Chapter 22: Ximu Town

  The fog has dispersed.

  The small town that had been sealed for many years reappeared under the sunlight once again, and with the death of the specter, the shadows that had bound them also dissipated.

  Rod sheathed his long sword and gazed at the pile of white powder on the ground in front of him, which was left behind by the shadow. Under the sunlight, it emitted a soft glow. Rod fell silent for a moment, then squatted down and picked up a semi-transparent, milky-white gemstone from among them.

  Soul Core

  It's not surprising that BOSS-level creatures drop Soul Cores, as being qualified to be a BOSS-level creature means they possess a certain degree of powerful magic. The accumulation over the years makes it easier for their bodies to condense Soul Cores compared to ordinary magical beasts. Now, this has become Rod's spoils of war.

  But Rode didn't waste too much time on these things, he hastily tidied up and turned around, walking towards the entrance of the square with a somewhat tired pace. Although his battle with the shadow hadn't consumed too much physical strength, it had been extremely exhausting mentally. Although Rode's face didn't reveal any expression, his slightly heavy footsteps still showed this.

  As Rod's figure reappeared, Lije and Mais finally breathed a sigh of relief. They rushed forward, anxiously inquiring about his situation. However, unexpectedly, Rod's emotions seemed not to be very high. He simply responded flatly with a few sentences, then changed the subject, not wanting to talk more.

  Lilith and Mais exchanged a curious glance at Rod's behavior, but they didn't ask any more questions. They could tell that Rod's mood wasn't very high, although they didn't know what had happened when he faced the specter in the dense fog. It was clear, however, that Rod didn't intend to discuss this topic further.

  Lijie is a clever and agile girl, Mais is also an experienced businessman. Since Luo De's mood is not good, they are very sensible to shut their mouths and stop asking about this topic.

  But in fact, the doubts about the shadow did not linger in their minds for too long, because soon they would focus their attention on another thing - they were finally going to leave this haunted place!

  To be honest, from the airship crash to the three people walking out of the mountain pass was only two or three days, but because of the hardships on this road, they all felt as if they had passed through dozens of days of long and dangerous forests, sudden attacks, strange towns, and all these invisible pressures made people feel a little breathless.

  It was precisely because of this that when the three saw the small town at the foot of the mountain, even the normally calm Rode showed a relieved expression, not to mention the fat merchant who was excited like he had escaped from death and the excited Lijie.

  Xī Mù Town is located at the foot of the Pà Fēi Dé mountain range, in a border area, and is a very peaceful place. In the game, this has always been a gathering place for new players due to its proximity to the Dusk Forest. Luó Dé had also stayed here for a period of time in the past, so he was naturally extremely familiar with every nook and cranny of this place. He could even call out the names of most people here off the top of his head —— however, as he walked along the quiet streets, looking at those characters who originally belonged to the game but had now transformed into living, breathing humans, Luó Dé's mood was still somewhat strange.

  Although there were still many things to do, now a soft and comfortable bed and delicious food were their top priority. After filling their stomachs at the inn in the small town, the three of them couldn't wait to dive into the soft bed and soon fell into a deep sleep.

  When Rod opened his eyes, it was already after noon on the second day.

  The soft and warm sunlight outside the window shines through the wooden window frame onto the floor, bringing a comfortable and lazy atmosphere.

  "Ah..."

  Roth let out a sigh, stretched out his hand and carefully examined the wound on it, while moving his body slightly. The left side of his chest was still throbbing with pain, pulling Roth's somewhat fuzzy consciousness back to reality.

  This is not a dream.

  For the first time, Luo De had a real sense of living in this world.

  The past few days of chaotic and perilous life gave him a vague sense of unreality, and several times Rode woke up from his dreams, thinking he was still dreaming, those battles, those monsters only appeared in the reflection of his subconscious after multiple blows. But now, when danger has passed and peaceful life reappears before his eyes, this real and tangible feeling becomes even stronger.

  So what should I do?

  "Knock knock knock."

  A slightly low knocking sound came over, interrupting Rode's thoughts. He raised his head and looked towards the door.

  "Please come in."

  As the door creaked open with Rude's voice, a blonde girl walked in, carrying clean bandages and a basin of clear water. Seeing Rude sitting on the bed, the girl first showed a gentle and lively smile before opening her mouth to ask.

  "Mr. Luo De, how is your body?"

  "It's okay, no problem."

  Facing the girl's concern, Rod nodded slightly in response. Although his expression was not very enthusiastic, Liche seemed to have already gotten used to Rod's reactions, so she just smiled lightly and didn't say anything else before coming over to Rod's side to start preparing for changing the bandages.

  As he gazed at the girl who lowered her head, Rode also smiled wryly in his heart. In fact, he wasn't someone who didn't want to show more enthusiasm, putting on a poker face was meaningless, and he had already passed the age of pretending to be cool and handsome, which wasn't interesting at all.

  However, Rod had no way to change this due to his deeply ingrained habit - when he was still very young, because of this face similar to that of his sister, he was often ridiculed by his friends and classmates as "looking like a girl", which for a man is clearly not a compliment. Rod has always been very self-conscious about his appearance, so when entering the Dragon Spirit Continent, he did not choose the advanced "scan rebirth" technology like many players, but instead chose the game's built-in character model. At that time, young Rod had no way to fight back, so he could only pretend to be cool and rarely show a smile to prove that he was a man, not a weak woman.

