NOVPUBChapter 588: Chapter 508: What ill intentions could there be?
Chapter 588: Chapter 508: What ill intentions could there be?
“`
Ultimately, Hong Rao still emerged from the Light Gate.
Her tall and graceful figure was wrapped in a black cheongsam that extended over the knee, adorned with cream-colored lily-of-the-valley embroidery that swayed left and right with her steps, the delicate patterns fluctuating in tandem.
Xu Shuo glanced at her.
He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but he felt as if her aura had become especially profound and chilly after not seeing her for a while.
Moreover, she wasn’t even holding her teacup.
...
Hong Rao turned around to sit on the sofa, first exhaling a breath as if to relax, and then she looked towards Xu Shuo who was sitting at the other end.
“I just got back and saw you’ve crashed another script.”
Hong Rao crossed her right leg, propped her elbow on her knee, and rested her chin in her hand, her dark violet eyes intently observing him.
“I had already given you a heads-up,”
said Xu Shuo, expertly changing the subject, “So where have you been lately?
You unusually haven’t replied for such a long time.”
At his words, Hong Rao smiled slightly and just as adeptly steered the conversation back, “There wasn’t much on my side, you don’t need to worry.
It’s the script you just entered that’s extremely dangerous, isn’t it?”
“Hmm?” Xu Shuo paused, “The special world you mentioned?”
Previously, when the two had discussed running random scripts, Hong Rao had mentioned that there was a world that was very special; it had not only resisted corrosion by the Abyss but had even begun to draw power from it.
As a result, the scripts produced by that world contained an unusually high number of Abyss Creatures.
Because of the title “Abyss Caretaker,” Hong Rao was worried that he would wander into that world, especially if he entered a Mutant Script, turning the situation into a typical case of a rabbit walking into a wolf’s den!
As it turned out, things went exactly as Hong Rao had predicted.
The man, once more “randomizing,” had entered a script from that world.
Upon realizing this, Hong Rao sighed with a hint of helplessness, “The danger level of that world is much higher than what you’ve encountered.
You might be confident in yourself, but in Subspace, many accidents can happen.”
Her dark violet eyes fixed on Xu Shuo, her gaze somewhat inscrutable.
Xu Shuo always felt
that something must have happened to her during this time.
So he once again skewed the topic, “Don’t worry, I have a sense of measure.
But is the world you’re in also fraught with this kind of danger?”
Hong Rao looked at him with a half-smile.
Then, she briskly redirected the subject without delay, “It isn’t as dangerous as the place you just went to.
How was it inside this time?
Although the name of the script, ‘To My Lovely Angel,’ sounds very harmonious, it’s actually a third-phase high-risk script with a very high mortality rate!”
“Pretty good,” Xu Shuo’s gaze drifted.
“Seeing that you returned without losing any arms or legs, and the script has been played to pieces, I guessed that you must have done fairly well!”
Hong Rao said this with a touch of irritation, dissipating that aura of aloofness that had lingered around her, transforming into that familiar rambling mode:
“But now with that title, entering such a monster-filled script, one careless step and it’s over—you’re just delivering food…delivering meat!
“Moreover, your level has just reached the second phase, in the grand scheme of Script Space you’re still like a greenhorn just starting out.
Overleveling might sound cool, but of course, dying is equally cool!
“If you have a growth plan for yourself, you can tell me, and I can arrange appropriate scripts for you to farm rewards.
Do you really need to risk it all like this?
“Do you like places with lots of monsters that much?!”
“…”
Xu Shuo blinked but said nothing.
He watched as Hong Rao, after talking up a storm, took out her own little teacup and a purple clay teapot.
The fragrance of fresh tea diffused into the air; the agitated Hong Rao took a sip of tea and then took a long breath, staring at the blank expanse of Script Space ahead of her.
Then, the previously indignant expression on her face gradually stiffened.
After a long moment, she slowly lowered her raised right leg.
Seeing that her mood had become calmer, Xu Shuo finally spoke up, “Those places, large rewards.”
Seven words, successfully causing Hong Rao to have a relapse of heartache.
Indeed, large rewards.
