As an NPC, having a lot of skills is quite reasonable, right?

Gray showed no panic in the face of the dozens of steam cannons that were heating up and spinning.

He pulled out the family crest from his pocket; although somewhat worn, the wolf head pattern was still clearly visible.

"Don't be nervous, I am Gray Vargard."

Gray's voice boomed, cutting through the wind and snow: "The Valgard family still has several properties in Skargard. Although I haven't been back for decades, this badge should still prove my identity."

"We've run into some trouble and need to go into town to rest."

The searchlight on the guard tower focused on the badge.

The guards behind the bulletproof glass appeared to be checking something.

After a few seconds of silence, the machine guns that had been locked on actually stopped rotating, and the red aiming lasers went out.

"See, I told you old connections still work." Gray breathed a sigh of relief, turned around and raised an eyebrow at Moen triumphantly, then stepped forward to explain the details.

Standing at the back, Moen looked puzzled. He leaned closer to Sylvie and asked in a low voice, "Has this place always been guarded by real people?"

In Moen's past life memories, Skargard, under the rule of Lord Balthazar, had developed into a highly automated futuristic city.

This kind of simple identification doesn't require human intervention at all; it can be done simply by scanning the retina or using a magic wavelength.

Isn't this method of requiring people to guard and release people a bit too outdated?

Sylvie looked at Moen with surprise: "What are you thinking? Although that city lord is a ruthless person, having cut off his lower body and attached it to the reactor, he is still a human being after all =.

"The human brain has its limits in terms of computing power. Just maintaining the stability of the geothermal reactor and the basic operation of the city has already exhausted his energy. How could he possibly handle such trivial matters as guarding the gate personally?"

Moen seemed to be deep in thought. It seemed that this was the difference between the current version and the version after the public beta.

According to the official encyclopedia, something big seemed to have happened in Skargard before the open beta, but it was resolved by the time players arrived, and the city already had the beginnings of automation at that time. It seems that we are now at a turning point.

Just as Moen was pondering the details of the plot, the situation ahead suddenly changed.

Gray had just reached the cordon and hadn't even had a chance to exchange pleasantries when the guard, who appeared to be disarmed, suddenly pressed a red button with a blank expression.

Those dozens of steam cannons that had just been shut down suddenly spewed out tongues of fire half a meter long!

A dense barrage of bullets instantly covered the area where Gray was located.

"Hold!"

Gray reacted extremely quickly. Almost the instant the gun barrel turned, he relied on his warrior's instincts to instantly draw the heavy sword from his back and plunge it into the ground.

A thick shield of blood energy opened in front of the greatsword, and the bullets struck the greatsword and the shield, exploding into a series of dazzling sparks.

"Mount! Retreat!!" Gray roared, enduring the immense impact.

"They left a long time ago!"

The moment the gun went off, Moen activated [Frosty Shadow], carrying the unconscious Arya and Sylvie, and retreated nearly a hundred meters, hiding behind a huge rocky bunker.

Gray fought and retreated, and although he was in a sorry state, he was fortunate to be far enough away that he was not injured.

Taking advantage of the wind and snow, the group quickly escaped the range of the machine gun and disappeared into the snow-covered mountains.

"Huff... huff..."

Gray leaned against the boulder, his greatsword resting on his hand, looking utterly dejected. "Seriously? Are these guys crazy? I've already shown my badge and they're still attacking? Has the Valgard family gone bankrupt?"

"No, it's not a family problem." Moen brushed the snow off his clothes, his eyes serious.

"Skargard has always claimed to be a neutral place, and people can enter the city as long as they follow the rules, regardless of their origin or whether they are wanted."

"But now they're opening fire without even asking what happened, which shows that the rules have changed."

Or perhaps something happened to the city lord, but Moen didn't say that.

"What should we do then?" Gray asked, somewhat troubled. "We can't get through the front gate, and we definitely can't force our way in. If those dozens of machine guns are connected to geothermal energy, then they have unlimited ammunition. They can wear us down to death."

"Hey, old man," Moen suddenly laughed, a sly laugh in his eyes. "You've been living the life of a high-ranking noble for too long. You don't actually think that a colossal city like Skargard, with all sorts of people, really only has one entrance, do you?"

Sylvie, who had been standing silently to the side, suddenly brightened up and was about to speak when she said, "I know a secret society..."

"Follow me, go downstairs." Moen interrupted her spellcasting directly.

