Tongtian's Gaming Addiction

The invisible sense of being watched from outside the window clung to them like a bone-deep infection, quickly cooling the warmth that the delicious food had just brought to the room. Lin Fan felt a chill run down his back, as if countless eyes were watching their every move through the walls. He instinctively pulled the curtains tighter, though he knew it might only be a psychological comfort.

"Are they... going to come in?" Lin Fan asked tensely, lowering his voice.

Tong Tian sat back down on his yoga mat, closed his eyes, and sensed the surroundings for a moment. "They have no such intention for now. They're only monitoring us."

Nüwa gave a slight nod. A look of understanding flashed through her clear eyes. "The guardians of this world's order? It seems our existence has drawn their attention." She sounded less alarmed than thoughtful about this unfamiliar response.

"Then what... should we do?" Lin Fan felt at a loss. Being watched by the forces of the state was ten thousand times more terrifying than facing a bunch of thugs.

"Wait and see," Tong Tian said tersely. "If they do not act, neither will I. A mere mortal institution is not enough to uncover our origins." His tone carried the innate pride of a Saint. Even fallen on hard times, his vision and spirit were far beyond those of ordinary people.

Nüwa also gently reassured Lin Fan. "There is no need to worry too much. The laws of this world are stable, and its order is well maintained. They must have rules for how they act. Since they are only monitoring us for now, they are still observing and have not yet reached a conclusion."

The two Saints' composure calmed Lin Fan somewhat. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. That was right—panicking wouldn't help. What was coming would come. At least for now, the other side didn't seem inclined to take drastic action.

Still, living under surveillance was suffocating. He glanced at the mess of takeout containers on the table and couldn't even bring himself to clean them up.

To distract himself and ease his anxiety, Lin Fan habitually sat down at his computer and pressed the power button. For a wage slave like him, retreating into the online world was the cheapest way to relieve stress.

The computer fan gave a soft whirr. The screen lit up, and the familiar operating system appeared.

Lin Fan didn't notice that, as he started up the computer, the pair of eyes behind him—eyes as deep as an abyss and previously shut tight—had quietly opened a narrow slit.

Tong Tian seemed to be meditating and regulating his breath, but part of his mind remained alert to the outside world, keeping watch for the unseen observers. At the same time, he was deeply curious about this mortal world. The square "artifact" Lin Fan had activated, which was called a "computer," caught his attention.

As it started up, the countless tiny, intricately complex "runes" inside it—circuits—lit up at once. They operated according to rules Tong Tian couldn't fully understand, eventually building a stable, clear interface on the screen. The process seemed to contain a hint of... a combination of "array formations" and "talisman arts," yet it was entirely different: more precise, more systematic, as if countless simple rules had been layered together to produce nearly infinite variations.

Lin Fan skillfully opened an MMORPG, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game he often played. He played a swordsman, and his character was standing in the main city plaza. As he watched the other players' colorful outfits and mounts and the dazzling skill effects flying all over the screen, he absentmindedly went through his daily quests.

Tong Tian had only glanced over casually at first, but when he saw the mountains, rivers, cities, and people in that virtual world—and especially when he saw the sword-wielding character Lin Fan controlled using various "sword techniques" to fight other "players" and "monsters"—his gaze was completely captivated.

In his eyes, those virtual sword techniques were crude, full of flaws, and devoid of any true meaning of the Great Dao. They were inferior even to the skills of the lowest-ranked sword cultivators in the Primordial Era. But what interested him was the "world" itself!

Could the mortals of this world really use this "computer" artifact to create a vast, complex realm that could hold countless "soul and mind projections"—as Tong Tian understood them, the players controlling their characters—and let them interact?

This was no mere feat of craftsmanship. It was almost like... creating something from nothing! Though the world was an illusion, the logic behind it, its capacity for information, and the immediacy of its interactions all far surpassed his imagination!

It was entirely unlike any illusion formation, maze formation, or even minor world he knew. This was a "digital world" built upon pure rules and logic!

His gaze sharpened when Lin Fan controlled his character to unleash a large-area skill called "Myriad Swords Technique." Sword energy crisscrossed the screen, and dazzling lights flashed everywhere—though to Tong Tian, the effects looked as crude as a child's scribbles.

