The post said that recently, the Night Walker's Spirit Realm had undergone large-scale changes. Many previously recorded Spirit Realm instances had shifted—their difficulty levels rose, becoming entirely new and uncharted dungeons.
The difficulty now reached A-rank or even S-rank.
Many Night Walkers who were about to enter these Spirit Realms recently were unfortunately assigned to these changed dungeons and thus sacrificed.
The poster was one of the forum administrators, so in a way, this counted as an official announcement.
"Lots of S-rank and A-rank exclusive Spirit Realm instances for Night Walkers?" Zhang Yuanqing blinked in surprise.
Spirit Realms had balancing and matching mechanisms. Level 1 had level 1 dungeons, level 2 had level 2 dungeons, and so on. Sometimes a level 1 walker might enter a level 2 dungeon, but the assigned tasks would be relatively simple.
In short, the tasks Spirit Realms gave could be tough, with high death rates, but a level 1 walker wouldn't receive a level 3 walker's mission.
Besides, difficulty ratings within a dungeon's level ranged from S to D. S was the ceiling—frighteningly deadly but with the best rewards.
Zhang Yuanqing recalled that the Sheling Tunnel trial, even without the Red Dance Shoes, had less than a 10% chance for newcomers to pass.
Now, so many unexplored A- and S-level dungeons appeared at once—how many would die?
His first thought: Damn, I'm about to enter the Spirit Realm too, can I still switch professions now?!
His second thought: Oh wait, next time I'll most likely enter a multiplayer Spirit Realm, so maybe it's fine.
He felt a slight relief, then scrolled down the post to read how official Spirit Realm walkers reacted.
Once posted, it caused a huge uproar in the official organization. Branches across the country were all paying attention, and comments piled up into the thousands.
["No wonder, no wonder my Night Walker informant suddenly went dark today..."]
["What? You have a Night Walker informant? Damn, you're really deep undercover."]
["Something's off. Although Spirit Realm dungeons always change, this sudden, unreasonable shift for Night Walker-exclusive instances is too abrupt."]
["Is it because the Demon Lord died? I heard from the Taiyi Sect that the Demon Lord recently perished."]
["Who told you about the Demon Lord's death? Was it Yuan Ting?"]
The Five Elements Alliance mostly treated it as gossip—they weren't Night Walkers, so it wasn't their problem.
But some grew anxious.
["Call me Queen: We can't do investigations without Night Walkers. Besides, the Phantom Eye Judge just died. Everywhere is on alert for deranged Fallen. Songhai is especially responsible for hunting down the Black Impermanence. At this critical moment, if Night Walker dungeons have problems, will we be short-staffed?"]
["Qingteng: That might happen, but not every Night Walker will enter a dungeon soon."]
Spirit Realm missions didn't appear that frequently, so large-scale Night Walker deaths weren't expected.
["Call me Queen: But they will enter eventually. With so many unexplored dungeons suddenly appearing, Night Walkers might sharply decline in number soon."]
Sacrifices were inevitable in dungeon runs.
Her words made sense. Eventually, he had to enter a solo dungeon. S- and A-level dungeons were intimidating, especially since his character was the Demon Lord... Zhang Yuanqing's mood grew heavier.
He exited the forum and opened his chat app to message Yuan Ting:
"Captain Yuan, I saw the pinned post on the forum about the Night Walker Spirit Realm difficulty change. What's going on? I'm willing to pay a consultation fee."
Professional questions should be asked to professionals.
Yuan Ting replied quickly:
"No idea. The Night Walker official group is already in chaos. Those entering Spirit Realms soon or in the near future are nervous. S-level dungeons aren't for everyone, and even A-level ones require luck.
"I'm not sure what exactly happened. The Elders' Council is collecting data. They should release an official statement by tonight."
Yuan Ting was uneasy because a colleague close to him entered a Spirit Realm this morning and hadn't come out yet—no word on their fate.
And in half a month, he himself would face a solo dungeon, roughly within a week's deviation.
"Got it."
Zhang Yuanqing didn't ask more.
...
For the next half day, Zhang Yuanqing kept refreshing the official forum for updates, completely losing interest in shopping.
At sunset, his aunt linked arms with him as they headed home, Zhang's hands full of shopping bags.
"Hey, have you gotten stronger?" Jiang Yuer pinched her nephew's biceps. "Hard as rock..."
If you were Guan Ya, he'd say, "My hardness is beyond your imagination," or "I have even harder muscles," Zhang Yuanqing replied casually:
"Health is capital. I've been training recently."
After dinner, Zhang Yuanqing locked himself in his room and waited for the Taiyi Sect's announcement.
At this moment, Night Walkers nationwide sat glued to their phones or computers, waiting for their organization's statement.
Finally, at 9:30 PM, after endless refreshes, he saw a highlighted pinned post:
#Spirit Realm Sudden Change Statement and Bounty Announcement#
"Recently, the Night Walker Spirit Realm experienced a sudden anomaly. After investigation by the Elders' Council, it was confirmed that the awakening of a high-level BOSS caused the disturbance.
