: Damn! This is the first time I've seen someone get a subordinate!
: It's pretty rare. The White Tower isn't stingy with items or weapons, but it doesn't let its NPCs leave easily.
: And you can tell at a glance that this NPC's level isn't low!
: Erchui's way too lucky!
: It was an SSS-rank instance. Just surviving was a miracle, so what's wrong with giving him a good reward?
: Speaking of which, now that they've claimed their rewards, they're leaving the White Tower, right?
Songbird's people are waiting outside.
Is Zheng Xun really going to join Songbird? Leaving those two hammer blows aside, the strength he showed in the boss stage was far beyond expectations.
: Yeah, a triple kill like that should be enough to put him in the top fifteen of the individual rankings.
Aren't the top powerhouses going to fight over him? Are they just going to stand by and let Songbird snap him up?
: They probably have reservations. Last time Azure Mist used a bronze token to recruit someone who turned out to be a dud. Now they can't even sell him at a discount, and they're about to be stuck with him.
: You mean Huo Ziyan? He's probably under too much psychological pressure. He's still got the strength.
: Whatever the reason, he's finished now.
With the rewards claimed, Little Red Riding Hood's instance had come to a complete end.
The colorful virtual blocks scattered, leaving the survivors standing in an empty hall.
This was the first floor of the White Tower. Aside from a closed gate, there was nothing in it.
That was what the White Tower was like: a pure white tower with no unnecessary adornments.
After the Fourth Calamity descended, many such towers of varying heights had suddenly appeared all over the world. The towers had made all of humanity players, and players could obtain great rewards by entering instances.
But in return, if players lost the game, they had to pay with their lives.
No one knew who had developed the White Tower, why it had descended on Earth, or what its purpose was.
It had simply appeared overnight and changed everything.
Zheng Xun still knew nothing about any of this. Even if he did, he might not have reacted strongly.
The thousand rounds of repeated torment at the start really had changed his personality quite a bit.
"Then let's part ways here."
Zheng Xun looked as though he had just returned from a shopping spree, with Little Red Riding Hood tucked under his left arm and his hammer slung over his right shoulder as he said goodbye to everyone.
Meng Chuang had already passed out from blood loss. Zhong Yu was supporting him, looking thoroughly impatient, while Gu Yuanheng expertly called an ambulance beside them.
Hearing that Zheng Xun was leaving, Zhong Yu called out, "Hey, bro, where do you live? Give me your contact information!"
Zhong Yu's words reminded Zheng Xun of something.
He didn't have a place to stay yet.
But Zheng Xun was the sort to take things as they came. He would worry about it after leaving the instance.
So he replied, "I'll contact you if I get the chance."
His manner was neither warm nor distant, and Xu Li, who had been silently hoping for something at the side, couldn't help feeling disappointed.
Chen Zicheng could see exactly what was on her mind.
"If you want his contact information, be brave."
She patted the girl on the back.
"I... never mind," Xu Li said, shaking her head. "As long as we're in the same district, we'll meet again eventually."
Zheng Xun headed toward the gate. Halfway there, he suddenly lowered his head and met Little Red Riding Hood's round eyes.
Perhaps it was because she had left the decaying environment, but although the NPC's face was still as pale as a corpse's, she didn't look as frightening.
"Say... what will happen to you after we go through this door? I don't have a wristband right now."
"I don't know," Little Red Riding Hood said innocently.
"..."
Zheng Xun's question was soon answered.
The moment he pushed open the door, air rushed in from outside. Little Red Riding Hood and the inflatable hammer turned into particles of data like dust and entered his body.
"Once I buy a wristband, will they automatically be transferred into it...?"
Zheng Xun murmured to himself.
Freed of the two burdens, he rolled his shoulders easily.
Before he could take more than a couple of breaths of fresh air, reporters outside surrounded him.
"Mr. Zheng, how do you feel about surviving an SSS-rank instance?"
"Zheng Xun, are you really joining Songbird?"
"Mr. Zheng, have you ever worked for a guild before?"
Zheng Xun, who had never seen such a scene before, was startled.
Where had all these people come from?
As he stood there at a loss, two tall bodyguards in black pushed through the crowd and shielded him on either side.
"Mr. Zheng, our vice president would like to see you."
"Please come with us."
Zheng Xun nodded, bewildered.
Though he didn't know who the men in black were, it was better than being trapped at the entrance by reporters until he died.
The bodyguards were true professionals. Though it took some effort, Zheng Xun finally squeezed his way out of the crowd.
It was even more exhausting than entering an instance.
He was invited into a black van, and once the door closed, the reporters outside could no longer follow and film him.
The van bearing Songbird's emblem drove away.
Inside, Zheng Xun sat facing Xiao Jun, Songbird's vice president, with the assistants Su Hairong and Cheng Jie seated to either side.
Su Hairong winked her left eye at Zheng Xun, looking charming and playful, while Cheng Jie scowled the whole time, seemingly looking down on Zheng Xun.
Zheng Xun didn't know who they were, but Xiao Jun, sitting in the middle, was obviously the one in charge. He didn't speak, and neither did the other two.
"Hello, Mr. Zheng." Xiao Jun was dressed in a suit and polished shoes, and his smile was like a spring breeze. "This is our first meeting. I'm Xiao Jun, vice president of the Singing Sparrow Guild."
Zheng Xun nodded.
"Hello."
Xiao Jun got straight to the point.
"Mr. Zheng, we've seen your performance in the instance. Your overall abilities are exceptional, and you're exactly the kind of talent our guild urgently needs. Let's speak frankly, Mr. Zheng. I hope you'll join the Singing Sparrow Guild. The contract is already prepared."
Su Hairong handed Zheng Xun a black folder, lightly brushing the back of his hand with her fingers as she withdrew them.
Unfortunately, Zheng Xun was like an iron plate, unmoved by either soft or hard approaches.
He focused on the contract Xiao Jun had given him. Although there were many technical terms he didn't understand yet, he could still tell that the terms were extremely generous. Songbird was showing considerable sincerity.
Zheng Xun rubbed his temples. Although players didn't feel sleepy inside the White Tower, the accumulated fatigue and drowsiness hit him all at once after he left, and he could barely keep going.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the time to sleep.
"Vice President Xiao, there's a lot I don't understand, but even I can see that your terms seem overly generous. This isn't the kind of contract a newcomer should get. If you have any additional requirements, please state them directly."
A trace of appreciation appeared in Xiao Jun's eyes. It seemed Zheng Xun wasn't simply a block of wood. He was clever and perceptive.
"Songbird has only one request. We hope you'll take part in the 'Huaiyin No. 4 Middle School' instance as soon as possible."
"Huaiyin No. 4 Middle School" was the very instance that had nearly wiped out Singing Sparrow Second Team last time.
Vice President Xiao Jun had led the entire second team into what was supposed to be an A-rank instance for farming items, only to trigger a hidden SSS-rank side quest.
That game had caused a major upheaval throughout Songbird. All the members who had watched the livestream, as well as those who had survived, had been deeply traumatized.
"We're assembling a new team to enter Locust Sound, Zheng Xun. I hope you'll lead it."
"Why the urgency?" Zheng Xun sensed something unusual. "Your people were traumatized there. What you should do is stay away from that instance forever."
Xiao Jun's smile faded, and the expressions of Su Hairong and Cheng Jie beside him also grew noticeably somber.
"Because the president's younger sister is trapped in the side quest, and we don't know whether she's alive or dead."