PTYS Chapter 39

Xiao Muyu was not surprised. She didn’t immediately answer whether she agreed or not, but simply looked up and stared intently at Shen Qingqiu.

Unlike Shen Qingqiu’s gray eyes, Xiao Muyu’s eyes were as black as onyx, their pure, untainted darkness giving her gaze a profound depth. When she looked at you quietly, it was hard not to be captivated by her eyes.

Shen Qingqiu was no exception. She openly stared back at Xiao Muyu. Both their eyes seemed capable of speaking, and this silent exchange communicated volumes.

After a moment, Xiao Muyu averted her gaze and took a sip of tea. When she spoke again, she was straightforward: “Teaming up with someone like you is a smart choice. I shouldn’t refuse. But you’re clever enough to understand that right now, I have no desire to team up with you. In fact, I feel I should stay away from you.”

Shen Qingqiu was slightly surprised by her candor but only for a moment. It made sense.

When intelligent people converse, there’s no need for unnecessary pretense. So, she chuckled lightly, “Although I feel I should be a bit more obtuse right now, the truth is I understand. That’s why I think we should talk.”

“What could you possibly say to change my established impression of you?”

Xiao Muyu leaned back, her expression cool and detached, clearly keeping her distance. But Shen Qingqiu couldn’t help but find even Xiao Muyu’s cold demeanor somewhat enticing.

“Actually, I shamelessly believe that your impression of me is quite positive,” Shen Qingqiu said with a smile.

Xiao Muyu lowered her eyes and smiled faintly, a hint of mockery in her expression—definitely not a warm spring breeze.

With that subtle, sarcastic smile, she looked at Shen Qingqiu. “You’re right.”

Just as Shen Qingqiu’s smile grew brighter, Xiao Muyu added lightly, “You are indeed shameless.”

Shen Qingqiu: …

Seeing Shen Qingqiu’s smile freeze on her lips, Xiao Muyu’s lips curved up in a genuine smile.

Xiao Muyu’s beauty was not as flamboyant as Shen Qingqiu’s. Her delicate, soft features were like a gentle spring breeze, usually hidden beneath an icy exterior. When the ice melted, the poetic and artistic beauty that emerged was enough to attract anyone, including Shen Qingqiu.

So, even though Xiao Muyu had mercilessly mocked her, Shen Qingqiu couldn’t help but smile as well when she saw her smile.

However, Xiao Muyu’s smile was fleeting. Shen Qingqiu watched her for a moment before speaking candidly, “I know what you’re worried about, but you’re being overly cautious. I admit my actions seem strange to you; they are strange to me as well.”

Xiao Muyu looked at her, curiosity and inquiry evident in her eyes.

Shen Qingqiu spread her hands, her expression tinged with helplessness.

“To be honest, our initial encounter was purely accidental. There’s something you might not know: this game has ten dungeons. To clear it, you need to achieve an SSS rating, but it doesn’t require you to go through all ten dungeons in sequence. Players can choose to replay dungeons at their discretion, even skipping same-level dungeons.”

Xiao Muyu was momentarily stunned but quickly realized the implications. This explained several of her doubts.

If the rules required a strict sequence, she couldn’t have met Shen Qingqiu in the beginner dungeon, and Su Jin wouldn’t have had dungeon 002 as their first.

“The system informs players of this rule after they pass the B-level, or someone might tell you in advance. However, to prevent players from lingering in low-level dungeons indefinitely, there’s a limit on how many times you can replay B-level dungeons. I don’t know the exact number of times yet.

But there’s an exception: the Dungeon Reset Card. This card allows you to reset and replay a dungeon without the usual time restrictions.”

The rest time between dungeons is fixed. Even if the system doesn’t limit replays, players need time to replay them. The next dungeon’s start time is fixed, and if dungeons overlap, no one knows what might happen.

So, having numerous replays might not be very useful, but a Dungeon Reset Card is invaluable.

This message is very crucial. After all, if you don’t have enough points or sufficient skills and experience, it’s unwise to rashly proceed to the next level.

Xiao Muyu understood Shen Qingqiu’s implication. “So, you drew a dungeon reset card?”

Since the system only informs players about this after reaching A-level, it means that early-stage newcomers have no way to retry a level before clearing B-level.

Shen Qingqiu nodded and smiled playfully. “This item doesn’t help with clearing levels, so I didn’t mention it at the time.”

“When I replayed the dungeon, I figured out many of the rules and patterns, and it got boring. So, I checked if your batch had anything interesting.”

“I saved you not out of kindness, but because your performance as a newcomer was quite captivating, and I wanted to tease you a bit.”

Shen Qingqiu spoke with a straight face, showing no guilt for her past behavior.

Xiao Muyu resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and Shen Qingqiu, seemingly aware of her own nature, blinked and said, “I know I’m not a good person and was quite nasty back then. But I should be a reliable person.”

Seeing Xiao Muyu’s expression, Shen Qingqiu asked innocently, “Do you think my later performance was bad?”

Xiao Muyu, with a complex expression, said, “It’s just too reliable.” Can someone really give so much to another person in such a short time? Even risking their life? Even if she was overthinking it, Shen Qingqiu wasn’t the type to do something like this without a motive.

“You think someone like me wouldn’t protect another person so quickly without a purpose, right?”

Shen Qingqiu’s eyes seemed to see through Xiao Muyu’s thoughts. She stood up slightly, leaned forward, and asked seriously.

