Thanks to GreenKiTea for the kofis! Enjoy the bonus chapters!

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After resting for the night, the two set out again, fully prepared.

The Fire God’s Belly and the Fire God’s Belly’s Core within the Lava Volcano, as well as the Heart of the Snow Mountain in the Thousand Bells Snow Mountain, are all high-difficulty areas on the map. Ordinary people wouldn’t go there unless they had to; for instance, they never saw anyone else while they were in the Fire God’s Belly.

Jian Xingyi asked Shanhai how to get to the Heart of the Snow Mountains.

Shanhai said that since they were all underground, they could actually walk straight through from the Earth’s Core.

Jian Xingyi was stunned.

Jian Xingyi: “Don’t we have to pass through Flag-Raising Mountain along the way?”

“Yes, but we’ll take the direct underground route. We won’t need to cross the mountain, so it’ll save time.”

Following Shanhai’s instructions, the two traveled from the Earth’s Core through the underground passage beneath Flag-Raising Mountain—essentially a river—and reached the Heart of Snow Mountain in just one day.

To reach the underground passage of Flag-Raising Mountain, they had to walk to the very end of Fire God’s Belly. Jian Xingyi and Shanhai didn’t stop to chop down trees and waste time; instead, they pressed straight ahead.

Along the way, Jian Xingyi kept using his skills, absorbing a significant amount of essence.

After leaving the Earth’s Core, having cast his skill across the entire area, Jian Xingyi instantly gained 5,110 units of essence!

This was likely the largest amount of essence he had ever accumulated; enough to upgrade an A-class farm right away. However, Jian Xingyi was reluctant to spend it so freely—he wasn’t that wealthy yet—so he decided to save it for now.

Unfortunately, each plant could only be harvested for essence once; otherwise, Jian Xingyi would have wanted to tag along with Shanhai to the Fire God’s Belly every single day.

The next time he could accumulate essence from the Fire God’s Belly, he’d have to wait for the new plants to grow after a volcanic eruption.

Jian Xingyi also managed to get something else from these plants.

【Harvest Successful. Congratulations, player, on obtaining a Purple-A-Grade Seed!】

【Collection successful, obtained 【Un-Nirvana】 Seeds x40】

Jian Xingyi: “……”

Do all the new seeds that sprout in the Earth’s core after a volcanic eruption need to take a bath?

Jian Xingyi obtained two A-grade seeds at once; as for what they are, he’ll have to wait until he reaches the ice lake on the snow-capped mountain.

After the two reached the underground river, the mountain walls overhead suddenly became very low. The surroundings were dark and damp, forcing Jian Xingyi and Shanhai to bend over as they walked.

There were no such peculiar places on Shengqi Mountain, so underground, it was merely a small river connecting the volcano to the snow-capped mountains.

Looking at the pitch-black, bottomless river before him, Jian Xingyi swallowed hard.

The river was completely still, and the silence all around was so profound it felt… eerie.

A small wooden boat was tied to the riverbank. As Shanhai untied the rope, Jian Xingyi asked, “This river… it should be safe, right?”

Shanhai: “Hard to say. Some have made it through safely, while others have encountered river monsters.”

But there are too few examples of the underground world to discern any patterns; we’ll just have to play it by ear.

Jian Xingyi glanced at Shanhai. Sensing the relaxed confidence of the server’s top player, he said nothing further. Together, they pushed the wooden boat into the water and climbed aboard.

Splash…

The small boat drifted slowly forward on the river. Jian Xingyi paddled gently, while Shanhai held his gun at the ready.

It was pitch black all around; not a single glimmer of light could be seen beneath Shengqi Mountain. Jian Xingyi took out a lantern and placed it inside the boat, but even so, the distance remained shrouded in darkness.

The next moment, Jian Xingyi’s hair stood on end.

The river’s surface was clearly still and calm, yet Jian Xingyi saw a speck of light on the riverbed. A speck of light would be one thing—after all, there were bound to be creatures at the bottom of the river—but this speck was slowly moving toward them.

