The people arriving at that moment were obviously not friends—they were enemies. Members of the Pegasus Caravan.
Liu Weian tried to move, and searing pain flared from every part of his body. He nearly cried out but clenched his teeth and forced himself to stand. Beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolled down his forehead. He swallowed two Strength Dumplings and quickly made his way toward Lu Yan. As he passed the fallen commander, he couldn't help but stop. He swiftly searched the corpse but was disappointed—despite being powerful, the commander didn't seem to care for wearing equipment and carried no weapons. The elite was a total bust.
Just as he was about to give up, he noticed a glint of metal beneath the sleeve at the man's wrist.
A bracelet. Spatial gear?
There was no time to inspect it. He yanked off the bracelet, slung the unconscious Lu Yan over his shoulder, and left in haste. Moments later, the Pegasus Caravan arrived.
"Commander!"
Their voices trembled with fear. More and more people rushed in, but none dared pursue Liu Weian. Despite their numbers, no one even thought to scan the area; had they done so, Liu Weian would've been caught. But the shock of their commander's death was too great. A Silver-tier warrior was dead—what chance did the rest of them have? Charging after Liu Weian would be suicidal. So, in a rare display of collective wisdom, they pretended not to care, lifted the commander's body, and quickly retreated.
An hour later, Lu Yan awoke. Her injuries were far worse than they looked—she couldn't even speak. The external wounds were manageable, but Liu Weian had no idea how to treat the internal damage. His cultivation technique, Dark Emperor Scripture, was powerful but incomplete; he hadn't fully grasped it himself, let alone learned how to heal others.
She stayed conscious only briefly. After swallowing a few Strength Seeds, she drifted off again. Liu Weian wasn't sure if she had fainted or simply fallen asleep. But her breathing gradually steadied, and that was enough to ease his heart. He didn't disturb her. Reflecting on the battle, he realized how close to death he had come.
The difference between a Silver-tier and a Bronze-tier expert was immense. He had defeated several Bronze-tier opponents before—difficult fights, yes, but ultimately not life-threatening. This time, however, he'd faced death multiple times. The Dark Emperor Scripture saved him once. Lu Yan saved him twice—first with her trap, then by blinding the commander in one eye, throwing him into disarray. Her final attack split the commander's focus, saving Liu Weian's life a third time.
This experience had taught him a bitter lesson. His arrogance over reaching the Iron-tier was utterly crushed.
He took out the bracelet to examine it. Surprisingly, there was no blood-binding ritual—it could be used by anyone. When he extended his mind into it, what he saw made his jaw drop.
This was the fourth piece of spatial gear he had encountered. The first had been mailed to the real world—just one cubic meter in size. The second was a three-cubic-meter space bracelet from Lu Yan, which he still wore. The third was her own ring, also three cubic meters. But this one—it held five cubic meters, the largest he'd ever seen. Like a small room.
Inside were three piles, each resembling a miniature mountain. The largest was filled with flesh sacs—at least two thousand of them. Clearly, the man had been wealthy. If it were Liu Weian, he would've opened them on the spot; what was inside was worth far more than the sacs themselves.
The second pile consisted of mixed coins—gold, silver, and copper—all jumbled together. Liu Weian spent over ten minutes sorting through it, estimating around a thousand gold coins in total.
The last pile was the smallest but most valuable: Strength Seeds. Roughly 3,500 of them. Without a doubt, this was the Pegasus Caravan's haul over the past few days. They hadn't been sent back with the convoy but instead remained with the commander—only to end up in Liu Weian's possession.
His disappointment over missing the convoy vanished. He was ecstatic. Looking back at the last few days—the pain, the hunger, the constant danger—they had been more than worth it. Including the meat sacs and the seeds, he had made five or six thousand gold coins' worth of gains in just a few days.
Around two in the afternoon, Lu Yan woke again, and by then, Liu Weian had mostly recovered. After all, this was a game. If this were the real world, these kinds of injuries would take weeks to heal.
During this time, the Pegasus Caravan hadn't reappeared. Liu Weian wasn't sure if they'd given up or simply lost their trail.
