Chapter 22
Compared to the Light Blessing Ring, the Thousand Illusions Ring is no better in terms of appearance; it’s just a plain silver band, with nothing fancy about it.
“Thousand Illusions Ring (Thousand Illusions Set 1/2): Defense +100. Can conceal aura. Can disguise aura. (The ring once worn by Hu Shuangshuang, the lone survivor of the Fox Clan)”
This ring enjoys modest fame among players. Of course, it doesn’t originate from the world of Yali Continent, but from another realm entirely.
Even several years later, the worlds accessible through Bix Cube remain limited. This particular ring comes from the highly popular Modern Demon World, where far more players gather than on Yali Continent.
The Illusion Set actually consists of only two pieces: the Ring of Illusions, which can conceal or disguise one’s aura, and the Mask of Illusions, which allows the wearer to alter their appearance. With these two items, one can essentially impersonate another person entirely. That lone survivor of the fox clan once roamed the world relying solely on these artifacts—until, eventually… she was hunted down and defeated as a boss. Pei Sen’s main character account had only obtained this ring by sheer accident.
Even for players, acquiring these two pieces of equipment would prove immensely valuable. After all, this is an exceptionally high-freedom world, making the worth of such functional gear truly immeasurable.
“However, perhaps many things will change this time around. For instance, since I saved the young master, logically he shouldn’t lose his eyesight, and maybe he won’t become the Divine Son of the Sacred Cult?”
After all, Pei Sen has returned from several years in the future, yet right from the beginning, the game has already taken a different turn, becoming utterly unlike his previous life. Who can guarantee what might happen next?
What Pei Sen knew was that in another world within the Bix Cube, there must still be a Hu Shuangshuang, and she must still possess a Ring of Thousand Illusions.
In other words, this ring of his was merely brought back from the future.
By now, Eagle had already turned his gaze to the ring. “So ugly…” He clearly felt some disdain; after all, the ring did look rather plain.
Pei Sen’s expression stiffened. This brat—did he have any idea how valuable this ring was? To put it in perspective, considering the total worth of Pei Sen’s storage account, this single ring alone accounted for at least one-third of its value!
Eagle seemed to notice Pei Sen’s displeasure and reluctantly said, “Fine, since it’s a gift from you, I’ll accept it.” He took the ring, examining the somewhat tarnished silver band. “Pei Sen, does this ring hold some special meaning for you? Is that why you specifically chose to give it to me?”
Unlike a new ring, this one looks more like an old ring that has been worn for many years.
Pei Sen, fearing that the mischievous child would immediately discard it if he said it held no significance, quickly added, “Of course, this ring is the most important thing to me…”
Even though I’ve given it away, I still feel a pang of regret.
Eagle paused, startled. “The most important one?”
“Yes, the most important.”
Why would you give me your most precious thing? I clearly lack nothing.
Eagle lowered his eyelids. “Very well, then put it on for me,” he said casually, wearing an expression that seemed to say, “Fine, I’ll save face for you; even though this ring is ugly, since it’s from you, I’ll wear it.”
Pei Sen looked at the hand Eagle extended; those slender, fair fingers appeared flawlessly perfect under the crystal chandelier, as if crafted by a god.
However, having him place the ring on the young master felt far too bizarre for this setting.
To be honest, presenting a ring with a bouquet of flowers is already quite delicate…
“What’s wrong?” Eagle couldn’t comprehend his inner awkwardness. To him, this was perfectly ordinary. As his personal butler, what could possibly be strange about adorning him with a piece of jewelry? Moreover, since Pei Sen had originally gifted him this ring, wasn’t it only natural for him to place it on his finger?
Pei Sen stood still, silently steeling himself for a moment before looking into the clear eyes of the young man seated in the chair. He felt he was being unreasonable; his young master possessed an innocent heart and hadn’t overthought anything at all. Why should he himself be so overly sensitive?
