"Hello, my name is Jiang Ran. Nice to meet you. We're all players here, and we're all new, so let's team up and look out for each other."
Jiang Ran had seen Ye Shu's face before, but she hadn't expected this player to look even younger than herself.
"Jiang Ran, I don't want to team up. You can go back now. Please don't bother me again."
Ye Shu's lovely face still wore a warm and gentle smile, but her words brooked no argument.
Seeing the other girl’s calm expression, Jiang Ran figured Ye Shu must know she was a player, and that’s why she was being friendly. She hadn't expected to be turned down so flatly. For a moment she stood there stunned, unable to react.
"Huh?"
"Why?"
Jiang Ran blurted out her question in disbelief.
Ye Shu’s answer was the heavy, unyielding slam of her window.
"What the..."
Jiang Ran couldn't believe it, but she recovered quickly.
Turns out the rumors online were true—players who'd made it out were all reclusive and unsociable!
She’d watched Ye Shu for two days now and thought she seemed decent and easy-going—never expected to be turned away at the door.
Since Ye Shu had made herself clear, Jiang Ran saw no point in pressing her luck or forcing a conversation.
Inside the hospital room,
Ye Shu took a bite of her sesame flatbread and made herself comfortable in the still-warm bed. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Tch—"
"Don't you understand human speech?"
Annoyed, Ye Shu threw aside her flatbread, stomped over, yanked open the little window on her door, and barked, "Jiang Ran, this had better be important!"
"Sis, it's me—Lin Qing."
A familiar male voice pulled Ye Shu back from her irritation.
She looked up to see a familiar face—plain, yet refined; each feature perfect by the golden ratio, but somehow the end result was only average.
"Oh, it's you!"
"What a coincidence!"
Ye Shu suppressed her annoyance and turned cool.
Seriously, just how many players were hiding in this tiny psychiatric ward? Was this supposed to be normal?!
And how had Lin Qing found her room?
"Ye-jie, how heartless. Aren't we comrades? We played through the last round together, but we've been in the game for three days and you haven't contacted me once."
"We're neighbors at least! Players who've survived a copy together…"
Lin Qing looked at Ye Shu, wounded puppy-like.
Ye Shu felt goosebumps rise on her arms.
"Sorry, it's just my nature to be distant..."
"It's fine, I forgive you, jie. Let's team up in this round."
A kind smile appeared on the boy’s open, honest face.
Ye Shu couldn’t tell whether he was genuinely kind, or putting on a show.
She decided to take the initiative: "Alright, but I don’t plan to open the door until the white mist clears. My abilities are limited. It’s tough enough keeping myself safe, so you’d better watch yourself."
Lin Qing’s smile didn’t waver. "It’s true, going out is unwise. Jie, I’m in Room 10 at the end of the hall—just let me know if you need anything."
With those words, Lin Qing turned and left without delay.
Sure enough, just as Ye Shu started to doubt his intentions, the guy simply left. Not once did he try to push his way in.
Day four of the game.
White mist covered the sky and blotted out the sun.
The world was shrouded in gloom, as if some storm was about to break.
Outside, the fog had persisted for four straight days, raising quite a commotion. But Ye Shu acted like none of it mattered, eating, drinking, and lazing about her hospital room, surfing the web when bored, and even joining players to flood the comment section on the holographic screen.
"Citizens of Jing City, please be cautious. Heavy fog advisory..."
Due to the fog, traffic accidents had surged—yesterday alone, over a hundred people were hospitalized in Jing City, and the hospitals were swamped.
Ye Shu’s gaze lingered on the reporter onscreen, broadcasting from within the fog.
The man took no precautions—not even a mask.
Yet the youthful reporter’s face was rosy, his voice loud and strong—a picture of health.
Could she have been wrong all along?
Was the white mist nothing but fireworks smoke?
Just a trick to confuse the players?
Was there really no harm to the body?
No—that couldn’t be. Even if she’d misjudged, her merman’s sense of smell wouldn’t lie!
Ye Shu pressed closer to the floor-to-ceiling window, staring unblinking at the dense white fog mere inches away.
The fog seemed drawn to human presence. It pressed up against the glass, but could not pass through.
"Huh?"
"Is this stuff... actually alive?!"
Ye Shu stared in disbelief at the shifting mist outside her window.
When she neared, the fog pressed even tighter to the pane.
"Master, there’s no scent of anything living here. It’s dead."
The merman forced himself closer to the window, nostrils flaring in distaste at the repugnant scent in the air.
Just then, the TV blared. A renowned specialist on screen, alongside the anchor, announced, "According to our investigation, the fog contains an unknown microorganism. Wether it is harmful to humans, we do not yet know. We've all believed the white mist was dense smog caused by years of pollution. Best to wear masks outdoors for now..."
"Microorganisms, huh..."
Ye Shu rested her chin on her hands, squinting out at the fog.
Compared to Blue Star, this world’s civilization was a century ahead, yet this was the best they could manage?
The system hadn’t told the players the source of the fog, either. Unless… the fog was created by the survival game itself.
……
As soon as the experts reported the fog might be dangerous, pharmacies were stripped bare of masks.
Still, even those who breathed the fog felt fine.
Day Five.
The white mist remained.
Most people had grown accustomed to its presence. Life carried on: kids went to school, office workers went to work. But doomsday rumors online spread wider, and more and more natives started hoarding supplies on their own.
Ye Shu’s daily life:
Eat, drink, practice swordplay, chat with her merman, and browse bizarre online videos—truly the most relaxing time since entering this survival game.
[Sexy Cockroach Mom in Black Stockings: Ye Shu, I've been stuck at home so long I'm growing mushrooms. When will this fog end? I followed your advice and blocked the drains and toilet, but my room reeks... Can I come over? I’ve still got plenty of protective gear left.]
Su Bai complained of boredom, but deep down she was loving this slow-paced life.
Snacks, hotpot, home every day, and video chat with Ye Shu to top it all off—what more could she want?
If only every survival game could be like this...
[ImYourDad: Stay put. Don’t go out. The fog's not as simple as it looks.]
Ye Shu looked at Su Bai’s photo with mixed feelings.
Her apartment—barely a dozen square meters—was stacked high with every kind of snack: instant food, spicy pig’s trotters, milk tea, peanuts, sunflower seeds… Five meals a day, enough for six months.
The Su family was a top Jing City clan. Raised under strict discipline, Su Bai had always lived under restraint. This had to be her own form of rebellious spending!
[Cockroach Mom: Fine, I was just saying.]
In her free time, Ye Shu stayed in touch with Pang Pangzi.
He’d somehow ended up dumped overseas.
As for Fu Jingchuan, he was thrown into a barren desert. If not for another player passing by to rescue him, he’d have been out the moment this game commenced.
Even Fu Shiyi fared no better.
Come to think of it, even though she had the Teammate Card bond, wasn’t the game's upgrade supposed to keep her companions within a set proximity? But lately, she hadn’t seen a trace of any of them.