and I are just passing acquaintances," Shi Feng laughed.

"Brother Ye Feng is too modest. With your strength, you are absolutely qualified to be friends with the Ice Goddess; after all, you are both experts on the same level." Cixin thought Shi Feng was being humble and was worthy of being a top expert with such an extraordinary demeanor. He wanted to build a good relationship with him. "Our Assassin Alliance is preparing to take on the Dead Silence Forest. Is Brother Ye Feng interested? Of course, you can take your pick of the gear."

"Brother Cixin is too kind, but I have other matters to attend to. I'll definitely go if there's an opportunity in the future," Shi Feng politely declined.

Cixin had spoken loudly, and the surrounding players heard him clearly.

They had assumed Shi Feng was just a rookie who got lucky by being called over by the goddess. But if Cixin from the Assassin Alliance wanted to befriend Shi Feng, what was going on?

The Assassin Alliance was a well-known, powerful guild near White River City, and Cixin was the vice-leader of their elite group. Such a big shot wouldn't normally interact with ordinary players, yet he wanted to befriend Shi Feng—and Shi Feng had actually refused him. This was too domineering.

If anyone said Shi Feng was a rookie now, no one would believe it. There must be something fishy going on.

Everyone speculated that Shi Feng must be a hidden expert that ordinary players simply didn't know about; otherwise, why would one big shot after another want to meet him?

"Boss Tian Wang, that Cixin actually wants to befriend that rookie? Am I dreaming?" Bu Yu Xia Ye was stunned. Was this Shi Feng really the same rookie they had seen earlier?

Tian Wang Hui Hui felt terrible inside. He had originally held onto some hope, but now it had been shattered by a big shot like Cixin. Shi Feng wasn't a rookie; he was definitely an expert, just as Lonely As Snow had said, perhaps even more formidable. It could be said that following Shi Feng would guarantee a bright future in God's Domain, yet they had driven him away... missing a great opportunity to befriend an expert.

"Boss, why don't we go and apologize? An expert must be broad-minded; maybe he'll forgive us. Then we might be able to latch onto an expert's thigh," Yi Zhan Dao Di suggested.

Bu Yu Xia Ye nodded, in full agreement.

Just as Shi Feng's team was walking toward the exit, Tian Wang Hui Hui and the others ran over.

"Big Brother Expert, we had some misunderstandings earlier. We apologize to you and hope you can forgive our ignorance. Please accept this one silver coin as a token of our sincerity," Tian Wang Hui Hui said with a fawning smile, having completely lost his previous arrogance.

Bu Yu Xia Ye and Yi Zhan Dao Di also apologized sincerely, hoping to join Shi Feng in grinding monsters.

"If you have nothing else, please leave. I have things to do and no time to waste on you." After saying this, Shi Feng turned and left. He didn't take Tian Wang Hui Hui and the others' behavior to heart, but as for letting them tag along—not a chance.

Seeing this, Lonely As Snow just looked at Tian Wang Hui Hui and the others, shaking his head silently. If they had known it would come to this, why act that way in the beginning?

Watching Lonely As Snow leave with Shi Feng, Bu Yu Xia Ye curled his lip and said sourly, "Pah, what's so great about him? I'll become an expert just the same in the future."

Only Tian Wang Hui Hui knew that Lonely As Snow was destined for greatness and was no longer in the same world as them.