After all the income rolled in, Jian Xingyi still felt a bit lightheaded.

Sigh, when he first logged into the game, he never imagined he’d end up with such a massive sum.

Jian Xingyi mused, “Can’t even imagine what kind of life we’d have at Grapevine Peak… Would we be rolling in it?”

Upon hearing Jian Xingyi’s words, Shuixi opened his eyes with interest. “Why do you think that?”

“Because I can’t believe the commission fees I’m getting… It’s almost 3 million! That’s crazy money! But their ranking is only slightly above Lava Volcano. Grapevine Peak is the top server—they must be raking in even more!”

Shuixi replied, “Not necessarily. You can’t calculate it that way.”

“Huh?”

Shuixi explained, “First, this is right after the Corpse Tide rewards were distributed—everyone’s at their wealthiest. Investing in you for long-term support, 3 million isn’t a bad deal. Second, Grapevine Peak members need more funds to upgrade gear and armor. So the wealthiest guilds are actually those in the upper-middle tier—they have the strength to earn dawn coins without excessive consumption. As for Grapevine Peak’s lifestyle… It’s no picnic. Everyone’s assigned to teams, systematically grinding through extreme battles and leveling up daily.“

Jian Xingyi asked curiously, ”Isn’t that exhausting?”

Shuixi shook his head. “Once the arrow is on the string, it must be released.”

“Oh…”

Jian Xingyi also heard that Grapevine Peak had its own “Liberation Plan.” As uncrowned leaders, they not only collected guides but also refined them themselves. They were determined to explore every corner of the game, crack every dungeon, and hoped to find a way out of this game.

Jian Xingyi thought to himself, his own fledgling guild was much better off—no military-style drills or grand ambitions like Grapevine Peak’s, but they still gave their all when it mattered.

Most importantly, this guild allowed Jian Xingyi to hone his management skills perfectly. He handled the leveling and funding, reaping all the rewards himself.

The guild had become his most convenient tool.

So, in that sense, the Long Live for A Hundred Years Guild also had its own structure and system—only this system revolved around “Xinghe.”

Jian Xingyi chuckled, “How come you know everything?”

Shuixi raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, what else do you want to hear?”

After pondering for a moment, Jian Xingyi asked, ” Do you know what the server’s top player, Shanhai, is like? He’s also from Grapevine Peak.“

Shuixi paused before asking, ”Why do you want to know about him?“

Jian Xingyi replied, ”I’m curios! When I played the game before, I focused on management, so I didn’t know. After transferring into the game, I heard about him from others. He seems like a legend in the game, super powerful!”

Shuixi pondered for a moment before replying, “Well, you might be disappointed.”

“Huh?”

“There’s no such legend. You’d probably think he’s nothing special once you meet him.”

Jian Xingyi scratched his head. “Really? But he’s max level, right? That sounds super powerful.”

Shuixi: “You’re both max level. He’s max combat power, you’re max management. You’re pretty awesome too.”

“Ah.” Jian Xingyi chuckled. “True.”

Jian Xingyi crossed his arms. “Rounded up, I’m just as awesome as Shanhai, hehe!”

Shuixi couldn’t help but curve his lips. “Yeah, equally awesome.”

That was the truth.

“But regardless, I still think he’s a pretty good guy.” Jian Xingyi pulled out the koi necklace hidden under his clothes like a treasured possession. “Look, Shanhai gave this to me!”

Shuixi froze. “You’ve kept it with you all this time?”

Jian Xingyi nodded. “Yeah, it’s the boss’s lucky charm and mystical power. Sometimes when I get too scared, I’ll fiddle with it, soak up some of the boss’s strength.”

A long silence followed.

Shuixi suddenly asked, “Who do you think is more capable—me or Shanhai?”

Jian Xingyi: “Huh?”

Jian Xingyi stared blankly: “I don’t know…”

Shuixi grew even more annoyed: “You still play with it when you’re scared? But I’m right here.”

Jian Xingyi looked even more bewildered: “No… it’s different… You can’t play with me, right?”

?

Shuixi: “…”

Jian Xingyi: “…!!”

Only then did Jian Xingyi realize he’d said the wrong thing. Flustered, he gestured wildly: “Ah ah, I mean, I mean… I didn’t mean it like that!! What I meant was objects and people…”

Jian Xingyi felt like crying. One downside of being socially anxious for so long was that even when he finally found someone to talk to, his language system hadn’t fully developed from lack of use.

Shuixi: “…It’s fine.”

 ━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

After a brief rest, the two introverts set off for the wilderness bordering the military camp.

