C15 Dragon Monarch of the Dragon Gate

"Nice one, Mr. Pao!"

Someone's eyes sparkled with excitement, ready to charge forward, but Wang Yipao held him back.

"Would you actually open your eyes and look at nine o'clock towards the sandman!" Wang Yipao was at a loss for words.

The man quickly turned his head.

The rest were equally taken aback, having initially spotted the sandman as well.

Following Wang Yipao's direction...

"It's the Dragon Gate crew!"

This time, they saw clearly.

There were indeed people there!

"Should we engage?"

Someone inquired of Immortal Sword Jiulong, who narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

Truth be told, he was reluctant to pass up these elite monsters.

Yet, clashing with Dragon Gate now could jeopardize the scramble for Foundation Building Pills later on.

"Let's just step back and go around."

"But Captain, didn't you mention that elite monsters in the Secret Realm might drop cultivation techniques? And with low-grade Yellow Level techniques valued at two hundred thousand apiece, are we really okay with walking away?"

Wang Yipao was ready to move on, but upon hearing this, he turned sharply to the talkative Immortal Sword member, "Are you for real?"

"Uh..."

Caught by Wang Yipao's question, the man clamped his mouth shut.

He'd carelessly forgotten that Wang Yipao wasn't part of their Immortal Sword group.

Oh boy, the captain was likely to have his head for this once they logged off.

As expected, Immortal Sword Jiulong was glaring daggers at him.

He then sighed, "Yipao, I'll level with you. I'm actually a beta tester. I might not know everything about this Secret Realm, but I've got a good ten to twenty percent down."

Wang Yipao was taken aback, his eyes bulging, "There are beta testers in this game? I thought there was no beta?"

"Right, no official beta, but there are testers, and I'm one of them," Immortal Sword Jiulong stated plainly.

Wang Yipao: ...

Damn it!

So it's an unofficial beta, then!

But in the end, it's all irrelevant.

Why haven't the officials invited me?

I'm a pro gamer too, you know!

"Plus, there are another one hundred and seven testers just like me."

"Only one hundred and eight in total?"

"Yes, just that many, and the test only lasted a week."

Wang Yipao nodded. One week wasn't very long, so it hardly qualified as a true beta test.

Hold on, you reached the Foundation Stage Secret Realm in just one week?

Noticing Wang Yipao's confusion, Immortal Sword Jiulong offered a slight smile: "The game time was sped up during that week."

Wang Yipao was at a loss for words. If he knew where the officials were, he'd give them a piece of his mind.

To think I, a top-tier pro gamer, wasn't chosen as a tester.

But never mind that, it's not the main issue here.

If we keep chatting, Dragon Gate will have defeated the first sandman.

Wang Yipao turned his attention to the fray: "Let's go snatch that sandman."

"Ah?"

"I'm in need of a new cultivation technique. My current Profound Level technique is incomplete; it doesn't go beyond the fourth level, so I can't advance to the Foundation Stage." Wang Yipao licked his lips, candidly sharing his secret.

"Cough, cough, Yipao, picking a fight with Dragon Gate right now isn't in our best interest."

"So, will you hand over a cultivation technique from Immortal Sword?"

"If you join Immortal Sword, we can get you a fifth-level technique in no time. You're free to choose any technique from our inventory!"

"Wishful thinking."

Immortal Sword Jiulong: ...

You could've refused more tactfully, you know.

Immortal Sword Jiulong looked on with a touch of melancholy, glaring at Wang Yipao like someone nursing a grudge.

Wang Yipao folded his arms: "Bro, I'm a stand-up guy."

"Pfft! I'm a stand-up guy too. Let's drop it; I'll ask you again some other time. For now, we should keep moving." Immortal Sword Jiulong's frustration was evident in his irritated tone.

Wang Yipao didn't argue back this time, but he showed no sign of backing down either, his gaze fixed on the sandman: "Help me take down the sandman, and I'll reward you with eight sets of Qi Refining Stage recovery pills."

Immortal Sword Quartet: ...

Hold on!

Are you implying you've got even more medicine on you?

You're talking about eight sets right off the bat.

Before you came in, you only gave us a total of eleven sets, you know.

You couldn't possibly have that much stashed away, even if you were hiding some!

"Yipao, you son of a gun!"

Even the usually unflappable Immortal Sword Jiulong was on the verge of cursing someone out.

Those were their herbs and pill recipes you swiped!

"Cool it, guys. The contract never specified an exact amount—just that you'd get a minimum of five sets. I've been more than generous with eleven. Besides, this isn't even the main issue. The real question is, are you in or out?" Wang Yipao said with a brazen grin.

"We're in! In! In!" Immortal Sword Jiulong was at his wit's end. If this isn't the main issue, then what is?

But whatever, who knows if it's good or bad luck running into this guy.

We've got no choice but to go along with it!

We're talking about eight sets of herbs here!

They were well aware of the impact these herbs could have within the Secret Realm.

For the sake of those eight sets, what's a little competition with Dragon Gate?

And who's to say this guy doesn't have more hidden away?

If we can cooperate smoothly now, maybe we can keep it up down the line.

Who knows, we might even need to lean on this alchemist nanny at a critical moment.

Having made their decision, the five of them stepped out.

The Dragon Gate crowd wasn't just focused on slaying elite monsters; they were on the lookout too.

"It's the Immortal Sword crew!"

The Dragon Gate folks quickly started to pull back, shedding the aggro of the sand creatures.

Even when one sand creature was nearly down for the count, they opted to abandon it, approaching the Immortal Sword group with caution.

"Folks, how about we take these sand giants off your hands?" Wang Yipao posed like a classic villain, ready to snatch their prey.

The Dragon Gate five nearly rolled their eyes to the heavens.

'Give me a break!'

'Can't you act a bit more professional?'

'Do we look like fools, handing over elite monsters on a silver platter?'

"Ouyang Jue, now's not the time for us to be at odds. What do you say we split the sand giants evenly?" proposed the leader of Dragon Gate, Dragon Monarch, with decisive clarity.

Immortal Sword Jiulong considered the offer and found it appealing.

They would not only gain eight sand giants but also acquire eight sets of healing pills, avoiding the potential losses from a clash.

"Forget it, I paid a pretty penny for those," Wang Yipao shot back.

Immortal Sword Jiulong nearly choked with frustration, feeling a surge of resentment.

'Buddy, are you really going to do us dirty like that?'

'You're passing up on this deal? What more could you possibly want?'

'Are you looking for a fight to the bitter end?'

Dragon Monarch, noting Immortal Sword Jiulong's dismay, simply chuckled.

He had never considered Wang Yipao the main concern, so he turned to Immortal Sword Jiulong, anticipating a favorable response.

Immortal Sword Jiulong exhaled deeply, "Folks, what if we do this instead? I have a set of Qi Refining Stage healing pills. If you're willing to forego the sand giants, I'll hand over this set to you."

The Dragon Gate team's faces shifted at the revelation.

"Pills! Have you already taken up alchemy as a secondary profession?" Dragon Monarch inquired, puzzled.

Immortal Sword Jiulong just shrugged, "That's not for you to worry about."