The No. 1 Hunfen King in the Entire Server [Interstellar] Chapter 59

Lin Jing initially planned for the rat to create a ghostly disturbance so they could play along and pass him off as a magician. But after some discussion, they locked eyes and sighed—better not treat NPCs like fools if there was no bad blood between them.

A light snowfall had arrived in the morning. In the palace gardens, green hedges were dusted with a faint layer of white. The palace architecture was classic Byzantine—tall, domed ceilings, frescoes, and colorful stained-glass windows. The sky was a dusky gray, and when he looked up, he could still see delicate snowflakes falling. Even his breath turned to mist.

As they walked, Lin Jing suddenly stopped, deep in thought. “If we can’t get a pass ourselves… could we take someone else’s?”

The rat perked up. “We don’t have to steal it outright. I could swipe it. I am a rat, after all.”

Lin Jing laughed. “Right, since you’ve turned into a rat, it’d be a waste not to engage in a little thievery.”

The rat: “?”

The rat grumbled, “Are you implying something?”

Keeping up the act, Lin Jing entered the palace’s interior to look for “his belongings.”

Thick carpets covered the floors, warding off the cold. Paintings and wall-mounted lamps lined the corridors, the flickering candlelight casting a soft, quiet glow.

The top floor was bustling with activity, but down here, only patrolling guards and maids came and went.

Inside the lounge, the air was stuffy. Lin Jing walked to the window, intending to get some fresh air. But the moment he pushed it open, something cold and viscous dripped onto his hand through the window gap.

Blood.

It had run down the wall from above.

Since the window was stained-glass, the red wasn’t immediately noticeable.

Lin Jing and the rat both froze.

The rat, unfazed, remarked, “Another murder?”

Lin Jing glanced up and analyzed calmly, “The rooms above are also for guests. My guess? A player was killed.”

The rat asked, “Should we check it out?”

Lin Jing stared at the blood for a moment before smirking. “Of course.”

He turned and left. “Can’t find anything in this lounge? Then I’ll just search another one.”

“Miss Christine, what are you doing here?” A patrol guard captain stood at the staircase entrance.

Under the lantern’s glow, the young girl’s delicate face was furrowed in mild frustration. “I’m looking for my ring. I lost it in a lounge during the banquet last night.”

The captain exaggerated his sympathy. “That’s truly unfortunate. Do you need assistance?”

Christine shook her head. “No need, but thank you, sir. I can manage.”

The captain stepped aside. “Good luck, Miss.”

Lin Jing held his breath and ran up the stairs, following the corridor until he reached the door that was leaking blood. He placed a hand on the doorknob, his expression cold and indifferent in the dim light. But the words he spoke were soft and sweet, like honey: “God bless me, I must find that pearl before Mother returns home.”

If you didn’t look at his face, you’d think he was just a naive young girl praying at the door, hands clasped in hope.

3, 2, 1.

Lin Jing counted in his mind, then pulled the handle and pushed the door open.

“I need to find it quickly.” He looked anxious and rushed straight to the dressing table in the room, not even bothering to close the door. The hem of the young girl’s dress fluttered like a butterfly, golden sunlight falling on her black hair.

She leaned on the table with both hands, frantically searching through the open drawer.

Bang—

Suddenly, the door slammed shut.

At the same time, heavy breathing sounded from behind her.

Her entire body stiffened, and she lifted her head in confused terror.

The mirror reflected a man hiding behind the door—it was John.

The burly man held a bloodstained knife, his expression twisted and cruel as he took slow steps toward her.

Just as the bloody knife was about to come down on her head, Lin Jing swiftly grabbed the mirror and turned, smashing it into John’s face.

Crash! The mirror shattered, leaving a deep, bloody gash across John’s face. He gasped and cursed, “D*mn toad!”

“John! Why are you here?!” Lin Jing screamed in terror.

She ran toward the window, where the walls were already stained red with blood.

John sneered, looking like a vengeful ghost with his scarred face. “No one’s coming here. Scream all you want, it’s useless.”

Lin Jing panted, “This is the royal palace. I’m the daughter of a count—His Majesty won’t let you go.”

John snorted as if he’d heard a joke. “The King? Hah! That dying old man? I’ve already taken what I wanted. Nothing here can stop me.” His gaze turned lecherous as he eyed Lin Jing from head to toe. “This game is full of traps, but at least the NPCs are pretty. Stinking toad, you rejected me in the garden, and now you’ve come straight to me?”

