Lux’s tail was held high in the air as she emerged from the Bastion Remnant, her face full of excitement.
Thirty-two netherite scraps, one upgrade template, plus a pile of gold ingots and brewing materials pilfered from the Bastion Remnant chests.
The harvest from this trip to the Nether far exceeded her expectations; her mind was now filled with visions of returning home to craft her gear.
A full set of netherite armor.
The strongest gear in the vanilla game.
Once she crafted it, she’d see if those Abominations of Abundance could still jump around in front of her.
Lux returned to the meeting spot she’d agreed upon with Silver Wolf, sat down against a Crimson Forest fungus tree, and began organizing her inventory, taking stock of her loot.
She finished organizing, but Silver Wolf still hadn’t arrived.
She pulled out a steak and took a bite, then stopped mid-chew, perking up her ears to listen—there wasn’t even the sound of footsteps.
“Where did that girl run off to…”
Lux muttered, sitting back down.
Her tail swept back and forth across the ground, knocking away a block behind her without her even noticing.
She waited for a long time.
So long that Lux started to suspect Silver Wolf had been captured by a Piglin in some corner to be his trophy wife, when footsteps finally echoed from the distance.
They were unhurried, the soft rustling of boots treading on mycelium.
Silver Wolf walked over from the direction of the Crimson Forest.
Her short blue coat was dusted with some ash, and a few strands of her silver-white hair hung by her cheeks, but overall, she looked clean, not at all like someone who had just returned from a dangerous area.
Lux stood up, crossing her arms, her tail rising unconsciously.
“Why did you take so long?” Her tone was clearly dissatisfied.
“Didn’t we agree to meet in a bit?
It’s been nearly an hour.”
Silver Wolf walked up to her, brushed the ash off her sleeves, and spoke in a tone as casual as if she were commenting on the nice weather.
“I went to do some mining.”
“Mining?” Lux looked at her suspiciously.
“What kind of mining?”
Silver Wolf didn’t speak, just tossed a pile of items toward Lux.
One piece.
Two pieces.
Five pieces.
…
Dark metal blocks rolled all over the ground, piling into a small heap that shimmered with a deep luster under the dark red firelight.
Lux looked down at the pile, her pupils constricting sharply.
Ancient Debris.
And not just one or two—a small pile.
She crouched down to count them.
Half a stack.
Thirty-two pieces of Ancient Debris.
Lux’s brain went “buzz,” feeling even more bewildered than when she heard the Piglin talking at the entrance of the Bastion Remnant earlier.
She looked up at Silver Wolf, her mouth opening, closing, then opening again.
“Where…
where did you get so much Ancient Debris?”
Silver Wolf shrugged, her expression innocent.
“I mined it.”
“Mined it?!” Lux’s voice rose an octave.
“What did you mine it with?
I don’t recall giving you a diamond pickaxe.”
“Oh, that.” Silver Wolf pulled a diamond pickaxe from her virtual inventory and twirled it in her hand.
“Found it in a Nether Fortress chest.
Just got lucky.”
Lux stared at the diamond pickaxe for two seconds, looked down at the pile of Ancient Debris on the ground, then looked back up at Silver Wolf.
Lucky?
Finding a diamond pickaxe in a Nether Fortress chest—she believed that.
The contents of treasure chests were random; while the odds of getting a diamond pickaxe were low, it wasn’t impossible.
But how long had it been?
Less than an hour by any estimate.
Silver Wolf, alone, with one diamond pickaxe, mining half a stack of Ancient Debris under normal circumstances?
Was she kidding?
The spawn rate of Ancient Debris was appallingly low, averaging only one to two per chunk.
Even if Silver Wolf had heaven-defying luck and found an area dense with Ancient Debris, mining half a stack would still take several hours. Find the original chapter at g.com.
Unless—Lux’s eyes narrowed as she stared intently at Silver Wolf.
“Silver Wolf.”
“Hmm?”
“Did you…
use X-ray for mining?”
Silver Wolf’s body swayed noticeably, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Her expression turned a bit awkward, her gaze shifting away, though she quickly recovered.
“What, what X-ray?
I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She turned her head away, her tone feigning calmness, but the tips of her ears were slightly red.
Lux didn’t let her off the hook.
“Then why were you able to mine half a stack of Ancient Debris in less than an hour?”
“Didn’t I say, I just got lucky.” Silver Wolf’s voice was lower than before, clearly lacking confidence.
“Then why are the mine tunnels you dug so straight?”
“How did you kn—” Silver Wolf turned her head abruptly, stopping mid-sentence.
She looked at Lux’s expressionless face, realizing she had let something slip.
“No, wait, you didn’t even see it, don’t talk nonsense.” Silver Wolf tried to salvage the situation, but her tone lacked the composure she had earlier.
Lux looked down at the mycelium under her feet.
“Is there ore under my feet?”
Silver Wolf paused.
“No, why are you asking this—” Her words stopped again.
Lux looked at her expressionlessly, her gaze seemingly saying: Keep making it up, I’m listening.
Silver Wolf opened her mouth, then closed it.
The two stared at each other for three seconds.
Silver Wolf’s shoulders slumped.
“Fine.” She sighed, her tone carrying a hint of resigned helplessness.
