Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 73: Badge

The conversation began with a casual greeting, but somehow it developed into a late-night snack at a table.

Oh no, it was actually two small square tables pushed together, overcoming all odds to eat like a family.

Eating late-night snacks alone isn’t as enjoyable—that was Captain Muscle’s reason. By the time Xu Wang and the others realized what was happening, various snacks had already covered half of the table. The remaining half awaited the return of Dark Circles from other stalls to fill it up.

“We ‘appraised’ from one end of the street to the other, ensuring that only the best are on our table,” Dark Circles boasted upon returning, as Phoenix Eyes gave his stamp of approval on the quality of their “purchases”, speaking with emphasis and posture as if they weren’t at a street stall but a Michelin-starred restaurant.

Huainan beef soup, fragrant pan-fried hairy tofu, baked stuffed sesame rolls, and more represented Anhui, forming half of the eight-person late-night snack feast. Spicy crawfish, grilled meat skewers, fried chicken cutlets, spicy hotpot, and other popular dishes completed the other half of the table.

“Drama Queen” Captain Xu initially didn’t want to eat, mainly out of guilt, fearing that he might accidentally reveal something in his excitement.

But once the spicy aroma of crawfish filled the air, he couldn’t resist.

Just when he had started enjoying a few, his hand was swatted away by his own advisor.

Xu was confused and glared at Wu Sheng—any disruption during a wonderful eating moment should be intolerable!

Wu Sheng remained unphased. “Enjoy in moderation.”

Xu Wang followed his gaze and finally realized he still had an injury on his neck.

But the wound, inflicted by the young girl in black’s Wind Blade, was so shallow that it only left a trace of blood, not even requiring a band-aid. If such a minor injury required dietary restrictions, then he should have fasted when he was scratched by a black bear.

“Better safe than sorry. It’s wise to eat something light,” Wu Sheng suggested, as if understanding Xu Wang’s unspoken complaints.

Xu Wang asked in frustration, “Do you see anything light here?”

Wu Sheng glanced at the table, picked up the plastic-sealed menu at the corner, and, after a brief look, called out to the stall owner. “Boss, add a dish of cold okra salad—”

Xu Wang: “……”

Where is the camaraderie among socialist teammates?!

“Captain, don’t be ungrateful.” Qian Ai, who had been watching the whole time, put down a crawfish claw and sighed pitifully. “I wish someone would care for me and offer me cold okra salad…”

Xu Wang, looking at the mountain of crawfish shells in front of him, replied unconvincingly, “Your words have no persuasiveness…”

Qian Ai closed his mouth, feeling wronged.

He was indifferent to crawfish, but who made Wu Sheng use [A Dragon Swimming in Shallow Waters is Teased by Crawfish] tonight? The crayfish in the water were so cheerful. Clearly, this was pure, naked seduction that was irresistibly tempting.

The okra salad was served.

Chopstick by chopstick, he picked up okra in a desolate manner, occasionally putting one in his mouth to let his taste buds experience what it means to be cold and abstinent.

This was Captain Xu’s night of food indulgence: The End.

“Did you really eat your way from one end of the street to the other before starting the challenge?” Unable to feast, Xu Wang had to distract himself with conversation.

Muscles, Phoenix Eyes, Paper Thin, and Dark Circles all nodded together; half of their eyes showed confusion, half innocence.

“Is there a problem?” Muscles asked on behalf of the team.

Xu Wang: “…No, no problem.”

If one didn’t consider the “wind that sweeps away the clouds” eating manners of these four, there was no problem at all.

Muscles was sitting directly opposite Xu Wang. Talking to him was most convenient, so noticing him about to “dig in” again, Xu Wang hastily called out, “Muscles…”

As soon as he spoke, he hesitated, wanting to correct himself.

As a result, Muscles looked up in surprise. “You know my name?”

Xu Wang: “……”

A nickname being so accurately matched?!

