Chapter 84 Save AI1, City of Wisdom
Reminded by Ling Yuanshan, Wu Wangwang carefully counted in her mind and found that it was true. After the identity swap, she had already completed five dungeons, while the original owner had completed four beginner dungeons, making a total of nine.
The next step is to clear the fixed weaknesses in the Night of Return.
Wu Wangwang knew about this because if each player could survive the early stages, the reward from about ten dungeons, the Night of Resurrection, could make all the major problems in the player's life disappear, including money, relationships, illness, and lifespan.
Next, players will fall into a phase of frantically collecting items in an attempt to become superior to others, where human greed is fully revealed.
So, in order to balance the number of players, the tenth dungeon is very important. Basically, those who pass this level either have their worldview completely shattered and become a ruthless villain like Cheng Hai, or become like Ling Yuanshan, who is indifferent, calm, knows his limits, and works alone.
The only similarity is probably the extremely high mortality rate. Because the tenth dungeon accurately captures the biggest fears of every player and directly targets their personality weaknesses, it is very difficult for any player to make the right choice.
The game hasn't discovered that Wu Wangwang has switched identities yet. Logically, this level should match the dungeon based on the original character's data.
When they switched identities, Wu Wangwang had already learned about the original owner's situation. She was a very special person. She didn't actually have anything to fear. The fact that she was able to slowly survive in that kind of family was enough to prove that she was actually quite capable.
The problem is that she has a weak mental capacity. The same thing that a normal person might not find so painful would be twice as painful for her.
This is also why, even though she could have easily cleared the dungeon, she wanted to escape reality and exchange with the Ghost Mother.
The data collected by the game should be roughly the same, and the tenth dungeon may be matched based on this.
Wu Wangwang patted Ling Yuanshan's hand: "I know, don't worry, I have nothing to be afraid of."
"It's not necessarily something you're afraid of. It can also depend on your personality. For example, if you love oranges, the dungeon might give you oranges as part of your food. Because you love them, you'll take them the moment you see them. It's hard for people to resist their own nature," Ling Yuanshan explained with concern.
Wu Wangwang naturally knew about this. After thinking for a moment, she said to Ling Yuanshan, "Young Master, you may never have known about my living environment. Even if you occasionally encounter NPCs with such backgrounds in the dungeon, you can't truly understand their pain and torment. I personally sent my parents to prison, which means that I have already dealt with my weaknesses in advance."
Ling Yuanshan was still worried: "But you still retain your human nature, kindness, integrity, and compassion. These are the core qualities you can't get rid of, and the game might also focus on these aspects."
Wu Wangwang smiled and said, "Perhaps you can think about these traits from a different perspective? I'm fine, young master. I'll head back now, or the driver will get impatient."
After saying that, Wu Wangwang quickly ran away. After all, she was really not worried. Even if it were the original body, she probably wouldn't be worried. Dungeons that target weaknesses are impossible for some people to pass, but for a ghost like her, there is no pressure at all.
Heaven and earth are ruthless, treating all things like straw dogs. The so-called qualities of kindness and compassion are merely a manifestation of Wu Wangwang's divinity. However, divinity also has severity and judgment. The authority granted by the Night of Returning Souls is sufficient for Wu Wangwang to deal with this biased instance.
After several frequent dungeon runs, Ling Yuanshan and Wu Wangwang became much more cautious. Ling Yuanshan was particularly worried about Wu Wangwang's tenth dungeon run and kept thinking about preparing extra items for her to use, just in case she encountered an accident on the way and ended up in the dungeon.
This constant chatter continued until after the mock exam, when Wu Wangwang's grades improved significantly. She realized that she was standing out too much, so she had to lower her grades, ideally not taking other people's rankings, but just enough to get into the same university as Ling Yuanshan.
As the weather gets colder, the students at the school gradually put on long blue and white tracksuits. A group of students walked by, looking like long, thin sacks. It was at this time that Ling Yuanshan noticed that Wu Wangwang seemed to have grown a little taller.
Ling Yuanshan was already taller than the other boys because he had to take a year off from school. At noon, he went to find Wu Wangwang and gestured with his hand: "Wangwang, you've grown taller."
Wu Wangwang deliberately adjusted her height, not to the same as her original statue, but at least to the average height of a woman, so she pretended to be shocked: "Really? Maybe your family's food is good and nutritious, so you've grown taller. I heard you can grow up to twenty-five years old."
She's only 21, she has room for improvement.
Ling Yuanshan smiled with satisfaction: "That's true, it's good to be taller. I'll treat you to a nice lunch today to celebrate."
Campus life was peaceful. From autumn to winter, they started to stuff their coats into their sack-like school uniforms. Wu Wangwang thought that would make it difficult to move around, so she only wore a sweater underneath.
The second mock exam will be held in winter, followed by winter break. Although winter break is practically nonexistent for senior high school students, everyone still looks forward to receiving red envelopes during the Lunar New Year.
Ling Yuanshan told Wu Wangwang in advance that his family might not be at the villa for the Chinese New Year. His father would be busy, his mother would be going home, and Ling Yuanshan was a precious lucky charm. He used to live in the hospital, and he would get sick if he went out during the cold Chinese New Year.
Later, the copy cured him, but during the Lunar New Year, there were many people and he was afraid something might happen, so he spent the holidays alone, only briefly appearing at his parents' and his wife's homes. Then, he would use the excuse that the doctor said he couldn't be affected and hide back in his own house.
Even with such caution, one might still unexpectedly enter a dungeon every year, as if it were a regular part of the Lunar New Year celebrations.
