Font Size:
Under a drizzle, Mo Qi wiped the water off his face and glanced around. Liao Ruxue, who had been nearby, was nowhere to be seen.
Despite it being well past 8 PM, the sky remained bright. Mo Qi looked up and estimated it to be around 9 to 10 AM based on the light.
Time had shifted, and though the old town looked the same, it no longer seemed to be the tourist spot where he had worked.
After the last mission started, the surroundings had remained unchanged, causing Mo Qi to initially overlook that he was now in another world. This time, however, the change was significant.
“Let’s see what this mission is about,” Mo Qi said, taking out his phone.
Mo Qi found that his phone had no signal, and the game popped up a message: “Entered a time-space unsupportive of mobile phones. Would you like to spend 100 points to activate smart mode?”
Having worked all day without a chance to recharge, Mo Qi’s phone was down to 20% battery. Without activating smart mode, it wouldn’t last long. Fortunately, he hadn’t spent too many points yet, so he still had enough to enable this feature.
After Mo Qi chose “Activate,” his phone instantly disappeared. The game system switched to a heads-up display mode, where he could mentally summon a control panel that only he could see, making things considerably more convenient. The 100 points spent seemed well worth it.
However, losing his phone like this left Mo Qi hoping it would still work when he returned to the real world. Buying a new phone wouldn’t be easy, he sighed inwardly.
This time, the game prompts were more informative than before, even providing a story background.
[A group of tomb raiders stole a jade pendant from an ancient tomb. Before they could sell their loot, each of the tomb raiders met mysterious deaths one by one. The last survivor, on the brink of death, threw the jade pendant into the river, claiming it was an ominous object. Decades later, a fisherman retrieved the jade pendant from the river and sold it to an antique dealer. Since then, this jade pendant has caused turmoil in the ancient town.]
[The military commander who controlled this region obtained a ruthless dagger that had slain countless enemies on the battlefield. He fashioned the jade pendant into an ornament for the dagger, using an evil object to suppress evil. From then on, peace returned to the ancient town.]
[Until one day, at midnight, the ruthless dagger resounded ominously. It was then that people realized the ancient town had unknowingly become isolated from the outside world. No one could leave this town; they were trapped in this time and space.]
[You are Mo Qi, the owner of a bookshop in the ancient town. Before the town was sealed off, you had invested all your savings and borrowed money to purchase a batch of best-selling books from the big city. However, before you could sell them, the town was sealed off. Since then, with people in fear and no one buying books, you have struggled to make ends meet. Debt collectors often come knocking, and today you’ve only managed to nibble on half a stale steamed bun for breakfast, with no lunch in sight.]
Mo Qi: “…”
Seeing this, normally composed Mo Qi couldn’t help but silently curse the game under his breath. Real life was already challenging enough; now, playing a game burdened him with a destitute character setting. It was as if the game didn’t want him to have any peace.
After a moment of internal grumbling, Mo Qi continued reading the background introduction.
[Just as panic gripped the entire town, the military commander who controlled the region died mysteriously, with the ruthless dagger lodged in his chest and the jade pendant missing.]
[How will the people of the ancient town escape this eerie space? What curse lies upon the jade pendant, and how can it be broken? Seven players, please work together to complete this mission.]
Seven players, two more than last time—Mo Qi couldn’t help but stroke his chin at this number.
There was a high probability that Liao Ruxue had also been randomly brought into this world, along with Xiang Zhuo and him. Plus, there were four other players hiding in the shadows.
Based on Mo Qi’s own role, the remaining players in the small town should also have different identities. Mo Qi tried to contact Xiang Zhuo, but the game prompted him that the era did not support mobile communications. He had to choose between sending a letter or finding someone to pass on a message verbally.
Unable to contact his companions and unsure of Liao Ruxue’s whereabouts, Mo Qi found himself alone in his surroundings. Surprisingly, this brought him some peace of mind, as being alone made it easier for him to quietly contemplate the situation.
Mo Qi glanced down at his clothes—a gray robe that resembled attire from the Republican era, fitting with the game’s backdrop, which seemed to be set during that period.
Despite being the mission initiator, Mo Qi didn’t immerse himself deeply into the plot this time. Instead, he felt more like a bridge between reality and the game, the one who brought the ancient town into the gaming world.
In a way, this was preferable. Though he lacked the conveniences of his usual environment, at least he didn’t have to empathize with others’ lives and deaths as he did back in the school setting.
The drizzling rain soaked Mo Qi’s clothes as he looked around. He noticed that the surrounding buildings were identical to the ancient town where he had worked before. Even the sizes of each shop were the same.
The area he was in was centered around a garden mansion within the ancient town. The central garden had once been the residence of a government official. If there truly was a military commander’s mansion, it would surely be there.
The rest of the town consisted of traditional residential homes, guesthouses, and some well-preserved ancient buildings. The commercial area, however, had been rebuilt to resemble the original architecture of the ancient town. An entire street was dedicated to local snacks and specialties, mirroring tourist streets found throughout the country.
Mo Qi stood in the middle of the commercial street, usually bustling with people but now eerily deserted. The signs were worn-out, the walls cracked, as if it had been abandoned for a long time.
Remembering he was the owner of a bookstore, Mo Qi recalled there was a bookstore in the tourist area of the ancient town. The tour guide had mentioned it was the only bookstore in town at the time. Perhaps his shop was there.
Mo Qi decided to head to his bookstore first, hoping to sell some books to avoid going hungry for lunch.
Mo Qi, familiar with the terrain, quickly oriented himself and took a few steps forward. There, he saw a little girl in a red, tattered cotton jacket with two braids, squatting in a corner. She stared at Mo Qi with wide eyes.