And a high mortality rate.
She frowned and said, “I won’t press you on your reasons for grinding scripts so fervently, but if you really favor this type of script, there’s no need for you to take risks yourself.
I can arrange scripts for you, at least that way I can help out a bit if anything goes wrong, okay?”
Xu Shuo appeared thoughtful and remained silent.
The atmosphere quieted for a moment.
“`
Hong Rao finished her last sip of tea and turned to look at Xu Shuo, staring at him as she said earnestly:
“To tell you the truth, you are the student I’ve been most satisfied with.
If there’s anyone in the Script Space who would least want any harm to come to you, it would be me.
I hope you can safely survive until the fourth-level assessment and successfully graduate.
That’s why I sought you out.”
“Does it have anything to do with the trouble I’ve run into recently?” Xu Shuo asked.
“…” Hong Rao.
Damn, this kid is addicted to changing the subject, isn’t he?!
A fake smile of extreme brightness piled up on Hong Rao’s face.
Then there was a “snap” from her hand.
The little teacup shattered.
Seeing this, Xu Shuo took the initiative to talk about what he encountered in the script: “Speaking of which, I met an NPC in the script who knew about the existence of Subspace and the existence of players.”
Hong Rao, with an indifferent expression, repaired her little teacup and said, “It was the Dean, right?”
“You knew?” Xu Shuo was somewhat surprised.
“That world has been so riddled by the Abyss that the number of script directors is far greater than in other worlds.
Therefore, to effectively extract power from Subspace and suppress the Abyss, the Script Space has not imposed strong restrictions on that world when it comes to silencing,” explained Hong Rao.
In the real world, players cannot speak about anything related to the Script Space, and any behavior revealing information would be directly banned.
But this rule is not strictly enforced in worlds where the Abyss is present.
Especially for that world which had absorbed power from the Abyss, Subspace, players, directors, special powers—all sorts of entities were almost public knowledge.
Moreover, the method that world used to extract Subspace was quite special.
Unlike other worlds that merely copy it, that world directly isolated the entire region affected by the mutation.
Having repaired the teacup, Hong Rao continued, “The Dean is an Investigator of that world and deals specifically with the Abyss.
It’s not strange that he knows these things.
Besides, he is very strong, and most players basically rely on the Dean to clear that script.”
Xu Shuo nodded and asked further, “Do you know the Dean’s name?”
“The Dean’s name?
I think I’ve heard it’s!”
Hong Rao stroked her chin in thought: “Yu Yu?”
Xu Shuo paused: “That’s quite a mouthful.”
Hong Rao raised an eyebrow: “So you’re asking for his name because you think he might awaken?”
After all, the script had collapsed.
The NPCs inside either disappeared or, if they did not want to disappear, they had only one route: to awaken and step out of the script to become players.
The Dean had been brought into Subspace while he was still alive; he had a very complete mind and soul, albeit a bit disordered due to the contamination from the Abyss.
So, his chances of awakening were actually very low.
The Script Space wouldn’t want a player whose sanity was muddled.
Xu Shuo had only casually asked, then he brought up the next topic: “Then do you know how to find a player in the Script Space who has never partnered with you in a script and is a complete stranger?”
Hong Rao looked him up and down with a hint of curiosity.
“What mischief are you up to?”
“…” Xu Shuo.
“If you’ve never partnered in a script and never met, then that most likely means you don’t know their name, right?” Hong Rao narrowed her eyes.
Xu Shuo nodded.
Hong Rao’s smile bloomed: “Excluding systematic methods of seeking friends, to find such a nobody in the Script Space, one would need to resort to some special methods.
“And having to resort to special methods implies that the person either has feelings for you or has enmity with you.
“I don’t see you as someone who would harbor feelings, so Shuo, have you made an enemy in the collapsing script?”
It must be said, Hong Rao’s deductive reasoning truly lived up to her status as a Level Four player.
It would be simple to find someone in a normal script.
Only in a collapsing script would you be unable to see who the actor is through the script listings.
But actually, Xu Shuo wasn’t looking for revenge or anything like that.
He just wanted to reach out for a friendly exchange.
!…
