Chapter 184 – Ultimate Evolution, Isrolya!

Time quickly arrived two days later—the official transaction date Mu Yuan had agreed upon with Deacon Chen.

He hailed a taxi and brought Sophia along to broaden her horizons, arriving at the same restaurant where they had met last time.

“This is the entire batch of Remnant Souls. Please verify the count,” Deacon Chen said.

He hadn’t come alone today; two men in black suits accompanied him, along with a young female assistant in a black uniform and a form-fitting pencil skirt that accentuated her graceful figure.

At his signal, the female assistant produced a briefcase and gently opened it. Despite its modest appearance, the briefcase contained a surprisingly spacious interior, where rows of Remnant Souls were meticulously categorized and arranged like countless dazzling gemstones. Their radiant glow illuminated the entire private room.

On Mu Yuan’s side, Sophia—whom he had brought along for exposure and to lend an air of prestige—stepped forward at his gesture and swiftly began counting the Remnant Souls.

Sophia was acutely aware that she represented her Lord’s dignity. Before leaving, she had meticulously prepared herself, adopting the poised demeanor of the noble daughter of a count she once was. Her inspection was thorough and earnest, and after a while, she reported to Mu Yuan, “Boss, everything is in order.”

Mu Yuan nodded.

She then retrieved a Storage Pouch and handed it to the woman whose figure was more curvaceous than hers but whose appearance and temperament paled in comparison to Sophia’s. “This contains the remaining Soul Crystals. Please verify the amount.”

The female assistant accepted it, feeling somewhat nervous. This was due to the subtle yet imposing Aura and noble air Sophia exuded, born from her intense focus and tension.

The female assistant felt overshadowed.

Deacon Chen thought to himself, “As expected of a newly ascended Lord capable of producing over a hundred Soul Crystals for a transaction. He might be even more exceptional than imagined, possessing potential rivaling this term’s top-ranked newcomers.”

Frog-Selling Bro approached Mu Yuan and whispered discreetly, “Bro, didn’t you… didn’t you…? How come you still…?” He gestured subtly toward Sophia.

Mu Yuan: “?” Get lost, you riddle-speaker!

Frog-Selling Bro sighed helplessly, “Didn’t you accept investment from a wealthy lady? Hiring this young and beautiful female player as your assistant now—won’t that cause trouble?”

His implication seemed to be: don’t sacrifice the wealthy lady for a pretty young girl. A wealthy lady could save you three to five years, or even thirty to fifty years, of struggle.

The wealthy lady is important.

Even if she’s a tank, you have to endure it.

Endure the tank among tanks to rise above others.

He, too, wanted to take it easy, but no wealthy lady had seen through his stubborn pride. He was envious.

Mu Yuan: “!!!”

Mu Yuan: “Slander! Who’s slandering me!”

Frog-Selling Bro said, “Last time, when you shared terms like ‘Mansion,’ wasn’t that because you’d hooked up with a wealthy lady?”

Mu Yuan: “…”

I didn’t, I haven’t, don’t spout nonsense.

But the blueprints for the City Lord’s Mansion and such were indeed given by a wealthy lady. Being honest, he couldn’t refute it.

He could only wave his hand wistfully and say, “It’s fine, no trouble will come of it. Little Fei is just a trusted and capable assistant of mine.”

Frog-Selling Bro regarded him with newfound respect. “I understand.” He gave a thumbs-up and said no more.

Wait, what exactly do you understand?! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻

After the transaction, it was naturally time to order dishes and enjoy the meal.Today’s banquet was even more extravagant than the day before’s, featuring even rare-grade ingredients prepared in novel ways. Yet Sophia ate unhurriedly, with exceptional elegance. Mu Yuan considered activating the Dolai template to eat more, but quickly dismissed the thought—after all, he was the Boss.

How could he entertain such an embarrassing idea? He must have been influenced by Dolai.

After eating and drinking his fill, Mu Yuan left the venue with Sophia.

