29: A man's weakness

Not long after the second golden banner in Yunlong City's chat channel disappeared, a third golden banner appeared in the players' line of sight.

Each of these three golden banner displays was more shocking than the last.

Looking at the words "59 seconds" on the golden banner, all the players in Yunlong City erupted into an uproar.

"The Clown player is definitely exploiting a bug! A normal player absolutely could not achieve this insane time of 59 seconds!"

"Holy moly, that's more than four times faster than Yuan Shu. Is this Clown brother even human?"

"It's been so many years since 'universe ol' merged with the Ancestral Star. If this brother isn't exploiting a bug, then I'm willing to call him the strongest player in 'universe ol'!"

"Forget strongest player, I'd believe you if you said he was the founder of 'universe ol' right now. There's definitely something fishy about the Sequence 999 Clown class!"

...At the entrance to the Heavenly Wolf Dungeon.

Under the gaze of thousands of players on the scene, the rankings on the screen changed.

First Place: 59 seconds, Night Ember!

Second Place: 2 minutes 50 seconds, Night Ember!

Third Place: 3 minutes 11 seconds, Night Ember!

Fourth Place: 4 minutes 12 seconds, Yuan Shu!

Breaking the Heavenly Wolf Dungeon record three times in one day—such a situation had never occurred before in all of history.

Absolutely mind-blowing!

Shameless Cao Thief was completely rooted to the spot by now. He rubbed his eyes over and over, confirming the record times on the big screen.

"The boss's score actually dropped to fourth place? Am I dreaming?"

"59 seconds! What kind of ability does that Clown have, to finish the Heavenly Wolf Dungeon in just 59 seconds? This is too fantastical..."

In the sky, Ember Eyes, seated on the back of the Ice Flame Spirit Phoenix, was also in a daze.

She hadn't even fully digested the record time of 3 minutes 11 seconds, and now there was an even more terrifying 59 seconds?

As a former holder of a dungeon record herself, Ember Eyes had considerable understanding of the Heavenly Wolf Dungeon.

She didn't believe any player below level 13 could complete the dungeon in 59 seconds, much less believe a player could be so much faster than Yuan Shu.

Impossible! Utterly impossible!!

There must be some hidden secret behind this... *Bzzz—*

A ripple emanated from the entrance of the Heavenly Wolf Dungeon. Under the heated gazes of the thousands surrounding it, the sinister yet elegant Clown appeared.

The moment Lin Du appeared, Shameless Cao Thief, who had been prepared for a while, "whooshed" to his side.

The anger and disdain from before were gone from Shameless Cao Thief's face. Like an old friend, he very familiarly threw an arm around Lin Du's shoulders.

"Little brother, congratulations on breaking the record three times in a row!"

"This old brother has prepared a feast. Shall we two brothers have a good chat?"

With the various major forces around watching like tigers eyeing their prey, Shameless Cao Thief couldn't stand being there for another moment.

He wanted to use that tiny bit of connection he had with Lin Du to quickly whisk him away from this troublesome place, then find a secluded spot to persuade Lin Du to join the Three Kingdoms... Could the other major forces present fail to see Shameless Cao Thief's intention?

Baili Xuancang walked over with a cold sneer. "Shameless Cao Thief, put away your little schemes. This young brother has no interest in the Three Kingdoms!"

Immediately, Baili Xuancang switched to a gentle expression as he looked at Lin Du.

"Young brother, I presume you've seen the three leaderboards in Yunlong City? Would you be interested in joining the Peak of the Forbidden City, Yunlong City's strongest faction?"

As soon as Baili Xuancang said this, the higher-ups from the other surrounding forces instantly felt despair.

The Three Kingdoms and the Peak of the Forbidden City were the two strongest factions in Yunlong City. With these two making offers, the other factions stood no chance... Both Shameless Cao Thief and Baili Xuancang wore eager expressions, waiting for Lin Du's answer.

However, Lin Du's attention wasn't on either of them at all.

Because, at that moment, Lin Du was staring blankly at the stunningly beautiful female player on the back of the Ice Flame Spirit Phoenix—Ember Eyes!

"No way!!"

"Could it be... such a coincidence?" Lin Du was dumbfounded, his mind completely blank.

Thankfully, the clown mask covered his face. Otherwise, all of Lin Du's secrets would have been exposed right then and there... The most beautiful female player in Yunlong City was none other than Lin Du's fierce wife, Ning Fengya!!

There were tens of billions of players in Yunlong City. Lin Du had never known what Ning Fengya's in-game name was, nor had he ever imagined meeting her this early.

The odds of them meeting were about the same as winning the lottery... Under Ning Fengya's piercing stare, caught off guard, Lin Du couldn't help feeling somewhat nervous and apprehensive.

Alongside the nervousness and apprehension, a strange sense of excitement and a deep, mischievous amusement also sprouted in Lin Du's heart.

Lin Du possessed remarkable mental fortitude and quickly adjusted his state.

If not for the clown mask on his face, Lin Du would have immediately lowered his head and conceded defeat. But this was 'universe ol,' Lin Du's own turf. How could he be afraid of a mere woman?

Suffering her temper in reality was enough; was he going to endure Ning Fengya's crap in the game too?

Beneath the clown mask, Lin Du let out a sinister "hehe" chuckle, his eyes darting rapidly... Beside Lin Du, Shameless Cao Thief and Baili Xuancang heard the lewd laughter coming from under the mask.

Following Lin Du's gaze, the two of them spotted Ember Eyes in mid-air.

Instantly, they both understood.

Shameless Cao Thief slapped his forehead hard, inwardly cursing himself for being foolish.

He had been trying to tempt Lin Du with heavy benefits but had forgotten the thing most attractive to a man.

Shameless Cao Thief immediately leaned close to Lin Du's ear and whispered with a sly grin, "Little brother, the Three Kingdoms faction is full of beautiful female players. I'll arrange some beauties for you right away."

"I'll arrange seven for you, sweet and sassy, each one guaranteed to have amazing skills. You'll be completely satisfied!"

At a moment like this, Baili Xuancang naturally wouldn't fall behind.

Without a word, he directly expressed his stance through action.

He opened his chat list and displayed a series of blood-pumping photos before Lin Du.

Seductive special uniforms, novel poses, sexy slender waists, captivating long legs... Each photo featured a distinctive beauty scoring at least 8.5.

"Little brother! These photos are unedited, no filters, all real people."

"You can pick any you like, until you're satisfied!" Baili Xuancang said triumphantly.

Lin Du swallowed a mouthful of saliva, betraying his weakness.

After taking another couple of glances, he righteously rejected both of them.

"I appreciate your kindness, big brothers, but let's forget about these things. I'm not interested in women."

"I'm sorry, but I have no plans to join a faction for now!"