Hopefully… It’s just a little fish.

Jian Xingyi gently tugged at Shanhai’s sleeve and pointed at the speck of light.

Shanhai turned and aimed his gun in the direction Jian Xingyi was pointing.

Splash—!!

After a deafening roar, a tentacle thicker than a human emerged from the river’s surface, sending a spray of water flying. Even from a distance, the spray was enough to splash both of them.

It was too dark to make out the tentacle’s color, but they could vaguely see it was covered in aged moss, slimy and sticky, with numerous large breathing holes currently expanding and contracting.

Shanhai fired without hesitation, but the shot missed the tentacle entirely, striking the water around it instead.

The monster’s combat capabilities were unknown. Shanhai didn’t want to provoke a desperate fight, but he still needed to demonstrate his strength. Fortunately, the rifle’s impact on the water created a loud splash, serving as a deterrent.

Sure enough, the tentacle paused and watched the two warily.

Shanhai stood up, raising his rifle as he stared back at the tentacle.

The tentacle slowly sank back down, as if preparing to swim away.

Jian Xingyi let out a sigh of relief, but didn’t forget to cast a skill at the tentacle.

No essence points, yet something appeared…

Purple light?!

After opening his backpack, Jian Xingyi discovered an additional purple slot—symbolizing an A-rank—which meant he had scanned a special farm animal from the tentacle!

Up until now, all the animals in his breeding zone—cows, sheep, even loaches—had been common-grade, just like the initial rice, wheat, and white radishes he’d obtained at the start. Their effects were the same: boosting the attack power of both cold and hot weapons. But since the breeding zone’s costs were inherently higher than the farming zone’s, even the initial meat provided insane bonuses once upgraded to a certain level.

But what if it’s purple A-grade meat…?

Jian Xingyi tremblingly tapped on it, eager to see what it was.

It was…

Fish?

There’s fish to eat!!

Jian Xingyi was overjoyed.

The tentacles and the unidentified creature beneath the water’s surface slowly swam away. Jian Xingyi asked, “Should we just leave it alone?” ”

Shanhai shook his head and explained, “Underground creatures are unknown; unless absolutely necessary, we shouldn’t provoke them. Besides, since they’ve been underground for so long without seeing humans, they generally won’t attack first.”

And Jian Xingyi was still here. If a fight really broke out, the little boat would definitely capsize. If Shanhai had been alone, he would certainly have been curious enough to investigate what was beneath that tentacle, but now… he couldn’t.

Jian Xingyi let out a sigh of relief, though he felt a touch of regret. So what kind of creature was actually lurking beneath that tentacle…?

Regardless, they were finally safe. Jian Xingyi rowed the boat while opening the backend interface to expand his farming area.

【Player 【Xinghe】 does not have sufficient homestead area to accommodate a fish pond. Expansion failed.】

Jian Xingyi: “……”

His fish were ruined.

Oh well.

Jian Xingyi sighed. If he had extra dawn coins, he’d definitely need to speed up upgrading and expanding his aquaculture zone; otherwise, he’d have no way to buy a farm out there.

After the wooden boat had drifted for an entire afternoon, Jian Xingyi finally saw ice shards and floes gradually appearing on the water’s surface, and the temperature around them had dropped.

Jian Xingyi took out some ginger soup to share with Shanhai and put on his Snow Mountain-exclusive jacket.

Before docking, Jian Xingyi logged into the backend to conduct some trading.

Two days had now passed, and it was time for him to harvest again.

The previous vine harvest had earned him a full 100 million, but this time the proceeds weren’t quite as high—most people had already bought what they could. Still, it wasn’t a small sum, netting him a full 6 million.

