After leaving the game world, there were ten days of rest.
Resting? That was out of the question. Gu Jiu spent these ten days in the training grounds of Boundless City, striving to enhance her physical strength and combat reflexes.
On the second day, Ruan Yuan and Lu Haidi invited them to lunch and brought up the topic of the “Lingyuan Hotel” game scenario.
“The game instance you entered this time was really dangerous,” Ruan Yuan said, a mix of sympathy, admiration, and a hint of envy in her tone. “I heard that the young master of the Reincarnation Hall, Young Master Hong, was also there, along with the game hunter Chai Yingying. She’s known as the ‘Point-Hoarding Witch,’ jokingly nicknamed ‘Chai Skinner’ because she values points and items above all else. Every time she’s in a game world, as long as the players aren’t killed by the game’s ghosts, they can basically cruise to victory with her.”
Wan Xingzhou asked curiously, “How do you know those two were there as well?”
He was a bit puzzled. How could Ruan Yuan’s information be so up-to-date? In just one night, she had already figured out which players had entered the “Lingyuan Hotel” scenario?
Ruan Yuan explained, “Because last night, Young Master Hong confessed his love to his goddess on the Free Forum. He deeply regretted not letting his system butler send his game ID to her before leaving the game world, which means he has no way to contact her now.”
The Free Forum was a platform established by the Players’ Alliance, known as the Free Forum among players.
A system can help players send their IDs to a specific player unilaterally, but unless the receiving player accepts and adds the other as a friend, the sender cannot learn the recipient’s ID. Without it, there’s no way to track someone down.
Boundless City was simply too vast—over three thousand sectors, each equivalent in scale to a first-tier metropolis in the real world. Finding a player without knowing their ID in these thousands of sectors was practically impossible.
This was why Zhan Shaohong was so regretful. He even resorted to a dramatic public confession on the Free Forum, hoping Gu Jiu might see it and respond to him.
Everyone who saw the post thought Zhan Shaohong had lost his mind, groveling like crazy for a female player.
However, many female players secretly rejoiced. Finally, someone had subdued the notorious playboy Zhan Shaohong, which meant he might stop hitting on them in the future.
This post set the Free Forum ablaze, and Ruan Yuan naturally saw it immediately.
“I saw the way Young Master Hong described his goddess, and it really sounded like Gu Jiu,” Ruan Yuan said with a smile. “To find his goddess, Young Master Hong even reached out to Chai Yingying, which is how we found out they were all in the same game scenario.”
Wan Xingzhou was speechless.
Gu Jiu, on the other hand, was intrigued. “Chai Yingying is a game hunter? What’s a game hunter?”
“Game hunters are freelancers in Boundless City. They take on various tasks in exchange for points and items. As long as the price is right, players can hire game hunters to assist them. Protecting other players in game worlds is one of their services. Although Chai Yingying is currently a C-level player, it’s said she has the strength of a B-level player and could advance at any time. She’s staying in the C-level scenarios to earn more points and items.”
“She’s a well-known game hunter in the C-level sector, which is why the Reincarnation Hall hired her to protect Young Master Hong during the game.”
Wan Xingzhou nodded in understanding. “I was wondering why such a powerful and stunning woman like Chai Yingying would admire a fool like Young Master Hong. Turns out it’s just for the mission.”
Honestly, Wan Xingzhou had to admit that when it came to gathering information, he couldn’t compare to Ruan Yuan. This wasn’t just about how long they had been players, but more about Ruan Yuan’s personality and skills, which made her excellent at digging up intel.
Game hunters, as a profession, were somewhat frowned upon by players. Wan Xingzhou had never interacted with them much.
Ruan Yuan looked at Gu Jiu with curiosity. “Miss, Young Master Hong is shouting for you on the Free Forum. Are you going to respond?”
Spending time with Wan Xingzhou had its subtle influences. Unconsciously, the others started mimicking him, referring to Gu Jiu as “Miss.” It seemed fitting, considering her commanding presence and aura.
“I’m not responding,” Gu Jiu said nonchalantly, sipping her papaya milk.
