Unreliable Sword Immortal.

Chapter 113 Fraud

Zhao Weike sailed away, leaving eight players staring blankly at the mountain gate.

The mountain path was quiet and deserted, not a soul in sight, which was quite different from what they had imagined joining a sect would be like.

"What kind of sect is this? Why is it so deserted? Could it be... we've been scammed?"

Among the eight, a square-faced player dressed in black frowned and spoke.

His name is Wang Chengang. He is a beta tester, a professional Sword Demon. He is brave and generous, and is trusted by the other players. Among the eight of them, he is considered the "backbone".

"Since we're here, let's go up the mountain and take a look."

"Yes, let's familiarize ourselves with the sect's location first, see where we can hunt in the wild, and where we can get quests."

"Brother Gang, I heard that joining a sect gives you sect-specific costumes, is that true?"

"The boatman told us to find the Tree-Planting Elder. What kind of elder is the Tree-Planting Elder? Is he in charge of planting trees?"

"Let's go, let's go up and take a look!"

As the group walked and talked, they became more curious about the reliable sword sect after discovering the nine-foot-tall stone lion and the auspicious seven-colored clouds in the sky.

A moment later, they crossed the mountain gate and arrived at the mountain gate square, where they saw various large trees scattered here and there, as well as grass that looked like an ink painting.

"What's going on here? It looks so messy!"

"How did these trees grow?"

"What kind of tree is that? It's quite beautiful!"

"This meadow is really strange!"

"This seems so unreliable..."

The group discovered the main hall of the mountain gate and discussed as they walked toward it. Near the main hall, they encountered Zhang Defa.

With the words "Reliable Sword Sect Elder" shining brightly in gold above his head, Zhang Defa looked at Wang Chengang and the others and quickly realized that they had been brought over by Zhao Qunzi.

"Not bad, not bad. You're a new disciple. You have good taste in choosing to join a reliable sword sect." Zhang Defa nodded with a smile.

Wang Chengang asked, "May I ask if you are Elder Tree Planting?"

Zhang Defa said, "That's right, it's me!"

"I wonder if there's anything we can do for you?" Wang Chengang continued, a very common opening line when interacting with NPCs.

Zhang Defa was taken aback.

Did these guys not recognize themselves as players?

Do they think they're NPC elders?

Zhang Defa found it amusing and immediately adopted a mysterious demeanor, saying in a deep voice, "I am the Tree Planting Elder, responsible for the sect's greening efforts. You've come at the right time. Each of you will receive 30 ever-changing tree saplings and a packet of fluffy grass seeds. Go plant the trees and grass! Once the task is complete, the reward is unlimited fluffy grass from the sect!"

"Planting trees and grass? What kind of task is this?" Wang Chen was taken aback for a moment, then frowned. "Why didn't I receive a system notification to accept the task?"

"Brother Gang, I think this NPC is a bit unreliable!"

"So, this 'tree-planting elder' really is the elder in charge of planting trees?"

"Brother Gang, what do we do now?"

"How about Qingyao and I go scout ahead and see if there are any other NPCs in the sect?"

"Alright, Liao Hu, Ma Hou, and Xiong Bing, the three of you come with me to figure out how to plant trees and grass, and see what this task is all about. Monk, Qing Yao, Yun Shan, and Little Cat, the four of you go explore the map, find nearby safe zones and leveling areas, and see if there are any dungeons, other sect facilities, quest NPCs, etc. We'll meet here in two hours to share information!"

"Okay, I love exploring the map!"

"Then I'll go and take a look at the realms above Seven Realms Mountain first..."

Wang Chengang and his group gathered together, enthusiastically discussing their action plan.

Zhang Defa listened expressionlessly, while taking out the ever-changing saplings and fluffy grass seeds and dividing them into eight portions according to the quantities he had previously mentioned.

He felt that these guys were very professional, seemingly experts, and that a reliable sword sect needed such talent.

Soon, the eight people left after receiving the ever-changing tree saplings and fluffy grass seeds. Wang Chengang, along with three other players, began to seriously plant trees and grass.

