Chapter 117 - 91: Global Upheaval, Announcing the Land of Mist

Chapter 117: Chapter 91: Global Upheaval, Announcing the Land of Mist

"Huh???" Shen Xing looked at her, astonished.

Xu Jiayi froze for a second, realizing her words could be misinterpreted. Her face instantly flushed red. "What are you thinking? I said I’d make you some instant noodles to eat!"

"I wasn’t thinking anything weird. I’m just surprised you can cook," Shen Xing said with an innocent expression.

"Hmph, who are you looking down on?" Xu Jiayi snorted. "I cook all the time at home, you know. Even my parents love my cooking."

"But there aren’t many ingredients here, so I can only whip up some simple instant noodles."

Shen Xing nodded and smiled. "Alright, then I’ll have to try Chef Xu’s handiwork."

She shot Shen Xing a look, stood up from the sofa, and walked straight toward the kitchen.

Since they had already decided to buy the house, the kitchen was fully stocked with all sorts of pots, pans, and seasonings, ready to be used.

A short while later, the crisp sound of a spatula hitting a pan, along with waves of the distinctive aroma of instant noodles, drifted out from the kitchen.

After about ten minutes, Xu Jiayi came out carrying a large bowl of instant noodles and handed it to Shen Xing.

It actually looked quite good. It was topped with a sprinkle of scallions and a fried egg, cooked to a perfect golden brown.

Shen Xing took a bite and praised her sincerely, "This is great. The fried egg is cooked just right. It’s delicious."

Xu Jiayi verbally replied, "It’s alright, I guess," but the corners of her mouth couldn’t help but curl up slightly.

Then, she turned around, went back into the kitchen, and came out with a large pot.

The pot was filled to the brim, packed with the contents of at least five or six bags of instant noodles.

Then, right in front of Shen Xing, she started to wolf it all down.

Shen Xing didn’t pay it much mind and continued eating the noodles in his own bowl.

The sound of the two of them slurping their noodles filled the living room, creating a surprisingly cozy, domestic atmosphere.

But by the time he had finished his bowl, drinking even the last of the broth, Xu Jiayi was still hunched over, battling away.

She had already polished off nearly half of that huge pot of noodles and showed no signs of stopping.

Shen Xing’s eyelids twitched as he watched. ’This woman can really eat.’

Xu Jiayi noticed him staring and looked up, a stray noodle still dangling from the corner of her mouth. "Are you not full? Want me to share some of mine with you?"

"Uh... no, thanks." Shen Xing shook his head and asked, a little baffled, "You’re eating so much. Aren’t you afraid you’ll burst?"

"Nope, this is my normal appetite," Xu Jiayi said with a SLURP, continuing, "I don’t know why, but ever since I started playing that game, my appetite has gotten huge."

Shen Xing narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, his gaze sweeping over her slightly bulging stomach.

Xu Jiayi noticed his gaze and subconsciously tugged at the hem of her t-shirt. "It might be because I was too weak before. Plus, I’ve eaten a lot of fruit recently, so my body is going through a second growth spurt and needs a lot of Energy."

"But don’t worry, I went to the hospital for a check-up. My body is perfectly normal."

Hearing this, Shen Xing didn’t press the issue.

Xu Jiayi lowered her head and proceeded to polish off the entire pot of noodles until it was sparkling clean.

Full and satisfied, she let out a contented burp, then gathered the bowls and chopsticks and took them to the kitchen to wash.

About three or four hours later, Qin Lang finally returned, holding an umbrella.

"Whoa, holy crap! Guess what I just saw on my way here?"

He said with a look of utter amazement as he closed his umbrella, "Just now, on the street, a huge cloud of gray fog suddenly billowed out, and a horde of Dark Goblins emerged from it."

"There were a ton of them, armed with spears and pikes, and they were just wildly stabbing at passing cars."

"A lot of the drivers were scared shitless. They just slammed on the gas and sent a whole bunch of goblins flying!"

"But luckily, a team from the Anomaly Handling Bureau arrived quickly and gave those goblins a physical exorcism."

He said it all in one breath, his eyes still shining with excitement.

The other two listened, a flash of surprise on their faces as well.

"So a large patch of gray fog just appeared directly? No players died nearby?" Shen Xing asked.

"Nope," Qin Lang replied with certainty. "I saw the Fog appear out of thin air with my own eyes. There was no one around at the time."

"And there were a lot of witnesses this time. It’ll probably be on the news tomorrow."

Shen Xing was silent for a moment, then said in a serious tone, "Forget about the news. You two should head back home as soon as you can."

"Huh? Why?" Qin Lang asked, confused.

"There’s something wrong with this rain. If these monster invasions get worse, the Anomaly Handling Bureau alone probably won’t be able to handle it."

Hearing this, the other two also realized something, and their expressions changed slightly.

After all, unlike Shen Xing, they weren’t all alone in the world.

They both had family and friends.

If these anomalous events really started breaking out on a large scale, maybe even in their own neighborhoods, and the Anomaly Management Bureau couldn’t get there in time, it would be a huge problem.

As Pioneers, they could summon Soldier Types from the game to fight, making them some of the few people who could stand against these monsters.

