303: Chapter 303 Quiet down! Listen to the God of Travel!

Chen You stood in the center of the square.

The surroundings were bustling with noise. The sounds of peddling and shouting for parties intertwined, piercing the eardrums.

This was the real Cangxing City.

There was no sign of the Star Sea King's projection.

That Mythic-grade BOSS, covered in bumps on its head, had completely evaporated after entering the portal.

Just as Chen You was hesitating, a crisp notification sound rang out.

[System Notification: You have arrived at Cangxing City.]

[Main Quest "Shadow of the Snowy Region" updated: Head to Cangxing City (Completed).]

[Current Stage: Visit the Cangxing City Lord.]

[Quest Description: The disappearance of the guide Mountain Stone Fault might just be an accident, but the hidden storm in Cangxing City has already begun to brew.]

[Head to the City Lord's Mansion and find City Lord Sander; he might know the secrets regarding the Star Sea King and the ancient ruins.]

Chen You closed the quest notification.

The original process should have been following Mountain Stone Fault's RV and arriving here after enduring the wind and snow.

Instead, the RV crashed, he tore monsters apart with his bare hands, beat up the BOSS, and forcibly crossed map nodes to drop directly into the main city square.

He took out the [dilapidated astral guide plate].

Spiritual power flooded in, but the needle remained pinned in place, motionless.

Chen You curled his finger and tapped twice on the dial.

No reaction.

"This piece of junk, it plays dead once we actually get here," Chen You grumbled internally.

The guide plate was a key item for triggering the Legendary-grade quest [Stars Sinking into the Sea], and it likely had something to do with the Star Sea King.

The lack of reaction now likely meant that the conditions for triggering the next part of the plot had not yet been met.

Or perhaps, the Star Sea King's projection had hidden in a special area that shielded perception.

Chen You stuffed the guide plate back into his backpack, preparing to scout the way to the City Lord's Mansion first.

He had just taken half a step when he stopped.

Three meters to his left, an Assassin player wearing tattered leather armor with over a dozen bottles of red potions laid out before him was staring intently at him.

The Assassin player's gaze moved from Chen You's face to the shimmering [moyuan star river robe] on his body, then back to his face.

His eyes grew wider and wider, and his mouth hung open wide enough to fit a fist.

Chen You's heart skipped a beat.

"Holy crap..."

The Assassin player suddenly stood up and kicked over his potion stall.

Red potions spilled all over the ground, but he was completely oblivious, pointing at Chen You and letting out a voice-cracking scream.

"God You! A live God You!"

This shout was incredibly piercing.

The originally noisy square fell into a brief, dead silence.

The next second, the entire square boiled over.

"Where? Where? Where is God You?"

"Holy crap! It really is that Star River Robe! It's him!"

"Aaaaah! God You! Look at me! I'm your dog!"

Whoosh.

A massive crowd of players swarmed forward like zombies released from their cages.

Chen You's eyelid twitched wildly.

He had underestimated his fame among the player base.

A Berserker, two and a half meters tall and covered in black hair, rushed at the front, holding a blood-stained giant axe.

"God You! Are you taking disciples? I can tank, I can fight, and I can even warm the bed!"

The Berserker roared in a coarse voice, his bull-like eyes wide and filled with fanaticism.

Chen You quietly took half a step back.

Warm the bed? With your physique pressing down, even a Qi Refining Eighth Layer Cultivator like me would end up with broken bones.

"God You, ignore that brute!" a sweet, delicate voice squeezed in.

It was a shapely female player wearing a revealing mage robe, pushing forward desperately.

"God You, add me as a friend! I'm a dance student, I know all the positions!"

Chen You remained expressionless.

"Everyone, move aside!"

A loud shout rang out.

Several players wearing uniform guild outfits pushed through the crowd.

"Hello, God You, I am the Vice Guild Leader of the Proud World Guild." The newcomer approached with a face full of smiles, rubbing his hands together.

"Our guild wants to hire you as an Honorary Elder with a high salary; name your price. You won't have to do anything every month, just lend us your name..."

"Get lost! What kind of trash is Proud World? You think you're worthy of recruiting God You?" someone from another guild immediately started cursing.

The scene instantly became chaotic.

Chen You was caught in the middle, feeling like his ears were about to explode.

He took a deep breath and raised his right hand, palm down.

It meant: Stop arguing, be quiet.

Seeing this, the Berserker player in the front row suddenly burst with a dazzling light in his eyes.

He turned around directly, spreading his thick arms like a wall of flesh to block the surging crowd in front of Chen You, letting out a roar.

