"You're always so lucky, Chang Long. Not many players get the chance to go up there. But how long do you plan to stay on Afric Island?"

Oliang asked, getting to the point.

"I think I'll be here for a while. I plan to explore the whole island and hunt beasts to level up,"

Chang Long replied. But after catching a stern look from Devi-chan, she quickly added the last sentence.

"That's great. We were actually thinking about coming to see you. Once you're down from the Sky Palace, which city will you head to?"

Oliang asked, sounding pleased.

"I'm not sure yet. Why don't you call me again when you get here? I haven't looked at the island's map, so I don't know where I'll go next,"

Chang Long said, watching Anya happily flitting around the flowers nearby.

"Alright then, we'll do that. We're rushing to the port now,"

Oliang replied.

"No need to rush. I already told you, I'll be here for a while,"

Chang Long frowned, not understanding why they were in such a hurry.

"No, no, we have to hurry. This is a matter of life and death. See you soon, Chang Long!"

Oliang said before quickly hanging up, not giving Chang Long a chance to respond.

"A matter of life and death? Just to see me? He didn't even explain before hanging up. When I see him, I'm going to make him explain everything!"

Chang Long muttered as she walked over to Anya. As she did, a man dressed in grand attire, seemingly holding great position approached her.

"Brave one, I have a request for you,"

the man said in a calm voice.

"Player Chang Long has received the quest: The Royal Physician's Request. Do you accept?"

The system's voice announced in her head as soon as the man finished speaking.

"Uh... sure, I'll accept,"

Chang Long replied, a bit confused. Kimhant had mentioned to her on their way here that AI on the Sky Palace might give out quests with higher rewards than other areas, which was why players were eager to visit the place. He also said that hunting mummies was one way to get an invitation to the palace.

"Excellent, then please follow me,"

the man, whom the system identified as the royal physician, gestured for Chang Long to follow him with respect. Chang Long nodded, called Anya and her pets back, and then followed the royal physician.

The royal physician led Chang Long to his office, which was not far from the garden. The room was spacious, filled with various potion-making tools and a wide array of ingredients, leaving Chang Long in awe.

"Hahaha, speechless, aren't you? My room is a bit cluttered, I know. Alright, come in. I'm in need of an assistant to help me brew some potions. But before that, I'd like you to gather these materials for me," the royal physician said, handing Chang Long a long list of items he needed.

"Whoa, that's a lot. Where am I supposed to find all of these!"

Chang Long was stunned as she looked at the lengthy list, filled with items she barely recognized. She wondered if she would ever manage to find them all in this lifetime.

"Don't fret. I have a guidebook for the material, but you'll need to return it to me once you've delivered the ingredients. In the meantime, feel free to study it,"

the royal physician replied with an ambiguous smile as he handed her the guidebook.

"So, once I gather all the ingredients and bring them back, will that complete the quest?"

Chang Long asked, curious since the physician had mentioned needing help with potion-making.

"Good question. After you've delivered the ingredients, you'll need to assist me in brewing the potions for the quest to be fully complete,"

the royal physician explained with a broad smile. Chang Long nodded, thinking it would be better to learn potion-making from the royal physician than to fumble around on her own. Most players mostly failed miserably on their first attempts at potion-making.

.....

After regaining consciousness, Demos returned to the Doom Star Guild. The guild members, noticing his transformation, looked at him with fear, but Demos seemed unfazed. He proceeded directly to the meeting room, where he had instructed Phobos to call an urgent meeting of the high-ranking members. As he entered the room, he wore only the pants, belt, shoes, and fingerless gloves that had survived his body's transformation, remnants of what used to be part of a special set.

"I've found the key to enter the tomb of Pirate King Belethe de Montes!"

Demos announced as he arrived at the meeting, causing a stir among the gathered members.

"Is Belethe de Montes the name of the Pirate King on the map you possess, Guild Leader Demos?"

One of the attendees asked.

