Before long, the specter bus arrived at the boundary between Zone One and Zone Two of Withered Forest and Barren Mountains.
It was a flat stretch of land situated between two mountains.
The doors opened.
Zuo Lin'an looked out. Not far away were his and Xu Youyou's houses.
The four of them got off the bus together.
Zuo Lin'an said, “Youyou, take your person back first and get your dungeon ready. Buy whatever you need to buy. We'll talk about anything else tomorrow.”
Xu Youyou replied, “Alright.”
After bidding farewell to Xu Youyou, Zuo Lin'an led Feng Xingyun back to his own house.
First, he let Feng Xingyun choose a bedroom. There were several vacant rooms in the house, so he could live wherever he wanted.
Truth be told, Zuo Lin'an wasn't a harsh person. As long as Feng Xingyun didn't cross his boundaries, he wouldn't interfere much with whatever he did.
After giving a brief tour of the house, he slumped onto the sofa, pulled out his work phone, and began purchasing items for Feng Xingyun.
A bed, a wardrobe...
“By the way, what kind of clothes do you want to wear?”
Feng Xingyun leaned over to take a look.
He noticed that the phone Zuo Lin'an was using was different from the one he had just bought, but he didn't ask any questions.
“Whatever is customary here is fine.”
Zuo Lin'an nodded. After asking for his rough measurements, he added a variety of clothes to the cart and tapped to pay.
“Alright, delivery is very fast, so someone should bring them over shortly. You can tidy up your room then. I have to go out for a bit.”
Feng Xingyun nodded.
“Understood.”
Zuo Lin'an pocketed his phone and left the house, heading toward the white mist area in the central region of Withered Forest and Barren Mountains.
Once inside, he quickly located the pit he had dug. Although the water level was slightly lower than when he first filled it, it should still be enough.
It seemed the plastic sheet he had laid at the bottom didn't have any issues.
Still, he would need to top up the water.
As for food...
Zuo Lin'an planned to buy it tomorrow during the day. Once it was delivered, he would place it directly inside. Then, at midnight, he could officially launch the dungeon.
Standing by the edge of the pool, he looked around.
“I still need to double-check all the details of the dungeon.”
If there was anything he had overlooked...
Well, it could be a major or minor issue.
He hadn't forgotten about the dungeon boss who had caused the emergency. Although there was no news yet, that boss was definitely having a rough time right now.
He thought about asking An Mu in a few days, as she seemed to have some inside information.
Or he could simply ask in the Starry Group four-person subgroup. Bai Yuan and Song Yangxia seemed to have unusual backgrounds, so they likely knew more.
But for now, the dungeon took priority.
Zuo Lin'an spent several more hours searching the area multiple times. Only after repeatedly confirming everything was fine did he head back home.
“Huh?”
As soon as Zuo Lin'an pushed the door open, he caught the savory aroma of cooked food.
Could it be...
He walked over to the kitchen doorway.
“You know how to cook?”
“And you know how to use these appliances?”
Feng Xingyun pointed to the cabinet near the kitchen entrance. “There were... manuals in there.”
“I was just giving it a try. It seems I'm relatively smart.”
Zuo Lin'an blinked.
“To be honest, neither you nor I actually need to eat.”
Feng Xingyun replied, “It's still better to eat a little.”
Zuo Lin'an didn't refuse.
In fact, the moment he became a Human-Specter Symbiont, he had realized he no longer needed sustenance. Yet, he had still continued to eat and drink.
This was solely to ensure that his state of mind didn't warp.
Even though he had turned into a specter and a dungeon boss, and his human emotions would inevitably fade over time, he couldn't completely abandon them.
He couldn't just throw them away.
To preserve his humanity, he had to start with the little things.
For instance, having a friend or two, some elders, and maintaining basic social relationships...
As well as maintaining normal human eating habits and daily routines.
“Did everything I ordered arrive?”
Feng Xingyun replied, “Yes, my room is already sorted out.”
Zuo Lin'an walked over to the dining room and sat down, waiting to eat.
“Is there anything missing?”
He should have bought everything earlier, but with so many miscellaneous daily necessities, he couldn't be sure if he had missed anything.
Furthermore, Feng Xingyun's lifestyle habits were clearly different from his own.
“Everything is here. Whatever you didn't buy, I already found in the house.”
Zuo Lin'an said, “That's good.”
Feng Xingyun's cooking this time was merely an experiment, so he had only whipped up a simple meal. The taste was mediocre, but fortunately, neither of them was picky.
Not to mention, Feng Xingyun had spent the last thirty years living a precarious, hand-to-mouth existence.
After dinner.
The two of them sat on the living room sofa.
Feng Xingyun asked, “Could you tell me more about the specter dungeons?”
Zuo Lin'an nodded. “Of course. After all, I'll need you to step up in the future.”
To keep this man, he had rejected a trade offer of thirty-five Contribution points!
If he couldn't put Feng Xingyun to good use, he would suffer a massive loss!
Zuo Lin'an briefly explained the classifications and levels of dungeons in the supernatural world.
Then, he gave a rough overview of his own dungeon's situation.
Feng Xingyun listened attentively and memorized everything.
“Is there anything I can help with right now?”
Zuo Lin'an shook his head.
“No.”
“The current world has been classified as the 【Wuxia World】 by us.”
“And you originally belong to this world. If you appear in the dungeon and are recognized by the players, and some of those players subsequently clear the dungeon, they will take that information back with them.”
“In doing so, they would find out that those who remain alive in the dungeon don't necessarily die, but can instead become dungeon NPCs. Leaving aside the potential consequences, this itself is strictly forbidden.”
“Therefore, to completely eliminate any possibility of this happening, you can only officially take on your role as a dungeon NPC starting from the next world.”
Feng Xingyun didn't quite understand.
“The next world... What will happen to my world then?”
Zuo Lin'an wore a somewhat peculiar smile.
“Either they successfully resist the specter dungeons, expel everything related to specters, and restore it to its original state...”
“Or they fail to resist, and the entire world is assimilated by the specters. By then, even if our world detaches, specters will automatically spawn there.”
“Why? Are you worried?”
Feng Xingyun shook his head.
“Not at all.”
Worried?
That familiar world no longer had a place for him. There was no need for him to care.
“I was just asking casually. But if there's anything you need my help with in the future, please don't hesitate to ask.”
Zuo Lin'an pulled out his newly purchased phone and waved it.
“Tomorrow night, I'll be opening the dungeon.”
“When the time comes, I'll take photos of the players I encounter and send them to you. If you recognize any of them, let me know what talents and specter items they possess.”
“That way, you can help me wipe them all out in one fell swoop.”
“The faster I grow, the higher the dungeon's level will become, and the sooner you'll get your own identity and regain a degree of freedom.”
Feng Xingyun said, “At your service.”
Rate on N.U.
