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Once the others had left, Zombie 007 walked a few steps forward, stopping right in front of Xu Yuan.
He looked Xu Yuan up and down, like he was trying to memorize every detail.
Xu Yuan didn't stop him.
Zombie 007 had always been different; his thought process didn't quite align with the other creatures.
If Xu Yuan had to explain it, the other creatures were like his pets.
But Zombie 007 felt more… human.
Xu Yuan had always spent more time with Zombie 007.
He wasn't like Little Zombie 520, who was always causing trouble. He was calm, quiet, and whenever Xu Yuan did something, he'd come over and watch, always keeping a respectful distance.
Always watching, silently guarding Xu Yuan.
Zombie 007 watched Xu Yuan in silence, his gaze lingering for a good two or three minutes before he finally let out a low growl.
"Grrr…"
Xu Yuan could clearly see the hint of reluctance in its eyes.
Pointing to the young wolf beside him, Xu Yuan spoke with a tone of authority. "Take good care of it, alright? You'll have to return it to me eventually."
It was more than a command; it was a subtle reminder. Every time Zombie 007 saw the little wolf, it would remember him. That way, he'd never have to worry about being forgotten.
After hearing Xu Yuan's words, Zombie 007 glanced at the wolf pup, then gave a determined nod as if committing to a solemn promise. With a final farewell, it turned and walked away.
Watching them disappear into the distance, Xu Yuan felt an odd sense of familiarity. But he couldn't quite place it.
"Oh well, not worth overthinking," he muttered.
Somehow, he had a strong feeling that they would meet again someday. And when they did, he was certain that Zombie 007 would be even stronger. He couldn't help but look forward to that day.
———
After saying goodbye to the monsters, Xu Yuan took a deep breath, looking around at the now-empty grassland.
"Back to being on my own, huh."
Ever since he'd crossed into this game world, Xu Yuan had grown used to being alone. But the monsters' brief company had broken the silence, and now, with everything quiet again, he felt a bit out of place.
Still, solitude was a normal part of life, one he'd quickly adapt to.
With things calm again, Xu Yuan decided it was time to plan his next steps.
Now that he'd sent the monsters off, it would take some time to see any real impact. After all, this game world was huge, and while there were plenty of players, everyone was scattered all over. It would take a while before the monsters encountered any players.
But Xu Yuan couldn't just wait around. His growth couldn't afford to stall.
This downtime would be perfect for some prep work.
Most of the main-world creatures had already given him their first-kill bonuses. Now, he just needed to handle the monsters in the Nether and the End.
He decided to start with the Nether. He'd get the first kills there, then build some mob farms to keep the resources coming.
With his increasing skill level, his old mob farm was barely keeping up. From here on, his demand for Intimidation and kill points would only rise, so he'd need more mob farms.
Building in the Nether would be more practical than in the main world, especially since no other players had ventured there yet. That way, he wouldn't need to keep everything hidden.
With that in mind, Xu Yuan got to work.
Half an hour of teleporting later, he found a broken Nether portal. Conveniently, a surface lava pool was nearby. After crafting an iron bucket, he used the lava-casting method to make a new Nether portal.
Once he lit the portal, the world around him went dark for a second. A wave of dizziness passed, and when he opened his eyes, he was in the Nether.
Xu Yuan carefully dismantled the portal behind him and set off in search of any trace of monsters.
———
Meanwhile, not long after Xu Yuan entered the Nether, a group of players gathered around his newly created Nether portal frame in the main world.
"Isn't this spot supposed to look different?" one player muttered.
"Yeah, last time, there were just a few obsidian blocks here. How did it suddenly turn into a portal frame?" another chimed in.
"Could this be something our guild set up?" someone suggested.
"No way. Even if we wanted to, we'd need obsidian, and that stuff's impossible to mine," someone else pointed out.
"This is weird. Better report it to the guild leader…"
The players surrounding the portal frame belonged to the Cloud Soar Guild, one of the more well-known guilds in the game. Cloud Soar was originally a large gaming studio founded years ago, with a presence across many popular games. Now it was one of the top ten guilds in the country, with a solid reputation in the industry.
Though the guild was only Level 1 right now, they were close to reaching Level 2. With the release of Steve's recent base-building guide, they were likely to level up soon.
The skill level of Cloud Soar players was a cut above many others, especially compared to Victory Guild's members. Most of Cloud Soar's roster were seasoned veterans, long-time studio members, and professional players.
By coincidence, Xu Yuan's newly created Nether portal was located in the area where Cloud Soar members had just started their own exploration. The players had stumbled upon the portal's remains just yesterday.
Initially, they hadn't paid much attention to the broken portal; after all, they hadn't yet learned about Nether portals. But seeing the changes today, they became intrigued.
Without delay, they reported this discovery to the guild leader, Yunfeng.
About an hour after the message went out, Yunfeng arrived on a sleek black horse.
"What's going on here?" he asked, dismounting.
The players quickly filled him in.
"Boss, here's the deal. We reached this area yesterday and found some scattered obsidian blocks. There was also a chest nearby."
"We reported it to you yesterday," one of the players added.
Yunfeng nodded, remembering that they'd found the horse's saddle in that very chest. Another player continued explaining.
"Yesterday, there were only five obsidian blocks, but today, it looks like a complete portal frame."
He pointed to the obsidian structure behind him.
Yunfeng studied the frame, deep in thought. Then he asked, "Are there any other players in the area?"
A guild member shrugged. "In theory, no."
"But it's hard to say for sure. Yesterday was our first time exploring here, so we don't know for certain…"
This area was a good hour away from their guild base, so it wasn't a usual spot for Cloud Soar players to hang around.
Taking this in, Yunfeng opened his messages and shot a text to the vice leader, Yunli.
"How far out are you?"
"About thirty minutes away."
"I'll wait here."
After closing his message list, Yunfeng joined the players in examining the obsidian frame.
Roughly half an hour later, Yunli finally arrived. Yunfeng relayed the players' report to him.
"What do you make of it?"
Yunli, who was Yunfeng's younger brother and the guild's vice leader, was known for his sharp instincts and deep understanding of games. He was the guild's strategist and had been instrumental in Cloud Soar's growth.
After inspecting the frame for a moment, Yunli spoke up.
"This obsidian didn't just appear on its own. Someone must've built it," he reasoned.
"Which means that someone already has a diamond pickaxe. Otherwise, they couldn't have gotten the obsidian."
"They went through all that trouble to gather obsidian and build this thing… so it's definitely important."
He gestured to the frame, adding, "Judging by the shape, it looks like some kind of door…"
With Yunli's words, no one had any reason to doubt his analysis. His track record spoke for itself.
Yunfeng nodded and asked, "So, if it's a door… where does it lead?"
"We tried walking through it, but nothing happened," one of the players mentioned.
Yunli smirked, "Probably a teleportation door or something. It likely needs to be activated."
"As for how to do that… well, we'll have to test it out."
Nodding in agreement, Yunfeng gave Yunli a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"Alright, it's in your hands."
Yunli raised his chin, signaling his acceptance.
As Cloud Soar's players busied themselves with testing the portal, the mystery surrounding the obsidian frame only deepeneed.
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