Chapter 3: He’s Gone
One minute later, Liufeng saw Lufiel’s account come online.
He immediately sent him a voice-call request. As soon as it connected, he said, “It’s the dungeon in the Fuling Region. Apparently something bugged out, and a whole party got wiped by the Ice Qilin.”
Liufeng was currently in the Fuling Region himself, perched atop the tallest tree in the rear mountains as he watched the commotion below.
“The bug itself isn’t a huge deal, but after that party died, the dungeon cave straight-up collapsed. Nobody can get inside normally anymore.”
“A few high-level NPCs are here too.” Liufeng’s gaze swept quickly over the crowd. “Someone already posted about it on the forums. Apparently the demonic beast sealed in the upper district broke free and escaped… but for something this big, there still hasn’t been a new quest.”
The information about the escaped demonic beast had come directly from the Fuling Region’s high-level NPCs.
Judging from their reactions, even they had no idea what to do.
The Fuling Region was considered a safe zone. There was only one demonic-beast boss in the entire area, and it had always remained sealed inside the dungeon cave, unable to leave.
According to the game’s setting, once it escaped the dungeon, it would become a roaming demonic beast, and its danger level would skyrocket.
Something this abnormal could only mean one of two things: either it really was a bug, or some player had triggered a hidden side quest.
So far, however, there was no sign of either.
The group that had come to farm the dungeon tonight had probably gotten the worst of it.
They’d never imagined they could possibly wipe, so none of them had brought level-protection items, and they hadn’t cleared out their inventories beforehand either.
Apparently, the most valuable thing they’d lost was an orange-tier weapon material.
By now, the collapsed cave had been forcibly dug open.
The Ice Qilin really was gone.
“Here’s the funny part.” Liufeng sounded downright gleeful at their misfortune. “They recovered everything they dropped except the orange weapon material. Now they’re insisting an NPC took it, because one of them saw some NPC’s spirit form enter the cave right before he died.”
Only NPCs had fully manifested spirit forms.
Liufeng was used to calling them spirit bodies.
Then again, high-level NPCs had a great deal of freedom and interactivity, so it wasn’t impossible that one of them had taken it.
Lufiel’s voice came through the call.
“Can you reconstruct what happened from the earlier data?”
Liufeng rolled his shoulders where he sat on the branch.
“Probably. Let me try.”
Dungeon areas had the highest concentration of constantly refreshing data. In game terms, it was like having the densest concentration of demonic energy, which also meant traces were easier to preserve.
Liufeng closed his eyes and steadied his breathing.
For a brief moment, the cold wind around him seemed to still.
Then wisps of mental energy dispersed into the air, drifting with the breeze before slowly seeping underground in a silent intrusion.
“This probably doesn’t have anything to do with your little NPC, right?” Liufeng kept talking as he worked. “But I figured you’d come check anyway, just to make sure he’s safe… Huh?”
He paused.
“A spirit body really did enter the cave.”
Eyes still closed, he carefully sorted through the images hidden in the data stream.
“Golden. Has a tail. Running around everywhere…” He frowned. “A fox?”
At the same time, Lufiel was standing in front of the alchemy hut.
He stared at the dark building and its tightly shut door.
“Rongrong.”
Liufeng nearly fell out of the tree.
“What? You’re sure? This really has something to do with him? Then how did he—”
“I’m sure.”
On the other end, Lufiel forced his way into the alchemy hut.
The lights were off.
He swept his gaze around the room, then entered the bedroom through the smaller door to one side.
The bedroom was empty too.
The blanket was neatly folded, without the slightest sign that anyone had used it.
[You have entered an NPC’s private area. Leave immediately!]
[You have entered an NPC’s private area. Leave immediately!]
…
Red warning messages kept popping up.
Lufiel ignored them.
He returned to the alchemy room and searched it again.
“He left before the cave collapsed,” Liufeng said as he withdrew his mental energy. “Looks like he headed toward the lower district. I can’t pick up any traces after that.”
The charcoal in the furnace had long since gone cold.
Lufiel pulled open a drawer.
Dong Li’s personal medicine furnace was gone.
The warnings ordering him to leave continued flashing.
With only a few seconds left on the countdown, Lufiel closed the drawer and stepped out of the hut.
Liufeng was still sitting in the tree.
When silence stretched on from the other end of the call, he had no idea what to say.
Lufiel being in love with a game NPC was a secret.
If Liufeng hadn’t possessed such an unusual mental ability and such extensive knowledge of intelligent data systems, Lufiel probably never would have let him find out.
As for what exactly had happened between the two of them, Liufeng had never pried.
He didn’t know much.