Realizing the mix-up and that he hadn’t introduced himself, Muscles quickly changed the subject. “Did you see the leaderboard just now?”

Xu Wang was eager to discuss just that and immediately perked up. “I saw it. I thought the single-challenge speed records would be held by regulars on the leaderboard, but it seems like only Fan Peiyang’s team is there.”

Muscles had just brought up a random topic, not expecting Xu Wang to be genuinely interested. Without hiding anything and without compromising his own team, he shared some information. “The single-level speed record is only revealed to those in the same level when it’s broken. Including this time, we’ve only encountered it three times, and the previous two were Fan Peiyang’s team, one on 2/23 and the other on 4/23.”

Xu Wang was surprised, having assumed that the speed leaderboard was visible to everyone. If it was as Muscles said, only visible in record-breaking levels, then even if others broke records in different levels, they wouldn’t know immediately.

Like now, the record for 4/23 was theirs, and 2/23 was another team’s, no longer Fan Peiyang’s. But when was the 2/23 record refreshed? And when did Fan Peiyang’s team break the 7/23 record? For both them and Muscle’s team, it was a mystery.

“The records for the first seven challenges are up for grabs by any team willing to fight for it, with a bit of luck. It’s normal for them to change hands.” Muscles added, “But after 7/23, the records are set in stone.”

Xu Wang was stunned. “You’ve encountered three record announcements, and none have changed after 7/23?”

“Yep.” Muscles pondered, then shared some gossip. “Last week, a team encountered Fan Peiyang’s team in 9/23. They were trying to break the 9/23 record but failed.”

The implication was clear about the difficulty of the later challenges.

“Do you know any teams that hold records after 7/23?” Wu Sheng joined the conversation.

Muscles shook his head, sighing. “They probably gave up long ago.”

Wu Sheng felt this didn’t make sense. “Would teams fast enough to set records give up so easily?”

“Until now, there’s been no record for 13/23.” Muscles looked at him. “Do you know what that means?”

Wu Sheng understood clearly. “It means that even record-breaking teams have to repeatedly traverse levels 1–13.”

Muscles nodded. “It’s like academic performance. Effort leads to improvement, but if the difficulty exceeds a certain level, no amount of effort will suffice. Eventually, even those who consistently score 59 points will lose heart and give up.”

Wu Sheng suddenly remembered Phoenix Eyes once calling him “Teacher Wei”.

“If your team consistently scores 59 points,” Wu Sheng asked, “would you give up?”

Muscles thought seriously. “Hard to say…”

Seeing hope and having it dashed repeatedly is more devastating to the will than never having seen hope at all.

“We won’t.” Xu Wang, who had been quiet, suddenly spoke up.

Muscles was taken aback.

“Well, I mean he won’t.” Xu Wang pointed at Wu Sheng. “Our teammate here loves tackling the impossible. If it’s really like you said, countless 59s, he’d be ecstatic, dragging us to attempt the level eight times a day.”

“Not really…” Advisor Wu modestly disagreed, but his slightly upturned mouth betrayed his relentless pursuit of knowledge.

Muscles, who had spent nearly a decade lecturing, saw through Wu Sheng’s knowledge-thirsty soul instantly.

That’s his favorite kind of student!

Xu Wang: “……”

His advisor seemed to have caught someone’s attention. What to do? Should he flip the table?

Their companions didn’t notice this “undercurrent” because they had each found their “soulmates”—

Dark Circles: “Right, XX Bank. Their financial products are diverse, well-designed, and backed by the bank, making them the most reliable for long-term investments. If you’re interested in principle-guaranteed investments, large deposit certificates are also a good choice…”

Qian Ai: “Can I buy them through mobile banking?”

Dark Circles: “Most of them, yes, but some require visiting a branch.”

Qian Ai: “You haven’t told me your name. How will they pay you a commission?”

Dark Circles: “I have an advisor number. Just use it when you make a purchase.”

