Autumn is getting deeper. On both sides of the official road outside Heaven Dou City, the leaves of the ginkgo trees have lost their last touch of gold. The bare branches are stretching in the cold wind, like the fingers of the earth reaching towards the sky.
Nearly a month and a half has passed since that demonstration match. Not only has the popularity of Golden Spatula not subsided, but it has swept the entire continent with an almost barbaric attitude.
The total number of registered players officially exceeded six million a few days ago. The main hall of Spirit City has been expanded once and is still full every day.
But Yi Chen knows in his heart that under the surface prosperity, undercurrents are surging.
The spies sent by Qian Renxue brought back a detailed investigation report three days later. The report was more than ten pages thick and recorded the traces, contact methods and general scope of activities of those who secretly investigated Golden Spatula System.
The clues point to several different directions. Some are some conservative nobles in the Heaven Dou Empire who are dissatisfied with Golden Spatula's impact on the traditional cultivation system. Some are hostile forces in the Star Luo Empire who are uneasy about the rise of the Zhu Family. There are also some traces that point to more secret directions. The specific identity cannot be confirmed yet.
Qian Renxue After reading the report, he separated the pages that pointed to unknown sources and read them again.
Her intuition told her that this part of the clues was the real focus worthy of attention. But she did not say anything, she just filed the report and sent someone to send a summary to Yi Chen.
When Yi Chen received the abstract, he was processing files in the office on the third floor of the Golden Spatula Association.
He put down the pen in his hand, took the summary, and read it carefully from beginning to end. Then he took out the page that pointed to the unknown source and read it for a while.
His eyes lingered on those few lines of vague description for a moment. When those investigators from unknown sources were tracking the underlying architecture of Golden Spatula System, they paid special attention to one direction: how the system's reward distribution mechanism interacts with the player's Martial Soul interacted with Soul Ring. This focus is very specific, so specific that it does not seem to be out of general curiosity, but more like someone is trying to find some kind of "interface" or "loophole" between system rewards and the existing training system.
Anyone who can ask this question must have a deep understanding of the traditional Spirit Master cultivation system, and also have a considerable understanding of the operating principles of Golden Spatula System. There are not many such people in the entire continent.
Yi Chen folded the page, put it in his arms, and continued working on the file at hand, as if nothing had happened.
But in his mind, he has connected this information with some previous clues, those behind the rumors spread in Suotuo City, those traditional forces that are hostile to the Golden Spatula system.
He did not take action immediately. The prey was still moving, and closing the net now would only alert the snake. He needed to wait, waiting for those hiding in the dark to surface on their own.
And in the hidden valley hundreds of miles away from Heaven Dou City, Tang San's cultivation is advancing at an alarming speed.
In the stone house, the dark red light rose and fell like a tide with his breathing. His Soul Power had stabilized at level 45. The dark red thunder patterns on Clear Sky Hammer were denser than before, and every wave carried a heart-stopping murderous aura.
His physical fitness has also undergone significant changes under the transformation of Asura Divine Power. Strength, speed, endurance, reaction, and all-round improvements have allowed him to complete the progress that would normally take years to accumulate in just over a month.
But he was not satisfied with this. He knew that although these improvements were significant, there was still a big gap between him and Yi Chen. He needed more time, more strength, and more chess pieces.
After the day's practice, Tang San walked out of the stone house and stood in the valley, looking up at the sky cut into narrow strips by the cliffs.
The cold wind passed through the valley, blowing his clothes and hair. He was silent for a long time, and then spoke, as if talking to the air. "God Venerable, I want to meet some people."
Asura God's spiritual mind did not appear, but his voice sounded in Tang San's mind, low and majestic. "Who?"
"Those who are dissatisfied with Golden Spatula." Tang San's eyes were calm and deep, his voice was not high, but it carried a certain power.
