Chapter 44

Because of that 30% deduction, Shu Fu was already inside the Jialefang Supermarket by 2 PM that afternoon.

There was only one Jialefang Supermarket in the whole of Lou Yuncheng, and coincidentally, she had memories of this supermarket in her mind.

This supermarket was located in the area where the original Shu Fu used to live. Before going to university, the original Shu Fu’s life was just like any ordinary girl’s. She was born in Lou Yuncheng, attended elementary, middle, and high school there.

Growing up, “she” moved homes twice with her parents. The second move happened during middle school. The new home was close to several relatives, and her parents often took her to Jialefang Supermarket. Occasionally, they’d run into relatives shopping there.

“She” lived there until graduating from high school, when her parents died unexpectedly.

Neither of her parents were only children; both had siblings. In the older generation, there was always someone who played favorites. Since “she” was a girl and didn’t meet the traditional expectation of carrying on the family line, her parents were not the favored ones.

Later, when some relatives tried to take advantage of her under the pretense of “taking care” of her—attempting to handle her house and money without her consent—she resisted. Seeing her refusal, they even tried to pull rank, acting like they needed to “educate” her properly.

At that time, Shu Fu had just turned eighteen. Though she hadn’t experienced much, she wasn’t someone to be easily trampled. Pretending to agree, she sent those bloodsucking relatives away, then handled the house herself. With money and luggage in hand, she changed her phone number and left for Suicheng, where her university was located.

Returning this time, Shu Fu had considered the possibility of running into “Shu Fu’s” former relatives in Lou Yuncheng. She wasn’t particularly concerned—it didn’t matter whether she met them or not. It wasn’t really her issue.

But clearly, this time, the progress bar task was tied to Shu Fu’s past life and the people from it.

Otherwise, why would the task be set at this specific time and place?

Today was Saturday afternoon. Back when Shu Fu accompanied her parents to the supermarket on Saturday afternoons, they occasionally ran into relatives.

Jialefang Supermarket was a large, well-stocked supermarket. Wearing a baseball cap and mask, Shu Fu grabbed a shopping cart and, since she was already there, headed to the fresh produce section.

Since it was already afternoon, the shelves only had common fruits like apples and oranges left. She wasn’t picky and took a bag of each, along with a carton of eggs and some vegetables. Then, she pushed her cart around the supermarket casually, staying alert in case something unexpected happened.

But everything inside Jialefang Supermarket remained peaceful. It was far from the east side of the city, where many refugees couldn’t even reach this area, so the chances of troublemakers showing up were slim. Plus, Lou Yuncheng had just experienced a hurricane and massive waves, making it unlikely for another disaster to strike so soon.

At 3:27 PM, as Shu Fu was pushing her cart past the snack aisle, she suddenly saw a few familiar faces. It had been over four years since she’d last seen them. Normally, people’s hairstyles, demeanor, and appearance change over such a time, and these three were no exception.

But Shu Fu recognized them instantly. The slightly older woman, in her forties, was the wife of “Shu Fu’s” uncle—her aunt. The other two were siblings, a few years apart in age, her younger cousin and younger male cousin.

The feeling was strange. Her memories from the original world told her she had never seen them before today. Yet, she had crystal-clear memories of these three people in her mind.

Especially the siblings—their appearances had changed the most over the years. After more than four years apart, and with some distance between them, she logically shouldn’t have recognized them so quickly. But the moment her eyes swept over their faces, her brain immediately supplied the answer.

It didn’t feel like she recognized them on her own. It was as if her “memory” had directly told her who they were.

It felt like a high-resolution machine extracting information and feeding it to her, which made her a bit uncomfortable.

Nevertheless, Shu Fu continued to push her cart, slowly moving closer. For the rest of the time, she kept a certain distance from them, waiting for any unexpected events to occur.

The supermarket wasn’t empty on a Saturday afternoon. Everyone’s attention was on the shelves, so having someone pushing a cart behind you wasn’t unusual. Shu Fu followed them as they browsed the store, then followed them to the checkout to line up and pay.

But even after the three of them finished paying and left, nothing happened around her.

By then, it was already past 4 PM. She hesitated, considering whether to skip paying and follow them out directly, when suddenly, her left wrist vibrated.

The sudden vibration left her bewildered.

What’s going on?

The task—was completed?

