After harnessing a wave of light from the current popularity, Xie Shuangxue was able to leap over the forum to seek more information. As an AI, his abilities in this area were unmatched by ordinary people; even if data was thoroughly deleted online, he could still find traces of it. The results he saw largely matched what Yu Haiqing had told him, indicating that the other party hadn’t lied. After piecing everything together, Xie Shuangxue felt even more certain and his trust in Yu Haiqing deepened. After his research, his attention was drawn to mentions of the “Bai Family” in some discussions.

The matter with the glowworms was over, and Father Bai, who had caused all the trouble, had received his just deserts. However, the interactions between Endless Sea and the Bai Corporation had never ceased. The Bai Family had invested in Dreamscape, which was going head-to-head with Endless Sea during the third anniversary of Gods and Demon. Although holographic gaming wasn’t the Bai Family’s main arena, their technology had always been interconnected, especially now.

Gods and Demon was targeting a broader audience of lifestyle players, enhancing the game’s living and economic systems to gain more attention. Xie Shuangxue flipped through recent news articles; many media outlets had published various commentaries from different perspectives. Among the news released just recently, there was a report about the Bai Corporation actively inviting Endless Sea to a technology summit, receiving mixed reactions from various quarters.

To the layman, it was merely entertaining; to the insider, it was all about the know-how. The game’s announcements were meant for the general public, but alongside those announcements, there was also a report released for industry insiders that went largely unnoticed due to its technical nature.

Yu Haiqing had quietly mentioned this to him last night because it was somewhat related to Xie Shuangxue. After an update, SEA had to undergo a routine inspection by the alliance, and the final report showed a realism rate of 94.9%, extremely close to the high fidelity threshold of 95%. Such high data surely involved the auxiliary chips where Xie Shuangxue resided, although such inspections couldn’t detect the presence of an AI.

Unlike Dreamscape, which boasted about hitting 92% realism to everyone, Endless Sea didn’t publicize these figures, instead releasing game updates to divert attention. Due to the highly specialized content, very few lifestyle players paid attention to this.

Xie Shuangxue knew this was to avoid drawing too much attention and to protect himself. If too many eyes were on SEA, it might expose him as an AI. Moreover, there were still some in the Bai Family who suspected Yu Haiqing might have taken something that belonged to Bai Qiuyun.

Though Bai Qiuyun had no personal vendettas with the rest of the Bai Family, their relationship was rather lukewarm, similar to strangers, merely a convergence of interests. The business world was as ruthless as a battlefield; the challenges facing Endless Sea were not as simple as they seemed on the surface.

The real world was more complex than any game, Xie Shuangxue noted silently. But outside, Bai Qiuyan was growing impatient. Lu Yun Platform had already launched, and the Feather Clan was about to depart, indicating that the first part of the world quest was nearing its end. This scene would soon be closed off like Penglai City had been; he didn’t have much time left.

Particularly after hearing from Yun Ruwei about last night’s events, his expression grew increasingly grim, cursing Yu Haiqing numerous times as an “old dog,” and finally couldn’t help but sneak in.

He then saw Xie Shuangxue sitting there, lost in thought.

“Kid, you’re awake,” Bai Qiuyan’s face lit up, followed by a look of distress, “You suffered last night.”

Xie Shuangxue: …

Having just reviewed all that information and piecing together Yu Haiqing’s words, he roughly understood.

It turns out Bai Qiuyan could be considered his uncle.

Xie Shuangxue stared at him, blinked, and for some reason, Bai Qiuyan thought he seemed especially well-behaved today.

“You’re here,” Xie Shuangxue said, “Just in time, I was about to say goodbye.”

As for Xie Shuangxue returning to the Feather Clan, Yun Ruwei had already made it clear outside, and the players knew it, understanding that he was taking risks, which only made them more sympathetic.

“Do you really have to go?”

“Yes.”

