[mfn]TL: Part 1[/mfn]Xu Yin didn’t have class today, so he lay in bed the entire day, during which he received countless WeChat messages from his roommates, all sneakily asking which girl he went on a date with.
Xu Yin glanced at the tall man next to him, who was wearing a bathrobe, holding a laptop, and typing away, then smiled lightly.
Now this is truly… an extraordinary “girl.”
Yan Shixiu felt his gaze, turned his head, and looked at him with a confused expression.
In the evening, Xu Yin got up and did some squats and push-ups. 018 popped up a bubble: “Your posture is already very standard.”
Thinking back to the first world, 018 would still shout at him like a Spartan fitness coach to mind his form. Xu Yin couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic.
018 sounded a little melancholy: “Once you return to the real world, remember to keep exercising too.”
“Exercise is good for physical and mental health,” Xu Yin responded gently, “I know. Thank you, little 018.”
When he looked up, he saw Yan Shixiu leaning against the wall.
Yan Shixiu looked at him and asked curiously, “Were you just… talking to that system?”
“Yeah,” Xu Yin smiled and stood up, “He’s called 018. Mm, very cute, like a child.”
018 immediately bristled: “You’re the child!! I’m way older than you!!”
Xu Yin smiled even more: “Ah, now he’s throwing a tantrum again because I called him a child.”
Yan Shixiu was stunned for a moment, then couldn’t help but chuckle.
He said gently, “Then help me tell him thank you—thank him for taking care of you for so long.”
Xu Yin was slightly taken aback.
018: “…I heard that.”
018: “Hmph, no need to thank me. This is my job~~”
It looked serious on the surface, but those tildes were flying with sass.
Xu Yin curved his lips into a smile.
He could truly, genuinely feel that he was loved by both the man in front of him and little 018.
…
At night, Xu Yin went out for a jog, and Yan Shixiu followed along.
Yan Shixiu wasn’t a small-time celebrity from the first world. To stay low-key, the two specifically picked a less crowded route. Fortunately, though the university town was said to be busy, some areas were indeed so quiet they barely saw a soul.
They ran past a small park, an open square, and along the canal. The two of them burst out laughing at the same time, both knowing exactly what the other was thinking about—none other than that night in the first world.
That night could only be described as wild. After returning to Xu Yin’s apartment in that world, they even did it for the first time.
“You weren’t wearing underwear that night,” Xu Yin said between breaths as they jogged, “After your shower, you were in a bathrobe—with nothing underneath.”
Yan Shixiu stumbled a little, glanced at Xu Yin, and said in a slightly low voice, “Yinyin.”
When they got back to the hotel, just as Xu Yin swiped open the door, he was scooped up by the man, who burst out laughing.
What followed was another night of indulgence.
…
There was class the next day, so Xu Yin had no choice but to leave his hubby behind and return to school alone.
He had his roommate bring his textbooks over. As soon as Xu Yin sat down in the classroom, he couldn’t help but yawn. Instantly, all three roommates got excited: “You yawned!! You actually yawned!!”
Xu Yin paused, slightly amused.
One of the roommates immediately leaned in, eyes scanning his neck like a radar: “Let me see if there are any sinful marks on you!”
Xu Yin calmly asked, “See anything?”
The roommate growled, “There’s nothing!!”
Xu Yin smiled, his eyes crinkling.
No matter how many times they did it in the past two days, he had repeatedly told the man not to leave any hickeys on his neck.
After all, it wasn’t the middle of winter. He couldn’t just wrap a scarf around his neck all the time, and he couldn’t be bothered to buy makeup to cover things up.
Fortunately, that man always listened to him.
After two classes, things got a bit dull. Xu Yin felt a little sleepy and finally reflected a bit—yeah, maybe they had overindulged these past two days. This wasn’t the ABO world, after all.
Casually, he thought to himself that tonight should be a “ceasefire.” Time for a proper rest.
After class ended, he saw a familiar figure fully armed and leaning against a corner outside the teaching building. This level of clinginess made Xu Yin fully realize that a ceasefire was out of the question—as long as the intensity didn’t increase, it was fine.
Nearby, a few girls were discussing how a variety show crew was coming to campus on Saturday, and in the process, they even mentioned “Yan Shixiu.” The man in the corner paused, shifted his body to face away from them, but still couldn’t help glancing repeatedly at the students coming out.
The moment he saw Xu Yin, he immediately stood up straight. Even with a mask on, Xu Yin could almost instantly imagine the curve of the man’s smiling lips.
One of Xu Yin’s roommates asked curiously, “Who’s that, your friend?”
“My boyfriend,” Xu Yin said, smiling as he walked over.
“Oh, your boyfrie—Huh?!” The three roommates were thunderstruck, frozen in place.
Boyfriend?!
…As for Xu Yin introducing him so openly and without hesitation, Yan Shixiu was obviously delighted. On the way to the cafeteria, his steps practically floated.
The three roommates kept glancing at him—he was tall, and just from the way he dressed, it was clear he was very handsome. Yet he wore a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a mask, completely hiding his face. Still, there was this vague sense that…
“Your boyfriend kinda looks like Yan Shixiu,” one roommate leaned over to whisper in Xu Yin’s ear.
Xu Yin tried not to laugh. “Mm, he does look a bit… like him.”
“So yesterday, you stayed out with your boyfriend?” another roommate nudged him with his elbow. “Not bad, huh? Really know how to enjoy life.”
—Judging by how this “boyfriend” had come all the way to school silently sticking to Xu Yin, he clearly liked him a lot. Probably doted on him plenty too.
Xu Yin’s eyes curved with a smile, not denying it at all.
Once they got to the cafeteria, the three roommates didn’t want to be third wheels and found an excuse to slip away, leaving Xu Yin to take care of his man.