“Are you sure? From the way Young Master Hong’s acting, he’s determined to track down his goddess,” Ruan Yuan reminded her. Though she hadn’t interacted with Young Master Hong personally, she knew that being a privileged second-generation elite gave him the means to act willfully. If he decided to push things, it could spell trouble for Gu Jiu.
A C-level player couldn’t afford to go head-to-head with a spoiled second-gen.
Lu Ji’s lips pressed into a thin line, his expression tight with displeasure. He stared intently at Gu Jiu, clearly opposed to her engaging with such a foolish man.
Noticing her fixed gaze, Gu Jiu glanced at the papaya milk in her hand. A thought occurred to her, and she slid the drink over to Lu Ji with a sincere tone. “Ah Ji, you should drink more papaya milk from now on.”
Lu Ji: “???”
Ruan Yuan: “…”
Of the five people present, three men were thoroughly baffled. They clearly didn’t understand the implication of papaya milk.
Ruan Yuan’s gaze flickered to Lu Ji’s overly flat chest. Granted, slim people often lacked curves, and Lu Ji’s slender frame suggested some potential for growth, but external help wouldn’t hurt. Drinking papaya milk was a step in the right direction.
Her eyes then shifted to Gu Jiu. Despite her slim figure, Gu Jiu had all the right curves in all the right places—full in the chest, shapely in the hips. A sight to envy for women and a marvel for men.
Ruan Yuan slapped the table. “I want a glass of papaya milk too!”
She resolved to learn from Gu Jiu’s example, diligently pursuing a scientifically enhanced diet to achieve a fuller chest and shapelier hips. If that failed, she’d rely on her boyfriend to help.
The three men, still bewildered, had no idea how the conversation had shifted to papaya milk. Their confusion was a testament to their quintessentially oblivious straight-man nature.
Lu Ji sipped his papaya milk slowly, watching Gu Jiu and Ruan Yuan drink theirs as well. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. However, knowing Gu Jiu’s love for dairy products—especially her habit of adding fruit to milk—he didn’t suspect anything unusual about her suggestion. Ruan Yuan’s eagerness, on the other hand, puzzled him. Did she genuinely like papaya milk, or was she just following Gu Jiu’s lead?
After finishing their meal, the group returned to the training grounds.
“Gu Jiu,” Ruan Yuan said, “do you want to team up with us for the next game?”
Wan Xingzhou glanced nervously at them, opening his mouth as if to say something, then clamping it shut.
Gu Jiu smiled. “Sure.”
Ruan Yuan beamed with excitement. “Great! I have a four-person team-up tool. I’ll contact you in ten days.”
“Sounds good.”
Seeing his girlfriend’s joy, Lu Haidi grinned sheepishly, wrapped an arm around her, and said goodbye to the group before heading to the adjacent training room.
Wan Xingzhou watched them with a tinge of envy. Hesitant, he asked, “Miss, will we still be able to team up in the future?”
His pitiful look was almost impossible to refuse.
Gu Jiu replied, “If the need arises, of course.” After a brief pause, she added, “Actually, I’m considering forming a game squad of my own.”
Wan Xingzhou’s eyes lit up as he recalled the player-organized game squads in Boundless City.
With Gu Jiu’s strength and character, it wasn’t surprising she wanted to form a squad. In Boundless City, most of the established powers had originally started as game squads. With proper management, her squad could eventually grow into a formidable force.
“Miss, what do you think of me?” Wan Xingzhou asked excitedly. “Can I be your teammate?”
Gu Jiu smiled faintly. “Don’t you want to join one of the established powers?”
“No!” Wan Xingzhou said earnestly. “Sure, leaning on a big tree provides shade, but those large factions are filled with countless strong players, and the internal dynamics are extremely complex. Newcomers barely stand a chance, and they might even get suppressed. It’s just not worth it. I’d rather follow you, Miss. I trust you won’t mistreat your teammates.”
Wan Xingzhou believed in his intuition. Gu Jiu exuded an air of reliability and strength, someone inherently trustworthy.
