Mini World Game Console

"Hmm, I was on a business trip to the secret base a few days ago, couldn't make any calls... How did your sister do on her exams? What, you didn't ask? Right, asking now is pointless, it's all over... Alright, alright, I'll have some zongzi."

"Hmm, Director Huo, I'm back. I'll activate the First Aid call system when I return."

"What! Another analysis on 'Ren Naiser' before the end of the month? He hasn't released a new video yet, has he? ...So research his old videos?"

Having been out of communication for more than half a month, Ren Suo, though a loner, was still a son to his mother and a beast of burden to society, so he still made the necessary contacts and had work to do.

The flight from Sky Capital to Lianjiang City actually took only three hours, but Ren Suo only boarded the plane at noon. Since the Heavenly Lotus Academy was on the outskirts of Lianjiang City (otherwise, how could they afford to monopolize a mountain?), by the time he got back to his dorm, it was already dinner time.

With no other choice, Ren Suo headed to the third-floor cafeteria to appease his hunger, only to run into Lin Xianyu and Gu Yueyan. Somehow, these two girls had become friends, even though they weren't exactly kindred spirits before.

Ren Suo had no intention of interacting with them; having traveled by both plane and car, he was utterly exhausted and had little appetite. He probably wouldn't eat a late supper either, so he just ordered a seafood hot pot—the third-floor cafeteria was just that awesome.

However, as soon as Ren Suo sat down, those two high school girls, their faces full of Zhuge Liang's triumphant 'gossiping' Formation, took seats across from him, staring him down.

Ren Suo glanced at them, picked up a piece of fried tofu skin stick, and dipped it in the ginger and scallion sauce—the fresh taste of the seafood hot pot combined with the fragrance of ginger and scallion, along with the crisp tenderness of the fried tofu skin stick, exploded in his mouth with a familiar taste.

Gu Yueyan: "Hmph, scumbag."

Lin Xianyu: "Hmph, scumbag."

Ren Suo picked up a shrimp, dipping it in soy sauce.

Gu Yueyan said, "I didn't expect you to be such a cultured scoundrel who takes advantage of others."

Lin Xianyu swallowed her saliva. "I didn't expect you to be such a cultured scoundrel who takes advantage of others."

Ren Suo picked up a piece of shrimp paste, smacked his lips a few times, hesitating over the sauce dish.

Gu Yueyan: "I always knew you were no good, but I didn't expect you to be this despicable."

Lin Xianyu: "I always knew you were no good, but I didn't expect... Ah, it tastes better dipped in satay sauce!"

Ren Suo looked at them. "Help yourselves to the bowls and chopsticks."

Gu Yueyan was furious. "How could I possibly eat from your—"

Lin Xianyu, holding her bowl, said, "Really delicious."

Gu Yueyan looked at her companion, completely speechless. "Didn't you just say you were full after eating zongzi? We agreed to confront him when he returned!"

"I'm just trying a little bit to taste it..." Lin Xianyu muttered. "I can't usually afford seafood hot pot..."

After eating his fill to about fifty percent, Ren Suo asked lazily, "I come back and you two rush over to curse me. Even a condemned prisoner gets his charges read before execution, so what exactly did I do?"

Her eyes wide with anger, Gu Yueyan exclaimed, "You, you took advantage of helping Teacher Dong handle a crisis to say such things!"

"What things?"

Her cheeks flushed with frustration, Gu Yueyan stood up, pointed at Ren Suo, and stammered, "You—you said—"

Ren Suo belched softly, looking at her sincerely.

"I've never met anyone as shameless as you!"

Gu Yueyan raised her voice. "That night you said, 'I want to sleep with you'!"

Upon Gu Yueyan's declaration, the entire third-floor cafeteria fell silent. It was important to note that besides faculty, there were also some students with good grades and a fair amount of Points there for nutritional replenishment.

Noticing that the entire cafeteria was now staring at her, Gu Yueyan trembled with embarrassment and let out a cry of dismay before quickly running away.

