Ever since Nan Zhi discovered that she could cultivate simultaneously in both the game and reality, her leveling speed had become astonishingly fast, as if strapped to a rocket.
Over the past two months, she worked hard to complete quests in the game and cultivated diligently in reality. Finally, catching the tail end of the Dragon Boat Festival, she successfully broke through to Qi Refinement level 4 and reached level 15.
【Cultivator: Nan Zhi】
【Bone age: 18】
【Cultivation: Qi Refinement level 4】
【Level: 15】
【Constitution: 10 (+1+1) (You are now as strong as an ox)】
【Combat power: 25 (+1+15) (Even if you run into an evil ghost, you seem able to flee quickly)】
【Reputation: 80 (+2) (You are quite well-known in Dingyuan County)】
【Planting: 3 (Plants you sow die very easily)】
【Gathering: 5 (Not all green plants are called medicinal herbs)】
【Currently Equipped: “Butcher’s Daughter”, “Nan Village Slaughtering Knife”】
Despite leveling up so quickly, Nan Zhi was still troubled.
She wasn't entirely clear on what kind of state she was currently in.
Did she even count as a proper cultivator?
After all, her ghost-catching in the game relied purely on physical beatdowns. Leaving aside talisman drawing and ritual casting, she couldn't even name all the celestial gods.
Thus, she could only pin her hopes on the lottery.
【Heavenly Treasure Tree Lottery Ticket: 15】
【Would you like to draw?】
It was still that familiar ancient tree, surrounded by mist-enshrouded celestial pavilions and the faceless girl.
“Draw, draw, draw! May all the gods and immortals bless me, may Lord Tushan bless me, bless me to pull a skill this time!”
Nan Zhi bowed repeatedly toward the green ancient tree on the tablet, her expression utterly sincere:
“This humble believer is willing to eat a balanced diet of meat and greens for the rest of her life in exchange for a gold pull in this ten-draw—no, as long as it's a skill book, even a green one will do, ahhh!!”
Strange occurrences were becoming more and more frequent in real life. If she really ran into a ghost, she couldn't just rush in as a cultivator and engage in hand-to-hand combat, right?!
However, Nan Zhi couldn't shake the feeling that while she was speaking, the green-clothed girl on the gacha screen was staring at her with a rather speechlessly exasperated look.
【Conducting ten-pull—】
【Congratulations on obtaining: Yin Niangzi Brand Stinky Tofu ×1, Wish Mission Scroll ×1, Qi-Supplementing Pill ×1, Qi-Supplementing Pill ×1, Yin Niangzi Brand Stinky Tofu ×1, Yin Niangzi Brand Stinky Tofu ×1, Yin Niangzi Brand Stinky Tofu ×1, Qi-Supplementing Pill ×1, Blood Supplementing Pill ×1】
Nan Zhi fell silent.
Nan Zhi chose to lie on the floor.
Nan Zhi pulled the blanket over herself.
Nan Zhi wore a peaceful expression.
Ten minutes later, Corn came rolling over in its hamster ball.
It scrambled out of the hamster ball and planted its bottom right on its half-dead owner's face:
“Squeak squeak squeak squeak?”
“No, I refuse to believe it. This can't be real! I must still be asleep. Let me sleep a little longer!”
“Squeak squeak!”
“I don't believe it! I don't believe I didn't even get a single green skill and only pulled a pile of useless stinky tofu!”
A look of pity crossed Corn's furry face, and it patted Nan Zhi's cheek in a remarkably human manner:
“Squeak squeak squeak.”
Praying won't fix bad luck, and spending won't change your destiny.
Besides, this trash game didn't even have a top-up channel.
Nan Zhi sat up and began taking inventory of her haul:
“Stinky tofu, stinky tofu, Qi-Supplementing Pill, Blood Supplementing Pill, stinky tofu... huh?”
Her organizing hands suddenly paused as she looked at the “Wish Mission Scroll” that had appeared in her inventory.
【Wish Mission Scroll: Upon use, the Cultivator can accept a random mission and receive mission rewards upon completion. The mission rewards are influenced by the Cultivator’s wish, with a certain probability of obtaining a skill book (below blue quality).】
What was this?