He walked ahead with his hands in his pockets, while Sophia followed closely behind, carrying a briefcase.

Night had already fallen.

Though the streets were somewhat desolate, neon lights blazed undiminished.

A brilliant river of stars hung high in the night sky, dots of light stretching forward into the vast darkness, much like the uncertain future of Blue Star.

As the wind blew, Mu Yuan exhaled a faint trace of alcohol from his lips.

The energy within his body churned like a furnace, humming as it evaporated nearly all traces of intoxication.

He didn’t hail a taxi, continuing his stroll instead, even leading Sophia into some secluded alleys.

He was merely testing the waters.

After all, he had just traded over a hundred Soul Crystals and was carrying a substantial amount of Remnant Souls that could be considered a “fortune.”

For a Lord, this sum wasn’t significant, but for ordinary players, it might be wealth they couldn’t earn in years.

Mu Yuan had long been capable of contacting major commerce guilds. Even a few dozen Soul Crystals wouldn’t have been impossible for him to scrape together two months ago, albeit with difficulty.

However, conducting such transactions back then would have been far too risky.

Remnant Souls, Soul Crystals, and sacrificial Treasures were too likely to attract the attention of veteran players. Though the probability was small, he couldn’t afford to gamble, preferring to take slower, more cautious steps.

But now,

Veteran players? Wanted criminals? What level were they, anyway?

He almost hoped to run into bounty-hunted fugitives. For a dangerous criminal like Giant-Hand Scarface, with a bounty of 400,000, he could take on ten at once.

After several battles with Shen Linglong, Mu Yuan had gained a clear understanding of his own strength. While he was still far from matching true powerhouses, in the Real World, as long as he didn’t stray far from the city, self-defense was more than sufficient.

He didn’t even need to lift a finger himself.

Sophia could handle any criminal. This approach was also more discreet—the third reason he had specifically brought her along.

Lord Mu had prepared 108 contingency plans, led Sophia through twelve alleys and three secluded parks, witnessed several unspeakable incidents, and in the end…

Nothing happened.

The Real World was indeed peaceful and harmonious.

Mu Yuan sighed, unsure whether in relief or disappointment.

…

Ding!

Notification: Cross-border transportation fee of 10.1 Soul Crystals has been deducted.

Carrying the briefcase, Mu Yuan returned directly to the Eternal World, leaving Sophia alone in the empty villa.

“Cross-border fees are still expensive,” he muttered.

This time, he had purchased a large quantity of Remnant Souls from First Hand Commerce at a slightly lower price than buying piecemeal. The discount was secondary; the main advantage was the convenience and speed—a snap, and he had a pile in hand.

Gazing at the glittering heap of Remnant Souls, Mu Yuan beamed like an old farmer seeing a field of golden wheat—a joy of harvest.

Soon, Evolution Points would be in ample supply.

Later, he would choose the right moment to continue buying Remnant Souls in bulk, and then… the future looked bright.

Mu Yuan summoned Lu Liu, Seventeen, Niu Si, and Laney, instructing them to lead groups of elites in preparation for welcoming newcomers.

Lord Mu began recruiting, recruiting, and recruiting some more!The entire Lord Altar was just this small. Back in the day, when recruiting a few or a dozen Little Skeletons, some would even get squeezed off the stone platform, let alone now.

“Ding!”

Pass! Pass! Pass!

Batch after batch of militiamen in thin clothing appeared and were immediately led away, assigned to various squads.

In just a short while, the newcomers outnumbered the veterans.

Fortunately, Tianyuan Territory still had sufficient manpower. Previously, there were already five hundred Human Race troops, over a hundred of whom had begun to develop intelligence. Otherwise, it would have been truly difficult to manage this sudden influx of more than a thousand newcomers.

Even so, Mu Someone had been recruiting from night until the next morning, barely managing to recruit and arrange all 1,158 new troops.

Tiring, but joyful.

“Now, the number of Human Race troops is almost catching up to the most numerous Undead faction, far surpassing the previously second-ranked Slime faction.”