Lin Jing froze for a second, then calmly asked, “Did you say the King is dying?”

John frowned. “What does that matter to you?”

A realization struck Lin Jing like lightning.

Leaning against the window, she suddenly went still. The frail, delicate act she had put on moments ago vanished, replaced by cold, murderous intent in her deep brown eyes. She stood up, her white dress trailing behind her, and in a flash, grabbed a trimmed rose from a vase on the table.

She took a step forward, seized John’s collar with one hand, and yanked him down while driving the thorny stem straight into his eye.

The movement was so fast that John didn’t even react before the sickening sound of his eyeball being pierced echoed in the room.

“F*ck! You b*tch!” John howled in fury, reaching out to grab Lin Jing. But blinded and weakened, he was no match for her. Lin Jing dodged effortlessly and said calmly, “I wanted to do this back in the garden. Thanks for bringing me the pass.”

John’s body went cold. A horrifying realization exploded in his mind. “You’re a player too?! Wait—what?”

A small figure wriggled out from John’s clothes—it was the rat, who scurried around and bit down on a small golden token, pulling it free.

Only now did John realize he had been played for a fool. His eyes widened in fury, and he swung his dagger wildly, intending to drag Lin Jing down with him.

He lunged forward, but Lin Jing and the rat swiftly dodged.

The low windowsill was wide open, and a corpse lay bleeding on the floor. As John lunged, his foot accidentally struck the dead man’s head. He lost his balance and pitched forward, half-hanging over the window.

“No!” He screamed in horror, eyes bulging.

Lin Jing gave him no chance to recover.

“No what? Go home and play in the mud.”

She pressed a hand against his head.

John’s remaining bloody eye glared at her with pure hatred before his body tumbled out the window.

The rat gaped. “Sh*t. What if that attracts attention?”

“No worries.” Lin Jing lowered her gaze. As John’s body disappeared, she swiftly grabbed the pouch tied to his waist.

Blood splattered her pale face, and her hands were drenched in crimson. She took a deep breath and tore open the pouch.

The rat let out a sharp, deafening scream. “Holy sh*t!”

Inside the black bag wasn’t just any ordinary item—it was a radiant, shimmering crown.

Forged from pure gold, it was exquisitely crafted. The base curved like intertwining vines, rising elegantly like mountain peaks, and at its pinnacle sat a flawless, rose-colored gemstone. The ruby was so pure, it seemed to hold the hues of a sunrise, sacred and regal.

The Rose Heart.

Even though Lin Jing had suspected something when John mentioned the King’s impending death, seeing it still left her stunned.

She held the crown in her hands. The golden metal was cold to the touch, but the ruby felt strangely warm.

The rat was so shocked he could barely speak. He and Lin Jing stood by the window, questioning reality itself. After a long silence, The rat finally muttered in a trembling voice, “This… this is the Rose Heart?”

Lin Jing numbly nodded.

No wonder John had gone to such lengths to get close to the King. With his strength, getting a simple pass should’ve been easy.

He had never been after that. He had been after the Rose Heart all along.

And he had actually succeeded.

The rat was dumbfounded. “The winning condition of the game is to obtain the Rose Heart… So… does this mean we’ve won?”

Lin Jing quickly calmed down and shook her head. “No. If that were true, John would’ve finished the game long ago.”

The rat frowned. “But it doesn’t seem fake…?”

They both fell into a heavy silence. The unexpected appearance of the crown had completely disrupted their plan. Originally, they were supposed to get the pass, enter the forest, find the witch, obtain the method, awaken the princess, and then claim the crown.

But now, they had skipped straight to the final step—only for the system to reject it.

Was the rest of the process still necessary?

The rat scratched his head in frustration. “What the h*ll does this game want from us?”

Lin Jing’s fingers lightly touched the dazzling ruby. His gaze deepened as his thoughts raced. Finally, he spoke. “Rat, do you remember the princess’s letter? In Eberon, the Rose Heart represents divine favor. The letter said the princess is also someone favored by the gods.”

The rat thought for a moment, then suddenly understood. “So what you’re saying is… the princess is the Rose Heart? We still have to enter the forest and find the witch to wake her up.”

Lin Jing always felt that something about this didn’t quite add up. The term “princess” was probably just a title, something the king used to make his daughter happy.

The condition for clearing the game was to “obtain the Rose Heart.” The word “obtain” already classified it as an object rather than a person. Unless the princess was literally named Rose, and they needed to win her heart—was this actually a romance strategy game?

