Chapter 114 Interview "Going to Xibei Mountain".
[The host and players are currently settling accounts.]
After the settlement is complete, the game room will enter "interview time". Please wait patiently.
[In the meantime, let's take a look back at some of the most exciting moments from the dungeon!]
The dungeon ended. Xue Chao adjusted his breathing, the feeling of weightlessness gradually dissipated, his stiff body warmed up, and he scrambled to his feet.
Every part of my body ached; my bones and tendons trembled violently, and I was certain that several places had been crushed by the monster's wings.
His brute strength exhausted, he slumped back onto the sofa, resignedly listening to the annoyingly cheerful broadcast of the electronic bird:
[Popularity score calculation in progress...]
[This dungeon run earned 86 popularity points]
[Due to the unique nature of this instance, the prediction of machine position ranking is skipped...]
[Final popularity score: 86 points]
[Popularity threshold reached]
[Base salary: 1000 (All-Seeing Eye)]
[Host's rating for this episode: S]
[Commission Earned: 31,000 (All-Seeing Eye)]
Total Salary Earned: 32,000 (All-Seeing Eye)
[Your room has been detected as number one on the game's real-time recommendation list. You have received an additional bonus of 10,000 (All-Seeing Eye)]
Total Salary Earned: 42,000 (All-Seeing Eye)
86 points, barely passing the S rating.
[Obtained the universal S-rank item "Third Eye"]
[Obtained Boss Crystal: Phosphorus Butterfly Wing Remnant]
[Unlimited Company grants you additional privileges. You can view this on the system TV in the employee dormitory after the interview.]
Keep up the good work! (Sprinkling flowers!)
Xue Chao, being frugal and hardworking, dabbed at the still-wet bloodstains and smeared them on his brow. The red blood then traced a thin blue line, like insect sap, revealing a blue-eyed eye, exactly the same as the original eye in his copy.
The eyes flashed by in an instant, then returned to invisibility, as if it were just an activation animation to let him know that it was indeed turned on.
He stared at himself in the mirror, speechless. The strangeness no longer made him dizzy; he just felt... fucking weird.
It's hard to say whether it's the head of a morpho butterfly or Erlang Shen.
Ah...right, the strangest head of the butterfly with Erlang Shen's eye was the one that looked the weirdest. When he looked at the strange thing in the mirror, he almost gave the mirror a deluxe "disintegration package".
Something moved in his hand, and Xue Chao unfolded it. Half of the butterfly's dark blue wings lay in his palm. With a gentle flap, it took flight, circling around him and trailing a blue, firefly-like tail.
It's quite amazing. It only has one half of its wing remaining, yet it flies like a normal butterfly, as if the other half of its wing is simply hidden.
After the silly bird finished releasing its trashy ribbons, it wisely opened the file for him.
[File No. 27561]:
※The file has been updated to the latest version.
Dungeon Name: Old School
Dungeon Difficulty: Four Stars - Hell
Dungeon opening count: 1
Highest popularity score for the instance: 86/100
Host's evaluation: S
Achievements earned from the instance: See the [Hall of Fame] (p2)
It was only opened once, so the honor wall is relatively thin, but he and a few other players filled almost ten pages of it.
The style of this file was based on their heads; his page had a morpho butterfly pattern and large areas of metallic blue. The light changed with the angle. He rubbed his eye sockets with a headache, glanced at it all, and turned the page away.
The first player's recorded name was "Xia Caizhe". He then flipped to "Sheng Hong" and became somewhat distracted.
At that moment, he had to maintain all his focus on dealing with the boss, who was so powerful that he had no time to care about anything else.
But as he fell, clutching a roll of film, he noticed that several pairs of eye-spots under the butterfly's wings were glaring at him resentfully. Only the largest pair of brown eye-spots was desperately looking upwards, staring angrily at the boss's true form.
It might not be the boss; the boss is just a hateful figure, a representative who prevents her death from being in vain. She hates something else entirely.
The cold film in his hand was burning hot, like the sizzling heat from rubbing against a monster's heart, especially one strip that was so hard it cut open his palm, as if he were holding a laser beam.
It seems to be Sheng Hong's roll of film.
He paused on Sheng Hong's page, then turned to Fang Tailai's page, where there was a top achievement called "Ready Player One," the details of which were "the only player to complete the main storyline and finish the game."
Xue Chao had previously wondered why Fang Tailai wasn't teleported away, since it was a stand-in who died but the character's death was still completed. He speculated that, just like how he left Pu Fengchun behind to help catalyze the boss, Fang Tailai was also left behind by Jiang Ming.
It's also possible that the copy doesn't allow for loopholes, but that's less likely. Surrounded by film, Xue Chao immediately noticed Fang Tailai's various attributes.
He witnessed the train jumping off the building in the corridor and the "Xue Chao" dream jumping off the building, and both were stand-ins.
This ability is quite strong. From the host's perspective, it can almost be seen as another entity, more like a "cloning technique" than a "stand-in".
Then he discovered that he could also see a side quest that Fang Tailai had done.
He doesn't have permission to view the player's quest list except for the publicly available main quests, but he can see this one because he posted it.