Qian Ai: “Hey, your job sounds pretty good…”

Dark Circles: “Of course. I’m the only one in our team who didn’t quit my job.”

Qian Ai: “Well, to tell you the truth, I’m also juggling challenges with work!”

Dark Circles: “Are you a financial advisor too?!”

Qian Ai: “No, I’m a food vlogger.”

Dark Circles: “That sounds fun!”

Qian Ai: “It’s not easy. Speaking of which, how do you balance work and challenges? I can only manage sporadic vlogging…”

Dark Circles: “You need a long-term plan for that. Let me explain…”

Paper Thin, resting his chin on his hand, watched the animated conversation with a soft smile. You’d think he was sitting in a café, watching the street scene.

Turning his head, he saw a classmate staring intently at him.

Paper Thin smiled warmly.

Kuang Jinxin, who had been curious for a long time, asked directly, seeing the other party’s gaze. “Are you a dancer?”

Paper Thin chuckled. “Not even close. I just practiced dancing.”

Practiced.

Past tense.

If this was Xu Wang, he would have detected the hidden meaning in those words.

But Kuang Jinxin wasn’t as perceptive. He was delighted to get a positive response. “I thought so! Dancers have such a presence. You’re the second most attractive person I’ve ever seen!”

This was a unique compliment for Paper Thin, who had heard many in his life. He couldn’t help but laugh. “Who’s the first?”

“Chi…” Kuang Jinxin almost blurted out a name but stopped himself, tapping his head. “Oh right, I can’t say names. It’s dangerous.”

He looked serious, as if saying the name would cast a curse.

Paper Thin’s eyes crinkled with amusement. His fatigue from the night almost dispelled, as if charmed by Kuang Jinxin’s natural candor.

“It’s a challenger I met on 4/23,” Kuang Jinxin elaborated, then immediately relaxed and sighed a little regretfully. “He’s really good-looking, but his personality isn’t great.”

Paper Thin inquired, “Bad temper? Nasty character?”

“It’s not specifically bad, just… weird,” Kuang Jinxin reflected on his memories of Chi Yingxue, particularly the moment he was hugged and dropped from the Ferris wheel. “It’s like he has a small, dark room in his heart, and no one knows what’s inside.”

Paper Thin, lost in thought, responded after a while, “Everyone has a dark room in their heart.”

Kuang Jinxin, without hesitation, shook his head and pointed at Qian Ai, who was deeply engrossed in a conversation with Dark Circles. “His heart is like a sunroom.”

Classmate Qian, who had no idea he was mentioned, was completely absorbed in Dark Circles’ vision of ‘rolling wealth’, from body to soul.

Paper Thin couldn’t see this sunroom but could imagine such a mental space. “Transparent, full of flowers and plants; sounds nice.”

Kuang Jinxin corrected him. “It’s mainly the eight major Chinese cuisines and RMB.”

Paper Thin almost choked on his drink and, suppressing a laugh, asked directly, “What about your other teammates?”

Kuang Jinxin: “Our advisor is a meditation self-study room.”

Paper Thin: “……”

Each word made sense individually, but combined, they seemed so mysterious…

“The captain is like an amusement park!” Kuang Jinxin, after some deep thought, found the perfect description for their leader.

Paper Thin, seeing the light in Kuang Jinxin’s eyes, finally confirmed his sixth sense was right.

A team that can inspire such pride in its members can’t be weak.

“Hmph.”

Phoenix Eyes, being ignored, continued to roast eggplant in foil, savoring it as if it were escargot.

As the meal ended and the night market closed, the eight strangers who met by chance, having bonded over a meal, went their separate ways.

The next challenge location hadn’t been given yet, so Xu Wang and the others found a decent hotel nearby. After a month in the Endless Sea, not only did they collect stationery, but they also accumulated substantial team funds, allowing for a steady improvement in their accommodation.

The arrangement remained two standard rooms, keeping in mind that better conditions shouldn’t lead to extravagance.