Lin Jing shared this thought with the rat.

The rat shook his head furiously. “Impossible! Survivor has never had a romance strategy element. According to the research institute, love is the one thing that can’t be quantified with arithmetic and logic. The game world is too realistic, so to avoid unwanted complications, they never even programmed NPC affection levels.”

The rat scratched his head and made a guess. “Maybe John stole the wrong thing? Or the king was extra cunning and put the real crown on the sleeping princess?”

Since the rat was a true top player with a perfect 500 ranking, his understanding of the new version of the game ran deeper than Lin Jing’s.

Lin Jing nodded.

But this crown looked incredibly expensive, and despite their doubts, neither of them could confidently say it was fake.

So Lin Jing couldn’t bring himself to throw it away.

Regardless of their analysis, entering the forest was now inevitable.

John’s fall had caused a huge commotion. Christine had been caught by the captain of the guards while searching the lounge. Escape was impossible. Lin Jing had no choice but to stay put and act like an unwilling participant in an accidental killing.

To his surprise, though, it seemed like this entire floor had already been bribed by John. Even after all that noise, not a single person came to check.

A stroke of luck in disguise.

Before leaving, he searched the dead body.

Anyone John went to such lengths to kill had to be special, right?

His hunch was right. In the dead man’s pocket, Lin Jing found a parchment map.

It showed the routes through the Black Forest.

“……”

Lin Jing and the rat exchanged glances.

The rat was so shocked by their insane luck that he had gone numb. “Are you cheating? Just turn it off already. This isn’t fun anymore.”

Lin Jing: “……”

Lin Jing was dumbfounded. “Did I actually hack the game?”

He cleaned off the blood on him and went downstairs as if nothing had happened.

At the stairway, he ran into the captain of the guards. Lin Jing feigned nervousness. “Sir, I just heard a loud noise from the next room. Shouldn’t you check it out?”

The captain remained eerily calm, clearly bribed by John. He brushed it off. “Probably just rats. Miss Christine, did you find what you were looking for?”

Lin Jing’s pale face finally showed a relieved smile. “Yes, thank you.”

He strolled out of the castle, reaching the corridor before letting out a deep breath.

Holding up the small golden token, he squinted at it in the sunlight and muttered, “Today has been full of unexpected surprises.”

Could Survivor really be this generous?

Something about this felt like a trap.

In fairy tales, there were always certain classic elements: a kind and beautiful princess, a handsome and righteous prince, a magnificent castle, an evil witch or dragon, and a dark forest filled with thorns.

Now, he was finally headed into the forest to defeat the witch.

The rumors about him in Eberon City had gotten so nasty that Madam Mary, furious, had left for her countryside estate. That gave Lin Jing the perfect chance to sneak into the Black Forest. He told Jenny he was going to the monastery for prayer, and the little sparrow believed him without question.

At the plaza, he met the same coachman. The man had given up on haggling with him—five gold coins settled it.

Just as he was about to board the carriage, Lin Jing heard the sound of a flute—clear, distant, and beautiful.

Sunlight reflected off the church’s stained-glass windows, pigeons shook the snow from their wings, and one landed in the palm of a statue.

The coachman sighed. “That’s an old Eberon nursery rhyme. Cyril really likes this tune, so now everyone in the plaza is copying him and playing it.”

Lin Jing was puzzled. “What?”

The coachman explained, “The song is called River of Memories.”

Lin Jing chuckled. “That’s actually a pretty romantic name.”

The coachman continued, “There’s a legend tied to it.”

Lin Jing was intrigued. “Tell me about it.”

“In Eberon, there was once a deeply in-love couple. One day, the wife suddenly lost her memory. Her devoted husband, desperate to restore it, made a deal with a demon. The demon took half of his soul and told him the way to wake her memory—he had to whisper an incantation and then kiss her.”

Lin Jing couldn’t help but laugh. Why were the people of Eberon so bad at everything but summoning demons?

The coachman added, “The legend might be fake, but apparently, the incantation is real.”

Lin Jing raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really?”

The carriage wheels rolled over the snow.

The white pigeon soared into the sky.

On the rooftop of the cathedral, a silver-haired young man lowered his flute, his gaze steady as he looked into the distance.

---

Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get 5 or more chapters of The No. 1 Hunfen King in the Entire Server [Interstellar] right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)

---