I opened up the territory database of Heavenblessed's servers and looked at the newly spawned territories. Hero Alliance's first subguild occupied territory number 179, and its coordinates were at the northern part of Dragonbone Mountain Range, near Kalusi Forest.
I quickly searched for the map and entered the local database of Kalusi Forest. I zoomed in on the image and searched for the keyword "path". Suddenly, a line of words entered my eyes — South of Kalusi Forest, at coordinates (3 4892,11092), there is a Bear Den that has been completely mined by a mining player. It leads directly to the other side of Dragonbone Mountain Range, bypassing the impregnable Fortress of the Iron Halberd. This information came from a Seven Star City herbalist, and there's a screenshot to prove it.
… …
After I marked the map, I continued searching for the coordinates of the new territories. I searched for the super guilds of each server, and it didn't take long before the National Guild of Cyan Earth City claimed a Rank 6 territory two days ago. Its coordinates were close to Dragonbone Mountain Range, and it was located at the edge of Dark Water Lake. It would take an hour to cross the lake and reach Dawn City.
My heart sank, and I felt like I was about to suffocate. What the hell is going on? An uncontrollable sense of unease rose from the bottom of my heart.
I didn't sleep a wink for the entire night. I found a total of 37 new territories that were very close to the cities of the China server, and even more frightening was the fact that all of these territories had their own passageways that led directly to the China server. Moreover, these passageways were unknown to the public, and no one would've noticed them if I hadn't searched for them with keywords.
I finally understood that Dragonbone Mountain Range wasn't our natural barrier. As the game progressed, it wasn't like Dragonbone Mountain Range was impassable. In fact, it was riddled with holes, and there were small paths and caves everywhere that could lead to the other side of the mountain range.
… …
Knock knock...
There was a knock on the door. When I opened it, I was greeted by the sight of Lin Yixin and Chaos Moon, both dressed to the nines. Lin Yixin stared at me with her beautiful eyes. "Ah, why are your eyes so red, Little Cheat? Didn't you log out early last night and go to bed?
Did you stay up late again? "
I nodded. "Mn."
I pointed at the world map I had drawn all night and said, "Yiyi, Chaos Moon, take a look at this. I stayed up all night just for this."
"Oh?"
Lin Yixin picked up the paper and looked at it for a while. She exclaimed, "What's this?"
I sighed. If even the incredibly smart Fruit Knife Goddess couldn't see any clues, it was no wonder that our country's servers were still as calm as an ancient well.
I pointed at the small dots on the map and said, "These 37 marked points are all new territories that the super guilds of the foreign servers have taken over in the past week. Moreover, every new territory has a secret path that can pass through the barrier and reach the main city of the China server."
The little beauty shuddered and opened her mouth wide, "Little Cheat, you mean …"
"Yes!"
I nodded slightly and said, "I suspect that the Northern Alliance, Cyan Earth City, Elephant City, Purple Grape City, Greedy Wolf City and more have been secretly communicating with each other. They're planning a grand game of chess, and at the center of the chessboard are the three main cities of the China server. They're conquering one territory after another, and the only one that caught our attention is Flying Flame Desert. It's almost like they're playing a game of chess. All they have to do is place the chess pieces in the required positions and wait for the final blow. Everyone else, just watch this:!"
Lin Yixin slowly leaned against the computer table in astonishment.
Chaos Moon's mouth fell open. "The final blow? Doesn't that mean …"
"Yeah, it's a checkmate, and we're done for!"
I gritted my teeth and said, "But the worst part is that no one is aware of it. What the fuck is going on? What the hell is wrong with the people of the China server …"
Lin Yixin grabbed my hand and said slowly, "Maybe it's because the conflict between you and the VR department has diverted everyone's attention. What should we do now?"
I sucked in a deep breath and said, "We need to tell everyone to be on high alert, or the consequences will be unimaginable. Yiyi, let's go out and eat breakfast. I'll contact Uncle Hot and Sour Noodles later."
"Mn."
… …
I called Zhang Chun's number while we were sitting inside a small restaurant in Bagua City. "Eh? Isn't this Lu Chen?" Zhang Chun said with a laugh.
I smiled back. "Yes, it is. Good morning, uncle."
"Why are you calling me?
You must have something to tell me, right? "
"Mn. Uncle, why don't you gather all the guild leaders of the major cities of the China server for a meeting this morning? Let's meet at Sky Ridge of Dragonbone Mountain Range. I have something very important to tell everyone."
"Something very important?"
Zhang Chun looked a bit hesitant. Clearly, it wasn't a good idea to use my name to gather everyone. After all, I was still a wild player right now. However, Zhang Chun still patted his chest and promised, "Mn. Then let's meet at Sky Ridge at 10 am sharp. I'll make sure that all the important people are present."
I nodded. "Mn. Uncle, I won't take up any more of your time."
"Got it!"
… …
After eating something, I really didn't have much of an appetite. Then, I returned to the hotel with the two girls and logged into the game. So many things had happened recently that we didn't have time to think about anything else at all.
Around 9 am, we departed from the Black Steel Scout Camp and headed toward Sky Ridge.