Gu Jiu chuckled. “Alright, when I set up my game squad in the future, I’ll invite you.”
With her assurance, Wan Xingzhou left happily, no longer worried about her teaming up with others in the next game instance. He had a feeling that her decision to team up with Ruan Yuan and Lu Haidi was more of a test than anything else.
After Wan Xingzhou left, Gu Jiu turned to Lu Ji. “Ah Ji, if I were to set up a game squad, would you join me?”
“Of course!” Lu Ji answered without hesitation.
She didn’t want to join a big faction and compromise herself, and he didn’t want her to be wronged. He’d already thought about helping her establish her own faction. It was the only reason he tolerated people like Wan Xingzhou, her potential future underlings.
Gu Jiu happily draped an arm over his shoulder. “Ah Ji, you’re the best.”
Lu Ji’s lips curved into a small smile, his ears turning bright red. Her words made his heart feel soft and fluttery, and whatever she said sounded perfect.
Time always flew during training.
On the final day, Ruan Yuan handed over the team-up tool. It was a platinum-colored bracelet, simple and unassuming in appearance.
Ruan Yuan grinned. “Tonight at nine, we’ll enter the game world together.”
Wan Xingzhou looked dejected. “I have to enter the game world tonight too, but the odds of us being assigned to the same one are slim.”
The game worlds in the Multiverse Game System were innumerable. It was said that new instance worlds were born every second and immediately integrated into the system. This was why, even with an ever-growing player base, there were never enough players to fill all the worlds. The system’s approach of dispersing players was also a way to protect newcomers.
Wan Xingzhou’s puppy-like despair was rather endearing.
Ruan Yuan patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry. Next time, Brother Lu and I will bring you into a game world.”
“Really?” Wan Xingzhou’s eyes lit up.
“Of course not!” Ruan Yuan replied without hesitation. “Your bad luck is terrifying. We’re just normal people and can’t handle it. Maybe we’ll consider it when your bad luck disappears.”
Wan Xingzhou was left speechless.
Compared to players who avoided him like the plague, the fact that Miss and Lu Ji were willing to team up with him—let alone recruit him—made them invaluable to him. He silently vowed they were lifelong friends he would cherish forever.
When Wan Xingzhou gave Gu Jiu a soulful, puppy-eyed look, she couldn’t help but ruffle his hair. “Good boy~”
Ruan Yuan: Is she petting a puppy?
In the afternoon, Gu Jiu didn’t go back to the training grounds. Instead, she returned to the real world.
Madam Gu hadn’t gone out today. She was in the greenhouse, tending to her beloved camellias.
When she saw Gu Jiu approaching, she greeted her with a cheerful smile. “Ah Jiu, what brings you here? How’s your Spanish coming along?”
“It’s alright. I can understand basic conversations now,” Gu Jiu replied as she rolled up her sleeves to help her grandmother with the plants.
Madam Gu wouldn’t dream of letting her obedient and beautiful granddaughter get herself dirty. Even though she didn’t mind doing the tasks herself, she always felt it would be too much for her precious granddaughter—a double standard, no doubt.
After washing her hands, she took her granddaughter by the hand and led her to have afternoon tea. In a tone as if coaxing a child, she said, “My darling, your appetite has been much better lately. If there’s anything you’d like to eat, just tell Auntie Wang. If it’s something from outside, I’ll have your uncle or brother bring it back after work.”
In the old lady’s heart, a good appetite was a blessing. Her granddaughter’s increased appetite wasn’t something to question, only something to celebrate.
Her granddaughter had poor eyesight from a young age—if she didn’t spoil her, who would?
Auntie Wang came over with a tray of tea and snacks, smiling warmly. Missy had been eating heartily lately, savoring every bite. The Gu family noticed her enthusiasm and ended up eating an extra half bowl of rice themselves—a small affirmation of Auntie Wang’s culinary skills.
In the evening, Gu Jiu checked the time and said goodnight to her family before heading back to her room.
With the help of the little paper dolls, she took a bath, changed into her outdoor clothes, and sat on the sofa by the balcony, waiting for the time to come.