The Three Realms Thief Chapter 47

For some players who love to delve into plot and lore,

the most appealing thing is not defeating monsters.

They enjoy fishing, sewing, and finding places to chat with people.

—That’s right, finding a scenic spot in the game to hang out and chat with others.

Some players even specifically seek out hidden storylines to learn the backstories of various NPCs.

When encountering such story-driven players, all information from an NPC will be thoroughly extracted.

In any scenario—

If they think there’s a chance to get information, players absolutely won’t easily let go of any NPC (non-player character)!

—Even though in reality, they might not bother to talk to anyone.

“Hey, little beauty, you’re so cute, and your eyes are as beautiful as gems. It won’t look good if they’re all red from crying.”

Xu Yuan crouched in front of the little girl, speaking softly and slowly.

“My brother—my brother insists I dance and sing—I don’t want to perform!” the little girl cried as she spoke.

“Is that so?” Xu Yuan asked curiously, “Why does he want you to perform?”

“Because some people are going out to fight, and he wants me to encourage them,” the little girl said.

“Did he give you candy? Or any other benefits? Like some things you like?” Xu Yuan asked.

“No,” the little girl said angrily.

“Then he should perform himself,” Xu Yuan said.

He should perform himself!

The little girl seemed to be struck, standing still, staring blankly at Xu Yuan, even forgetting to cry.

But soon, she followed up:

“He’s the chief examiner for this selection, so keep your voice down.”

Information obtained—

He now had at least some understanding of the examiner’s temperament.

And the examiner seemed to be very powerful.

Xu Yuan returned the favor, offering advice:

“Remember, if you’re bullied, you should tell your mom and dad.”

“They don’t care about me. Later, I’m going to hide in the chicken coop behind the house. Can you not tell anyone else?” the little girl asked.

“Okay,” Xu Yuan said.

“It’s a promise.”

The little girl ran towards the back of the house and quickly disappeared from sight.

Xu Yuan stood up, quickened his pace, and entered the mud house.

Inside the house, a young man was indeed standing.

“Alright, everyone’s here. I’ll announce the test questions.”

“—There’s a wooden fish, a golden earring, and a pair of Meteorite Iron Boots in this room.”

“Find them, and you’ve passed the selection.”

“Begin!”

Everyone immediately started searching.

Xu Yuan had sharp eyes and quick perception. With a glance, he spotted an item hidden on the ceiling beam.

He rushed two steps, jumped up, and used his movement technique on the wall to land on the beam.

Meteorite Iron Boots!

He went forward, grabbed the boots, jumped down, and handed them to the man.

At this point, others were still searching everywhere.

— “Spot the difference” games were just for entertainment.

But this time, there was actually money to be had.

Xu Yuan expressed his delight.

“You’re good, the fastest one,” the man said in an appreciative tone, “Next, help me find someone—my sister just went out, go find her and bring her back.”

“This doesn’t seem to be part of the test,” Xu Yuan said.

“It’s an additional test. If you can bring her back, the reward will be higher,” the man said.

“Okay,” Xu Yuan said, then walked out of the house.

A few minutes later.

He returned to the house, sighed, and shook his head:

“Please forgive my inability; I really don’t know where she ran off to.”

As soon as he spoke.

The man suddenly disappeared.

The blue sky, white clouds, and mud house all vanished.

The man emerged from the room, closed the door, and sat down behind the desk.

—He had transformed back into the uncle from earlier.

“Oh dear… I hope Yiyi doesn’t fall for him…”

The uncle mused, sipping his milk tea.

Inside the room.

The selection continued.

The mud house had disappeared.

In its place was a magnificently decorated, unimaginably grand hall.

There were twelve beams.

The beams were cyan-green, as if carved from wind spirit jade.

The four sides of the windows were adorned with golden phoenixes, and the walls featured murals with gilded powder and gold leaf.

There were also three luminous pearls, lighting it up like daytime.

