Chapter 46

On the third day of Qin Wentian's apologies, more than thirty names on the list had been crossed off. Some had forgiven him, some had cursed him out, and some didn't even remember who he was. But regardless, he had at least tried.

But by the fourth day, he encountered his first hurdle.

The thirty-eighth name on the list had the ID "Iron-Blooded Warrior." He was a Warrior player who had once been a member of the Heavenly Temple. Three years ago, Qin Wentian had personally given the order for him to block the entrance to a dungeon belonging to a casual guild. Iron-Blooded Warrior had led his men to block it for three days and three nights, killing the members of that guild until they quit the game. Later, the guild leader deleted their account and never logged on again.

When Qin Wentian found Iron-Blooded Warrior, he was selling equipment in front of the main city's Trading House. Upon seeing Qin Wentian, Iron-Blooded Warrior was stunned for a moment, and then his expression became complicated.

"Guild Leader? How did you end up like this?" Iron-Blooded Warrior looked at the basic white equipment on his body and the mosaic covering him, his voice tinged with a hint of pity.

Qin Wentian lowered his head and said in a low, loli voice, "I've come to apologize. Three years ago, I ordered you to block the entrance to that casual guild's dungeon. It was my fault. I'm sorry."

Iron-Blooded Warrior was silent for a long time, then sighed, "Guild Leader, you don't need to apologize to me. I was your subordinate; I did whatever you told me to do. That was my own choice, I don't blame you."

Qin Wentian shook his head. "No. It was my fault. If I hadn't given the order, you wouldn't have blocked the door. Those people wouldn't have quit the game. This debt is mine to repay."

Iron-Blooded Warrior looked at him with a complicated expression. "Then how do you intend to repay it?"

Qin Wentian pulled a set of Blue equipment from his inventory and handed it to him. It was all he had managed to gather over the past few days; although it wasn't worth much, it was everything he possessed.

"This is just a small token of compensation."

Iron-Blooded Warrior looked at the Blue equipment and gave a bitter smile. "Guild Leader, my current equipment is all Purple-tier and above. I have no use for Blue equipment. You should keep it."

Qin Wentian was stunned. He had forgotten that Iron-Blooded Warrior's current level and equipment were both better than his. They couldn't even look at this meager compensation.

"Then… how do you want me to repay you?" he asked.

Iron-Blooded Warrior thought for a moment and said, "Guild Leader, if you really want to repay your debts, stop coming to me. Go find those people who were forced to quit the game because of you. They need your apology more than I do."

Qin Wentian was silent. Where could he even find those people who had quit? Many of their IDs had turned gray, and they could no longer be contacted.

"I… I will try." He put away the equipment and turned to leave.

Next came the forty-first, the forty-fifth, the fiftieth… Qin Wentian searched for them one by one, apologizing to each one. But the further he went, the harder it became. The remaining people on the list had either quit the game or simply didn't want to see him. A few even blocked him directly, not even giving him a chance to speak.

By the fifth day, Qin Wentian encountered his second hurdle. The sixty-third name on the list was a player with the ID "Little Pastor." This was a Priest player who had once been swindled out of a set of Epic equipment by members of the Heavenly Temple. That set of equipment was something he had spent half a year saving up for; it was his life's work. After being scammed, he posted a thread on the forums accusing the Heavenly Temple, only to be hunted down by members of the Heavenly Temple for three days and three nights, ultimately forcing him to delete his account.

When Qin Wentian found Little Pastor, he was grinding monsters in the wilderness. Upon seeing Qin Wentian, his eyes were full of hatred.

"What are you here for?" Little Pastor asked coldly.

Qin Wentian lowered his head and said in a low, loli voice, "I've come to apologize. In the past, people from the Heavenly Temple swindled you out of your equipment. It was my fault. I'm sorry."

Little Pastor sneered. "Sorry? A simple 'I'm sorry' is enough? Do you know how much time I spent on that equipment? Half a year! A whole half-year! I worked during the day, ran dungeons at night, and didn't even rest on weekends just to save up for it. And then your people scammed me out of it, leaving me with nothing. Can your 'I'm sorry' repay me for half a year of my life?"

Qin Wentian was silent. He knew what a set of Epic equipment meant to an ordinary player. It wasn't about the money; it was about effort, time, and dreams.

"I… I can compensate you." He pulled a piece of Blue equipment from his inventory—the only valuable thing he had left. "Although it's not worth much, I will pay you back slowly."

Little Pastor glanced at the Blue equipment and laughed. "Blue equipment? Are you trying to brush off a beggar? That set of Epic equipment has a market value of at least five million gold coins. And you're trying to compensate me with one piece of Blue equipment?"

Qin Wentian was speechless. His entire net worth combined wasn't even worth fifty thousand gold coins. Five million—how was he supposed to pay that?

"I… I will find a way," he said in a low voice.

Little Pastor looked at him, and the hatred in his eyes gradually turned into disappointment. "Forget it. You don't have to pay me back. I don't even play this game anymore anyway. I only logged on today to see some old friends. You should go; I don't want to see you again."

He turned and left, leaving Qin Wentian standing there alone.

Qin Wentian watched his back, feeling as if his heart were being cut by a knife. He wanted to chase after him, but his legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but not a single word could come out.

He opened his private messages and sent a message to Lin Ye—

[Private Message] Heavenly Temple Qin Wentian: Brother Ye, I can't pay it all back. Some debts… they aren't things I can repay just because I want to.

Lin Ye replied instantly—

[Private Message] Ye: I know. That's why you need to work harder.

