Chapter 2 Where Was There Six Years?

Wang Liang jumped up a couple of times, but still could not see the situation within the crowd. After all, this was a xianxia-style game where onlookers could not only stand on their tiptoes, but even levitate to get a better view. Having arrived late, Wang Liang could only see a sea of the backs of people's heads.

Unable to make out what was happening inside, Wang Liang anxiously asked, "What's going on in there?"

"Can't you cast a Water Mirror spell yourself?" asked an older player standing in front of Wang Liang, turning his head with a look of dissatisfaction.

"I'm a newbie, I don't know how," Wang Liang replied quite casually, having already picked up some cheeky habits.

However, the player in front scoffed. "Another one pretending to be a greenhorn. Don't bother dreaming, the high-level players won't carry noobs. You'd better honestly work on raising your level yourself."

The player in front replied without even turning his head back, though he was kind enough to make a little room for Wang Liang.

Taking advantage of the space the player made, Wang Liang caught sight of the Water Mirror spell operating right in front of the player.

It was a mirror surface formed by a pool of water, reflecting precisely the combat taking place over there.

Wang Liang noticed that one of the combatants was Lu Weng. At the moment, he was holding a long sword in one hand and wielding it effortlessly. Every single swing caused him to blink to a completely different location, and along the path he traversed, everything seemed to have been sliced into fragments.

The other combatant was dressed in a white long-gown and also wielded a long sword. As he swung his sword, blossoms of white lotuses would perpetually manifest around the blade, but the sword Qi forming the lotuses was all show and no substance; before it could even be projected outward, it was shredded into powder by Lu Weng's long sword.

Yet it was obvious that Lu Weng was not trying to deal a fatal blow. On several occasions, the tip of his sword was already on the verge of hitting his opponent's vital points, only for him to redirect it away at the last second.

The spectators watching from the sidelines could all see this clearly, and they screamed in excited cheers, as if rooting for Lu Weng.

Lu Weng was someone who loved to show off, and under such an atmosphere, he was even less inclined to kill his opponent casually.

He performed his swordsmanship back and forth for nearly seven or eight minutes before finally thrusting his sword into his opponent's neck.

This thrust appeared completely unremarkable, yet after being struck by it, his opponent collapsed directly to his knees.

Stowing his long sword away, Lu Weng smugly produced a gourd and poured a mouthful of wine into his mouth. Afterward, he laughed heartily and declared, "I've had a great time today, I'll come back tomorrow. Anyone wanting a challenge can wait right at the city gates."

With that, Lu Weng made ready to enter the city.

Upon seeing this, Wang Liang hurriedly shouted, "Fellow Daoist, please stay a moment!"

The very next instant, all the players in front of Wang Liang scattered in every direction, clearing out a wide avenue.

Wang Liang felt a bit puzzled. What kind of situation was this? Had he said something wrong?

Hearing those words, Lu Weng also halted his steps. Judging from his trembling shoulders, he was extremely angry.

Then Lu Weng spun around and glared at Wang Liang. "What fellow Daoist? Do you have any idea—oh, it's you. Don't ever say that phrase again next time. Saying that kind of thing ruins one's fortune."

Wang Liang blinked. "Ruins whose fortune? Wasn't it you who said last time that this was how close friends greet each other?"

"Forget it, it won't ruin anything on your account anyway. Actually, I was tricked by someone myself. Do you see those heads over there? That's what happens to people who trick me. I killed him a full twenty times, and all his heads are hanging right there."

Lu Weng pointed toward a row of identical heads mounted atop the city wall.

Looking at those heads, Wang Liang couldn't shake the eerie feeling that he was looking at the pilgrim skulls from before.

For a moment, Wang Liang blurted out, "With all these heads looking exactly the same, I wonder if anyone uses their own skull to forge a Dharmic artifact."

Immediately afterward, Wang Liang noticed that the surrounding atmosphere grew somewhat frozen, as if everyone was staring directly at him.

Lu Weng stepped forward, grabbed Wang Liang, and said, "There are certain taboos in this game. If you don't understand them, don't talk nonsense, or you'll offend people."

Wang Liang rolled his eyes. When it came to offending people in this game, who could possibly surpass you?

Nevertheless, knowing Lu Weng's strength, he ultimately kept his mouth shut.

Lu Weng led Wang Liang inside the Boundary Marker Pass. At this moment, the massive iron furnace behind the gates was still operating incessantly, though compared to before, the furnace had already begun churning out swords. Several players were in the process of transporting the newly forged swords out of the city, completely unaffected by the battle that had just taken place at the city gates.

After bringing Wang Liang into the city, Lu Weng found a tavern nearby and sat down.

Without Lu Weng even having to ask, the proprietor promptly served fine wine and quality meats.

However, Lu Weng didn't pour a cup for Wang Liang; he simply ate and drank by himself.

Halfway through the meal, he finally raised his head and looked at Wang Liang. "Well? Do you expect me to invite you? Eat your own food."

Only then did Wang Liang pick up the wine and meat to eat.

He had barely taken a single bite of the meat when Lu Weng spoke up, "What on earth is going on with you, kid? Why doesn't the timeline on your end match up?"

"Ah, you noticed? I felt something was off too. I clearly hadn't spent all that much time inside the game, yet why does it seem like over six years have passed for the people in my estate?"

Wang Liang hurriedly brought up this question.

"Which games have you been visiting? I remember you entered a game from here not too long ago, something called the One Hundred and Eight Fiend Stars, or something like that.

After that, if I recall correctly, you didn't return through the game's entrance portal, did you?"

"Yes, because in that game I acquired certain items, and since those items might have been part of someone's scheme, I went straight back to my own estate. Shortly after, I ran into an old acquaintance."

At this point, Wang Liang hesitated.

Seeing this, Lu Weng understood immediately and simply waved a hand. "Alright, now no one else can hear us."

"He said I shouldn't have come over so early, so he sent me off to a certain place..."

Wang Liang began recounting his journey traveling all the way west until his encounter with Great Immortal Zhenyuan.

Listening to these words, Lu Weng's expression shifted slightly. "Great Immortal Zhenyuan? I remember, I remember, I remember eating a Ginseng Fruit of his back in my past life—that stuff is top-tier treasure. If it was him, then everything adds up.

Nothing else went wrong; the issue lies in the fact that you were weeding beneath his Ginseng Fruit tree.

He must have been telling you to purge the stray weeds within your own heart, but as a result, you gained some personal enlightenment, so he adjusted your time. That explains why you only felt like six days had passed, when in reality he manipulated your time by six years.

That estate of yours—is it that particular one? That estate is considered an extension of your body, so when your time was adjusted, the estate's time was altered accordingly as well.

This bit of time alteration won't have much impact, you'll get used to it. But let me tell you, your current strength is far from sufficient; absolutely, under no circumstances should you go messing around with time, or you'll play yourself to death."

"I understand. Great Immortal Zhenyuan also told me not to mingle within the River of Time, and instead advised me to look for opportunities in the foreign starry skies."

"Oh, then go ahead and do that. Just give me a holler if you need anything."