Time had reached dusk, yet the central square that should have been empty was still lined with a long queue. Several Outriders had to come over to maintain order to prevent any accidents.
Outside the crowd, the blue beret girl pulled one of the Outriders and asked:
"Chixia, what's happening here? Why are so many people queuing?"
"It's Yangyang. Do you remember Carlotta, the one with particularly elegant movements who ate with us yesterday? The people she brought are giving out free eggs here."
Free eggs?
Only then did Yangyang take a closer look at the crowd. Sure enough, each person who finished queuing was holding two eggs and a bundle of dried noodles.
Free, beneficial, and for the masses. Generally speaking, these three words rarely appear together in the same matter.
The clear-headed Yangyang keenly realized this and asked in confusion:
"Strange. Miss Carlotta is not a local of Huanglong. Why is she doing this?"
"It seems we just need to download an app called Quick Tone on our terminals, and we get eggs after downloading."
Chixia also didn't quite understand but still handed over her terminal to Yangyang:
"They… seem to be called the Montelli family. They installed it for me too. It's quite interesting. You should check it out."
Taking the terminal, Yangyang opened Quick Tone. The next second, a highly distinctive cry came from inside the terminal.
"Awoo."
On the screen, a snow leopard wearing lion dance attire was stepping on plum blossom stakes, performing the lion dance vividly and energetically.
Before Yangyang could react, Chixia's finger lightly swiped upward on the virtual screen.
A new scene once again caught Yangyang's attention. This time it was a painting video.
The video was sped up multiple times, showing only a pair of hands holding a brush rapidly painting. A lively swimming fish leaped onto the paper.
When the final stroke landed, the fish in the painting seemed to come alive. It leaped into the air and fell back into the painting, splashing small water droplets.
At the end of the video was a cute twin-tailed eye girl avatar. The name beside it was AAA Zhezhi Online Commission.
"It looks like this app is for watching short videos?"
Yangyang seemed to understand the function of Quick Tone. Her brows relaxed:
"But Huanglong also has similar forum-style apps. It doesn't seem particularly novel."
Shaking her head, she returned the terminal to Chixia and was about to leave when her peripheral vision suddenly caught a figure on the virtual screen. Her feet immediately felt rooted in place and could not move.
It was Noah.
"Oh no, Yangyang, look quickly. Noah is being chased by an Spearback!"
Almost instinctively, Chixia pulled Yangyang to watch the video together.
"Friends, as you can see, as an ordinary person, I am currently being chased by an Elite-class Tacet Discord."
The camera shook slightly in the screen. Noah pretended to pant twice to create a sense of urgency while fleeing, and gave a close-up of the Spearback behind him.
It was a strong and sturdy black bear. Its head, neck, and shoulders were covered with arrow cluster-like sharp black stones, like an indestructible spiked armor.
"So, what should an ordinary person do to escape when encountering an Spearback?"
Ordinary person? Yangyang and Chixia were both stunned.
They only saw the Spearback running faster and faster in the lens. In the blink of an eye, it reached behind Noah. With a fierce charge, Noah performed a perfectly timed side roll, and a sword appeared in his hand — Emerald of Genesis:
"Great, I picked up a wild swift blade. Do you think I can defeat it with this swift blade?"
The camera suddenly switched to first-person view. The BGM suddenly became intense, and a line appeared at the bottom of the screen: Dangerous actions, please do not imitate.
The Spearback roared and swung its claws. Each swing narrowly brushed past Noah's clothes. The enormous force could be felt clearly even through the screen.
Noah wielded the sword using various fancy techniques such as thrust, slash, and upward cut. The close-range contact with the Tacet Discord was thrilling and exciting, making Yangyang and Chixia unconsciously break into a cold sweat.
After a sliding tackle, Noah threw out the swift blade and continued fleeing:
"This guy's skin is too tough. I can't cut through the thick fat and fur protecting its skin at all."
Then, Noah continued his chase-and-escape performance with the Spearback. He successively picked up a long blade, arm guards, a Sonoro device, a pistol, and showed off various operations.
The BGM burned intensely and then turned tragic, like a hero's final moments.