Qin Wentian gave a bitter smile—

[Private Message] Heavenly Temple Qin Wentian: How can I work harder? I don't have equipment, I don't have money, and my level is only 30. What can I use to repay them?

[Private Message] Ye: Use your actions. Not all debts need to be repaid with money. Some debts must be repaid over a lifetime.

Qin Wentian stared at the message, stunned. A lifetime?

He remembered the look in Little Pastor's eyes, the sigh from Iron-Blooded Warrior, and all those people who had been forced to quit the game because of him. What they needed wasn't money or equipment; it was an explanation. An acknowledgment that their pain had not been forgotten.

"I understand." He replied, then closed the private message window.

He opened the list and looked at the dozens of names remaining. Some were still online; some had already quit the game. Whether they were there or not, he had to find them. He would find them one by one and apologize to them one by one. Even if they didn't forgive him, even if they cursed him or attacked him, he had to go.

This was his debt, and he had to repay it.

Next came the sixty-fifth, the seventieth, the eightieth… Qin Wentian searched for them one by one, apologizing to each one. Some people forgave him, some cursed him out, and some didn't even remember who he was. But he didn't care; he was simply doing what he had to do.

On the seventh day, he found the ninety-third name on the list. This was a Swordsman player with the ID "Lonely Swordsman," who had once been blocked at a dungeon entrance by members of the Heavenly Temple and killed for an entire day. His level had dropped from 40 to 20, all his equipment had been dropped, and he was ultimately forced to delete his account.

When Qin Wentian found Lonely Swordsman, he was guiding a newbie in the Novice Village. Upon seeing Qin Wentian, he paused for a moment, then smiled.

"Guild Leader Qin? Long time no see."

Qin Wentian lowered his head and said in a low, loli voice, "I've come to apologize. In the past, people from the Heavenly Temple blocked you for a day. It was my fault. I'm sorry."

Lonely Swordsman looked at him, silent for a long time, then said, "Do you know why I was blocked that day?"

Qin Wentian shook his head.

"Because I found a piece of Epic equipment in the dungeon, and your people wanted to steal it. I refused, so they blocked me for a day." Lonely Swordsman gave a bitter smile. "That piece of equipment was a birthday gift from my girlfriend. She worked for three months just to save up enough money to buy that gaming pod. In the end, the equipment was stolen by you people, and she left me."

Qin Wentian was stunned. He hadn't expected there to be such a story behind this incident.

"I'm sorry." He bowed deeply. "I didn't know…"

"There's a lot you don't know." Lonely Swordsman interrupted him. "Do you know how many people your Heavenly Temple bullied, how many dreams you destroyed?"

Qin Wentian was silent. He didn't know. He had never known. He only knew that the Heavenly Temple was the number one guild on the server, that monopolizing materials was profitable, and that suppressing casual players made the guild stronger. He had never thought about what kind of stories lay behind the people he suppressed.

"I… I will repay them," he said in a low voice. "I will repay them over a lifetime."

Lonely Swordsman looked at him, and the hatred in his eyes gradually dissipated. He sighed, "Forget it. It's all in the past. You should go; I don't want to see you again."

Qin Wentian nodded and turned to leave. After he had walked a few steps, Lonely Swordsman called out to him.

"Guild Leader Qin."

Qin Wentian turned back.

Lonely Swordsman looked at him and said, "You look much better now than you did before."

Qin Wentian paused for a moment, then smiled. The loli voice drifted in the wind, "Thank you."

He turned and walked away, his steps much lighter than when he had arrived.

When he returned to the Commoner Supermarket, it was already dark. Fatty Wang was busy behind the counter. Seeing Qin Wentian enter, he greeted him, "Guild Leader Qin, how was today?"

Qin Wentian walked to the counter and placed the list on the table. "Seven left."

Fatty Wang took a look at the list, which was densely packed with names; most of them had been crossed out, leaving only the last seven.

"You've worked hard." He handed Qin Wentian a cup of milk tea. "Brother said that once you finish repaying the debts on the list, he will help you remove the debuff."

Qin Wentian took the milk tea, took a sip, and shook his head. "No need."

Fatty Wang was stunned. "Why?"

Qin Wentian looked at the night sky outside the window and said in a low, loli voice, "This debuff will serve as a reminder. A reminder to never forget the mistakes I once made."

Fatty Wang looked at him, was silent for a long time, then smiled. "Guild Leader Qin, you've really changed."

Qin Wentian smiled as well. "Yeah. I've changed a lot."

He turned and walked upstairs, leaving Fatty Wang alone behind the counter. Fatty Wang watched his back, unable to put into words what he was feeling. The once arrogant and domineering guild leader of the server's number one guild had now turned into a "good person" wearing basic white equipment, covered in mosaics, with a loli voice. This world was truly strange.

Meanwhile, Lin Ye was standing on the top floor of the Commoner Supermarket, looking at the night sky in the distance. Su Qinghan walked up and stood beside him.

"Do you think he can really change?" she asked.

Lin Ye nodded. "He can. He has already changed."

"Then why won't you help him remove the debuff?"

Lin Ye smiled. "He doesn't want to remove it himself. What can I do?"

Su Qinghan was stunned for a moment, then smiled too. "You really are… you've calculated everything."

Lin Ye shrugged. "It's professional, after all."

He turned and walked downstairs, leaving behind a final sentence: "Keep an eye on him. Don't let him go astray again."

Su Qinghan watched his back and shook her head with a smile. This man claimed to be wicked, but his heart was softer than anyone else's.