**

Twenty minutes later, inside a stall in the supermarket restroom.

Shu Fu stared at the black notebook in her hand, her expression puzzled.

[The Jialefang Supermarket check-in task between 3 PM and 4 PM today has been completed. You have gained 5% progress on Raft Level 3. (Raft Level 3 current progress: 75%)]

There was no extra progress bonus, nor any lottery reward, but the task was indeed marked as complete.

At the same time, beneath the now-gray text, a new line of black text appeared.

[From 5 PM to 6 PM today, complete the dinner check-in task at Dongfu Noodles to gain 5% progress on Raft Level 3. (Current progress on Raft Level 3: 75%)

Note: Failure to complete this task will result in a 30% progress deduction.]

---

Shu Fu: …

She felt like she was playing some entirely new kind of game.

---

Twenty minutes later, after stowing the fresh groceries in the back of her Jeep, Shu Fu returned to the shopping mall where Jialefang Supermarket was located. She was also familiar with Dongfu Noodles—it was on the first floor of the mall, and if she exited through another passage from Jialefang, she would pass right by it.

Both sides of the corridor were lined with various shops: snack bars, phone stores, clothing boutiques, drink stalls… It resembled a shopping street built inside a building.

She had been to Dongfu Noodles a few times with her parents before. The taste was pretty average—not as good as the noodle shop she had stocked up on before. But since the task specifically required her to check in for dinner, she would follow the instructions carefully.

The shop wasn’t big, with only seven or eight tables. She ordered a bowl of beef noodles and chose a table in the corner, intentionally sitting in a spot that faced outward.

From this position, passersby wouldn’t immediately notice her, but with just a slight turn of her head, she could keep an eye on both the inside and outside of the store.

It wasn’t officially dinner time yet, so the shop wasn’t crowded. Her noodles arrived quickly—a large bowl with bright red chili oil floating on the surface of the broth. Shu Fu took off her hat and mask, put on a pair of in-ear Bluetooth earbuds, grabbed a pair of disposable chopsticks, and began eating.

She pretended to scroll on her phone while eating, taking slow bites of her noodles.

After all, the task duration was one hour, so she had to stay there until at least after 6 PM.

As time passed, more customers arrived, and soon, familiar faces appeared among them—her uncle’s wife and their two children.

The woman went to the counter to order while the siblings took the shopping bags from her and turned to find seats.

There were plenty of empty tables, but perhaps because of that, when they turned around to look, their eyes swept right over Shu Fu’s face.

She frowned slightly, already bracing herself for some dramatic confrontation. But strangely enough, their gazes passed over her without lingering, instead locking onto the empty table next to hers, and they walked over without hesitation.

Shu Fu instinctively touched her face. Since she was eating, she wasn’t wearing her mask or hat. At this distance, they clearly saw her—so why didn’t they show any recognition?

Could it be they really didn’t recognize her?

It had been four years, true, but the “Shu Fu” from four years ago hadn’t changed much compared to her current self. Back then, they saw each other often—there was no reason they wouldn’t remember her.

Shu Fu furrowed her brow deeper and shifted her gaze to her aunt, who had finished ordering and was turning to find her children. Since she wasn’t sure where they’d chosen to sit, her first instinct was to glance around the shop.

Shu Fu once again felt the sweep of her gaze pass over her, but just like the siblings, her aunt’s eyes didn’t linger on her.

She spotted her children at the neighboring table, quickly walked over, placed the receipt on the table, and started pulling out tissues and hand sanitizer from her bag. While wiping the table, she reminded the two to disinfect their hands and soon after scolded them for insisting on eating noodles, saying it was a waste when there were still leftovers at home from lunch.

Shu Fu turned her head to observe her. She was exactly as she remembered—slightly obsessive about cleanliness, always nagging, but very good to her kids. Good enough, in fact, to shamelessly try to take over Shu Fu’s apartment.

Though small, that apartment was in a good school district. Back then, Shu Fu’s parents had moved specifically to buy that place for her future education.

At the time, Shu Fu’s younger cousin was about to start middle school, and naturally, that apartment became her aunt’s target. But she wasn’t the only one eyeing the place—relatives from Shu Fu’s mother’s side, particularly her uncle, wanted it too.

His reason was different: he wanted to use it as a marital home, arguing that since Shu Fu’s mother had borrowed money from the family when purchasing the apartment, it technically belonged to them.

