Who Can Escape a Freeloader?

Not long after Meng Chuan left the Jade Lake, he saw Meng Qi making a racket in the group.

Meng Chuan: What happened to my delivery?

Meng Qi: Your courier's about to bite the dust.

Meng Chuan: Oh.

Meng Chuan: What about my delivery?

Meng Qi: ???

Meng Qi: And the person?

Daigu Madoka: A new storm has appeared.

Meng Qi: Daigu, you've even learned your own theme song?

Meng Chuan: Nice one. You deserve a reward!

System notice: Administrator Meng Qi listed the Foundation Establishment, Qi Accumulation, Aperture Opening, and Exterior chapters of the Eight-Nine Mysterious Art.

System notice: Administrator Meng Qi listed the Foundation Establishment chapter of the Chaotic Heaven Treasured Mirror...

Meng Chuan: You're tipping a singing streamer with my delivery, and the streamer has to pay to claim it?

Meng Chuan: What a way to reel in Tiga empty-handed.

Zhang Sanfeng: Great Emperor's look of disdain.JPG

The Ancient One: Great Emperor's look of disdain.JPG

System notice: Meng Chuan purchased the first four chapters of the Eight-Nine Mysterious Art.

System notice: Meng Chuan purchased...

Meng Chuan: Five hundred years apart, and you're still as vigorous as ever, Master Zhang.

Meng Chuan: Master Ancient One, you look brighter by the day, too. Wonderful, wonderful.

At Kamar-Taj, a cup of tea sat steeping before The Ancient One as she answered Mordo's questions. When she saw Meng Chuan's message, her face twitched.

"Mordo," The Ancient One called.

"What is it, Master?" Mordo was puzzled. They had been discussing magic just fine; why had she suddenly called his name?

"Am I bright?"

Mordo: ???

"Master, you're quite bright..." Mordo glanced at The Ancient One's head, then touched his own before finally answering honestly.

Zhang Sanfeng: Five hundred years have already passed on the Great Emperor's end? How terrifying!

Daigu Madoka: How terrifying!

The Ancient One: How terrifying!

Meng Qi: Give me five hundred years and I'll be kicking Amitabha and punching the Golden Mother.

System notice: Administrator Meng Chuan muted Administrator Meng Qi.

System notice: Administrator Zhang Sanfeng muted Administrator Meng Qi.

System notice: Administrator The Ancient One muted...

Daigu Madoka: Didn't Little Meng just say he needed help? Is muting him really a good idea?

Meng Chuan: It's fine. He was probably dragged off for secretly practicing forbidden arts. He'll get stabbed twice at most. No big deal.

Daigu Madoka: Oh.

System notice: Administrator Daigu Madoka muted Administrator Meng Qi.

Daigu broke into a happy grin, drawing several sidelong looks from Lina across from him.

Daigu keeps smiling out of nowhere lately. Is he sick...? Lina was a little worried.

Meng Chuan: I never knew you were like this, Daigu!

Zhang Sanfeng: Daigu, I never knew you were like this!

The Ancient One: Daigu, I never knew you were like this!

Time did not pass at the same rate in each administrator's world. Of the five, only The Ancient One was online most of the time, while Meng Chuan spent years at a stretch in seclusion.

They chatted a while longer, though Meng Chuan mostly lurked, listening to the other four share their experiences and how they had changed events now that they knew the story.

Meng Chuan and the others also learned something from Daigu: Captain Megumi had set out for the super-ancient ruins of R'lyeh.

Zhang Sanfeng: Daigu, aren't you going to stop them beforehand?

Daigu Madoka: I could destroy the super-ancient ruins in advance, but I can't destroy the endless desires in human hearts.

As Daigu had said, the desires in human hearts could never be suppressed forever.

In fact, TPC had brought the trouble with the Dark Giant on itself.

Two years after Ultraman Tiga defeated Gatanothor, protected world peace, drove away the darkness for humanity, and won back the light, humanity was still not satisfied. A new plan emerged within TPC, the international peace organization.

