C105 —- Hope Dependent 004

The group of five logged in at the library. The four who had been part of the team previously had gotten plenty of rest, and with no more worries in real life, they appeared radiant and energetic.

Only the newly joined team member, Jin Xile, looked utterly drained. As soon as he logged in, he collapsed onto the ground and lay there motionless.

“What’s wrong with you?” He Fei was startled by his state. “Are you too nervous?”

Jin Xile replied weakly, “No… I just ran 20 kilometers… I’m lucky I can still breathe…”

“Why did you run 20 kilometers?” Cheng Xubo, whose stamina had declined after years of work, was also shocked by the number.

Jin Xile explained, “Captain Lin said… I represent him in protecting the world… He couldn’t stand seeing me looking so soft… Since I’m still young and recover fast… he wants to train me according to special forces standards…”

Chi Lian said, “But we’re about to enter the Otherworld on an adventure. Isn’t it unreasonable to have you train now? Besides, if your stamina is drained, your survival rate will go down, right?”

But Jin Xile replied, “Captain Lin said… this time we’re going to Butterfly Dream Town… which is in a dream… so we’re supposed to sleep… and this was good training… won’t affect anything…”

Everyone: “…”

He Fei sighed, “Lin Wei’s really something. This level of exploitation is starting to rival landlords from the old society.”

Jin Xile rolled his eyes and didn’t bother replying anymore. He wanted to conserve his energy as much as possible.

Mu Sichen first went to check on Ji Xian’an’s body. After seven days of continuous sleep without eating, her physical condition had deteriorated badly.

She had been trapped in Butterfly Dream Town, separated from her body and spirit for a full eight days while waiting for them.

Even though Ji Xian’an had said she could hold on for a month, and Mu Sichen had left a totem to supply her with energy, her body had still shown some signs of change—her limbs had become thin, and her muscles were atrophying.

Mu Sichen was worried. Just then, the little tentacle on his shoulder poked its head out and merged into Ji Xian’an’s body.

The sunken look on her cheeks instantly faded, and she looked significantly better.

Mu Sichen smiled.

Qin Zu truly lived up to the title of “Guardian god of Humanity.” Despite being such a powerful god-level monster, he still worked earnestly like a healer—whenever he saw a favored one injured, even if he only had a single tentacle left, he’d still use it to heal them.

It had become pure instinct.

Though he was a little sad to lose the tentacle, Mu Sichen was genuinely happy to see Ji Xian’an recovering.

As usual, Cheng Xubo would stay behind to watch over everyone’s spiritual bodies, but Mu Sichen still hadn’t decided what to do with Jin Xile.

He didn’t want Jin Xile to enter Butterfly Dream Town.

Jin Xile had already been polluted by the butterflies. If he entered, it could cause an unexpected incident.

But he couldn’t be sent back to the real world either. They had all entered the Otherworld together, and separating now could mess with the time flow in the real world, just like before.

It seemed the only option was to have him remain in Hope Town.

Mu Sichen looked over at Jin Xile and saw that after resting for a while, he had recovered a bit. He was now eagerly tapping through the system panel, checking out what abilities he had.

He Fei was next to him, explaining how to navigate, and advised him to choose an initial tool that none of the others had picked—this way, a new type of ability would appear.

Jin Xile nodded repeatedly. Since He Fei couldn’t see his starting tools, he read them aloud: “Rice transplanter, harvester, crane, excavator, unmanned seeder, unmanned pesticide sprayer…”

Everyone: “…”

“Why are your tools so advanced?!” He Fei exclaimed in shock. “And what kind of starter skill would come from these giant machines?”

“I-I don’t know…” Jin Xile had come fully prepared to awaken supernatural powers and save the world—he never expected to be faced with a pile of mechanized farming equipment. He was completely dumbfounded.

Mu Sichen, however, had a guess. He asked Jin Xile, “What’s your newbie quest?”

Jin Xile quickly switched to the task interface and read aloud: “Newbie Quest 1: The first season of grain in Hope Town is ready to harvest! The townspeople have been harvesting day and night and are completely exhausted. Please help the residents with the harvest. Recommended starter item: Harvester~”

Everyone: “…”

Jin Xile: “Upon completion, you will receive a full set of ‘normal’ equipment for a grain processing plant. Please help Hope Town thrive as soon as possible!”