The girl was soaked through, her jacket providing no warmth but instead making her lips turn blue from the cold. As Mo Qi approached, she rushed forward and hugged his leg, whispering, “Kind sir, please give me something to eat.”
The girl’s hoarse voice and pitiful appearance tugged at Mo Qi’s heart, but he remained unmoved. In this perilous game, he couldn’t ascertain if the girl was a player or just an NPC (non-player character). She might even be the game’s most formidable boss, making Mo Qi wary of intervening.
Moreover, Mo Qi himself had only eaten a stale steamed bun for breakfast and had no lunch planned. He simply didn’t have the resources to help someone else.
Mo Qi gently removed the little girl’s grasp from his leg and spoke in a manner befitting his game character’s era and background. “Times are tough, and I’m struggling to get by myself. Best of luck to you,” he said, using language that blended a somewhat archaic and formal tone.
Given his character’s identity in the game—a bookstore owner from the Republican era—Mo Qi knew he couldn’t use modern expressions. Until he understood the situation better, it was best to role-play his game character and blend in with the ordinary people around him.
Mo Qi coldly shook off the little girl and continued walking forward. To his surprise, she followed closely behind. When he sped up, she matched his pace; when he slowed down, she slowed as well.
In the end, Mo Qi had to resort to a brisk jog to lose her at a fork in the road. Once he was sure she wasn’t following anymore, he headed towards the ancient town’s only bookstore.
Originally a tourist attraction, the bookstore was essentially a small museum where items were displayed in glass cases to prevent damage from visitors. Now, it resembled more of a traditional shop, with a sign outside bearing the traditional Chinese character “书” (shū) for “book.” Inside, shelves were stacked with books, prominently featuring a set of deluxe edition martial arts novels Mo Qi had invested heavily in before.
The shop assistant’s eyes lit up as he saw Mo Qi return. He approached and asked eagerly, “Boss Mo, have you managed to raise some money?”
Mo Qi glanced at the shop assistant, and a line of text appeared on his forehead: **”Lin Fuwang, 18 years old, employee hired by the bookstore, attended school for two years, knows a few characters, can write his own name, owed two months of wages.”**
“When encountering the little girl, these lines didn’t appear, indicating the game provides information about those related to him. No wonder Xiang Zhuo could recognize Mo Qi at first glance. He’s a year below Xiang Zhuo, probably with such an introduction.”
“Fuwang, how about you… go back and rest for a few days first? When I have more free time, I’ll rehire you, okay?” Mo Qi said.
Lin Fuwang said with a bitter face, “Boss, in this town now, what else can we do if we go home? Following you, at least I can have a meal.”
“Boss, even I haven’t figured out my lunch yet,” Mo Qi thought to himself.
“With no business in the shop, I don’t know what we’ll eat next. How about… you take some bestsellers back and see if we can trade them for food,” Mo Qi suggested.
Lin Fuwang shook his head. “Then I might as well eat paper.”
Mo Qi observed him carefully and felt that this shop assistant was probably not a player. Lin Fuwang’s gaze fixed on the books really seemed like he wanted to eat them, looking very hungry.
Unable to drive the assistant away, Mo Qi could only let him be, instructing, “Move the books inside a bit. It’s raining outside, don’t let them get wet.”
Mo Qi himself was soaked through. Seeing another room in the shop that looked like a bedroom, he walked in, drying his hair with a handkerchief and then finding a somewhat clean green robe to change into.
In the bedroom, there was a mirror. Mo Qi glanced at his reflection and saw that his appearance hadn’t changed much, just that he looked much thinner, appearing to be around thirty years old rather than a vibrant college student in his twenties.
Mo Qi couldn’t bear to see himself looking so worn and aged. He put down the mirror and briskly returned to the shop.
“Go away, we have nothing to eat here,” Lin Fuwang was speaking to someone at the door, giving them a kick.
Mo Qi approached and saw it was the girl in the red jacket with braided hair again. Feeling a headache coming on, he asked, “Why do you keep following me? You’ve seen the state of the bookstore. If no one comes, we’ll really starve.”
“You didn’t hit me,” the little girl lifted her head, looking up at Mo Qi with her wet, big eyes.
Seeing Lin Fuwang’s behavior of kicking and hitting the little girl, it seemed people here had become very indifferent. But Mo Qi, a modern-day university student, couldn’t possibly resort to punching and kicking unless this girl was pretending to be a player.
“Forget it, Fuwang, leave her alone. Since there are no customers anyway, she can stay here to shelter from the rain,” Mo Qi waved his hand, saying.
Lin Fuwang naturally stopped his actions, and the little girl found a corner at the door to sit down. They all watched the rain falling from the sky.
There were no umbrellas in the shop, and Mo Qi didn’t have a second set of clothes to get wet in. He sighed, “How long do you think this rain will last?”
“Recently, it starts raining around midnight every day and stops around noon. It should stop by lunchtime,” Lin Fuwang mentioned lunch, unconsciously swallowing his saliva and eagerly looking at Mo Qi.
“Boss, will we have something to eat after noon?” Lin Fuwang asked hopefully.
Mo Qi, hungry and wandering around the bookstore, looked through the books in his shop, using intellectual nourishment to ease his hunger. Hearing Lin Fuwang’s question, he shook his head and said, “Let’s wait until the rain stops. After the rain stops, I’ll take some books out to sell. Maybe we can exchange them for food.”
“Boss, are there still people buying books now? You can’t sell all the new books you just brought in!” Lin Fuwang said despairingly.
“If the new books won’t sell, we still have old books, right?” Mo Qi picked up a worn-out book and said.