This area had once served as the military camp’s training ground. Now abandoned, it had become a wasteland that nurtured EF5 tornadoes, with certain sections infested by high-level military zombie soldiers.

Vegetation was scarce in the wilderness, yet Jian Xingyi felt unexpectedly hopeful.

Rumor had it that this place, frequented by tornadoes, harbored more dandelions than the outer regions.

Or rather, the higher the danger level in this map, the better the dandelions grew. Their essence was superior to ordinary plants and could also accumulate quest points.

Jian Xingyi indeed discovered numerous dandelions along the way. By his count, he had already scattered 87 of them, accumulating 946 essence points.

Surveying the wilderness before him, Jian Xingyi activated his exchange voucher to assess the terrain. As expected, the soil here proved superior to both the outer regions and Peace Mountain.

Whoosh—!

The gale was fierce, blowing Jian Xingyi back three steps for every two he took forward.

When the relentless wind caught him, he stomped his feet several times in place without budging.

Jian Xingyi: “…”

So isolating.

Shuixi was both amused and exasperated as he retrieved his motorcycle. Shuixi’s bike was a heavy-duty beast, its exhaust pipe thicker than Jian Xingyi’s waist, gripping the ground with rock-solid stability.

Jian Xingyi sat in front of Shuixi, leaning against his back with the motorcycle ahead. Finally, they could move forward with ease!

Jian Xingyi monitored the land data on his terminal while using the wind gauge—a bargain buy from the mall, priced at a mere 9.99 instead of 999.

He needed to find a spot untouched by the tornado, specifically one of those red-marked blind spots on the map.

After all, the guild could only help tend the fields—meaning killing zombies and beasts—but natural disasters like tornadoes were beyond their control. This was an EF5 tornado, after all; he couldn’t very well have them expend their instruments.

Jian Xingyi took a quick look. The 150,000-coin land on Peace Mountain could only support 10 plots of Grade B farmland, scoring a mere 50 points. The area near Flag-Raising Mountain he’d passed before had slightly higher values than Peace Mountain, but this place was entirely different.

The land here… easily reached triple digits, with scores ranging from 80 to 150, and the plots were quite large.

Triple digits…

Jian Xingyi was stunned.

He’d been smugly counting his four-digit dawn coin reserves, but now he suspected little would remain after purchasing the land.

Still, land was an investment—a one-time expense yielding steady returns.

Provided the investment was sound. After all, zombies and beasts were part of the system. If they wrecked the fields too badly, the system might not be able to fully restore them.

The land development certificate explicitly stated: players would bear the consequences if their fields were damaged.

Jian Xingyi thought to himself: If the Fire God’s Belly weren’t plagued by occasional volcanic eruptions that reset the system, and if the area weren’t too dangerous for anyone to tend it, the land there would surely be top-notch.

Jian Xingyi scanned left and right, directing Shuixi to drive. After circling the area several times, he had narrowed down several promising candidates.

One plot costs 6.75 million credits, capable of cultivating at least 20 fields. Its quality seemed solid, suggesting it wouldn’t be easily damaged and should yield a decent harvest.

Another plot cost 8 million credits, offering fewer cultivable fields but boasting a higher quality score.

Yet, even these promising options didn’t instantly convince Jian Xingyi to make a purchase.

Somehow…

Jian Xingyi scratched his head. The prices were too high, and he feared making a wrong call that could lead to losses.

He also couldn’t guarantee the safety of these fields.

The wilderness made it hard to tell directions. When Jian Xingyi found himself unknowingly venturing quite deep, Shuixi reminded him, “If you set up the fields too far away, I won’t be able to hear you. The guild might not be able to keep an eye on them for you.”

“Oh…! You’re right.”

Jian Xingyi glanced around. The wind was growing stronger.

Shuixi frowned. “Let’s head back first. We haven’t encountered any zombies or beasts along the way, which means something’s off. A tornado might be coming.”

Jian Xingyi froze—he hadn’t even bought the land yet!

But not buying it wasn’t a big deal. The price was too high; he needed to think it over carefully. After all, it was right next to the military camp. They could return to shelter from the wind first and come back later.

On their way back, Jian Xingyi’s wind gauge began to sound an intense alarm.

“…!” Jian Xingyi exclaimed, “A tornado is really coming!”

Judging by the meter’s intensity, it was actually… EF5?

Shuixi floored the accelerator, studying the clouds to gauge the direction.

If the tornado were coming, it would be upon them in minutes. There was no time to turn back now, so Shuixi focused on observing the wind’s velocity and the clouds’ direction.