Wu Sheng emerged from the bathroom after a shower, noticing the dawn outside. His captain, who had showered earlier, hadn’t slept and was lying in bed, holding the keychain while staring at it.

Wu Sheng sat on his bed, drying his hair, waiting for his captain to initiate a conversation.

Sure enough, Xu Wang sat up abruptly, looking serious and full of academic curiosity. “Didn’t you once say that the operating logic of the Owl is very similar to a program?”

“Yes,” Wu Sheng said. “But that’s just a metaphor. If the Owl were indeed a program, its algorithmic complexity would be beyond human comprehension, not to mention its ability to interfere with the real world.”

Xu Wang stared at the keychain, lost in thought again.

The first time he entered the Owl with the keychain, he had to drop it on the ground to transform it into Wangwang. But on the second entry, the keychain went directly into the [Stationery Box], becoming an icon. Since then, the pattern of “disappearing into an icon upon entering and automatically reverting to a keychain in reality” had become fixed.

He had always thought this was Wangwang finding its most suitable mode of existence.

But what if it wasn’t?

What if it was the Owl making targeted adjustments based on Wangwang?

As Wu Sheng said, when the owl absorbs external information, it might generate something new through its own algorithms.

If that’s the case, then “teaching NPCs to be human” isn’t far-fetched…

Watching Xu Wang deep in thought, Wu Sheng felt a sense of impending redundancy to his job as their advisor.

“Where’s your little cards?” Xu Wang suddenly looked up and extended a hand to his advisor. “Let me see them.”

Wu Sheng, delighted that someone was interested in his “educational project”, quickly put down his towel and pulled out a stack of cards, solemnly handing one over as if he was handing them a business card.

Xu Wang took the card and saw Advisor Wu’s “intellectual crystallization” for the first time. “Why are you here… Is this your job or your mission here…”

After reading the first two, Captain Xu felt hopeless.

Looking up, he asked Wu Sheng, “Why are you on Earth?”

Wu Sheng, unusually, was stumped by the question.

Xu Wang sighed, emphasizing, “Asking questions is like conversation. You need to choose topics that interest everyone, to make them feel connected and inspire exploration. Questions about the universe or the ultimate meaning of life—even if you ask me, I wouldn’t bother answering.”

This comment jolted Advisor Wu.

He suddenly stood up, draped in his bathrobe, and rushed to the writing desk, tearing off a piece of hotel notepaper and began writing fervently, his eyes shining with inspiration.

Xu picked up the towel thrown on the bed to prevent dampness from seeping into the sheets, feeling as if he was back in their high school dormitory, under the tyranny of his study-obsessed roommate. “You don’t have to be so hardworking…”

Day turned to night, and the moon rose.

Time seemed to pass especially fast since they entered the “Owl”.

At midnight, the four teammates re-entered the moonlit forest.

This time, they intentionally entered directly from the hotel, a few kilometers from the coordinate point, so neither the maze nor other challengers were in sight. The surroundings were just the forest and the moonlight filtering through the leaves.

“Ding—”

The new coordinates, as expected, appeared in the [Cheat Sheet].

“Henan… Anyang?” Wu Sheng recognized the coordinate point but was puzzled.

The other teammates didn’t react much to “Henan” but were startled at “Anyang”.

Qian Ai: “Didn’t Captain Yue say that 5/23 is in Henan Xiangcheng?”

Kuang Jinxin confirmed. “Henan Anyang should be the 6/23 coordinate.”

When Yue Shuai mentioned it, they had looked up the locations on an offline phone map. Although both were in Henan, one was central and the other near the northern border, almost touching Hebei. The two places spanned half of Henan Province and weren’t very close.

“Check the [Report Card],” Xu Wang said, noticing something new on his arm.

The other teammates did so.

The [Report Card] was a section not often opened, as without the two leaderboards active, its contents only showed their team’s progress. Since everyone knew how far they had gone, nobody specifically checked it.

Even as recently as yesterday, they had focused intently on the [Submission Speed Ranking] for just two minutes.

