"No way."
Chang Yu tilted her head. "Why not?"
Yu Yu's gaze shifted from her phone, pondering for a moment before saying, "Your parents already gave. You don't need to give again."
By now, she'd received the transfer. A straightforward transaction with a polite, sincere note. Yu Yu hadn't planned to accept anything from Chang Yu, but taking from her parents carried no guilt. They seemed well-advised, giving an amount precisely within Yu Yu's comfort zone.
Balance: +200,000
Yu Yu couldn't help glancing at Shu Tu.
Shu Tu: "Chang Yu and I will be moving in the next few days. It might get noisy. Wear earplugs when you sleep."
Yu Yu paused, her tone subtle. "Don't let me see Xiang Qin and her crew."
Shu Tu: "They don't even know where I am."
"The moving company will handle it. I'm not leaving!" Chang Yu clung to the sofa, refusing to budge.
Shu Tu, like lifting a flailing octopus, hauled the teary, clawing Chang Yu away. The sound of a car starting reached Yu Yu, and only then did she set down her phone. Things were about to get lively. Why not just drag Zi Shu and the others here too?
At least Zi Shu could slaughter pigs. Yu Yu mused idly, then stumbled on a classic question. Could a tiger pull a plow?
It seemed pretty smart.
Unconsciously, Yu Yu wandered to the window, staring at the big cat. The cat stared back, letting out a low, rumbling purr—its emperor engine. If the cat couldn't plow, should she buy a cow?
She recalled a national treasure had gone missing from the zoo. Yu Yu opened a long-neglected public account, noticing the comments hadn't been updated in ages.
[You guys didn't disband, did you?]
Leaving a comment, Yu Yu scrolled to the post about raising the national treasure, staring for a moment.
Still so jealous.
If they couldn't afford to keep it, she could try. Decision made—she'd plant bamboo. Starting today…
Could she buy a calf? She wanted dairy cows, ideally one male, one female, for endless breeding. Pigs worked that way, so did chickens. Yu Yu also wanted ducks, but raising them was trickier. Roast duck smells so good…
Snapping her fingers, she cast Summon Rain to water the ground. The weather was getting hot. Yu Yu turned on the AC, waiting for her instant noodles while planning the future. Prepare for the worst—stock up on winter clothes and blankets, maybe some down jackets.
Turning her fresh cash into supplies, Yu Yu felt at ease. Who knew when money would lose value?
In fact, due to anomalies, supplies had already doubled or tripled in price. Soon, Yu Yu went out to order more. Maybe she needed a car?
Ugh, still broke.
By evening, she'd bought some of what she'd planned. Her yard was packed, even spilling upstairs. Alcohol stoves, several cases of solid fuel. Winter clothes, blankets, down jackets. Various masks and protective gear.
Common medicines, medical alcohol, iodine, cotton swabs, gauze—a huge box. Drugs had expiration dates, so Yu Yu couldn't hoard too much. She bought heaps of seasonings: a case of soy sauce, cumin, spicy mix, Lao Gan Ma…
Boxes big and small nearly reached the ceiling. Seasonings were complex. If supplies fluctuated, they'd be the first to run short. She also got a case of ham, ten cases of six-month-shelf-life bread, ten cases of instant noodles. A case of peach cans, a case of orange cans, ten cases of salt, a case of compressed biscuits.
Yu Yu sighed. "It's not just money limiting me—it's space."
Decision made: tonight, she'd research digging a cellar offline. She needed an ice cellar; her fridge wouldn't cut it. Frost Breath, forever the best!
She bought Earth Shift for more than just farming. Time for major construction!
Wait… how to buy wood?
Or use other materials?
Would riverside soil leak?
No matter—she'd use Falling Rock stones. Third-ring spells included Stone to Mud or Mud to Stone. Yu Yu figured they'd help with farming. At third ring, she'd buy them. Hands on hips, planning, Yu Yu resolved to shop again tomorrow.
