228: Chapter 228 He said he wanted to reach level 90.

Chen You reappeared in the grand square of Thousand Light City, surrounded by the same bustling noise as before.

He didn't rush to move, his mind beginning to calculate.

The anniversary event only lasted for seven days in total.

If he carried them through a run once a day, with everything accounted for, there were only six chances left.

Even if Chen You was possessed by the God of Luck, setting off fireworks every day and getting Mythic blueprints every time, that would only be six pieces at most.

Three people, six pieces of equipment—it wouldn't even make a full set.

Moreover, he couldn't even wear the dropped equipment, like Warrior plate armor or Archer leather armor, being a cultivator himself.

No matter how he calculated it, he wasn't losing out at all.

He opened his bag, his gaze falling on a pile of bright red cylinders.

[Festival Commemorative Grand Cannon]

[Quantity: 31]

Accompanying those three "hired workers" for one run each day would consume six of them.

With the remaining twenty-five, he could secretly solo the runs.

With over twenty tries, he should be able to complete a set for himself, right?

He suppressed the excitement in his heart and opened the map, just about to start auto-pathing.

A crisp system notification sound rang in his ear.

[Ding! You have a new message. Please check it.]

A bad premonition rose in Chen You's heart as he opened the message.

[Arrow of the Moon]: We're ready and can start anytime.

Immediately after, another system notification appeared.

[Player "Arrow of the Moon" has invited you to join the party.]

Chen You: "..."

He subconsciously looked around. The square was a sea of people; it was impossible to tell who was who.

Yet he had the illusion that those three—Salos, Oro, and this Arrow of the Moon—must be in some corner, staring at him intensely through eight-power scopes.

They were terrified that he, the hen that could lay golden eggs, would sneak off to lay them on his own.

There was no hiding from this.

Chen You sighed and accepted the invitation as if resigning himself to fate.

The familiar four-person party was formed once again.

The party channel was silent for a moment, as if everyone was waiting for Chen You to speak.

It was Oro who lost patience first, his voice—carrying the distinct accent of the Roman God Clan—seeming to sound right by his ear.

[Oro]: immortal path pioneer, are there any other arrangements next?

Chen You's eyelid couldn't help but twitch.

These people really... they really aren't being polite at all!

Was carrying you through one dungeon run not enough? You even want to pry into my private schedule?

He thought for a bit and replied, "No special arrangements."

This was phrased perfectly, meaning "maybe I have things to do, maybe I don't."

But Oro clearly didn't plan on giving up just like that.

[Oro]: It's like this.

He seemed to be weighing his words, trying to make himself sound less opportunistic.

[Oro]: Our Roman God Clan also has an ancient mystical ritual that can briefly gather good luck through special altars and incantations.

[Oro]: I think if we could combine it with your ability, perhaps... there would be unexpected miraculous effects.

Chen You's eyelid twitched again.

Good heavens, he's planning to graft my "metaphysical" luck onto their own ritual?

Their imagination is second to none.

Before he could even reply, Salos's rugged avatar also lit up.

[Salos]: Right, right, right! Our Titan God Clan has one too! Our ritual is simpler, mainly... uh, placing some wreaths around the altar or something. It's definitely no trouble!

*Pfft—*

Chen You almost choked on his own breath.

Placing... wreaths?

Big brother, is your Titan God Clan's ritual that hardcore?

Is this a blessing or a funeral?

He could even imagine the scene: him standing in the middle, surrounded by a circle of wreaths, with Salos and Oro chanting off to the side, praying for God-tier drops.

You can't just shear the wool off one sheep!

This is shearing way too hard!

Chen You felt his temples throbbing.

He really couldn't hold it back and almost typed a string of question marks in the party channel.

These Divine Races, for the sake of equipment, have completely abandoned their dignity.

No, he couldn't keep getting entangled with them.

[Chen You]: Sorry, I just remembered, I need to reach Level 90 before the newbie protection period ends. I'm running out of time.

This reason was flawless.

In any game, "leveling up" was the most valid and unquestionable excuse.

Sure enough, the party channel went quiet.

Salos and Oro stared at the sentence "I need to reach Level 90 before the newbie protection period ends," their brains coming to a halt.

Chen You ignored them and auto-pathed directly to the entrance of the [Ten Thousand Fox Cave] dungeon.

It just so happened that during the anniversary event, all dungeons had experience bonuses, and the gains from running Destruction Mode were terrifyingly high.

Without acknowledging the other three in the party, he entered the dungeon directly.

A few minutes later, Chen You walked out of the [Ten Thousand Fox Cave] and ran over to the [Tomb of Thousand Lights].

After another few minutes, a golden light erupted from him toward the sky, swirling around his body for a long time without dissipating.

The familiar leveling-up effect.

[Ding! Congratulations, you have leveled up to LV23 (Qi Refining Level 6)!]

At the same time, a cold system message popped up in the party channel.

[Party]: Player "Chen You" has leveled up to Level 23.

This message appeared exceptionally jarring in the party channel.

The channel was dead silent.

A full ten-plus seconds passed.

[Salos]: ...

[Arrow of the Moon]: ...

[Oro]: ...

Another few seconds passed.

[Salos]: ???

[Salos]: Just like that... he leveled up??

Salos's words were filled with disbelief.

For people like them at Level 90+, grinding for days in the most dangerous maps wouldn't even increase their experience by 1%.

In their impression, leveling up once in the twenties should take at least half a month, right?

And this guy at Level 22—how long had it been before he leveled up again?

Is this reasonable?

This is not reasonable!

[Oro]: Is the anniversary experience bonus really that terrifying?

Oro also felt deeply perplexed.

Only Arrow of the Moon seemed to have thought of something.

[Arrow of the Moon]: Perhaps... this is his true way of leveling. Destruction Mode and World First Kills both come with massive experience rewards.

Her analysis made Salos and Oro even more silent.

Could it be that when luck reaches a certain level, even grinding experience becomes this easy?

The previous claim about reaching Level 90 by the end of the newbie protection period didn't seem like a joke anymore.

But if he really could do it, then what had they been doing for the past few centuries?

The leaders of the Three Great Divine Races, the three players standing at the peak of this world, all began to doubt their lives.

Looking at the chat logs in the party channel, Chen You had the constant feeling of being voyeuristically watched.

You three top experts, why do you feel like delinquent youths loitering on the street corner?

What's the deal with staring at me all the time?!

Still trying to pry into my intel?

He thought for a moment and slowly typed a line in the channel.

[Chen You]: Um... shouldn't you guys be commanding the first clears for [The Path of the Monarch]?

[Chen You]: You're so free... have you already cleared it?