**Chapter 111: Two Weeks Later**
Before he knew it, two weeks had passed.
Of course, "two weeks" here referred to the game time—only 28 hours had passed in reality.
During this period, Su Yu had been staying in Maple Leaf City, completing the 16th to 19th missions of the Queen's storyline. These latest quests, similar to the 14th and 15th missions, were assigned by the princess herself. They required Su Yu to connect with various hidden contacts in Maple Leaf City, reach out to former loyalists, and gather crucial intelligence.
Morningstar occasionally helped him along the way, giving Su Yu a ride through the city and assisting him through some difficult encounters. Though these missions didn't reward him with anything extraordinary like the 15th mission, he still earned experience points, equipment, scrolls, and potions.
Notably, these missions took place entirely at night, game time. During the day, Su Yu accompanied the princess to Wolf Howl Castle, where she engaged in lengthy negotiations with envoys sent by Duke Cypher and Duke Lantilus. The atmosphere at these meetings was tense, with each faction intent on delaying the process. Consequently, negotiations dragged on without resolution.
For two full weeks, the three parties clashed at the negotiation table, each presenting terms they refused to compromise on. Finally, on the 14th day of negotiations, Duke Lantilus's faction prepared a second attack on the princess. The envoy representing Lantilus abruptly ended talks, storming out and officially ending all negotiations.
That same day, the princess began preparations to return to Plantagenet City, bringing Su Yu's questline to the 20th mission.
This 20th quest was similar to the 10th mission, [Giant Wood Canyon Encounter]—another battle scene. After consulting with the princess, Su Yu gained permission to oversee and release this mission.
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Meanwhile, significant changes were unfolding among the players.
The last [Giant Wood Canyon Encounter] had reshaped the rankings. The nine guilds involved had soared in popularity, attracting high-level players from all over. Among them, Snow Leopard's "Relevant Department" guild, bolstered by vast resources, quickly amassed over 10,000 members, making it the largest guild in the game.
Emperor's Blood Killing Heaven and Clouds and Herdsmen seemed to recognize the "national team's" substantial investment in the game. Their backers followed suit, pouring in large sums of money and establishing these guilds as the second and third largest after the "Relevant Department."
As for the Heaven Slaying Guild, their situation grew dire. In a previous life, they had climbed to the top three guilds in China by securing major first kills and placing elite members in the rankings. However, this time around, they missed the first kill on every dungeon. Strategic missteps from their leader, Heaven Slaying Sword, further compounded their issues, as they failed to participate in the [Giant Wood Canyon Encounter]. The absence of Heaven Slaying Guild members from the leaderboard led to a major setback.
With the three top guilds investing more than ever, Heaven Slaying Guild's space was increasingly limited. Many prominent members, including Cangshan Quietly Jing, Wild Vegetables, and Taogu Painting, left the guild to join these larger factions. The guild's severe loss of players left it with little hope of entering the "Top Ten National Guilds."
Su Yu had been keeping an eye on the Heaven Slaying Guild's predicament. Seeing how much the guild had declined, he decided it was no longer necessary to keep suppressing them.
In their previous life, the Heaven Slaying Guild's eventual alliance with the Skrulls was based on the guild's immense core strength and Heaven Slaying Sword's power, enhanced through massive resources. But in this life, with the guild so weakened, it was unlikely that national resources would back them. Even if they sought an alliance with the Skrulls to betray humanity, the Skrulls would hardly see them as valuable.
On the forums, players mocked the Heaven Slaying Guild relentlessly.
After hearing that Cangshan Quietly Jing had left, congratulatory messages poured in:
"Congrats to Cangshan Quietly Jing for escaping the sinking ship!"
"Heaven Slaying Guild is falling apart. Just a few days ago, they were on top, and now they might not even crack the top ten."
"Serves them right for blocking the village entrance and demanding tolls!"
"Hold on! Heaven Slaying Sword already debunked that rumor—they weren't responsible for that."
"Debunked? I never saw it."
"Besides Heaven Slaying Guild, has anyone heard anything from Nemesis recently? What's he up to?"
"Who knows? He's still level 21 and hasn't claimed any dungeon's first kill."
"Maybe Nemesis finds it too easy and got bored?"
"Bored? Thousand Cups Drunk will be thrilled if that's true!"
"Or maybe he's just laying low for a bit. Didn't Nemesis say he'd have another scenario battle?"
"Hey, check this out! Nemesis just posted on the forum! It's a massive announcement!"
"Where?"
"Refresh the homepage. It's either the first or second post."
"It's like Nemesis read our minds! We were just talking about him, and here he is!"
At that moment, a user called "Dear Cao Mengde" humorously chimed in: "Who's talking about me?"
Su Yu's forum post had indeed sparked a sensation!
The title read: "Recruitment for Scenario Battle [Deadly Escape] – Seeking 1,000 Players, First Come First Served!"
Within five minutes, the reply count skyrocketed into the thousands!
Players vividly remembered Su Yu's previous scenario battle release, [Encounter in Giant Wood Canyon], which caused a major shift in the rankings. Now that he was announcing another battle, players speculated excitedly: What would this battle bring? Would new guilds rise from it?
In the post, Su Yu detailed the scenario and battle background, explaining that he would set up the mission at the west gate of Maple Leaf City, open to the first 1,000 players to join.
Comments flooded in beneath the post, with players posting "First!" "Upvote!" and even "Popping champagne!" Others dove into serious discussion.
"Oh wow! Nemesis is releasing another scenario battle quest!"
"Will this mission shake up the rankings again?"
"I bet Nemesis will level up twice after this one! Thousand Cups Drunk will be in tears!"
"Why are we still talking? Get online now!"
"Ah! I'm out of game time."
"I'm in class right now!"
"Ugh! The teleport fee to Maple Leaf City is 500 psionic coins from Oran City!"
"Haha! Lucky for me, I'm already in Maple Leaf City. Logging in now!"
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In the game, at the players' teleportation array on the east side of Maple Leaf City, the once-quiet teleportation platform began to glow repeatedly with waves of white light, as players from all over the game teleported in.
Those teleporting from nearby felt fine, but those from afar experienced dizziness. They brushed it off, quickly summoning their mounts and rallying their friends as they made their way to the West Gate, where Su Yu awaited them.
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**(End of Chapter)**