Ice cellar—top priority!
Her house was running out of room. And the calves. Yu Yu slurped her noodles, brimming with hope. Before logging in, she tried glitching items again and succeeded once more!
~
Moon Bay Town.
The great pig-slaughtering saga continued. The others logged in on time. Zi Shu, brimming with confidence, seemed to have researched pig-butchering techniques offline, radiating expertise.
78: "Whoa? Instant noodles? You brought noodles in?"
Yu Yu swatted her hand away. "Can't believe this made it through."
Muttering to herself, "I'll send some to Senior."
Senior's favorability hadn't been farmed in ages. A good player should keep a stack of notebooks, tracking every unmaxed favorability.
78: "How come you have been so successful these days? Found the trick?"
Yu Yu thought, then nodded.
Zi Shu's eyes lit up. "Spill."
Yu Yu, dead serious: "For this glitch, you can't focus on it. Act casual, like you're not trying to glitch."
"Then, when the glitch isn't looking, whoosh—shove it in! Success!"
78: "…"
Zi Shu: "…"
Shu Tu: "…"
Zi Shu lowered her head. "Let's slaughter pigs. Just pigs."
This time, Zi Shu had clearly done her homework offline. She butchered with precision, like a seasoned pro.
"Too bad we're low on salt."
By the fire, the four chatted while roasting jerky. Cooking oil was pricey here; they'd only bought a tiny bit. They spread their brought-in salt evenly and roasted. The game's salt was inedible for them. The magical flame burned bright. Yu Yu shared her hoarding list. Shu Tu and the others listened intently.
"Ice cellar? You can dig one yourself?"
"Haven't tried," Yu Yu said frankly. "If it collapses, I'll dig again."
Hence, the tiger. The big cat might not match Banban, but its strength was at least 10, right?
It could move bricks.
"Spellcasters are awesome. I wanna dig an ice cellar."
"Wake up, you can't dig one at school."
"You guys haven't graduated?"
78, glum: "She's a junior, can skip nights for 'internships.' I'm a sophomore, gotta check in."
Yu Yu considered, inviting Zi Shu. "Thought about what job you'll take?"
Zi Shu glanced at her subtly. "…These days, who knows what's coming?"
She'd considered joining the Federation, which had recruited at school before.
Yu Yu, enthusiastic: "You'll need to rent after graduation. Without school's protection, found a place free of anomalies?"
Shu Tu, catching on, glanced at Zi Shu and chimed in. "Yu Yu and I are ranged. If you don't mind, you could live with us."
"No rent."
78: "Me too! Me too!"
One more wouldn't hurt. Shu Tu: "You too."
Yu Yu, sincere: "You'll need a job anyway. Maybe I can hook you up?"
Zi Shu got it. "Me, slaughtering pigs?"
Yu Yu shook her head firmly. "Absolutely not. You're overthinking."
They definitely weren't eyeing Zi Shu's strength. Definitely not.
Zi Shu: "…"
She mulled it over. "I'll think about it."
78 slapped her thigh. "Rogues have no rights, waaah."
Yu Yu consoled her. "Wake up, you've still got school."
78: "School's useless. Even with a diploma, will I find work?"
"With the world like this, why bother?"
"At least the Federation prioritizes schools, high protection level."
"So what? I'll graduate eventually."
They chatted for ages. Yu Yu noticed a message.
She logged off to check. "Chang Yu's here. I'll grab her."
As a quest target, Zi Shu and 78 clearly remembered Chang Yu. Soon, the frail girl in hemp clothes was brought to the garden.
"Hey, my saviors~"
"What's your bank info~ I'll send you money~"
Her opening line stunned them. "Sister Shu Tu didn't know your info, so I had to ask myself."
78 forced a laugh. "No need, just a quest. Quests have rewards."