  This is a phase that everyone will experience, and as Rod grew older, he was no longer constrained by such trivial matters. Unfortunately, he soon discovered that this had become a habit, and there was no way to change it. Furthermore, after becoming the leader of the strongest guild in the Dragon Soul Continent game, he had to choose a calm and introverted demeanor to lead and govern the guild, and now that his personality has taken shape, it's not easy to change again.

  But these are just minor issues.

  The pain on his wound brought Rod back to his senses, and as he looked at the girl gently wiping the scar on her chest, he remembered something else.

  "Lily."

  "What's up, Mr. Rhodes?"

  "What's your plan next?"

  When Luode asked this question, the girl's body trembled slightly, and her hands also paused for a moment. Then, she let out a light sigh and lowered her head in resignation.

  "To be honest, I'm not very clear either, Mr. Rod."

  "Where is your companion? Don't you have a place to return to?"

  "Even if I go back, there's only me left now..."

  Lijie's tone was somewhat subdued at this point.

  "And also, the mercenary group is about to disband too."

  So that's how it is.

  After hearing Lijie's account, Luo De finally understood her situation.

  In the Dragon Soul Continent, mercenary groups are divided into three levels. The lowest level is a mercenary team, usually consisting of five or six adventurers as a group, with no more than ten people at most. This organization is very loose and has no special regulations. As long as it is registered with the Mercenary Association, anyone can organize such a small team.

  And next is the mercenary group, with a minimum of more than ten people. Compared to those casual and scattered mercenary teams, the mercenary group has already entered a regular track. They not only have to fill out regular forms and report to the Mercenary Association but also receive some help from the Mercenary Association, and even have their own base.

  And further up are the mercenary guilds, with a membership of over 100 people. These mercenary guilds not only have strong strength, but also have their own bases and fortresses, and even receive direct support from official or commercial organizations. Some larger mercenary guilds even have their own territories and cities, and their influence is also quite prominent.

  The class division of these mercenary groups is not just reflected in their strength and reputation, but also affects the assessment of their missions. A mercenary team cannot receive guild-level tasks, even if they want to, will be directly rejected by the Mercenary Association, and even if they complete the task, they will not be recognized - of course, ordinary mercenary teams do not have the strength to complete guild-level tasks anyway.

  Although the mercenary corps and guilds enjoy many privileges, they are not without pressure - the Mercenary Association will score them based on the danger and completion of the tasks taken by each group. If the task is completed within a year, if the cumulative score is insufficient, the Mercenary Association will forcibly disband those mercenary groups that have not reached the passing line, even if they are mercenary guilds, which will be downgraded to mercenary corps.

  Lilith's gloomy expression was also related to this. The mercenary group she belonged to originally had only a dozen or so people, a small-scale organization. Now, due to this mission, only she remained as the sole survivor, and even the team leader had died. As a result, the mercenary group could no longer be sustained. Although it was still spring and there was a long time until the end of the year, Lilith alone couldn't keep the mercenary group going. Moreover, as a spirit master, she didn't have any combat power, so even if she wanted to do something on her own, it would be impossible. From the current situation, Lilith's mercenary group could only disband. However, with her unique auxiliary occupation as a spirit master, it wouldn't be difficult for the girl to join another team.

  But now it seems Lijie doesn't seem to have any intention of leaving.

  "Don't you want to leave?"

  Faced with Rode's inquiry, the girl nodded very affirmatively.

  "Yes, Mr. Rhode, after all they were the first to take me in and here I have a relationship with everyone like family...I really don't want this mercenary corps to disappear."

  At this point, Lijie's eyes turned red, but she bit her lip and didn't waver.

  "They have left, at least...at least I hope they are still working hard to prove that they can stay."

  "But judging from the current situation, if you can't find enough manpower, the disbandment of the mercenary group is only a matter of time."

  "Yes."

  Lijie did not shy away from this point, she was also very clear about where the problem lay, however, the girl did not intend to give up.

  "But I still don't want to give up, Mr. Rodd. Just as you said before, since I'm alive, I must do something meaningful, although I don't know what extent I can achieve now, but I still hope to try."

  Looking at the girl's firm expression, Rode suddenly thought of an idea. He fell silent for a moment before speaking up.

  "In that case, I have a proposal."

  "What proposal, Mr. Rhodes?"

  When Lisha heard Rude's words, she hastily raised her head and looked at him nervously. Although she had only been in contact with Rude for a few days, his vast knowledge and incredible strength had left a deep impression on her. The Wind Snake, Silver Wolf, and Dark Ghost were all monsters that Lisha had never seen or even heard of before. Not to mention herself, Lisha was certain that many mercenaries probably hadn't encountered these creatures either, but Rude seemed to know their weaknesses and habits like the back of his hand, which was simply unimaginable. She didn't have the leisure to speculate about Rude's true identity like Mace did; among adventurers, it wasn't necessary to know who someone really was, as long as you knew they were very powerful, that was enough.

  Although Lijie thought she had made enough mental preparation, Rode's next sentence still made her stare with wide eyes and speechless.

  "If you're willing, hand over the mercenary group to me."