Side Quest 2 "Pickup Service"
[Mission Details: An uninvited guest who broke into the dormitory at night fulfilled the wish of the Ouija board spirit, who left him a gift. However, the uninvited guest is a lazybones and unwilling to take any risks. Please retrieve the gift for him.]
[Task Reward: Two uses of the Magic Pen (Updated)]
Xue Chao, an elderly man on the subway looking at his phone... What kind of rubbish is this description?
He did ask Fang Tailai to get a pen, but there was no notification on his host panel... Xue Chao glanced at the newly unlocked fourth rule of the "Game Host Code of Conduct," because at that time his role was "NPC"?
So it automatically became a quest issued to players?
The file only summarizes his identity as a "host". So, in the previous instance, he had the identity of a "player" because he got a machine position, but the summary does not show the most important indicator of a player, "contribution". He did the White-Dressed Lady's request, but there is no "side quest" shown.
Because the tasks are left for the "players" to do, the host only cares about the "popularity score".
The mission reward was added later, automatically supplemented based on Xue Chao's actions. He then turned to Pu Fengchun's page, and sure enough, there was another side quest available to view.
Side Quest 3 "The Mad Creature's Assistant"
[Mission Details: A dying man has raised some beautiful, fantastical creatures in a biology lab. Some have seen them flying in the dark. Now he's preparing to complete his final creation, but he lacks materials. Please help his butterflies successfully emerge from their cocoons.]
[Mission Reward: Sixth Morpho Butterfly (Updated)]
This is the morpho butterfly in the cat cage being given as a reward.
He thought the fourth rule of the host's code referred to his role, meaning that the plot related to his role was more important and included in the main storyline, but it turned out to be an "NPC".
He even unintentionally assigned tasks to the players.
Xue Chao's gaze involuntarily shifted downwards, looking at the blank space below the rules that remained locked.
He turned to the boss's page, which showed him covered in feathers at the end, because the hidden boss had been defeated. The last page was marked "Temporarily Closed" and "To be continued."
After the first copy, he checked the file number of the starting book, [9502], and found that the book could no longer be found in the host's topic selection hall; it was completely shut down.
After all, the entire Giant Port was filled with chasm. If it were to reopen, it would almost be a completely new story using the same world view, and it might have no connection to elements like ports and the sea.
The forum says it's actually permanently closed. Once the main storyline is completed, completely destroyed (majorly changed), and the hidden boss is defeated, the dungeon will no longer appear. This is based on experience.
Xue Chao's opinion remains questionable.
The doors and windows spun around, revealing a virus-like logo. Only two players remained to be interviewed: Fang Tailai and Deng Dayun. Xue Chao didn't choose either.
Those two clearly don't like appearing in front of an audience. They'll be sitting on pins and needles, not saying a word for ages. The guests will suffer, the host will get impatient, and the audience won't be happy either. It's unnecessary.
He lazily raised an objection during the countdown: "Can't I interview myself?"
This question is beyond the scope of the curriculum. Benuca paused, then said, "But you're not a player."
Xue Chao pointed to the small blackboard: "Please read Article 3 of the Game Host's Code of Conduct."
Bennu attempted to use his eerie childlike voice to explain: "You're not a player in this instance, and this is a studio, you are..."
"I'm the host, so I only care about popularity." Xue Chao glanced at the names of the remaining two players. "What kind of buzz can those two generate?"
Bennu hesitated: "...It seems impossible."
In this instance, the three most interesting characters are: one died, one rolled away, and one is right in front of it.
Xue Chao nodded casually, taking the fat bird's reply as agreement: "Let's begin."
Bennu was so anxious that he broke out in a cold sweat: "This doesn't seem to comply with the regulations..."
"Is that written in the contract?" Xue Chao was annoyed. He raised his eyelids and his anger flared up. "And there were unauthorized intrusions and disruptions in both instances. You need to give me an explanation. I'm all ears."
[...]
【00:00:00】
[The interview has begun!]
The static on the old television screen flickered and was quickly filled with enthusiastic comments from viewers. Xue Chao glanced at it; his room was still in first place.
But this time there was no suspense, and the audience left faster than last time, so it wouldn't last long. However, Xue Chao didn't intend to give a long speech.
Constant speculation, discussion, and debate are also ways to maintain interest.
The audience has no way to interact with the players, and the host is too busy to handle everything. That's part of their fun. Just like jokes don't need explanation, and puzzles don't necessarily need a standard answer. Just guess!
"Good evening, everyone." Xue Chao lay sprawled on the sofa, looking rather unserious. "Don't bother looking, there are no guests."
Aside from the comments still frantically discussing the dungeon content and engaging in heated arguments, all that's left is wailing:
"【Xue Chao】ah???"
"【Xue Chao】Brother, are you being disliked by the players? Hahaha, but this thing is mandatory, right? The host is invincible in the studio."
"[Xue Chao] Is it ending now? QAQ No, let's chat for another two minutes!"
...
Xue Chao raised an eyebrow: "You're so reluctant to part with me?"
"[Xue Chao] I command you not to leave! Don't force me to kneel down and beg you, waah!"
