The unruly young man, towering at over six feet, was currently sitting before the beautiful young man. He obediently leaned against his legs, looking up and pleading with him.
He was showing weakness, even playing the pity card, trying to win Yu Deng's sympathy and attention.
Hearing this, Yu Deng lowered his gaze and met the boy's eyes for a few seconds. He reached out to adjust the crooked butterfly knot on the bandage but did not agree. "I'm not going to help you every time."
He murmured softly, "Bandaging you is exhausting. Your muscles are so hard and tense the whole time, and your arm kept moving. I had to adjust the bandage's angle repeatedly to make sure it didn't cut off circulation."
Cheng Xiao stared intently at Yu Deng, not blinking as he listened to him speak.
It was only then that he realized this little widower in the dungeon wasn't particularly talkative. But in a safe environment, he would murmur for quite a while.
...It was especially endearing.
When Yu Deng finished mumbling, he poked Cheng Xiao's shoulder with a fingertip, a touch so light it felt like a kitten's paw.
Yu Deng was completely unaware of how eager Cheng Xiao's gaze was. He tried to persuade him, "Besides, I'm not with you all the time. You have to learn how to bandage yourself."
"...Alright," Cheng Xiao replied, his heart softening. His voice was slightly hoarse as he answered, "I understand."
Yu Deng patted Cheng Xiao's head and casually praised him, "Good boy."
"By the way," Yu Deng suddenly remembered his reason for coming, "you said you had some items and clues to show me?"
Cheng Xiao finally moved away from leaning against Yu Deng's legs.
The teenager rummaged through his personal space for a moment, pulling out three or four items, practically showing Yu Deng everything he had. With enthusiasm, he began his introductions: "Look, this is an offensive tool I got in the mansion."
It was a sharp dagger.
Yu Deng glanced at it a few times. It seemed familiar. After thinking hard for a moment, he remembered—it was the same dagger Cheng Xiao had used during the fight with his adoptive father.
So, it turned out to be an item that could be brought out of the dungeon. It looked incredibly lethal… Yu Deng didn't have any weapon-type tools like this yet!
Feeling a bit envious, Yu Deng touched the dagger's hilt.
"And this is a ledger. It's kind of useless—it can randomly grant a small amount of money in the dungeon," Cheng Xiao continued, before saying, "By the way, the mansion dungeon we cleared together has been completely shut down. Did you know that?"
Yu Deng felt a bit guilty. He blinked, fiddling with his sleeve, and stammered, "Uh… I heard a little about that."
There was no way he could admit that the mansion had been burned down by his deceased husband. As an accomplice, he had been fined 100,000 points. Sigh.
He mumbled vaguely, "I heard the dungeon was damaged too badly, so it had to be closed."
Cheng Xiao's eyes flickered with a thoughtful look. He knew that Yu Deng, with his special identity and mission, must be hiding secrets, but he didn't probe further or press for answers.
He wanted to wait for his beautiful stepmother to tell him personally one day.
"And then there's this other item from a different dungeon," Cheng Xiao changed the subject, taking out two small trinkets. "This one is for team formations, and the other is for communication."
Yu Deng was surprised as he picked up the pink heart-shaped charm. "It allows you to form a team?"
"Yes, it's an A-grade tool. You can select any friend to form a team with."
Cheng Xiao seized the opportunity. "Stepma, I haven't added your contact info yet. If I want to find you, I can't. Can I add you?"
After hesitating for a moment, Yu Deng agreed to add him as a friend. Once done, he didn't forget to remind him.
"You're not allowed to share my contact info with anyone else."
"Of course not," Cheng Xiao replied decisively.
As if he would ever be foolish enough to share his beloved's contact details with others.
After adding Yu Deng as a friend, Cheng Xiao finally felt some of his lingering anxiety and insecurity fade away.
Yu Deng, curious, asked, "By the way, how many dungeons have you been through?"
"Not many," Cheng Xiao coughed lightly. "After leaving the mansion dungeon, I stayed in the Player Center for a while, trying to see if I could find you, Little Mom. So, I've only cleared two dungeons so far."
He couldn't help but find it amusing when he thought back to those days.
"Everyone was saying that Little Mom is a ruthless powerhouse who could lift mountains and kill without batting an eye."
Yu Deng blinked innocently. "It's not like I said that."