Thus, he decisively took the ring, grasped Eagle’s hand, and moved to slide it onto his index finger. In truth, the Ring of Thousand Illusions never specified which finger it must be worn on. None of the rings obtained within Bix Cube restricted placement to any particular finger; they would automatically adjust their size to fit whichever player wore them.
The vast majority of players prefer to wear their rings on the index finger, or simply as a pinky ring.
Unexpectedly, Eagle curled his finger back and said dissatisfiedly, “Don’t wear it on that finger.” He glanced at his own hand. “Wear it on this middle one instead.”
Pei Sen: “…”
This truly goes beyond strange; it’s just too bizarre!
This is so hard for me…
Yet Eagle was looking at him; refusing would only make the atmosphere even more awkward.
Pei Sen steeled his resolve and swiftly slipped the silver ring onto Eagle’s middle finger.
“Huh, this ring feels a bit strange.” Eagle raised his hand and gazed at the ring.
Although he wasn’t a player and couldn’t see the ring’s attributes, once he put it on and became its master, he would surely be able to sense its abnormalities.
Besides, Eagle doesn’t know how to use it, but Pei Sen does.
In a game like Bix Cube, it’s clear that these items work just as effectively for “NPCs.”
“Young Master,” Pei Sen bent down, looking earnestly into Eagle’s eyes, “let’s grow stronger… together.”
For Eagle, the ring’s greatest function is to conceal his aura.
He was a fragile young nobleman; clearly, someone needed him to remain this way. No matter how strong his guards were, they had no intention of letting him wield power himself.
On the continent of Yali, “aura” may sound ethereal and intangible, but it is by no means without manifestation—the stronger a person is, the more potent their aura.
For instance, Sardin, an eighth-rank Great Swordsman, exudes a uniquely sharp aura simply by standing still. If he were to release his presence freely, Pei Sen would likely struggle even to breathe while standing before him.
Generally speaking, no swordsman’s aura can escape this Great Swordsman’s perception. For example, when Pei Sen had only just stepped into the realm of a first-rank swordsman a few days earlier, Sardin had praised him with evident satisfaction.
Similarly, a mage’s aura is equally distinctive. When Pei Sen stood before Keso, he could sense the man’s mystery and power. The aura of a high-ranking mage runs as deep as an abyss; no matter how carefully one tries to conceal it, it mostly cannot be hidden from those far stronger than oneself.
However, the Ring of Thousand Illusions changes everything. It can perfectly mask one’s aura. Even if Eagle became a swordsman or a mage, or even learned Holy Arts of the Light God—which carry the most conspicuous aura—he could still remain the frail, delicate, and nobly bred young master he appears to be now.
No one would ever notice anything unusual about him.
Pei Sen had not failed to consider this possibility before; rather, he had been hesitating. Perhaps this truly was not a game world, and the so-called NPCs were all living, breathing people. Yet he had known Eagle for merely two or three short months, and this young master, despite his bear-like demeanor, had never treated him with such profound kindness.
Was it really necessary to go to such lengths for him?
And yet, in the end, he still felt a pang of pity for this young man.
Eagle sat dazed in his chair, the chandelier’s light casting upon him with an oddly cold hue.
“Can I do it?”
“Yes, young master. As long as you have this ring, you can.”
Originally, Eagle believed that no matter how hard he struggled, his fate would still remain trapped within that vast net. At only fifteen years old, he had already lost most of his expectations for the future.
Gazing at Pei Sen’s slightly smiling, gentle face before him, Eagle suddenly reached out to grab him, then wrapped his arms around Pei Sen’s waist.
“Thank you, Pei Sen.”
In this world, no one had ever treated him as kindly as Pei Sen did.
Pei Sen gazed at the crown of the young man’s head, restraining the urge to ruffle his hair. Even though his young master was currently overwhelmed with emotion, messing up his hair like that would most likely make him angry, wouldn’t it?
This is a real-life brat—short-tempered and quick to anger.