Myriad Swords Technique?

The corner of Tong Tian's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. Such a crude trick deserved to be called "myriad swords"? To him, it was nothing more than countless preprogrammed, rigid trails of light layered together, without the slightest spirit or any sword intent.

And yet, the very existence of this "virtual world," and the way it could simulate "battles," showed him a glimmer of... possibility.

He had lost all his magic power and couldn't cultivate or fight in the real world. But in this virtual world, could he... simulate and analyze? Even the most rudimentary kind, based on its rules, might help him nourish and grow accustomed to the sword intent within him, which had been suppressed.

At the very least, it was better than sitting around sensing the "land devoid of spiritual energy."

When Lin Fan finished a round of daily quests and was about to log off to browse the web and clear his mind, a calm but unquestionable voice sounded behind him:

"Let me see this 'world.'"

Lin Fan jumped and whipped around. At some point, Tong Tian had come up behind him. He was staring intently at the computer screen, his deep eyes shining with a kind of intense curiosity Lin Fan had never seen before.

"Ah? You... you want to look at this?" Lin Fan pointed at the game on the screen, bewildered. "It's just... a game. For entertainment."

"Game?" Tong Tian repeated the unfamiliar word, his gaze still fixed on the screen. "That is what this thing is called? I wish to try it."

Try it?! Master Tongtian wanted to play an online game?!

Lin Fan felt as if he'd just heard the most fantastical news of the year. He looked at Tong Tian's stern, serious face, as if he were discussing the supreme way of the sword instead of asking to play a game, then at the cartoonish character on the screen. The sheer incongruity nearly made him burst out laughing.

But he didn't dare laugh. He cautiously asked, "You... really want to play?"

"Mm." Tong Tian nodded, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"...All right." What else could Lin Fan say? He hurriedly stood up and moved aside. "You can sit here. This is how you control it..." He awkwardly explained the basic functions of the keyboard and mouse, as well as how to move, attack, and use skills in the game.

He stumbled through the explanation, his heart pounding. He was afraid this senior might lose patience, or decide that this "virtual swordplay" insulted his intelligence and destroy the computer with a glance.

But to Lin Fan's surprise, Tong Tian listened with absolute focus. His powerful innate spirit and capacity to learn were on full display. Lin Fan only had to explain once, and Tong Tian had already memorized the positions and functions of dozens of keys. His control of the mouse, initially clumsy, quickly became smooth.

"That's basically how you play," Lin Fan said, swallowing. "Do you... want to create a new character?"

"Very well," Tong Tian replied tersely.

Lin Fan helped him create a new swordsman character—Tong Tian seemed to approve of the class. They skipped the tedious character customization, which Tong Tian showed no interest in, and went straight into the starting village.

What Lin Fan witnessed next was the most revolutionary moment of his gaming life.

Tong Tian led the level-one swordsman out of the starting area. Rather than follow the quest markers like a normal beginner, he stood still and made his character face empty air, practicing the most basic attack: a simple slash.

Once, twice, three times...

His expression was solemn, his gaze focused, as if he weren't playing a game but performing some sacred ritual. He wasn't clicking mechanically. He was sensing! Sensing the virtual character's sword trajectory, speed, and strength; the attack and recovery frames set by the game engine; the cooldowns and ranges of the skills...

Lin Fan watched, dumbfounded. Was this how a Saint played a game? By analyzing its rules from the ground up?

After practicing the basic moves for about ten minutes, Tong Tian seemed to have gained a preliminary understanding of the virtual body's "capabilities." He began accepting beginner quests and taking on low-level monsters.

Then Lin Fan saw what "playing at the limit" really meant.

Whenever a monster attacked, Tong Tian's character dodged by a hair's breadth. Every normal attack landed at the optimal interval permitted by the game mechanics, and the timing and angle of every skill were terrifyingly precise. The character was still at the lowest level and wearing the worst equipment, yet fought as efficiently as if decked out in top-tier gear.

He wasn't "playing" the game at all. He was... dismantling it! With a reaction speed, calculating ability, and combat instinct many times beyond those of any mortal, he was forcing the virtual character to obey him!

