Remember to use the tie clip.

"Wait, you're challenging Xing Ye tomorrow?" After taking a shower, Ning Xinyao changed out of her dazzling red dress into a long-sleeved shirt, pants, and sneakers, glaring at Shao Lin.

Shao Lin helplessly said, "Xing Ye has already completed three gambling sessions today. Do you think he would agree to a challenge now?"

"But I..." Ning Xinyao stomped her foot. If they didn't deal with Xing Ye today, she would have to accompany Yan Hebi tonight!

Lu Qi looked Ning Xinyao up and down and chuckled, "Do you think our 10,000 points and QR code are so easily earned?"

He guessed Ning Xinyao's intentions, but since they were still teammates, he didn't say it outright.

Shao Lin remained very polite, patiently comforting Ning Xinyao and even fetching her a small cake, subtly explaining the stakes of the situation.

He didn't use explicit language but hinted that this wasn't her body, and since she was doing this to win and for her own sake, she should go and stabilize Yan Hebi, ensuring he didn't reveal anything to Xing Ye.

In Shao Lin's view, Xing Ye had taken all of Yan Hebi's chips through high-pressure tactics, so it wasn't unreasonable for Yan Hebi to leak a little information to benefit himself. This was a normal thing.

However, being cautious, Shao Lin still needed to verify this. So, in the first duel tomorrow, he planned to test Xing Ye.

During this time, it was crucial to keep Yan Hebi stable, and that task fell to Ning Xinyao.

Under Shao Lin's persuasion, Ning Xinyao gradually calmed down, even thinking that Yan Hebi was a handsome guy both in real life and in the game, so it wouldn't be a loss to spend time with him.

By 9 p.m., she took Yan Hebi's room key and went to find him. As soon as she entered the room, before anything could happen, she felt dizzy and fell asleep.

Standing behind the door, Xing Ye, with the help of a small mirror, timed it perfectly. Before Ning Xinyao entered, he drew the "Hypnosis" QR code, one they had obtained in the spiritual world.

Both "Panic" and "Hypnosis" were given to Guan Ling, considering his alien cell-enhanced physical combat abilities. He lacked some special control abilities, so these two QR codes were left for him as a safeguard.

"Hypnosis" could make the target dream according to the user's will. Upon waking, the target would temporarily struggle to distinguish between reality and dreams. Its offensive capabilities were limited, mainly used to implant memories. The effect lasted 10 minutes, reduced to 5 minutes after redrawing, and its effectiveness increased with the use of sleeping pills.

After Ning Xinyao fell asleep, Xing Ye gave her a cup of sleeping pills to ensure she would sleep until morning.

He called a server to help change Ning Xinyao's clothes, left her alone in Yan Hebi's room, locked the door, and left.

Returning to his room, Lu Ming Ze popped out and asked, "Where's Yan Hebi? Why isn't he in his room?"

Xing Ye was silent for a moment before saying, "He's following his own side storyline. It's reached a point I can't quite describe."

"...I'll go check..." Lu Ming Ze said.

"Be careful," Xing Ye was also concerned about Yan Hebi's whereabouts and instructed the mirror to return immediately if anything happened.

*

Around midnight, Yan Hebi woke up in a dimly lit room, wearing a bathrobe.

He remembered drinking a lot of alcohol, but since it was good wine, even though he was drunk, he didn't have a severe headache upon waking.

Yan Hebi turned on the light. He was alone in the room, but it wasn't his. It was much more luxurious than his cabin on the ship. He found his clothes by the bed, cleaned, dried, and neatly pressed. He took off the bathrobe and put on his clothes.

He got up and walked out of the bedroom, finding himself in a suite with a living room outside. He had stayed in the guest room.

This living room looked familiar to Yan Hebi. He had once helped Mrs. Lin fix her computer here.

"You're awake?" A voice that sounded like it had just woken up came through.

The voice wasn't loud, but Yan Hebi was startled. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw Mrs. Lin standing at the door of the master bedroom, wearing a silk nightgown and looking at him.

Mrs. Lin had removed her makeup and wasn't as radiant as during the day, but it was clear she took good care of herself. Her skin was still fair and elastic, with no wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.

Yan Hebi remembered Mrs. Lin was about 35 years old, ten years older than him, but her face didn't show her age. If not for her mature demeanour, one might think she was in her twenties. Her skin was in excellent condition.

"Yes, sorry about that," Yan Hebi blushed.

Mrs. Lin's nightgown was quite light, and Yan Hebi felt too embarrassed to look directly at her. He lowered his head, noticing she was barefoot, and reminded her, "The floor is cold. It's better to wear shoes. The central air conditioning is a bit strong. You should put on an extra layer when getting up at night."

Mrs. Lin chuckled, "Bring me my slippers. They're in my bedroom."

Yan Hebi: "..."

He bent down and walked back to the guest room he had just stayed in, took out a pair of men's slippers, and placed them at Mrs. Lin's feet, saying, "It's inconvenient for me to go in. You can wear these."

Mrs. Lin chuckled, went back to her room to fetch a thin coat, draped it over herself, and sat on the living room sofa. She poured two cups of hot water and said to Yan Hebi, "Sit."