"Everyone shut the hell up! Back off!"

The Berserker's voice was so loud that several mages in the front row covered their ears.

The scene quieted down for a moment.

The Berserker turned his head, his fleshy face squeezing out an extremely fawning smile as he looked at Chen You.

"God You, please speak. I'll maintain order for you."

Then, he turned back to face the thousands of players, his expression solemn as he announced loudly.

"Quiet, everyone! God You is about to speak! Get your notebooks ready!"

The entire venue instantly fell silent.

Thousands of players stood up straight in unison, staring at Chen You with burning gazes, their faces filled with anticipation.

Someone even actually brought up the system's built-in memo panel, preparing to take notes.

Chen You froze on the spot.

What am I supposed to say?

I just wanted you to clear a path so I could go turn in my quest!

He looked at the thousands of pairs of eyes filled with a thirst for knowledge and adoration, and his throat bobbed.

If he just left now, this group of fanatics would definitely follow him all the way to the City Lord's Mansion. At that point, not only would he be unable to do the quest, but they might even burst the mansion apart.

He had to say something to send them away.

Chen You's mind raced, recalling the scenes of Director Li Guoan lecturing people.

He straightened his back and put his hands behind him.

He secretly circulated his Qi Refining Eighth Layer spiritual power to amplify his voice, ensuring everyone in the square could hear clearly.

*Cough.*

Chen You cleared his throat, his voice low and steady, carrying the composure of someone long used to a high position.

"Comrades... fellow Adventurers."

His gaze swept over the crowd, his eyes reflecting three parts expectation, three parts seriousness, and four parts nonchalance.

"Today, I have come to Cangxing City."

"Seeing everyone maintaining such full enthusiasm in this freezing environment, actively forming parties, and carrying out the work of monster hunting and leveling up with such fervor..."

"...I personally find this very gratifying."

The square was extremely quiet, followed immediately by a burst of thunderous applause.

Chen You raised his hand again and continued.

"Cangxing City is an important hub for our exploration of the Snowy Region. Its development and prosperity are inseparable from the hard work of every Adventurer present."

"However!"

Chen You suddenly raised his volume, his brow furrowing slightly.

"While acknowledging our achievements, we must also face the existing problems head-on!"

The Berserker in the front row immediately puffed out his chest and shouted in agreement, "Right! God You is right! Everyone, reflect on yourselves!"

Chen You glanced at him, gave an approving look, and continued:

"I took a look just now. Some parties have extremely unreasonable class compositions."

"Five Berserkers teaming up to farm Icefield Wolves? Are you going to hunt monsters, or are you going to serve the wolves a buffet?"

In the crowd, several Berserkers carrying giant swords silently lowered their heads.

"And those setting up stalls." Chen You pointed at the Assassin who had kicked over his potions earlier.

"Cold Resistance Potions are strategic resources. Pricing should be reasonable based on market demand; do not engage in cutthroat competition."

"The red potions are all spilled; this is a serious waste of resources!"

The Assassin player's face turned beet red, and he quickly knelt down to clean up the broken glass on the ground.

Chen You paced a couple of steps with his hands behind his back, looking every bit like an official inspecting the work.

"In short, at the current stage, we have only one core mission, and that is to improve our strength."

"Everyone should focus on the primary contradictions and not waste time on meaningless spectating and blindly following trends."

"Hunting monsters requires tactical coordination. Implement the basic positioning of Warrior, Mage, and Priest. Damage must be fierce, healing must be steady, and movement must be precise."

"I hope that after you return, you will summarize seriously and comprehend deeply. Formulate practical leveling plans that suit your own class characteristics."

Chen You stopped his pace, his gaze sweeping over the crowd once more.

"My speech is over. Everyone, disperse and return to your respective posts. Go run dungeons if you need to, and do quests if you need to."

After speaking, Chen You nodded slightly to the crowd, then turned around and strode toward the direction of the City Lord's Mansion on the map.

The square remained in a dead silence.

A full half-minute passed.

That Berserker suddenly slapped his thigh and let out an exclamation.

"Holy crap! That was so profound!"

An Elf Mage nearby asked blankly, "What was profound about it?"

The Berserker glared at him. "You don't know jack! God You was giving us guidance!"

"Exactly!" a stall-keeping player realized suddenly. "Reasonable pricing, reject cutthroat competition! God You was pointing out the true essence of the merchant's way!"

"Teaming up with five Berserkers really is stupid; no wonder we just wiped three times..."

Heated discussions instantly broke out across the square.

It was a scene of thriving prosperity.