Live Gameplay

Qinmu's Sage Sword glowed with a silvery light. The helmet on his head and the silver-gray armor covering his body were indestructible and unbreakable, looking incredibly sturdy. The only drawback was that his character's gender was male—and unchangeable.

Behind Qinmu stood Yufei Han, a whale archmage. She wore a golden, ornate shoulder cape and a purple Gothic dress, like a mage from Eastern European religious lore. Her skull-adorned wand emitted an eerie blue glow. Rumor had it this single wand could fetch tens of thousands on the black market.

Qinmu looked enviously at her cash-bought gear. He sighed, glancing down at his own unremarkable and rather ugly clothes. Truly, money made all the difference. Behind him stood another healer, unfamiliar to him. Her heterochromatic eyes were striking. She wore an off-shoulder pink floral mini dress—clearly aiming for a cute aesthetic. Even her wand looked adorable; she must be going for the magical girl vibe in-game.

"Go, Qinmu! You gotta tank it! Don't embarrass me!" Yufei Han's voice was uniquely bold. The game's real-time voice chat worked perfectly; Qinmu heard every word clearly, not missing a syllable.

"Got it. With only one frontline Sage Swordsman, what more do you want?"

Qinmu stubbornly blocked the monsters' attacks up front. He used his Sage Sword's critical hits and special effects to punish the reckless beasts.

Yufei Han's magic flames were incredibly powerful. Being a whale truly changed everything. She dealt 40,000 damage in one go, wiping out several attacking monsters. Qinmu, after several swings, only managed 12,000 damage—barely killing one full-health monster. The gap was huge. And Yufei Han hadn't even scored a spell critical; if she had, it would've been even more embarrassing for him.

But this wasn't over. The map held more than just these monsters; the boss hadn't appeared yet. Still, Qinmu was in good shape. The minions couldn't challenge him.

After cutting down all the trash mobs and overcoming dangers, they finally faced the ultimate boss at the map's end: a soaring Blue-Eyed White Dragon. It dove down, nearly knocking Qinmu's team flat. Luckily, all three dodged swiftly.

"Whew, that was close. Healer, step up this round," Qinmu said, sighing in relief. He turned to the healer behind him, who had been on standby.

A suddenly adorable voice replied, "Roger that! But you guys have to protect me, okay?" This player was clearly a young, cute girl type.

The dragon's speed was freakishly fast. Qinmu barely dodged its normal attacks several times. Its magic attacks were insane—even with an instant shield spell, he could only reduce damage by half. Qinmu lost a third of his HP instantly. The healer immediately started restoring him. Meanwhile, Yufei Han used higher-level magic against the dragon, draining her MP fast but worth it.

Only Qinmu holding out allowed the mage to build full MP for her ultimate. It was part of their strategy. They could've added a fourth member, but Yufei Han insisted on keeping it small.

Finally, when Qinmu was on the brink of death, Yufei Han unleashed her ultimate: Dragon Flame Annihilation. It wiped out the dragon's last sliver of HP. The stage cleared. Everyone gained heaps of gold and experience. But such group raids only happened once; from now on, they could just sweep it.

After logging off, Qinmu felt a hint of drowsiness. He planned to wash up and sleep. But Yufei Han wasn't done—she had solo quests to grind. Even whale players needed constant effort; being overtaken by free players would be embarrassing.

"Brother! Brother! Come quick!" HuiXiang shouted from her room, clearly in a panic.

Qinmu dragged his tired body to her room. She was fiddling with a tablet on her bed. But its screen had gone pitch black, refusing to turn on.

"Here, this thing crapped out automatically. Brother, take it to get fixed," HuiXiang said, handing him the dead tablet.

"Crap out? How long have you had it? Barely two months—and it's the latest Apple tablet. What did you do to it?" Qinmu was puzzled. How could it break so fast?

"Nothing! It just shut down while I was playing. I don't know why. Get it fixed ASAP; I need it tomorrow."

"Where? Silly girl, all service centers are closed at night. Just make do with your phone; the systems are compatible."

"Hmm, I guess so. Oh, right—Brother, has the homeroom teacher called home? I haven't been to school for days. I won't get expelled, will I?"

"Nope. Sister Qingyu handled your leave request days ago. Rest peacefully at home; don't worry about trivial stuff."

"Good. The day before yesterday, didn't Yue Yang visit? You didn't even let her see me. That's so mean!"

"We look identical. Seeing one is the same as seeing the other, right?"

"That's not how it works. Even if we look alike, we're not the same person. Next time friends visit, make sure they see me. I'm dying of boredom alone here."

"Alright, alright. Not bored now? Sleep early. I have things tomorrow—Sister Qingyu will take care of you."

"You're always so busy. Spill it—who's the pretty girl you're meeting? Ever since you became a girl, your love life's booming. Even I'm jealous (｡•ˇ‸ˇ•｡)"

"Nonsense. Stop joking. Sleep now; I'm turning off the light. If I catch you playing with your phone at midnight, it might end up like the tablet—crapped out."

"Hmph, go away. Stop blabbing. I don't believe you'll check on me at midnight."

After closing HuiXiang's door, Qinmu hurried to wash up and went straight to bed. He needed full energy for tomorrow's visit to Yufei Han's house.