chapter 107
A tech nerd?
Doubtful.
Gu Yu Chu’s face was dark. “I’ve never shown my face in any of my posts. How did you know it was me?”
“I recognized you from your ring. Remember when you first posted that step-by-step assembly thread? There were a ton of people questioning you in the comments, right? It even alarmed the Forum admin. Later, the admin specially intervened and gave you a chance to prove yourself-upload photos of the finished product, and if you proved it, they’d feature the post. Every time you held up the completed Item, your hands were in the shot. You always had that ring on.”
Luo Jia Bai loved browsing the water Forum; lots of the tutorial threads there actually had real substance, and the most solid of all belonged to this Handcraft Master.
For 500 Points, he’d made a rechargeable Handheld Lamp that could be used across multiple Instances, complete with a detailed circuit diagram.
For 200 Points, in one Instance he’d carved a lifelike replica of the Boss’s staff out of a single block of wood and swapped it out without anyone noticing.
He used glass as fake crystal; he used books and ceramic tiles to make a bulletproof vest.
On this particular track, Gu Yu Chu left everyone else in the dust. He held both the Handcraft Emperor and Grind Emperor titles on the Forum. One reason was that he always seemed pressed for time and in a hurry; every Game Night he only slept one or two hours at most, spending the rest of his waking time obsessively researching.
The other reason was that, by following his tutorials, newbies who had just entered the Necromancer Game could actually save a huge amount of Points.
At critical moments, those extra Points could literally save your life.
“I even had a filter on you,” Luo Jia Bai admitted. He’d originally pictured a mature, steady middle-aged man; that filter was now shattered. His gaze dropped to Gu Yu Chu, who only came up to his chin, then shifted to the ring on the younger man’s left ring finger.
Wasn’t that a sign of being married or engaged?
“You… got married before you were even an adult?”
Gu Yu Chu’s serious expression cracked, and he rushed to explain. “I’m already an adult! I’d just turned twenty-two right before I entered the Necromancer Game!! I just didn’t eat well before, so I missed my growth period and can’t get taller now, that’s all!”
“Okay, okay.” Luo Jia Bai hurried to apologize. “Sorry, it’s just that your face looks so young. I misjudged.”
Seeing him standing all alone, Luo Jia Bai pointed at the four Players hanging from the chain-link fence. “Why didn’t you join up with them?”
“I’m not joining. I don’t do parties either. Once you’re in a team, there’s a lot you have to worry about, and you might even have to sacrifice the Points you’ve painstakingly saved for the so-called greater good.” Gu Yu Chu was extremely stingy. “Teaming up will only slow down my clear speed.”
During their heated discussion, Lu Li had left and come back. One hand was hefting a bucket of water, the other carrying a shallow bowl he’d found outside the fence.
He set the bowl on the ground and filled it with water.
The Monsters that had been choking on dry food immediately gathered around the bowl in a tight ring and started drinking.
The way they ate and drank was so exaggerated it was like they hadn’t had food or water for most of their lives.
One of the Monsters moved slowly. After it finished eating and drinking, it lifted its head and trudged toward where they were.
A shadow suddenly fell over Luo Jia Bai. Before he could react, someone grabbed his arm hard and yanked him, making him fall back onto the ground.
He scrambled up awkwardly and turned around, meeting the Monster’s apologetic expression.
The Monster parted the filthy, matted fur on its neck, revealing the wound. “Hurts.”
Luo Jia Bai tilted his head back, staring. This Monster’s inhuman features looked strangely familiar.
He mentally compared the Appearance traits you could exchange from Mirella with the Monster and came to a shocking conclusion. “You’re not… a dog, are you?”
“Am.”
Luo Jia Bai clicked his tongue. It was a dog all right, but this Monster Dog was several sizes bigger than the dogs in the world of happiness, much fiercer and far dirtier.
He beckoned. “Lie down first.”
The sedative in the Monster Dog’s system still hadn’t worn off, and its legs felt weak. It was happy enough to flop onto the ground, making it easier for Luo Jia Bai to treat it.
