Pretending To Be A Boss

Li Xiaoyu was somewhat proud.

When many people liked to talk about the Li family, they would mention the sixth layer of the Pyramid. But in fact, the Li family lived on the seventh layer. It's only that for most people, they didn't know the Pyramid had seven layers.

Because many Pyramids... had only six layers. In some extremely backward races, the Pyramid even had only five.

The world was never fair to begin with.

Some were born with outstanding talents, able to perceive five or even six kinds of abilities, and they were revered as strong figures in the mining area; others possessed extraordinary intelligence, researching the knowledge of the mining area to unprecedented depths, commanding high social status within the Pyramid.

They were naturally seen as successful individuals by everyone, but even such people—their greatest achievement in life—

Was probably being valued by the Li family and becoming a subordinate of the Li family.

Tang Xian didn't care about Li Xiaoyu's not-so-subtle display of wealth, although this was probably beyond what could be described as flaunting wealth.

He was just simply curious about some content he heard today and so he asked the second question.

"How many layers does the Pyramid have in total?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"Yes, the highest might have only eight layers, or there might be nine or ten layers. But for now, it is impossible to continue upwards."

Tang Xian hadn't expected this answer; he had once asked someone to inquire about the difference in area between the second and the first layer, plus the difference in height between the first and second layers, to calculate the total number of layers.

But later that person told him that the area of the third and the fourth layers was the same.

It was then that Tang Xian started to harbor a doubt.

Although everyone called the fortress the Pyramid, perhaps... it wasn't a regular Pyramid, it's just that no one had ever gone outside to see the full view of the fortress.

People thought the mining area was mysterious, but the Pyramid was just as mysterious.

The third question naturally was confirmed.

"Why is there a hierarchical difference between Pyramids? What are the conditions for entering a higher layer?"

Li Xiaoyu said:

"This is the most crucial question. We don't know how many layers the Pyramid truly has, but to enter a higher tier, one must achieve fruitful results in the battles of the mining area. The reason the Li family, like a few other fortresses, could develop the seventh layer is because the Li family once led humans to take over the Yellow Zone of the mining area."

"It was a battle where many died and were injured, but we also reaped rich rewards, obtaining a large number of perfect-level boss creatures' Soul Crystals, among which were the conditions to unlock the seventh layer."

"Unlocking conditions?"

"Take for instance when the Li family's ancestors entered the fifth layer two hundred years ago; at that time, the fifth layer was the highest tier. At the entrance from the fifth layer to the sixth layer, there were mission guides to unlock the sixth layer."

"What kind of guides were they?"

"Obtaining one hundred perfect-level creatures' Soul Crystals. Once this condition is fulfilled, these guides disappear. So even now, if you go to the fifth and the sixth layer, you won't see the guides, but on the seventh layer you can see them—the Soul Crystals of twenty Cataclysm-level boss creatures."

Tang Xian was shocked.

Li Xiaoyu appreciated Tang Xian's surprise, although she herself was quite astonished when she first learned the true nature of the Pyramid.

But it was rare to see this man show such an expression.

"I can also tell you the benefits of advancing to higher layers as well as the past unlocking conditions. However, you must agree to three things for me," she said.

Li Xiaoyu was the epitome of upping the price.

Tang Xian, however, didn't hesitate and said, "I agree."

"That easy?" Li Xiaoyu was somewhat unused to it.

"Marriage to you is out of the question."

"Hmph, you'll agree to that in the future. But let's not talk about this now since I don't have many opportunities to blackmail you," Li Xiaoyu didn't mind Tang Xian's distaste for her.

Oh, it couldn't be distaste, it was a difference in interests. But with time, he would definitely realize that only she had the wisdom to match his.

"There are no conditions for the first layer; at the end of human civilization, the Pyramid appeared earlier than the mining area. After humans moved into the first layer of the Pyramid, it was chaotic since the conditions on the second layer were clearly better, and everyone wanted to enter the second layer."

"As for the conditions to open the third layer, it was: Human civilization adapting to a new social system. You must understand this phrase, deciding which people are suited for the lower layers and which people are suited for the superior environment of the second layer, required reasonable arrangements. Once everyone accepted these arrangements, the third layer was unlocked."

"The unlocking of the Pyramid's third layer brought humanity new technology: the teleportation rift technology. And when humans entered the third layer, the mining area descended."

"The condition to go from the third layer to the fourth layer required hunting one hundred reinforced-level creatures. The subsequent unlocking conditions are actually incremental: reinforced-level, elite-level, perfect-level, Cataclysm-level."

"The quantum extraction technology for armed, organic, and inorganic ores and some other technological advancements actually only came after new layers were unlocked."

"So you're saying, by developing higher levels, all of humanity could learn more advanced technology?" Tang Xian asked.

Li Xiaoyu nodded, saying:

"Exactly. Now is the critical period for venturing into the eighth layer; no one knows what can be gained after entering the eighth layer. As for the condition to go from the eighth to the ninth layer, it probably forces humanity to confront Calamity-level creatures."

Tang Xian agreed with this opinion, though he felt it was somewhat too distant and said: