Gu Ning received a friend notification and felt a bit puzzled.
Opening the friend channel, he saw it was Riko. What was she looking for him for?
Gu Ning clicked into the chat window.
"Gu Ning, are you planning to join the Two Realms Contest or not?!" Riko messaged directly. "Don't tell me you're actually too weak to compete?"
Gu Ning rolled his eyes. This girl sure liked to meddle.
"Of course I'm joining. Why are you asking?" Gu Ning replied.
"I checked, and you're not even in the top 10,000! How are you going to participate like that?" Riko was lying on her velvet-covered bed, a white dolphin plushie beside her, sucking on a lollipop.
She'd been planning to team up with Gu Ning once the Demon Realm opened. But when she checked the leaderboard today—three or four times, no less—Gu Ning wasn't on it at all. She was furious!
It wasn't that she believed Gu Ning wasn't capable of making the top 10,000; it was obvious he was just too lazy to take part in many matches.
Seeing Riko's message, Gu Ning didn't know whether to laugh or cry. They hadn't interacted much before, so why was she paying so much attention to him?
Gu Ning realized Riko had that kind of naturally outgoing, overly familiar vibe.
He was well aware that his points ranking hadn't broken into the top 10,000, but he didn't care much about it. He figured he could squeeze in some matches tonight or tomorrow and qualify just fine. He wasn't aiming for first place—he only needed to qualify for the contest.
With that time, wouldn't it be better to make a few more ice blocks? That was money!
"No need to worry. I'll definitely qualify!" Gu Ning replied. "Why are you so concerned about me? Don't tell me you've fallen for me?"
He teased her.
"Pfft! You're so full of yourself!" Riko rolled her eyes at his reply. "I want to team up with you so we can dominate together."
Gu Ning had already guessed that's what she wanted, so her message didn't surprise him.
But he raised a fair point: with random placements, how could they team up?
"We'll end up in random locations. How are we supposed to team up?" Gu Ning asked.
Riko chuckled mischievously. She flipped over, lying on her stomach with her pale legs kicking lightly in the air.
"Of course I have a way!" Riko replied, then sent over a picture.
Gu Ning opened it.
Binding Rope (Blue): After use, binds two people together so that they will be teleported to the same location.
There was something like this?
"How do you use it?" Gu Ning messaged back.
Riko knew from his response that he'd agreed to team up.
"There are two ropes. We each wear one, that's all," she explained. "I've put the other one up on the trading channel, set for you specifically. Go buy it."
Gu Ning opened the trading channel, found the item, and bought it for one white stone.
It was a thin red cord, about the size of a bracelet.
"When it's time to teleport, just wear it on your wrist," Riko messaged him the instructions.
"Got it! We'll go in together, then," Gu Ning replied.
He didn't mind teaming up with Riko. First, as someone in the top 10, she must be strong. Second, it was a chance to build deeper trust between them. When it came to future trade between their territories, they could work together without worry.
After all, no territory could develop in isolation. Shutting yourself off was no way to achieve great progress.
"Ok, see you then," Riko messaged. "Don't forget this agreement. Don't flake on me!"
Then, with a mischievous grin, she sent him a photo of herself.
"For those lonely late nights—you can use this to entertain yourself. You're welcome!"
Gu Ning looked at the photo. Riko was lying on her bed, her chest flattened against it, showing off a stretch of snowy white skin. Her legs were lifted playfully, and she winked at him, tongue sticking out.
Gu Ning could only smile wryly. Seeing that last cheeky line, his face darkened a little.
As if he needed that! What a joke.
There were two beauties in the room with him already!
Gu Ning closed the chat window.
He went back to making ice blocks, and after burning through his mana, he entered the arena, planning to get in a few matches.
The arena was as bustling as ever, full of noise and energy.
Not wasting any time, Gu Ning put on his mask, grabbed a seat, and started.
This time, the setting was an ice field—perfect for him.
Gu Ning looked at his opponent.
It was a middle-aged Black man, towering at two meters tall and carrying a spiked club. He was clad in armor.
Gu Ning checked his info:
Name: JessinyLevel: 6
A level 6 opponent—impressive. Gu Ning wondered why he hadn't heard of him before.
Then it hit him: maybe the guy had poor talent or no talent at all, so he had to rely on leveling up to stay competitive. That wasn't unusual. People with weaker talents often tried to use higher levels to overpower the talented ones early on.
Gu Ning used to think about holding off on leveling up until his talents improved. But once he realized there were treasures out there that could boost attributes, he stopped trying to suppress his level on purpose.
Of course, people like that were rare. Most players focused on leveling up as fast as possible—it was safer at sea that way.
Gu Ning could afford to take his time only because he had a legendary hero like Windsor at his side. Without her, he'd be grinding levels like mad too.
Jessiny saw Gu Ning's level (5) but didn't underestimate him. After so many matches, he knew better: level didn't equal strength. Underestimating someone could get you burned.
He charged forward, spiked club in hand. His talent was Mighty Strength (green quality), and he'd luckily gotten the Berserker class. He had some confidence in himself.
Gu Ning raised his staff and cast Freeze, locking Jessiny's feet in ice.
Jessiny struggled hard but couldn't break free. His heart sank.
A lower-level opponent, and he couldn't break out? That meant Gu Ning's talent was exceptional—he was far stronger than Jessiny.
A thought crossed Jessiny's mind: could this be the top-ranked player everyone had been talking about, the one with ice abilities?
Still, he wasn't about to give up. He activated his skill: Berserk.
His strength doubled. Combined with his Mighty Strength talent, the boost let him shatter the ice and break free.
Gu Ning raised an eyebrow, impressed. He hadn't expected the guy to escape his spell. But he stayed calm and ready for the next move.