As for the Snow Lotus, the five plots on his own land, the ten Grade A plots on Snow Mountain, and the 65 Grade B plots in front of the Peace Mountain Air Wall yielded a total of 1,500 blooms. Just like before, after synthesis, Jian Xingyi listed 1,500 bottles of Hardening Potions, bringing in 9 million.

In addition to Snow Lotus, Jian Xingyi also listed food items and fulfilled guild orders as usual, earning 25 million. Combined, the total came to 40 million.

The guild chat was still filled with complaints.

【I didn’t get any again… I’m crying. The yield of Hard-as-Rock Potions is so low, waaah! Big Shot Xinghe, can you sell a little more?】

【You promised the yield would be higher! I’m bawling my eyes out!】

【Big Shot Xinghe, our guild’s survival depends on you! Hang in there!!】

Jian Xingyi thought to himself, I’d love to sell more and make more money too…

But there just isn’t enough farmland!

Jian Xingyi took a deep breath and switched his backend permissions to the newly purchased farmland—specifically, the 100 plots of B-grade farmland inside the Volcano Town behind the air wall.

Upon opening it, Jian Xingyi stared intently, his heart racing.

—Nothing much to see yet.

After all, he’d only planted them yesterday. All Jian Xingyi could see was the field covered in green vines; they seemed to be growing well, but whether they’d ultimately be effective remained to be seen.

Jian Xingyi shut down the terminal.

Another day had passed, leaving just five days until the zombie tide.

Jian Xingyi had earned 40 million, and the rest of the guild wasn’t doing too shabby either. They’d joined the Grapevine Peak members on several high-difficulty dungeons, acquiring rare items and materials that they immediately resold, bringing in a significant amount of money for the guild.

Long Live for A Hundred Years

450,000,000 / 750 million dawn coins

650,000/ 750,000 Wood

78,000 / 150,000 Zombies Killed

Jian Xingyi pondered.

Five days… Is there any hope for the remaining 300 million?

Meanwhile, thanks to everyone’s efforts, the guild’s Bond Level rose from 3 to 5.

【Contribution Rankings】

TOP 1: Shanhai, Xinghe

Contribution Points: 4,035

Unshakable—these two continue to dominate by a landslide.

TOP 2: Firelight, Cola, Akita, Feiyi

Contribution Points: 862

These four have the highest scores because they tackled a high-difficulty dungeon together; after all, in “Long Live for A Hundred Years,” only Akita and Feiyi are capable of participating in such challenges.

After the upgrade, many people were chatting in the shared chat channels of Grapevine Peak and Long Live for A Hundred Years.

Firelight: 【Congrats, everyone! We’re the fastest to upgrade in the entire server’s Bond system—excluding the Snow Mountain Guild!】

Cola: 【Marriage saves the world, everyone! Question: Does kissing increase Bond points?】

Jian Xingyi: “……”

Firelight: 【I’m not sure either; there aren’t any cases yet. If we want to figure out the pattern and effects, maybe @Shanhai and @Xinghe could share their data with me so I can compare it with my experience gain logs?】

Cola: 【……】

Cola: 【I dare say you’d dare do it, 6】

Jian Xingyi: “…………”

Shanhai: “What’s wrong?”

Jian Xingyi: “……Nothing! Please continue!”

Don’t open the terminal!

Three hours later, the ship finally docked, and Jian Xingyi could finally see the Heart of the Snow Mountains.

——Snowy terrain, a vast expanse of white snow, nothing else.

Jian Xingyi exclaimed in surprise, “I thought the Heart of the Snow Mountain was rich in resources.”

Shanhai: “No, this place is the opposite of the Lava Volcano.”

The Lava Volcano map has average resources; the cracked, arid land is barren, though it excels in dungeons and collectible items. In contrast, the Fire God’s Belly and the Earth’s Core are lush and verdant.

Meanwhile, the surface of the Thousand Bells Snow Mountain is rich in resources, so most players are currently challenging themselves with snow mountain gathering and tree felling. But the Heart of the Snow Mountain… is a wasteland.