He asked Yan Shixiu to go find them a seat in a corner while he ordered a few cafeteria dishes and brought them over.
Halfway there, he suddenly heard a rough, cursing voice nearby.
A boy in a white T-shirt stained in several places had one leg propped up on a bench. His face was greasy and covered in pimples, his hair clumped with oil and flecked with dandruff. His dark circles nearly reached his cheekbones, and those small eyes of his were filled with hostility, glinting sharply.
“So that gay guy came back for revenge now? Seriously? It was just some stuff online…”
“Hah, still mad I rejected him, huh! But that damn gay is shameless. I never thought after a whole month he’d come back to stab me like this!”
“Yeah, totally messed up your livestream. Too much, right? And now your girlfriend dumped you over it…”
“If I find out where that bastard lives, I’ll beat him up myself! Teach him a lesson!”
“Alright, alright, drop it already. Weren’t you gonna take part in your platform’s anniversary contest? What’s up with that—did you get in? That 300k prize isn’t nothing.”
Chen Yu was about to respond when he suddenly felt a gaze on him. He looked up and froze.
It was a very good-looking young man.
The young man was carrying a tray, walking slowly past him, and just gave him a look.
…To be honest, Chen Yu normally pretended to be straight around others, but he actually wasn’t—he was bi. So at that moment, that glance really made his heart thump a little.
As the young man passed by, he even caught a faint scent of jasmine.
Across the table, his roommate waved a hand: “What are you looking at? Checking out Xu Yin?”
“Who?” Chen Yu immediately asked, “That guy’s name is Xu Yin? You know him?”
The roommate said, “Yeah, he’s a sophomore in our department. Heard of him ‘cause he’s really good-looking.”
Chen Yu watched Xu Yin walk to a corner and sit down in front of a tall man.
No kidding, just looking at them, you could feel the intimate atmosphere between the two.
Chen Yu clicked his tongue.
If that “Yin” had looked as good as Xu Yin, then maybe… he wouldn’t have minded giving it a try.
On the other side, Xu Yin sat down calmly.
018 couldn’t help complaining: “That girl named Shuangcheng—what was she thinking before? That guy is just…”
Xu Yin: “Maybe he turned into a slob after the breakup.”
That Shuangcheng girl at least looked normal. Xu Yin could only try to think of the situation in the best light.
But still—
He raised an eyebrow and said to Yan Shixiu, “You know about the Horror Chain anniversary event, right?”
“Yeah,” Yan Shixiu said, puzzled. “Why?”
“I signed up. Want to give it a shot too?” Xu Yin said with a bright smile. “There’s a prize, after all. If you make it through the application, it’s worth a try, isn’t it?”
After finding his man, Xu Yin had initially taken the event with a “just playing around” attitude.
But now—
He figured it might be worth taking seriously.
Yan Shixiu obviously didn’t care about the prize money from the Horror Chain anniversary event, but he always listened to Xu Yin.
—So that very night, he obediently went and signed up.
Over the next few days, Xu Yin simply moved his VR headset to the hotel. Yan Shixiu even ordered a new one. The two went about their day: attending classes, working online, and at night, they played games and streamed together.
They clung to each other openly, fighting monsters and slaying undead in dungeons in front of countless viewers.
After the stream, they exercised. And after exercising… they exercised again in bed.
Life was full and satisfying.
As it happened, the Horror Chain anniversary event was scheduled for Friday—the day before the variety show would come to the school on Saturday.
On Thursday morning, both Xu Yin and Yan Shixiu received an in-game message from the official platform.
The message informed them that they’d both passed the selection and had been chosen among the hundred participating streamers.
It also explained that the selected game mode would be “Truth or Dare,” and asked the streamers to confirm if they were still willing to participate.
“Truth or Dare” was one of the special game modes in Horror Chain, often used in fun, chaotic dungeons. For instance, if players had to take turns, how should the order be decided? Maybe through a round of Truth or Dare.
There were also other modes like “Extreme Dare,” “Pictionary,” etc. The real aim was to make the dungeons more entertaining. While there was some risk of things going off-script for the streamers, the viewers loved it—so many streamers were happy to play along.
Xu Yin and Yan Shixiu both confidently confirmed their participation.
By Thursday afternoon, the official team released the list of selected streamers and their groupings.
—And let’s just say, they really knew how to stir the pot.
The anniversary event was set up for five-player teams—four streamers and one top-tier fan.
Xu Yin’s team immediately exploded on the forums.
Because it was pure drama.
The four streamers: Xu Yin, Yan Shixiu, Chuuni God, and Shuangcheng.
And the fan: Chuuni God’s number-one ranked supporter.
On the forums—
“Glorious chaos incoming, bless this mess!”
“HAHA are they gonna start throwing hands mid-dungeon?”
“The official team really said ‘let them fight’ huh?”
“Is Chuuni God regretting signing up now? All three other streamers probably want to beat him up. Isn’t he scared of getting jumped?!”
“He’s got his top fan shielding him, LOL!”
“Can’t wait!! I’m camping in their livestream the whole night!!”
“I’m so hyped I might not sleep tonight!!”
Thanks to the rapidly rising buzz, “Horror Chain Anniversary” and “Yinhuashen vs. Chuuni God” even trended briefly on the tail end of the hot search list, catching the attention of even more netizens.
And so, under the eager anticipation of countless viewers—
Friday night, 7 PM, the Horror Chain anniversary event began, and a new large-scale five-player dungeon went live!
In the hotel room, Xu Yin and Yan Shixiu shared a kiss, then each put on their headsets, logged into the backend, and entered the anniversary event stream.
The darkness quickly gave way to visuals.
As Xu Yin came to, he saw Yan Shixiu standing beside him. They exchanged a glance and then began to survey the dungeon environment.
