Jing Minghe woke up hungry. He opened his eyes to find himself in a soft, large bed. He blinked, recalling his last memories, then slowly sat up.
"Is this... the rest area?" Jing Minghe rubbed his face with his hands. "Wasn't I just reciting opera lyrics? How did I get out? Was it successful?"
As soon as Jing Minghe finished speaking, he heard a *ding* sound from the door.
He turned to see Chi Hao push the door open with a cold expression.
"You're awake."
"Mhm."
Jing Minghe got out of bed, feeling pain all over his body and his stomach rumbling. "How did we clear the game? How many days have I been asleep?"
"Two and a half days."
"..."
Well, no wonder I'm so hungry.
Jing Minghe glanced at Chi Hao's empty hands.
Tsk, this guy came empty-handed. Doesn't he know I'm starving?
Jing Minghe grumbled to himself, about to ask Chi Hao if the cafeteria was still open, when a large exclamation mark suddenly flashed in the void before his eyes, followed by several lines of text floating in front of him.
Congratulations to the player for obtaining game rewards: Item Card *1, General Shopping Card *1
After these lines disappeared, two cards appeared out of thin air next to Jing Minghe's hand. They were palm-sized, no different from ordinary point cards. The front of the cards displayed player information: photo, name, and point value.
The back had two lines of explanation: Reward cards can only be used by the player themselves and cannot be lent out; if rewards are duplicated, only points will be accumulated, and no new cards will be issued.
Jing Minghe flipped the reward cards he received back and forth. He set the item card aside and shook the general shopping card. "You say, daily necessities, does that include food?"
"You're hungry?"
"Of course," Jing Minghe said speechlessly. "I didn't eat much in Yongye Town, and then I slept for so long after coming back. Do you think I'm made of iron?"
Chi Hao stood up. "Go wash up. The cafeteria is open."
After Chi Hao returned the room card with Jing Minghe's name on it to him, he turned and left.
"So," Jing Minghe pulled at the corner of his mouth and said with a wry smile, "he came here just to see if I was awake? And he's not going to explain anything else?"
After a simple wash, Jing Minghe changed into the clean clothes provided in the rest area, pocketed the reward cards, and planned to visit the shopping area after eating.
As he went out, Jing Minghe paid special attention to the nameplates on the doors on both sides. He memorized the names of the six people other than the five of them.
When he was about to take the elevator, he ran into You Mi coming up from downstairs. A woman he didn't recognize was standing next to You Mi. She seemed to be in a bad state, her head bowed low. Even when she sensed someone outside the elevator, she didn't look up.
You Mi saw Jing Minghe and was stunned for a moment. She said excitedly, "Minghe, you're finally awake."
"Sister You Mi," Jing Minghe stepped aside, "are you going back to your room?"
You Mi thought for a moment and said to the person beside her, "Meiyuan, I have something to say to my friend. You go back and rest first, we'll talk later."
The woman responded with a "good," glanced at Jing Minghe as she slightly raised her head, and silently walked out of the elevator.
After watching the woman walk away, You Mi said to Jing Minghe, "You haven't eaten yet, have you? The cafeteria is open, I'll go with you."
"Mhm."
Jing Minghe got into the elevator and went down with You Mi.
As the elevator descended, Jing Minghe saw that You Mi was silent. He spoke first, "Sister You Mi, what did you want to tell me?"
You Mi shook her head and gave a wry smile. "It's nothing, I just... wanted to apologize to you."
"Apologize to me," Jing Minghe said with a laugh. "What are you apologizing for, Sister You Mi?"
"I..." You Mi frowned, sighed, and said softly, "Because, I almost gave up on you too. Fortunately, fortunately, Mr. Chi saved you."
Jing Minghe said "oh" and smiled. "It's okay, there's nothing to apologize for. By the way, I still don't know how we got out? Sister You Mi, can you tell me?"
You Mi looked at Jing Minghe in confusion. "Didn't Mr. Chi tell you? Wasn't he taking care of you all along?"
"He didn't say. After I woke up, he went back to his room."
Chi Hao was taking care of me all along?
Jing Minghe found it somewhat unbelievable. Although his relationship with Chi Hao seemed to be slightly better than with others, it was only because they could cooperate. Moreover, Chi Hao didn't look like the type of person who would take care of others.
The elevator doors opened to the restaurant on the fourth floor. You Mi said, "Let's go eat, we can talk while we eat."
Jing Minghe was starving, his stomach pressed against his back. Since You Mi was willing to tell him, he wasn't in a hurry. He let You Mi sit down first, and he went to get a large tray full of food. He ate while listening to You Mi talk about their departure from Yongye Town.
"Finally, when Mr. Chi brought you out from inside, it wasn't just that portal of light; the entire station was shaking, as if it was about to collapse," You Mi's voice grew softer. "Yue Yang guessed correctly. You, who replaced Lan Zhi, couldn't leave Yongye Town. We didn't know how Mr. Chi managed to bring you out, but he must have taken a great risk."
You Mi suddenly slammed her fist on the dining table. "At that time, Yue Yang and Guo Wei were worried that the train wouldn't be able to leave and insisted that Mr. Chi throw you back. Fortunately, they couldn't defeat Mr. Chi."
After seriously listening to You Mi's explanation, Jing Minghe also broke out in a cold sweat in his heart.
He had always been curious about why he had such hallucinations and why he was ultimately able to complete the sacrifice in place of Lan Zhi.
Clearly, no one could answer this question for him.
"Oh, right," You Mi added when she saw Jing Minghe silent, "Mr. Chi got a medical card and bought me a lot of medicine to treat your injuries."
"I see," Jing Minghe finished the last bite of his food. "It seems I need to thank him properly."
"Yes," You Mi nodded. "At that time, Mr. Chi pushed me through the portal of light, and I thought... I didn't expect him to risk going back to save you. Mr. Chi, although his personality is cold, he is actually quite kind."
Jing Minghe still couldn't figure out what kind of person Chi Hao was, but it seemed unnecessary to figure it out now. As long as they could cooperate and he could be trusted, that was enough.
Jing Minghe smiled and stood up. "I want to go to the shopping area for a stroll. Do you want to come, Sister You Mi?"
"No," You Mi explained. "Meiyuan's mental state has been a bit broken since she came out of the last dungeon, and she's been unable to adjust her emotions. I want to help her, after all, she's also our comrade for the next dungeon."
"I see, thank you for your trouble."
"Alas, one person at a time is all I can do."
After parting ways with You Mi, Jing Minghe went directly to the shopping area on the second floor. He saw two men standing next to three vending machines: one tall and thin, the other short and slightly plump.
The screen of the yellow daily necessities vending machine was open, and the two men seemed to be discussing what to buy. Hearing someone approach, they both turned to look at Jing Minghe.
"Hi, my two friends, hello." Jing Minghe stepped forward and greeted them.