On New Year's Eve when he was sixteen, he slipped on ice while walking in the courtyard of his home. On New Year's Eve when he was seventeen, he fell after hitting the coffee table while getting up from the sofa. On New Year's Eve when he was eighteen, he fell to his death in an elevator malfunction on his way home.
This year marks the eve of his nineteenth Lunar New Year. After the New Year, he can say that he is twenty years old. He has no idea what he will encounter.
After listening to his long explanation, Wu Wangwang grasped his core idea: "So, you want to take advantage of the opportunity that happens every New Year's Eve to enter the game and accompany me in?"
Ling Yuanshan was still struggling with how to put it, but Wu Wangwang pointed it out. He nodded and said, "Well, since there's a chance, as long as we stay together, we can go in at the same time. Anyway, my parents won't be at the villa, and you won't be called to do chores by my mom. You have annual leave and regular holidays, so you can leave on your normal leave and come stay at my place."
In the game, the two of them often slept in the same room, so they no longer minded this kind of issue. Moreover, the house that the family prepared for Ling Yuanshan was very large, with many rooms.
Wu Wangwang was only worried about one thing: "Isn't that a bit much? I've seen this kind of plot in novels and short videos. If the madam and sir find out that I'm living with you, they'll chop me into mincemeat."
Hearing her say that, Ling Yuanshan covered his head speechlessly: "I told you to watch less... No, they'd love for me to have someone close to me. I haven't been in contact with anyone for three years. My mother is probably very happy that you came here and that you chose the right person."
Regardless of the final outcome, at least Ling Yuanshan is living like a normal person now, which makes his parents very happy. Good and bad are relative. Rather than letting Ling Yuanshan be lonely year after year for no reason, it's better to have a companion. No relationship matters.
Seeing Ling Yuanshan's insistence, Wu Wangwang agreed.
They said they were going out to celebrate the New Year, but in reality they were still far away. The two of them were engrossed in their studies at school, and they only had half a day off on New Year's Day.
But it's already pretty good. Having gone through the ordeal of No. 6 Middle School, they all cherish their current lives. At least the city's policy of reducing academic burden allows them to still go out and have fun, instead of being locked up until the Lunar New Year.
During the half-day holiday of New Year's Day, Ling Yuanshan took Wu Wangwang to familiarize themselves with the area. His house was nearby, and he could walk to school every day. The house was a combination of two suites, very large, with a total of five rooms. Ling Yuanshan's quality of life would not be reduced at all.
Since each room has a purpose, Ling Yuanshan decided to give his bedroom to Wu Wangwang. He added a daybed to the study so she could sleep there.
Wu Wangwang was new to the area and followed Ling Yuanshan's arrangements in everything.
The holiday starts a week after New Year's Day. Wu Wangwang made a special trip back to the villa to record her holiday. She has a total of fifteen days of annual leave and normal New Year's holiday, which is just enough to cover New Year's Eve.
The housekeeper was also worried, thinking that it would be lonely for her to spend the New Year alone since none of her family was around. There were many people like her in the villa who were not well off or were all alone and did not want to leave. They would send some money home and stay in the villa together. Anyway, the husband and wife had said that they could spend the New Year in the villa by themselves, as long as it was cleaned up.
After entering the villa, the housekeeper took good care of Wu Wangwang, a little girl with a pitiful background. Wu Wangwang was grateful to some extent, so she made an excuse that she felt it was cold here and wanted to go to the south to see the sea, so she planned to spend the New Year there.
Therefore, the steward could no longer persuade them, as the New Year in the south is always sunny and bright, and they were indeed not used to it here.
Ling Yuanshan was already waiting at his house. He had even ordered food, saying that the housekeeper would deliver meals during the Spring Festival, but since it was Wu Wangwang's first day of staying, she definitely needed to have a good meal.
The two spent a few lazy days at home, and before they knew it, it was New Year's Eve. The housekeeper arrived early. Knowing Ling Yuanshan's habits, she delivered the meal, reminded him to be careful, and then left. Given the situation in the previous three years, no one dared to let Ling Yuanshan go out during the New Year period, for fear that he might actually die on the road if he wasn't careful.
Wu Wangwang peeked out from behind the bedroom door: "If we don't go out today, will you still get into trouble?"
Ling Yuanshan carried the lunchbox to the restaurant: "It's hard to say. Accidents are always unpredictable. I think we should have died long ago. We survived because of the Night of Return of the Soul, so the Book of Life and Death doesn't match up. That's why they keep looking for opportunities to kill us again, which is why accidents keep happening."
“I’ve seen this movie, it’s called ‘Final Destination’,” Wu Wangwang said, following behind Ling Yuanshan.
"...Your reading volume is really getting bigger and bigger." Ling Yuanshan felt that at this rate, Wu Wangwang would eventually evolve into a cybernetic life form with high-intensity surfing.
During the day, the two ate and played games as usual. At night, they prepared the New Year's Eve dinner. Ling Yuanshan took care of it himself. The cooking course he took in prison was not for nothing. He was really good at it. While cooking, Wu Wangwang was reading a novel on her phone.
Everything was peaceful and serene until a child threw in a firework tube, which hit the gas stove right in the middle.
Ling Yuanshan laughed in exasperation: "Do you have to be so precise... Is it going to kill you to let us have a New Year's Eve dinner?"
Wu Wangwang looked up when she heard the sound, and the scene in front of her had changed; it was no longer the kitchen in her home.
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Author's Note: [End of Chapter]
Wu Wangwang: How about we eat it inside the dungeon? [Sigh]
Ling Yuanshan: Yes, I absolutely have to have this meal! [Sunglasses]
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