"Exactly, just rumors they spread," Cheng Xiao agreed readily, then took the opportunity to make another request. "Since we've already worked together in one dungeon, can I invite Little Mom to team up with me for the next one?"
Yu Deng didn't agree right away. "Hmm, we'll see."
...
Cheng Xiao really wanted to keep Yu Deng around, but the small, basic room that came with being a novice player wasn't exactly presentable.
After coaxing Yu Deng for a long time, he finally convinced him to use the team-up item with him. Satisfied, Cheng Xiao walked him back to the intermediate players' residential area.
Of course, before parting ways, Yu Deng was once again coaxed into giving him another kiss.
Standing by the glass window, Yu Deng watched Cheng Xiao's figure disappear into the distance, his gaze drifting to the farther streets.
A sudden wave of immense melancholy washed over him.
Here, there were rows of buildings, orderly streets, and over a million people living their lives, as if it were a real city. But in truth, this place was just a temporary stopover for the unlucky ones trapped in the infinite world.
This wasn't home.
The contrast filled Yu Deng with a sense of emptiness. He sluggishly withdrew his gaze and asked, "Tongtong, I forgot to ask... do I... do I still have a chance to return to my real home?"
[...Apologies, I cannot answer that.]System 01 replied softly. [However, when you become a special-grade player, perhaps you'll find out.]
"Alright."
He was only a mid-level player now—still a long way off.
For the next few days, Yu Deng mostly stayed indoors, rarely going out. His routine consisted of browsing forums and chatting with Cheng Xiao.
Under the system's reminders, he briefly reviewed the previous dungeon. However, this review once again yielded no useful clearance strategies—only a tally of how many times he'd been kissed.
System 01 silently observed its host counting and couldn't help but ask, [Why are you willing to let them kiss you?]
That's right. Why? It wasn't as if kissing didn't leave his lips sore afterward.
"Because..." Yu Deng was stumped by the question. After thinking for a few seconds, he replied, "Wen Luo helped me clean up the juice and took care of my fever, didn't he? And Ander is my prey. Ronald was my guide... He said guides are allowed to share an initial kiss with their chosen ones."
Faced with the system's question, Yu Deng felt an odd sense of guilt.
It seemed like all those men had initiated the kisses. But, but... their kisses were rather pleasant, after all...
[.]System 01 looked at its oblivious host, seemingly sighing. [Then the others—they had no reason, right?]
Yu Deng froze for a few seconds, then suddenly realized, "Oh, that's true." Resolute, he declared, "Next time someone tries without a reason, I won't let them kiss me so easily!"
System 01 refrained from commenting.
Aside from his unproductive reviews, Yu Deng had a sudden urge to visit the training hall to try improving his combat skills.
There were many training halls in the Player Center, distributed across each level area. Guided by the system, Yu Deng went to the nearest one.
Upon arriving, he discovered that the training hall was actually a large building with thousands of single training rooms and a smaller number of dual training zones.
[The dual training zones in the training hall are the only places in the Player Center where players can engage in combat,]System 01 explained. [Players with grudges often arrange to duel here, but they must sign a liability waiver beforehand.]
"I see..." Yu Deng glanced toward the dual training area and saw a few fierce-looking individuals. He immediately spent 5,000 points to slip into an empty single training room.
Inside, the walls were neatly lined with various weapons.
There were even guns!
No wonder this place charged 5,000 points per hour—ordinary people wouldn't have access to such things.
Yu Deng carefully picked up a gun and, following the instructions of a nearby guidance robot, aimed at a target and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
A burst of gunfire hit the ceiling.
Yu Deng couldn't believe it: "?" This didn't make sense.
With confusion, he emptied the magazine, and his best shot was hitting the target next to him. He wasn't convinced, so he tried several other models of guns, but the results were similar.
Alright, maybe firearms weren't really suitable for him. Yu Deng began to question life a little, and ultimately decided to return to the most basic, unpretentious skills and train in hand-to-hand combat.
But in less than five minutes, he was being relentlessly chased and beaten by the AI with the lowest difficulty setting, so he awkwardly decided to stop training.
System 01, watching its distressed host, comforted him: [It's okay, host, you're good-looking, and you have many skills and items. If combat really isn't your thing, you don't have to force yourself to train.]