After some discussion, he learned that after they had parted ways, Lu Yan hadn't logged in for two days. Upon returning, she heard news of the ambush on the Pegasus Caravan and immediately knew it had to be him. She hadn't planned to intervene, but in the end, she couldn't help herself. She rushed to the cemetery but didn't find Liu Weian—instead, she saw the commander hiding among the zombies. Sensing something was wrong, she laid a trap ahead of time. She couldn't predict Liu Weian's exact route, so she used the oldest trick in the book—wait and hope. She got lucky.
The rest, Liu Weian knew.
He felt both touched and guilty. He'd wanted to help Lu Yan, only for her to end up saving his life—again. And she got badly hurt in the process. Looking at her pale face, he wanted to thank her—but the words came out differently.
"So… what's your next move?"
Lu Yan lowered her head and said nothing. Liu Weian, knowing her taciturn nature, hadn't expected a response anyway. He was just making conversation.
"I'm planning to raid the cemetery tonight. With their Silver-tier commander dead, the place is leaderless. It's the perfect time to strike. They've got numbers, sure—but we've got zombies. If we play it right, we could deal a serious blow to the Pegasus Caravan."
A dangerous glint flickered across his face. Anyone would feel the same after barely escaping death, even if this was "just a game."
"I'm coming with you," Lu Yan said suddenly.
"What?" Liu Weian stared at her in disbelief. He hadn't expected her to say anything—much less that.
…
Lu Yan picked a defensible location and set countless traps. Only after making sure everything was ready did they sneak into the cemetery. What they found stunned them.
The place was crawling with zombies—but not a single human in sight. The Pegasus Caravan had completely withdrawn. Not one person remained.
Liu Weian first suspected a trap. But after half an hour without incident, he emerged from hiding. A thorough search confirmed it: the Pegasus Caravan was gone.
"Did I really scare them off?" Liu Weian couldn't believe it. There was no way the mighty Pegasus Caravan had fled because of him. But the evidence was undeniable.
He and Lu Yan exchanged glances, both reading the confusion in each other's eyes.
"What's going on?"
The next day… and the day after that… still no sign of the caravan—or any other players. Liu Weian and Lu Yan camped in the cemetery for two days straight, too wary to leave, too uncertain to act.
On the third night, Liu Weian couldn't stand it any longer. He returned to Stone City to gather intel. Shortly after logging in, he ran into Black Ox, who gave him the answer.
The Pegasus Caravan had raised a white flag. They had invited the Sun family to mediate and expressed a desire to bury the hatchet with Liu Weian. They proposed a mutual non-aggression pact—no more grudges, no more trouble.
"Did they lose their minds?" That was Liu Weian's first reaction. He'd expected the opposite—that even if he begged for peace, they'd laugh in his face. But instead, they were the ones suing for peace?
"Fatty Wang really did surrender. Feeling proud?" Sun Lingzhi smiled at him. "You're the first person in Stone City to make the Pegasus Caravan swallow their pride."
"I'm just… surprised," Liu Weian admitted, blushing.
"Nothing surprising about it. Fatty Wang messed with the wrong people—got himself into serious trouble. He doesn't have time for petty vendettas anymore. In fact, I suspect the Pegasus Caravan will be keeping a low profile for quite some time," Sun Lingzhi said coolly.
Liu Weian wanted to ask what kind of trouble—but held his tongue, knowing his place.
"So, what do you think?" Sun Lingzhi asked. "Fatty Wang asked me to mediate. His suggestion is to let bygones be bygones. No compensation—his side lost more, after all. But he's not asking for anything from you either. Honestly, this is the best outcome you could hope for. What's your take?"
"I'll go with whatever Miss Sun decides," Liu Weian said gratefully. He had no doubt her influence had smoothed things over. Without her, even a distracted Pegasus Caravan could've crushed an Iron-tier player like him.
"Good. Then it's settled." Sun Lingzhi seemed satisfied. "But just a heads-up—Fatty Wang may have bowed his head, but he's probably still holding a grudge. He won't act openly, but I wouldn't rule out some sneaky tactics. If I were him, I'd mess with the cemetery. Be careful."
"I'll keep that in mind," Liu Weian nodded.
"Killing a Silver-tier expert… from now on, you've earned a seat at the table in Stone City. Keep it up—I'm rooting for you." Sun Lingzhi's gaze lingered on his face, her smile tinged with a meaning Liu Weian couldn't quite read, and then she turned and left the hall.