The Distance Between Theory and Practice, Red Name Monster NPC, and Corridor AFK Penalty

The night was deep, like a piece of opaque black curtain, tightly wrapping the world outside the window.

Yet, Lu Ren's room was illuminated by a faint blue light.

The old, bulky CRT television emitted a subtle electric hum, displaying a classic match from the Spring High Volleyball tournament from a few years prior. Although the picture quality was only 480P, in Lu Ren's eyes, this wasn't just a recording of a game, but a walkthrough video for a high-difficulty Instance.

"Pause."

Lu Ren pressed the remote control. The screen froze at the moment the setter tossed the ball.

He lowered his head, flipped open the book Volleyball Tactics Illustrated, and his finger quickly scanned the pages as he muttered to himself.

"0.5 seconds before jumping, wrist flick amplitude... Hmm, there's a feint here. If the system automatically locked on, this ball would most likely go to the wing spiker on the left."

He picked up a pen and drew a simple parabolic curve in his notebook, adding a short note beside it: [Setter's feint: Extremely deceptive, recommended to anticipate rather than follow. Weakness: Form deteriorates when stamina is low.]

"Continue."

The video resumed. As expected, the ball flew to the left wing.

"That's right. As long as you understand the AI... no, understand the player's behavioral logic, this game isn't that hard."

Lu Ren tossed the thick book aside. Two hours, over three hundred pages, he had finished reading it all. While he wouldn't dare say he could recite it backward, at least all the rule judgments, foul lines, and basic tactical positioning had been stored in his brain's database.

For a hardcore player who could grind for three days and three nights to get a rare drop, memorizing a strategy guide was just a Novice Village quest.

"Theory mastered. Next is the breakdown of practical movements."

Lu Ren sat cross-legged on the floor, dragged the disc's progress bar back to the beginning, and pressed play again.

This time, he no longer focused on tactics, but intently watched every player's movement details. The timing of their jump, the angle of their arm swing, the cushioning of their landing.

Once. Twice.

Rewind. Replay.

"Here, if operating with a controller, it should be 'down' to charge, then 'jump' followed by 'heavy attack'..." Lu Ren watched, mimicking the controller input movements in the air, his expression as focused as if he were performing a delicate surgical operation.

Time slipped away amidst the electric hum.

When the hour hand of the clock pointed to four in the morning, Lu Ren finally couldn't hold on any longer.

"Stamina value at zero... forced logout..."

He still clutched the remote tightly in his hand, his head tilted as he slumped onto the floor. He didn't even have the strength to climb into bed, falling asleep in a bizarrely contorted position.

The morning sun pierced through the gap in the curtains, like a lightsaber entering the room.

"Lu Ren! Wake up! You're going to be late!"

The door was flung open. Kiyosawa Mashiba, with her schoolbag on her back, burst in energetically.

"Auntie said you weren't downstairs yet, so I knew you'd definitely..."

Her voice abruptly stopped.

Mashiba's mouth twitched as she looked at the scene before her.

Books scattered all over the floor, notebooks strewn about, and Lu Ren lying in the middle of the book pile, like a victim at a crime scene. The television was still tirelessly playing the sponsor list at the end.

"Hey! Wake up!"

Mashiba crouched down and poked Lu Ren's cheek with her finger.

No reaction.

"If you don't get up, I'll overwrite your save file!"

Lu Ren's body jolted violently.

He struggled to open one eye, his pupils bloodshot, his gaze as hollow as if his soul had been drained.

"...Don't touch my save file." His voice was hoarse, like sand stuck in his throat.

"Are you an idiot?" Mashiba pulled him up from the floor and casually turned off the TV, "I told you to watch the guide, not to cultivate immortality! Look at those dark circles under your eyes, you could moonlight as a national treasure at the zoo."

"This is... the medal of a Grind King." Lu Ren stood up unsteadily, his brain clearly not yet booted up, "That BOSS just now... the second phase transformation was too fast, I hadn't memorized the patterns yet..."

"What nonsense are you talking about." Mashiba sighed and threw his school uniform on his head, "You have five minutes to wash up and get dressed. I'll wait for you downstairs. If you dare fall asleep again, I'll sell all this junk to the scrap dealer."

Ten minutes later.

Sakashita Shopping Street.

Lu Ren, with half a slice of toast in his mouth, drifted behind Mashiba like a wandering spirit.

As they passed the bookstore, Lu Ren stopped and placed the disc case in his hand on the counter.

"Owner, return... no, return the book."

The owner pushed up his glasses and glanced at the time, "So soon? Young man, this is a two-hour compilation, and you only borrowed it for one night and you've finished it?"

"Finished it." Lu Ren yawned, a couple of physiological tears squeezing from the corners of his eyes, "The plot was too cliché, and the stat balance wasn't great. But the special effects were passable."

Owner: "..."

Walking out of the bookstore, Mashiba looked at him with some concern, "Did you really finish it? Or did you feel you couldn't understand it and just gave up?"

"Give up?" Lu Ren mumbled around his bread, "Although I'm a go-with-the-flow player, I never abandon a game. I've already engraved all the moves into my DNA. The rest..."

He stretched, his joints cracking audibly.