Yu Deng was comforted: "Alright, I won't train anymore, I won't challenge myself."
...
Several days passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the last day of staying at the Player Center. Yu Deng really didn't want to enter another dungeon. He procrastinated until the last half hour before being teleported into the dungeon.
Cheng Xiao had already contacted him early and used a team-up item.
A soft pink light flashed, bright for a moment before fading. The familiar dizziness and darkness enveloped Yu Deng. He closed his eyes, waiting for the new dungeon to appear.
[Dungeon data optimization in progress... Parameters loading...]
[Ding. Welcome, player Yu Deng, to the B-Class dungeon "Guihuai High School."]
[Guihuai High School is the best high school in the city. The environment is beautiful, the facilities are complete, the faculty is strong, and every year more than half of the students are admitted to top universities. It's the best high school in the eyes of parents.]
[But no one knows that behind its glorious achievements, there are many dark secrets.]
Huh? A dungeon set in a high school?
Yu Deng, still dizzy, opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings.
He was sitting at a desk, with a few brand new textbooks scattered messily on the surface. His deskmate was a tall boy with a handsome face, but his expression was very indifferent, not looking at him once.
The students around him were all wearing blue and white school uniforms, heads down as they sat at their desks. The fans above them squeaked as they spun, and the air felt stuffy, filled with a mix of unpleasant smells.
No doubt, this was a classroom.
Yu Deng stared blankly for a moment, then realized an important issue: "This is a school... System, won't my name be known by a lot of people here?"
There must be a class roster or something, wouldn't his disguise be exposed?!
Yu Deng nervously looked around, trying to spot Cheng Xiao, his teammate, and see if there were any other players nearby.
[Ding. Player Yu Deng, please note, this instance is a solo instance. No other players will enter this instance at the same time.]
Yu Deng: "Eh?" It's a solo instance? Does that mean he doesn't have to worry about his alias being exposed... but then Cheng Xiao can't team up with him, right?
[Yes, host, you don't need to worry too much.]
System 01 didn't tell Yu Deng that this was a plan devised by the main system after analyzing things for an entire night.
—Since those unruly players were influencing Yu Deng to cause disruptions, the new instance would only have Yu Deng in it, ensuring the task could be completed smoothly.
With the system's comforting words, Yu Deng was a little less nervous.
At this moment, the bell in the corridor rang, and the entire building of classrooms went quiet.
[Ding, the instance has officially begun.]
[Main quest for this instance:
1. Follow school rules during your time at school.
2. Survive until the final exams and achieve a top-three ranking in your grade.
This instance has no additional quests.]
[Note, this instance is on hard mode.]
Hard mode again! He has to clear a hard instance on his own!? And what's with these school rules...
Yu Deng slowly closed his eyes, already understanding his fate.
After the instance officially began, his livestream room also opened, and a large number of viewers flooded in instantly.
［It's been ten whole days, finally, I get to see the baby again, sob sob.］
［Look what I found! It's the baby as a high schooler!! So young and pretty, let me kiss the face!］
［Hehehe, I unlocked my wife's new form, spamming screenshots.jpg］
［But the baby's hair is a bit long, is that okay?］
［Let me see what this instance is about, huh, a rules-based instance? Seems like ghosts or monsters will show up, feeling sorry for the baby in advance.］
［Oh no, the baby looks so pitiful, like a sad cat.］
Yu Deng saw the later comments but felt more like a salted fish who had lost their dream.
System 01 interrupted his despair: [Host, please check your character's identity in this instance.]
Yu Deng straightened up.
[In this instance, you are a transfer student in your senior year of high school. Your family is wealthy, your grades are excellent, but you have a dominant, eccentric personality, are timid, spoiled, and like to boss others around.]
[Note, you have a special condition.]
Yu Deng: "??" A condition? Wait, what?
He caught a key word, and the whole world seemed to freeze for a moment. After a long pause, he nervously spoke: "But... but I can't be excellent in my grades!"
And it's senior year grades—his worst nightmare was high school senior year!!
Yu Deng had been in the Infinite World for over half a month. Although he had been pushing the plot so hard his brain was about to develop, he wasn't yet able to adapt to the senior year level, let alone aiming for a top-three grade ranking.
He felt like his life in this instance was doomed.
System 01 paused briefly: [Host's data shows you attend a very good university.]
