In the following days, a disturbance arose in Smile City.
A post has been lingering in the forum for a long time, with people coming in to push it up every day.
Post title: "Damn, I don't understand what the boss is doing! [1][2][3][4]"
Main post: "Today, I encountered a big guy while clearing a one-star dungeon. The big guy kicked the monster away with one kick. I thought I could be carried by the big guy and pass the one-star dungeon in seconds. Unexpectedly, the big guy kicked the monster half to death and then started running around the map. After the monster recovered its physical strength, he kicked it again, and then ran around the map again, kicked it again, and then ran around the map again... In the end, the monster was desperate and fled when it saw him, but the big guy was still running around the map! In the end, I passed the dungeon and I didn't know what the big guy was looking for in the map!!"
1L: "??? Are there any special items in the one-star dungeon?"
The original poster: "I don't know. The boss didn't find it in the end. He had a dark face and looked very unhappy!"
3L: "Holy crap, the boss didn't even find it in the end? This must be a really awesome prop!"
4L: "Damn, I also met a big guy like this yesterday. Wasn't he a handsome guy?"
5L: "Is the boss's surname Song..."
6L: "Isn't that big guy famous..."
7L: "????"
8L: "Song Yang???"
9L: "It's actually Song Yang? He's clearing a one-star dungeon?"
10L: "I'm a newbie and confused. Who is Song Yang? Is he famous? What's his ranking?"
11L: "Go back upstairs. I think he's in the top three. If we're bold, he might be the first one now."
12L: "? A special item that even Song Yang can't find. I'm interested. I'll try to clear a one-star dungeon tomorrow!"
13L: "Song Yang didn't reveal anything, I'm curious!"
14L: "I encountered the same thing today... All of us, including the monsters, were stunned to see the boss running from east to west and from south to north in the dungeon. In the end, the boss chopped the monsters and looked very unhappy [laughing and crying]"
15L: "Interested, interested. Anyone want to team up and re-clear a one-star dungeon together?"
16L: "Raise your hand!"
17L: "Raise your hand +2"
18L: "Raise your hand +3"
…
109L: "Damn, no wonder I was wondering why the one-star dungeon players were so aggressive recently, it turns out they're all here!"
…
Smiley City, Monday.
Xia Jing saw off the last two guests, took a piece of white paper, sat down and began to paint with great interest.
Tuanzi was no longer curious about his master's routine work. With a gloomy face, he calmly watched the ever-changing scenery outside the safe house.
It had no expectations in its heart. Ever since the day when its owner overheard the whispers of those six weird players, it realized that its owner was going down the wrong path of drawing ugly faces and there would be no turning back.
Sure enough, this time Xia Jing took longer to design the human skin mask than any other time before.
As time passed, Tuanzi's dog face became more and more hopeless as he listened to his owner sometimes humming a song and sometimes being silent, probably because he was concentrating on his work.
Half an hour later, Xia Jing chuckled and said, "It's done."
Tuanzi gently closed his eyes and sighed.
It heard its owner packing up things behind it. Within two minutes, a hand rubbed its head, and a gentle and clear voice, very close to Xia Jing's real voice, fell from above its head.
"Take good care of the house. I'll be back soon."
At this moment, Tuanzi was startled and suddenly opened his eyes.
The faceless woman's human skin mask will automatically recognize the facial features drawn by the prop user and be matched with a matching voice.
This so-called contrast has actually been complained about for a long time by many players in Smiley City - simply because the faceless women are really a group of monsters who serve people based on appearance.
If he is a handsome guy, they will give him a nice voice; if he is an ugly guy, they will give him all kinds of weird and unpleasant voices.
As for Xia Jing's producer Human Skin Mask, this is the first time that Tuanzi has heard such a beautiful voice that is so close to Xia Jing's original voice!
Tuanzi quickly sat up, and the young man was already walking towards the door of the safe house.