“I used some minor tricks.
Although I don’t have command permissions, full X-ray is still doable.”
Lux was silent for a second.
“Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Silver Wolf was stunned.
She had originally thought Lux would be angry—after all, using X-ray was considered cheating in games, and some people cared a lot about that.
But Lux’s expression wasn’t one of anger.
It was a look of…
deep regret.
“You should have said you had X-ray earlier!” Lux’s voice was filled with obvious vexation.
“Why would I need a bicycle if I have a wheelchair?
Isn’t that gold ingot money?
If I had X-ray, I would have dug the Nether inside out!”
Silver Wolf stood there, scratching her head in bewilderment.
“Uh, this…
my bad?”
“Your bad.” Lux said decisively.
“Fine, my bad.”
Lux rolled her eyes at her, but she couldn’t help the corner of her mouth curling up.
She bent down to pick up the pile of Ancient Debris on the ground.
Thirty-two pieces of Ancient Debris.
Added to the thirty-two scraps she had traded for at the Bastion Remnant earlier, she now had sixty-four scraps.
Sixty-four scraps, plus gold ingots, could make sixteen netherite ingots.
A full set of netherite armor only required four netherite ingots.
The rest would last for a long time.
Lux’s tail wagged unconsciously, spinning like a propeller.
“Let’s go.” She put away the last piece of Ancient Debris and clapped her hands.
“I’m heading back.
The tasks for this Nether trip are all done at once; there’s no reason to stay here.”
Silver Wolf raised an eyebrow.
“Can’t you just leave?
I still want to keep playing here.”
“I’m going to dismantle the portal after I get out.
Are you sure you’ll still be able to come out?”
Silver Wolf’s mouth twitched.
“…Oh.
Alright then.”
The two returned the way they came.
The Soul Sand Valley was still the same hellish place, but this time Lux walked very calmly because Silver Wolf was walking in front, holding her wrist, her pace neither fast nor slow, like they were taking a stroll in their own backyard.
Lux followed behind her, watching her back, and suddenly felt—this person was actually quite reliable.
When they returned to the portal, that purple vortex was still there, emitting an eerie light.
Lux stood in front of the portal and looked back at the Nether.
The dark red skyline, the churning sea of lava, the red fungus trees of the distant Crimson Forest, and the grayish-white horizon of the Soul Sand Valley.
“I don’t know when I’ll be back next time.” She whispered, “If there’s no special situation, I probably won’t come here for a long time.”
“Let’s go.” Lux stepped into the portal first.
The purple vortex swallowed her, the buzzing sound rang for a few seconds, and then it disappeared.
Silver Wolf pursed her lips and followed.
In the alley of Aurum Alley, the purple vortex reappeared, and Lux walked out from it.
The sunlight sprinkled down from overhead, warm and cozy, and the air smelled of grilled skewers and douzhi.
It was a completely different world from that dark red, sulfur-filled Nether.
Lux took a deep breath, feeling like she had come back to life.
Silver Wolf followed closely out of the portal; the purple light contracted and disappeared behind her.
The alley returned to silence.
Silver Wolf pulled her phone out of her pocket and twirled it in her hand.
“Here, let’s add each other on comms.”
Lux was stunned for a moment.
“Oh, oh.” She hurriedly pulled out her Jade Sign and opened the communication interface.
Silver Wolf leaned in, and with a “ding,” the friend request was successful.
Lux looked at the new name in her contact list—”Bronie,” with a pixel-style wolf head for an avatar.
She stared at the avatar for two seconds, “Silver ‘Wolf’?” the corner of her mouth curling up unconsciously.
Silver Wolf put her phone back in her pocket and waved at her.
“Remember to call me next time you want to enter the Nether.
Of course, we can also play games together normally.”
Lux nodded.
“Mm.”
Silver Wolf’s mouth curled up, her body began to become transparent, and her whole person turned into data-like blue light particles, dissipating into the air.
Lux stood in place, watching those light particles slowly disappear, a hint of envy in her eyes.
“Is this what a Pathstrider is…”
She had checked online; Pathstriders were people who could tread on a certain Path and obtain corresponding powers.
What was Silver Wolf’s Path?
Whatever it was, this ability was just too convenient.
To come and go as one pleased, without even needing a portal.
“Sigh.” Lux sighed, dismantled the portal, and collected the obsidian one block at a time into her inventory.
“I wonder when I’ll be able to draw a mod that can quickly boost my strength.”
She glanced at the system panel.
Emotion Points: Over 72,000.
Still quite a bit away from 100,000.
“Take it slow.”
Lux collected the last piece of obsidian, clapped the ash off her hands, and walked out of the alley.
The sunlight shone on her face, warm and cozy.
She stretched, her tail swaying behind her, her ears standing straight up.
Go home.
Take a bath.
And then—craft gear.
The corners of Lux’s mouth curled up, her steps as light as if she were walking on cotton.
The shouting of hawkers in Aurum Alley rose one after another, and the aroma of grilled skewers drifted over from a stall.
Her stomach let out a “growl.” “Mm…
I’ll eat something before heading back.” Lux turned a corner and walked toward the skewer stall.
It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
“And If you’re enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!”