Zi Shu nodded. Watching Chang Yu pester Zi Shu and 78, Yu Yu perked up. Beyond game teaming, in reality, Zi Shu and 78 weren't weak. If they grouped up, survival odds would soar.
If Wang Rui showed up again, Yu Yu wouldn't need to smash her fingers. Maybe she could hint at it on the forum. Suggest players team up and live close—that way…
"Are we the only ones who know game abilities carry to reality?"
Zi Shu turned. "Probably not, but everyone tacitly avoids mentioning it. No idea why."
Shu Tu mused, "Maybe there's a threshold."
"Like…"
"Advancement!" they said in unison.
After reaching low-tier, their vague abilities became undeniable. The difference was too stark to ignore.
"How many low-tier players are there now?"
Zi Shu: "Dunno. I'll post a poll on the forum later."
"If others advanced, the poll should show it."
Yu Yu, slyly: "Whether they vote a lot or a little, it'll reveal something."
"Did you notice the red text on the forum?"
Shu Tu: "A1?"
Zi Shu nodded. "Seems like a classification for anomaly levels. I've seen similar elsewhere."
"Eternal Darkness's danger isn't clear yet, but its influence is massive. Eternal Darkness posters are worldwide."
"Other regions' spawn points aren't even Allen Peninsula. We're likely the closest to the main continent."
78, baffled: "What?"
Chang Yu, eyes sparkling, cupped her face. "Bosses are so cool."
Yu Yu glanced up. "Starting a poll might get us noticed."
Her translation thread was probably already flagged. Since that "Tomorrow Will Be Better" incident, her thread had a constant stream of big shots. All non-players, highly educated, tossing around jargon, generally older. Yu Yu had become a translation bot, just providing the passive while they took over. Honestly, kinda nice.
If Eternal Darkness's invite system weren't so unpredictable, order and law might already be in-game.
Zi Shu: "As long as we don't expose ourselves in reality."
They lacked experience dealing with giants and couldn't predict consequences, so they'd rather play it safe. 78 still didn't get it, half-confused, doubting herself.
Did she miss something?
Didn't pick up a pen, did she?
"Done cooking? Try a bite."
Yu Yu stored a piece. "Done."
[Cooked Jerky]: Delicious, filling, speeds stamina recovery.
78 grinned. "Hey, the game knows 'delicious'!"
"Magic flames are something else. Thought it'd be raw inside, but it's cooked through."
Shu Tu nibbled. "Still bland. Not enough salt."
"Still heaven compared to that bread. You don't know how gross it is—ugh."
The pig wasn't big, but butchered, it yielded plenty of jerky. Each got about twenty strips, some lean, some fatty. Chang Yu got none.
"Where are you going? I wanna come."
Yu Yu used Water Sphere to refill everyone's bottles, still carrying the stool and pots, all on Zi Shu. Yu Yu handed her bottle to Zi Shu too. Her carry weight was too low—a full bottle weighed 5, unfair.
78: "Too bad we've got no veggies. With Yu Yu, we could make jerky soup with greens outside—god-tier."
Zi Shu stood tall, unfazed by the pots. Her carry weight was an ocean.
Yu Yu considered. "I'll hit the plantation later, see if I can bring seeds."
"Try it next time."
Would real-world seeds grow here?
"Let's go."
The four geared up, cleaned their longsword (Zi Shu's), and marched off boldly.
Chang Yu: "I! Can! Heal!"
One line: Take me with you.jpg
Chang Yu was a plate-armor class, but her stats… were painful. Her stamina couldn't even cover walking. Zi Shu carried her the latter half.
Chang Yu, sheepish: "I asked my mentor. They said level up and pump constitution, so I won't burden you."
Zi Shu was calm. Carrying someone barely dented her weight limit; her stamina bar stayed steady. Chang Yu really could heal. Guardian level-one skill: [Heal Minor Wounds]
It restored health. So, the moment they heard, the four agreed to bring her, even if she couldn't fight. Chang Yu couldn't even wear heavy armor yet, stuck in cloth. The frailest guardian in history. Soon, they reached their last battle site. The fight's traces remained, as did the bodies…
Yu Yu fell silent. "Do we have to clean up corpses after kills now?"
