Chapter 1: Mysterious Domain Cards

In the public lecture classroom, the internet speed was somewhat slow. Mo Qi took a long time to finally install the card-drawing game app called ” Mysterious Domain Cards.”

This game had very few downloads, and its production quality was far from impressive. The graphics were so blurry that it made Mo Qi feel like he was back in the era of 2G internet.

The fact that it offered free card draws was probably the game’s biggest and only advantage.

Mo Qi’s life was rather financially strained. He had to rely on various means to earn money to support himself, and his university tuition fees were covered by scholarships and part-time jobs during the holidays. He was attending this public lecture to earn a meal by taking the class for someone else. He didn’t have any extra money to spend on leisure activities, so he usually passed the time by playing some free mini-games.

The game’s login interface was quite cleverly designed. In front of a mysterious door lay a sharp dagger. The tip of the dagger read “Login to Game,” while the handle read “Exit Game.”

Mo Qi casually clicked on “Login to Game,” and his fingertip suddenly felt a sharp pain, as if pricked by a metallic object.

He lifted his finger and gently rubbed his index finger against his thumb. The spot where he felt the pain showed no wound or blood, and the pain had vanished, making it seem like an illusion.

The game interface displayed “Loading player information,” and after a moment, a dialog box popped up.

[Player information has been loaded. Do you want to draw the player’s basic attribute card? Yes/No]

“Draw a card right from the start?” Mo Qi thought as he clicked “Yes” to draw a card. The system interface flashed countless white masks with various expressions, from anger to sadness, repeatedly switching until it finally settled on a smiling mask.

[Congratulations, player! You have drawn a Super Super Rare (SSR) card. This card will be added as a basic attribute to the player. It is non-tradable, non-giftable, and will not drop. It will disappear upon the player’s death and is a unique card for the player. Please start your game journey.]

The game presented many cryptic symbols for players to choose from to select the type of game, but Mo Qi didn’t choose any. Instead, he focused on examining his attribute card.

Name: Heartthrob

Level: 1

Owner: Mo Qi

Attributes:

– Execution Value: 0

– Construction Value: 0

– Affinity Value: 100

Exclusive Skill: To be explored

Negative Effects: To be explored

Negative Probability: 1%

Mo Qi grew wary as he saw his name under “Owner.” The game had prompted him to draw a card as soon as he logged in, without even giving him a chance to choose a character name. He certainly hadn’t entered his real name into an unverified free app. Why did the game display his name?

Could this be some illegal software that scans personal information from his phone upon download?

Mo Qi decisively forced the game to quit. He long-pressed the app icon on his phone, trying to uninstall the game, but a message popped up on his screen:

[Player Mo Qi has not yet chosen the first game. If no choice is made within 3 seconds, the system will randomly match a game for the player. 3, 2…]

A countdown timer appeared on his phone, preventing him from uninstalling the software.

What a rogue app!

Unable to uninstall it, Mo Qi expressionlessly held down the power button. Fortunately, this time he succeeded in shutting off the phone.

Just before shutting down, the game automatically selected a game for Mo Qi within a few seconds. The image of this game showed a delicate crystal box, looking quite beautiful.

After successfully turning off the phone, Mo Qi tossed it onto his desk, planning to find someone to help him reset the phone to factory settings after class. Most of his data was backed up to the cloud, so he wouldn’t lose much, though it would be a bit of a hassle.

On the podium, the teacher was lecturing about something Mo Qi couldn’t comprehend, sounding like gibberish to him. It made him drowsy, but Mo Qi was a dedicated substitute and would never fall asleep in class while substituting for someone else. He propped his chin up with his hand, struggling to stay awake.

“I’ll choose a classmate to answer this question,” the teacher said after a segment of the lecture, flipping open the attendance roster and randomly reading out a name, “Gao Li.”

Mo Qi abruptly stood up. Gao Li was the student he was substituting for in class, and unexpectedly, he was called on.