"Yes, that's right. Get yourselves ready. As soon as I pinpoint the island's location on the map, we'll set off. And make sure to call Orion back—I want him to come with us,"

Demos instructed before abruptly leaving the meeting room, with Phobos following closely behind. The other attendees were left behind, speculating and discussing what might have happened while Demos was away.

"Wait, Demos!"

Phobos called out, pulling Demos into an empty room.

"What is it, Phobos? I'm feeling sticky and I really want to take a shower,"

Demos replied with irritation but agreed to talk.

"When we were in that cave... you... well... you died... didn't you?"

Phobos asked hesitantly.

"Hehehe, I was expecting a different question. Yes, I died because I made a contract with a certain weapon. That weapon is the key to getting us into the Pirate King's tomb,"

Demos replied, amused by Phobos' nervousness.

"But I don't see you carrying any weapon?"

Phobos said, puzzled, as he scanned Demos' body, noticing that there was no weapon on him. Phobos himself had retrieved Demos' old weapon from the scene.

"I'm the weapon. Enough questions—I'm too sticky to deal with this right now,"

Demos said, opening the door to leave. Before he exited, he turned back to Phobos and added,

"If you want to know what kind of weapon I've acquired, you'll have to come with me to the Pirate King's secret tomb. I promise you, no one else in Adventure World Online has a weapon like mine!"

Phobos sighed, knowing Demos' secretive nature all too well. If he wanted to uncover the truth about Demos' new weapon, he would have to arrange for someone to oversee the guild in his absence and join the journey as Demos suggested.

"Come to think of it, the aura around him has become much darker. That weapon must be incredibly powerful. Even being close to him for just a moment, I felt an overwhelming sense of pressure,"

Phobos thought, wiping the sweat from his brow as if he had just finished an intense workout. He sighed heavily, wondering if his best friend was turning into a terrifying demon or something!

.....

After accepting the quest, Chang Long descended from the Sky Palace, now holding a token that allowed her to travel back and forth while completing her mission. When she arrived back on the ground, she noticed that the crowd of NPCs who had come to send her off had already dispersed. Meanwhile, Kimhant was in the middle of a heated argument with someone. The woman he was arguing with seemed quite feisty, but as soon as they saw Chang Long approaching, they both stopped immediately. The woman quickly shifted from aggressive to demure, while Kimhant rushed over to greet Chang Long.

"Where to next, master?"

Kimhant asked Chang Long, completely ignoring the female player standing nearby as if she did not even exist.

"Let's find a tea shop around here and have a chat. I have some things I need to study first,"

Chang Long replied, scanning many player-run shops that had set up stalls in the area. She walked into a shop run by a player who was a chef, ordered some food, and then pulled out the list of potion ingredients and the guidebook to see where each item could be found, paying no attention to the female player at all. The woman, who had hoped Chang Long might glance her way so she could flash a charming smile, found her hopes dashed as Chang Long did not so much as look in her direction.

'Haha. Serves you right, you sharp-tongued lady. Master completely ignored you!'

Kimhant thought gleefully. The reason he and the female player had been arguing was that she wanted him to introduce her to Chang Long, but Kimhant had refused because he found her personality unbearable. He was sure Chang Long would find it even more intolerable.

Seeing Kimhant's smirking face made the woman's brow twitch with annoyance, but she was determined to get to know Chang Long regardless of Kimhant's refusal. With renewed resolve, she confidently walked over to the table where Chang Long, Kimhant, and her two handsome pets were seated.

"Hello,"

she greeted them. The guys, who were huddled together, turned to look at her, as did Chang Long and her three ghostly companions, who were happily sipping tea that Chang Long had offered them. Chang Long looked left and right before turning to the smiling woman standing in front of her.

"Are you talking to me?"

"Yes. May I join you?"

The woman asked. Kimhant silently prayed that Chang Long would refuse her, and true to her straightforward nature, she did not disappoint him.