But all these arguments were baseless. There was no proof, no IOU, and with the parents gone, it all turned into a free-for-all. Shu Fu’s aunt wasn’t about to back down.

The group had fought over it right in front of Shu Fu, not even treating her like a living person—just an obstacle in their way…

The memories were vivid in her mind, and recalling them brought back that same unpleasant feeling. She knew their faces well, and they should be just as familiar with hers. So Shu Fu couldn’t understand why they showed no reaction after clearly seeing her.

It was as if… they didn’t recognize her at all.

After thinking it over, she stood up and walked directly to the next table, smiling down at the three of them. “What a coincidence! Long time no see!”

Her greeting was abrupt and conspicuous. Even if they hadn’t recognized her before, now that she was standing so close and had actively spoken, unless they were suffering from memory loss, it was impossible for them to ignore her.

However, her aunt looked up at her for a moment, then revealed a puzzled expression. “You… are?”

Shu Fu, once again prepared to face a melodramatic family reunion scene: …?

“You don’t remember me?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know you. You must have mistaken me for someone else.” Shu Fu’s aunt gave her an apologetic yet distant look.

Shu Fu’s memory was intimately familiar with every expression on that face. She remembered how the woman had confidently discussed the ownership of the house and delivered lengthy speeches about caring for and worrying about “her.”

She also remembered just how much “Shu Fu” had despised that fake, pretentious face—the kind of face that made her want to slap it every time she saw it. She remembered it all.

But now, all those intense emotional clashes stored in her memory felt like a one-woman show.

The eyes looking back at her held nothing but unfamiliarity—and a hint of wariness.

Shu Fu turned to the siblings, leaning slightly closer to the table. “You two don’t remember me either?” But the moment she asked, she could already see the answer in their eyes.

Sure enough, the siblings stared at her blankly. Their eyes weren’t just distant; they also filled with caution and fear. The sister even tugged at her mother’s hand, calling out, “Mom,” and asked what was going on.

“What exactly do you want—?” The woman’s face darkened instantly.

Just as she was about to shoo Shu Fu away, Shu Fu stepped back, quickly masking her expression with a polite smile. “I’m really sorry, I must’ve mistaken you for someone else. Sorry to bother you.”

She didn’t linger. She didn’t even return to her own table. She turned and walked straight out of the noodle shop.

That was enough. She had fully confirmed it—they hadn’t just failed to recognize her, and they weren’t pretending not to know her.

They genuinely had no idea who she was.

To those three people, she was a complete stranger.

Realizing this sent a faint, eerie chill creeping up Shu Fu’s spine, making her scalp tingle. Her left wrist vibrated slightly again.

A moment later, back inside her Jeep, Shu Fu opened the black notebook.

[Dinner check-in task at Dongfu Noodles between 5:00 and 6:00 PM completed. Reward: 5% progress towards Raft Level 3; additional 5% progress bonus; received 3 spin-the-wheel prizes. (Current Raft Level 3 progress: 85%)]

---

That evening, Shu Fu made herself a cup of black coffee, sat cross-legged in front of the coffee table, and opened her notebook where she kept her plans, ready to review the day’s events.

First off, today’s tasks were different from usual. There had been two tasks in one day, but both felt oddly similar. And for some reason, the way the tasks were completed was different from previous ones.

She hadn’t received any bonuses or spin-the-wheel rewards for the first task.

During the second task, she didn’t feel the usual sense of completion, yet judging by the bonuses, she had evidently completed it well.

What puzzled her was: what was the actual focus of these two tasks? What had she done that made the bracelet determine she had completed them?

And why didn’t someone who should have been linked to the task recognize her at all?

After analyzing, she came up with two possibilities.

First, there was something wrong with her face. The real “Shu Fu” might be someone else, and she was just a traveler who had borrowed and integrated “Shu Fu’s” memories and background.

Second, the existence of “Shu Fu” itself was fabricated. Lou Yuncheng never had a “Shu Fu,” and there had never been an original person who looked exactly like her. All those melodramatic memories might be fake too.

Either way, it confirmed what she had suspected the day she awakened: all her memories from before arriving in Suicheng were just that—memories.

She was an outsider through and through, ruling out the possibility that she was a reincarnated person with scrambled memories.