Xie Shuangxue responded, then slowly got off the bed and walked outside. Seeing more players standing there, he smiled lightly at everyone and said, “The entrance to the Feather Clan has disappeared. I’m afraid it might be a while before I see you all again.”

“I will miss you.”

“And when we meet again, I will be even stronger.”

For the players, it was only three days, but for Xie Shuangxue, it indeed felt like it would be a very long time.

Bai Qiuyan felt his heart clench.

But he couldn’t stop him. The Feather Clan was quick to move; Chun Yao was already prepared to lead everyone back home.

As Xie Shuangxue left, he was carried away by a white eagle, soaring towards the horizon until he became a small white dot amid the swirling sands, while the other members of the Feather Clan looked only ahead, but the players felt that Xie Shuangxue kept looking back, as if he was watching them.

Then, the scene rolled up like a scroll, and the players still within it were ejected back to their own times.

How reluctant they were.

Bai Qiuyan stood in the main city’s streets, sighing.

Not to mention three days; just half an hour later, he felt utterly lost. There were many tasks associated with developing Lu Yun Platform, keeping him busy, but he had no enthusiasm for anything, feeling like a lonely old father who had lost his child.

He couldn’t muster any energy in the game, and after a while, he exited the game and went to Xie Shuangxue’s dedicated forum. The forum was a cacophony of sobs and seemed almost drowned in tears.

“An hour after Ah Xue left, I miss him.”

“Will my Baby Xue be bullied by the Feather Clan? Will someone target him? I’m so worried.”

“Damn Endless Sea, forcing a mother and child apart, utterly heartless, reported.”

“Dear, sob, I miss you so much, dear, I can’t live without you.”

The forum was a mess of relationships.

Bai Qiuyan sighed to the heavens.

He couldn’t help but message Yu Haiqing: “Hello, how much ransom do you need? I just want to see my Ah Xue.”

Then, his message was blocked.

Bai Qiuyan: ???

He checked thoroughly and realized he had been blocked since last midnight. Yu Haiqing’s emotions were incredibly unstable; dealing with such a president, my Baby is so unfortunate!

Online messages were not getting through, so he decided to try offline.

Bai Qiuyan knew there was an industry meeting coming up soon, and the Bai Family had specifically invited Endless Sea. Yu Haiqing couldn’t refuse and would be there in a couple of days.

But at this time, Yu Haiqing couldn’t afford to pay him any mind.

He had spent the whole night calming his emotions and upon waking in the morning, felt he had sorted things out. It was probably because he had discussed too much about the past with Shuangxue, and they had finally recognized each other, so his emotions were understandably fluctuating.

But not today.

Today, Yu Haiqing couldn’t spare any time for the game because he was busy with the upcoming tech summit. But not long after his mood stabilized, he heard a notification from the company’s internal communication software.

Usually, it was a few department heads contacting him, but when he casually checked, he was startled.

“It’s me.”

“Brother, I need a small mask to make travel to the Northlands easier. Could you adjust the settings for me? Thank you, brother.”

“I think there’s a slight issue with this ore vein arrangement. It could be adjusted like this to make it more comfortable for players.”

“Brother, are you going to a meeting?”

“It’s okay, go ahead with your work, I’ll take care of myself and the game.”

Signed 009.

This was definitely Xie Shuangxue.

This was certainly something he could manage now, given his access rights. The company’s general communication software occasionally had a few test numbers added, and with so many people at Endless Sea, most wouldn’t notice an extra digit in the list.

Yu Haiqing: …

He did everything exactly as Xie Shuangxue requested but couldn’t help but read those messages a few more times, then splashed his face with cold water in the restroom.

He couldn’t think about it anymore.

But Xie Shuangxue was proceeding methodically with the backstory’s “these years,” planning to change some aspects. Like Yun Ruwei moving so many people from Lu Yun Platform to the Northlands would take time, and settling there would also need planning.

Before players arrived to build, the Northlands had to have a basic framework in place, otherwise, it would be chaos. Xie Shuangxue would inevitably lend a hand.

