Find it, and I’ll leave everything there… Zhang Yuanqing stared at those words for a long time without speaking. Ah, Bing Brother! You’ve truly given me quite the challenge! Zhang Yuanqing sighed, focusing her attention on “clues.” “Being one person with two brothers—this was Bing Brother’s catchphrase in his second-year high school days. If it were just emotional fare, it wouldn’t be tucked into a secret code.” “Lu Er Ling San… a sequence of numbers—is that a cipher?” “What does ‘find it’ refer to?” Zhang Yuanqing furrowed her brows and thought deeply, gently pressing her forehead with her fingers. She sensed many clues, yet felt as though she had gathered none at all—she silently complained. This fit the storyline of detective novels: to keep secrets safe from leaks, Assistant Bing had left behind clues that only the two of them could understand, so that when certain conditions were met in the future, they would naturally become clear. After all, Zhang Yuanqing was still quite inexperienced as a detective at this point. “The ‘everything’ should be connected to what Bing Brother sent me—the Demon King character card, his disappearance, and the unusual patterns during his university years. Given that it involves someone of the Demon King’s stature, the very nature of ‘it’ is truly puzzling.” Zhang Yuanqing tore up the paper note, left her room, and entered the bathroom. Gurgle… gurgle… The toilet flushed away the fragments of paper. …… Mr. Lei works so diligently that his job helps soothe him somewhat, easing the pain of losing his child—this highlights just how difficult life has been for Mrs. Zhou, the homemaker. After saying goodbye to Mrs. Zhou, Zhang Yuanqing left the Yín Píng community and waited at a street corner outside, thinking as she waited for her ride: “This story absolutely cannot be shared with the Chief or Lao Si Ji—only I can investigate it myself, with only so many clues available; even if I were urgent, there’s nothing I could do. Right now, what matters most is my second Spirit Realm mission. “Level advancement is truly the top priority.” Zhang Yuanqing grew increasingly aware of how crucial strength had become. “In multi-member Spirit Realms, unless it's a death-type mission, it’s typically a penalty-type one—failure results in experience points deducted; if things go wrong, my abilities might even regress.” “The rewards depend on both the difficulty level of the instance and the performance during the task. My current experience points are at 52%. I’m not sure whether this second Spirit Realm will be enough to directly advance me to Level 2.” Theoretically speaking, it’s impossible. Over the course of time, he had learned that single-player missions generally offer substantial rewards if you survive—so in principle, progression should not be slow. Yet, both Guan Ya and Li Dongze, seasoned practitioners, have been stuck at Level 2 and Level 3 respectively for long periods. Two main reasons: first, the Spirit Realms they enter are of lower difficulty with less demanding tasks, so rewards don’t match those of S-level missions. Secondly, in multi-member instances, outcomes vary—put simply, it's common to encounter teammates who fall behind or drop out. Then, the ride-hailing service arrived late; Zhang Yuanqing opened her door and stepped inside, returning home. “Grandmother, I’ve just come back from class.” Zhang Yuanqing called out toward the balcony. “Your uncle visited—he asked you to go see him after you returned.” Mrs. Zhou replied while washing a mop. “No, I’m quite tired from my classes—I’d rather not accompany him singing and dancing.” “Heard your mother-in-law recently gave him some money.” “Grandmother, I went over to visit my uncle…” …… About fifteen minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing happily stepped out of her uncle’s house, returned to her room, opened the Forum, and found that yesterday’s post from the official Night Wandering Deity Forum remained at the top, but now had a new message added beneath it. #Mourning: A colleague has been sacrificed in a multi-member Spirit Realm mission# Upon clicking into the message, it read: Yesterday, an employee of one department received an S-level instance task for “Golden Water Amusement Park.” He informed his superior before entering. Since then, he has not emerged—more than 24 hours have passed since entry. [Go to the other side with sorrow: I’m also preparing to enter a multi-member mission soon—I'm absolutely terrified.] [Call me Queen: In the near future, it might be impossible to find any guidance; you’ll just have to rely on your luck. But given there are so many such missions, being picked is unlikely.] [The days ahead will be long: Dear Queen, although the chance isn’t high, once it happens, it’s certain to be fatal. Moreover, S-level Spirit Realms are extremely difficult to complete—many might take a year or more before finally succeeding, and the number of people who get lost is staggering.] This news triggered significant concern and discussion within the Forum. [The sovereign has illness: At the Elevated Stage level, do any colleagues stand out as exceptionally talented? Wild practitioners from outside are also acceptable—such individuals have strong resumes and thus a greater chance to be assigned an S-level mission; if they succeed in completing one, it would be wonderful—the people who go through the 'Go to the other side with sorrow' phase deserve special attention.] [Go to the other side with sorrow: That’s a great idea!] With such a large number of practitioners on the verge of entering Spirit Realms—many were already sharing similar sentiments and giving enthusiastic likes, finding this suggestion especially effective. In their eyes, top-tier players within the same tier are more valuable than even officers or elders, since the latter often cannot enter lower-level instances. “The Yinshan Ghost School and Xin Feng Reservoir have both been successfully completed; Golden Water Amusement Park is a multi-member mission open to all professions. Though it’s an S-level instance, theoretically, its chance of being solved is greater than that of the Night Wandering Deity’s exclusive missions—this person named ‘The Days Ahead Will Be Long’ clearly hasn’t studied math well.” Zhang Yuanqing read through the comments and shared her thoughts. Then, she noticed a notification pop up in her chat app: Wang Qian, a liaison from Zhishake Palace, had sent a message. Wang Qian: “Can you obtain an older version of the Golden Water Amusement Park guide?” Zhang Yuanqing: “Are you entering a Spirit Realm soon?” Wang