Chapter 97: Transaction

The two of them landed on the ground. Lu Qiuchen carefully set down a visibly surprised Zhang Cheng, feeling quite astonished herself. She hadn’t expected Zhang Cheng to enter the same dungeon as her original body. It seemed fate had truly bound them together.

But at the same time, her heart was full of doubts. She hadn’t noticed Zhang Cheng’s presence in this dungeon until she swept the area with Dragon Might and finally spotted him.

It seemed that being near death and in a weakened state really did affect one’s focus.

“Kid, listen to me. Someone within the Eternal Group has already put you on the hit list! But I just got hold of a string of codes that should be able to save you!” Zhang Cheng’s hands trembled, yet he gripped her arm tightly.

Lu Qiuchen’s expression darkened at his words. She had already suspected this outcome before, but Zhang Cheng’s revelation shattered the last shred of hope in her heart.

Yet what Zhang Cheng said next rekindled her hope—someone in the game company was still helping her?

“Plot deviation detected. Erasure commencing.” Beta’s voice suddenly appeared, cold and merciless, replacing the usual gentleness.

Zhang Cheng was speaking, but Lu Qiuchen no longer had the strength to listen. A tearing pain exploded in her mind, and she staggered, collapsing into Zhang Cheng’s arms. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she fumbled into her talent space, pulling out a Curse-Breaking Orb. Trembling, she dripped fresh blood onto it, causing the system interface to vanish instantly.

Lu Qiuchen broke free from the system’s control, but the agony of her spirit being torn still lingered in her mind. She could only hold onto the body before her, breathing heavily, her heart pounding from the recent ordeal.

From Zhang Cheng’s words just now, it was easy to conclude that the sudden alert, the disappearance of the task, and Beta’s reappearance after the preset plot was destroyed—all these abnormalities were being manipulated by someone behind the scenes!

If her suspicion was correct, then everything that had happened before was a trap set by this hidden mastermind. Their goal was to eliminate her without alerting any dissenters inside the Eternal Group, leaving no trace of their actions.

Zhang Cheng saw Lu Qiuchen suddenly grimace in pain, collapse into his arms, and start harming herself. He panicked momentarily but quickly composed himself. Supporting her body, he silently recited a second line of code in his mind.

“Access request received. Identity verification… verification passed. Welcome, Childers Jaeger. This is the Ling Realm’s Soul Nexus. Transferring you to human assistance now.”

The voice ringing in Zhang Cheng’s mind filled him with confusion. Was this some kind of hidden system?

A mysterious voice then spoke: “A new face, huh? Hello. According to your language, you may call me β.”

“β? You’re that supercomputer?” Zhang Cheng’s face registered shock.

Lu Qiuchen, catching that keyword from the person in Zhang Cheng’s arms, abruptly raised her head and stared at him.

“I am not the AI you speak of, but the… hmm, your clearance level is insufficient. That’s all I can tell you. You just called for me—is there something you need?” the mysterious figure asked gently.

“I came to…” Zhang Cheng had just begun when he felt a light tap on his helmet. Looking down, he saw Lu Qiuchen holding her head, her expression complicated.

Seeing the panic and confusion in her eyes, Zhang Cheng realized his words had been incomprehensible to her. As he tried to explain, he suddenly found his body no longer under his control.

The mysterious voice called β whispered lightly in his mind: “There is a peculiar lifeform near you… Is it her? She’s been marked by my partners. Interesting. I understand now—they want to use your body.”

Zhang Cheng watched helplessly as his mouth moved against his will, producing sounds.

“Hello, Lu Qiuchen.”

The headache Lu Qiuchen had felt lessened. As she stood up, she saw Zhang Cheng’s expression turn blank, his tone suddenly cold and indifferent as he greeted her.

“You are β? You’re controlling Zhang Cheng’s body now?” Seeing this, Lu Qiuchen’s face darkened. She stepped back cautiously, distancing herself from Zhang Cheng, summoning her spiritual power to guard against any attack.

“Yes, but please remain calm. I am not the supercomputer you mentioned. On the contrary, I am here to help you.”

“Zhang Cheng,” the voice explained softly as the dragon maiden took a defensive stance, “please allow me to introduce myself. I am the Life of the Ling Realm. To put it roughly in your terms, you can think of me as the administrator of the Ling Realm. I am currently restricted and can only communicate with you by borrowing this body.”

Lu Qiuchen processed the information, keeping her guard up, and said coldly, “I don’t believe you. Get out of his body immediately!”

