The moment he stepped outside and saw a gigantic trash can directly in front of him, Bai Fuling was overwhelmed with delight.
Originally, he had assumed he would need to wander around and search for a while before encountering one. Who would have thought the target would appear immediately before his eyes?
Just as the saying went: after searching high and low without success, the thing sought suddenly appeared effortlessly.
As for the blond NPC who had appeared beside him earlier, Bai Fuling merely glanced at him once before deciding to temporarily skip over him for now and deal with him later.
Tasks had priorities.
First, he needed to secure the trash can that would refresh at midnight. After that, he could interact with the NPC and see whether any quests would trigger.
In any case, NPC quests were usually permanent fixtures. If there was not enough time today, he could simply come back tomorrow after the refresh.
Pang Chengyu stood there holding the flashlight, staring blankly in place.
He watched as the transfer student happily rummaged through empty air beside the trash can, making exaggerated motions as though stuffing items into his pockets. Then, after hurriedly lowering the trash can lid, he immediately dashed toward a farther location.
Before Bai Fuling disappeared into the distance, Pang Chengyu finally snapped back to his senses and hurried after him for two or three steps.
“Wait! It’s currently curfew hours. You can’t just wander around campus freely, teachers are patrolling!”
He quickly caught up and lowered his voice as a warning.
“If the teachers catch you, you’ll lose points or even get thrown back into the confinement room.”
Oh. So that meant it could trigger combat.
After hearing this, Bai Fuling calmly analyzed things in his head. However, according to the school rules and disciplinary system and combined with his previous conclusions, as long as he did not get caught, then everything would be perfectly fine.
Thus, he continued exploring forward.
“You’d better go back soon. This school is actually…” Pang Chengyu hesitated briefly before ultimately swallowing the rest of his sentence. “Anyway, it’s best not to lose too many points.”
In order to reduce the possibility of attracting attention, he switched off the flashlight before speaking again.
“I can guide you around. I’m pretty familiar with the school.”
“You’re very familiar with the school?”
Only then did Bai Fuling finally stop walking. The instant he caught the keyword, his eyes lit up brilliantly as he turned toward the NPC beside him.
So that was it.
This suddenly appearing NPC was not a random quest NPC at all. He had specifically appeared to help him?
It appeared at last: the campus map guidance assistant included during the beginner protection period!
Come to think of it, this NPC had already appeared once before. Back inside the car, he had even assisted Bai Fuling in completing the game’s naming process.
Looks like this really was the actual helper NPC.
“Uh… yeah.” Pang Chengyu was momentarily stunned by Bai Fuling’s suddenly enthusiastic attitude before continuing awkwardly, “So you can follow me.”
“Trash cans,” Bai Fuling replied.
Pang Chengyu: ?
Completely bewildered, Pang Chengyu instinctively looked over, only to find Bai Fuling staring directly at him without blinking.
The two stood face to face in silence for a moment.
Bai Fuling pondered in confusion.
The NPC was not moving.
Did that mean the command input was incorrect?
Standing in place, he attempted to issue the proper command toward the blond NPC before him.
“Guide route. Trash cans.”
“Activate trash can tracking mode.”
“Hello, I require trash cans.”
“Requesting trash can location markers.”
“Highlight trash cans on the minimap!”
“Hey? Did you freeze? Why aren’t you responding? Strange. Hey? Reload.”
Pang Chengyu: “…………”
Listening to the transfer student’s words echo beside him, Pang Chengyu felt as though he had somehow returned to the bizarre situation inside the car earlier that morning.
His brain ascended into the cosmos.
Even though every single sentence was technically human language, for some reason he could not understand a single thing at all!!!
Bai Fuling rapidly listed every common RPG command he could think of, only to discover that the blond NPC before him remained standing there blankly without much reaction.
Hm?
Bai Fuling was puzzled.
Earlier, this NPC had proactively interacted with him and had even stated the fundamental characteristic of being familiar with the map. Logically speaking, should he not now proceed to guide the player around the map?
Could he be bugged?
Combined with the earlier garbled pop up messages, it seemed this game truly was not very compatible with mobile devices.
Bai Fuling chose to reload.
Unfortunately, the situation did not improve at all. The blond NPC still stood there like a wooden stake.
Time was limited. Bai Fuling did not intend to continue wasting time here stubbornly.
However, the earlier interaction could not simply go to waste.
Thus, while the NPC appeared frozen, Bai Fuling casually reached over and snatched away the flashlight the other party was holding before storing it into his inventory.
A true player should always practice opportunistic acquisition while passing by, fully embracing the spirit of “if it exists, take it first.” No matter what the object was, the important thing was to obtain it first!
Even if he failed to locate the remaining trash cans, obtaining a flashlight alone already made the trip worthwhile.
For future nighttime exploration or cave expeditions, flashlights counted as essential tools.
Bai Fuling thought happily to himself. With a flashlight, the number of maps he could unlock in the future would definitely increase.