Xiao Muyu remained silent, which was as good as an admission.

Shen Qingqiu sighed and sat back, looking somewhat annoyed. “To be honest, I find it strange too. If it were before, I wouldn’t believe I’d save someone in a game, let alone almost risk my life.”

“But in fact, I saved you in the first dungeon because you were interesting. Among that group, you stood out too much.”

“With so many boring people, you always managed to catch my eye. Meeting you again the second time, you can’t imagine the feeling of seeing someone you’ve just noticed appearing in front of you again by chance, even I was moved.”

Talking about saving Xiao Muyu, Shen Qingqiu’s face showed confusion again. “As for saving you, killing someone is easy for me, and so is saving someone. But that time at Gate No. 7, I was just as puzzled as you.”

“When that knife came at me, I didn’t have time to think. I just didn’t want you to die, so much so that I didn’t consider myself. Even afterward, I couldn’t understand it.”

“You don’t need to doubt my intentions. No matter how scheming I am, I wouldn’t bet my life on it.”

“Besides, with my intelligence and understanding of you, what I did was over the top, which is why you don’t trust me.”

“Perhaps we truly met too late. Your unconditional trust in me back then was also inexplicable.”

Shen Qingqiu was indeed clever. Xiao Muyu couldn’t refute anything she said, especially the last sentence. She couldn’t understand her own trust in Shen Qingqiu either, nor the intense fear she felt when Shen Qingqiu was in danger.

Her mother had called her a cold-blooded animal, which wasn’t slander. She hadn’t felt anything even when her mother died.

The teammates who died tragically in the dungeon didn’t bother her either. There was no reason Shen Qingqiu could affect her nerves.

She looked at Shen Qingqiu, bewildered, and remained silent.

Shen Qingqiu sensed her hesitation and pressed on, “We all came to this world to survive, otherwise we would have refused to come. I’m no exception. Since we’ll eventually team up, both for survival and for fun, I choose you. Don’t you think we’re a perfect match?”

“Don’t you think we’re a perfect match?” Xiao Muyu looked at Shen Qingqiu, who had moved closer while speaking. A familiar phrase popped into her mind, but it vanished as quickly as it came.

She looked at Shen Qingqiu, who was now silent and waiting for her answer.

After a while, Xiao Muyu extended her hand. “Happy cooperation.”

Shen Qingqiu suddenly smiled. “Happy cooperation!”

“How much do you know about this world? Can I ask how you got in?” Xiao Muyu quickly adapted to her teammate’s role, sensing that Shen Qingqiu knew much more than she did.

Shen Qingqiu’s expression turned slightly cold, and she finally replied in a low voice, “I encountered a madman on the road who had a bomb in his car. It was a suicide terrorist attack, and I didn’t escape.”

Xiao Muyu frowned. Was it really a car accident that brought people into this world?

She voiced her doubt, and Shen Qingqiu frowned too. “From what I know, the trigger to enter this game is indeed related to cars, but it’s not just about car accidents. Only the ruler of this world knows how people are chosen.”

“Are those who don’t need to participate in the game natives of this Tianwang world?” Xiao Muyu was curious about this.

“I can’t say if they’re natives. I think of them more as NPCs. In their memories, they are residents of Tianwang world. As for us, who appear and disappear occasionally, they don’t reject us, and even…” She thought of Zhou Yuan and smiled meaningfully.

“Like that receptionist at the hotel, Zhou Yuan. He may seem like a receptionist, but he’s slept with countless players.”

Xiao Muyu recalled how Shen Qingqiu had scared the receptionist earlier like a predator, now understanding why.

“In times like this, how can anyone have so much leisure?” Xiao Muyu frowned, somewhat disdainfully.

“Human nature is like this: when living constantly in the shadow of death and fear, most people evolve into one of two extremes. Some become numb and callous, while others indulge in reckless hedonism, seizing every moment to live extravagantly. Why not indulge and enjoy life before death?”

This is why Zhou Yuan, with his good looks, could hook up with so many people in Tianwang, and why he dared to target Shen Qingqiu.

It’s just an adult affair, and who knows, one might die any day, so enjoying the moment isn’t a bad idea. As long as they find someone appealing and keep things physical without emotional involvement, many players are quite open-minded about it.

Xiao Muyu, noticing how casually she spoke, couldn’t help but ask, “What about you? Which type are you?”

Shen Qingqiu blinked and smiled seductively, “What do you think?”

Xiao Muyu felt she was being irrational, asking such a pointless question. What did it matter to her what type Shen Qingqiu was?

“Alright, since we’ve decided to team up, let’s get ready,” Xiao Muyu said, standing up to leave.

Shen Qingqiu followed leisurely, and as they exited, she said nonchalantly, “People have physiological needs. Tianwang is a bustling world, and there are plenty of places to satisfy those needs. But I’m quite picky. I don’t fancy those smelly men. As for women, there are some who like me, but I have no interest, so I guess I’m an exception.”

She then looked at Xiao Muyu with a meaningful gaze. That familiar mischievousness didn’t bother Xiao Muyu, but it did make her want to punch Shen Qingqiu. She returned Shen Qingqiu’s gaze with the same intensity and then said lightly, “I’m not particular, but I can’t handle someone like you.”

Author’s Note: Author: “Apparently, the face slap wasn’t painful enough?”

Xiao Muyu: “Enough already, no need to rush, we’re getting married soon!”