Opening her bedroom door, she discovered an identical door handle and lock on the opposite side of the wall, poking her head in to take a look. The layout and furnishings were truly an exact replica of her own room—the system had practically copy-pasted it. The two rooms shared a single living room and front entrance.
Not long after Xi Yue went upstairs, Fang Guohua took his grandsons to get dinner. Shen Yu sat alone on the sofa watching cartoons when the sound of running water drifted in from outside, followed immediately by a few more machines appearing in the lobby. Shen Yu figured that when Xi Yue had hurried upstairs earlier, she was probably setting these things up. Seeing her come back downstairs now with a slightly aggrieved look on her face, he couldn’t help but wonder what had happened.
Xi Yue walked over holding the watch and handed it to Shen Yu. Shen Yu took it, clicked to view his information, and almost couldn’t hold back a laugh—having “Undetectable” as his superpower was truly too hilarious. Spotting the ∞ displayed for his balance, he asked Xi Yue about it out of curiosity.
Puffing out her little chest and clearing her throat, Xi Yue put on a dramatic act and said, “I made you sign an unfair contract, so as compensation, Employee Shen’s entire spending is on Boss Xi’s tab!”
“Then thank you very much, Boss Xi. The new blind box is for drinks—would you like a cup?” Shen Yu walked over to the machine, pressed confirm, and out came a hot matcha latte. On a chilly night, a hot matcha latte was a truly delightful treat.
“I’ll take one, I’ll take one! Let’s see if you’re a luckball! Who knows what incredible hidden items are inside!” Xi Yue rubbed her small hands together in anticipation.
Sipping his latte, Shen Yu retrieved a taro boba milk tea from the slot below.
“Wow! I haven’t had milk tea in so long; this is amazing!” Xi Yue took it and blissfully took a huge gulp~
Sipping their warm drinks, the two strolled over to the transaction machine. The large screen overhead displayed the task section on the left and the trade section on the right.
With a twinkle in her eye, Xi Yue tapped around on the transaction machine. Looking up at the board, the trade section now showed a new entry: [Have 4 bowls of mushroom braised chicken instant noodles, trading for instant noodles of any other flavor.]
Shen Yu let out a laugh. “Do you really hate mushroom braised chicken that much?”
“Wasting is never good, but I just can’t get used to that flavor. What if someone else likes it, right!” Xi Yue walked over to the entrance to check on her fountain.
The fountain, now fitted with the mysterious spring, looked entirely refreshed, surrounded by a ring of colorful light displays. Wrapped in the glowing ring, the fountain’s water mist turned into vibrant colors, looking utterly breathtaking.
Xi Yue felt delighted; though she had no idea what made the mysterious spring so mysterious, it was certainly very pleasing to the eye. Glancing at her watch to see it was past seven o’clock and she hadn’t eaten dinner yet, she ran over to do a five-draw pull. It yielded self-heating hotpots and canned foods—no mushroom chicken in sight!
Sitting on the sofa, Shen Yu used the remote to switch channels. “I’m heading upstairs first! If no one shows up by nine o’clock, you head upstairs to sleep too!” Xi Yue announced, happily cradling her dinner as she headed upstairs.
Returning to her room, Xi Yue set a box of self-heating hotpot to cook and began browsing the system mall.
Tapping the mall button, an interface popped up displaying six options: [Self-Service Instant Food Blind Box Machine: 1,000 Gold Coins | Self-Service Check-In and Top-Up Machine: 1,000 Gold Coins | Self-Service Beverage Blind Box Machine: 1,000 Gold Coins | 1 Patch of Never-Barren Fertile Soil: 10,000 Gold Coins | Self-Service Crystal Exchange Machine: 10,000 Gold Coins | Mysterious Card Blind Box Machine: 100,000 Gold Coins]
Xi Yue checked her balance, which stood at a mere 436 gold coins. “System, system, how are these gold coins earned?”
[One-tenth of the crystals guests spend in the hotel will be converted into the host’s gold coins.]
With her pitifully small amount of gold coins, she couldn’t afford a single thing on that list. Closing that page, the rest of the mall contained general goods not found in the blind box machines, functioning essentially as a giant department store.