Tuanzi watched the back of the man pushing open the door of the safe house. The moment the glass door reflected the young man's face, he lay on the ground and let out a "wooo" in a feeling of both emotion and disbelief.
——It's not an ugly face!
The face was drawn so delicately, without any weird shape, eyes or nose.
Although it was a very ordinary face, there was a hint of Xia Jing's true charm in her eyebrows and eyes, and even her eyelashes were clearly visible.
The master actually comprehended the true meaning of art and embarked on the right path!
It turns out that Tuanzi can still wait for this day!
The golden retriever raised its head excitedly and cried out "Awoo" and "Awoo" to thank God.
…
After stepping out of the winding corridor, Xia Jing cast his gaze on the passers-by passing by him.
Feeling his gaze, passers-by turned their heads in confusion, took a glance, and then turned back in bewilderment.
The reaction was mediocre, completely different from the shock and amazement that passers-by showed when they saw him the previous times.
Xia Jing watched them leave, bent his elbow to his lips, puzzled and thoughtful.
Obviously, his painting this time was more detailed and complex, but other people's reactions were so indifferent.
Art is indeed something that requires careful polishing.
It seems that next time he will have to reconsider Fei Shengxiao and Li Mian's comments and try to return to his original nature.
Xia Jing came to a conclusion, put down his hand, and walked towards the login room.
So far today, Smiley City has updated eleven copies, seven of which are one-star copies, two two-star copies, and two three-star copies.
At this point, more than half of the players have logged into the two three-star copies, so they will probably be successfully opened soon.
Xia Jing briefly scanned the covers of the two three-star copies, and the one on the left caught his interest.
Bionics, 7/10.
The cover of the copy depicts a dark night, with a black mountain beneath the night sky and a saucer-shaped UFO flying above the mountain.
Science fiction theme?
Looks very interesting.
I just don't know if he will meet Song Yang again this time?
Thinking of the man who had been wandering around in the low-star dungeon recently, Xia Jingyang clicked on the dungeon with his lips, and his consciousness suddenly fell into darkness.
…
When he woke up again, he was already at the foot of the mountain.
The sun was shining brightly in the sky, and the mountains rose from the ground. Above the mountain tops, several helicopters were circling, making rumbling sounds.
There were many cars and people at the foot of the mountain, and a cordon was set up around them, and Xia Jing was inside the cordon.
He calmly observed his surroundings. The cars were black with unfamiliar white logos sprayed on their doors, and the words "Special Investigation Team" written below the logo.
Outside the cordon, reporters were holding microphones and photographers were holding guns and cameras, their eyes shining, as if they were eagerly waiting for their interviews.
Everyone within the cordon, including Xia Jing himself, was wearing a dark blue uniform.
Obviously, the words "Special Investigation Team" are also embroidered on the left chest of the uniform.
There was an SUV parked five meters away, and seven people gathered there. They were players.
When Xia Jing noticed that one of the men was particularly tall, he raised his eyebrows and smiled happily.
*
Song Yang stood outside the players, somewhat absent-minded.
At this moment he was still a little unhappy.
After hearing Jia Qing and the others' adventure in the safe house that day, he was unwilling to give up, so he secretly went through a lot of one-star dungeons without their knowledge.
Not only did he not find a safe house, but he was also criticized on the forum. Later, when Lu Chenfei, You Ye and others saw the post, they sent messages to greet him and mocked him wildly.
Song Yang gritted his teeth secretly.
He just didn't believe it. If he cleared all the one-star dungeons in Smiley City, would he still not be able to enter a safe house?
As for why I chose the copy of "Bionic" today——
Song Yang narrowed his eyes.
As far as he knew, the manager of the safe house would disappear for half a day every Monday.
During that half day, players may encounter a safe house in the dungeon, but the safe house is closed without exception.
He and Xia Jing met three times, all in Monday's copy.
The clues were already very clear; it just depended on whether he had chosen the right copy this time.