On the living room wall hung a classical decorative mirror. Yan Hebi glanced at it and asked sheepishly, "I was drunk, right? Did you change my clothes?"

"Could I have carried you?" Mrs. Lin raised an eyebrow slightly and handed a cup of water to Yan Hebi. "I had the server do it."

"Thank you," Yan Hebi felt slightly relieved and took the cup. Mrs. Lin's fingers brushed against the back of his hand.

Yan Hebi: "..."

He took a sip of water, thought for a moment, and felt that he should express his opinion. He said, "Madam Lin, I... I think that no matter the circumstances, one should not indulge oneself too much."

After clarifying his thoughts, he raised his head and looked directly into Madam Lin's eyes, saying, "Perhaps you might not understand what I mean, but we are different from the passengers here. Once we leave the cruise ship, we're gone for good. I am also a man, and I enjoy pursuing beautiful and charming women. I am truly happy that you have expressed interest in me.

"But this place does not belong to me; it is not my world. Some might think that whatever we do here is not bound by moral constraints, that it's just for fun and mutual enjoyment, with no responsibilities, and no one in my world would know about it, so why worry?

"However, those who think this way forget one thing: people can become addicted. This addiction is not only physical but also psychological. This is a very dangerous world for me. Once I break the rules, I fear I might not be able to distinguish between reality and illusion. If I start thinking like that, then I truly won't be able to return.

"Someone once taught me that one must have principles in life. Although my interaction with him was brief, I believe what he said was right. I am glad that I had not crossed the line before meeting him, and I never will, neither in the past nor in the future."

Yan Hebi was a man, and he had his impulses. But he believed that humans are not animals; they have rationality. He thought that, given his current abilities and mental resilience, he couldn’t bear the emptiness that comes after indulgence. Therefore, he would rather choose rationality at this moment.

Perhaps he was foolish.

While Yan Hebi was speaking, Madam Lin lit a cigarette but did not smoke it, merely holding it between her index and middle fingers. Her fingers were long, slender, and very beautiful.

The ash fell onto the glass coffee table, and she seemed to be awakened by this slight movement, pressing the cigarette into the ashtray.

She looked at Yan Hebi. This man should be quite young, having just graduated and entered society. His edges and corners had not yet been smoothed out; he had not learned the deceit of adults. He carried a refreshing aura, not a hint of greasiness, at the most pristine and valuable age.

"A precious thought," Madam Lin said, her voice slightly hoarse and very sensual. "I hope you can maintain it in the future."

Yan Hebi looked into her eyes and said, "You are very beautiful, truly."

He meant it sincerely. If such a beautiful woman pursued him in the real world, Yan Hebi wasn't sure if he could resist. But in the game world, no. The fewer the restraints, the more he needed to stay sober.

Moreover, Xing Ye was on this cruise ship. If he did something wrong, it would surely be discovered. Yan Hebi did not want Xing Ye to lose trust in him.

"Hmph, such a perfunctory compliment," Madam Lin chuckled softly. "I've met many people like you. None of them have left this devouring cruise ship. I hope you can make it out."

After saying this, she glanced at Yan Hebi again and asked, "Where is the tie pin I gave you? Why aren't you using it?"

Yan Hebi quickly took out the tie pin from his shirt pocket and said to Madam Lin, "I've been carrying it with me all along."

"Remember to use it," Madam Lin instructed.

With that, her expression changed. The gentle look disappeared, and she said to Yan Hebi, "You may leave. Since you don't want to enter my bedroom, you are no longer welcome here."

"Oh, okay. It's so late, I'm sorry to have disturbed you. Thank you for having someone take care of me." Yan Hebi politely thanked her and left Madam Lin's room, considerately closing the door behind him.

He took out his phone and saw that it was almost 1 a.m. He had asked Ning Xinyao to go to his room earlier, and now it was too late.

At that moment, Yan Hebi received a message from Xing Ye: "Ning Xinyao has helped you out. She thinks it was just a dream. Come to my room; there's something important I need to discuss with you."

If Xing Ye said it was important, then it must be very important!

Yan Hebi quickly ran to Xing Ye's room and sat on the sofa. Xing Ye said, "I'm sorry about something. I just used a projector to observe you and Madam Lin and heard your conversation."

Yan Hebi thought to himself that it was a good thing he hadn't done anything and didn't mind, saying, "I was late coming back, and you were concerned for my safety, so you used the projector to find me."

Actually, it was the little mirror that saw their conversation and relayed it to Xing Ye, but this matter was not mentioned for now. Xing Ye didn't want Yan Hebi to know about the little mirror's existence yet.

Xing Ye said seriously, "Earlier, Madam Lin said to you, 'I've met many people like you. None of them have left this devouring cruise ship. I hope you can make it out.' I suspect there's more to this statement, which is why I called you over tonight to discuss it."

"What do you mean?" Yan Hebi asked. "I thought she was referring to the ordinary people who come to the cruise ship to gamble heavily. Could there be a deeper meaning?"

Xing Ye shook his head and said, "I suspect she knows your identity as a player. Don't forget, the tie pin she gave you has a QR code on it, and she repeatedly emphasized that you should use it."

 

Translator : DarNan