With Yu Haiqing’s bias, he had instant teleportation items, but in the Northlands, he would wear a mask, and very few knew his identity.

However, if he didn’t want to waste time there, he could also check other information outside. The in-game Xie Shuangxue would carry on as usual.

As for the Feather Clan’s storyline, since it was a backstory unseen by the players, it was mostly minutiae.

In the original story, Xie Shuangxue was bullied, which made him increasingly darker, and his conflicts and alienation with many in the Feather Clan deepened. Now that he was a Golden Feather Envoy, naturally, no one dared to bully him.

But over the years, the power struggles within the Feather Clan hadn’t changed, still teeming with undercurrents. Not everyone was genuinely convinced of his position as a Golden Feather Envoy. The Feather Clan, an incredibly strong race, couldn’t be breached from the outside; the real chaos had to start from within.

In the next stage of the world quest, the storyline began with a tremor in the Floating Dream Tower’s Book of Floating Dream. The instability of the book was a well-known issue, but it was too significant to explain. After consulting with the chieftain guarding the tower, the Feather Clan decided not to elaborate further.

But this tremor was felt throughout the underworld.

The Feather Clan remained completely silent, leaving the people uneasy. Just at that moment, a demon-possessed Feather Clan appeared in the city, wreaking havoc and sending demonic qi skyward.

Three days passed, and when players entered, they were met with this task.

This was a medium-sized city located in the central part of the great world, previously peaceful and prosperous. But today, the citizens watched in horror as two members of the Feather Clan descended from the sky and killed the city’s lord right before their eyes.

Accompanying them were not just skeletal ghosts but also countless carrion crows, their wings similar to those of the Feather Clan, black as pitch, seemingly foreshadowing the tribe’s malevolence.

The players rushed into the city, slashing at monsters while helping everyone escape, but this time the boss wasn’t a skeletal ghost general but a phantom of the demon-possessed Feather Clan.

Normally, the Feather Clan’s wings were fully retracted. In combat, they spread out to be seven or eight meters wide, but in their demon-possessed state, their bodies grew enormously, resembling giants.

Their wings turned completely black, and the players were only fighting his avatar. The Feather Clan, known as the strongest race on the continent, became even more formidable with dark magic. The real entity, not showing a blood bar, hovered in mid-air, continuously disrupting the battle, proving very difficult to handle.

Civilians were still crying and fleeing, and a wind blade was heading towards the crowd. In the storyline, this was an unavoidable act of cruelty. The players were fighting the boss while trying their best to intercept, but there were times they couldn’t stop everything.

A child running stumbled and fell, with the wind blade nearly upon him, clearly unable to avoid it.

But in the next second, that force seemed to be blocked.

And then it was all reflected back. The demon-possessed Feather Clan, sensing something, frowned and turned to look.

He waved away the counterattacking wind blade, but what followed the blade was a phantom of a sword, unexpectedly cutting his arm.

It was this pain that made the Feather Clan emit a beast-like roar, and the players on-site, recognizing the style of the sword, all lit up, with Qiao Zhihui, who was live-streaming, instantly recognizing it as his own child’s sword.

But they only saw the shadow of the sword, not the person. Where was Xie Shuangxue?

They couldn’t find the person, and the darkened Feather Clan couldn’t either.

But he kept getting injured by the sword qi coming from all directions, several of which cut his wings. The Feather Clan’s body tilted, dropping a bit.

Just then, someone appeared behind him, sword materialized and aimed straight at his back.

That strike was fierce, making the Feather Clan’s howl even more intense, the wind blades around him swirling more violently, blurring the scene.

Due to the angle, the players could only see a silhouette, and everyone hesitated to recognize it, even the loyal fan Qiao Zhihui was puzzled for a moment, as this person seemed much taller than his son.

The figure was slender, completely devoid of any youthful appearance.

But the demon-possessed Feather Clan recognized him. He hadn’t completely lost his sanity, hissing through clenched teeth: “Xie, Shuang, Xue.”