He jumped down from the tree, preparing to head over to Lufiel’s location.
“He might be awake.”
Lufiel’s voice was very quiet.
It came through wrapped in the cold night wind, carrying a trace of tension so subtle that most people would never have noticed it.
Liufeng stopped mid-step.
“You saw him? He’s back to normal?”
But Lufiel only said, “He’s not in the hut.”
Behind the alchemy hut, Supervisor Ba was still unconscious.
He and his gray snake spirit lay sprawled on the ground together.
With all the trouble in the rear mountains, most NPCs and players had their attention focused there, so no one had discovered what had happened here yet.
Lufiel approached and looked down at the NPC.
Supervisor Ba was still breathing.
A dark bruise stretched from between his brows down the bridge of his nose.
He clearly hadn’t fainted on his own.
“The snake spirit here was attacked.” Lufiel paused. “He must have left the hut.”
Dong Li wasn’t a high-level NPC.
The alchemy hut was one of his fixed activity zones, especially after dark.
There was no reason he should have been anywhere else.
Liufeng rubbed his chin.
“So tonight he entered the dungeon cave, then left his designated area. Where would he go?”
There was one thing he didn’t say aloud.
They still couldn’t be sure whether Dong Li had truly “awakened”…or whether some new intelligent consciousness had taken control of his body.
This was a game world, after all.
Everyone here was ultimately just data.
Changing an NPC’s memories and backstory wasn’t difficult.
Lufiel lifted his eyes toward the darkness.
“I’m going to find him.”
—
Cold wind swept through the night from time to time.
Dong Li made it all the way to the streets of the Fuling Region’s outer district without anyone stopping him.
Normally, there wouldn’t have been many people around at this hour.
Tonight was different.
Rongrong had been on alert for a while and had already crawled inside Dong Li’s coat to hide.
The little fox wasn’t very large. With Dong Li’s bundle and medicine furnace blocking the view, nothing looked unusual in the darkness.
Dong Li deliberately took a longer, more secluded route.
From a distance, he saw outsiders continually entering through the main gate.
It was unusually lively.
To be safe, he pulled his hood low over his golden hair, lowered his head, and walked out as casually as he could.
The moment he crossed through the Fuling Region’s gates, Dong Li hesitated.
Then he kept going.
Nothing stopped him.
He quickened his pace—only for a patrol guard to suddenly step into his path.
“Hey, you—”
Above the guard’s head glowed:
[Level 2 NPC · Rabbit Spirit]
A pair of red eyes scrutinized Dong Li.
Dong Li was already nervous.
The sudden appearance startled him so badly that, purely on reflex, he raised his hand and punched.
Rongrong followed with a swipe of its paw.
The patrol guard and his rabbit spirit dropped unconscious at the exact same time.
Dong Li stared around.
Then bolted.
Only after he’d put a good distance between himself and the gate, with no one else anywhere nearby, did he finally slow down.
He looked back.
Rongrong poked half its head out from inside his coat too.
Haha…
Dong Li was still riding the rush of excitement.
Everything that had happened tonight had been completely unexpected.
But he didn’t regret any of it.
He didn’t want to stay in the alchemy hut.
Working made him unhappy.
Not working made him unhappy too.
Every day was boring and dull, and on top of that, he had to put up with that awful Supervisor Ba.
But now that he knew for certain this world wasn’t real—that it was only a game—then after he left, surely those metal figures could just make another fox spirit to replace him!
But…
Where was he supposed to go now?
Dong Li opened his coat and stroked Yuanbao, then fed it two pills.
These were ordinary pills he usually brewed in a standard medicine furnace.
Yuanbao slowly ate them, curled itself into a ball, and closed its eyes again.
Dong Li had left in such a hurry that he hadn’t been able to find more “food” in the hut.
He’d thrown some herbs into his little medicine furnace before leaving, but they weren’t done brewing yet.
As he walked, Dong Li thought back to what Supervisor Ba had said earlier.
Something about it didn’t feel right either.
It would probably be best if he stayed away from the Fuling Region for a while.
But in all the years Dong Li had been alive, he had never gone anywhere outside the Fuling Region.
All he knew was that there was a small town nearby.
Shu Bai worked in an herbal medicine shop there.
The shop should have something that could treat injuries and help Yuanbao recover faster.
It was already very late, though.
Everything around him was pitch-black.
Not exactly the best time to travel.
After thinking it over, Dong Li decided to find somewhere to spend the night first.
For safety’s sake, he pressed Rongrong firmly against his chest and refused to let it run off again.
Then he cautiously continued down the road.
After roughly ten minutes, the narrow path gradually widened.
Streetlamps appeared along both sides.