Next, it was Ren Suo's turn to endure the scrutiny.

"...Salted Fish Second Class!"

"Here!"

"It's in your hands."

Lin Xianyu looked at the seafood hot pot in front of her and nodded emphatically. "I will not let the officer down!"

Ren Suo also took the chance to buy a big zongzi and make a run for it before his image as a cultured scoundrel was recorded, lest rumors of 'faculty preying on a student' spread. Ren Suo wouldn't mind, but losing a job he equated to 'tax theft' would be too much of a loss.

Having eaten and regained some energy, Ren Suo returned to his familiar home. He sighed, picked up a cloth and broom for a quick clean, swept away all the dust accumulated over half a month, took a bath, then lay comfortably on the sofa. He tore open the zongzi, placed it in a white porcelain bowl, inserted a fork, and began eating while turning on the Mini-World Game Console.

This is the hardcore Player's approach: to game in a cleaned, bathed, and dressed state with food ready, in the most comfortable environment for the best gaming experience!

"Endless Fun in the Mini World!"

Having not heard the startup voice in a while, Ren Suo shed tears of excitement.

It was finally his turn to have 'endless fun' at another's expense.

First, he checked what he had gained in the past half month: two Keys, namely the "One-Star Space Key" given by Dong Chengling and the "Two-Star Resentment Key" given by Qiao Muyi.

Beforehand, Qiao Muyi had already given him a "One-Star Resentment Key," which largely confirmed Ren Suo's guess: As the Key carriers leveled up, they could give upgraded Keys again.

With this, Ren Suo had much more leeway to operate, allowing him to take a nurturing route! By maintaining good relations with other individuals with strong Talent, he'd have a continuous supply of Keys!

Of course, Ren Suo had another way to play: by dominating and becoming a ruler, collecting all Key carriers—whatever he wanted, he'd have!

Ren Suo fantasized about his happy life as a ruler: Having enough Keys for whatever Level of Treasure Box, wow, how thrilling.

It was like fantasizing about winning five million: being able to at least make a down payment on any house he liked, wow, how thrilling.

And fantasizing about becoming the Harem King: harmonious content, wow, how thrilling.

After the thrill, Ren Suo dutifully returned to the game console screen.

Hmm, the "Devouring the Spirit of the World" game showed a spinning CD icon at the bottom right corner, meaning it was 'loading' or 'the game was turning into reality.'

Ren Suo estimated the time. In a few days, "Devouring the Spirit of the World" should be accessing the Federal Spiritual Repository, and he'd see if there was a live broadcast—although Ren Naiser would likely upload a 4K high-definition source later, so Ren Suo was in no rush.

Next came the main event: opening the "World Store"!

Today is the Dragon Boat Festival!

Such a pity to have missed the Grain in Ear promotion, a true loss...

This was what Ren Suo was thinking. However, the promotions column in the World Store didn't show a "Dragon Boat Festival Promotion," and there was no "Free Game of the Month" either.

There was only the promotional game column "Desire City Persona!" and a "Critical Exclusive Game (Level 3)."

Looking at "Desire City Persona!", Ren Suo glanced at the price and immediately backed off. A 4-Star game, 520 Merit Points? Goodbye!

But how could there be no "Free Game of the Month"? Could I have really missed it?

However, when Ren Suo opened the "Critical Exclusive Game (Level 3)" category, he suddenly felt that the Naiser officials operating the game console were angels—just like Qiao Muyi!

"Considering the Player's current Level is 3 and is set to advance to Level 4, the monthly free games and promotional activities are all consolidated into 'Critical Exclusive Game (Level 3).'"

"This category does not supply games below 3-Star."

"This category does not supply games with maximum Merit Points awards lower than 200."

"This category has three games."

"Games in this category are free, with only one selectable per month. If the Player has not been promoted by the next month, the options to 'refresh' or 'not refresh' the games in this category are available."