[The Scattered Wind and Water] Guild Hall
Inside an elegant garden compound steeped in old-world charm, a man in a traditional Chinese jacket sat in a pavilion, fiddling with a tea set.
He looked to be in his thirties. The buttons on the diagonal front of his jacket were fastened neatly up to his neck, and his slightly dated, old-fashioned hair was parted roughly 70/30. Yet paired with his deep-set eyes, which held both melancholy and a hint of laughter, the style looked natural and harmonious.
At first glance, he looked like Tony Leung had stepped straight out of In the Mood for Love and into the real world.
Amid the birdsong and fragrant blossoms in the courtyard, a young man in a gray long gown hurried down the corridor and into the pavilion. He bowed respectfully to the man who was sipping tea.
"Master, it's confirmed. It's in that Trial Map, exactly as you predicted."
"Mm." The man took a sip of tea and said nothing more.
Unsure how to read his master, the young man ventured, "Master, should we send someone over to take a look?"
"Send someone? How?" The man turned slightly to glance at his disciple. His voice was even, betraying little emotion. "That's a beginner map. The system randomly matches players and sends them in. Once the mission begins, the system's laws are in effect. We have no right to interfere."
The young man wasn't convinced. With his head lowered, he muttered, "I heard someone from the Ghost Tamer Alliance hacked straight into the NPC system..."
The man shot his disciple a sidelong glance. "Others may break the system's rules. We may not."
Realizing he had annoyed his master, the young man answered, "Yes," and dropped the subject. Still, he couldn't help grumbling, "That prophecy was clearly passed to Jun Wuming by you in secret. The Ghost Tamer Alliance must have intercepted our message along the way. How shameless."
The man took another sip of tea and replied indifferently, "They won't interfere."
"They won't?"
The young man was puzzled. They'd hacked straight into the NPC system—how could they not interfere? But if his master said they wouldn't, then they certainly wouldn't.
The man continued, "The Ghost Tamer Alliance isn't stupid. He won't enter a match he's bound to lose."
The young man only half understood. "Master, what should we do now?"
The man lowered his eyes to the teacup in his hand. The clear tea rippled faintly. "Go to Game Lobby 36792. After they leave the Trial Map they're in, they'll be sent there."
As he spoke, the man lifted his head and smiled. "If Jun Wuming doesn't succeed in the map, he'll have no choice but to hand the item over in the lobby."
At the center of the Seventh High School campus, on the athletic field.
Wen Nan stood on the grass, watching Yu Shujun lay out the things from her uniform one by one, like a woman setting up a street stall—
Two hole-ridden athletic socks, two bent clothes hangers, a blackboard eraser covered in chalk dust, a pair of underwear worn so many times they were nearly transparent, a weed clumped with bloodstained dirt, two crushed water bottles, an Empty Cola Can...
As Yu Shujun laid everything out, Wen Nan crouched beside her and casually picked up a blackboard eraser. "Even the old man collecting scrap near the flower beds in front of the school building doesn't find as much as you do."
Yu Shujun glanced at him, then said nothing and continued emptying her pockets.
A glint of gold flashed across the blackboard eraser in Wen Nan's hand, and the system's alert sounded in his mind.
9527: [Hidden item detected in this map: Blackboard Eraser.]
Wen Nan asked in his mind what the item did, but received only this response: [This item has been locked by another player or character. Details cannot be viewed.]
It wasn't his item, so he couldn't even see its description?
Wen Nan balanced the eraser on his palm and tossed it around casually. "I thought you'd wait until the very last moment to come find me."
At that, Yu Shujun's hands paused. She turned to look at the man beside her.
Seeing that he looked casual, as though he'd said it without thinking and wasn't deliberately testing her, Yu Shujun felt some of the tension ease from her chest.
In truth, Yu Shujun had planned to wait until the very last moment before approaching him—
She had already searched the entire map once. Aside from an Empty Cola Can that this man named Ye Jiu had taken along the way, Yu Shujun had collected every hidden item here.
But she had kept putting it off and hadn't come to see him. She wanted to wait until the very last moment, then honor their agreement right before the settlement.
Her original plan had been to wait until after settlement, when they left the map and entered the Game Lobby, before making her move.
After all, it would be easier to act there, without having her hands tied.
But...
Plans had changed.
People from the [The Scattered Wind and Water] Guild had already gone to the Game Lobby corresponding to this map.
Thinking of the refined, mild-mannered man from [The Scattered Wind and Water], Yu Shujun felt a headache coming on. In a direct confrontation, she stood no chance against him as she was now.
She had to settle this in the map.
Given that man's style, Yu Shujun was sure he wouldn't break the system's laws, nor would he tamper with anything in a Trial Map.
The only people who might get in her way here were members of the [Ghost Tamer Alliance] Guild.
But Yu Shujun didn't take those clowns seriously. The only exception would be if their guild leader personally stepped in. Yet she was sure that, given the guild leader's temperament, he wouldn't get involved himself.
So... Yu Shujun felt certain she would get what she wanted.
Was there really no one in this map who could stand in her way...?
At the thought, Yu Shujun turned to look at the man crouching beside her.
Could this man become the last stumbling block?
The thought flashed through her mind, but Yu Shujun quickly pushed it aside—
No. Though he was a little clever, he was ultimately just an inexperienced newbie with no authority or influence. When it came down to it, he was no different from those clowns in the [Ghost Tamer Alliance]. He couldn't cause any real trouble.
"What are you thinking about so intently?"
Wen Nan raised a hand and waved it in front of Yu Shujun.
Yu Shujun gathered her thoughts and lifted her chin toward the things laid out before her. "These are all the items. They all need to go into your Equipment Backup Slot."
Wen Nan glanced at the "trash" covering the ground and couldn't help commenting again, "How did you even fit all this stuff?"
Yu Shujun fell silent for a moment. In the end, she ignored Wen Nan's question and opened her character interface in her mind, working through a few options.
The next moment, a message appeared in Wen Nan's system—
9527: [Character Yu Shujun has requested access to your Equipment Backup Slot's sharing feature. Accept?]
Before you continue