What kind of treasure was this!
This was a reward custom-tailored for her conscience!
Nan Zhi's recently despondent spirit was instantly revived. She gave the treasure tree in the game several passionate air-kisses:
“What kind of lottery treasure tree is this? You're clearly my caring darling treasure! I declare that starting this year, you are my beloved godmother, though we share neither father nor mother!”
What kind of title was that?
Perhaps thoroughly grossed out by Nan Zhi, the faceless girl on screen nearly stumbled.
With a wave of her sleeve, the clouds rolled in once more to obscure the treasure tree, and the lottery interface vanished.
...
Now that there was hope for the skill book she longed for, Nan Zhi didn't want to waste a single second and tapped to use it immediately.
In the next instant, a line of tiny, fly-sized text popped up on the screen:
【Random Mission: Ghost Chen Ping’s Wish】
【Mission Introduction: Chen Ping lived up to his name—an ordinary birth, an ordinary job, and an ordinary life. Yet a sudden plunge from a building shattered that peaceful existence. He does not understand why his death is merely gossip on other people's lips. Nor does he understand why, despite working tirelessly and living earnestly just as his elders had taught him, he still could not obtain what should have rightfully been his.】
【Mission Objective: Find Chen Ping and fulfill his wish.】
【Mission Location: Hongxing Mansion】
Before Nan Zhi could react, the fine text began to dissolve like ink seeping through water. Finally, it penetrated the screen and settled right in front of Nan Zhi's eyes.
“?”
Nan Zhi reached out to touch it, but the words seemed engraved directly onto her retina, refusing to dissipate.
Did physics no longer exist?
Were the Trisolarans about to invade Earth?
Wait, wasn't Hongxing Mansion the building where she worked?
So the rumor that there was a ghost in that building was actually true?
Nan Zhi's pupils dilated in shock.
...
When Zhang Qiuyu returned to her cubicle, she found that Nan Zhi, who usually had her head down working furiously, was uncharacteristically absentminded today.
She couldn't help teasing:
“Well, well, what happened to our Comrade Little Nan today? Aren't you usually hyped up like you were injected with chicken blood? Why are you wilting like a sad vegetable now?”
“Nothing, I'm just thinking about something.”
Nan Zhi replied offhandedly. On her computer monitor, the browser was open to a specific news article.
【Game Company Employee Takes Their Own Life: Is It Related to High-Intensity Work and Workplace Stress? Reflecting on Whether Modern Overtime Culture Has Lowered the Stress Threshold of Young People.】
This was news from last year.
To grab attention, the opening used a heavily pixelated photo of the scene as a hook.
—Despite the heavy mosaic blur, one could still make out the blood splattered everywhere and the sheer horror on the faces of onlookers.
Zhang Qiuyu leaned in to take a look and happened to see the report.
She let out a soft sigh and said with lingering pity:
“You're reading this report too? It was that game company on the twenty-seventh floor. Such a shame about that man. I heard he had just turned forty-five, the exact same age as my eldest brother. He had a wife and a kid at home. The child had just started elementary school this year. After he jumped, the company sent over fifty thousand yuan as condolence money.”
“Only fifty thousand?”
Nan Zhi couldn't help frowning. “A person died... A human life is only worth fifty thousand?”
“What else did you expect?”
Zhang Qiuyu shrugged. “It's pitiful, sure, but it was a suicide. The company offering a condolence payment was already doing more than they had to, wouldn't you say?”
Just as the words left her mouth, the light above their cubicles flickered sharply, dazzling their eyes.
It seemed the electrical current was unstable.
“What a piece of junk lamp, scared the hell out of me!”
Zhang Qiuyu shivered, pulling her collar tight as she muttered, “Is the AC in the office set too low? What temperature is it on? Let's get Old Deng over in a bit to fix this lamp. Why is it flickering like that?”
Nan Zhi didn't say a word.
She had seen it with absolute clarity just now.
While the two of them were talking, a ghastly pale hand had reached down from the ceiling and slowly covered the lighting fixture.
Rate on N.U.
