Acai's Sky

The carved bamboo chair swayed gently in the fragrance of tea and the warmth of charcoal fire. Ah Cai leaned back in the chair, her slender fingers unconsciously stroking the edge of the celadon teacup. The delicate touch seemed to soothe the irritability in her heart.

Her eyes were fixed on the flickering holographic projection in front of her. In the picture, the newly opened market area was like a pot of boiling water, staging a series of chaotic farces.

The roar of the mechanical beasts disrupted the original order of the market. Some people rode majestic mechanical beasts and rushed through the crowd. The metal hooves collided with the ground, making a harsh sound, scaring the surrounding players to dodge and screams one after another.

In front of the shop, several human players were arguing over a piece of equipment that was shining with a strange light. Their faces were red and their saliva was flying. They even started pushing each other, their eyes full of greed and unwillingness.

What's worse, several players holding weapons looked around in the market in a daze. The swaying weapons almost accidentally injured people who were hurriedly dodging. The air was filled with tension and anxiety.

Ah Cai's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, like two crescent moons wrinkled by the wind. Her cherry lips curled slightly, and her tone was full of undisguised disdain: "That's it? These players are completely disorganized and undisciplined."

The ending tone carried a hint of disappointment, as if the chaotic scene before her was like a sharp thorn, piercing her eyes fiercely and making her feel unhappy.

In a corner of the teahouse, Tong Jiayuan was squatting on the ground, concentrating on sorting the newly purchased supplies.

The knees of his dark grey overalls were already covered in dust, a mark of his constant running around.

He raised his hand and pushed the black-framed interstellar glasses on his nose. The eyes behind the lenses were focused and serious. With this movement, the silver mechanical prosthesis on his wrist was fully revealed, shining with a cold luster under the reflection of the charcoal fire.

Hearing Ah Cai's words, he straightened up, dusted off his hands, and with a gentle smile on his handsome face, he slowly walked to the tea table and sat down. "What kind of discipline do the players want? Besides, basically everyone joins by invitation based on points, so there are all kinds of people here."

His voice was steady and calm, as if he was already accustomed to this chaotic scene.

In the corner, Qin general Bai Qi, dressed in black armor, sat there quietly like a towering mountain, sipping tea slowly and leisurely.

He gently placed the teacup on the table. The metal wristband made a crisp sound against the wooden surface, like a melodious ancient tune, breaking the momentary silence. "Those players are not as simple as those in Wangyou City. Most of them are military-born, so they are easy to manage."

There was a hint of pride and nostalgia in his words, as if the orderliness of Wangyou City was the eternal pride in his heart.

At this time, a round figure came over swayingly. It was Jin Yuanbao.

It held the precious "Moonlight Strawberry" tightly in its arms, and kept chewing it with its pink little mouth. The juice overflowed and got all over its face. It looked cute and funny.

It mumbled incoherently: "The master is afraid of trouble. When he saw them making so much noise, he wanted to stay away from them." As it spoke, its little tail swayed gently as it spoke, as if it was keeping time to its own words.

Just as everyone was expressing their opinions, Qin General Wang Li strode over. His silver-white armor gleamed coldly in the candlelight, like a hero returning triumphantly from the battlefield.

He laughed heartily and asked General Bai, who was brewing tea beside him, for a cup of tea. His laughter was full of heroism: "Oh, I almost thought our master was suffering from social anxiety!"

Before he finished speaking, he raised his head and drank the tea in the cup in one gulp. His movements were graceful and decisive, showing the boldness of a military commander.

As everyone was laughing and joking, a golden figure suddenly came over, breaking the warm atmosphere.

The golden raccoon's huge head almost took up half of the tea table. Its eyes sparkled, as if hiding a sky full of stars. It lowered its voice and said to Wang Li, "Our master is just lazy. He would rather lie down than sit..."

Ah Cai coughed lightly, raised the corners of her eyes, and rolled her eyes without any hesitation.

She reached out and tugged at the golden raccoon's ears, feigning anger and saying, "Good on you, have you learned to speak ill of your master behind his back?"

However, the curve of her mouth that was inadvertently raised betrayed her. That faint smile clearly showed that she was not really angry, but was enjoying the relaxed and happy atmosphere.

“Actually, we can’t blame the players entirely.”

Tong Jiayuan picked up the teapot and gracefully refilled everyone's cups. The clear tea flowed slowly into the cups, and the fragrance of tea filled the air again. "The players invited in this time through points have very complex backgrounds. There are hackers from the cyberpunk world, who are proficient in various electronic technologies and are very comfortable in the dungeon world; there are medieval knights who uphold the ancient spirit of chivalry and act in an upright manner; and there are future interstellar warriors who possess advanced technology and combat skills..."

As he spoke, he sketched out the images of players from these different worlds in his mind, each image was vivid and unique.

Qin General Bai Qi nodded slightly, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Indeed, when people from different worlds gather together, their philosophies and styles of doing things differ greatly. Just like on the battlefield, if there's no unified command, and everyone fights on their own, defeat is inevitable."

His eyes became deep, as if he had returned to the battlefield once filled with smoke, and the painful experiences of failure due to poor military orders were vivid in his mind.

Ah Cai leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. "Tsk tsk, they were making such a fuss, we didn't get anything, especially the ones you liked!"

While everyone was still discussing the players' confusion, Qin general Li Xin walked into the teahouse after completing a round of tasks.

He looked exhausted as he picked up a cup of tea and drank it all in one gulp, as if the tea could dispel his fatigue. "The items refreshed in this plane fragment are becoming more and more common. I guess my energy is running out..."

There was a hint of worry in his words. The lack of energy in the plane fragments meant that the resources they could obtain would become fewer and fewer.

Asan put the delicious food on the table at the right time, and the aroma filled the air, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

As he arranged the dishes, he said helplessly, "No one is like us. So many people come here to take advantage of us. If we each complete five rounds of tasks a day, that's 5,000 rounds of tasks a day for thousands of people. We'll definitely be able to take advantage of every single task!"

His words caused everyone to laugh bitterly. Indeed, with such a huge amount of tasks, the consumption of plane fragments can be imagined.

Tong Jiayuan nodded, his expression serious. "That's right. The energy of any fragment is conserved. I guess after this, this fragment will have to be sealed. It will never open again until the energy is restored!"