The Bounty

Jian Yixun felt his fists harden.

Chachuan had just been crushed to death by the snow ape earlier during the second boss, and now he was already criticizing others?

More importantly, although Chachuan didn’t know it, Jian Yixun really was the cheap master he had just accepted less than half a month ago.

Acting like an innocent, gentle little white flower in front of “Little Bear Cheese,” but revealing his true colors in front of strangers and pretending to be a veteran player to lecture others?

The more Jian Yixun thought about it, the angrier he became.

He opened the team chat and typed quickly.

“Then I’m really sorry. When we were fighting the snow ape earlier, I also wanted to say that about you.”

Chachuan seemed annoyed.

“That was because I accidentally didn’t dodge the skill. How is that the same as what you did?”

“How is it different?”

Jian Yixun didn’t buy his pitiful act at all.

His fingers clattered across the keyboard.

“I’m a newbie. I even said I don’t know how to take the sword. If anyone should say something about me, it should be the others—not someone who got sat on by the snow ape.”

How had he never noticed that this apprentice had such talent for nonsense before?

If he had realized earlier, he wouldn’t have accepted him on his main account.

Jian Yixun felt his words were completely reasonable.

But Chachuan suddenly started acting pitiful in the team chat.

“Why are you saying that to me? I haven’t been playing long. I’m already confused just being a reward slot in this dungeon. If you keep talking like that, I’ll mess up even more.”

Bullshit!

Jian Yixun cursed in his mind.

When he first accepted Chachuan as an apprentice, he had been worried the guy didn’t know anything and would cause trouble in dungeons.

So he had carefully taught him most common dungeon mechanics and patterns.

By now he shouldn’t even count as a beginner anymore.

There was no excuse for making beginner mistakes like “getting crushed by the snow ape.”

But this was Xu Shuche’s account.

And earlier he had even pretended to be a clueless newbie in front of Xu Shuche.

How could he suddenly expose everything in the team chat?

At that moment, the long-silent voice chat turned on again.

“Alright, stop arguing,” Orange said.

“It’s fine. Everyone has wiped before. It’s not a big deal.”

Jian Yixun snorted coldly.

He decided not to bother arguing with Chachuan anymore.

Tomorrow he would simply kick him out of the apprenticeship.

“Hey, that one… Little Goose.”

The Yasheng player spoke again.

“Let’s do this. Since you’re a newbie, I’ll teach you how to take the sword.”

“Step one: stand outside the gate and watch us fight the boss.”

“Step two: I’ll call your name in the team chat and say ‘Lucky Goose, come in.’”

“Then you walk into the arena and go to the center. Around the boss you’ll see a small red—no wait—a small white circle.”

“You just walk proudly into that circle, and your job is done.”

“But you gotta move fast when you come in. Slide in quickly. If you understand, we’ll start. You’re the key factor of this battle.”

The Yasheng player’s thick northeastern accent made everything sound hilarious.

Jian Yixun burst out laughing, completely shameless.

Why hadn’t he known earlier that Orange had such an entertaining sworn brother?

If he had met this guy sooner, he would have had so much more fun playing the game.

“Got it, brother,” Jian Yixun said.

“I’ll follow your instructions.”

The Yasheng player sounded very satisfied with the “brother” title.

He immediately walked through the air wall and started the boss fight.

The third boss was a swordsman.

Dressed in black with a bamboo hat, he looked extremely cool.

Even when wounded and breathing heavily, he looked impressive.

Jian Yixun was watching the others fight inside the barrier when suddenly the Yasheng player shouted loudly in voice chat.

“Little Goose! Come now!”

Startled, Jian Yixun hurriedly rolled his character into the arena.

He stepped onto the small circle beside the boss.

The swordsman’s blade swept across.

The Qingfeng swordsman raised his weapon and caught the strike.

Meanwhile the other players focused their attacks and instantly defeated the boss.

The reward screen appeared.

Jian Yixun casually clicked Give Up.

Just then Xu Shuche returned after finishing the phone call.

Seeing the reward screen, he paused.

“It’s done already?”

“Yeah, finished.”

Jian Yixun moved aside to give him the seat.

“We just finished. Perfect timing.”

“Oh right, remember to give up the reward.”

Xu Shuche reached for the mouse, only to notice the Already Given Up mark.

“How did you know to give up the reward?”

“Well… I saw you click it earlier,” Jian Yixun said while scratching his nose.

“So I copied you. Was that wrong?”

“No, that’s correct.”

Xu Shuche sent a little penguin bowing emoji in the team chat with the words “Thanks everyone.”

Then he left the dungeon team.

“There’s something I’m not sure whether I should tell you,” Jian Yixun said, clearing his throat.

“It happened during the dungeon just now.”

Xu Shuche nodded.

“Go ahead.”

Jian Yixun picked at the edge of the sofa and explained honestly.

“There was a healer in the team named something like Cha… Chachuan. We argued. When you went to answer your phone, I didn’t make it in time to take the sword and caused a wipe. After we revived, that healer started criticizing me in the team chat. I couldn’t hold back and argued with him.”

