Jiang Yan had just wanted to ask what this thing was for and why it had appeared here, but a strange and inexplicable sense of dread pulled his gaze back to the sky that was still collapsing. He saw that as the players poured in their strength, the golden web grew far tougher, yet the collapse of the dungeon remained irreversible, and chunks of data glowing a ghostly blue continued to fall from the sky. As more and larger data blocks fell, the golden web holding up the sky gradually tightened. The threads, under extreme pressure, grew thinner and thinner, lighter and lighter in color. It was clear it was reaching its limit. “No…” Jiang Yan instinctively looked toward the [Divine System] on his personal system panel. It was a primal instinct embedded in his DNA, prompting him to draw on the players’ power of belief. At this moment, the players floating beneath the golden web were arguing in the flurry of falling rose petals about why Jiang Yan, who should have already become par...
Mo Tuo unusually did not refute.
Gu Zhan naturally wouldn’t dwell on the dissipating illusions of the past.
But his body was weak, having skipped breakfast, feeling dizzy and blurry, and he was no match for this group of children.
He knew how malicious they were, and resisting would only provoke more intense targeting.
Gu Zhan remained seated on the ground, waiting for the children to lose interest and disperse before getting up.
At that moment, the teacher entered.
Gu Zhan quickly returned to his seat.
Everything was just as he remembered: the dull, boring lessons, and the classmates causing trouble beside him.
When the teacher called on him to read the textbook, a child beside him snatched it away.
Gu Zhan’s memory wasn’t sharp enough to recall everything from kindergarten, so he naturally faltered.
The teacher, who already disliked him, immediately kicked him out of the classroom, ordering him to stand outside as punishment.
On the hot summer day, only a patch of shadow beneath the eaves offered some relief. Gu Zhan leaned against the wall, listening to the distant cicadas crying, idly swinging his feet, bored out of his mind.
At that moment, Mo Tuo spoke again, his voice full of probing.
【Did you really live like this when you were a child? I told you, you’d be better off as a monster.】
This time, there was less teasing, and more genuine sentiment.
Gu Zhan looked up at the clear blue sky. “The past is dark and unreachable. I’ve already grown up. Why should I talk about those childhood things?”
【How much longer are you going to stand here? When can you go back inside?】
Mo Tuo, the master of this instance, seemed to know nothing about the instance.
Gu Zhan turned back, glanced through the window, and noticed that the teacher was sternly teaching the other children a nursery rhyme, completely forgetting there was someone outside.
The sun gradually moved to the center of the sky, and the shadow beneath the eaves disappeared.
Gu Zhan wiped the sweat from the tip of his nose and said, “I probably won’t be able to go back in this morning.”
【Then why are you still standing here? Why not just leave?】
As a monster, Mo Tuo naturally prioritized his own interests and preferences.
Gu Zhan slowly said, “If she comes out and can’t see me, she’ll get mad and punish me more harshly in the afternoon.”
【...You humans are really strange.】
Yes, humans are strange indeed.
Gu Zhan glanced at the sky again. He had been so faint-headed from standing under the sun in the past, and it wasn’t the first time.
He straightened up and said, “But you’re right, I’ll leave.”
【Aren’t you afraid she’ll punish you?】
Mo Tuo’s tone was full of curiosity.
Gu Zhan felt like he was carrying a curious little puppy around, one who knew nothing and asked everything.
Not far after leaving, he heard Mo Tuo ask again:
【Where are you going?】
Gu Zhan suddenly smiled. “I’m taking you somewhere nice.”
【...】
Nice? The player is taking the BOSS somewhere nice, that’s turning the tables!
【Where?】
【Speak.】
Mo Tuo became even more curious.
The content of this instance was generated based on Gu Zhan’s childhood experiences, and Mo Tuo didn’t fully know what was in the instance.
Moreover, instead of wondering “How will Gu Zhan overcome challenges?”, he was more interested in “What does Gu Zhan want to do?” and “What is he going to do?”