After that, the three of them didn’t talk much more.

When the moving company arrived, Qin Lang quickly directed the workers to move Shen Xing’s belongings and luggage into the house.

Then he hurriedly drove Xu Jiayi home before rushing back to his own place.

And just like that, Shen Xing’s move was over.

There was no flashy ceremony, no housewarming party.

But that was fine by him; it saved him a lot of trouble.

Shen Xing wheeled himself around the first floor of his new home to get familiar with it, then took the elevator to the second floor.

He picked a random bedroom and made the bed.

After finishing all that, he ordered some takeout.

Then he put his glasses back on and entered the game.

VMM...

His vision shifted. The waves of warmth from the Campfire were reassuring.

Nothing much had changed in the territory today.

The Soldier Types who were training continued to train, those absorbing Soul Stones continued to absorb Soul Stones, all constantly improving themselves.

Blood Roar, however, handed over all the loot dropped from the monsters killed today to Shen Xing.

Shen Xing mulled it over. ’I should get a Beastman Totem from the trade channel sometime soon so Blood Roar can also advance to the Extraordinary rank.’

After all, he was already Level 9 and could have broken through long ago.

Next, Shen Xing used today’s Sacrificial Evolution opportunity to raise the Dual-Axe Orc, Dahou, to One-Star Boss rank.

In the process, he also activated a Skill: Flying Axe Vortex.

It could summon several flying axes to rotate around him, dealing cutting damage to enemies within a five-meter radius. It was quite a decent skill.

After taking care of all that, Shen Xing absorbed Soul Stones for a little while longer before logging off.

He lay on the large bed in his new home, scrolling through news on discussion forums.

The discussions were all about the heavy rain and the strange monsters that had appeared in the Fog.

Shen Xing watched for a while, listening to the sound of the rain outside and the crashing waves of the river, and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Deep in the night, the rain grew heavier, eventually turning into a downpour.

The vast majority of citizens were holed up in their homes, completely unaware of the changes happening outside.

But within the curtain of rain, groups of fully armed personnel in black uniforms were moving through the streets and alleys.

They held special devices in their hands, the screens of which showed a radar pattern constantly scanning.

Whenever abnormal Energy appeared in an area, a red dot would show up on the screen.

They would then rush over at top speed to eliminate the monsters emerging from the Fog one by one.

...

...

「Meanwhile, in a conference room somewhere in the Celestial Beauty Country.」

A group of middle-aged and elderly men in formal suits sat around a long table, every one of them with a grim expression.

The large screen on the wall displayed a map of the Celestial Beauty Country, with more than a dozen cities marked by flashing red circles.

A resolute-looking middle-aged man in a black suit was the first to speak. "Abnormal rainfall has occurred across the territories of multiple kingdoms in the Land of Mist, leading to large-scale monster uprisings."

"According to investigations by the Master Level experts we dispatched, it’s highly likely that an ancient being from the Sealed Lands has awakened, causing the abnormal Energy in the Land of Mist to skyrocket."

"And in the real world, a total of more than a dozen cities, including Han City, Jiang City, Baiyun City, and Shen City, have experienced simultaneous rainfall."

"This rain shows signs of intensifying and could very well develop into an anomalous event that covers the entire Celestial Beauty Country, or even the whole world."

The atmosphere in the conference room grew increasingly heavy.

Another, younger man spoke up. "Right now, numerous Fog leak points have appeared in many cities. Incidents of monsters harming people are happening one after another. The Anomaly Handling Bureau is already overwhelmed."

"Shouldn’t we dispatch more manpower to maintain social stability?"

"These monsters aren’t the most pressing problem," someone said, shaking their head. "Post bounties and double the contribution points. The Pioneers will be scrambling to take on these missions."

"What we need to worry about now is that this anomalous event is causing a massive invasion of monsters into reality."

"I’m afraid... it’s no longer possible to keep the existence of that other world a secret."

The conference room fell silent once more.

This was indeed a grave problem. After all, the scope of this incident was too wide, and there were too many witnesses.

The public isn’t stupid; they’ve definitely started to suspect something.

If we remain silent and do nothing, it might trigger severe social unrest.

"Since we can’t hide it, let’s just announce it."

The white-haired old man sitting at the head of the table, who had been meditating with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.

Everyone present was startled once again.

But after a moment’s thought, they felt a sense of relief.

"That makes sense," one person said with a nod. "As the ancient beings in the Sealed Lands awaken one after another, similar incidents will only become more frequent. We must let the public prepare in advance."

"I agree," another middle-aged man nodded. "It’s about time. We’ve been preparing for decades, accumulating a vast amount of research, all for this day."

"The technical department has already analyzed the complete method for absorbing Soul Stones. Even ordinary people can strengthen their bodies by absorbing them."

"Furthermore, after more than a decade of financial maneuvering, we’ve managed to suppress the prices of items from the game. Even ordinary families can afford them."

"The conditions are finally right for a public announcement."

The others nodded one by one, their expressions growing resolute.

"In that case, prepare for a press conference tomorrow. I will handle it personally."

The old man at the head of the table made the final decision.

Late that night, all major media outlets and websites received an urgent notice of the highest priority.

...