"Lady Warrior, you are mistaken. After you left, many more monsters from the Ghost Clan appeared. Just when Overturning Water was in grave danger, I happened to arrive and rescued Brother Overturning Water. Now, just thinking about that dangerous situation gives me the jitters!"

The chubby player didn’t lose his composure due to Lin Yuqing’s exposure, lying without a hitch, even managing to make his expressions quite convincing.

"What?"

As the saying goes: concern causes chaos. Lin Yuqing, worried, asked, "Overturning Water... he’s alright, isn’t he?"

Slight Rain was initially taken aback, then caught on and gave the chubby player a weird look before playing along with his story, "It truly is thanks to Brother Chubby’s divine intervention that Spilt Water avoided disaster. If word of this got out, it would surely become a tale worth telling! With the tournament approaching, with Brother Chubby’s skills, he will definitely seize the championship!"

"Cough cough, divine intervention is a bit much, but I can manage some small favors. This beautiful lady shouldn’t tease me like that. What tournament? I’m such a small fry, I probably don’t even qualify to carry shoes..."

The chubby player had some self-awareness, knowing that it’s better to keep his boasts in check to avoid ridicule. From the lady’s expression, it was clear she hadn’t fallen for a single punctuation mark of his previous speech.

Moreover, Lin Yuqing had already mentioned returning from the Ghost Town through a teleport. So fooling her with false information about the cave... that was now even less viable...

"You two might not know, but after Brother Overturning Water and I cleared all the monsters, the ground suddenly collapsed. We were trapped inside and before we could escape, the system forcefully teleported us to another terrain. I couldn’t continue on, so I had to bid brother Overturning Water goodbye and tore the Town Recall Scroll to return alone."

As the chubby player recounted his story, his voice brimmed with emotion and he employed plenty of rich body language. Seeing how attentively the two women were listening, he privately thought to himself, "This could work!"

If these two women knew the plot he had concocted, they might as well give up, as it was a waste of time, serving no purpose whatsoever.

"Another terrain? Brother Chubby, do you know the coordinates?"

Seeing that Chubby’s story seemed somewhat credible, and that Overturning Water had been gone for so long, Slight Rain was fully drawn in. Remembering Overturning Water’s character, this explanation seemed plausible.

A slight smile curled at the corner of Chubby’s mouth. He had been busy for half a day, and this was precisely the response he’d been waiting for!

"Sigh, to tell you the truth, I am a merchant who makes a living selling information. We may know each other, but I can’t break the rules of the business. But don’t worry, I’ll give you a friend’s discount."

Chubby looked genuinely troubled, furrowing his brow so much that even the fat on his cheeks tensed, vividly displaying his inner turmoil.

Damn the friend’s discount!

Who doesn’t know that acquaintances get fleeced in this society?

To boldly claim a friend’s discount like that, how thick must Chubby’s skin be?

"Oh, Chubby, you really maintain professional integrity, beating around the bush for so long just for this bit of information fee, huh?"

Slight Rain was not easily deceived. She snorted coldly, "Out with it, how much do you want to satisfy your professional bottom line?"

"Sis, this guy is an absolute charlatan, don’t fall for it!" ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

Lin Yuqing anxiously tried to stop Slight Rain but was stunned by what she said.

"The information fee about Overturning Water is worth it."

"Haha, this lovely lady really has the right attitude. If you want to save Brother Overturning Water, you should hurry. The later it gets, the more disadvantageous it is for Brother Overturning Water; keep that in mind!"

The chubby player began to count on his fingers, tabulating the so-called information fee, "Ghost Town Recall Scroll costs 10 gold, a group-sealing charm costs 300 gold, plus labor charges, mental damage compensation—ah, miss, I won’t ask for much, just hand me 500 gold for good measure. That’s just my cost price. Anyone else would charge at least 510 gold!"

"500 gold? Are you trying to rob me?!"

Lin Yuqing couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the chubby player’s audacious demand. To rip someone off to this extent and still have the face to say he wasn’t asking for much was utterly unreasonable!

"Young lady, don’t be angry, I know what I’m doing."

As Fine Drizzle patted Lin Yuqing’s shoulder, signaling her not to worry about him, he then turned to the chubby player and said, "Is it just 500 gold? I’ll pay."

What?

Now it was the chubby player’s turn to be shocked. He hadn’t expected that the woman in front of him was a wealthy lady who didn’t even flinch at throwing around big money!

Spilt Water Can’t Be Regained, what damn good luck to know such a top-quality beauty, and she was even willing to spend so much for him!

It’s infuriating—why are all the good women someone else’s?

However, envy aside, the chubby player didn’t forget his professional ethics. Rubbing his palms together, he smiled at Fine Drizzle and praised, "Miss, you’re so generous! I admire that. If Overturning Water knew about this, he would definitely see you in a new light! Since that’s the case, I won’t beat around the bush anymore. Cash on delivery!"

"Hold on a second."

Fine Drizzle looked at the chubby player with a smile, keeping her eyes on him until he started to avoid her gaze, feeling guilty. Then she slowly said, "I haven’t finished speaking yet, what’s the hurry? I mean, you need to sign an equivalent system contract. After all, this is no small amount of money. You have your professional ethics, and I have my principles. If you want this information fee, it’s no problem, as long as you’re willing to sign the system contract!"

"An equivalent system contract?"

The chubby player’s eyes twinkled, puzzled by what Fine Drizzle was really plotting. However, he knew that anything involving a system contract needed careful consideration—it could potentially lead to a major setback!

"If you’re that distrustful of me, then I have nothing else to say. This deal might as well be off!"

Given the chubby player’s cautious nature, why would he take such a risk? He promptly employed a strategic retreat, hoping to pressure the woman into agreeing.

With that thought, the chubby player decisively turned and walked away—one step, two steps. On the third step, his ears perked up, waiting for the female player to call him back.

"Stop, I’ll pay the money!"

Just as the chubby player had predicted, just as he took his third step, a voice finally came from behind, trying to keep him from leaving.

Ha-ha, he had gambled correctly this time!

Five hundred gold coins in his pocket, a nice little windfall!

Huh?

Something’s off—why has the beauty’s voice become so unpleasant?

In the midst of his excitement, the chubby player realized something was amiss and instinctively turned his head to look, his whole body tensing up in an instant.

Not far behind him stood a player in a black robe and mask. The words that had just been spoken were from his throat.