A modest little courtyard stood beside the road, enclosed by a worn wooden fence.
There was light inside the courtyard and another lamp by the entrance.
A simple reception counter had been pieced together from wooden planks.
Someone sat behind it, chin propped in one hand, dozing off.
Dong Li noticed the words floating over his head and slowly approached.
[Level 1 NPC · Snake Spirit]
[Region: Fuling]
Snake spirits and fox spirits were the most common races in and around the Fuling Region.
A little black snake lay curled beside the NPC’s hand, fast asleep as well.
A notice had been pasted to the front of the reception counter.
Cheap Lodging — 50 cents per night
A coin box sat right beside it.
Dong Li felt around in his pockets.
He didn’t have so much as half a cent.
This NPC was Level 1, just like Supervisor Ba.
If he knocked this one out too…
But the NPC hadn’t reacted to Dong Li’s arrival at all.
His eyes remained shut.
Dong Li vaguely sensed something was off.
He called softly, “Hey.”
Neither the NPC nor his snake spirit moved.
They might as well have been decorations.
Under the dim lights, the surrounding area suddenly seemed eerie.
Somewhere far away came the faint roar of a beast.
Dong Li looked around.
For no particular reason, he started feeling a little scared.
Then Rongrong abruptly wriggled out of his coat and jumped straight into the courtyard.
Dong Li failed to stop it.
When the NPC still didn’t react, Dong Li simply climbed quietly over the fence as well.
Whatever.
It was only a game.
He’d sleep here tonight.
And if that wasn’t allowed…then those metal guys could come drag him out.
There were five or six rooms in the courtyard, each with a sign hanging from the door that read Vacant.
Rongrong quickly inspected the place, then followed Dong Li toward a room in the back corner.
The door was locked.
The window, however, opened.
Dong Li climbed through with Rongrong.
The room was tiny, furnished with nothing but a bed, but at least it was reasonably clean.
Dong Li peered around in the darkness, sat down on the edge of the bed, and took Yuanbao out from inside his coat.
Yuanbao seemed a little better now.
Its icy-blue eyes slowly opened.
“Don’t worry. We’re already outside the Fuling Region!” Dong Li whispered. “Do you feel any better?”
Yuanbao gave a quiet whine.
Looking this pitiful, it bore absolutely no resemblance to the huge, imposing beast from earlier.
Dong Li’s heart ached for it.
He tried asking, “What do I need to do to make you better?”
Yuanbao was clever.
It tilted its head, clearly understanding him, then looked toward the small medicine furnace beside Dong Li.
Dong Li opened it.
The medicinal herbs inside were still burning, sending up little wisps of golden flame.
Rongrong crouched beside it and expertly leaned over to breathe another puff of fire into the furnace.
“So you’ll recover once you’ve eaten enough?” Dong Li thought aloud. “Don’t worry. This batch will be ready soon.”
Yuanbao gave another soft whine, closed its eyes, and curled into a ball.
Dong Li shut the furnace and hugged it too, warming his hands against it.
In that case, Yuanbao probably wasn’t in any serious danger.
It just needed to eat its fill.
Dong Li hadn’t forgotten about the other important thing.
He pulled the metal plate from his pocket.
A glowing screen rose above it.
Rongrong immediately leaned closer, staring with curiosity.
[Species: Fox Spirit]
[Region: Fuling]
[Level: 2]
[HP: Unknown]
[Status: Good]
[View Work Log]
Why did it suddenly look like his information…?
Dong Li frowned to himself.
He opened the work log.
It was completely blank.
Then he tapped the new [World Map] button.
A new interface appeared.
[Your Current Coordinates]
A tiny red dot appeared on the map.
That had to be him.
Dong Li tried zooming the map farther out.
And farther.
When the entire map finally came into view, he couldn’t help exclaiming,
“Whoa…”
So the world he lived in was this huge!
There were all kinds of places he had never even heard of.
Dragonbone Town.
Chaos River.
Asura City…
Dong Li studied the map carefully.
If he kept following the road ahead, the nearest place was Dragonbone Town.
That was also the town where Shu Bai worked.
Maybe he could go stay with Shu Bai for a couple of days…
Dong Li closed the map and opened [Player Forum].
[Title: Does This Game Even Have Devs?]
[Title: Things Are Pretty Lively Tonight]
[Title: Is Fuling Region Bugged or Is This a New Side Quest? Been Waiting All Night, Give Us an Answer Already]
[Title: Baizhi Zone Dungeon Run, Need 1 More]
[Title: How the Hell Did Lufiel Get the Asura King Title?]
Dong Li skimmed down the list.
Then his gaze caught on a familiar name.
He froze.