Zi Shu: "…This is too realistic."
"We brought in salt, and you're asking about realism? This might be another world," 78 snapped.
The three went quiet.
78 eyed the corpses, then added, "Or maybe it's a hyper-realistic game. Like those infinite games?"
"Real, but still a game."
She chickened out. They were here to kill monsters, kill monsters, kill monsters.
Say it three times to stay sane. Though offhand, her words left them uneasy.
Zi Shu set Chang Yu down. "Let's deal with it. A plague would be trouble."
Yu Yu: "I'll use Earth Shift. Step back."
A while later, the four moved on as if nothing happened. Chang Yu, too scared to ask or speak, trailed the bosses closely.
78 toyed with her dagger. "Heh, fight's coming."
As the highest-perception, most agile rogue, 78 had the lightest steps and fastest speed, scouting twenty meters ahead. Having a spellcaster use detection spells was too costly and irregular. So, 78 took up scouting.
"Four-person team, no spellcaster, but their ranger has a pet."
Shu Tu perked up. "What pet?"
"A bear."
Yu Yu: "Trouble."
With Banban's high stats, if it's a bear…
78 continued, "They seem loaded. One warrior's breastplate isn't Woodheart Camp style."
"And her sword glows."
Everyone knew: what monsters wore, they dropped. So…?
Zi Shu's eyes gleamed. "Fight?"
"The ranger's bow glows too."
"No sign of the rogue. I didn't see them."
"So, two warriors, one rogue, one ranger, and her bear?"
"Yup."
"Fight or no?"
"Of course," Yu Yu said firmly.
"Win, and we're rich!"
Her whole gear set had just one attribute: a beginner's ring, rare quality. Everything else was white-tier. In other games, she'd be in purples. Here? Not even a green.
78 pulled out bottles and vials. "Want some?"
"What's that?"
"Poison."
78 grinned. "Bought some poison just for today."
"Wait for the next passive, I'm picking poison-crafting."
"It's getting more and more cruel.…" Zi Shu muttered.
78 unsheathed her dagger. "Look, already coated. You guys?"
Her dagger gleamed with a faint blue glow.
Yu Yu shrugged. "You go ahead."
Chang Yu, gearless, not even a dagger, watched enviously. Yu Yu sent Chang Yu forty meters away, out of combat. It wasn't her time yet—she needed to leech exp to level. Soon, Zi Shu's sword glowed blue too. Even Shu Tu got twenty poison arrows.
78 stashed the empty bottles. "See why I need to craft poison? Buying's pricey."
Yu Yu buffed them. "If it's unwinnable, retreat. I'll open with Wet Ground."
"Zi Shu, you've got the most pressure—tank two warriors. Banban will handle the bear, but I'll support you, don't worry."
Zi Shu felt the weight, gripping her sword tightly, nodding. Yu Yu had raised a Stone Wall for a vantage point. Shu Tu set a few basic traps ahead—better than nothing.
"Now, Shu Tu, pull."
From atop the wall, Shu Tu drew her bow. A poison-coated arrow aimed for the rogue's forehead.
"Enemy attack!"
They seemed uncoordinated, each team guarding a road segment, less clever than the squad Yu Yu's group faced before.
The two warriors stomped their iron boots. [Charge]
Zi Shu, unflinching, targeted one, meeting them head-on with her own [Charge].
78: "Top student's badass!"
She cheered, then melted into the shadows. Yu Yu's focus sharpened, casting the next instant.
[Wet Ground]
The ground pooled with water. The ranger spotted Yu Yu, nocking an arrow instantly.
Meanwhile, the black bear reared up, roaring~~~
Banban, refusing to back down, roared back.
The battle erupted.