After completing "Management Quest 8," Wayne received his next objective:
[Management Quest 9: Sell 500 portions of meals and drinks].
With the recent craze over Harry Potter and Saint Seiya, not only were the active players buying large quantities of refreshments to stay sharp and prolong their sessions, but even the people waiting in line or watching the livestreams were reluctant to leave. When they grew thirsty or hungry, they readily reached for their wallets. In a net cafe with nearly a hundred people, completing this task across three meals a day didn't take long at all.
However, during those days—between the return of the Fordring father and son and the intense battles against Voldemort and Poseidon—no one had paid much attention to the newly unlocked game: Stardew Valley.
The few players who had happened to watch the livestreams of the Fordrings or Wayne had no idea what they were doing.
In the game, they had arrived at a place called Pelican Town to inherit a large plot of land named "Stardew Farm," left to them by their "Grandfather" in the story. The player's goal was to take over and manage this farm. As for how to do it, that was entirely up to the player's freedom.
You could start with the ten "Parsnip Seeds" provided at the beginning, diligently weeding, tilling, fertilizing, and planting, then selling the crops for money to buy more expensive seeds in a cycle of growth. Or you could go fishing, honing your skills while unlocking various fish species to cook or to complete "Bundles" at the Pelican Town Community Center. You could also log wood or mine ores; in short, there were so many things to do that the Fordrings, who were used to a life of killing and combat, found it absolutely addictive.
Chen and Li Li, who had been tormented half to death by Poseidon, also decided to join in for a change of pace. As Pandaren, they had an innate genetic affinity for the land and cultivation.
But as the saying goes, "it looks easier than it is." Once they entered the game and finished the opening plot—which served as a tutorial—Chen and Li Li chose their farm types. Chen chose the "Standard Farm" for its massive tillable area, while the adventurous Li Li chose the "Four Corners Farm," which combined characteristics of four different farm types into one.
Then, with a blink of an eye, they stepped out of their small wooden cabins onto the farm, only to realize something was wrong.
This wasn't a farm; it was a wilderness overgrown with weeds, littered with rocks, and filled with large trees—a wasteland that clearly hadn't been managed in years! Only then did they realize that the orderly farms they saw on Old Fordring's and Wayne's screens, with their neat rows of crops, had all been carved out through hard labor.
Chen picked up a hoe and started working. But the moment he began, he realized he had underestimated the difficulty.
Just like in other game worlds, he couldn't use his real-world abilities here. In the real world, if he faced a large boulder, a single chop infused with Chi would shatter it. Against a large tree, he could use a "Guile-style Sonic Boom" of Chi to fell it from a distance. Here, he had to rely on a hoe, a pickaxe, and an axe, one swing at a time.
Even more fatally, his in-game self had a stamina bar, just like a person in reality. When stamina dropped, he had to eat or sleep. Starting with no money and no supplies, Chen's stomach began to growl loudly after he had cleared only a tiny patch of land.
At that moment, Old Fordring sent him an invitation to visit his farm. Under the game's guidance, Chen boarded an electric carriage called a "Bus" and arrived outside Fordring's farm in an instant.
He saw Old Fordring waving to him, and noticed that in addition to Taelan, Lord Tyrosus was also there. Taelan was fishing by a small pond on the farm, while Fordring and Tyrosus were drinking tea and chatting in front of their cabin.
Fordring invited Chen to sit and offered him an "Omelet." The starving Chen grabbed it and stuffed it into his mouth. With a game sound effect, he not only tasted the sweet, steaming flavor of the omelet melting in his mouth but also found his stamina bar instantly refilled! Checking the in-game description, he saw that this omelet actually sold for 125 gold!
Chen thought, My god, it's a good thing this is just a game. In reality, a single meal like this would bankrupt a whole family.
Lord Tyrosus hadn't returned to the Eastern Plaguelands immediately after the trial ended. Instead, he had stayed in Stormwind to handle some business before making a special trip to the net cafe to find Old Fordring and discuss the reformation of the Order of the Silver Hand.
After all, the news of Tirion Fordring's return had spread throughout the Alliance nations. Many were waiting for him to raise the banner so they could once again fight the Scourge—which had destroyed their homes and families—under his leadership.
Before setting out, Tyrosus had consulted with the other leaders and core members of the Argent Dawn. As long as Old Fordring was willing, the Argent Dawn would return to his command. Even the enlightened faction within the Scarlet Crusade—those who opposed the extremist style of the current leader, Saidan Dathrohan—were supportive. Marlan, the ambassador sent to Light's Hope Chapel to liaison with the Argent Dawn, had proactively stated that if Old Fordring returned to the scene, many within the Scarlet Crusade would return to the "right track," and she was willing to act as the communicator.
But Old Fordring was in no hurry to make a decision. It wasn't that he wanted to stay in seclusion, but rather that he believed the timing was not yet ripe. He felt that to deal with the Scourge, relying solely on the Argent Dawn—which had split from the Silver Hand—and the support of the Alliance nations was far from enough.
The Argent Dawn's strength was limited; over the past few years, they had barely managed to prevent the expansion of the blighted lands, let alone retake lost territory. Meanwhile, the Alliance was constantly occupied with small-scale skirmishes and potential full-scale military actions from the Horde. As long as this internal friction existed, even if he personally led the charge, pushing the Scourge back to Northrend or crossing the sea to strike at the heart of the enemy was nothing but a fantasy on paper.
He told Tyrosus that Wayne, the owner of this net cafe, was definitely not a person to be underestimated. He had communicated with Wayne, who confidently told him that the Horde would soon come knocking. And they wouldn't be coming for trouble, but to discuss cooperation with Old Fordring.
Chen listened to them while drinking the tea brewed by Old Fordring, but he lacked interest in the topic. Though he enjoyed a good fight, he only cared about fighting to help friends or to uphold peace and kindness. Politics and war were things he, a pacifist at heart, found repulsive.
He took a walk around the farm and noticed that Old Fordring had chosen the "Hill-top Farm." In addition to a mini mining area, a river flowed through the middle of the land. This reminded him of his life on the Wandering Isle and the stories he had heard about a farm in Pandaria that provided all sorts of vegetables and fruits for the Pandaren. There was also a market where wandering Pandaren could buy and sell their crops.
He thought for a long time... only remembering that the place was also called some kind of "Valley."
Right! The Valley of the Four Winds!