Two rows of sword-wielding guards stood on either side, expressions grim.

On the high platform.

A stunning woman sat elegantly, dressed in a black gown, holding a scroll, deeply engrossed in reading.

By her age, she appeared to be in her early thirties, but it was hard to be certain.

As if sensing Xu Yuan’s arrival.

The woman didn’t lift her head, opened her crimson lips, and softly asked:

“Who are you?”

“I’m here to participate in the selection… the Archaeological Bureau’s selection,” Xu Yuan said, somewhat lacking confidence.

—This selection was a bit strange; he felt something wasn’t quite right.

Was the previous examiner angry?

Did he get thrown here just because he failed to find the little girl?

A hint of helplessness appeared in the woman’s eyes as she said:

“Yiyi is causing trouble again, oh well.”

She closed the book, looked up, and gazed at Xu Yuan.

The next second.

“You’re eliminated. In short, I don’t think you’re suitable,” the woman said.

Xu Yuan was somewhat bewildered.

—You just looked at me, and I’m eliminated?

Didn’t they say they would take care of the children of their own employees?

Well, never mind.

Anyway, he had already gained 2000 yuan from this visit.

Just enough to go to the mall and buy shoes.

But did you just say “Yiyi”?

I didn’t mishear, did I?

It seems I have a note…

“Then—apologies for the interruption, but I’d like to ask what my shortcomings are, please enlighten me.”

Xu Yuan bowed and asked.

This question was both a stalling tactic, allowing him to continue observing the other party and to learn about her relationship with “Yiyi,” and a genuine inquiry about his own weaknesses.

A sudden change occurred—

Rows of faint glowing words suddenly appeared in the void, swiftly manifesting before his eyes:

“Attention!”

“Special event ‘Heart of the Witch’ has been activated early!”

“Because you made a promise before the other party, this led the other party to adopt an active strategy.”

“You have only one chance to pass this event and unlock the ‘Border City Battle’ training match.”

“Please strive your best!”

Xu Yuan was startled.

What is going on?

—I came to earn some money, how did I trigger a special event?

But further thought was useless.

I’ve already been eliminated!

Then he heard the woman on the high platform speak again:

“You are mainly too young, your cultivation level is too low, and your strength is too weak.”

Xu Yuan had nothing to say but nodded.

There was nothing embarrassing about it.

—I am indeed still young; only one part of my body can be big, which is a natural law.

Unexpectedly, the other party changed her tone and said:

“However—”

“Although you know I rejected you, you still asked about your shortcomings, which shows ambition.”

“I’ll give you another chance.”

“Thank you,” Xu Yuan bowed.

The woman casually performed a hand seal.

A giant map, about eight or nine meters long and four meters wide, silently descended and floated in front of Xu Yuan.

“This is the city’s overall defense map.”

“It includes three hundred and eight giant spirit power cannons on the city walls, seventy-two protective formations, and the number, type, equipment, and even civil defense layouts of various troop deployments.”

“If demons attack—mind you, what I’m talking about here is a demon army that this city absolutely cannot withstand.”

“At that time, the entire city will be surrounded by demons—”

“If you are trapped in this city, how do you plan to face the enemy? And what method will you use to safely escape from this city?”

The woman’s voice echoed distantly.

Xu Yuan nodded slightly.

So it was a test of offense, defense, and escape.

Real-time strategy might not be my cup of tea, but it has produced many classic tactics.

In addition.

So many classic battles in Chinese history, and military books and strategies.

These can all be borrowed!

Xu Yuan looked up, scrutinizing the city’s defenses carefully. After a while, he suddenly remembered an important matter.

He asked:

“How many civilians are there? Have any arrangements been made in advance? How can their safety and escape be guaranteed?”

Silence.

No one answered.

He turned his head in surprise, only to see that the woman on the high platform, as well as the many guards in the hall, all had strange expressions.

“Why do you ask that?” the woman retorted.