He wanted to understand Gu Zhan’s inner thoughts.
Gu Zhan didn’t answer, but swiftly walked away from the classroom and headed toward the rarely visited back yard of the orphanage.
Entering the back gate, not far away was a tree, and a bird’s nest hung from its branches.
He looked up at it, thinking of the library instance. In Ferdinand’s childhood, there was also a tree in the orphanage, and it too had a bird’s nest.
But in his story, all the birds in the nest had died.
As for Gu Zhan... he didn’t remember. He didn’t have the habit of digging into bird nests or rescuing birds when he was young.
Passing by the tree, he walked forward for another ten minutes, arriving at the low wall in the back yard.
Though the wall was low, it was still a bit too high for Gu Zhan’s height.
He couldn’t climb it, so he had to walk around to the side, where a small hole was hidden behind the overgrown grass.
Hmm, a dog hole.
Gu Zhan didn’t mind and crawled through.
Mo Tuo found it quite novel:
【Why is there a small hole in the wall? For little dwarfs to crawl through?】
Gu Zhan heard the mockery in his words and replied indifferently, “It’s for dogs to crawl through.”
Mo Tuo: “.........”
Not sure if the monster would slap itself awake in the middle of the night.
But after speaking, Gu Zhan felt quite pleased and smiled.
It was rare for him to smile, so it was clear that he was in a good mood.
Beyond the low wall was still a field of grass, the wild grass growing taller than Gu Zhan, with faint sounds of water and the scent of damp soil in the air.
There was a small path through the grass, and Gu Zhan followed it, stepping onto it.
Next to the grass was a small stream, the water shallow but crystal clear. Beside the river lay a large tin barrel.
It seemed to be an oil barrel, and for some unknown reason, it had been left there.
The barrel was only half full, its top open as if it were a natural little hut. A piece of black cloth was draped over the top, and the inside had been tidied up, with a small bench and a wooden box for storing things.
Gu Zhan walked over as if he had been here before, sitting on the small bench.
This bench was custom-made for his height. Sitting here, he could perfectly see the flowing water.
He casually opened the wooden box beside him, which was filled with various broken little toys.
A wooden bird with no wings, a deflated ball, a featherless shuttlecock, and a toy car with only the wheels left.
Gu Zhan fiddled with these little things and said, “These are my treasures.”
【What are these? Treasures?】
Mo Tuo didn’t mock him, just sounding a little confused.
【You like this kind of random, broken stuff?】
Gu Zhan didn’t answer. Instead, he looked up at the sky and suddenly stood up. “I remember there are fish in this river.”
He hadn’t had breakfast and was feeling famished. If he could catch a fish...
【With your little body, you think you can catch fish?】
Gu Zhan wasn’t discouraged. “Well, I’m bored anyway. Might as well try.”
He rolled up his pants and walked into the river, the cool water easing the heat of the summer day.
There were indeed plenty of fish, but they were too small. Their bodies were as thin as wheat stalks. When Gu Zhan stirred the water with his feet, they quickly swam away.
Gu Zhan had to wade deeper into the river.
Mo Tuo reminded him:
【If you drown in this instance trying to catch fish, you’ll just become a water ghost.】
Gu Zhan thought for a moment and replied, “That would be fine too. I could live in the same river as Xiao Xiu.”
Mo Tuo: “......”
Gu Zhan found a stone to stand on and waited quietly.
The sun beat down on his head, and the cool water refreshed his feet. The sunlight made beads of sweat form on his nose, but the gentle breeze made it feel not too hot.
Finally, a fish about the size of a palm swam by him.
Gu Zhan quickly reached out, attempting to catch the fish.
His fingers touched the smooth fish scales, and the fish slipped away from his fingers, leaving only a ripple behind.
He didn’t get discouraged, straightened up, wiped his sweat, and bent over again to wait.