Suicheng was her point of arrival. Before the waterway between Suicheng and Lou Yuncheng had opened, whether during the four years she believed herself to be a native due to those memories or after she awakened and remembered her original world—since coming to this world, she had only ever been in Suicheng.

She had always been trapped there, which aligned with the logic of lighting up the map through tasks.

However, new questions arose.

Since she was already in Suicheng and had no connection to anyone from Lou Yuncheng, why was such an identity assigned to her? Wouldn’t it have been simpler and more reasonable to just keep her as a Suicheng University graduate?

If those fabricated memories of Lou Yuncheng had never been planted, she might have awakened sooner, not after four years.

Since they needed her to complete tasks, why delay the possibility of her awakening?

Looking at it from another angle, today’s two tasks were clearly linked to “Shu Fu’s” former relatives. If memories could really be implanted, why not implant the same memories in those “relatives”? Why leave such an obvious flaw?

After all, as soon as they met, it was easy to realize that they didn’t recognize her.

It was like a bug had appeared in the middle of her tasks—a bug so obvious it was hard to miss. Why leave it there?

And thinking further, since there was already a bug, even if she completed the task, she shouldn’t have received extra progress bonuses…

It’s like someone working overtime but showing up at the wrong company—such a fundamental mistake wouldn’t possibly earn them an overtime bonus.

Unless—Shu Fu’s mind suddenly lit up, and the thought that burst forth gave her instant goosebumps.

Going to the wrong company wouldn’t count as overtime—unless going to the wrong company was the actual objective of the overtime!

In other words, the real purpose of today’s two tasks… might have been to make her discover the existence of this BUG?!

Shu Fu immediately pushed herself upright, kneeling on the coffee table.

If that’s the case, everything makes sense!

Why did the first task end so quickly? Because she completed it as instructed, but none of the three people saw her face. She was wearing a mask and a hat at the time. They didn’t recognize her, and she didn’t find it strange, so the BUG remained undiscovered.

But during the second task, curious about the change in task format and wanting to probe it further, she not only revealed her face but also approached them and spoke, allowing them to see her clearly—and making her realize that in their eyes, she was just a complete stranger.

Thinking back, the task completion notification—the vibration from her wristband—did happen right after she realized she was a stranger to them. In other words, after she discovered the BUG.

So, the real subject of today’s task wasn’t “Shu Fu’s” aunt, it was her!

The more she thought about it, the more unsettling it felt—as if the wristband was trying to convey some kind of message through this task…

But what message?

To overturn the identity and background this world had set for her?

To make her deeply aware of how unnatural her existence was?

To tell her that there never was an original “host,” and that all the tasks she had completed so far had nothing to do with one?

To remind her that this isn’t a real world?

To tell her she’s inside a massive, manipulatable virtual reality?

Or… was it just to express that the wristband itself stands in opposition to this world?

The deeper she thought, the more questions surfaced. Could the day of her awakening—the day she recalled her original world—not have been a coincidence either?

Was everything orchestrated?

But for what purpose?

Who’s watching her from beyond this world?

…

Shu Fu’s head started to ache again—not real pain, but the kind of chaos brought on by overwhelming, tangled thoughts.

She closed her notebook and leaned back into the sofa, letting herself relax as she shut her eyes gently.

The last time her thoughts were this jumbled over a task was during the second and third missions. But maybe because she had experience now, this time, she wasn’t as fixated, and she was able to detach from the confusion faster.

She’d analyzed everything that needed to be analyzed, recorded the key points and her speculations—it was time to give herself a break.

No matter what, today’s task had pushed the progress bar from 70% to 85%. She was one big step closer to reaching Raft Level 3—definitely something to celebrate!

So, to lift her mood, it was time for the prize draw.

Just thinking about getting three chances at the prize wheel from such an easy task made Shu Fu happy.

Lucky or not, it didn’t matter—with three spins, she could win through sheer numbers!

Shu Fu reopened her eyes, climbed onto the sofa, and sat cross-legged in a comfortable position before pulling out the prize wheel.

First spin, green Fourth Prize: One-week electricity card.

Shu Fu: Not bad, let’s keep it going!

Second spin, blue Fifth Prize: Raft Fence ×1

Shu Fu: …Seriously?

Last chance—blue Third Prize: Split-Level Space.

Shu Fu: What the heck is that?