“A healer named Cha in the team…”

Xu Shuche thought for a moment.

“Chachuan?”

He seemed slightly surprised.

“Really?”

From what he had seen earlier, that little healer didn’t seem like someone who would argue with others in chat.

“But I saw him get crushed by the snow ape earlier,” Jian Yixun said angrily.

“He can’t even dodge skills properly, and he still criticized me?”

“Then he said I wasted everyone’s time and that his mistake earlier wasn’t the same as me sabotaging the team. Why couldn’t he say something about me?”

Xu Shuche couldn’t help laughing.

“Why does it sound like you two were arguing like children?”

“I’m not a child.”

Jian Yixun protested seriously.

“He’s obviously worse than me. I just didn’t make it in time to take the sword. It’s not like I died because I played badly. How is that my fault?”

Xu Shuche was about to reply when a red notification dot appeared on his private chat icon.

[OrangeDuck]: I’m really sorry. That healer in the team is from our guild. He didn’t mean to offend you.

[OrangeDuck]: If you’re upset, I’ll apologize on his behalf.

[OrangeDuck]: You came to help as a reward slot and still got treated badly. I feel really sorry about it. If you want, say something in world chat and I’ll send you a Golden Statue.

The Golden Statue was an in-game item that could be gifted to someone speaking in world chat.

When opened, it gave the recipient a certain amount of silver coins.

“No need,” Xu Shuche replied.

“It’s fine. I don’t really mind.”

“That’s good.”

Orange replied quickly.

“I was worried you might feel upset.”

Xu Shuche wasn’t that easily upset.

Besides, the one who was upset was Jian Yixun, not him.

Thinking about that made Xu Shuche feel strangely happy.

Everyone thought Jian Yixun was a bad-tempered straight guy.

But only in front of him did Jian Yixun show other sides of himself.

Like the currently aggrieved person sitting beside him.

“It’s fine. Don’t argue with him,” Xu Shuche said.

“Maybe he’s just a beginner. Beginners don’t know much. You have to teach them step by step.”

I did teach him step by step.

I taught him everything.

Just not how to go around provoking strangers.

Jian Yixun was getting extremely annoyed.

But he couldn’t tell Xu Shuche that.

His main account had almost fifty thousand cultivation thanks to leveling services.

He usually ran high-level dungeons or solo runs.

It was completely different from ordinary players.

Meanwhile Xu Shuche’s account only had a little over thirty thousand cultivation.

That was actually below average compared to most players.

They couldn’t even run the same level of dungeons.

If he exposed his main account, Xu Shuche might feel inferior.

Or worse, he might say their accounts were too different to play together.

Jian Yixun really wanted to play with his senior.

Playing this game with someone you know felt completely different from playing with strangers.

While he was thinking about how to play together with Xu Shuche, Xu Shuche suddenly clicked his tongue softly.

Jian Yixun looked up.

The game screen had gone dark.

“What happened?” Jian Yixun asked, continuing to act like a clueless beginner.

“Why did the screen suddenly turn dark?”

Xu Shuche frowned and clicked Revive at Nearby Location.

The Qingfeng swordswoman revived with low health at the spawn point.

Before she could even move, a new private message appeared.

[I Love White Cut Chicken]: Hello, are you there?

[I Love White Cut Chicken]: Take off your gear. I accepted the bounty on you.

Xu Shuche replied with a simple “Thanks.”

Then he calmly removed all his equipment.

The screen went dark again.

Jian Yixun panicked.

“Wait—why did you take off your gear? Why is the screen dark again?”

“Someone placed a bounty on me,” Xu Shuche explained calmly.

“He accepted my bounty quest. If I don’t take off my gear and let him kill me, my equipment durability will decrease.”

After explaining, Xu Shuche revived again.

He himself didn’t seem bothered.

But Jian Yixun was furious.

“Why would someone put a bounty on you?”

“Well…”

Xu Shuche tapped his chin thoughtfully.

“I probably know who did it. It’s most likely that healer who argued with you earlier.”

“Was I wrong?”

Jian Yixun felt like he was about to explode.

His cheap apprentice insulted him in the dungeon and even placed a bounty on his senior’s character.

This was outrageous.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Xu Shuche left the game running in the background while opening another screen to work on a document his advisor wanted.

“If he wants to place bounties, let him. He’ll run out of money in two days anyway.”

“That won’t do.”

Jian Yixun suddenly stood up, grabbed his laptop, and began typing intensely for more than ten minutes.

Then he nudged Xu Shuche.

“Senior.”

Xu Shuche looked up.

“What is it?”

“I just downloaded the game and created an account.”

Jian Yixun pushed his laptop toward him and cleared his throat.

“I want to play this game with you too. Can you guide me? I’ll work hard to level up and protect you.”

Xu Shuche lowered his gaze.

Jian Yixun had created a Youlan male character.

…Was it because he had just said Youlan looked more handsome?