ATIGIBTC Chapter 27

«My mission is to conquer the world?»

After giving Lu Hu’s words some thought, He Fang had to admit she might have a point. Perhaps he really shouldn’t confine himself to this small, limited area. Since the game’s design included such a setting, it meant to offer players greater possibilities and gameplay depth.

Still, He Fang had always been cautious about expanding the city. The town he had painstakingly built wasn’t something he wanted to risk losing because of a hasty decision that could jeopardize its future.

Before taking any action, he needed to make thorough preparations.

He Fang issued a directive to the research institute to expedite their study of the Nightmare Beast Seeds. Simultaneously, he instructed the Public Security Department and Civil Affairs Bureau to conduct a population census. He had decided to open up a new piece of land and construct some of the basic infrastructure requested by various departments.

The defense measures, which previously focused on holding ground, now needed to shift toward active armed defense. This meant he had to rework his carefully laid-out defense deployment map.

If he truly intended to expand outward, certain infrastructure would become indispensable. The population census was aimed at identifying talented individuals among the current residents who could manage the newly established facilities. It seemed he would once again have to make use of the talent exchange market.

And then…

He Fang logged off from the game.

Both the population census and the Nightmare Beast Seed research would take time. Given his methodical nature, he wasn’t about to rush things. Besides, the Nightmare Beast Forest ensured that his residents wouldn’t face any immediate threats from external forces.

Now came the challenge of fulfilling the current demands for facilities such as an “Armed Forces Department”, “Advanced Court”, and “Biological Research Base”. He Fang felt stumped—his small city didn’t have anything as sophisticated as those. Where was he supposed to pull the models for them from?

He opened up the map, hoping to locate similar facilities somewhere within his city. However, all he found were trivial little locations unrelated to what he needed.

Even if he could find something, he doubted his ability to survey such facilities properly.

If he tried sneaking around near a military site or something similar, he’d probably be arrested on the spot.

In the end, He Fang decided to turn to the all-knowing search engine for help.

But…

For now, He Fang decided to slack off a bit.

Logging into the game earlier had put him on edge, thinking his residents were facing life-threatening dangers. He’d been so tense, afraid that a single misstep might lead to the destruction of his city save file, that he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep. The new game he’d bought recently still had its shrink-wrap intact. He needed some time to unwind and relax his mind.

He also planned to upload a new video to pad his bank account.

When He Fang opened his account, he was stunned. His previous videos were still racking up views. His follower count had seen a massive spike.

Seeing the earnings roll into his account brought him great satisfaction.

Then…

He decided to make a video about the queen of the finance department herself. He had to admit that even as an NPC, Lu Hu perfectly embodied the “queenly” archetype. Her design was flawless and her character model was impeccable. The only issue? The developers seemed to have questionable taste when it came to her aesthetic.

It was like a nouveau riche’s dream—she might as well have plastered her wealth across her face.

He Fang had once needed to enter the finance hall to handle some paperwork. Its interior design had been coldly minimalist, almost sterile in its simplicity. In stark contrast, Lu Hu’s personal domain looked like an exercise in light pollution. The gilded opulence of her furnishings was so over-the-top that He Fang had nearly gone blind just looking at them.

He Fang ordered himself a fruit tea. Today’s promotion was “buy one, get one free”, so he figured he’d end up with two cups. Not bad—his luck seemed to be holding.

Lying on his bed with the air conditioner on, He Fang propped up his legs, picked up his gaming console, and opened his save file. He decided to mess around a bit in the game, indulging in some carefree antics. Spending too much time in the fully immersive simulation pod often blurred the lines between reality and the game, making it feel like he was genuinely living in that world.

For this very reason, He Fang had never even bought himself a house in the game. He was worried he might confuse the virtual world with real life.