Xu Yuan was stunned.

He spread his hands helplessly and replied:

“To consider the issue of evacuation, of course, I have to know how the civilians are arranged first.”

Isn’t this the most basic logic?

If you can’t even find the people, how can you arrange their retreat?

The woman then said:

“Understood. What then?”

“Formulate a plan, arrange a strategy, find ways to delay the enemy, and let the civilians escape,” Xu Yuan said.

“What about the cultivators?” the woman asked again.

“Face the enemy,” Xu Yuan said.

The woman remained silent.

She simply raised her hand and performed another hand seal.

Countless glowing figures emerged from the ground, coalescing into human forms.

They were cultivators in armor.

They faced the giant map and spoke eloquently.

Someone said:

“Mobilize heavy artillery to bombard the enemy’s vanguard, strengthen the defense on one side of the grand formation, dig a tunnel from the South Gate, and escape using the Earth Evasion Technique.”

—This was a lone cultivator’s escape strategy.

Someone said:

“Lead the main forces to confront the enemy head-on, send seven small teams to confuse the enemy, use surprise attacks to destroy the enemy’s spatial confinement array, and seize the opportunity to teleport away the various Highnesses.”

—This was an escape strategy to protect important figures.

Someone said:

“The whole army will face the enemy. My small team members will disguise themselves as ordinary people, and taking advantage of the fleeing populace, we will find a gap in the encirclement and break through in one fell swoop.”

—This was a small team’s escape strategy.

Xu Yuan nodded, still not quite understanding, and opened his mouth:

“What they said is all very good. I haven’t started speaking yet. Would you mind listening to what I have to say?”

“You don’t need to,”

The woman’s voice, neither hurried nor slow, echoed calmly through the grand hall:

“Your strength is too weak, and you are too young to fill any position—”

“Come, learn a move from me.”

“If you achieve success in your cultivation in the future, at that time, I will arrange a position for you, and then you can go and help ordinary people.”

As her voice fell.

She leaped gracefully, landing lightly beside Xu Yuan, raised both hands, and struck an initial stance.

“?” Xu Yuan.

I came here for the selection, to get that 9500 yuan.

Could it be that those from the Archaeological Bureau also get martial arts manuals?

“You must learn seriously. Come, first observe the punching movements.”

The woman said.

“Yes,” Xu Yuan followed, striking the punching posture.

The woman guided him from the side, explaining the essentials of the boxing technique and correcting his movements from time to time.

About an hour later.

“Let’s rest now. If there’s anything you don’t understand, we can talk about it later.”

The woman said.

Instantly.

Everything in the room transformed into light and shadow, disappearing in a flash.

Xu Yuan froze.

He looked left and right, only to see the entire room empty, not even a single piece of furniture.

The room had also returned to its original twenty square meters.

What the heck?

Where’s the money?

Did I just encounter a ghost?

At this moment, several lines of faint glowing words appeared in the void:

“Congratulations.”

“You have passed the special event ‘Heart of the Witch’ and gained authority.”

“From now on, you can start the training match: Border City Battle (Difficult Mode) at any time.”

“Each activation costs 10 Gold Coins.”

“Pausing, stopping, ending, or restarting all require another payment of 10 Gold Coins.”

“The training match has no rewards; killing monsters does not drop Gold Coins.”

“You can enter and exit the training match at any time (paying 10 Gold Coins each time); strive for breakthroughs during training (killing monsters accumulates experience points); and collect resources and intelligence.”

Passed!!!

Xu Yuan felt it was somewhat unbelievable.

How did I pass?

By being taught a punching technique by that woman?

—It’s so ridiculous, it’s off the charts.

“No…”

Xu Yuan murmured softly.

Actually, as a professional player, he was not only good at intense combat but also at one other thing—

Reviewing.

What exactly happened just now?

Xu Yuan closed his eyes, activated his memory, and replayed every scene that had just occurred in his mind.