Thinking of this, Pei Sen couldn’t help but sigh sorrowfully, musing that perhaps self-hypnosis—choosing to be a “player” who doesn’t overthink things—would bring far more happiness.
With the Ring of Thousand Illusions now in hand, only one question remained: who would teach Eagle, and furthermore, what could Eagle possibly learn?
Pei Sen knew he still had to ask the necessary questions. “Young master, is there anyone around you whom you can trust completely?”
Many people in this manor are highly skilled; even Lady Mary, the head housekeeper, is at least a Level 4 Swordmaster.
Eagle understood his meaning. “If it were before, I would have said Mary. But now?” He pondered for a long while, then slowly shook his head. “Not a single one. Perhaps Aikin could count as half, but he is too far from me, and cannot easily leave his fiefdom.”
Pei Sen was deeply troubled; there wasn’t a single trustworthy person around the young master!
“Can it be that I have to do this myself?” But to be honest, Pei Sen wasn’t eager to teach Eagle, as Eagle clearly didn’t seem like the obedient and well-behaved type of student. He feared his efforts would go to waste.
Eagle suddenly spoke up, “Pei Sen, do you think I won’t be a good student?”
Pei Sen: “…”
“Rest assured, I know you mean well. Please teach me, Pei Sen.” Eagle gazed at his own soft, fair hands. “I want to become stronger.”
Pei Sen glanced at his hand. “It seems you cannot become a swordsman, at least not yet.”
“Why?”
“Because the hand that wields a sword will develop calluses.” And once the pampered young master’s hands bore such marks, he would be discovered, even if his aura remained unchanged.
So, the young master only studies magic? Oh no, he could also try learning divine arts. According to how things unfolded in his previous life, barring any accidents, Eagle should be a prodigy in divine arts; otherwise, he wouldn’t have become the leader among the three Sons of Light.
“Young master, starting tomorrow I’ll attempt to teach you magic. You might consider trying to secretly learn divine arts from Atwell… Oh no, better not. Let’s not take that risk.”
Pei Sen immediately realized Atwell’s extraordinary cunning and intelligence. If the young master tried to outmaneuver Atwell, he would most likely fail, with an extremely high probability of being discovered.
“Alright.” Today, Eagle appeared unusually compliant.
This long day finally came to an end. Pei Sen returned to his room, ready to sleep, and habitually took one last look at the forum before bed.
The forum was still a chaotic scene of all sorts of antics. Various closed-beta players and cloud gamers had brought immense popularity to it. Yet, despite the extremely high traffic, the forum had never once experienced any lag.
Today’s discussion undoubtedly centers on the young count, whose beauty rating is exceptionally high.
Originally, players joining the Thorny Rose faction had virtually no other choice, as there was simply no way to join any other factions. At least by joining this one, they could accept faction main quests with fairly generous rewards.
Bix Cube differs from typical games; the vast majority of players still haven’t received any true main quest. In fact, Pei Sen knows very well that Bix Cube has always been like this: main quests appear and disappear unpredictably, with highly irregular trigger conditions. The main quest each player receives may be entirely different, as if the game encourages players to explore on their own rather than follow a predetermined storyline.
Eagle’s appearance caused quite a stir. Female players collectively swooned over the young count’s beauty, while many male players worried: with such a young faction leader… can he really be trusted?
“To be honest, we know far too little about the Thorny Rose faction. Aside from the fact that their leader is a fifteen-year-old young count, other information is scarce.”
“Speaking logically, this faction doesn’t seem weak at all. Even an ordinary guard squad leader like Kemis is quite formidable.”
“Didn’t you see it at the young count’s birthday banquet? The two standing at the very front must be the real powerhouses; one looked like a swordsman and the other like a mage?”
“Yes, I struck up a conversation with Kemis, and he told me those two are the estate’s chief stewards.”
“I got the info out of Neil: one great swordsman and one high-level mage; their strength is incredibly formidable.”