"Look, I am already exhausted. The gun I picked up has also run out of bullets. I still can't defeat the Spearback. So everyone, please be very careful and never travel alone in the wild."
After speaking, Noah, who had stopped to pretend to press on his thigh while panting, suddenly stood straight.
He locked the giant claw swung by the Spearback behind him with one hand, twisted his waist and hips, and executed a shoulder throw, slamming the Spearback into an Echo on the spot.
"See you next time."
The short video ended here. Yangyang, still wanting more, opened the comment section, which was already filled with a large number of comments.
[Genius Priestess of Tetragon Temple: You instantly defeated that big guy and you call this an ordinary person? (IP: Septimont)]
[Relaxed Bright Little Priest: A very meaningful video. It teaches everyone to be extra careful in the wild. (IP: Ragunna)]
[Wandering Mercenary Calcharo: Must have taken quite some effort to find this Elite-class Tacet Discord /smirk (IP: Jinzhou)]
[Future Champion of the Gladiatorial Tournament: How do you dodge so perfectly every time? Ahhh so cool, I want to learn. (IP: Septimont)]
"Stop staring at the comment section and smiling, Yangyang. This is definitely Noah's account. Let's go in and see what other content there is."
Chixia reached out to exit the comment section and skillfully swiped left on the screen, opening Noah's personal homepage.
There was only one video on it — the one they had already watched. There was also one homepage message.
[Phaethon (Searching the entire network for Rover): Profile picture is Rover. If you see him/her, please contact me. Reward offered. Thank you.]
"Chixia, how do I download this Quick Tone?"
"There is currently no public download method. It can only be installed by Montelli family staff."
Ah? There's even hunger marketing?
Yangyang saw through the scheme at a glance but had no solution.
"I suddenly feel that this Quick Tone is actually quite interesting."
Leaving those words, Yangyang turned around and joined the army queuing for free eggs.
On the other side.
Jinzhou, City Hall.
"Teacher, teacher, Noah and I followed each other. Look, what message should I send him to start a conversation?"
Jinhsi held up her terminal to Changli. The virtual screen clearly showed the chat interface with Noah.
"Easy."
Changli casually typed one character and sent it, then immediately withdrew it.
The next second, Noah indeed sent an inquiry.
[Noah: What did you just send?]
"Teacher, teacher, how should I reply?"
"Just watch me operate."
[Jinhsi: Nothing. Just a way to get your attention.]
"Wow, Teacher, you're so good at this!"
Jinhsi beamed with joy as she held Changli's hand. Her heart was racing as she urged:
"What should we chat about next?"
[Jinhsi: Are you free right now? Let's chat for a bit.]
"Ahhh, Teacher, you're so direct. Although I really do want to chat with Noah."
Jinhsi complained coquettishly, but inside she was secretly delighted. She had learned another little trick — if you want to chat with Noah, you can just ask directly.
On the screen, the other party sent another message.
[Noah: Sure. What do you want to talk about?]
"Jinhsi, if it were you, what would you talk about right now?"
Changli did not reply immediately but guided her patiently.
"This…"
Jinhsi hesitated for a moment and answered:
"Talk about dinner? It's already afternoon."
"Silly!"
Reaching out to poke Jinhsi's head, Changli then typed while teaching:
"How do you chat for a long time? Of course, by steering the topic toward the other person — talk about what they are interested in and what they are knowledgeable about."
"That way he will have the desire to talk and will proactively share more with you. Moreover, he will think he is the one controlling the conversation, when in fact we are."
The message was sent.
[Jinhsi: I don't know. You pick a topic.]
[Noah: Alright. There is actually something I need to tell you in advance.]
Seeing this line, Changli gave Jinhsi a proud look, as if saying "as expected."
"Too amazing, Teacher! You made Noah proactively want to chat with me."
Jinhsi couldn't help giggling:
"I wonder what Noah wants to talk to me about."
The next second, the other side sent a message.
[Noah: In a few days, I will be going to Septimont with Cartethyia.]
As soon as this line appeared, both of them froze in place as if hit by a petrification spell.
Jinhsi looked at Changli for help:
"Teacher, what do we do?!"
"This is troublesome."