During the two years since Ultraman Tiga disappeared, the conflict between TPC's peace faction and its militant faction had grown increasingly obvious. The two sides sometimes even hindered each other when facing monster threats, let alone after world peace had been restored.

To bolster its combat strength and gain a powerful force under its own control, TPC secretly launched the F Plan.

The plan was to use the remains of the Ultraman statues at Tiga's resting place—the other two statues in the pyramid, which Golza had destroyed—to study the power of Ultraman warriors. Humanity would then be able to wield that power and supposedly use it to strike down all foreign invaders. (Grin.)

The super-ancient ruins of R'lyeh had been the battlefield where Tiga and Gatanothor fought their final battle, so TPC chose them as a site for the F Plan's investigation and research.

Then the investigation team awakened three Dark Giants right there in R'lyeh: Tiga's old flame Camearra, along with Darramb and Hudra. Thus began a new disaster, one brought about by humanity's own hand.

Meng Qi: I think you just want to see your old flame Camearra!

Daigu Madoka: She's Tiga's old flame, not mine.

Daigu Madoka: What does Tiga's lover have to do with me, Daigu?

Meng Chuan: But you've already become one with Tiga, and that First Light represents Tiga himself...

Meng Qi: Pah, you two-timing scumbag!

Zhang Sanfeng: Pah, you two-timing scumbag!

The Ancient One: Mr. Daigu, you should devote yourself to one woman. I've traveled through countless timelines and seen far too many powerful warriors die from...

The Ancient One did not finish, but everyone understood what she meant.

Daigu Madoka: I haven't even done anything!

Meng Chuan: So you want to?

Meng Qi: How extraordinary. Look what I've discovered!

Zhang Sanfeng: Great Emperor, Little Meng, I believe you two were family before you crossed over now.

The Ancient One: I believe it too. You're far too alike.

Daigu Madoka: I've been saying that all along.

Meng Qi: How are we alike? Are we both just as handsome?

Meng Chuan: @Meng Qi, are you stupid? Why would you take that bait?

Zhang Sanfeng: Swordsmanship perfected!

Meng Qi: Master Zhang, I never thought even an upstanding man like you would pull a trick like that.

Meng Chuan: @Daigu Madoka, I'd rather like to watch a live version of the Final Odyssey!

Zhang Sanfeng: This old Daoist would also like to see the legendary Giant of Light.

The Ancient One: I've never seen a giant like Mr. Daigu either.

Daigu Madoka: I'd love to invite you all to my world, but the Chat Group doesn't have a world-travel function.

By now, the five members of the Chat Group had gotten to know one another and knew they could trust each other.

If they could, they really did want to meet up offline...

Meng Qi: I asked the Chat Group when it would unlock new features. It told me to get lost.

Meng Chuan: Did it really say that?

Meng Qi: Uh, it ignored me.

At Meng Qi's words, a thought stirred in Meng Chuan's mind. Hadn't that gift pack of his included increased permissions? He wondered whether they would help here.

"Can we travel to Daigu's world, or at least see him with our own eyes?" Meng Chuan asked the Chat Group, testing whether those increased permissions were of any use.

In truth, although the Chat Group had only displayed a few functions so far, it had some hidden functions as well.

For example, it offered certain protections to its members. Earlier, when Meng Qi viewed his fate record, he had asked the Chat Group to protect his memories, and the request had succeeded.

Clearly, the Chat Group had some hidden functions that safeguarded its members.

System notice: An administrator may spend ten thousand points to unlock the Group Livestream feature early.

Meng Qi: Huh? The Chat Group answered me?

Meng Chuan: No. It only displayed that notice after I asked it again.

Meng Qi: How is that possible? Does it discriminate or something?

It discriminates against little baldies like you, Meng Chuan thought.

Daigu Madoka: The Group Livestream feature probably means you can watch what's happening around me. Should we unlock it early?

Zhang Sanfeng: @Meng Chuan, should we?

Meng Qi: @Meng Chuan, should we?

The Ancient One: @Meng Chuan, the four of us don't have the points...

Meng Chuan: You want to freeload off me?

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