“…This is such a wholesome farming-and-construction holographic game,” He Fei commented. “Xiao Mu, is his system different from ours?”

Mu Sichen replied, “When Hope Town was first founded, the system did tell me that players joining the game later could use Hope Town as their login point and take part in its development.”

Cheng Xubo patted Jin Xile on the shoulder. “Looks like you’re not going to be defending the world on behalf of Captain Lin after all.”

“Not necessarily,” Mu Sichen said as he glanced at the backend. Seven days had passed, yet the trust value had only increased by 25%, just barely returning to the 50% baseline. It was rising significantly slower than the last time they rested for seven days.

It might be because the townspeople were all busy working and Mu Sichen hadn’t been able to help them, so their trust was gradually decreasing.

Hope Town’s residents were classic pragmatists—they’d offer their trust only when they found the mayor useful, and withhold it otherwise. It wasn’t too different from parents who pray to every deity before their kids’ exams.

Mu Sichen didn’t dislike this kind of faith.

With a look full of expectation, he said to Jin Xile, “You must go deep into the grassroots of the town and understand what the people need. Help them live happier lives in the name of the mayor. Only then will my power continue to grow.”

Jin Xile: “…So I’m now…”

“Go play a farming sim,” said He Fei, who had previously sworn to help Jin Xile develop supernatural powers. “Be good—pick the harvester.”

Jin Xile: “…”

He had just run 20 kilometers and was planning to catch up on sleep in the dream. And now they wanted him to farm? Was there no humanity left in this world?!

He walked out of the library and selected the harvester. Instantly, instructions on how to operate it appeared in his mind, along with a map showing the way to the fields.

Climbing into the harvester, Jin Xile turned his head and looked back at the four of them with a pitiful expression.

The four of them said to him in unison, “Go now, Hope Town’s Chosen One No. 004!”

Jin Xile let out a wail and, dragging his exhausted body, drove the harvester away.

After seeing Jin Xile off, Mu Sichen closed the library doors. He set up a new energy-providing totem for the other three—this way, Cheng Xubo wouldn’t have to feed their physical bodies by hand, which would be a hassle.

Once everything was ready, the three of them lay down on the totem and re-entered Butterfly Dream Town.

They reappeared inside Ideal Restaurant. Seven days had passed, and the place had undergone a complete makeover—it was sparkling clean.

“It’s this clean?” He Fei said. “Did you get the waitstaff to do a deep clean?”

Mu Sichen shook his head and pointed up at the ceiling. Ji Xian’an was hanging from ropes tied to the ceiling, vigorously scrubbing the crystal chandelier above.

Everyone: “…”

Ji Xian’an had truly been through a lot these past few days.

Seeing the three of them finally arrive, Ji Xian’an immediately untied the rope and nimbly jumped down from the ceiling. She walked up to them and very naturally grabbed He Fei’s arm, using a relatively clean towel to continue wiping.

All He Fei could say was, “Sister Ji, please go easy on me…” What else could he say?

Ji Xian’an reported the current situation at Ideal Restaurant to Mu Sichen: “Everyone’s been doing pretty well these days. Many of the emotionally numb individuals have started to show signs of preference or dislike. When I first wiped them down, they were very compliant. But recently, they’ve learned to resist and even try to avoid me. That’s a good sign.”

He Fei weakly asked, “…Then can I resist?”

Ji Xian’an ignored him and continued, “Since this is a dream, food isn’t an issue—even without it, no one feels hungry. But now that people’s emotions are gradually recovering, they’re starting to feel that staying in the restaurant indefinitely isn’t ideal. They want to leave.”

“You’ve really worked hard these past few days. We’ll go deal with the next ‘Pillar’ now,” Mu Sichen said. “But we don’t know where it is, so I need you to tell me everything you experienced after being taken by the police—don’t leave out a single detail.”

For a cause and effect chain-type “Pillar,” there wasn’t a fixed location. In order to enter it, certain key conditions must be met.

“I was taken by the police car to the station. There, they documented the robbery incident and told me that in Butterfly Dream Town, no one robs anyone. If you’re short on money, you just need to come to the station to receive a subsidy. They asked me if I was from out of town,” Ji Xian’an recalled.

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