This class was not his major, and the textbook seemed like gibberish to him. Mo Qi didn’t understand a single word of the question posed by the teacher, let alone how to answer it.

Gao Li had told him that the teacher of this course was very strict. Not only would they call roll, but answering questions in class would also be recorded as part of the regular exam scores. It was quite troublesome. If Mo Qi didn’t answer well this time, it would cause Gao Li to lose points at the end of the term, and the payment for substituting this class might not even be guaranteed.

Just as Mo Qi was feeling completely at a loss, a pretty girl sitting in front of him turned around and glanced at him. She quickly placed a note on Mo Qi’s textbook with the answer to the question written on it.

Mo Qi read the answer aloud, and the teacher nodded with satisfaction and said, “This question is quite difficult. Gao Li’s answer is very good. I’ll give you 5 points towards your regular assignments.”

Mo Qi, feeling as if he had narrowly escaped a disaster, sat down and whispered to the girl in the front row, “Thank you.”

The girl turned around and looked closely at his face, her gaze filled with undisguised affection. She then handed him another note, and on it was a string of numbers, clearly her WeChat ID.

Mo Qi spent all his spare time striving for scholarships and working part-time jobs, leaving him no energy or inclination for romantic relationships. He always politely declined such advances.

He wrote “Sorry” on the note and handed it back to the girl.

The bell for the end of class rang at just the right moment, and Mo Qi, who was sitting in the back row, quickly got up and ran out of the classroom, not wanting to get too involved with the girl in the front row.

He had gotten up for class without having breakfast and had sat through the entire morning. Starving, he ran to the cafeteria and got a large portion of rice and a vegetable dish.

The cafeteria lady, who usually shook the spoon vigorously while serving, looked up at Mo Qi and suddenly flashed a bright smile, greeting him, “Such a handsome young man, just eating this little bit of food? How is that enough? Look at how thin you are!”

Having said this, she scooped two large spoonfuls of meat and vegetables into Mo Qi’s tray and whispered, “Here’s a little extra for you. Don’t tell anyone.”

Mo Qi thanked the cafeteria lady and left the serving window with a full tray. He heard the students behind him saying, “Auntie, Auntie, don’t shake, don’t shake anymore, the meat’s almost all gone!”

Mo Qi found a corner to eat in, feeling puzzled.

He was in his second year of college and had become somewhat familiar with this cafeteria lady. Normally, she didn’t show him any special treatment, so why the change today?

In the end, it was just two spoonfuls of meat, a minor thing, so Mo Qi didn’t think too much of it. Once he was full, he took out his phone to get it repaired.

This was a store run by students within the school, offering a wide range of services including printing, photocopying, computer repair, and even writing assignments on behalf of others. Mo Qi had worked here before and was quite familiar with the people there. He confidently entered the small shop and dug out the equipment to flash his phone.

“Mo Qi,” a short-haired boy placed a hand on Mo Qi’s shoulder, “long time no see. It’s almost the end of the semester, and we’re getting really busy here. Do you want to earn some extra money?”

“No time,” Mo Qi said without looking up, “I want to get the scholarship this semester, so my final exam grades can’t be bad. I need to focus on my studies.”

“You’re really working hard. What happened to your phone?” the short-haired boy asked.

“I messed up my phone by downloading some random software, so I’m going to try flashing^[1]Flashing a phone typically refers to the process of reprogramming or updating a mobile device’s firmware or software. it. Chang Rui, can you get me that data cable over there?” Mo Qi said.

The short-haired boy named Chang Rui fetched the data cable and handed it to Mo Qi. As Mo Qi took the cable, Chang Rui’s fingertip brushed against the back of Mo Qi’s hand.

Mo Qi didn’t pay much attention and continued to focus on his phone. Chang Rui leaned in closer, looking at Mo Qi’s hands, and said, “You’re working way too hard.”

Mo Qi replied, “I don’t have a choice. I’ve only paid half of my tuition for this semester. They say I just need to pay everything off before graduation, but there will be more tuition next semester. If I don’t save up quickly, the amount will keep growing, and so will the pressure.”

