95: Chapter 95 Your Trial, My Trial, Seems Different

Chen You stared at the message sent by Yue Zhi Shi in the chat box, falling silent.

He quietly recalled his own 'Purgatory Level' trial.

This... is not even on the same scale!

Before he could process it, a new message from Yue Zhi Shi popped up. Clearly, she was extremely curious about the founding process of 'Immortal Summer'.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Guild Leader Chen, your trial must also be extraordinary, right?

Here it comes.

Chen You cleared his throat. Although the other party couldn't hear him, it felt like a necessary ritual.

[Chen You]: Mm, something like that. The monsters were indeed very strong, but we were quite well-prepared.

After sending this, he paused slightly, as if recalling an arduous and bloody battle.

Then, he slowly typed out the next sentence.

[Chen You]: Including me, there were a total of seven people on our side.

...

City of Eternal Night.

Moonlight cascaded like a waterfall onto an elven courtyard suspended in the night sky.

Yue Zhi Shi, clad in a silver gown, sat on a swing with bare feet, gently swaying.

When she saw the words 'a total of seven people,' her eyes, as translucent as amethyst, suddenly froze.

The hand gripping the vine swing involuntarily clenched tightly.

Seven people?

Data flashed through her mind like a storm.

When Moon Gods Radiance founded their guild, they faced monsters between levels 15 and 20.

Immortal Summer, with 3000 Civilization Affinity Points, would certainly face trials that were only harder, not easier!

She dared to guess that the regular monsters might even be level 20!

And the BOSS could possibly be close to level 30!

And you're telling me seven people?

Seven gods, perhaps!

Yue Zhi Shi stared at the chat box, imagining the horrific battlefield that awaited, waiting for the continuation.

Meanwhile, Chen You began his performance.

He imagined the people from the Pay-to-Win project team, starting to flesh out roles for them.

[Chen You]: That battle was indeed devastatingly fierce. We had two brothers specializing in defense who used their very flesh and blood to hold off the first wave of impact and were killed on the spot.

(Zhang Yunhai / Sun Feng: Brother, you think too highly of us!)

[Chen You]: Then, a mage skilled in lightning magic summoned heavenly lightning to cleanse the earth, clearing a space, but he exhausted all his spiritual power and was engulfed by the monsters.

(Material expert Qian Zhonghua pushed up his reading glasses: How come I don't remember knowing lightning magic?)

[Chen You]: In the end, only my few remaining teammates and I were left. The four of us fought with bloodshot eyes, refusing to retreat even in death.

[Chen You]: We fought all the way from the West Gate to East Main Street. Three days—cough, cough... we broke three weapons before finally slaying that Demon King.

Chen You spoke more and more fluently, as if he almost believed it himself.

He molded all the experts from the command center into battle-hardened warriors who scorned death.

Shedding heads and spilling hot blood, they fought the monster army until the very last moment.

Finally, he let out a sigh full of dramatic storytelling.

[Chen You]: In short, it can only be called a pyrrhic victory. Of the seven brothers, nearly half were lost.

After sending this, Chen You felt a little embarrassed himself.

He was such a great liar.

However, his 'humble' account stirred up a huge wave in Yue Zhi Shi's eyes.

Pyrrhic victory?

Half the people survived?

What terrifying combat power was that!

Their Moon Gods Radiance hundred-person team lost thirty percent of their strength fighting a level 20 BOSS.

Immortal Summer, with only seven people, faced what was likely a level 30 Demon King, and still managed to have half survive!

This person... no, this guild, was countless times more terrifying than she had imagined!

Yue Zhi Shi took a deep breath of the cool air, her chest rising and falling slightly.

She began to feel incredibly fortunate that her first reaction was to seek an alliance.

After a long moment, she calmed her emotions and typed two words in the chat box.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Impressed.

These simple two words represented the heartfelt recognition of an apex expert from the Source Realm.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Will Guild Leader Chen participate in this month's Guild Hegemony War?

[Chen You]: Haven't decided yet, we'll see when the time comes.

Chen You's reply was ambiguous. He truly hadn't decided; he needed to await Director Li's arrangements.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: If you need help, Moon Gods Radiance can offer support.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Although there are restrictions on the number of people and levels for assisting in a Hegemony War, our Elf God Clan's combat strength is worth ten times that of others.