Sylvie opened her mouth, then angrily shut it, glaring fiercely at the back of Moen's head.

Damn it, this jerk stole my chance to prove myself in front of the organization's seniors!

Moen led the group into a snow-covered crevice at the foot of the mountain. As soon as they entered, the freezing cold outside vanished, replaced by the warm, humid air of the cave.

[Hidden map "Geothermal Exhaust Duct" discovered]

[Gained 1 free attribute points]

"It's here after all." Moen looked at the panel notification and was secretly delighted.

This is a classic route that players in previous lives discovered to evade city entry taxes, or that red-named players explored to sneak into the city.

Before they had gone far, several bright red "Lava Giant Leeches" fell from the cave ceiling, attempting to attack the uninvited guests.

"Watch out!" Just as Gray was about to draw his sword, several sword shadows accurately pierced through the monster's body.

[Unlock Statue: Lava Giant Leech]

"Getting on our way is the priority." Moen casually flicked the sticky substance off his sword with a fluid motion.

The further you go, the narrower the path becomes, and the surrounding rock walls become scorching hot.

They came to a wide-open cave, where the path ahead was blocked by thick, black rock walls that appeared to have no gaps.

"No way out?!" Moen tapped the rock wall, which echoed dully.

"That shouldn't be the case."

She remembered that this road was already there, not man-made, and even though it was before the public beta testing, it should still be passable.

Ignoring the rock wall, Moen walked to the corner.

He closed his eyes, stretched out his hand, and quietly felt something.

After fumbling around for a while, a gentle breeze brushed against his fingertips.

"Found it."

Moen stepped back a few paces and replaced the [Frosty Wind Shadow] skill in his skill bar with the less frequently used [Meteor Bomb].

Although it doesn't have great power, it's sufficient for a targeted explosion in such a confined space.

"Everyone, step back." After saying that, Moen gathered magic power in his hand, and a missile formed from magic power slammed into the crack where the wind was flowing in.

The violent explosion echoed through the cave, sending up smoke and dust, and scattering rocks everywhere.

As the smoke and dust cleared, an irregularly shaped large hole appeared before everyone's eyes, and from the hole came a noisy roar of steam.

"Let's go, welcome to the real Skargard." Moen stepped across the opening first.

When Sylvie and Gray emerged from the cave and stood on a rusty steel walkway halfway up the mountain, the sight before them utterly shocked them.

They were in the lower levels of this giant city.

Above, there were countless enormous gears and drive shafts, so dense they blotted out the sky.

They rotated slowly, emitting a thunderous roar that completely blocked out the sunlight in the middle and upper layers.

Beneath their feet lay a bottomless abyss, with the lava at the very bottom glowing a dark red light faintly visible. Between the two, countless thick steam pipes crisscrossed like blood vessels.

Thousands of makeshift houses, made from scrapped shipping containers, sheet metal, and even scrapped airship engines, grow densely on rocks and cliffs like barnacles.

The signs made of illuminating runestones shimmered with multicolored light in the steamy mist—"Old Jack's Prosthetic Limb Repair," "Black Oil Bar," and "High-Purity Ether Smuggling."

Suspended iron chain bridges connect various settlements, and workers carrying simple exoskeletons move back and forth on the walkways.

The air was filled with a smell that was a mixture of engine oil and rust, a smell that belonged to the decadence and vitality of the lower class.

"How did you find this?" Sylvie leaned on the railing, looking at the magnificent underground city before her, her heterochromatic eyes filled with disbelief.

The Anmi Society's intelligence network certainly has records about the lower districts, but the location of this entrance is so well hidden, and the entrance itself was just blown open. How could Moen, someone who has never been to Skargard before, navigate it so easily as if he were back home?

Could this also be part of the intelligence capabilities of the organization I just joined, called "Ember"? They even know the underground pipe network of this remote city so well?

The image of the [Ember] that Sylvie had constructed in her mind as a colossal entity hidden beneath the darkness of the world instantly became more concrete and terrifying.

Gray took a deep breath, frowning at the strong, mixed smell: "This smell is really strong."

He looked at the crowd moving through the steam and said, "The main gate is closed, but the lower levels seem to be operating as usual."

"It seems the situation here is indeed quite complicated. We'd better scout it out first."

"That's what I think too." Moen nodded.

"Elwin and the others set off a few days earlier than us, and at that time they were able to enter the middle zone safely."

"Let's find a place to stay and settle Arya in first."

