CH 056

TL: Moonlit

In the previous world, Lin Hanchuan had noticed that Qi Yuyu’s appearance and personality were completely different from Ran Xing’s in the first world. However, occasionally, they both showed a very similar expression.

Sly and agile, like a little fox on the vast snowy plain, they would show a content expression in front of those they trusted. But the moment they heard footsteps from strangers, they would perk up their ears in alertness.

When their territory was invaded, they both had an aggressiveness that did not belong to domesticated pets.

Now, the same expression appeared on Wan Li Shuang’s face.

Lin Hanchuan squinted his eyes slightly and tested, “Qi Yuyu?”

Wan Li Shuang looked confused.

Lin Hanchuan tried another name, “Ran Xing?”

“…,” Wan Li Shuang heard the names and realized they seemed to be two different people. He protested in a dissatisfied tone, “Bro, do I really have such an ordinary face? Like your two friends?”

His performance was extremely natural, without a trace of flaw.

If it was an act, his acting skills would be enough to become a movie emperor. Lin Hanchuan suppressed the faint disappointment in his heart and lowered his eyes, saying, “Sorry, my mistake…”

His words abruptly stopped, and Lin Hanchuan remembered that Ran Xing seemed to be a professional actor.

“Is there something on my face?” With a strange look in his eyes, Wan Li Shuang asked, touching his own face. After a few seconds of silence, he awkwardly inquired, “Is there?”

Lin Hanchuan withdrew his gaze and looked at the textbook in his hands, but not a single word entered his mind.

Ran Xing was arrogant and stubborn, while Qi Yuyu was aloof and reserved. Their personalities were vastly different. If one were to find any similarity between them, it might be that they were both cold on the outside but warm on the inside. The various details that had been overlooked before kept flashing in Lin Hanchuan’s mind, and in one moment, he thought he might be overthinking things, but the next moment, he felt there were indeed subtle resemblances. His mind became a tangled mess for the first time.

The person who was making him restless waved his hand in front of his eyes.

Wan Li Shuang: “Jiang Tian?”

He spoke and suddenly got lost in thought. Lin Hanchuan didn’t respond, which left Wan Li Shuang somewhat dissatisfied. However, he quickly changed his mind, realizing that precisely because of Lin Hanchuan’s indifferent personality, he couldn’t be swayed and bought by Zhou Yuntang’s tricks.

With this thought, Wan Li Shuang became calm and composed, even when Lin Hanchuan impassively moved his hand away, Wan Li Shuang didn’t get angry.

Morning self-study ended in an eerie atmosphere, and the homeroom teacher stepped up to start the first lesson. Wan Li Shuang noticed that Lin Hanchuan still hadn’t made any moves, so he cautiously pushed Lin Hanchuan’s shoulder and said, “It’s Chinese class.”

Lin Hanchuan snapped back to reality, putting down his math book, which he hadn’t flipped a page of, and took out his Chinese textbook. Throughout the class, he didn’t say a word to Wan Li Shuang.

Wan Li Shuang stole a glance at Lin Hanchuan’s handsome profile and thought to himself, he’s really so cold.

The cold Lin Hanchuan stirred up 001, and asked it seriously, “[In the same small world, is it possible to have two taskers?”]

“[Yes, it’s possible],” 001 didn’t know what had happened, but this was the first time the host had actively sought it out, making it happy and cheerful. “[However, the probability is very small.]”

Lin Hanchuan’s heart sank slightly and asked further, “[Why is that?]”

001 honestly replied, “[Each world has its own source world consciousness that rejects the energy and items from other worlds. When too many taskers enter a small world, there’s a high chance of the world consciousness detecting them.]”

From 001’s explanation, Lin Hanchuan understood that the world consciousness was what people commonly referred to as “the will of heaven.”

The will of heaven was elusive and had no emotions or preferences. It acted like a firewall for the small world, immediately activating the cleanup procedure to eliminate “viruses” when detecting foreign energy.

If two taskers sneaked into a small world simultaneously, the probability of them being detected and eliminated significantly increased.

[“…So, for the sake of mission efficiency, once taskers are deployed to a small world, other systems are no longer deployed,”] 001 concluded.

After hearing its words, Lin Hanchuan fell silent for a long time.

Those subtle resemblances were most likely just his imagination.

Before this, Lin Hanchuan didn’t believe he would have such strong feelings for Ran Xing or Qi Yuyu. After having hope and then losing it, he realized that he was more emotionally affected than he had imagined.

Seeing Lin Hanchuan’s somber expression, 001 felt a little sorry and said, “[However, there is a certain probability of an error in the system deployment or…]”

“[Or what?]”

“[Or you might have encountered a plunderer.]”

A name Lin Hanchuan had never heard before. Before he could ask, 001 explained on its own.

“[Us ordinary taskers play roles to complete the plot and take away a little bit of energy.] ” 001 sounded a bit embarrassed, lowering its voice a few degrees. After this sentence, it immediately raised its volume again. “[Plunderers, on the other hand, take away all the fortunes of plot characters.]”

Lin Hanchuan had a rough understanding; ordinary taskers could be compared to thieves, while plunderers were like ruthless robbers, seeking to take everything from plot characters.

Ordinary taskers follow the plot, while plunderers disrupt the plot, unabashedly absorbing all the characters’ fortunes and taking away most of the small world’s source energy. Once they return with their spoils, the small world quickly collapses due to the lack of source energy, disappearing from the universe.

001 cheerfully said, “[Chuanchuan, the way you complete tasks is like that of a plunderer.]” The fact that he gains a large amount of energy after completing a task was also similar.

However, Lin Hanchuan didn’t think of it as praise. His heart skipped a beat, and he asked, “[Have I plundered their fortunes?]”