“I can give you the money,” Chang Rui said, placing his hand on the back of Mo Qi’s hand.

“Come on, even if I don’t get the scholarship, I can still earn enough money by working during the holidays.” Mo Qi casually shook off Chang Rui’s hand. “What’s the point of owing you money instead of the school? It doesn’t make any sense.”

As they talked, Mo Qi rebooted his phone, which was restored to its factory settings, and the rogue software  ‘Mysterious Domain Cards’ had disappeared. Mo Qi let out a sigh of relief and first opened his messaging app, where he saw a message from the student council president sent while his phone was off.

“What I mean is…”

Before Chang Rui could finish speaking, Mo Qi stood up and interrupted him: “The student council needs me for something. I’ve got to go. I’ll come by tomorrow to photocopy exam materials. Give me a discount.”

“Sure, take this.” Chang Rui tossed a bottle of cola to Mo Qi, then opened one for himself, sipping it while staring at Mo Qi’s departing figure.

Mo Qi felt a chill run down his back in broad daylight. He rubbed his arms, glanced back at Chang Rui’s small shop, and frowned.

He had known Chang Rui since their freshman year. Chang Rui’s family wasn’t short on money, and he had opened this small shop to gain experience and make connections. Mo Qi had worked odd jobs there during his first year, and he knew that Chang Rui had dated two girlfriends and had no interest in guys. When he saw boys’ love dramas, he would turn away with a look of disgust.

“Is the sun rising in the west? Has he been possessed?” Mo Qi muttered to himself.

Mo Qi appeared to be helpful and cheerful, but deep down, he had a certain coldness and distance toward people. Chang Rui’s behavior change was just a minor episode to him. Regardless of which brain circuit had misfired in Chang Rui, Mo Qi didn’t care. He decided he would simply interact with him less in the future.

He was busy and didn’t have time to bother with these small matters.

Following the instructions of the student council president, Mo Qi arrived at the school exhibition hall. They were preparing for a student art exhibition, and the members of the student council were busy setting up.

Mo Qi brought the unopened cola given by Chang Rui and gave it to the student council president. Then, he rolled up his sleeves and pitched in to help. Joining the student council didn’t earn him money, but it was beneficial for his scholarship. As long as he didn’t work part-time, Mo Qi was enthusiastic about the council’s work.

After being  busy for a while, he and his classmates hung a large oil painting, nearly as tall as a person, on the wall and then removed the cloth covering it.

“That’s beautifully done,” remarked the student council president, standing before the painting with admiration in his eyes.

Mo Qi also glanced at the painting. It depicted the silhouette of a man in black clothes standing by a river at dusk, its mood quite obscure. However, Mo Qi was a pragmatic person with almost zero artistic sensibility. He never quite understood the excellence in such paintings.

The student council president began to explain, “This was painted by a student from our Sculpture Department. She described seeing an incredibly handsome man by the river and couldn’t resist capturing him on canvas. Despite numerous attempts, she couldn’t capture even a fraction of his charm, so she ended up painting only his silhouette. This painting is filled with love and a hazy beauty. Although the man is facing away from us, it evokes endless imagination, as if there’s a mysterious and unfathomable world before him. Didn’t you… see that?”

Mo Qi looked at the painting in silence, awkwardly smiled, and replied casually, “It’s nice, very nice.”

The student council president sighed, muttering “a wooden log can’t be carved,” then turned back to gaze at the painting.

Mo Qi, a commoner uninterested in art, couldn’t be bothered to look at the painting. He had a professional class at four in the afternoon, and after a busy lunchtime, he wasn’t sure what time it was now.

He took out his phone to check the time and began to re-download the apps that had been deleted during the factory reset. After installing a few apps, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

In the bottom right corner of the screen, where there had originally been a phone call icon, now appeared the icon for the “Mysterious Domain Cards” app.