By the time Yun Hexian and Pang Xin returned to class, they heard that yesterday's evening self-study had been canceled. They arrived today together with Lin Qiye.
Along the way.
Lin Qiye had already taken off the black ribbon. His eyes were pitch black yet seemed to conceal the night sky, very striking. Paired with his handsome face, Yun Hexian felt he was not a whit inferior to himself.
"Brother Yun, that person from yesterday found me," Lin Qiye said tentatively. "He told me a lot, and I wrote it down. Let me show you."
Lin Qiye handed Yun Hexian a small notebook. Written inside were things like the Grey Mist, Leviathans, Divine Ruins, and Forbidden Ruins.
Yun Hexian glanced at it briefly, then had Pang Xin put it away. He asked, "You didn't join them?"
"No," Lin Qiye shook his head. "Heroes die fast. I respect them, but there's no need to rush into joining. I still have my aunt, A-Jin, and Xiao Heilai; I want to stay by their side."
The reason he was willing to show these things to Yun Hexian was that the actions of Yun Hexian and Pang Xin in protecting him that night had led Lin Qiye to include them within the circle of his family.
Yun Hexian said nothing.
After a moment of silence, seeing that they had reached the school gates, Lin Qiye asked, "Brother Yun, if it were you, would you join?"
"I wouldn't, because I have a way to grow stronger, so there's no need," Yun Hexian said with a smiling expression. "As for you, though? Do you know the Law of Frequency?"
"The Law of Frequency?" Lin Qiye began to recall things he had studied in the past; the term sounded very familiar to him.
"When you encounter a certain person or thing in your daily life, you will encounter that person or thing even more frequently in the time that follows."
Yun Hexian glanced up at the sun and said in a profound tone, "That is the Law of Frequency."
"Especially that burst of blinding light you produced, which turned night into day and drew everyone's attention. Unlike Pang Xin and me, who can keep a low profile. Right now, the gaze of every supernatural faction is focused on you."
"If we could fool that middle-aged man so easily and he still managed to find you, what about the dark forces that oppose the good guys?"
"Will they let you off just because you refuse, the way that man's faction did?"
"Finding you isn't difficult, and finding your home isn't difficult either."
"Don't be like the protagonist of a shonen anime who only learns to regret and strive after losing everything. Think about it yourself; I'm heading to class."
Yun Hexian and Pang Xin turned the corner and entered Class One. Mulling over Yun Hexian's words, Lin Qiye's footsteps grew slow and heavy.
What Yun Hexian said was not without reason.
According to Zhao Kongcheng, God's Proxies were rare and drew intense scrutiny.
If dark forces discovered his home... could his aunt and A-Jin escape their clutches?
Yet if he joined the official Night Watchers, he would have no way to stay by his aunt's side forever.
His aunt had suffered for his sake for so many years; her back was already bent, and every day she endured the pain in her spine without telling him...
Lin Qiye's thoughts were a chaotic mess when suddenly a flash of inspiration hit him, recalling a blind spot in Yun Hexian's words—
*‘I wouldn't, because I have a way to grow stronger, so there's no need.’*
*‘Unlike Pang Xin and me, who can keep a low profile.’*
Did both he and Pang Xin possess Forbidden Ruins? Or did that thing actually still exist? What was Pang Xin's ability?
Just as Lin Qiye was lost in deep thought, the voice of the BKing System sounded in Yun Hexian's ear.
[BKing Behavior #Law of Frequency#
*‘After encountering a Mysterious in your daily life, you will encounter Mythicals with increasing frequency in the days that follow.*
*Your BKing behavior has caused Lin Qiye to reflect.’*
Congratulations to the host for obtaining a one-time game—Gorgeous Banquet.]
Gorgeous Banquet? It sounded like a dress-up game.
Yun Hexian sat down at his desk, planning to take advantage of the class monitor keeping watch during morning self-study to rest his head on the desk, fake sleep, and check out the Gorgeous Banquet.
Yet the moment he settled into his chair, An Qingyu, who sat in front of him, turned around.
"I heard you guys ran into a serial killer. Is that true?" An Qingyu asked in a low voice. His deskmate had just asked for permission to go to the restroom and probably wouldn't make it back before the end of morning self-study.
"True or false, what does it matter?" Yun Hexian smiled faintly, resting his head on the desk as he said, "You're very smart. Therefore, I can only say that I cannot tell you."