“[No, you haven’t.]” 001 noticed Lin Hanchuan’s misunderstanding and quickly explained, “[Although it seems so, you really haven’t! I am a legitimate system! You haven’t plundered anyone’s fortunes, not even the original host’s!]”

Speaking of this, 001 was also puzzled. “[But your energy source… I don’t know.]”

Could he be a plunderer? Lin Hanchuan turned his gaze to Wan Li Shuang, asking, “[Do you have any way to find out if he’s a tasker or a plunderer?]”

“[When two hosts meet, they will both sense it, unless one’s level is much higher than the other, in which case the lower-level one might not feel it.]” 001 paused for a few seconds and proudly continued, “[I am already the highest level and the latest version of the system.]”

“[…The latest version and the highest level of the system, but still unreliable like this?]” In the midst of 001’s dissatisfied muttering, Lin Hanchuan sighed lightly.

He understood the implication in 001’s words; it was saying that Ran Xing or Qi Yuyu couldn’t possibly be taskers. Although he could comprehend it logically, his heart felt as if it had swallowed a piece of ice in winter, and he emanated a chilly aura all over.

The bell for the end of class brought Lin Hanchuan back to his senses. He collected all his regrets and disappointments, cleared his mind of memories, and focused on the task at hand.

As he walked behind the homeroom teacher, he didn’t notice that Wan Li Shuang was closely following him.

A few steps later, Lin Hanchuan caught up to the homeroom teacher and called out to her.

“Jiang Tian, is there something you need?” The petite homeroom teacher looked up at Lin Hanchuan with seriousness during class, but her voice softened and became gentle after class.

“Ms. Mei, I want to apply for boarding. What documents do I need to submit?” Lin Hanchuan asked directly.

The homeroom teacher showed no surprise at his request. “You just need to fill out an application form and have your parents sign it… They need to be aware of it.”

She was also aware of the Jiang family’s situation, and then she changed the topic. “As for boarding fees, I can apply for an exemption from the school.”

Unexpectedly, things went so smoothly. Lin Hanchuan sincerely thanked her, “Thank you, Ms. Mei.”

“The school provides preferential treatment to students with good grades. As long as you study hard and get good results, it’s the best way to repay the school.” The homeroom teacher patted Lin Hanchuan’s shoulder with heartfelt advice, “Tomorrow is your first monthly exam after transferring, so give it your best!”

As they spoke, Wan Li Shuang was wandering around them in circles, pretending to take a stroll in the corridor. When he heard that Lin Hanchuan wanted to stay in the dormitory, he immediately joined in, smiling playfully as he negotiated with the homeroom teacher, “Ms. Mei, my dormitory only has me. Let him stay in my dormitory with me!”

The homeroom teacher was surprised, “Didn’t you say you prefer living alone and didn’t want a roommate?”

The students in the school came from wealthy families. They either had dedicated drivers to pick them up or had bought houses around the school, so the school dormitories were rarely used.

Wan Li Shuang had been mocked when he initially chose to live in the dormitory, with people saying that his parents had a bad relationship and that nobody cared for or loved him, so he had to resort to staying in the dormitory. He had always claimed that he preferred to have the room to himself, occupying a double room because of the fewer people.

Now, Wan Li Shuang suddenly wanted a roommate, and the homeroom teacher couldn’t help but worry that he was trying to play a prank on a financially disadvantaged good student.

Wan Li Shuang widened his eyes and pleaded, “Jiang and I got along really well. Although we haven’t known each other for long, we’ve already become good friends. I want to live with my good friend. What’s wrong with that?”

After saying this, he even tugged at Lin Hanchuan’s sleeve, trying to get him to speak up for him.

However, Lin Hanchuan remained motionless. Wan Li Shuang saw him standing there like a pillar and made facial expressions, as if saying, ‘How can you back out at this crucial moment when we had an alliance against the White Lotus Faction?’

The homeroom teacher, watching their interaction, became increasingly suspicious. She was about to decline on behalf of Lin Hanchuan, who probably wouldn’t dare to refuse, but Lin Hanchuan spoke up, “I have no problem with it.”

Instantly, Wan Li Shuang’s face lit up with joy and he looked refreshed, saying, “See, Ms. Mei, he agreed!”

“Then…” The homeroom teacher hesitated for a few seconds but chose to trust Lin Hanchuan’s decision, “You two should get along well. Even if there are any disagreements, you should resolve them rationally and never resort to violence.”

Wan Li Shuang listened with a cheerful smile, and his gaze went past the petite homeroom teacher to spot the wide-eyed Zhou Yuntang behind her.

Zhou Yuntang had only heard that Lin Hanchuan agreed to share a dormitory with Wan Li Shuang, and his astonishment was evident on his face.

In Zhou Yuntang’s mind, Jiang Tian was reclusive, peculiar, and difficult to approach. Not to mention agreeing to live with someone else, he even couldn’t be bothered to say a few words. He never expected that someone could actually get close to Jiang Tian.

“I won’t have any disagreements with him, after all…” Wan Li Shuang raised an eyebrow, “The best way to develop a friendship is to find out that we both dislike the same person.”

Seeing Zhou Yuntang’s pale expression, Wan Li Shuang became even more delighted. In the eyes of the protagonist’s close friends and family, it was undoubtedly the grin of a petty and malevolent supporting male character.

Zhou Yuntang’s friends glared at Wan Li Shuang in anger, but instead of restraining himself, he became even more arrogant, his expression extremely smug.

However, Lin Hanchuan felt that Wan Li Shuang was straightforward even in his dislike for someone, which made him appear more endearing compared to Zhou Yuntang, who concealed his true feelings.