But it’s not as if there’s absolutely nothing there.

Shanhai said, “If you’re lucky, you might find a treasure chest.”

In the game’s records, the Snow Mountains are also known as the “Mountain of Memories.” The dungeons here are shrouded in mystery, and it’s said that the Heart of the Snow Mountains holds many “antiques”—there might even be some rare items.

But unless high-level players with unwavering resolve specifically come to run the Snow Mountain Saint’s Mirror Dungeon, most wouldn’t bother descending just for a treasure chest. And since there are only a handful of players across the server who plan to tackle this dungeon, no one has heard of any particularly good items being looted here so far.

Once they stepped onto the snow, Jian Xingyi couldn’t help but feel a bit wistful.

That same spongy feeling again—half a foot sinks into the snow with every step, and walking even a short distance is exhausting.

Jian Xingyi glanced at Shanhai.

Hmm…

I guess I could… borrow a little strength, right?

Shanhai watched as Jian Xingyi crept closer, his figure looking rather furtive, and with a mix of amusement and exasperation, he took his hand.

Jian Xingyi: “……!”

The tips of Jian Xingyi’s ears turned slightly red.

What used to be a completely natural gesture now made both of them feel a bit awkward.

Jian Xingyi felt like a guilty thief.

But—but if they didn’t hold hands just because they were shy, it would be really exhausting.

Weighing the pros and cons, Jian Xingyi decided he could endure it!

Holding hands as they walked forward, Jian Xingyi asked, “Where’s the dungeon? Is it far?”

“I don’t know.”

Shanhai was looking at the map on his terminal.

This map guide had been marked out by the Snow Mountain bigwigs—like Wu Yun and Cangshui—back when everyone was still outside the game.

Shanhai was roughly following the directions on the map.

It was easy to lose one’s way in the vast expanse of snow—with no landmarks, pitch black overhead, and no end in sight.

They were essentially in the middle of nowhere; aside from the footprints they’d left behind, there was nothing around them.

Shanhai furrowed his brow slightly.

It seemed it would take a while to find the dungeon.

Seeing this, Jian Xingyi pulled a compass out of his backpack. “I got this at the temple earlier. Do you think it’ll be useful?”

“Let’s give it a try?”

Jian Xingyi held the compass in his hand. The two followed the pointed direction for a while, then Shanhai opened the map to check their location. They were even closer to the red dot marked on the terminal. “It’s accurate.”

Jian Xingyi exclaimed happily, “Yay! That makes things so much easier!”

The two walked like this for half a day, and gradually, even with Shanhai leading the way, Jian Xingyi began to feel a bit tired.

Jian Xingyi glanced at the compass. “Huh…?”

Why isn’t it moving?

Shanhai checked his terminal and frowned slightly; it seemed they had veered slightly off course.

What’s going on?

Jian Xingyi blinked. “It can’t be… broken, can it?”

But after spending time with Shanhai, Jian Xingyi had gradually come to understand his way of thinking.

—If the compass were an item that existed within a game, it wouldn’t break.

Every setting and item has a purpose, because this isn’t the real world—it’s a place where every detail is crafted from lines of code.

So what’s going on?

Just as Jian Xingyi was about to ask, his eyes narrowed slightly.

He seemed to… have seen something?

Jian Xingyi took a few steps forward, and sure enough, a small corner suddenly appeared in the snowy ground before him.

It looked like the edge of a wooden box; if you didn’t look closely, it was easy to overlook.

Could this be…

Shanhai raised an eyebrow, crouched down, and dug with a shovel, and sure enough, he unearthed a wooden box.

“It’s a treasure chest…!” Jian Xingyi’s eyes widened. “So the compass has this function too? Then we’ve really hit the jackpot!”

Shanhai said, “Most of what’s buried here is just antiques. Don’t get your hopes up too high.”

He said that, but of course, there was still some anticipation.

Shanhai carefully opened the simply designed, rather shabby-looking wooden box.