By running perpendicular to the tornado’s path, they could avoid its sweeping force.

A thunderstorm cloud appeared nearby, a massive dark mass hovering overhead like a stationary aircraft carrier, with air currents constantly rising toward its center.

The sky was gloomy and overcast, devoid of any light. Jian Xingyi heard the rumble of thunder.

The arrival of an EF5 tornado was usually accompanied by thunder and lightning.

“BOOM—!”

Just as he thought it, Jian Xingyi saw a tree split by lightning nearby. The deafening crash sent a shiver down his spine.

Holy crap…

Jian Xingyi’s backpack contained two EF3 parachutes and an EF4 tent, but no EF5. After all, the EF5 tent seemed to be a rare item worth its weight in gold.

Jian Xingyi turned and said, “No gear… Um, would a Nut Wall work? Oh right! I still have the Wind-Repelling Device Houyi gave me. Could we use that?”

“The Nut Wall won’t work—it’ll knock us out ourselves. Keep the Wind-Repelling Device ready.” Shuixi also had leftover devices from previous explorations in his backpack. He shook his head. “It’s fine. The tornado hasn’t arrived yet.”

He didn’t seem overly concerned, so Jian Xingyi calmed down too.

Whoosh…

Boom…

The roar of fierce winds and trains filled the air. The sky darkened, everything felt weightless, trees swayed violently, and dust swirled—a palpable sense of impending storm hung heavy.

The plain stretched endlessly, utterly desolate, save for the thunderclouds nearly obscuring the entire sky.

In that moment, Jian Xingyi felt utterly insignificant.

He and Shuixi sat atop the motorcycle, its path etched across the wilderness. Yet compared to the sky, the earth, and the hurricane, they seemed minuscule.

“Boom—”

Lightning struck nearby. Jian Xingyi felt his hair stand on end again, static electricity crackling all around.

Not far away, the rising air currents had formed a funnel cloud. A tornado was about to materialize.

Shuixi drove deeper into the wilderness. The further they went, the more dandelions appeared. Along the way, Jian Xingyi tapped to collect and scatter every dandelion he encountered, gathering their essence.

His essence reached 977 points, and then…

【Player 【Xinghe】 has scattered 100 dandelions. Reward: dawn coins x66666, 【Tornado Shelter Navigation】 x2】

Jian Xingyi: “…”

Wow. So timing is everything, huh?

Earlier, when he’d collected 50 dandelions, the system gave him two EF3-grade windproof umbrellas. This wasn’t the top-tier EF5 gear, but it was still useful!

Jian Xingyi immediately activated one of the shelter navigation devices. Instantly, red and green lines appeared on his terminal: the red line showed the tornado’s path, while the green line marked the safe area they should head toward.

Then Jian Xingyi realized the navigation was pointing them straight toward the direction Shuixi was currently driving.

Jian Xingyi chuckled, “You’re so good at this, you could be a human GPS!”

Shuixi replied, “Visual observation isn’t always accurate. Pay attention to the navigation.”

“Got it!”

“Huh…?” Jian Xingyi asked, “The navigation is telling us to turn left up ahead?”

This was directly opposite their current direction. Jian Xingyi glanced to the left—nothing but forest. Venturing into the woods amidst thunder and lightning… didn’t seem like the best idea.

Besides, an EF5 tornado would uproot these trees entirely. It looked dangerous no matter how you looked at it.

Shuixi: “Are you sure?”

Jian Xingyi tilted his head, zooming the terminal in and out while rotating it 360 degrees. After a moment of comparison, he said, “The navigation definitely says this.”

Boom—

Shuixi instinctively hit the brakes and turned sharply, skidding in a half-circle on the sand before veering left.

Jian Xingyi: “…!”

Seriously??

So trusting him and the system navigation?

Jian Xingyi said, “What if the system has a bug?”

Shuixi was certain, “This isn’t a modern city. The game map never changes. So the navigation system won’t bug out—there are just places we don’t know about.”

Whoosh—

The motorcycle plunged into the woods, crushing grass and broken branches along the way.

And Shuixi was right—indeed… There were only places they didn’t know about.

Jian Xingyi stared dumbfounded at the tiny cellar entrance hidden within the forest.

Shuixi explained, “EF5 zones usually do have wind-proof underground spaces, but they’re extremely rare to encounter.”

It was only because Shuixi and Jian Xingyi had been fortunate enough to approach the cellar from the start that the system had guided them there.

“Wow… let’s go check it out.”

Jian Xingyi was utterly fascinated.