"Forgetful Memory, this must be a quest item. I wonder when I'll be able to use it." After reading the description on the parchment, Xiao Hua casually tossed everything into his backpack.

Checking the quest marker, the third part of the "Eliminate the Undead Bone Warlock" quest was marked as completed.

"This should be the last part, right?" Looking at the equipment he wore, including the Phantom Ring, Xiao Hua's heart began to beat rapidly with anticipation. If there were no further quests, then this sub-artifact ring would belong to him! Now that the big boss was defeated, he felt that this quest chain should be over.

"Haha! Sub-artifact! Here I come!" Excited, Xiao Hua ran down the mountain.

After the Undead Bone Warlock was eliminated, the scenery in the dungeon seemed brighter, as if breaking through darkness into light. When Xiao Hua passed through the abandoned village, this feeling was even more pronounced. What was originally a dim, abandoned village now appeared somewhat bright under the sunlight.

...

In the Green Light Forest, Aburi was flying leisurely in the sky. Xiao Hua sat on his mount, following Aburi as they slowly moved towards the supply point in the Green Light Forest.

At the end of the village, he met the cursed Evil Python and Tasi, who were now cured. The Evil Python had transformed into a handsome young man, and upon seeing Xiao Hua, thanked him gratefully. Of course, for Xiao Hua, thanks were secondary; what mattered most was his sub-artifact ring!

As Xiao Hua expected, the quest chain ended with the third part. He received his reward from the young man, happily obtaining the Phantom Ring along with a large amount of experience, raising his level to 34 with over 60%.

Although only four days had passed in the dungeon, it felt much longer to Xiao Hua. After leaving the dungeon, he didn't rush immediately but walked slowly through the Green Light Forest to rest.

Now, the Phantom Ring sat in Xiao Hua's backpack. The real Phantom Ring was neither gold nor silver but rather gray-black. However, the metallic texture of the gray-black color made Xiao Hua inexplicably fond of it!

"Brother Thousand-foot Snake, sorry to ask, is the Jade Lion mount egg still available?" As he approached the supply point, Xiao Hua sent a message to Thousand-foot Snake. After staying in the dungeon for four days, it was possible that the mount egg had been sold, as the Jade Lion was also a rare mount.

"It's you." Thousand-foot Snake was setting up a stall at the supply point when he received Xiao Hua's message. He immediately remembered Xiao Hua. After receiving the mount egg the next day, he was informed that Xiao Hua was not in the same area, leading him to believe he had been tricked, something that occasionally happened. However, upon receiving Xiao Hua's message, he was a bit surprised but did not inquire further as he was purely a mount dealer.

"You're lucky; the mount egg is still here. It's being sold at the exchange."

The Jade Lion was rare, but those who needed rare mounts often had strict requirements regarding the mount's speed and breed, so not everyone liked the Jade Lion.

"That's great. I'll be back at the supply point in about an hour." Xiao Hua breathed a sigh of relief. If he had to wait any longer, it would have been troublesome. He was already two or three days late returning, and Fang Ning and Piāo Líng might be getting anxious.

After returning to the supply point and trading for the mount egg, Xiao Hua finally boarded the airship back to Snowfall City.

It was cold! Stepping off the landing point of the airship, Xiao Hua shivered as a chill rushed over him. He recalled feeling the same way the first time he arrived in Snowfall City, and couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic.

After the initial cold, Xiao Hua suddenly received a notification about a new mail from two days ago. There were no mailboxes in the Green Light Forest, so he hadn't received the notification there. Curious, he wondered who could have sent him mail.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Curious but not thinking it was anything major, Xiao Hua decided to check it later. Putting on cold-resistant fashion wear, the chill quickly dissipated. He then entered the guild channel and shouted, "I'm back!"

"Boss, aren't you stealing someone's wife?" Apparently, there were new members in the guild who had never seen Xiao Hua, their invisible guild leader, appear before.

"Hehe, that's me," Xiao Hua laughed awkwardly. He knew he wasn't a responsible guild leader. Shouting loudly was actually to get Piāo Líng and the others' attention, as sending individual messages would be troublesome.

"You're finally back. Piāo Líng left the guild and went to another city!" Fang Ning suddenly sent him a message!

"What happened?" Xiao Hua was stunned. Did something happen between Fang Ning and Piāo Líng?

Checking the guild member list, Xiao Hua confirmed that Piāo Líng had indeed left the guild!