"That's thanks to my older brother and younger brother who forced me through tutoring," Yu Deng said with tears in his eyes.
No more reminiscing, if he thought about it too long, he'd start crying.
"Yu Deng? Yu Deng!"
It seemed someone was calling him.
[Host, the character in the instance is calling you.]
Yu Deng snapped out of his reverie and saw the teacher at the podium had walked over, stopping just a little in front of him.
The teacher had short, neat hair, wearing a black professional skirt suit, with prominent nasolabial folds and sharp, serious eyes behind her glasses.
She was the type of teacher Yu Deng dreaded the most.
"Yu Deng, why didn't you answer the question earlier?" The teacher asked. "Weren't you paying attention?"
Yu Deng reflexively stood up and denied it, "N-no."
"Alright then, please answer the question. Your transfer grades are excellent, this question shouldn't be difficult for you."
He had to solve a problem as soon as he entered the instance? Yu Deng quickly glanced at the question on the board. It was a standard conic curve problem, completely beyond Yu Deng's current knowledge.
This was a huge problem! Why!? Why was he being asked math questions in the Infinite World?!
［Baby, don't panic, this is the first time I've seen an Infinite Instance actually ask for math questions.］
［I give up, I took one look at the question and realized I don't know how to solve it, sorry for lowering the IQ of the livestream.］
［But is it really enough to just have good grades to clear the instance? I feel like this is just an appetizer.］
［Did I imagine it, or did the question on the board just move?］
Yu Deng couldn't answer at all. The more anxious he became, the emptier his mind became, and his eyes started to get moist with heat.
In the midst of this tension, he suddenly felt a very strange sensation rising in his chest.
It was a strange, unbearable feeling, a mix of discomfort and itchiness, as if ants were crawling all over him. He wanted... to be close to someone. Yu Deng frowned, not understanding what was going on.
Could this be his special condition?
The other students in the classroom turned their heads, all staring at him, urging him silently to answer. It felt as though something terrible would happen if he couldn't.
"I..."
Yu Deng helplessly lowered his head and glanced at his desk mate. He didn't know what to do, but instinctively sought help. He lowered his hand and subtly tugged at his desk mate's sleeve.
His movements were so frantic that not only did he pull the sleeve, but he also brushed against the desk mate's arm.
The warm, soft palm touched the smooth, firm muscle of his desk mate's arm, and the inexplicable discomfort in Yu Deng's heart suddenly eased a lot.
The boy he touched froze, quickly pulling away.
But when the boy looked up and met those slightly reddened, teary eyes, something changed in him. He held out a corner of his draft paper.
Yu Deng quickly glanced at it and hastily reported an equation.
The tense atmosphere in the classroom broke, and the math teacher nodded: "Good, correct. Please sit down and pay attention to the lesson."
Yu Deng quickly sat down, afraid to move, and tried to shove some knowledge into his brain. He only relaxed once the class ended.
But by the time class was over, that strange, unbearable feeling came back in full force.
Yu Deng turned to look at his desk mate.
The handsome boy was still silently working on problems, his slightly pale uniform neatly worn.
Yu Deng pressed his lips together, feeling as though that strange sensation was burning inside him, his rationality teetering on the edge. His voice wavered with a hint of tears as he said, "C-Can you... lend me your hand?"
The boy furrowed his brows. "What?"
Yu Deng's vision blurred, and his breathing grew rapid. He simply reached out and grabbed his desk mate's hand.
The smaller hand rested on the larger, more defined hand.
This time, the area of contact was larger, and Yu Deng immediately felt much better. The boy, on the other hand, stiffened, his expression cold.
[Triggered side quest:
Quest target name: Unknown for now.
Quest 1: Force him to become your boyfriend.]
[Note: This side quest is mandatory and consists of several consecutive tasks.]
Eh?
This was the first time Yu Deng had received such a strange quest, and he looked up in confusion.
His desk mate, having already forgotten the previous awkwardness, released Yu Deng's hand and asked calmly, "What are you doing?"
Yu Deng struggled to think about his current persona and quest, then raised his chin. His round, beautiful eyes still held some tears, and the corners were moist, giving him a pitiful appearance, but his tone was far from polite.
"Well, I just thought you were decent-looking, so I touched you. What's the problem? Hey, I've decided—you're my boyfriend now."