In this situation, not only Isloria, but also Lu Liu and Seventeen could evolve to the Epic grade within a month.

Among the Undead faction, the number of commanders wasn’t much greater than in the Human Race faction, but since the elite corps needed focused cultivation, the demand for Evolution Points was higher.

The next priority was to purchase Little Skeleton Remnant Souls.

Two days later, late at night.

The City Lord’s Mansion was brightly lit, casting elongated, graceful shadows. They belonged to Isloria, Isloria, and Isloria.

She was bent over her desk, extremely busy. Just as she finished processing a pile of documents, she turned around to see Daisy bringing in another batch.

It seemed endless.

After all, Tianyuan Town was a settlement with over three thousand residents and three to four thousand troops. Matters such as work assignments for residents, conflict resolution, food and housing issues, territorial expansion, and more required extensive handling, and the Tianyuan Territory City Lord’s Mansion was still a rudimentary institution.

Isloria had no experience managing a town.

Mu Yuan… didn’t either. He could only offer moral support and various learning materials.

“Thankfully, Isloria is capable. Otherwise, I’d be the one running around nonstop.”

He’d heard that even Liver Emperor, that fiercely diligent man, had nearly exhausted himself.

Seeing Isloria so absorbed in her work, Mu Yuan picked up some documents to annotate. Only when the young woman snapped out of her focus did he speak up, “Take a break.”

“No, I don’t dare rest. I’m afraid the documents will pile up even higher if I blink.”

She said with a hint of resentment.

Recalling the past, the Lord had said Tianyuan Territory was in its initial stages and there would be a bit more work, but now it was far more than just “a bit more”—bang, bang, bang!

Isloria wasn’t exactly complaining about the heavy workload. This kind of deep trust and the opportunity to realize her ideals and ambitions were rare. It’s just…

At the very beginning, the Lord had worked alongside her on official duties, but gradually, bit by bit, he’d left everything to her alone.

Her gaze was full of resentment.

Mu Yuan coughed dryly, “Isn’t that a testament to your capability? Let’s talk business. Do you remember what I promised you?”

“Promise?”

“About evolution. I said I’d cure your bloodline illness and help you reach the next level.”

Isloria: “!!!”

She was stunned for a moment before saying, “So soon? Uh, do I need to prepare anything? Wait, don’t we need to bathe and burn incense?”

Preparations were unnecessary.

Since they were all on the same side, there was no need for formalities.Mu Yuan didn’t go anywhere, merely leading Isloria out of the hall into the relatively spacious courtyard outside.

“Are we really not preparing anything at all? This is a Charge toward the epic tier!”

She felt it was all too casual.

It was as if the epic lifeform she had long pursued yet could barely glimpse the back of was nothing significant.

Could we have some sense of ceremony?

“Then do a split,” he said.

Isloria: “?”

Just as she was about to speak, she saw the Lord’s finger gently tap her forehead, and a warm, mysterious, vast, and magnificent power poured in.

『5399 units of Human Race Evolution Points deducted.』

In an instant, Isloria transformed into light.

Her pink hair fluttered wildly, and her eyes shone with brilliant starlight, as if stars were rotating within them.

Yet, strange star patterns suddenly emerged on her delicate collarbones and fair arms, spreading continuously until they reached her cheeks.

It seemed as if she had entered her ultimate combat form.

But it wasn’t by her own volition.

The next moment, in Mu Yuan’s eyes, amidst the blazing white radiance, these bizarre star patterns sizzled and emitted wisps of smoke, dissipating completely without leaving any trace.

Only then did the evolutionary brilliance fully envelop Isloria. Her specific appearance was no longer visible—only a graceful, slender human silhouette could be seen, suspended within the radiant white light, beginning its transformation.

“Undergo the ultimate evolution, Isloria.”

“Embrace the brand new future.”

Second update, finally half an hour earlier today (:з」∠)

(End of Chapter)