Xu Yuan had been grinding down withering skeletons for over an hour, and all he managed to get was one skull.

If he knew that Yun Li and his team had taken down just one skeleton and already scored a skull, he’d probably be livid.

But luck wasn’t all bad for him. While exploring the Nether Fortress, he randomly stumbled upon a chest and fished out a book enchanted with Looting II.

[Bleak Novel – Checkpoint 2948 – 327800]

Xu Yuan figured he’d enchant his weapon and keep grinding.

Only problem: he still needed a few more iron ingots to craft an anvil. So he decided to make a quick trip to the Overworld.

Just grab some iron, enchant his weapon, and get back to the grind.

With that plan in mind, Xu Yuan teleported to the Nether portal area, but something felt… off.

The Nether portal was active.

Xu Yuan’s face grew serious.

He distinctly remembered breaking the portal when he entered the Nether.

Now, if the portal was open again, there was only one explanation:

Someone from the Overworld had reactivated it.

“Looks like… someone’s been here.”

—

Xu Yuan was sure of it. He had shut that portal down when he entered. So if it was on again, there had to be another player around.

“Another player, here?” He was surprised. He’d picked this spot for how remote it was. Yet, here was proof someone else was wandering these parts.

Still, it could work to his advantage. No need to hunt the other player down if they were coming to him.

With that, Xu Yuan summoned a clone and hid it within the surrounding netherrack. If another player passed by, they’d likely follow the same path back.

All he had to do was watch the portal and wait. If anyone came through, he’d have a lead.

After setting up his ambush, Xu Yuan quickly resumed his own mission, heading back to the Overworld to gather those iron ingots.

—

Meanwhile, in another part of the Nether…

“Boss! This chest has some great loot!”

“A whole enchanted book! Two diamonds! Even a few iron ingots! We hit the jackpot!”

“If the chests out here are this loaded, imagine what’s in the fortress!”

The Cloud Soar’s Guild members were practically buzzing as they looted. Yun Li, however, was more interested in the skull he’d snagged from a withering skeleton earlier.

Sure, the loot in the chest was great, but he had a hunch the skull was even more valuable. The name was displayed in a different color than the other items, after all.

As he studied the skull, another withering skeleton spawned nearby.

The guild members jumped into action, quickly surrounding and taking it down. But this time, all it dropped was a piece of coal. No second skull.

Yun Li grinned. “I knew it!”

This withering skull had to be rare—definitely not something you could grab every time.

“Alright,” Yun Li called out. “Four of you stay here and keep farming withering skeletons. The rest of us are going to explore the fortress.”

From the skeletons’ quick respawn, it was clear this area was their spawning zone. Yun Li had no clue what the skull was for, but something told him it’d be valuable.

Couldn’t hurt to collect a few more, right?

With Yun Li’s orders given, the guild members quickly split up. Before joining the exploration, Yun Li set the skull on the ground and took a screenshot.

Then, he sent a message to Yun Feng.

“That obsidian frame we found? Turns out it’s a Nether portal.”

“We’re in the Nether now, and we got this thing. I think it’s worth something, but no clue what it’s for yet.”

“Let the higher-ups figure it out. I’m staying here for now—too many people back at base.”

After firing off the message and sending the screenshot, Yun Li resumed the task at hand. He was nothing if not cautious, keeping his discoveries under wraps while capitalizing on his head start.

———

Back at the Soar Guild’s headquarters, the guild leaders were gathered.

The executives leaned over the photo Yun Feng had received, studying the withering skeleton skull with intrigue.

“This is all we’ve found in the Nether so far. That skull’s definitely rare. It has a different color and seems hard to drop.”

Yun Feng filled the group in on everything Yun Li had observed in the Nether. This meeting was all about figuring out what that skull might be for.

“In most games, skulls are used for summoning or rituals…”

“Yeah, probably summoning. One of our guys once made a snow golem using a pumpkin head, right?”

“That’s it! This skull might be for summoning a monster. The trick is just figuring out what to place under it.”

These core members of the guild were experts, top players with a deep understanding of the game. Soon enough, they’d pieced together the probable use of the skull.

Yun Feng nodded thoughtfully. “Right, let’s follow this line of thinking.”

“Try placing it on different solid blocks. Since it’s a Nether item, it’s probably compatible with blocks from the Nether.”

“We’ll take a team back there soon—gather more Nether blocks, maybe open up some new territory.”

As they were discussing a return to the Nether, a guild member burst into the room, interrupting their conversation.

Yun Feng scowled, ready to reprimand him.

But the player looked panicked. “Boss…”

“It’s HIM! HIM’s here!”

Every executive froze.

“He’s here?!” someone finally managed. “Where? Has he found our base?!”

“Is he attacking us?!”

The guild leaders bombarded him with questions, anxious and on edge.

The player gulped, catching his breath, and shook his head. “No… he’s not at the base.”

“Me and a few others were up north, near that open-air cliff mine. We were planning to gather some ore when… we saw HIM there.”

The executives finally breathed a little easier, but they weren’t about to relax. The mines weren’t far from the base—maybe an hour’s journey.

If HIM was in the area, finding their headquarters was only a matter of time.

They grilled the player further. “Did he see you?”

The player shook his head. “No, we hid as soon as we spotted him.”

“We waited for him to leave before coming straight back.”

Yun Feng asked, “Are you sure you weren’t followed?”

“Absolutely. We hid in a tunnel, dug our way out slowly, and kept to the underground for half an hour to make sure he wasn’t around before surfacing.”

The Cloud Soar’s Guild had learned to be cautious after watching Steve’s livestream. Yun Feng and Yun Li had drilled it into everyone’s heads—if they ever saw HIM, they had to avoid him at all costs, even if it meant self-destructing to protect their base’s location.

The guild members had taken these warnings to heart. Upon spotting HIM, they’d hidden, waited for a safe moment, and then dug an escape route before finally surfacing. They were nothing if not thorough.

Yun Feng sighed with relief, but knowing HIM was nearby, he wasn’t about to let his guard down.

After relaying the news to Yun Li, they strategized for a while and finally settled on a risky but necessary plan.

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