"Those traditional forces whose interests have been damaged by the impact of Golden Spatula, those conservatives who are uneasy about the emerging system, and those who are unwilling to see the continental order rewritten. They do not need to be my allies, they only need to be my pawns."
Asura God's spiritual thoughts were silent for a moment, and then he let out a deep laugh, "You are finally starting to look like a true successor to the throne of God."
Tang San didn't answer, just looked at the sky cut by the cliff with deep eyes.
He needs chess pieces, the more the better. He wants to build a dark network on the mainland's chessboard that can compete with Yi Chen.
At the same time, on the mountain behind the Shrek Academy, the autumn sunshine casts mottled light and shadow through the branches and leaves of the ancient trees.
Xiao Wu and Rongrong sat side by side on the stone bench under the ancient tree, with a chessboard in front of them, but neither of them had any intention of making a move.
Xiao Wu was holding a cup of hot tea in her hand, her eyes a little wandering; Rongrong looked down at her skirt. She had been wearing that sweet style dress for several days, and every time she wore it she felt warm in her heart.
"Rongrong." Xiao Wu suddenly spoke, his voice lower than usual, "Tell me, Master... what does he think of the two of us?"
Ning Rongrong raised her head and glanced at Xiao Wu. Of course she knew what Xiao Wu was asking, because this question had been swirling in her own mind.
Yi Chen accepted their wishes, gave them gifts, and was more gentle to them than before, but he never made it clear what he thought of them.
"I don't know either." Ning Rongrong answered honestly, with a hint of confusion in his voice.
"He accepted my heart and yours. He made us clothes and was very kind to us. But he never said... who he liked more, or how he planned to handle the relationship between the two of us."
Xiao Wu was silent for a while, and then whispered, "I sometimes wonder if he thinks we are both troublesome."
"No." Ning Rongrong almost reflexively denied this speculation, "He is not that kind of person. If he found it troublesome, he would not have accepted our wishes in the first place."
Xiao Wu didn't refute, but she didn't answer either. She looked down at the tea leaves floating in the cup, was silent for a long time, and then spoke, her voice softer than before. "Rongrong, the two of us... will we quarrel because of this in the future?"
Ning Rongrong was stunned for a moment, then thought about it seriously and shook his head, "I don't want to quarrel with you because of this. We are friends and comrades-in-arms. I don't want to mess up our relationship because of a man."
Xiao Wu raised his head, looked at Rongrong's clear eyes, was silent for a moment, and then slightly curved his mouth. "Me too."
The two looked at each other, and the subtle sense of competition in the air seemed to fade a little at this moment.
They both know that they like the same person, and this relationship will not disappear just because they are humble to each other. But they also don't want to lose their friendship because of this relationship.
On the ancient tree, a golden leaf swirled down and landed in the center of the chessboard, breaking the deadlock.
Xiao Wu reached out and picked up the fallen leaf, put it in the palm of his hand and looked at it, then raised it casually and let it float away in the wind. "Forget it, I don't want to think about it so much. Anyway, Master is very good to us now. Let's talk about the future."
Ning Rongrong nodded, picked up the tea cup and took a sip, then put it down and returned his attention to the chessboard. "That's right. Come on, keep playing, I will definitely win you in this game."
Xiao Wu raised his eyebrows. "What a beautiful idea."
The two rejoined the game, and the autumn sunshine shone on them, stretching their shadows very long on the ground.
Under the ancient trees, the crisp sound of chess pieces falling and the occasional laughter intertwined, adding a lively atmosphere to this quiet autumn afternoon.
In the Association's office on the third floor, Yi Chen stood in front of the window, looking toward the mountain behind in the distance, with a hint of gentleness in his eyes.
He saw the figures of the two girls under the ancient tree. Although he couldn't see their expressions clearly, he could feel that the atmosphere between them was much more relaxed than before.
He withdrew his gaze, turned and walked back to the desk, picked up the folded information page and put it in his arms, read it again, and then locked it in the drawer.