Vol-3: 106. Even in Sci-Fi Works, This Is a Setting Not Easily Adopted

106. Even in Sci-Fi Works, This Is a Setting Not Easily Adopted

"Qiu Yun, take this coffee to Minister Norfolk, then you can finish work for the day."

"Mm, okay."

Xia Yubing immediately put on a professional smile, placing the coffee on the cart, pushing it to the elevator. Only once inside did she let out a sigh of relief.

"Is this what an online game is? Why does it feel just as exhausting as working a regular job?"

Xia Yubing muttered to herself. The government employee attire she wore was uncomfortable, but since it provided the [Anti-Harassment] status, she tolerated it.

Through her investigation, she discovered that the body she was possessing, named 'Qiu Yun,' hadn't died under normal circumstances. The cause of death wasn't just overwork; some malicious female colleagues had also played a part.

While taking the elevator, Xia Yubing opened the system's built-in memo app, reviewing the evidence she'd gathered.

"Evidence A: [Recording] — Female colleagues Vivian and Andy were jealous of Qiu Yun's promotion and kept sabotaging her work. This included and wasn't limited to: piling on extra tasks, blocking her from speaking with superiors, excluding her from group activities, and spilling oil on her uniform moments before public events—classic workplace bullying."

"Evidence B: [Chat Logs] — On President David Lin's inauguration day, Qiu Yun's mentee, Lilith, planned to make Qiu Yun anger foreign dignitaries while serving them, to disrupt the ceremony—Lilith herself might even be an undercover spy from abroad."

Qiu Yun's background and her tragic death made Xia Yubing, a complete novice to gaming, feel a deep sadness. When she uncovered the truth, her indignation only grew.

"Don't worry, Qiu Yun. I'll make sure you get justice! And I'll find your sister too."

Fortunately, she wasn't alone. Her clubmates, all originating from Frost-Plated, formed a guild and started leveling up efficiently, hunting down monsters.

As for Qiu Yun's missing sister, there were no clues yet. But Xia Yubing was confident that as the player numbers continued to grow, relevant information would soon emerge.

Interestingly, the Four Nations had already become aware of the arrival of 'Descenders.' After research, they concluded it was some kind of disease, which didn't seem to pose much of a threat.

In a sense, players were more well-behaved compared to ordinary citizens.

In fact, most players had descended into the Outlands; only a quarter were in the Four Nations. The summoned characters they controlled were essentially social outcasts.

Initially, players found this premise disturbing. But as many discovered that their summoned avatars were either already dead or on the brink of death—they stopped caring.

In a country of over six hundred million people, even natural deaths numbered around eight million annually, with accidental deaths reaching about one hundred thousand. Plus, the Outlands' harsh conditions—cold, lack of natural light, cancer—had made player arrivals actually reduce the mortality rate by a few percentage points.

When the public server opened, player registrations were in the low millions, so initially, they weren't given much attention.

Players had a penchant for taking on dangerous jobs and living on the edge, often working as mercenaries, which dealt a severe blow to the underground crime syndicates.

Though players were still treated like urban myths, the club's enforcers were already a huge help to Xia Yubing.

Club members used rough methods to extract intelligence from gangs and street sources, and Xia Yubing, using her [Government Employee] status, provided them with timely government bounties and information.

Although she still worked at a Frost-Plated government department, gaining only a fixed amount of experience each day, her friends needed her as an informant, and Xia Yubing was happy to oblige.

Opening her friends list, the first name she saw under 'Special Focus' was Caramel Snail, who had just sent her a new message.

Caramel Snail: Ah, this quest is so hard! Everyone else has sharpshooting skills and moves like swallows—it's so stressful to keep up with them. (Read just now)

Xia Yubing glanced at the message; Caramel Snail had reached level 19, while she herself was still at level 6, merely a [Laborer].

'The top-ranked player on the forums is only level 20... Seems like Snail is actually pretty amazing.'

Thinking this, Xia Yubing typed out a greeting.

Reply: Enjoying alien territory? — (Read)

Caramel Snail: Meh, it's okay. But this new exploration mission is really tough. Our six-person team ran into trouble while looking for a goblin lair (see screenshot: 623.7MB) — (Read)

Xia Yubing clicked on the screenshot, revealing an eerie scene: a dark forest under a blackened sky, dim light everywhere. In Snail's first-person perspective, several crimson eyes were visible, flickering like ghostly fire.

'...This? Not as scary as the horror movies I watched back in elementary school,' Xia Yubing thought.

Reply: (Typing...)

Caramel Snail: Ugh, it's really scary! I hate places like this the most! — (Read)

Seeing that, Xia Yubing hesitated and deleted her 'What's the big deal?' message.

Reply: Mm, it's really terrifying. Running into something like that at night, I'd definitely have nightmares!

'Is this response too fake? Snail doesn't seem to like such timid wording. But if I come off too strong, will he think I don't care about him?'

Xia Yubing thought for a bit, then started typing: Snail, you're so brave. If it were me, I definitely wouldn't dare go further alone into such a dark place. So scary...

'Ugh, this tone is so disgusting. But with this, he can just respond: No worries, we'll go together next time—then there'll be a chance to meet up in real life!'

Before she could finish typing, Snail uploaded another picture.

'Hmm? What did he send this time? Probably another in-game screenshot, right?'

She downloaded it and opened it:

In the first-person shot, Snail seemed to have fallen, with visible wounds. A female player with green-streaked hair reached out a hand toward him. Her bright features contrasted sharply with the chrome circuitry running across her face, looking like a true cyberpunk beauty.

[Blood pressure rising, stay calm.]

The blood pressure monitor on her wrist immediately started beeping.

Caramel Snail: Honestly, this goblin lair is really too tough. Luckily, nobody minds how clumsy I am; they keep helping me out—especially Cumin Powder. She saved me multiple times. Apart from her personality, she really is an angel. We've been wiped out twice just on the outskirts; we're setting up camp now and will move once our respawns reset tomorrow morning. — (Read just now)

Caramel Snail: (Typing...)

Caramel Snail: (Sends another picture) We've set up camp, and that's it for my battles today. The public server is great. Back in the closed beta, when our characters slept, we could only browse the forums, but now I can play "Red Arrow Miner" and Auto Chess. Anyway, Night Sword is calling me to duo, so I'm off. — (Read)

(User has left the chat)

"Cumin Powder? An angel?"

Xia Yubing clicked her tongue, her voice cold.

She zoomed in to inspect the girl's appearance carefully, comparing it to herself countless times in her head.

In terms of looks, she was clearly superior. Qiu Yun might have been average, but with a bit of makeup, she could still be very attractive.

Xia Yubing patted her own flat chest.

"Ah... how regrettable, malnutrition at its worst."

Xia Yubing shook her head.

Thinking about it made her even more sympathetic towards Qiu Yun.

Besides, looks and figure in virtual games were all fake. Who knew? Cumin Powder could be a tank in real life. Snail had met her before; he knew what she actually looked like in real life.

After going through everything, Xia Yubing concluded her only disadvantage was her level. That woman Cumin Powder had joined the beta, reaching level 20. But Xia Yubing had only played for a few days since the server opened, yet she was already at level 6.

Xia Yubing mumbled:

"So what if she got into the game earlier than me."