Xi Yue bought herself a few pieces of clothing and some skincare products, spending 16 gold coins, before happily humming a tune on her way to take a shower.
A movie played on the TV, and Shen Yu reclined lazily on the sofa watching it. The light refracted from the crystal chandelier hit his face; a scene that should have been picture-perfect instead carried a trace of eerie, sinister dark intensity.
In the silent night, faint, rustling sounds echoed from a deep, dark alleyway. A mutated plant emerged from the pitch-black alley, exposing itself to the moonlight. Under the moonlight, a tiny sprout standing roughly ten centimeters tall could be seen, its single leaf wrapping around a card that shimmered with faint light, its root system walking down the street like a pair of tiny feet, pitter-pattering away.
After finishing her dinner, Liang Ye remained leaning against her bed. Once upon a time, she too had been a spoiled, beloved princess living a pampered life of luxury, but later on, her life turned into the very image of the female supporting character Xi Yue had described.
She was originally from City D, thousands of kilometers away from City B. Her mother had passed away from illness when she was young, so her father doted on her even more, as if trying to make up for the motherly love she had lost. Although Liang Ye grew up a bit delicate from being pampered, she was exceptionally accomplished, ranking at the top of her class academically and possessing a rich array of hobbies. After entering high school, she began dating a boy named Wen Nian. Wen Nian was a top student in the school; just like his name suggested, he was a gentle and clean young man. The first time Liang Ye saw him was in the school grove. Wearing his uniform shirt, Wen Nian stood in the sunlight reading a book, tall and slender like a young poplar tree.
Liang Ye fell hopelessly in love with Wen Nian, inquiring about his interests and pursuing him with fierce, passionate intensity.
Knowing his family background wasn’t great, she begged her father to sponsor scholarships for the school, finding every possible way to give him all kinds of gifts.
Wen Nian really was an exceptional person. He ranked among the top students in school and spent his spare time taking part-time jobs to help support his family. In the school cafeteria, he always ate the free student meals, never caring about the gossip of others, facing his poverty with composure and never feeling ashamed of it. There were many girls who liked him and would send him plenty of gifts, Liang Ye being the most prominent among them. But Wen Nian never accepted anything; he always sat quietly studying by himself in the classroom.
During her second year of high school, tragedy struck Liang Ye’s family: her father died in a car accident, leaving her a vast inheritance. She was broken and desperate at the time, taking a very long time to walk out of her grief. Wen Nian would always accompany her in his own way—explaining problems to her, organizing study notes for her, or staying by her side whenever she cried.
Before the college entrance exams, the two officially got together and agreed to attend the same university. They indeed both passed, but during that summer vacation, the two lost all contact. Wen Nian didn’t respond to any of Liang Ye’s phone calls or text messages, and when Liang Ye went to his house, no one was home.
After reaching university, Liang Ye finally located Wen Nian again. However, another girl had appeared by Wen Nian’s side. He explained that the girl was a neighbor from his childhood whom he had unexpectedly reunited with at the university. He claimed that his phone broke over the summer and that he had been busy earning tuition fees, which was why he hadn’t contacted Liang Ye.
Looking at this Wen Nian who felt both unfamiliar and familiar, Liang Ye felt as though something had changed, yet nothing had changed at all.
When the apocalypse arrived, a large group of students hid in the school auditorium. Wen Nian awakened a Fire-type superpower, naturally becoming the leader figure in everyone’s eyes. Tian Xue wove through the crowd distributing food, and those who received it would always say how truly kind she was and how well-suited she was for Wen Nian, showering her with praise after praise. Meanwhile, she—his official girlfriend—seemed to have been completely forgotten by everyone. Her suppressed frustration and her rage ultimately turned into public accusations from the crowd and disappointed glances from her boyfriend.
When everyone finally awaited rescue and boarded trucks bound for the base, she was violently shoved off the vehicle. Turning around, she saw her boyfriend, his back turned to her, holding Tian Xue in his arms, while Tian Xue curled her lips into a smirk at her.