Chapter 5: We Are Just Ordinary Friends

Luo Tiancheng lay down beside He Yinhui as he had wished, too excited to sleep, his heart racing uncontrollably.

Being this close… it was such a test of his restraint!

The sound of the thunderstorm outside gradually subsided, and He Yinhui’s breathing became steady, indicating he had fallen asleep.

To be safe, Luo Tiancheng waited a little longer before gently turning over, moving closer to the person who had thrown his heart into disarray.

Under the soft glow of the night light, Luo Tiancheng could clearly see his handsome face.

His lips looked so inviting; they must taste wonderful…

But Luo Tiancheng didn’t dare to lick them, afraid of waking him up.

After admiring him for a few minutes, Luo Tiancheng mustered his courage, slowly leaned in, and very gently kissed his lips before softly pulling away.

Although their lips had only touched for a brief moment, it felt like an electric current had passed through him.

Luo Tiancheng turned his back to He Yinhui, not daring to look at him again, his mind replaying that fleeting moment:

So, this is what it feels like to kiss someone… it’s so sweet…

But I’m sorry, I kissed you without your permission.

If possible, I hope to play games with you, eat together, and do all sorts of things with you in the future. I want to be by your side, to make you happy, to make you feel loved.

So, this is what it feels like to like someone… it’s such a beautiful thing…

But do you like boys or girls?

From now on, I’ll only complete your tasks in the app.

I want to live, even if you never come to like me, I just hope to catch a glimpse of you from afar…

…

He Yinhui woke up at ten and noticed Luo Tiancheng was still asleep. He quietly got out of bed and went to the guest room to wash up, careful not to wake him.

He ordered takeout on his phone.

Not knowing what the other person liked to eat, he simply ordered a variety of dishes.

When Luo Tiancheng woke up and found no one beside him, he hurriedly washed up and went out. As soon as he entered the living room, he saw He Yinhui placing a takeout bag on the dining table.

“Awake? Come have some breakfast.”

“…Thank you. Sorry for disturbing you last night.”

“Don’t be so formal. By the way, I’m He Yinhui. And you?”

“I’m Luo Tiancheng.”

…

After leaving He Yinhui’s house, Luo Tiancheng held the keyboard and mouse set he had been given, feeling warm inside.

Once on the subway, he opened the special phone and saw the display: Task 4 completed, remaining lifespan: 52 days 19 hours, Game Coins: 1470.

Since his lifespan had started to extend, Luo Tiancheng no longer felt as uncomfortable as before, and his body seemed to be improving.

He quickly checked the new tasks:

7. Activate daily tasks. Task reward: Life Extension of 4 hours, 20 Game Coins.

Below the task list was an option to “Activate Daily.”

Luo Tiancheng immediately clicked to activate it. The phone then silently displayed that the task was completed, with his remaining lifespan now at 52 days 23 hours and Game Coins at 1490. Two new tasks had also been added.

8. Sit on He Yinhui’s lap and kiss him. Task reward: Life Extension of 6 days, 720 Game Coins.

Today’s daily task: Send an email to the game account of the famous singer Xiao Yibo. Task reward: Life Extension of 8 hours, 40 Game Coins.

Luo Tiancheng analyzed: “This mission changes the names of characters based on my perception, which is indeed a supernatural phenomenon. It’s too high-tech! Mission 8 is currently impossible; I can only wait until I save enough money to buy a Dream Connector to complete it. The daily tasks are simple, so I’ll get them done quickly. If the daily tasks reward 40 Game Coins each day, I can buy the item in ten days.”

Upon returning home, he immediately turned on his computer and sent an email to Xiao Yibo: “Teacher Xiao, I’m really sorry about the other day. Once you log in, I’ll make sure to guide you seriously in the game.”

“Ding! Daily task completed, rewards have been issued.”

Remaining lifespan: 53 days and 2 hours. Game Coins: 1530.

Last night, his fans tipped him quite a bit. After deducting the platform’s share, he had around two thousand, but he would have to wait until next month for the money to arrive.

Therefore, Luo Tiancheng still needed to sell his furniture to afford renting a place.

After a busy afternoon, he finally found a suitable apartment: a 45-square-meter one-bedroom, one-living-room, one-kitchen, and one-bathroom apartment in the suburbs. They agreed to sign the contract and move in directly two days later.

After that, he spent another day moving and selling his belongings at the second-hand market.

Now, apart from his computer, router, phone, and two suitcases of clothes, there was almost nothing left at home.

Today’s daily task was to enter He Yinhui’s live stream and tip him a Little Red Flower.

Luo Tiancheng registered a new account, went to his live stream, tipped him, and then quickly logged into his own game account.

As soon as he logged in, he was bombarded with emails, all invitations from various teams. There was also a notification that Xiao Yibo had accepted his friend request, though he wasn’t online.

After replying to all the emails, Luo Tiancheng started his live stream, waiting to play with He Yinhui.

“So handsome it’s beyond help”: “I think this match will take about ten more minutes.”

“Wuyue Qingfeng”: “No rush.”

Fans commented: “You two should play against each other. Being on the same team is just a speed run; it’s boring.”

“Exactly, it’s always a stomp. It gets old after a while.”

He Yinhui laughed and said, “Now that he’s got a new keyboard and mouse, I’m going to get crushed by him!”

Fans replied: “It’s rare to see you get crushed. How refreshing! We love it!”

“Don’t worry, for your looks, even if you get crushed, we won’t leave.”

He Yinhui continued on mic: “That’s bad. Wuyue Qingfeng’s looks are off the charts. You guys will definitely abandon me in the future.”

“No, no! You’re the most handsome in the world!”

“Why do you keep saying Wuyue Qingfeng is good-looking? Really?”

“Ah, there are plenty of handsome guys, but where can you find a gentle and cute guy like you? I only like you!”

…

These fans not only expressed their affection through text but also generously sent gifts, with rockets flying one after another.

He Yinhui said, “Thank you, everyone. I’ll do my best to fight him and try not to lose too badly.”

Luo Tiancheng didn’t know what was being said in He Yinhui’s live stream. He focused on chatting with his own fans, simply stating that he would never show his face or participate in offline competitions.

After He Yinhui finished his match, he invited Wuyue Qingfeng into the room, and the two became opponents, randomly queuing for teammates.

Although Luo Tiancheng was indeed more powerful with his new keyboard and mouse, he always killed the others first and only faced He Yinhui at the end.

This kind of operation, which didn’t consider the overall situation, led to him losing more often than winning.

He Yinhui turned on his mic and said, “Qingfeng, can you play normally? It feels like you’re going easy on me.”

Luo Tiancheng, focused on the game, was caught off guard by the question and blurted out the truth without thinking, “I’m not going easy on you. I just want to play with you a bit longer, so I saved my shot for the end.”

After he finished speaking, he saw the fans commenting, “Oh my, that’s so ambiguous!”

“What kind of bold words are these?”

“Want to play with you a bit longer, oh my, oh my!”

Similarly, He Yinhui’s live stream exploded with comments.

“Damn! There’s a guy trying to steal my man!”

“Handsome, don’t be fooled by him!”

“That’s way too ambiguous, isn’t it?”

…

He Yinhui remained silent for a few seconds before saying, “Don’t overthink it, we’re just ordinary friends. It’s rare for me to meet someone of equal skill, so of course, I cherish it.”