When Pang Chengyu saw the person before him suddenly reaching toward his hand, he was briefly stunned and nervous for half a second. Then he suddenly felt his hand become lighter.
His eyes widened.
Only then did he react.
“Hey! Wait, that flashlight belongs to the school!”
“No need to worry,” Bai Fuling said calmly. “You’ll automatically refresh tomorrow anyway.”
Pang Chengyu: Huh?
What did he mean by automatically refresh?!
He fell silent for one second, then two, then three. Seeing Bai Fuling turn around to leave, he still lifted his feet and chased after him.
They had already encountered each other multiple times now and Pang Chengyu truly did not want to give up this chance to become acquainted.
Earlier, he had sworn that anyone capable of angering his father was automatically his friend.
Moreover, his competitive spirit had already been stirred. The more setbacks he encountered, the more determined he became to move forward.
He refused to believe that today he would fail to have a normal conversation with this transfer student!
“Besides me, the patrol team also has one teacher and two students. They were patrolling on the other side earlier and according to the patrol route, they’ll come around here before long,” Pang Chengyu whispered softly. “Be careful.”
Bai Fuling responded confidently, “Oh, it’s fine. I changed into new equipment, so now I can enjoy combat.”
Pang Chengyu: Enjoy combat???
Bai Fuling glanced sideways at the NPC beside him.
“Can you fight?”
It was actually a very simple question. Bai Fuling merely wanted to determine whether this blond NPC was a combat teammate or merely an observer outside the battle system.
The blond NPC looked as though he wanted to speak but stopped himself repeatedly. A string of ellipses floated above his head.
Seeing this, Bai Fuling did not continue asking further questions. After all, NPCs would not respond to anything outside the scope of their programmed settings.
So this person was probably the type of NPC who hid in the back during battles and came out afterward to clap supportively once the fight ended, a companionship and atmosphere oriented NPC.
That was fine.
After previously defeating the red named enemy in the alley, his experience points had increased. His basic HP bar and attack power had both risen and on top of that, he had acquired new equipment.
Thus, even if he alone possessed combat capability, he could still attempt to enjoy battle.
And at worst,
He could run.
Under heaven, speed was the one unbeatable martial art. When allocating points, agility should always be prioritized first.
Thinking this, Bai Fuling controlled his little character forward, preparing to continue searching the campus for additional trash cans.
After falling behind briefly, the NPC stopped in place for a moment before quickly catching up again. At long last, he finally uttered the words Bai Fuling wanted to hear.
“Wait! Fine, I get it already. I’ll take you, I’ll take you to find the trash cans.”
Seeing that the blond NPC had finally loaded into guidance mode, Bai Fuling naturally had no intention of refusing.
He happily agreed and followed behind Pang Chengyu. Before midnight arrived, they successfully located several outdoor trash cans together.
Although not every trash can contained items, after rummaging through so many, the gains were still fairly substantial.
Tonight, his inventory had newly acquired:
[Rope ×1]
[Unripe Apple ×3]
[Broken Water Bottle ×1]
And additionally, the [Flashlight ×1] snatched directly from the NPC’s hands.
Bai Fuling was satisfied.
He finally slowed his hurried pace. After thinking briefly, he reached into his bag, pulled out one [Unripe Apple] and handed it toward the NPC beside him as a gift.
Raise affection points now so next time he could continue using him as an automatic navigation machine, Bai Fuling thought.
Pang Chengyu lowered his head and stared at the green apple.
…If he remembered correctly, this thing had just been dug out of a trash can, hadn’t it?
He lifted his head and looked over, initially assuming the other party was deliberately joking with him.
Yet what entered his sight was the transfer student’s clean and beautiful face. Beneath the moonlight, those dark eyes shimmered faintly and his expression appeared utterly sincere.
Pang Chengyu fell quiet for a moment before ultimately reaching out to accept it.
He wrapped his fingers around the small green apple. Along the edges of the peel still lingered traces of warmth left behind from the transfer student’s palm.
“Thanks.” Seizing the opportunity, Pang Chengyu once more attempted to make friends. “You’re in Class D, right? Me too. We’ll be classmates from now on, I’m Pang Chengyu.”
“Oh, hello.” Bai Fuling nodded in response.
After hearing the blond NPC introduce himself, a sudden inspiration flashed through Bai Fuling’s mind. He wanted to test whether the game allowed secondary name changes.
Thus, after pausing for only a single second, he immediately continued:
“You may call me Father.”
Pang Chengyu: ?
Bai Fuling and the blond NPC stared at one another with wide eyes.
The air fell into an extremely strange silence for three whole seconds.
Alright then.
Looks like names could not be changed that way.
Seeing the reaction, Bai Fuling regretfully reverted back to his original recorded name.
“Oh, alright then. You can call me Bai Cai Shui Ling Ling.”
Although “Bai Cai Shui Ling Ling” was also an extremely bizarre and embarrassing name, Pang Chengyu, who had finally managed to reach something resembling a normal conversation, still let out an enormous sigh of relief.
He was practically moved to tears.
