There Must Be Something Wrong With This Game!

After handing over the phones, Mr. Xiao thanked Duan Fei once more for his contributions. He added that Duan Fei would be listed as a special VIP of Rongge Company, and any future products would be sent for him to try.

Duan Fei decided to press his luck, asking if the perk could be expanded—to five people, for instance.

Or even two, if five was too much.

Mr. Xiao readily agreed and asked for the names of five members from the Salted Fish Inn, promising to send new products to all five of them with each release.

Afterward, Mr. Xiao said sincerely, "You truly don’t know how much your help meant. If it weren’t for our company’s complex shareholding structure, I would even want to give you a portion of our stock. The closure of the fissure will allow us to reassign a massive number of personnel from suppression duties, saving countless lives. The resources saved far exceed the value of the gift I’ve given you."

"Oh, that’s really not necessary."

"Thank you again. I can see you have things to do, so I won’t keep you. If you need anything in the future, just contact me."

Parting ways with Mr. Xiao, Duan Fei felt the game was getting more and more interesting.

It seemed like each dungeon wasn’t just an isolated instance. They had their own internal logic and connections, which ultimately led to these easter-egg-like rewards.

However, it appeared that not every dungeon had such easter eggs. They were likely reserved for dungeons where he had triggered a hidden quest and obtained an important card.

For instance, in the first dungeon, "Night of the Security Guard," he had taken down the Evil God’s lackey with a frail body, earning him an important card and reputation.

In the Night of Horror Movies, he helped Saw gain his freedom, thereby obtaining Saw’s card and, later, a tip from him.

’Looks like I should try to complete more special tasks from now on. My upcoming Profession choice is Summoner, so the two goals don’t contradict each other.’

Duan Fei gave one of the phones to Jinghong, and the two of them added each other as friends again in the game.

Looking at the contacts list on her phone, Jinghong chuckled softly. "Oh, I’m your first."

"...Jinghong, that came out sounding really gay."

"Did you forget I’m a girl again?"

"...We just know each other too well."

Following Jinghong into the building next door, Duan Fei saw that it looked like an office building from the outside, and the interior was furnished similarly.

A closer look, however, revealed many bizarre details.

For instance, the items at every workstation were identical. If you turned on one computer, all the others would automatically boot up, their on-screen mouse cursors perfectly mirroring the movements on the one you were controlling.

If you wrote a word in one notebook, the same word would appear in all the others.

This effect didn’t just apply to the current floor, but the entire building.

Seeing Duan Fei inspecting the anomalies, Jinghong explained, "Other players have noticed this before. There’s a strange synchronization effect on everything here. It’s like every object was copied, pasted, and then synced together. Some people speculate the dev team did it to conserve game resources."

"That’s what I was thinking. Otherwise, this would be way too creepy."

Walking to the underground parking garage, Duan Fei found many cars parked there, but the license plates were all the same, and even the condition of the cars was identical.

These cars were copies, too.

"What would happen if you take something from here outside?" Duan Fei asked curiously.

"Not much. The original item reappears in its place, and the one you took out slowly vanishes within five minutes. But one player claimed he once found a distinctive, pink building filled with all sorts of supplies that didn’t disappear when you took them. Unfortunately, he could never find his way back to it after he left."

"Weird. Feels like the devs are just having some fun. But it’s interesting."

"Mhm. Players are finding all sorts of easter eggs and figuring out new tricks every day. There’s a dedicated thread on the forums cataloging them all. You should check it out when you have a chance."

"Jinghong, you really know a lot."

’Because this is the kind of stuff you like.’

Jinghong didn’t say this out loud, only offering a serene, gentle smile.

A city complex spanning five hundred million square kilometers, filled with all sorts of easter eggs—it all made Duan Fei more and more interested in this game.

He found a fire door next to the parking garage. When Duan Fei inserted the key from the Divination Master, the door turned red, and a line of text materialized on its surface.

"Tier Zero, Multiplayer Competitive Dungeon, Game Type, Presets Enabled, No Level Restriction.

Note: This dungeon may cause a certain shock to your Spirit."

’A "Game Type" dungeon meant the challenges would be completed by playing some sort of game. "Presets Enabled" meant they would be assigned an NPC template to play as.’

’But what the hell was a Spiritual Shock?’

Before Duan Fei could figure it out, Jinghong, who was standing nearby, got a troubled look on her face.

Noticing her expression, Duan Fei asked in confusion, "Jinghong, what does this mean?"

"It means this kind of dungeon is going to be really nasty."

"How nasty? Are we talking ’frenzied maggots in a sea of feces’ level of nasty?"

"...I forgot, you’re the kind of person who can read that sort of manga while eating dinner. This should be nothing to you."

Jinghong pushed the door open and went in first, pausing at the threshold to say to Duan Fei, "In dungeons with presets, players usually don’t start together. We’ll meet up inside, then figure out our next move."

"Mhm."

As he walked in with Jinghong, Duan Fei found himself climbing out of a wardrobe.

’My Attributes panel won’t open, my backpack is inaccessible, and it seems my Skills are disabled too. I guess this dungeon doesn’t require any of that. It also means I can’t confirm what my Talent is here.’

The place looked like a room from the 1990s. The bed to one side had a pattern of bright red peonies, and a large-headed electric fan was creaking as it turned listlessly.

He turned off the fan and walked out of the bedroom, where he was greeted by the sight of a sofa draped with a white cloth and an old-fashioned 18-inch television, complete with two rabbit-ear antennas.

A plastic clock hung on the wall, indicating it was now one in the afternoon.

The second hand ticked loudly, marking the passage of time for anyone nearby.

’But for some reason, Duan Fei felt like the second hand was moving just a little too slowly.’

A calendar also hung on the wall, with pages torn away to August 24th. It was summer—the final stretch of vacation for students.

On the round table in the living room, Duan Fei saw that someone had left a note and a five-yuan bill.

He pocketed the money and picked up the note.

"Son:

I’m away on a business trip, and your mom has to take care of your grandma for a while, so you’ll need to look after yourself for the next few days.

I’ve already spoken with Aunt Liu from across the hall; she’ll make your meals for you each day. Show some manners—thank her when you see her, and wash your bowl and return it to her after you’ve finished eating.

Summer vacation’s almost over, and you’re going into fifth grade. Don’t spend these last few days just goofing off. Do some reading, practice your penmanship, and when you get tired of that, switch to math to clear your head. Don’t just play around all day.

Oh, and by the way, I’ve hidden that "learning machine" of yours.

Your dad."

Reading the last sentence, Duan Fei instinctively shouted, "That’s just cruel!"

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