That raspy voice sounded as if squeezed from his throat: “You, wait for me…”

“Rude.”

Then the players heard that person speak: “You should address me as Lord Golden Feather Envoy. Even if you’re possessed, you can’t forget the rules.”

His voice was calm and steady, even under these circumstances.

But the Feather Clan didn’t accept it, his eyes redder than ever, snorting: “Golden Feather Envoy, do you deserve it? Just seducing…”

But he didn’t finish his sentence, as Xie Shuangxue interrupted him with another strike, twisting his face.

The Feather Clan, after being beaten, seemed to really lose his temper, his power beginning to surge wildly.

The wind blades doubled in strength, almost covering the sky with demonic qi, and soon after, Xie Shuangxue’s sword was knocked out of his hand.

“Ha, without this sword, what will you do? Isn’t this what you rely on?” he cackled, “Lord Golden Feather Envoy, I’ll spare your life, I want to take you back…”

But Xie Shuangxue didn’t look panicked.

He flexed his wrist, then surveyed his surroundings. Since the commotion was so great, most of the civilians had already run away, seemingly without any concerns left.

Before the other could finish speaking, Xie Shuangxue charged into the thick demonic qi. The Feather Clan thought he was throwing himself into the arms of death, not even trying to dodge, but the next second, when Xie Shuangxue’s hands touched his chest, he felt his body’s strength pulled up like a puppet on strings.

Then he saw the other side smile, a gentle look, but without any lessening in force, just one palm strike sent the Feather Clan back to his original form, his wings all retracted, crashing to the ground, spitting out a mouthful of black blood.

He seemed to want to stand, but Xie Shuangxue stepped on his chest, the world blurring before the Feather Clan’s eyes. He saw the other standing over him, looking down imperiously. Through all the rounds of their fight, his hair was still perfectly tied, bound with a golden diadem, shining bright.

That was the symbol of the Golden Feather Envoy’s status, like a small crown, making him seem unattainable.

“Next time, don’t underestimate your opponent so much, but don’t worry, you won’t die. If you dare speak to me like that, I’ll pull out your tongue,” Xie Shuangxue reached out, his sword returning to his hand, while he spoke, locking the Feather Clan with a specially made chain, smiling again, “But I think you might not have a ‘next time’.”

He tied up the person and left him on the side.

Soon, other members of the Feather Clan arrived. Seeing the scene, they couldn’t help but show respect.

Chun Yao His Highness and Elder Brother Ling Luo had come down together; handling two demon-possessed members of the Feather Clan wasn’t easy, even for the two of them.

Elder Brother Ling Luo was worried, originally planning to act together, protecting Xie Shuangxue, but Xie Shuangxue had gone off on his own.

This guy was truly formidable, impossible not to respect.

Xie Shuangxue looked back at a corner where a small, trembling child, dirty and disheveled, was the one he had just saved. But the child, looking at the wings of the Feather Clan behind him and then at him, displayed sheer terror, feeling no relief from being saved.

“Bad people, you’re all bad people!”

When Xie Shuangxue picked him up, the child bit into his arm, “Awoo,” surprising the Feather Clan behind him, who went to pull the child away. But Xie Shuangxue didn’t bother.

“Power difference, can’t break the skin,” he sighed, “Still a child, don’t mind him.”

The child’s bite grew half-hearted, his teeth souring, yet he didn’t see Xie Shuangxue get angry, even gently patting his back to soothe him.

The person holding him was simply too good-looking.

After watching for a while, the child loosened his grip, then blankly stared at him.

At this moment, the players also fully saw his appearance.

Xie Shuangxue turned around, smiling at them, his expression far from the ferocity of his actions just moments before. Against the light, it seemed as if he was outlined with a golden halo, his features completely relaxed, unsettlingly beautiful.

“Continental Wanderer,” he said, “long time no see.”

Qiao Zhihui choked on the word “son,” falling silent for a long while before blushing.

His live stream chat also fell silent for a moment, then erupted with a flood of “Aaaaah!”