"Then I'll go contact the local intelligence officer," Sylvie volunteered, straightening her slightly disheveled clothes and regaining her capable demeanor.

"Normally, the gates of Skargard should be bustling with caravans, but today there's not a soul in sight. This is very unusual. I'll go and find out what happened."

"The Anmi Society should have several strongholds here. Although I don't manage this area much, the codes are still universal."

Moen glanced at her and nodded: "Be careful. If it's really a blockade targeting us, then the Anmi Society's stronghold might not be safe either."

"Don't worry, don't you know my strengths and weaknesses?" Sylvie winked playfully at Moen, then vanished into the shadows of the intricate steam pipes.

Watching Sylvie leave, Gray scratched his head and asked curiously, "Who exactly is that girl? She's so skilled, and from what she said, she's connected to the Anmi Society?"

Moen smiled and lifted Arya onto his back: "She's an ambitious person. As for her identity, just think of her as a rich young lady who ran away from home for her ideals."

"Hmph, all that mystical talk." Gray didn't ask any further questions.

Although he looks rugged, he is very perceptive. Everyone has secrets, as long as they are not enemies.

"Let's go, old man." Moen looked down at the steel jungle below, its lights flashing and steam billowing, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.

"Let me show you what real steampunk is all about."

The two walked slowly down the rusty boardwalk into the depths of the lower level, their figures quickly swallowed by the rising white steam.

As he walked down the winding, rusted steel walkway, Moen looked back at the majestic, dark rock wall and felt a familiar sense of nostalgia.

It wasn't until he actually set foot on this land that he suddenly realized that the huge mountain he had just led everyone out of was the holy land that countless life skills players flocked to after the public beta of his previous life, the starting point of [Broken Ice Treasure Hunt].

This enormous city, Skargard, is actually located within a mountain range extending from the Skargard Mountains.

Here, as long as you're bold enough and well-equipped, you can dig your way into the deep ice veins of Skadra.

Not only does it contain the rare energy source [Starfrost Crystal] that can power high-level alchemical machinery, but if you're lucky, you might even find the remains of ancient weapons left in the ice layer from ancient times, or even more precious dragon bones!

In this resource-scarce lower district, a single [Starfrost Crystal] the size of a fingernail, when exchanged for credits on the black market, is enough to feed a family of three for a whole month.

And it's not one of those unpalatable synthetic pastes; it's real flour and canned meat!

This is why a special profession called "Ice Breaker" emerged in the lower district.

They often carried heavy steam picks on their backs and wore cheap heat-insulating runes around their waists, venturing in groups into those ice caves that could collapse at any moment.

The deeper you go, the lower the temperature becomes, to the point that even your magic shield can crack. You also have to be constantly on guard against the ice breaking under your feet or waking up the extremely cold monsters that are sleeping in the ice crevices.

It can be said that behind every icebreaker who returns with a full load, there are ten unlucky souls who are forever trapped in the ice.

"It's a great place to earn extra money, but unfortunately I don't have time right now."

Moen withdrew his gaze. The priority now was to find a safe place to settle Arya and Grey down. The treasure hunt and getting rich could only wait.

The two walked along the intricate streets, and the surrounding noise gradually changed from the roar of steam to the bustling sounds of the city.

As Moen walked, he began to learn about the newly unlocked [Threads of Fate] feature.

He hadn't had time to study it when the system prompted him to turn it on, but now, looking at the pedestrians coming and going on the street, he finally roughly understood how to use it.

In his field of vision, most of the passersby he brushed past had a very short black thread floating on them.

When Moen's gaze falls on these threads, the basic template information of this person and his most pressing needs will automatically appear in his mind.

[Passerby A: Extremely hungry, Need: A hot meal, Reward: One piece of information]

[Mechanic B: Prosthetic limb malfunction, Requirement: Gear lubricant, Reward: Scrap mechanical parts]

[Thug C: Target search, requirement: 10 credits, reward: none]

"I see," Moen realized.

"So this is the NPC quest system."

These black threads represent the most basic miscellaneous or daily tasks. Completing them might give you some experience or items, but they will never give you a Life Stone.

As Moen speculated, he casually glanced at the dark, damp street ahead.

Suddenly, his gaze fixed on a trash can on the street corner.

There, an extremely thin figure was rummaging through a trash can, looking no different from the beggars they had encountered along the way.

But above the figure's head, a white thread emitting a faint light was floating quietly in the air, standing out conspicuously!