"[Xue Chao] Brother, you're covered in injuries. Why don't you take them off and get them checked? In the game world, every second counts; time is money!"
"【Xue Chao】The abacus upstairs just popped into my eye, but I second that!"
"【Xue Chao】That's right, I'm just killing time anyway, I want to see some perks!"
"[Xue Chao] supports live streaming of applying medicine!"
Xue Chao scoffed and curled the corners of his lips: "Want to see me? Maybe in the next dungeon."
"[Xue Chao] When will it air? Tomorrow? Tomorrow, I guess qaq. Waiting one day is my limit. I'll lose some of my good qualities if I can't see you..."
"【Xue Chao】Seconded! A courtesan's smile can mean the difference between life and death. I don't want this vast harem anymore, I'll be waiting for you tomorrow!"
"【Xue Chao】But judging by my rating... it'll be next Monday at the earliest, right? I don't look like the kind of 'workaholic' who needs to struggle to make ends meet..."
"【Xue Chao】Can all the top players learn from Brother San? He guarantees two runs a week. He's already ranked third and he's still working so hard. Aren't you guys getting dragged down by this?!"
"【Xue Chao】Haha, Brother Shan mainly loves this..."
"【Xue Chao】How can a butcher not slaughter sheep? (angry)"
"【Xue Chao】He's mainly been racking up points lately, I just glanced at it and he's already second on the leaderboard."
"【Xue Chao】Ah?? Finally!"
"【Xue Chao】The non-existent Ghost List number two has finally been surpassed... How long has that position been vacant?"
"Xue Chao is probably also trying to accumulate points for the guild competition."
Will Brother Xue Chao participate in the event? I bet a lot of guilds are extending offers to him!
"【Xue Chao】But I just opened two dungeons, and the guild dungeons are quite difficult, right? They're intricately connected, and everyone's got connections and preparations. Plus, it's not uncommon for different guilds to team up and kill the host first at the start..."
"【Xue Chao】Guild Dungeon... Let's survive until the players enter before talking about anything else. Have you forgotten the rules of guild dungeons?"
"【Xue Chao】Indeed, the big guild I signed with definitely won't let go of such a good seedling. Who will compensate us if he fails?"
"【Xue Chao】No, I want to see it! Bro, I'm opening a guild dungeon, I'll definitely participate in the amusement park event, hahaha!"
"Open it." Xue Chao's phoenix eyes held a hint of a smile, a coldness tinged with affection. "Open it if you want to see it."
"【Xue Chao】Awesome!!"
"【Xue Chao】Awesome!!"
...
"【Xue Chao】Next Monday, next Monday!"
"[Xue Chao] There are a lot of hosts next Monday, after all, it's the first day of the guild competition."
"【Xue Chao】Next Monday is just right. The grand finale is all on Sunday. Monday can avoid some big names and prevent newcomers from taking advantage of us."
"We haven't decided on a time yet, we'll decide later," Xue Chao said. "But we've already decided where to open it."
"【Xue Chao】? You told us about this too?"
"【Xue Chao】So you were prepared all along, bro. But I'd better not say anything. What if the place you specifically chose, which might be easy to operate in, is already taken?"
"【Xue Chao】Do I even need to guess? It's definitely the kind of relatively peaceful location suitable for a novice host, like an abandoned school or hospital. The difficulty is uncertain, but at least we know what the place is for and what kind of ghosts might be associated with it. This time it's already a school, so let's go for a pure hospital setting?"
"【Xue Chao】Abandoned apartment buildings, cinemas, aquariums... there are too many to count, they're just in regular dungeons."
"【Xue Chao】I can watch it normally, so why bother watching guild dungeons? I'm not going to watch these 'guaranteed' dungeons... Wouldn't it be better to watch pro players' wilderness survival videos..."
"【Xue Chao】That's right! We need high-difficulty dungeons! We need extreme secret realms!"
"【Xue Chao】+10010, For a host, boredom is the original sin :)"
After watching the audience's renewed debate for a while, Xue Chao lazily said, "Let's go to Xibei Mountain," as if casually announcing something.
The comments section fell into an eerie silence once again, then filled with incredulous question marks.
"【Xue Chao】Am I deaf? Haha, I am deaf now."
"【Xue Chao】Joyful and Sorrowful Mountain... Is that the Joyful and Sorrowful Mountain I know? It's a coincidence, haha."
"Who else could it be but Xue Chao...? Who would dare share the same name as that person's hometown?!"
"[Xue Chao]'s book... During the last guild competition, not a single host dared to organize a game, and not a single guild showed any interest..."
"[Xue Chao] Actually, the time before last was also like this... it felt like it hadn't been opened for hundreds of years..."
"【Xue Chao】This is a group raid, not a group suicide... It's scary enough that he wanders around aimlessly when he's in a good mood... Who would dare to go deep into the lair of the most evil god and send themselves to their death?!"
Suddenly, the audience, whether advising him to practice in the easy dungeons or to have fun in the extreme dungeons, all agreed on one thing: "Please, please don't go to Mount Xibei!"
Xue Chao's response was to smile and turn off the only television camera, bidding farewell to the audience.
See you next week.
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