——Song Yang was very sure that as long as there was a three-star copy to choose from, Xia Jing would definitely choose three-star.
But there are two three-star copies today. Will they choose to go together?
Song Yang listened to a few players chatting in low voices, and kept an eye on his surroundings, trying to see if a face with a unique style would suddenly appear in any corner.
Unfortunately, he didn't see the person he wanted to see, but a new player with ordinary appearance walked towards them.
As a result, there are already eight people in this copy, and the last two players are missing.
Song Yang pursed his lips.
Can he still wait for that young man today?
After the new player entered, a boy in a baseball cap said enthusiastically, "There are already eight of us. How about we introduce ourselves first?"
The guy in the baseball cap looked very young, probably a college student. He smiled brightly and said, "My name is Deng Kai. Today is my second time entering a three-star dungeon. I hope everyone can give me some advice."
A mother and daughter stood aside, both of them looked very ladylike and gentle.
The mother said, "My name is Zhao Mingjing, and my daughter's name is Zhao Leya."
The daughter has her mother's surname and always stays close to her mother. The mother and daughter seem to have a good relationship.
A man who was about the same height as Song Yang but twice as wide said perfunctorily, "My name is Shen Bai."
He secretly looked around, and both his attitude and expression were somewhat arrogant.
Noticing that a dirty man who looked like a beggar had squeezed next to him at some point, he took two steps back in disgust, moving away from the other person.
The dirty, unshaven man grinned and said, "My name is Pei Guang. Although this isn't my first time in a three-star dungeon, I'd still like to ask for your kind attention."
"Lose everything?" Deng Kai, the boy in the baseball cap, burst out laughing. "Uncle, your name is unlucky!"
Pei Guang laughed and said, "That's right. Otherwise, how could it become like this?"
Deng Kai laughed.
On Pei Guang's other side was a woman with a frown on her face, staring nervously around. She casually said, "My name is Zhang Yan."
Then, everyone's attention turned to the remaining two.
Song Yang nodded and said, "My name is Song Yang."
"Song Yang?" Zhang Yan's nervous demeanor changed, and he perked up as he looked Song Yang up and down. "Is this the Song Yang mentioned in the forum posts these past few days?!"
Deng Kai, the guy in the baseball cap, smelled some gossip and asked excitedly, "What post? What post?"
The daughter, Zhao Leya, asked in surprise, "Are you Song Yang?"
Song Yang: "..."
He didn't want to be famous in this way at all.
The corner of his mouth twitched, and he turned his head to look at the new player next to him, and said lazily: "Friend, it's your turn."
Everyone: This way of changing the subject is a bit awkward.
The "friend" Song Yang mentioned glanced at him with a half-smile, then said in a gentle voice, "My name is..."
He seemed to think about it, then narrowed his eyes and smiled: "Jing Qiu."
"Jingqiu," Zhao Leya said with a smile, "What a nice name."
Seeing that everyone's attention had shifted away from him, Song Yang let out a breath.
However, he subconsciously took another look at the young man named Jing Qiu beside him, and always felt...
The sudden appearance of the last two players interrupted his thoughts.
And these last two players also made Song Yang frown slightly.
Xia Jing looked at the two of them with interest.
One tall, one short, one adult, one minor.
The adult was a man who looked to be in his forties, with an ordinary appearance but gentle and refined manner.
He noticed Song Yang at first sight and seemed a little surprised to meet him here. Then he smiled and nodded, "What a coincidence, Song Yang."
Song Yang nodded faintly in response.
Deng Kai gossiped again: "Uncle, you are..."
The uncle smiled and said, "My name is Chai Feng, hello everyone."
Xia Jing glanced at Song Yang's reaction and basically inferred that this man named Chai Feng should also be a highly ranked player. Even if these two had never gone through a dungeon together, they knew of each other's existence.
Then, Xia Jing turned his attention to the last child.
The child was about twelve or thirteen years old and looked out of place among the group of adults here.