"No, our table is full, and we're in the middle of discussing something important. You should find another table,"

Chang Long replied politely but firmly. Her words felt like a sledgehammer to the woman's face. Seeing Kimhant stifling a laugh only made her more irritated, but she was determined to maintain her ladylike demeanor in front of the man (?) she had her sights set on.

"Oh, okay. Sorry to bother you. I just thought it might be a bit lonely sitting by myself since most players don't come around to have tea until the evening,"

the woman replied with a smile, then quietly moved to another table. Though she wondered why Chang Long claimed the table was full when there were still three empty chairs, she did not dare ask, fearing it might displease Chang Long.

Chang Long pulled out the guidebook titled Potion Ingredients and handed it to Kimhant. He furrowed his brow as he examined the book and then asked, puzzled,

"Why are you giving this to me, Master?"

"I'm not giving it to you. I want you to copy it,"

Chang Long explained after she finished jotting down the names, locations, and beasts they needed to hunt on the back of the ingredient list.

"He didn't just give it to you? Like, as a quest reward or something?"

Kimhant asked as he flipped through the pages of the guidebook.

"Nope. Once we finish the quest, we have to return it. But he didn't say we couldn't copy it, so that's your job. Meanwhile, I'll go hunt for these items with these two,"

Chang Long replied. Kimhant agreed, and they started eating. The female player and the shop owner were both stunned when the food on the three seemingly empty chairs gradually disappeared. The white-haired young man sitting next to Chang Long was casually enjoying something that looked like elemental gems, barely paying attention to the food in front of him.

Chang Long found that most of the ingredients she needed could be found in the pyramid, which was filled with mummies that players often hunted for experience points. The pyramid had multiple levels, each with monsters of varying levels. The higher the level, the stronger the monsters.

Chang Long decided to head to the Khufu Pyramid, located in Alexandria, not too far from the Sky Palace. The female player followed her at a distance, hoping to accidentally run into her and make a good impression. Little did she know that Chang Long was already aware of her presence, thanks to Devi-chan, who had informed her.

Chang Long did not pay much attention to the female player and entered the pyramid. The first level was the widest and had the most players, so Chang Long did not plan on hunting mummies there. She easily found the stairs to the second level since there were so many players, and the mummies could not wander around freely.

Chang Long kept ascending to the third, fourth, and fifth levels until she noticed that the mummies wrapped in white bandages had changed to those with green and purple auras. The players on that level informed her that the green-aura mummies had poison attacks, while the purple-aura mummies used offensive magic.

She decided to hunt the mummies on the seventh level, where the monsters were around levels 40–48, and the bandages varied in color. This level was not very popular because many players could not handle the green and purple-aura mummies. From the seventh level onward, the number of players dwindled, with most being level 50 or higher and moving in groups. Chang Long, however, was on her own, accompanied only by her two pets, who always drew the admiring glances of female players. She also received numerous buffs from magic-based players.

Initially, Chang Long and her pets hunted normally, but as evening approached and players started leaving the pyramid to rest, despite there being no difference between day and night for the monsters inside, Chang Long and her pets began hunting more aggressively, enjoying themselves. Meanwhile, the female player who had been following them continued to observe patiently.

"This is my chance. It's just him and his friends now. All I have to do is pretend I can't handle the beasts, and he'll have to invite me to join his group. Then I can finally get to know him!"

The female player thought as she formulated her brilliant plan and prepared to put it into action. Just then, Chang Long had Devi-chan possess her and used the Spirit Incarnation skill to summon Hisa-chan. When the female player saw Hisa-chan materialize out of thin air, she abruptly stopped in her tracks, startled.

"What the—how did that guy just appear out of nowhere!"

She exclaimed in shock. She had forgotten that she was on the seventh level of the pyramid, where mummies ranged from levels 35 to 60 and could attack with poison and magic. With most players having left the pyramid by now, the number of mummies had increased, and nearly ten of them were targeting her.

"Hey, missy, that girl's still following you!"

Devi-chan commented, impressed by the woman's persistence.

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