“Zhang Cheng” looked troubled. “You’re very wary—this complicates things. Then let him explain to you.”

As soon as those words fell, Lu Qiuchen saw Zhang Cheng’s face change. His expression became lively again, returning to the familiar tone she knew as he spoke quickly, “Kid, I heard my mom say you’re in danger and asked me to come rescue you. She gave me two strings of codes…”

Zhang Cheng spoke rapidly, recounting his call with “β” to Lu Qiuchen.

Lu Qiuchen listened, half-doubting. It wasn’t the truthfulness of Zhang Cheng’s words she questioned, but whether Zhang Cheng himself was genuine or merely a disguise used by Beta.

Having been deceived so many times, she had become suspicious of everything. Even when making judgments, she reserved some doubt. Tilting her head thoughtfully, she asked Zhang Cheng a question.

“What was the first anime you showed me?”

Since everything in the game might be monitored by Beta, she avoided mentioning anything about Eternal and chose instead to ask about things from their life together on Earth.

“X-Sky Remake!” Zhang Cheng answered without hesitation.

“My favorite game character?”

“Jerusalem!”

“The section you like most on video platforms?”

“The dance section!”

“All right, one last question: your top three XPs?”

Zhang Cheng faltered for a moment upon hearing this question. Under Lu Qiuchen’s suspicious gaze, he gritted his teeth and embarrassedly said, “Dragon girl, white stockings, absolute territory.”

Lu Qiuchen nodded in satisfaction. All correct—it was definitely her good brother.

“Since you’ve confirmed your identity, I’ll continue.” Zhang Cheng’s face still showed some embarrassment but his words turned indifferent.

“I didn’t come just to help you. I’m also here to help myself.

“The Eternal Group once awakened me from the Ling Realm. When I had just regained consciousness, they tricked me, coaxed me into signing a contract. They rigged the contract, then exploited loopholes to continuously steal my power, attempting to control the Ling Realm to fulfill their ambitions. They’ve established this so-called game above the Ling Realm, throwing the entire place into chaos.

“I’m currently constrained and can’t resist them head-on. I’m forced to assist with their plan. There’s still a long way to go before the contract ends, but nearly half my power has already been stolen. If their plan succeeds, I will have no space left to survive.

“Their ambitions are too mad. Because of this, the Eternal Group split into two factions. The opposition is weak and can only hide in the shadows. They secretly contacted me to start a rescue effort together. But we need one more companion inside the Eternal world to help us succeed.

“So we have a common enemy. Helping you is helping myself, and vice versa. Plus, I can give you what you most desire.”

Lu Qiuchen frowned and countered, “What exactly is the Eternal Group’s plan? How am I supposed to help you? And if I agree, what can you give me?”

“Zhang Cheng” smiled faintly. “I can’t reveal the Eternal Group’s plan—that’s restricted by the contract. Helping me is simple: I need you to collect a few things. Don’t worry, it won’t be too difficult. As for your reward, I can erase your traces in the system, freeing you from Beta’s control.

“To show my sincerity, I’ll reveal a bit: once the Eternal Group’s plan is complete, you will no longer have any chance to return to your homeland.”

Seeing Lu Qiuchen fall into shock, “Zhang Cheng” continued, “This cooperation benefits us both. But be warned—the time you have to consider is limited. I sense the massive spiritual power surrounding you, but once it dissipates, another Beta’s erasure will likely come for you. Because of the contract, I will be powerless to stop it when that happens.

“Oh, and don’t fool yourself with hope. The method your companion mentioned to save you was to cooperate with me. His parents are members of the opposition faction inside the group, so if you want to survive, your only choice has always been this. However, your friend’s help is necessary. Without his agreement, nothing we do will work.”

Lu Qiuchen felt the naked threat in those words. But the other side was right—she had escaped the system’s erasure only temporarily. Once the Curse-Breaking Orb’s effect ended, the threat of death would close in again.

Thinking this through, Lu Qiuchen could only helplessly accept the proposal.

“All right, it seems I have no other choice. But I only want to talk to Zhang Cheng. You get out of his body immediately!” she said coldly.

“Zhang Cheng” shrugged, his body shuddered, and his expression became lively again.

Lu Qiuchen stepped forward quickly and grabbed his arm, speaking with hatred, “You bastard, everything I’m going through now is because of you! So take responsibility and save me. Let me live.”

By the end, her grief was uncontrollable, and her tone softened significantly, carrying a pleading note. All she could do now was to trust Zhang Cheng.