He cleared the beginner quests at astonishing speed, his level shooting upward. Lin Fan even felt that if the game's mechanics hadn't held him back—if quest dialogue could be skipped and monsters didn't need time to respawn—he could have left the starting village within an hour!

Nüwa was drawn over by the commotion. When she saw the little character controlled by Tong Tian weaving effortlessly through a crowd of monsters, sword flashes—the special effects—forming an unbroken stream, surprise appeared in her eyes as well.

"Senior Brother... is so talented at this?" she asked Lin Fan softly, a hint of amusement in her voice.

Lin Fan gave a dry laugh, not knowing what to say. This wasn't talent—it was a whole other level of power!

As time went on, Tong Tian became completely immersed in the virtual world. He had no interest in quests or the story; what delighted him was challenging the limits of the world's "rules." He sought out elite monsters that were higher level than he was and seemingly impossible to defeat alone, then wore them down bit by bit with nearly perfect footwork, blocks—if the game allowed them—and skill rotations.

Along the way, he also critiqued the game's flashy "sword techniques."

"Flashy but impractical. They waste mana."

"This move's angle is off by three degrees. Its opening is enormous."

"Hmph. Only this move, 'Sword Sweep of the Eight Directions,' shows some hint of 'sweeping the area clean.' The form is similar, but the spirit is not."

Lin Fan listened with a cold sweat running down his back. In Tong Tian's eyes, the game he'd played for years was apparently nothing but a heap of flaws.

But for all his criticism, Tong Tian was getting more and more absorbed in "playing." His face, frozen in its usual impassivity, still showed little expression, but Lin Fan could sense that the sharp, keep-away-from-me aura around him had grown more restrained as he focused.

Had he even... forgotten to meditate and regulate his breath?

When Lin Fan stepped away for a while because he needed to use the bathroom, he returned to find Tong Tian still sitting in the same position, fingers flying over the keyboard and mouse. His character was fighting a boss alone in a dungeon. Its health bar swung perilously up and down, but Tong Tian's control remained rock solid.

Lin Fan glanced at the time in the lower-right corner of the screen and jumped. Almost four hours had passed without him realizing it!

And Tong Tian showed no sign of stopping.

"Um... Senior Tong Tian, would you like to take a break? Have some water?" Lin Fan ventured.

"No need." Tong Tian didn't even turn around. He kept his eyes fixed on the battle and answered casually. His voice even carried a hint of... barely perceptible excitement?

Lin Fan and Nüwa exchanged a look. They both saw a touch of helplessness—and amusement—in each other's eyes.

Nüwa shook her head gently and murmured, "Though Senior Brother is utterly devoted to the sword, he can be rather stubborn. I never expected an ordinary pastime from this world to make him so... focused."

An absurd thought came to Lin Fan: Could Master Tongtian have... developed a gaming addiction?

The idea sent a chill down his spine. Just supporting one Saint was hard enough. If he had to support a gaming-addicted Saint too... would his meager salary even cover the electricity and internet bills?

And if Yuanshi Tianzun or Dao Ancestor Hongjun found out their junior brother or disciple, Tong Tian, was addicted to online games in the mortal world, would they send down a bolt of heavenly lightning and strike the whole building?

Just then, Tong Tian's character made an incredibly precise move, exploiting the blind spot in the boss's attack, and dodged a fatal strike. He followed it with a combo of skills and killed the boss with a sliver of health remaining!

The golden word "Victory" flashed across the screen.

Tong Tian slowly leaned back in his chair. His face remained impassive, but Lin Fan could almost hear the satisfied sigh in his heart. He casually moved the mouse, preparing to leave the dungeon.

But the moment he moved it, the computer screen suddenly went black!

Immediately afterward, a huge red warning window appeared in the center of the screen. It read in Chinese and English:

[Warning: Abnormal game data detected! Your account is suspected of using a third-party illegal program (cheat). It has been suspended by the system! Suspension period: 365 days!]

Lin Fan: "!!!"

Tong Tian: "???"

The air in the room froze.

Tong Tian stared at the glaring red warning. His brows slowly furrowed, and the sharp aura that had just subsided began to rise once more.

He turned to Lin Fan, coldness filling his deep eyes.

"What does this mean? What is a 'cheat'?"