Keeping his word, Luo Jia Bai reached out a hand.
The half-healed wound quickly returned to normal.
Lu Li crouched down as well and asked the Monster Dog, “Do you know what the Crown of Happiness is?”
“You can only get the Crown of Happiness by passing the physical exam in the world of happiness.” The Monster Dog’s tail lashed back and forth irritably.
“You were thrown in here because you failed the exam too, right?”
Lu Li nodded. The Monster Dog said, “Then we’re the same. This is Exile Land. Now that you’re already in, don’t harbor any more foolish hopes. Exile Land and the world of happiness are separated by just one wall. Sometimes light from over there leaks through from above, but down here it’s always dark and damp.”
“But I already guessed I wouldn’t pass the exam, so I never really wanted the Crown of Happiness anyway.” The Monster Dog lowered its head. “It was the world of happiness’ slogan that tricked me. It said that even if you fail the physical exam, they will still provide housing and food.”
“At the beginning they did give us food and water, but later this iron fence never opened again. Everyone’s been so hungry…”
With a crackling sound, the Wooden Sticks burning on the ground finally burned out.
The firelight vanished in an instant.
Darkness swallowed them again.
The Monster Dog’s voice came from within it. “Look up. Right now there’s a very small white ring of light above your head. That’s light seeping down from the world of happiness.”
Hearing this, they all tilted their heads back. Sure enough, through the thick fog they saw a tiny, hazy white dot of light.
“If you really insist on finding the Crown of Happiness, you can try climbing up. Maybe there’s a way back to the world of happiness at the top.”
A sudden, piercingly bright beam of light flared to Lu Li’s right.
It shone farther and wider than any Flashlight.
Gu Yu Chu was holding the Handheld Lamp, peering into the Black Mist. “There’s no path here. How are we supposed to get up there?”
“Go further in.” The Monster Dog stepped aside to open a path and pointed the way for them. “Inside there’s a giant Pillar leading to the upper layer above the Black Mist. You can climb up it.”
Gu Yu Chu aimed the Handheld Lamp in the direction the Monster Dog had mentioned.
Not far away, a Pillar as wide as a dozen people standing shoulder to shoulder loomed in the darkness.
But in front of the Pillar, there were eight doors.
From beneath their feet, a glowing guiding line suddenly lit up, leading the way to [Game Night].
The Monster Dog acted as if it couldn’t see these guiding lines at all and continued reminiscing. “There used to be a special cat here in Exile Land. We called him ‘Missing Leg’ because he only had three legs and walked in a really funny way. He was as desperate as you are to get the Crown of Happiness. He climbed up along that Pillar and left. He never came back. I don’t know if he succeeded up there, or died.”
“I heard he had a wish he had to fulfill.” The Monster Dog’s voice suddenly stuttered, like an NPC that had reached the end of its script and now could only repeat a single line over and over.
“What wish did he want to fulfill? Other than his nickname, what was his actual name again?”
The Players’ Wristbands buzzed. A notification popped up:
[Congratulations, you have obtained key clue 1.]
[After much effort, you finally got word of a shortcut-but someone has already taken the lead! Hurry and catch up to his footsteps! Climb up! The number of Crowns of Happiness belonging to Exile Land is very limited!]
The four Players hanging on the iron fence were stuck in a dilemma.
“The Monster didn’t attack them. Does that mean we can go down too?”
“Let’s wait and see a bit more.”
“We’ve been watching forever! Brother Hai, the iron fence is really soaked. I can’t hold on anymore!”
“They actually cleared this part of the stage. Game Night is here.”
In the end, their leader Sun Hai gritted his teeth and said, “Drop down. They really did find the right way to clear this challenge.”
–
Bosi sat at his desk, papers rustling as he flipped through them.
He clearly wanted to work.
But his mind kept replaying the scene from the Live Stream Room where Lu Li was touching someone else’s ears.
Behind him came a yelp of pain and surprise.
“What are you doing?” Bosi set the file aside and turned his head, only to pause for a moment.
“Still not used to it,” Lu Li said. “The door caught my tail when I closed it.”