Chapter 16：Dungeon

Liu Ye paused as he stared blankly at Xu Yue's friend request. He used his old nickname, so he wasn't hard to find but that wasn't what distracted him. He suddenly remembered the real purpose he was playing.

Work.

The reason he entered this game was to pay off his sister's hospital debt by working for Xu Yue. He launched Avatar Online in a chaotic manner, mainly out of curiosity and to satisfy his old, gamer soul, but he didn't even talk with her about the details of their agreement.

How long would he have to work for?

How much would Xu Yue pay him?

What was the structure of his work?

Was there an option for an earlier release if he collected the money earlier?

Liu Ye couldn't deny that he was actually enjoying himself playing the game but with so many questions, his future was still uncertain. He didn't have a habit of letting people play with him.

After he accepted the friend request, another notification popped up.

[Player Queen of Chess invited you to a Holo Call. Would you like to join?]

Liu Ye didn't hesitate and rejected her. How could he accept it now when he was in the middle of an important mission? Too bad, it was Xu Yue he was up against.

[Player Queen of Chess invited you to a Holo Call. Would you like to join?]

Reject.

[Player Queen of Chess invited you to a Holo Call. Would you like to join?]

Reject.

[Player Queen of Chess invited you to a Holo Call. Would you like to join?]

Accept.

Seeing how she spammed him, Liu Ye knew she wouldn't stop until he accepted the call. Immediately as he pressed the button, a 3D model of Xu Yue's body visualized in front of him. He wasn't surprised that she was also wearing black leather with a Bandana, a sign she defeated the Adult Wolf.

"Hey baby~ How are you?" Xu Yue called out sweetly, causing Liu Ye to be already done before the conversation even started.

He reached out to close the call, but she stopped him while waving her hands, "Wait, wait, don't cancel it! I have something important to say!"

"What is it? I am busy," Liu Ye replied as he peeked at the entrance door, waiting for Vice-leader Marco to arrive. He was still yet to hear any voices so he returned to Xu Yue.

She already took off her Bandana and just like Liu Ye, she didn't change her features too much. Of course, their reasoning was different. He didn't change because he was late while she was too proud not to use her own appearance.

"Baby, you are not romantic at all," Xu Yue commented. "Just say you are good and then tell me how beautiful I look."

Liu Ye shrugged. "If you want a yes boy then ask any of those CEOs out. I'm sure they are willing to praise you all day long."

Being Xu Yue's bodyguard in the past, Liu Ye met a fair share of influential men trying to woo the beautiful heir of the Red Dragon Triad. Naturally, she would always ignore them as her eyes were all on him. How mad would they be if they found out the woman of their fantasies fell for her bodyguard?

Xu Yue only pursed her lips at his remark and conveniently changed the subject, "What are you up to? I just took a break after reaching Level 4. I joined late but I should reach Level 10 before the servers close."

"Shhh, don't talk for a second," Liu Ye silenced her, hearing footsteps by the door. Xu Yue was unruly but she could recognize the right time to tease and when to stay quiet.

[Player Queen of Chess requested a live view. Would you like to grant access?]

Liu Ye only glanced at the notification and accepted when Vice-leader Marco came through the door. Their strategy didn't change. The Berserker got silenced with a water bubble around his face before Liu Ye came out and started slapping him with water whips.

[Ding! You killed the Berserker. You received 500 Experience and 50 silver.]

The last Berserker fell down on the floor, leaving only 25 left.

"Oof, I thought he would be harder to kill since he was a Waterbender but it seems I overestimated him. I guess he can't do anything if his hands are tied," Vice-leader commented as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I suggest we wait a moment. The rest will get suspicious if we interrogate so fast."

"No problem. Let's take a five-minute pause then," Liu Ye decided as he returned to another room where Xu Yue's live-sized model was waiting for him.

"Whoa, what was that?" Xu Yue questioned in surprise. "I didn't think Water Element was so strong. Also, who is that man? I thought my Liu Ye doesn't like playing in a team."

"He is an NPC that assists me in a quest. I don't share my experience with him," Liu Ye replied casually as he gulped down another small Mana Potion. "Did you see everything?"

"Yeah, I did. Liveview lets me see anything you see while Holo Call just displays your Characters," Xu Yue explained as she walked up to him. "It has a limited range so you disappeared at my side when you left the room."

Her hologram hand passed through his face as she tried to touch him and sighed deeply, "I already miss caressing your face… I can't wait till we meet again."

She leaned over to pretend she kissed him but Liu Ye dodged her. "That's a no from me. If you touch me in-game, I will report you for harassment."

Xu Yue pursed her lips. "How about in real life? Will you call the Police on me?"

Liu Ye couldn't help but roll his eyes, knowing calling the Police on Xu Yue was useless. The Red Dragon Triad influence wasn't something to underestimate. Even the Government decided to work closely with them so what can the local Police do? They wouldn't even dare to talk about her, not to mention arresting her.

"That's right, I have some insider information about the final boss of Newbie Village that gives you access to the mainland. I can see you are already Level 7 so you will need it soon," Xu Yue revealed, finally getting to the point.

She successfully got his attention. "What is it?"

"Based on the main questline, once you reach Level 10, you will receive a key to the dungeon. From what I heard, they are a big deal. Aside from quests and the normal monsters in the wilderness, the dungeons will be the main source of experience and resources," Xu Yue reported with a smile. "They are basically locked areas you enter with a time limit and a Boss you have to defeat to clear the dungeon. There is a catch though."

Xu Yue paused, smirking at Liu Ye as if enjoying his interested gaze. He didn't have time so he hurried her. "What is the catch?"

She looked around to check if anyone was near her and explained, "The catch is the Dungeon Key. It creates a portal that will take you and your team to the dungeon area but you can only use it once. If you fail, you need to find someone else who has the Dungeon Key or complete a long quest to get another one. You only get one free Dungeon Key so make sure you don't fail."

She gave him a hologram pat on the head and suggested, "I know you like playing solo but maybe you can find some good players to team up with you. The Boss of the Newbie Village Dungeon is a Bandit Leader which has tens of Masked Bandits with him. I doubt you will be able to trap them like you do now."

Liu Ye's eyes couldn't help to widen when he heard her. Wasn't that exactly who he had to defeat in his own quest?

"Are you sure?" Liu Ye questioned seriously, finding it crucial to his plans. "Where did you get this information?"

There was no word in his quest details about any dungeons or a Dungeon Key so it would only mean he had to defeat the Bandit Leader in a traditional way. Liu Ye couldn't guess yet if it was a good or a bad thing.

"Do you really doubt me?" Xu Yue asked back as she squinted her eyes. "Of course I'm sure. I wouldn't lie to you."

"I was just making sure since it's important to me," Liu Ye assured as he tried to decipher her expression. One didn't need to think much to know she was hiding something from him.

He already accepted her decision to treat the game as a business but now he was hesitating. If she knew all those details that were not available to the public, it could only mean it wasn't just another business idea.

"I want to know full details of our agreement and what is going on with this game by tomorrow," Liu Ye announced firmly as he opened the call's settings. "If I don't get it, don't expect me to talk to you."

[Holo Call canceled.]

He will get the truth even if he had to force it out of her.