Chapter 50: Hundreds of Millions Spent on Game Gaming Go Down the Drain; Qin Wentian Angrily Smashes Twenty Game Pods

The night Qin Wentian finished paying the fifty million gold coins, he sat alone on the stone steps at the entrance of Commoner Supermarket, staring blankly at the main city's night scenery. Fatty Wang handed him a cup of milk tea; he took it and took a sip. It was sweet, but his mouth was filled with bitterness.

He opened his character panel and looked through it from beginning to end.

ID: Heavenly Temple Qin Wentian. Level: 35. Equipment: A full set of white-tier gear. Only ten million gold coins remained in his bag—the last of his savings after selling off his assets. The guild channel was empty, and the avatars of the last few core members were gray; they hadn't been online for several days. He tried sending a message: "Is anyone there?" No one replied. There was only deathly silence.

Qin Wentian stared at that empty guild channel, suddenly finding it laughable. The Heavenly Temple he had spent over a hundred million real-world currency to build, the number one guild in the server with thousands of people, now only had him left as a commander without an army.

He remembered when he first founded the guild three years ago, there were only five people. Himself, Po Jun, Ling Tian, Kuang Zhan, and Fa Shi. The five of them had squatted in the Novice Village square, not even having a decent guild territory. Back then he said, "Brothers, one day, I will make Heavenly Temple the number one guild in the server." Po Jun smiled and said, "Guild Leader, I believe in you." Ling Tian patted his chest and said, "Guild Leader, I'm with you all the way." Kuang Zhan and Fa Shi also nodded.

Later, they really did it. Heavenly Temple became the top guild on the server, with thousands of people lining up to join. Standing on the top floor of the guild territory, looking down at the dense crowd below, he felt like the king of the entire server. Back then, he thought that as long as he had money, he could buy anything. Levels, equipment, guilds, people's hearts—everything could be bought.

But what about now? Po Jun was gone, Ling Tian had quit, and Kuang Zhan and Fa Shi had deleted their accounts. A guild that once had thousands of people didn't even have someone to talk to now.

Qin Wentian stood up, threw the milk tea cup into the trash, and walked out of Commoner Supermarket. He walked aimlessly through the streets of the main city, passing the Trading House, dungeon entrances, and material shops. These places used to be Heavenly Temple's territory, but now they all had new owners. Casual players were laughing, playing, and scrambling to buy cheap materials; no one cared about him, the former "Leader of the Number One Guild in the Server."

When he reached the old site of Heavenly Temple, he stopped. The former guild territory had turned into a ruin, with a system reclamation notice posted on the gate, and the Heavenly Temple flag on the wall torn to a mere fragment. He pushed open the iron gate and walked in; the hall was empty, with only a few pillars still standing. Shards of tables and chairs used for meetings were scattered on the floor, and the plaque he had personally written back then still hung on the wall—'Number One Under Heaven.'

Qin Wentian looked at that plaque and suddenly laughed. As he laughed, tears began to fall. He crouched on the ground, covering his face, crying like a dog. When he founded the guild three years ago, he never imagined it would end like this. He thought Heavenly Temple would exist forever, that it would always be number one. He thought money could buy everything, could buy forever.

But now he knew—money couldn't buy hearts, couldn't buy trust, couldn't buy forgiveness. He had spent over a hundred million real-world currency, and all he had bought was a pile of data and an empty guild channel.

After crying for a long time, he stood up, wiped his tears, logged out of the game, and took off his helmet. The room was dark, with only the indicator lights of the gaming pods flickering. He sat in his chair, looking at that row of gaming pods—twenty in total, arranged neatly against the wall. He had bought these for Heavenly Temple, one for each team member. Twenty people, twenty pods, costing over a million. Now, these pods were all empty.

Qin Wentian stood up and walked to the first gaming pod. A note was stuck to the cover—"Po Jun." He remembered how Po Jun looked when he first entered the game, excited like a child, running around the square and shouting, "Guild Leader, this game is too realistic." He reached out, tore off the note, and crumpled it in his hand.