Having played numerous open-world games, He Fang initially found “Ruins Without Restart” fairly ordinary. As a city-building game with no missions, it didn’t stand out much. However, after its online launch, it became a unique genre. Most games would provide players with a main storyline that they could choose to ignore in favor of exploring other gameplay elements. But “Ruins Without Restart”, with its expansive worldbuilding, didn’t even bother giving players a main storyline to begin with.

Opening the in-game map, He Fang glanced at his 100% achievement rate, the fully unlocked map, and countless collected markers. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.

In “Ruins Without Restart”, the map expanded alongside the growth of his territory. This meant, theoretically, that the city map could grow infinitely.

In other words… could this game actually have a hidden main storyline? Perhaps unlocking the entire map would trigger it. Could the hidden objective before that simply be to open up all the maps?

But if expanding the map meant turning every piece of land into a part of his city, then wouldn’t unlocking the entire world map essentially mean… world conquest?

He Fang was stunned.

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. He jumped up and quickly posted a message to his account, sharing his speculation about the “Ruins Without Restart” hidden main storyline. He hoped to find other players who shared his interest and could provide some insights.

After putting his question out there, He Fang began searching online for information on airport construction. The Nightmare Beast Forest was currently his city’s greatest protective barrier. Expanding or repairing roads to connect his city to the outside world would be unwise, so the best solution was to utilize air travel.

An airport was crucial. Considering the future development of his city, it couldn’t be a small one.

He Fang repeatedly calculated his city’s total financial resources. Expanding key areas and constructing necessary facilities would require a significant investment. It was a colossal expenditure.

Looking at his pitifully low fiscal revenue, He Fang realized that reopening trade was an urgent necessity.

His phone buzzed again. This time, it wasn’t the dreaded ringtone of a phone call but a text message.

When he saw that it was from the same number that had texted him before, his heart skipped a beat.

“Dear customer, I’m currently in the elevator and will leave your juice order at your door shortly. The milk tea I brought as an apology for calling you by mistake earlier is also there. Thank you so much for your continued support and understanding.”

He Fang blinked. Even though he’d never met this delivery guy, he could still feel the genuine kindness in the message. After a moment’s thought, he replied: “The fruit tea I ordered today comes with a buy-one-get-one-free deal. You can take one of the cups as a reward for your hard work and as a token of my thanks for the apology gift. It’s not expensive compared to the milk tea, so please enjoy it.”

No sooner had he sent the message than a reply arrived, so quickly that He Fang had to pick up his phone again.

“Really? Customer, are you sure I can have one of the fruit teas you ordered?”

In He Fang’s mind, he could almost see the delivery guy, wearing his cute safety helmet, looking overjoyed. Was he really that happy over a single cup of fruit tea?

“Yes,” He Fang replied simply.

“Thank you so much, dear customer! You’re truly a kind and handsome gentleman. Your generosity has made all the hard work I’ve done today feel completely worth it! I really, really appreciate it!”

Staring at the text, each word radiating joy and gratitude, He Fang found himself momentarily dazed.

Unlike in the game, where NPCs’ words of thanks were merely pre-programmed data, in real life, this heartfelt appreciation came from another human being—someone with flesh and blood, just like him. The warmth and sincerity of it seeped through the words and reached him in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time.

For the socially anxious He Fang, it brought out a rare and subtle smile that he hadn’t worn in ages.

In the dim room, with its curtains drawn even in broad daylight, the slender, pale-skinned youth sat quietly. His faint, awkward smile gradually grew more vibrant, bringing a hint of vitality to his usually lifeless expression.

Meanwhile, in the city center, a towering statue depicting a man and a beast entwined in battle stood proudly. The figure’s muscular arm was raised high, its taut lines showcasing perfect anatomical detail. Bathed in sunlight, the statue appeared divine, its flowing contours leading the eye to the figure’s outstretched hand.

In that hand was a tiny object, completely at odds with the majestic sculpture. Under the dazzling sunlight, it sparkled brightly, grabbing everyone’s attention.

It looked like…

A cup.

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