Chen Nian did not leave the venue. Instead, he continued to stay inconspicuously in a corner.
This time, everyone behaved themselves!
Whatever Su Jinyu said, they agreed. How could they dare disobey her in the slightest?
"Then we're agreed."
"Before the Blood Moon Calamity descends, we'll build teleportation arrays between the major cities so we can support one another."
"We'll weather this crisis together and defend our homes!"
"Meeting adjourned."
"A lavish dinner has been prepared here at the venue. Help yourselves!"
With everything arranged, Su Jinyu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She could not be bothered with these people anymore and ran outside to look everywhere for her Brother Buyu. But even after searching all three decks of the ship and the open deck, she could not find him.
Before long, the cruise ship docked.
Their first offline gathering came to a successful conclusion!
Next, everyone would return to their own cities, continue growing stronger, and prepare for the Blood Moon Calamity's arrival.
"Lu City is so beautiful at night!"
Su Jinyu did not accompany anyone. She strolled alone along the bustling streets.
In her exquisite black evening gown, she looked like a little princess who had escaped a nightclub, a lovely sight wherever she went.
Today was her birthday, and she felt it was her most special birthday yet.
If there's a first time, there'll be a second. One day, I'll get the chance to really meet him. Hehe!
Suddenly, someone in a Rilakkuma costume blocked her path.
The big, furry bear was quite adorable.
The bear walked toward her, seemingly holding something.
"Is that for me?"
Su Jinyu pointed at herself in confusion.
Rilakkuma nodded, then pointed behind him, as though saying that someone had asked him to give it to her.
It was a greeting card.
Her heart brimming with excitement, Su Jinyu slowly opened the card and found a line of small handwriting inside.
[Happy birthday, Xiao Qi]
In an instant, countless fireworks roared into the sky all around her.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Colorful fireworks burst in the night sky, lighting up almost the entire sky in an instant.
Su Jinyu hugged the card, her eyes glistening as tears began to well up.
"Brother Buyu, I knew you treated me the best!"
While she was moved, Rilakkuma turned to leave. Yes, it was Chen Nian in disguise.
But just as Chen Nian was about to slip away, the girl behind him lunged forward and grabbed his arm!
"Buyu, you're Brother Buyu, aren't you!"
"..."
"Why aren't you saying anything, then? Say something!"
"..."
"I heard your voice earlier, and I've already memorized it. Say something if you dare!"
"..."
How could Chen Nian dare speak?
Wouldn't speaking give him away?
Ugh, if I'd known, I wouldn't have shown off earlier and let her hear my voice...
He had thought the girl would forcibly pull off his costume. Instead, Su Jinyu merely hugged Rilakkuma's arm and said with a delighted expression:
"Don't worry, Brother Buyu. I won't force you to come out, but you have to spend my birthday with me tonight!"
"..."
"If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes. Hehe!"
"..."
A strange sight appeared.
A beautiful girl in a black evening gown wandered around the night market, hugging a giant Rilakkuma.
Seeing how happy she was, Chen Nian sighed and could only go along with her.
After wandering around for much of the night, Su Jinyu finally grew tired and pulled Chen Nian down to sit by the roadside and chat. As they chatted, she leaned against him and fell asleep...
On the street at two in the morning, a person and a bear nestled against each other.
Two in the morning.
Chen Nian worked out the timing. Linhai City's world boss would reach its time limit tomorrow morning.
Even now, there had been no notification of a successful defeat...
Forget it. I'll keep this girl company a little longer and hurry back in the morning.
Five in the morning.
Chen Nian took off the Rilakkuma costume and contacted a wealthy woman from Lu City, asking her to drive over and pick up Xiao Qi.
Then he quietly left.
At this hour, it feels like it's already too late to catch a scheduled flight...
Wait, doesn't someone in the guild run an airline and own a private plane? I'll ask him for a ride.
As soon as Chen Nian left,
Su Jinyu immediately "woke up"!
To be precise, she had never truly fallen asleep. She had spent a full three hours pretending to sleep!
Her goal was to make Chen Nian let his guard down!
It was so rare for her to meet the man she loved. How could she possibly waste that time sleeping?
She made a call.
"I want all the surveillance footage from around here. That's right, every angle!"
With so many cameras around, one of them had to have caught him.
"Hmph, don't think wearing a mask means you're safe. This is the age of advanced technology. I'll catch you eventually."
Earlier, Linhai City had been frantically recruiting experts from among the public to take down the world boss together.
Countless extraordinary beings gathered on the plain!
Knights, swordsmen, all kinds of elemental casters, archers, rangers... and powerful fighters with hundreds upon thousands of different special talents had all gathered here!
Before them stood the world boss's enormous black barrier.
There was one entrance, and only one!
A number appeared on the glowing gateway at the entrance: 1000.
As more people entered, the number decreased, meaning only a thousand people could enter!
"Th-this is the world boss..."
Looking at the giant beast sprawled across the plain, then seeing the information above its head, people felt their scalps tingle.
World boss: Mountain-Carrying Demon Turtle (Tier 1, Level 90)
The turtle was roughly a hundred meters long, and its enormous gray-black shell carried a mountain peak that towered into the clouds!
They felt like the tiniest ants in the world, utterly incapable of matching its strength.
"Is... is this really a monster we can defeat?"
"It's huge. It's way too huge!"
"I feel like my attacks wouldn't even count as scratching an itch for it..."
More and more people entered the barrier. Once the main force had finally assembled, they officially began their assault on the world boss.
Inside the barrier, countless extraordinary beings launched attacks at the Mountain-Carrying Demon Turtle.
For a moment, brilliant streaks of light filled the sky.
But neither blades, spears, swords, and halberds nor wind, rain, lightning, and thunder dealt any significant damage to the world boss.
It had not even poked its head out. It remained tucked inside, completely motionless, as though asleep.
After two hours of frenzied attacks, they still saw no results whatsoever.
"Fuck, how are we supposed to fight a monster like this..."
"We've been attacking for so long, and it's had no effect at all. We can't even break through its defenses!"
"We have to fight it even if we can't..."
"If we fail to defeat the world boss within the allotted time, the Blood Moon Calamity will descend on our region early!"
Linhai City's first world boss battle had reached a stalemate.
P.S. The protagonist hiding his identity now is setup for their official reunion later! The upcoming plot is god-tier among god-tier. I guarantee you won't be disappointed!