“By the way, the mage looks so cool. When will Bix Cube finally unlock the mage class?”
“…”
Since it’s still the early stage, Bix Cube has only unlocked the Swordsman class. Players have no other choice but to become Swordsmen. What’s even more troublesome is that there are only two ways to learn skills: one is to learn from “NPCs,” swordsmen like Kemis, and the other is through skill books dropped in dungeons. However, players haven’t even figured out where the dungeon entrances are yet, so everyone is basically getting by with just that single initial Swordsman skill.
The girls’ focus lies elsewhere. Besides exclaiming how handsome he is, most of them firmly declare their intention to protect the young Count for a lifetime.
Of course, a game is just a game; such talk of “a lifetime” is merely joking. Nevertheless, it’s clear that a young and handsome faction leader greatly strengthens players’ affinity toward the faction.
While browsing the forums, Pei Sen calmly skipped over those posts whose titles alone made their problematic nature obvious.
Since he had anticipated this situation, and having already given flowers and a ring to the young master, he now adopted an attitude of shameless indifference. No matter how wildly the players danced or how heart-pounding their headlines became, as long as he didn’t click into them, it was as if he hadn’t seen anything at all.
Yes, I truly saw nothing.
At that moment, a post suddenly caught his eye.
“The poster… Designer.” Pei Sen recognized Designer; he knew it was this person who had captured Kui Lang and exchanged him for contribution points on his behalf. Only after clicking in did he realize just how formidable this individual truly was. “So fast? They’ve already uncovered clues about the dungeon.”
Pei Sen had actually never cleared the game’s initial dungeons; by the time he entered, the open beta had already been running for quite a while. Unlike typical games, Bix Cube features players entering along different timelines, resulting in experiences vastly different from those of the earliest arrivals.
Consequently, Pei Sen didn’t even know where the original dungeons were located.
The dungeon mechanics in Bix Cube differ significantly from those in conventional games. Having effectively transmigrated into the continent of Yali, Pei Sen discovered that the “NPCs” were truly flesh-and-blood people. In fact, while playing, no one ever imagined this was a real world; whether due to the Ultimate Harmony Protocol or stimulus dampening, players always retained a distinct sense of “gameness” within this realm, and the existence of dungeons undoubtedly enhanced that gameplay feel.
“If this were a real world, things like dungeons shouldn’t exist…” Pei Sen sighed. After all, if every NPC is a living, breathing person, then death is final—they would not respawn infinitely as they do in ordinary games.
Even within the Bix Cube, enemies in dungeons can be killed infinitely, likely because only within these restricted zones are the inhabitants true NPCs.
Pei Sen had cleared many dungeons before. In some of them, the NPCs’ intelligence was indistinguishable from that of real people; in fact, aside from their ability to resurrect indefinitely, they showed no difference from NPCs outside. This is one of the main reasons players rarely develop genuine emotional attachments to NPCs.
However, since this is still the early stage of the game, Pei Sen keenly realized that the Bix Cube seemed to undergo an evolutionary process. For instance, quest triggers—including those for main storylines—were not as sensitive as they would become later on.
In the game’s initial phase, even the Bix Cube appeared to be slowly learning. There was only one character class, and beyond the game interface, much had to be discovered gradually by the players themselves.
“I don’t even have any life skills yet,” Pei Sen mused. “Kaixi City has been nearly razed to the ground and is about to be rebuilt. Perhaps I should consider actively triggering the life skill system.”
“Also, will the dungeons in the early stages of the game be any different from those I experienced later?”
Regardless, Pei Sen had carefully read the post made by the designer. In terms of familiarity with Bix Cube, Pei Sen far surpassed the designer; he was simply confined to the manor and couldn’t roam around like the designer to search for dungeon clues. However, while the designer had only obtained hints about the dungeons, Pei Sen, after merely glancing through them once, could already pinpoint their approximate locations.