"That's enough." An Qingyu looked up, his lenses reflecting the sunlight outside the window while a hint of amused delight curled the corners of his lips. He had always felt that this world concealed many secrets. "Thank you."
Cannot tell.
Because of restrictions.
The fanatical gleam in the depths of An Qingyu's eyes grew even more restless.
Yun Hexian wagged his index finger to indicate there was no need to thank him, then buried his head in his arms to "catch up on sleep" as his consciousness entered the Game Space.
When his physical body entered the Game Space, he could use his Forbidden Ruin abilities, but when only his consciousness entered, he couldn't. It didn't matter, though; the game's very name suggested it was completely safe.
Gorgeous Banquet.
This game was about dressing up a young lady across eleven different aspects: headwear, earrings, makeup, necklaces, bracelets, rings, handheld items, clothing, shoes, back accessories, and companion pets.
Stacking the gorgeous attributes to the maximum and outshining everyone else was the only way to pass the level.
Above the smiling young lady's head were two numerical values. The top number was the gorgeous attribute value of the person currently ranked highest at the banquet: [135,689].
The bottom number was the young lady's current value: [76].
Utterly hilarious—it wasn't even worth a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of the remainder.
Yun Hexian opened the young lady's wardrobe. Ha! Completely empty!
(?▼Benefit▼)
Yun Hexian opened the in-game store instead. After browsing through them one by one, the item with the highest gorgeous value—the clothing's gorgeous attribute—cost real-world currency.
Yun Hexian: Σ(▼□▼メ)
What kind of trick was this, shearing the sheep with its own wool!
The money the system gave him had to be spent right back on the game!
No way! (?????????)
With a heartbroken ache, Yun Hexian bought the items for the young lady one by one. The number above her head skyrocketed, instantly reaching: [165,820].
Funds: -95,300.
He still had twenty-two thousand odd yuan left.
Trembling, Yun Hexian submitted the mission.
[Congratulations to the host for clearing the level—Gorgeous Banquet, obtaining the Forbidden Artifact—Gorgeous Wardrobe.]
[Forbidden Artifact—Gorgeous Wardrobe: Can be stored at the entrance of the Game Space. The interior perpetually holds two sets of clothing (eleven items each), divided into male and female styles. Once a set is taken out, the next set will recondense within one hour.
Note: Please select the clothing style first.]
Countless clothes and ornaments instantly floated before Yun Hexian, and two mannequins—one male and one female—appeared on the ground.
Yun Hexian's eyes lit up.
What was this? Uniform attire!
The BKing System must have known he wanted to establish a faction and was lacking specialized uniforms, so it specifically gave him this game!
Yun Hexian could select eleven pieces of clothing and jewelry for the male mannequin, while the female mannequin's items would undergo a gender-swap into women's wear.
However, to avoid emphasizing gender, he chose entirely neutral attire:
[Dark Hooded Cloak Night Travel Set], which included a top, pants, and outer garment, counting as three items.
It was indestructible, impervious to dirt, and adapted to the wearer's physique, but possessed no defensive power.
[Red Jade Half-Face Mask], [White Jade Half-Face Mask], and [Silver Half-Face Mask]—three items of the same model, except the red and white jade versions were newly upgraded styles.
They could block spiritual power from penetrating the masks to pry into the wearer's face.
[Red Silk Gauze], one item.
Light and nimble, it could extend infinitely and serve as a scarf, but was for viewing only and could not be touched.
[Ink Ring], one item.
A one-cubic-meter space; those who used it knew what it was.
[Winged Shoes], one item.
Sneakers with little wings at the back that could genuinely fly!
[Back Accessory—Cyan Jade Sword], one item.
A cyan longsword with a cyan jade pendant on the hilt, capable of adapting to the infusion of various elements.
[Companion Pet—Elemental Butterfly], one item.
An elemental butterfly that adaptively followed its follower, merging into the follower's body to temporarily increase their strength tenfold for thirty minutes; cooldown period of three days.
A total of eleven items.
The two mannequins quickly donned the attire. The silver masks and gloomy black hooded cloaks emitted a mysterious power, the red scarves fluttered in the air windlessly, the Cyan Jade Swords were strapped across their backs, and two attribute-less white elemental butterflies fluttered around the mannequins.
Both handsome and elegant.
The mannequins possessed only blank faces, wearing the silver masks while the red and white jade masks were stacked together on the open ground beside their feet.
For Yun Hexian, the most important item in this game was this Elemental Butterfly capable of multiplying his strength tenfold.