The Ancient Divine Dragon let out a low roar as it flew toward the top of Sky Ridge. When we reached the top, I immediately put away the divine dragon and sat down on an icy rock with my sword in my arms. The wind was so strong that my cloak fluttered in the wind. I looked like a silent thinker.
Thud!
Not far away, a couple of players climbed to the top of Sky Ridge. They were none other than Warsky, Song of Cloud and Water, and Song of Ice and Fire. Warsky walked up to me and asked in a dissatisfied tone, "I was trying to find a way to grind this morning, Lu Chen. Why did you summon us so early in the morning?"
I replied, "Let's talk when everyone's here!"
"Mn …"
It wasn't long before He Yi, Li Chengfeng, Beiming Xue, and the others arrived as well. A few minutes later, the guild leaders and vice guild leaders of Candle Dragon, Snowy Cathaya, Blazing Hot Lips, Pop Culture, Purple Lily, Peach Garden, Hall of Immortality, and more had arrived. Even the guild leader of Reigning Dragon at the Wild, Amber Eyes, had arrived. He had five million troops under his command, after all.
… …
Hot and Sour Noodles checked the time and said, "It's 10 am already. What is it, Lu Chen? Speak!"
"Mn!"
I sheathed the Purple Ying Sword and slowly walked toward the center of the crowd. I raised my hand, and lines of data appeared on it. The next moment, I waved my arm, and a blue screen appeared in the sky. It was the self-drawn map I had added not long ago, and I had added all the annotations on it. Fans of the book liked to read: Blue Ying Sword
Everyone looked up at the same time, and their faces were filled with astonishment.
Stranger of Three Lifetimes: "Oh, a world map of the Heavenblessed Continent?
What … what's going on? "
He Yi pursed her lips. "Those dots are …"
Warsky muttered, "Holy shit, you didn't call us all the way here just to explain the map of the Heavenblessed Continent to us, did you, Lu Chen?"
… …
I pointed at the map and said, "Look, there are 37 dots at the edge of the map. They are all new territories that were conquered in the past week, and they're all very close to the China server. They're like a cage that has trapped China."
The guild leader of Pop Culture, Lonemoon Ying, said nonchalantly, "So what if they're trapped? We have Dragonbone Mountain Range, Fortress of the Iron Halberd, and Fortress of the White Rose. Plus, there are over a hundred million players in the three main cities.
I turned around and glared at him. "Bullshit!
These 37 territories all have shortcuts that lead directly to the China server. For example, Kalusi's Bear Den and Nation Guardian's Dark Water Lake. I've shared the map with you, so you can confirm the details for yourselves. I've also added the attack routes to each territory, so do you know what it means if they come to a consensus and launch an attack instantly?
This means that close to a billion players will suddenly appear within China's borders. We didn't even have the slightest bit of foresight, so why should the three main cities continue to belong to the Chinese? "
Lonemoon Ying took two steps back, his eyes filled with shock.
Lonemoon Ying wasn't the only one. Everyone present was gaping in shock. Zhang Chun even clenched his fists. "Tch, I... I can't believe I wasn't on guard at all..."
Warsky gritted his teeth. "It does look like they've set up a trap for us..."
… …
At this time, the guild leader of Reverberating Dragon in the Wild, Amber Eyes, sneered. "So what? We can't change. Plus, Lu Chen, you're a wild player. You're not a Chinese player at all. Why should we trust your words?
Hmph, you're occupying a corner of our eastern city wall with hundreds of thousands of trusted Ironhead Wasteland players. Who knows what you're planning? Could it be that you're trying to distract us by saying those words? Or are you trying to occupy a main city of China and claim yourself as the king?! "
I was so angry that I clenched my fists so tightly that they were about to bleed. I punched the glacier next to me, and it instantly shattered into countless pieces. My bloodshot eyes stared at the amber ones. "I didn't sleep for an entire night to gather all this information. Was it all for your mockery?
Amber Eyes, if I want to take over the China server, do you think it's difficult for us to take over a city with our strength?
Do we bleed and sweat to protect the border, is it all for ourselves? "
Amber Eyes gritted his teeth. "Who knows? You may know a person's face, but you can't judge a person's heart. The human heart is the most unpredictable thing. Why should we trust you..."
After saying that, the leaders of the Wild Dragon subguild behind Amber Eyes chimed in, "That's right, why should we trust someone who has left the China server for so long?
Maybe you've been blinded by hatred since you were expelled by the VR department. Maybe you just want to take revenge on the China server. If the three main cities fall, isn't it exactly what you want? You say this is a trap set up by the enemy, but why can't we believe that you're the one who set it up? "
Amber Eyes was full of pride. "Lu Chen, learn to pick a side. I'm afraid you don't even know which side you're on!"
… …
I clenched my fists and let out a long sigh. After that, I leaped onto the back of the Ancient Divine Dragon and looked back at the crowd. I declared coldly, "I, Lu Chen, have done everything I could. The rest is up to you. I don't want to return to a China server like this!"
The Ancient Divine Dragon roared and charged into the curtain of snow.
Zhang Chun looked up, his eyes filled with helplessness and anger.