"Up to now, seven Spirit Realm dungeons have changed difficulty levels:
Minghu Town, ID 0128, Difficulty S (Night Walker-exclusive)
Ming Dynasty Mass Grave, ID 1180, Difficulty S (Night Walker-exclusive)
Xinfeng Reservoir, ID 1910, Difficulty A (Night Walker-exclusive)
Yinshan Ghost School, ID 0046, Difficulty A (Night Walker-exclusive)
Fengwang Tomb, ID 0277, Difficulty A (Night Walker-exclusive)
Jinshui Amusement Park, ID 6203, Difficulty S (Multiplayer Spirit Realm, lethal)
Screaming Secret Room, ID 2097, Difficulty A (Multiplayer Spirit Realm, non-lethal)
Apartment 13, ID 1404, Difficulty B (Multiplayer Spirit Realm, non-lethal)
"As of today, Yinshan Ghost School and Xinfeng Reservoir have been cleared. The other five remain unconquered.
"The Elders' Council announces a bounty: clearing S-level dungeons grants B-rank merits; clearing A-level grants C-rank merits; clearing B-level grants a reward of 500,000."
This post was reprinted from the official Taiyi Sect forum.
Worth noting, merit rankings in the official organization assign A-rank mostly to martyrs, with benefits to their families. B-rank merits are usually given to those suffering irreparable injuries. C-rank merits are the highest normal rank for Spirit Realm walkers, but still hard to get and usually require teamwork.
Only five alliance leaders have ever received S-rank merits; top elders max out at A-rank.
So, B-rank merits were extremely valuable.
After reading, Zhang Yuanqing saw thousands of comments flooding in, causing even more uproar than the noon post.
Because the Five Elements Alliance officials realized this wasn't just gossip—the Taiyi Sect's list included two multiplayer dungeons.
Multiplayer meant walkers from other professions might enter, too.
["Laidir Fangchang: Those two multiplayer dungeons have paranormal elements, right? Damn, multiplayer Spirit Realms got hit too?! Luckily, only Jinshui Amusement Park is S-rank."]
["Call me Queen: First, no one knows how long this chaos will last. What we see now is just the current state. If more paranormal multiplayer dungeons are affected, we're in danger. Also, even non-lethal failures cause experience loss, which sets us back a lot."]
["Qu Ri Kudo: Sigh, I was just chilling at lunch, and now this. I have a multiplayer Spirit Realm soon. It won't be this unlucky, right?"]
["Little Pig George: If these dungeons aren't cleared soon, official Night Walker numbers will drop sharply in half a year. Other professions might get affected, too. What kind of boss is this, forcing Taiyi Sect to announce a bounty?"]
["Qingteng: Attention, this bounty is public nationwide for Night Walkers. If you have Night Walker informants or know any wild Night Walkers, pass this along."]
["Bailong: Are you stupid? Night Walker dungeon clears are their own business. What we should focus on is multiplayer dungeon clears—that's a matter of life and death."]
["Qu Ri Kudo: Exactly, heavy cash for Jinshui Amusement Park, Screaming Secret Room, and Apartment 13 dungeon clears."]
Multiplayer dungeons were affected?! Zhang Yuanqing's gaze froze.
Just then, a shrill phone ring interrupted him.
It was Li Dongze calling.
He answered and greeted: "Commander."
Li Dongze's tone was serious: "Did you check the forum today?"
"If you mean the Night Walker Spirit Realm sudden change, yes, I'm already aware." Zhang sighed.
"Don't worry too much. When the sky falls, there are always taller people to hold it up. Maybe by the time your solo dungeon comes, Taiyi Sect will have cleared these high-difficulty dungeons. Trust the official organization." Li Dongze tried to reassure.
He joked to lighten the mood: "Of course, if you're confident, you could be one to clear those dungeons yourself."
But that was too difficult.
"Did you call just to comfort me?" Zhang asked cautiously.
"Two things. First, you're about to enter a dungeon, right? Based on past experience, it should be multiplayer. You know the matching mechanism. Sergeant Fu Bai discovered that Jinshui Amusement Park is a transcendent-level dungeon. Just in case, he used his authority to pull out an old guide for you to reference." Li Dongze added in a low voice:
"Remember, it's just a reference. The Spirit Realm has changed; relying too much on old guides will get you killed."
Sergeant Fu Bai juggled thousands of bunny girls daily but still remembered this small fry? Zhang was touched.
Li Dongze continued to comfort:
"We're just covering all bases. Don't stress too much. Transcendent-level multiplayer dungeons are varied, and the odds of getting Jinshui Amusement Park are very low."
Hopefully. Commander, you don't know this, but my character card is the Demon Lord one... Zhang asked, "What's the second thing?"
"About Lei Yibing."