Th-That…
That was his ex-boyfriend.
There couldn’t possibly be someone else with the exact same name…
Dong Li stared for a long moment before hesitantly opening the post.
[OP: Did he use hacks or something? Is this dungeon even humanly possible? I’ve died eighteen times already!]
[Floor 1: It’s called talent. Look it up.]
[Floor 2: It’s just a title. It’s not like he actually became the Asura King. Let’s see if he can even clear Asura Forest.]
[Floor 4: Putting someone’s name directly in the title like this is kinda rude, isn’t it?]
[Floor 5: So what? The moment he lost his real name in the Fuling Region, he should’ve known this day was coming!]
[Floor 9: LMAO. Forget how he got the title—I’m more curious about what God Lu actually did in the Fuling Region back then.]
[Floor 11: What else could he have done? There are only so many things the system forbids. Though that was the only time he ever got a red name.]
[Floor 12: How many people do you have to kill to get red-named? Twenty?]
…
Dong Li stared at the discussion, completely lost.
“What does any of that mean…?”
What had Lufiel done in the Fuling Region?
But they’d broken up a long time ago.
Surely it had nothing to do with him.
Beside him, Rongrong yawned.
Dong Li tightened his grip on the metal plate and shut off the screen.
He barely understood any of these discussions about the game anyway.
Still…
Was Lufiel a player?
Dong Li put away the metal plate, then lay back on the bed with Yuanbao and Rongrong in his arms.
He stared blankly at the dark ceiling.
For a while now, he’d felt like his memory had been getting worse.
Even Lufiel’s name hadn’t surfaced in his mind for a long time.
Yet now that he’d left the alchemy hut, memories from before were becoming clearer instead.
Dong Li thought carefully about it.
Back when he and Lufiel had been dating…he had been pretty happy.
They used to go on dates in the rear mountains all the time.
Lufiel always brought him delicious desserts, helped him gather herbs, chatted with him, and read with him.
Lufiel was handsome and treated him well.
He was just a little cold by nature.
Dong Li had chased him for ages before finally getting him to agree to date…
Then later, Lufiel left the Fuling Region.
And never came back.
Dong Li waited.
And waited.
Eventually, he slowly realized that he had probably been dumped.
The room was quiet.
Rongrong yawned again and burrowed under the blanket on its own.
Dong Li yawned too and rubbed his eyes.
Whatever.
He should sleep first.
It had been so long.
Lufiel had probably forgotten all about him by now.
Dong Li took off his coat, climbed beneath the blanket with Yuanbao, and settled in for the night.
—
Late at night, outside the gates of the Fuling Region.
Several streaks of golden sword light swept silently through the sky, searching for their target.
Liufeng was still in the rear mountains, using his mental energy to help with the search and eliminate sections of the area.
But with the vast stretch of forest behind the residential district included, the Fuling Region wasn’t exactly small.
Logically speaking, even if Dong Li had left the alchemy hut, he should still be wandering somewhere inside the Fuling Region.
But if he wasn’t…
The world outside the Fuling Region was enormous.
How were they supposed to find him?
An NPC was much harder to locate than a demonic-beast boss.
Their voice call was still connected.
Liufeng checked Lufiel’s online status and said, “Nothing on my end either. He really isn’t in the Fuling Region.”
After a moment, Lufiel replied, “Okay. I’m heading toward Dragonbone Town.”
Liufeng rubbed his nose.
Finally, he couldn’t hold back anymore.
“I’ve always been afraid to ask you this…” He hesitated. “Why did you fall for an NPC?”
Lufiel didn’t answer.
Liufeng fell silent too.
After a while, he tried again.
“You really love him, don’t you?”
“Mm.”
“Is dating in a game somehow better than dating in real life?” Liufeng rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Are NPCs more understanding? Sweeter? More attentive?”
The other end of the call went silent for so long that Liufeng assumed Lufiel wasn’t going to answer.
Then he heard him say,
“Everything about him is good.”
Lufiel stood outside the gates of the Fuling Region, his shadow stretching long beneath the pale moonlight.
His gaze rested on his system interface.
In the upper-right corner was a photo album where players could save screenshots taken inside the game.
The album cover was Dong Li.
In the image, the golden-haired young man was strikingly beautiful.
He was standing very close, his lovely pale-violet eyes lifted toward Lufiel, gazing at him with complete concentration.
After that screenshot had been taken, Dong Li had shuffled even closer to Lufiel and stuffed a pill into his mouth.
Lufiel obediently swallowed it.
Dong Li cupped his face in both hands and leaned in.
“Lulu, how do you feel now? That one’s called a Grape Pill—I made it with grape wine!”