“He probably gained some inspiration after capturing Kui Lang and followed up on it to discover…”
Quite a few players on the forum were following the designer’s post. As gamers, none of them lacked interest in dungeons, but since these were merely clues at present, the players hadn’t yet managed to locate the dungeons.
“No, I have to check out this dungeon,” Pei Sen thought. Whether to see how early-game dungeons differ from late-game ones or simply to grow stronger, venturing into a dungeon was an excellent choice.
The problem, however, was that he currently served as Young Master Eagle’s personal butler and could not easily leave the Golden Rose Manor.
An even bigger trouble was that he lacked the Thousand Illusions Mask, making it impossible for him to alter his appearance. If he tried to team up with players, it would pose a major issue, directly exposing his true identity as a player behind the popular “NPC” persona.
Soloing? That’s not impossible. The difficulty of early dungeons shouldn’t be too high. His level already far surpasses that of ordinary players; he reached level 18 just yesterday. If he records a few more spells, advancing to Junior Mage won’t be difficult.
Sitting at the desk and opening the spellbook given by Keso, Pei Sen rested his chin on his hand, deciding to master several offensive spells before asking the young master for leave tomorrow.
“Given my current relationship with the young master, taking a day or two off shouldn’t be too difficult,” Pei Sen thought optimistically.
The next day, Pei Sen went to Eagle as usual. As expected, after yesterday’s events, the brat’s attitude toward him had improved greatly; he no longer harassed him at every turn like before.
Taking advantage of his good mood, Pei Sen glanced around. Eagle, understanding immediately, dismissed all the maids. “Young master, this is Bertha’s notebook I previously obtained from Kesso. It’s quite suitable for beginners in magic, though it’s written in the magical language. I can start teaching you today.”
“Good.” Eagle remained quite enthusiastic about becoming stronger.
Then Pei Sen immediately said, “By the way, Young Master, I’d like to request a couple of days off in two days’ time.”
Pei Sen planned to first try triggering the life skill system, allowing players to initiate the city-building quest. Weren’t there a bunch of players clamoring to build the most beautiful city for the young count? Their chance had finally arrived.
Kaixi City has been completely razed and is now ready for reconstruction, where life skills will play a crucial role.
As for new players who prefer not to engage in life skills, they can continue leveling by razing either Adrien City or Archi Town… Hmm, I should ask the young master which one he’d like to flatten first.
Since the mayor of Archi Town didn’t even show up this time, and Adrian City has Keso’s Mage Tower, wouldn’t it be better to handle Archi Town first?
Lost in thought, Pei Sen’s mind began to wander.
Eagle glanced at him. “Why do you need leave?”
“To become stronger, young master,” Pei Sen said earnestly. “There’s a place I absolutely must visit.”
The boy’s emerald eyes fixed on him, as if gauging whether he was lying.
“Very well.” In the end, Eagle agreed. Pei Sen smiled; though it pained him to part with such a valuable ring, it wasn’t without its benefits. At least in the past, Eagle would never have approved his request for leave. Even if Pei Sen lingered a little too long in the front hall, the young master would grow displeased.
Pei Sen spoke softly, “Rest assured, I will return soon.”
“Mm, Pei Sen, you may go, but I have one condition.”
“What conditions?” Pei Sen asked in a coaxing tone, knowing the young master was likely about to throw another tantrum.
Eagle looked at him. “I’m going too!”
Pei Sen: “…………”
Seeing Pei Sen’s expression change instantly, Eagle felt even more aggrieved. “Pei Sen, you said we’d grow stronger together. Were you lying to me?”
Pei Sen: “…”
My young master, is this even comparable?
Smuggling Eagle out of the Rose Manor, which is heavily guarded? That’s practically impossible!
Let alone Sardin who resides within the manor; even the current Pei Sen couldn’t defeat Lady Mary or Kemis, alright?
Stop messing around, you little rascal!