"I'm not sure about the specific reasons. It seems that Bingfeng Tianda doesn't plan to let Piāo Líng go and put a hefty bounty on her. Two days ago, the day after you left Snowfall City, a new member joined the guild. After adding Piāo Líng as a friend, her face turned pale, and she left Snowfall City that night. That member also left the guild after Piāo Líng left. I didn't remember their name."

Fang Ning knew about Piāo Líng and Bingfeng Tianda, but since Piāo Líng had changed her appearance, only her name was similar. Why she had to leave in such a hurry was unclear to Fang Ning.

Xiao Hua's face turned cold as he called for a carriage and headed to the mailbox. Fang Ning didn't know the reason, but he did. When helping Piāo Líng with the skill retention quest, he used his real name. If Bingfeng Tianda suspected him, and an informant from Bingfeng Guild joined his guild, seeing his name and "Ru Piāo Líng," it was easy to make connections. Despite this, Piāo Líng had drastically changed her appearance, so logically, she shouldn't have been confirmed unless she admitted it herself. Her sudden departure suggested she feared being recognized and implicating him, which indicated there was more to the story.

He soon arrived at the mailbox and took out the letter. Xiao Hua opened it immediately.

"I've left. I felt we would eventually be discovered by Bingfeng Tianda, so I decided to leave before my identity was fully exposed. Although the time was short, I still want to say that playing games with you has been fun! I haven't decided which city to go to yet, and I might visit several cities before settling down. We'll contact each other then."

Piāo Líng wrote in a carefree tone, not mentioning Bingfeng Guild or the reasons for leaving, clearly not wanting to drag Xiao Hua into trouble.

Without saying why, Xiao Hua couldn't understand why she left so hastily. But Piāo Líng mentioned "fully exposed," implying her identity was compromised.

Thinking hard, Xiao Hua suddenly received a friend request from someone named "Bingfeng Xiaoniao"!

Without hesitation, Xiao Hua accepted the request, believing this person would provide answers.

"Finally, you're here. You really are busy." As soon as they became friends, Bingfeng Xiaoniao sent a private message.

"Something?" Xiao Hua had no interest in small talk.

"Do you know Piāo Líng?" Bingfeng Xiaoniao asked directly.

"I know her."

"Then it's simple. Piāo Líng caused our guild a lot of damage, and we don't plan to let her off, including those closely associated with her!"

"Oh? What do you mean?" Xiao Hua asked indifferently.

"You helped Piāo Líng with a quest, and there's a player in your guild with a similar name to Piāo Líng. Based on level and other signs, it's highly likely that she is Piāo Líng. Therefore, we have every reason to suspect that you not only have a close relationship with Piāo Líng but also helped her escape our guild's pursuit!"

"Proof? Your large guild can't just accuse people without evidence. If word gets out, your guild's reputation will suffer."

"Proof? None! Of course, we won't falsely accuse anyone. If you swear a deadly oath, we won't cause trouble for you or your guild." Bingfeng Xiaoniao said with a smile.

"What kind of oath?" Xiao Hua continued calmly, having a rough idea of why Piāo Líng left.

"Simple. You swear that you have no close relationship with Piāo Líng beyond friendship and that you weren't the masked person who helped her escape. Otherwise, your entire family dies, and your ancestors for eighteen generations were raised by dogs. Just say this oath publicly in your guild, and we won't bother you again!"

"You can tell Bingfeng Tianda to eat shit!" Xiao Hua replied coldly. Such a deadly oath, anyone with a conscience wouldn't make. No wonder Piāo Líng left; she was probably asked to make the same oath.

But this girl was a bit naive. Did she really think that leaving would make Bingfeng Guild let him go?

Sighing, Xiao Hua quickly thought of a countermeasure.

"So, you admit your relationship with Piāo Líng?" Bingfeng Xiaoniao confirmed.

"Even if I admit it, so what? Do I fear you?" Xiao Hua said expressionlessly. In this world, the bigger the crowd, the more varied the people. Who fears whom in a game?

"Ha, I don't know. Our leader gives you two options: one, leave Snowfall City and go to a city we don't know about. Naturally, we won't have the energy to pursue you. Two, stay in Snowfall City and be blacklisted by us. This blacklist affects not only you but also your entire guild! Our leader has declared that as long as Bingfeng Guild exists, your 'Paradise for Beauties' guild won't develop. As for you and your guild members going out normally, you'd better pray not to run into us. Otherwise, even if people say we bully the weak with numbers, we won't hesitate to kill you."