In Yue Zhi Shi's view, Immortal Summer had just been established, so their guild ranking must be the lowest.

According to the matching rules, their opponents should not be strong.

Her statement was both a gesture of goodwill and a display of her own confidence.

Chen You, however, caught new information from it.

Support is possible? Number and level restrictions? Hill hadn't mentioned this point.

[Chen You]: Thank you for the kind offer. I will contact you if needed.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Since we are allies, there's no need to be so polite. Speaking of which, I also have a question I'd like to ask Guild Leader Chen.

[Chen You]: Please ask.

It's finally here. Chen You knew the other party's true objective was about to be revealed.

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Regarding Destruction Mode... what exactly are the required conditions for activation?

[Yue Zhi Shi]: Our guild's elite team has tried countless times, using every method to compress the clear time, but we couldn't succeed.

Chen You's lips curled up slightly when he saw this question.

He didn't explain, nor did he say much.

He simply tapped a single number into the chat box.

[Chen You]: 6.

After sending this character, he didn't even wait for a reply, directly closing the chat box.

...

On the other side, Yue Zhi Shi stared at the solitary '6' and fell into a long stupor.

Six?

Six what?

Six hours? Impossible, that would be too slow.

Six people? That's also wrong; Chen You soloed it.

Suddenly, a thought struck her mind like lightning!

Six... minutes!

Six minutes?

The fastest record they had in any dungeon they could clear was 11 minutes and 24 seconds, still far from 6 minutes.

'What a pity.'

Yue Zhi Shi shook her head. The only dungeon that could be speed-cleared using an Exorcism Talisman, Wailing Valley, had already been destroyed.

'Perhaps I shouldn't be so fixated on this anymore.'

Too much manpower and time had been wasted trying to achieve Destruction Mode.

Yet, the record was still far out of reach.

Yue Zhi Shi looked into the distance.

What kind of existence was this Chen You?

After an unknown amount of time, she finally came back to her senses.

Then she sent a message to Yue Ying.

'Come see me, I have something to ask you.'

...

Chen You closed the chat, feeling refreshed.

He didn't delay, nor did he pay attention to Hill beside him. He directly brought up the system interface and selected [Guild] - [Enter Territory].

The next second, his figure vanished from the Supreme Tower and appeared in the central plaza of White Jade Capital.

Looking around, the city was no longer deserted.

Many scientific researchers in white coats were rushing about, pushing various precise instruments in and out.

These people were all top experts transferred from the real world.

Chen You didn't bother them. He walked straight toward the grandest building—the Guild Affairs Center.

Above the hall's lintel hung a plaque with the words 'Immortal Summer' written in bold, flowing script.

The hall was spacious, with a massive sand table placed in the very center, which was a miniature model of the entire White Jade Capital.

A light screen unfolded before Chen You, displaying the currently available guild functions.

[Guild Forging], [Guild Alchemy], [Guild Construction], [Guild Quests]...

There were many functions, but Chen You quickly found the crux of the problem.

Whether it was unlocking higher-level equipment blueprints, redeeming rare pill recipes, or constructing more powerful defense towers, they all required the same thing—

[Guild Honor].

And the main source of Guild Honor was only one thing.

The Guild Hegemony War.

Chen You's brow furrowed.

Didn't this loop back around?

'Can't... I just use money to buy honor?'

Chen You was unwilling to give up and searched the system interface for a long time, but he couldn't find an option to recharge for honor.

What the heck? Something money can't buy?

This violates the core values of a Pay-to-Win game!

He unhesitatingly chose to leave the guild territory and reappeared in the Supreme Tower.

'Hill.'

'Respected supreme member, how may I be of service?' Hill bowed gracefully.

Chen You asked directly: 'Can the guild blueprints and recipes be bought directly with gold coins?'

A professional smile appeared on Hill's face: 'In principle, no. Guild Honor is critically important and irreplaceable.'

'In principle?' Chen You keenly grasped the key phrase.

'Yes,' Hill's smile held a hint of mystery. 'However, in various districts, a Mysterious Merchant will occasionally appear.'

'It is said that as long as you can afford the price, he has everything.'