They treated it as a task, doing whatever it took to finish it quickly, planting all the saplings together without any regard for aesthetics. Zhang Defa was furious at this, so he stepped forward and scolded them until they were stunned. Then he acted as a teacher, leading them to plant grass and trees, constantly sharing his own experiences and insights.

Two hours later, Wang Chengang and his team finally completed the task of planting trees and grass. Undoubtedly, apart from Zhang Defa's verbal promise that they could eat the fluffy grass as they pleased, they received no reward for their task.

The four people responsible for running the map returned with grim faces.

"Reporting to Brother Gang, this wretched island has no wilderness areas, no monsters, no dungeons, and no other NPCs. All you see up there are barren, muddy mountains!"

The speaker was a bald swordsman player named "He Chang," whose nickname was "Monk."

Wang Chengang exclaimed, "No wilderness areas, no monsters, no dungeons, no quests! A sect with nothing? How are we supposed to level up? A sect shouldn't be like this!"

"We've been tricked!" another female swordswoman named Li Qingyao said angrily. "I checked the forums, and the reliable sword sect is a player sect created by Lu Chaoding. The guy who brought us here is called Zhao Qunzi, and the tree-planting elder is called Zhang Defa, and he's even livestreaming! We've been scammed. This is a godforsaken place. If you don't believe me, open the livestream panel; Zhang Defa's livestream is the most popular one!"

"What?"

Wang Chengang was shocked.

Liao Hu, Ma Hou, and Xiong Bing, who planted the trees with him, were furious.

"Damn it, I was originally going to join the Great Luo Sword Sect!"

"Zhao Qunzi? That name sounds familiar. Oh, right, isn't that the guy who tricked us into jumping off the cliff? Damn it, that kid is so despicable, he actually lured us here!"

"So, this tree-planting elder is a player in disguise. What's his name? Zhang Defa? He was just teaching me how to plant trees!"

"Brother Gang, can we leave this trash sect and choose another one?"

"Holy crap, don't pull me back, let me take down that idiot tree-planting elder pretending to be an NPC first..."

These people immediately became agitated. At that moment, four players suddenly ran over from the direction of the mountain gate. The player in the lead was extremely tall, estimated to be over two meters tall. He was carrying a large hoe on his back and rushed over, directly asking Wang Chengang and the others, "Where's my Defa? Where is my Defa?"

"Oh, you guys... you were also tricked into coming here by Zhao's skirt, right?"

"This sect is trash, they're a rip-off!"

"Why are we looking for Zhang Defa? To beat him up? Let's do it together!"

"Get lost! I'm here to rescue the ever-changing saplings and grass seeds. Damn it, who planted these trees? Dig them all up and replant them!" The burly man took the hoe from behind him and started digging up the century-old pomegranate tree planted in front of the main hall of the mountain gate.

The three players following behind the burly man were much more normal. One of them, a handsome player carrying a black sword, wearing a brocade robe and a hair ornament, bowed to Wang Chengang and the others, saying, "I am Dugu Tian, ​​greetings to all fellow disciples!"

Wang Chengang's pupils contracted.

Dugu Tian—he'd heard of that name before. During the last closed beta test, this guy was the first player to leave Tianxing Island and join the Da Luo Sword Sect.

"So it's Brother Dugu!" Wang Chen had just returned the greeting with a cupped-hand salute when he said, "I didn't expect that Brother Dugu would also be tricked into coming here by Zhao Qunzi."

"A lie?" Dugu Tian smiled. "Not at all. I joined this reliable sword sect voluntarily. It's a player-run sect, where you develop freely. You even have to plant your own trees and grass. How challenging is that? Besides, the sect leader, Lu Chaoding, is really powerful. He's ranked number one on all three World Boss lists. I admire him greatly!"

"Lu Chaoding..." Wang Chen just nodded, "He seems to be quite capable, but I don't know where he is. There's only Zhao Qunzi and a guy named Zhang Defa here swindling people!"

(End of this chapter)