Dear heavens, it really was not easy. At long last, they had finally managed to hold a normal conversation and properly introduce themselves!!
“Okay! Bai Cai, uh… Student Bai.”
Pang Chengyu opened his mouth but ultimately remained unable to smoothly pronounce the full name, so he settled for using only the surname.
At the same time, Bai Fuling saw a brand new notification appear on the screen.
【Character Unlocked = Pang Chengyu】
Oh ho, a new feature?
Curious, Bai Fuling tapped open the character index on the screen.
The previously empty gray first page turned bright white. The name sat directly in the center, while a one inch portrait photograph appeared in the upper left corner.
Beside it were several colored icons.
○ Pink Heart (18%): [Pang Chengyu] thinks you are different from everyone else.
○ Orange Circle (35%): [Pang Chengyu] cannot understand you and he may still be willing to help you.
○ Purple Triangle (0%): *** (Hidden)
○ Gray Gift Box (?): Unknown event. Triggering it may bring unexpected surprises.
Bai Fuling swept his gaze across the interface once before silently translating the meanings of the various icons according to his years of gaming experience.
Affection level.
Support rate.
And finally, some kind of special quest.
Only the hidden purple triangle icon in the middle remained completely unclear.
Then suddenly, while staring at the colorful row of symbols, Bai Fuling abruptly remembered the red bar that had appeared above people’s heads earlier.
Wait a second.
If the pink heart on the panel represented affection points…
Then what exactly was the red bar above their heads before…?
Bai Fuling fell into profound contemplation.
Wow.
So it turned out the rapid heartbeat was not caused by affection at all, it was actually rage buildup!
_____
Author’s Note:
Bai Fuling: Hahaha, the red bar rose so quickly that I thought I was universally adored. Turns out it was just an anger meter.
Current Inventory Items:
[Wooden Stick ×1]
[Money ×199]
[Lighter ×1]
[Cigarette Pack (3 remaining) ×1]
[Dagger]
[Grain Bird Feed ×2]
[Rope ×1]
[Unripe Apple ×2]
[Broken Water Bottle ×1]
[Flashlight ×1]
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
One tiny coffee. One very happy translator. ✦
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · Escape game freezesChapter 2 · Players aren’t allowed to use the main entranceChapter 3 · Players have created a medical miracle!Chapter 4 · If I hit the NPC more, will the NPC drop gold coins?Chapter 5 · Players earn the title of “bus weirdo”Chapter 6 · Players get a prison experienceChapter 7 · So the red bar isn’t for favorability, it’s for anger!Chapter 8 · The player is a nimble catChapter 9 · The player is a “law-abiding” good studentChapter 10 · Players have no morals and are fearlessChapter 11 · Player: What’s wrong? It’s called “Cai Cai Shui Ling LingChapter 12 · The player is the famous Farmer Detective!Chapter 13 · The player raised a new petChapter 14 · The player is a genius dog-riding boyChapter 15 · The player is a sticky, helpful, and kind comradeChapter 16 · It turns out that players aren’t considered human by NPCsChapter 17 · Players are like angels descending upon my side!Chapter 18 · Player: There’s only one truth!Chapter 19 · Why are players farming at the school?!Chapter 20 · Players came to the cafeteria to buy suppliesChapter 21 · Are NPCs model workers?Chapter 22 · If you’re a gay manChapter 23 · Player: Wheelchairs are a useful mode of transportation!Chapter 24 · So the player is actually part of Cat Returns (?)Chapter 25 · Liao Zhi Qiu, a large pet belonging to the playerChapter 26 · Player: Hello, I picked up this corpse.Chapter 27 · Bai Fuling: Players will never dieChapter 28 · Has the murderer been caught?Chapter 29 · Player: Visiting the mental hospital felt as familiar as coming homeChapter 30 · Players’ Adventure in the Mental Hospital: Round 1Chapter 31 · Player: Kid, fly!Chapter 32 · The player who does good deeds every day is truly a good personChapter 33 · The kitten brought back some local specialtiesChapter 34 · Let this adorable kitten stay forever?Chapter 35 · Players, don’t give up on being human!Chapter 36 · A kitten is just a kitten, isn’t it?Chapter 37 · Players want it, players get itChapter 38 · Angel Player and Unlucky Bear NPCChapter 39 · In short, players choose to throw at NPCsChapter 40 · The player just flew away!Chapter 41 · Player: You need to thoroughly understand the bookChapter 42 · Players love to tease honest NPCs.Chapter 43 · He said he was a little hungry.Chapter 44 · Even if cotton essence mutatesChapter 45 · Pure Love TentaclesChapter 46 · Choose to be a kitten?Chapter 47 · Players’ tears are weaponsChapter 48 · Players do not need to breatheChapter 49 · It’s on fire!Chapter 50 · The player is a top-tier rescue masterChapter 51 · How did the player manage to resurrect after killing themselves?!Chapter 52 · Call the player “Little Cat King”!Chapter 53 · What are the consequences of raising the cat-like alienation