Now, all four teammates could clearly see their current score—a symbol indicating they had completed certain challenges.

Xu Wang: “……”

Wu Sheng: “……”

Qian Ai: “Could it be that we finished 5/23 and all collectively forgot about it…?”

Kuang Jinxin: “Is it possible that, as a reward for breaking the submission speed record, we skipped the next level and went straight to the one after that?”

Xu Wang: “If that’s the case…”

Wu Sheng: “The logic is flawless.”

Qian Ai: “Can’t you also consider my guess…”

Xu Wang: “There’s always been a difference between Europe and Africa.”

Qian Ai: “……”

“Huh?” Kuang ‘Prince of Europe’ Jinxin, after exiting the [Report Card] and casually checking his [Stationery Box], made a new discovery. “Captain, I’ve got an extra hidden item slot!”

The three others immediately gathered around.

Indeed, in Kuang Jinxin’s [Stationery Box], a hidden page appeared next to the regular stationery. This page had thirteen empty slots, twelve of which were empty, and only the fourth slot had a question mark.

The three teammates quickly checked their arms but couldn’t find any hidden page, no matter how hard they tried.

After exchanging glances, they all agreed on one thing.

A question mark obviously meant it was something to be clicked on!

Classmate Kuang clicked on it, and the question mark disappeared, revealing a prompt:

[Stationery Box]: Please choose one submission speed record-breaking reward. Large cash prize/Moonlight Maze Badge?

Xu Wang: “A submission speed reward? Didn’t we already open the treasure chest yesterday?”

Wu Sheng: “But Xiao Kuang didn’t get any money.”

Xu Wang: “There must be some issue.”

Qian Ai: “I just want to know how ‘large’ this large amount is…”

The day before, they only had two minutes and were occupied with opening chests and checking the leaderboard. It’s possible the hidden slot appeared then, but either the notification sound was lost in the mix or there was no notification at all, leading to their failure to notice it.

“Captain.” Kuang Jinxin, usually decisive, was now perplexed about the choices. “What’s the use of this badge?”

“I don’t know either,” Xu Wang admitted honestly. “But based on the law of ‘nothing is given for free’, it must have some value…”

“The reward is yours.” Captain Xu patted Kuang Jinxin on the shoulder. “So follow your heart.”

While Kuang Jinxin was seriously contemplating his choice, Wu Sheng finally had a suggestion for his captain. “You’re making up laws now; could you at least put some thought into naming them?”

Xu Wang was speechless. “You’re focusing on such details…”

Wu Sheng: “The Law of One White.”

Xu Wang: “Damn, that sounds cool.”

Sometimes, being pretentious is also a talent.

Two minutes later, under the heartbroken gaze of Qian Ai, who loved money, Kuang Jinxin resolutely chose the badge.

The unknown is always the most attractive.

[Owl: Congratulations on finding the 4/23 Moonlight Maze Badge!]

The cheerful notification sound wasn’t just one but four.

The teammates were astonished and simultaneously looked at their arms.

For Kuang Jinxin, the hidden item slot’s fourth slot now officially housed the [Moonlight Maze Badge].

But for Wu Sheng, Xu Wang, and Qian Ai, their [Stationery Box] also showed an extra hidden item slot with a [Moonlight Maze Badge].

Kuang Jinxin was so happy, he felt like spinning around.

The maze was a challenge they had faced together, so naturally, they should all receive the badge together!

The three teammates were also elated, although they still didn’t know what the badge was for. They had deeply understood Classmate Kuang’s role:

“King.”

“Blessed by RNGesus*.”

*The term used here is (欧氪), which is a combination of Europe (欧洲) + krypton (氪金) which is a term for in-game currency. Europe (referring to Europeans and, by extension, white), which is associated with being lucky. So overall, the term is like a guy who’s incredibly lucky when he spends in-game currency to buy loot boxes (or whatever).

“A one-man team…”

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