After a long while, near noon, Gu Zhan finally caught a fish the size of a palm.
He brought the fish back to the iron barrel shack, but froze.
He had no fire, so he couldn’t even roast the fish.
Mo Tuo also realized this and said:
[Maybe I can give you permission to use Kripper’s sunlight to start a fire.]
Gu Zhan looked up at the sun, thinking about starting a fire and roasting the fish. He wasn’t sure how long that would take.
The cafeteria was about to serve lunch.
Just then, a cat meowed from the nearby bushes.
A tricolored kitten crawled out and stared at the fish in Gu Zhan’s hands, meowing again.
“Meow~~”
The kitten had used up all its cuteness, so Gu Zhan casually threw the half-dead fish to it.
The kitten immediately caught the gift from above and dragged the fish away.
Gu Zhan went to the water to wash his hands and said, “Let’s go back.”
They returned to the orphanage, just in time for lunch.
The caregiver didn’t make a fuss and let Gu Zhan in.
The meal was plain broth, not even as good as the roasted fish outside.
While eating, Mo Tuo kept urging Gu Zhan.
[Go steal something to start a fire—matches? A lighter? We’ll go roast fish tonight.]
Gu Zhan replied, “Fish from the wild often have parasites. If not roasted properly, they’re unsafe to eat.”
Mo Tuo was immediately disappointed.
[Then why did you say you’d catch fish? You tricked me.]
“I didn’t trick you. I really caught the fish,” Gu Zhan said as he finished eating, cleaned up, and walked out.
The afternoon class started as usual, but this time there was a new teacher, and she still didn’t treat Gu Zhan well.
[What did you do to make all these teachers and caregivers dislike you?]
Gu Zhan couldn’t answer during class, but when he got back to his room after class, Mo Tuo found out why.
The single bed had been smeared with mud, filthy and no longer usable.
The caregiver screamed as she rushed in, pushed Gu Zhan aside, and scolded him, “Why are you causing trouble again? Are you unhappy that I’m leaving early today? You bad child!”
Gu Zhan was pushed to the ground but calmly looked at the caregiver.
The caregiver ripped the sheets off in anger and walked past him, coldly saying, “Since you like causing trouble, you can sleep on the bed board tonight! Your sheets and blankets are all dirty, and I won’t be able to wash them in time.”
The orphanage had a dryer.
Gu Zhan knew she just didn’t want to do the extra work of washing his bedding.
After the caregiver left, Gu Zhan got up, tidied his room a bit, and lay down on the hard bed board.
Luckily, it was summer, so he didn’t need blankets and wouldn’t get cold.
[You might as well escape from this orphanage and live on your own.]
Mo Tuo commented.
Gu Zhan opened his eyes, his gaze shining in the dark, “Is that your advice for clearing the level?”
Mo Tuo seemed to be caught off guard for a moment, then tried to cover it up, saying:
[No, I was just wondering why you didn’t do that back then.]
Gu Zhan replied, “I was too young back then. If I left this place, I would have starved to death in less than three days.”
But now it’s different. This place is a game, and he has grown up.
He closed his eyes and softly said, “Let’s sleep.”
The next day, Gu Zhan woke up to the noise of people outside banging on the door. He propped himself up, and the crowd outside quickly scattered.
Mo Tuo curiously asked:
[Why do they always target you?]
Gu Zhan replied, “These kids grew up in the orphanage, and I was sent here when I was three. I sleepwalk at night and wander around the rooms. The orphanage didn’t dare let me room with the other kids, so they gave me a room by myself. They think I’m different and have been targeting me ever since.”
[Just because of that?]
Mo Tuo couldn’t believe it.
Gu Zhan said, “It’s enough reason. To them, I’m an outsider.”
Comments
Post a Comment
We’d Love to Hear from You!
Share your thoughts, feedback, or questions about this posts. Your comments are important to us.