The second pod was labeled "Ling Tian." Ling Tian was the earliest member he recruited; he had great skills, didn't talk much, and fought wherever he was told. Ling Tian never asked why about the tasks he was given, only saying, "Yes, Guild Leader." The third pod, "Kuang Zhan." Kuang Zhan was the fiercest warrior he had ever seen, capable of tanking the damage of half a raid by himself. Every guild war, Kuang Zhan was the one charging at the very front. The fourth pod, "Fa Shi." Fa Shi was a magic-type damage dealer ranked in the top ten of the server, able to one-shot a whole area with a single skill. He had spent a fortune to poach Fa Shi; at the time, the forums were full of posts cursing him.

The fifth, the sixth, the seventh... Qin Wentian walked past them one by one, tearing off the notes one by one. Every note he tore felt like a cut to his heart.

When he reached the eighteenth pod, he stopped. A note was stuck to the cover—"Qin Wentian." This was his pod. He had sat in this chair for three years, fought for three years, and won for three years. But now as he sat here, he only felt tired. Not physically tired, but heart-weary.

He reached out and tore off the note, clenching it in his palm. Then he raised his foot and kicked the gaming pod. The pod door dented inward, and the indicator light went out. He kicked again, and the pod body tilted. Another kick, and it fell. He kicked them one by one, like he was possessed. After finishing the first, he kicked the second; after the second, the third. Twenty gaming pods, not a single one left, all kicked over by him.

The room was a mess, with fragments scattered everywhere. Qin Wentian stood in the middle of the wreckage, panting heavily, tears flowing again. He had spent over a hundred million real-world currency, bought twenty gaming pods, and built the number one guild in the server. Now it was all gone.

He slumped onto the floor, pulled out his phone, and opened the forums. The forums were full of posts about him—some called him the "Server's Number One Sucker," some called him "Kai the Leek," and some even turned his miserable state into memes. Looking at those posts, he suddenly wasn't angry anymore. Because what they said was the truth.

He really was a sucker, really was a leek, really was a fool. Spending over a hundred million real-world currency to buy a lesson—this lesson was too expensive. But at least—he had learned. He learned that money isn't everything, learned that one shouldn't be too arrogant, and learned that bullying others comes with a price.

Qin Wentian turned off his phone and lay on the floor, staring at the ceiling. There was a light on the ceiling; the bulb had burned out and was flickering intermittently. He stared at that light, his mind filled with the things Lin Ye had said.

"You're not a bad person, you just took the wrong path."

"Some debts cannot be paid off with money. They take a lifetime to repay."

"What you're doing now is right."

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Tomorrow, he would go to the Novice Village again to help newbies grind mobs. This was the path he had chosen, and he didn't want to look back.

At this time, Lin Ye was standing on the roof of Commoner Supermarket, looking towards Qin Wentian's direction in the distance. Su Qinghan walked up and stood beside him.

"He smashed twenty gaming pods," Su Qinghan said.

Lin Ye nodded. "I know."

"Aren't you going to talk to him?"

Lin Ye shook his head. "No need. He needs to vent. Once he's vented, he'll be fine."

Su Qinghan looked at him and couldn't help asking, "Do you think he can really let go?"

Lin Ye thought for a moment and said, "He can. Because he has already found what he wants to do."

"What is it?"

Lin Ye pointed at the distant Novice Village. "Helping people. Look at him; when he's helping newbies grind mobs, he smiles much more happily than when he was the Guild Leader."

Su Qinghan smiled. "You really are... seeing through everyone completely."

Lin Ye shrugged. "It's my profession."

He turned to go downstairs, leaving behind a sentence: "Bring him a cup of milk tea tomorrow. He likes it sweet."

Su Qinghan looked at his back and shook her head with a smile. This man, while claiming to be unscrupulous, was softer-hearted than anyone.

Meanwhile, Qin Wentian was lying in the middle of that wreckage, staring at that flickering light. The bulb flickered a few more times and finally went out completely. The room was pitch black.

He closed his eyes, but a smile curled at the corner of his mouth. Tomorrow would be a new day. He was going to the Novice Village to help newbies grind mobs. This was the path he had chosen, and he would keep walking it.