Qian: “My next mission is specifically for musicians and isn’t scheduled in the near future. I’d like to inform you that if you can secure an older version, you’ll earn some extra income.” “How so?” “The Night Wandering Deity’s exclusive missions have encountered anomalies—I won’t repeat that. Golden Water Amusement Park is a multi-member instance at the Elevated Stage level with broad appeal. On the black market, its older guide documents are now selling for 300,000 points.” Spirit Realm mission guides fall under “strategic resources”—a foundational pillar of the official organization, accumulated through countless practitioners’ dedication and sacrifices over time. Zhang Yuanqing had never seen such a large sum in her life. Wang Qian continued: “A channel I’m connected to is currently collecting older versions. As an official member, if you can obtain one, I’ll help sell it for 73 percent.” “I’ve got it!” Seventy-three percent equals 210,000—Zhang Yuanqing replied instinctively and then retracted the message. Wang Qian sent a question mark to express her confusion. Zhang Yuanqing: “I have an older version, but I won’t sell it.” Wang Qian: “Why?” Zhang Yuanqing: “I don’t want to earn this kind of income.” Wang Qian didn’t press further—clearly, the original Sovereign comes from a well-established family and maintains strong ethical standards. This is beneficial; no one wants to interact with someone cold or ruthless. “How much would the newer version of the Golden Water Amusement Park guide be worth?” Zhang Yuanqing asked in a message. “S-level instance guides are extremely valuable, though there's no fixed price—specific amounts can be negotiated directly with buyers. However, I suspect that given your current access level, you may not yet have contact with S-level guides.” The S-level missions and trials at the Elevated Stage differ significantly from one another. Wang Qian: “I have a patient—I’ll speak again when convenient. If you change your mind, please reach out to me—currently, I’m short on funds.” Wang Qian has been especially tight on money; as a doctor’s salary is modest and ethical constraints limit her ability to make significant financial gains. After this conversation, Zhang Yuanqing recalled the Golden Water Amusement Park instance guide that Li Dongze had given her. Now she developed some interest in the mission. She exited the chat app and opened her email to download the attachment. [Golden Water Amusement Park, Instance ID: 6203, Difficulty Level: B, Type: Multi-member (Penalty-type)] [Main Objective: Experience at least two amusement park attractions.] “After entering the instance, the Spirit Realm will prompt you about which projects to play—attractions include roller coaster, pendulum ride, pirate ship, haunted house, Ferris wheel, and detective museum… Most of these activities test team collaboration—the gameplay involves… The most dangerous is the Haunted House wedding—the ghost bride selects one of the most handsome male players as her husband; once chosen, that player is immediately eliminated. Therefore, after entering the haunted house, you must repeatedly chant: ‘I’m an ugly duckling!’ When all male players have shouted ‘I’m an ugly duckling,’ the ghost bride will randomly select—then it comes down to appearance. Female players are safest and can complete this attraction directly.” Zhang Yuanqing carefully reviewed each attraction’s gameplay, noting that even though the ghost bride in the Haunted House wedding was far less severe than those encountered in trial missions, she still found the experience quite compelling. Though the older version serves only as a reference—not fully reliable—still it provided valuable insight into the instance structure. That explained why someone would be willing to pay 300,000 points for it. Suddenly, Zhang Yuanqing’s face changed, and she quickly scrolled through her screen, pulling up the document to its top page. Golden Water Amusement Park, Instance ID: 6203… Lu Er Ling San? She stood still, stunned—how long had she been frozen? “Does Lu Er Ling San refer to Golden Water Amusement Park? Does Bing Brother have Dong XZ there? No—that’s impossible.” Zhang Yuanqing shook her head. Spirit Realm instances are randomly assigned—by this alone, the situation lacks logical consistency. What if I don’t enter Golden Water Amusement Park at all, then Bing Brother’s arrangement would go to waste? Unless Bing Brother can predict which instance I’ll enter next. If my future Spirit Realm assignments can be anticipated, then my missions are no longer random—and now that I’m scheduled for the Sheli Ling Tunnel mission, it begins to seem deeply concerning… Zhang Yuanqing suddenly felt a wave of nervousness. …… After dinner, Zhang Yuanqing quickly washed up, pulled the curtains closed, turned off the lights, locked her door, and lay down on her bed, staring at the digital clock on her bedside table. By midnight, the Spirit Realm mission would surely arrive. She held in her hands several blue pills, feeling time pass slowly. After a while, a familiar chime echoed in her mind: [Chime—Spirit Realm map loading now. In 60 seconds, you will enter your Spirit Realm instance: Golden Water Amusement Park, Instance ID: 6203] [Difficulty Level: S] [Type: Multi-member (Death-type)] [Main Objective: Experience at least two attractions.] [Note: Non-instance items cannot be brought along.] [Introduction for Instance No. 6203: One day, a figure of indescribable nature arrived at Golden Water Amusement Park. She was amazed to discover that after centuries of sleep, the world now holds such delightful amusements. With joy, she experienced every attraction and decided not to destroy it. Before departing, she entrusted the spirits within the park to find one young person—whose name is yet to be revealed.] Indeed—it’s Golden Water Amusement Park! Truly, it’s Golden Water Amusement Park… Zhang Yuanqing felt as though a thousand headlong drafts were rushing through her mind. Without further thought, she took one of the blue pills and dialed Guan Ya’s phone number. According to protocol, she must report this Spirit Realm instance to her superiors and colleagues—especially during this sensitive period. The call connected quickly; Guan Ya said with a frown: “Every young woman who has been interrupted in her dreams deserves a full meal of compensation.” “Tell the Chief—I’m about to enter my Spirit Realm mission now—it’s Golden Water Amusement Park…” “What? Your multi-member mission is at Golden Water Amusement Park? Uh… Yuan Shi? Uh…?” Guan Ya could no longer hear anything. ……