Smiley City naturally does not consider age when recruiting players, but it is indeed the first time that everyone here has encountered such a young child in the dungeon.
Immediately, Zhang Yan and Shen Bai showed gloomy expressions and muttered softly that such children were a drag, while Zhao's mother and daughter felt a little pity.
The little boy was also surprised to see Song Yang, and he called out, "Brother!"
The child was exactly the one that Lu Chenfei had protected in the game hall a few days ago.
Song Yang didn't expect that he didn't meet Xia Jing in the end, but met these two acquaintances.
He waved the children over, glanced at Chai Feng, and asked, "Do you know each other?"
Chai Feng always smiled, and his smile was warm and honest.
The child shook his head and said blankly: "I am not with that uncle."
Song Yang: "So you chose this three-star instance yourself?"
The child nodded and whispered, "I think I can give it a try..."
Song Yang raised his eyebrows: "Have you ever been to a three-star dungeon before?"
"Not yet," the child pursed his lips and said hesitantly, "but I have cleared three two-star dungeons..."
Now that they were inside, there was no point in saying anything more. Song Yang tapped his forehead with his finger and said, "Be more careful in your choices in the future. Don't be so arrogant at such a young age. Just follow me this time."
The child nodded immediately. He remembered that he hadn't introduced himself yet, so he quickly said, "My name is Tang Yi. Hello, brothers and sisters."
Ten players gathered and the dungeon officially opened.
In the car next to them, the NPC stuck his head out of the driver's seat and said, "It's almost time. Get in the car. We're going to the top of the mountain."
Everyone's expressions calmed down and they crowded into the car.
The mountain is very high, and the winding road makes some people want to vomit.
Deng Kai pulled his cap and stuck out his tongue. "Hey, this looks like a sci-fi theme. We're not going to have to fight little gray lizard men, are we?"
He is an avid science fiction fan, and he entered this copy because he was attracted by the subject matter. Now he is both excited and scared. This is what is called a "bad guy" addiction.
"ET? That feeling isn't that scary anymore." Zhao Leya smiled, covering her lips.
"That's in the movies. Wouldn't it be terrifying if a little gray man appeared in real life? Besides, they are bionic, and they must look very similar to humans. The more human-like the monster is, the scarier it is. You know the uncanny valley effect," Deng Kai said. The topic shifted to Song Yang. He tentatively asked, "Boss, what do you think?"
"..." Song Yang said calmly, "You've got the wrong person. I'm not that Song Yang."
Several pairs of eyes in the carriage were filled with the words: Really? I don't believe it.
Song Yang: "..."
For the first time, he felt that it was time to come up with a pseudonym for himself. Maybe he could be called Xia Yang.
Then he thought of a certain young man, and he didn't know whether the other party was in another copy at this moment. Song Yang was a little unhappy.
But the copy has already started after all. No matter how unhappy he is, he cannot treat any copy with a casual attitude.
Song Yang restrained his expression and said, "Looking at the situation at the foot of the mountain, the UFO might have fallen on the mountain. We are members of the special investigation team, and our mission is most likely to search for it."
It is possible that they are searching for the UFO itself.
Of course, it could also be aliens.
Everyone swallowed.
In this copy, each person was equipped with a mobile phone. The time displayed on the phone was 4:58. It was already evening, and the scorching sun was gradually setting.
The gradually dimming light made everyone nervous.
The SUV stopped halfway up the mountain and left them behind.
The driver NPC said: "There is no road up there, you can walk up on your own, the main force is waiting for you up there."
The group was dumbfounded. They looked up and realized they were still at least halfway to go. Did they have to walk all the way up by themselves?!
As the oldest person present, Chai Feng said, "Time waits for no one, let's go quickly."
Everyone had no choice but to start climbing the mountain.
Xia Jing turned around calmly and set off with the main group.
Song Yang and Tang Yi were walking at the end. After telling the children to look carefully at the road ahead, he raised his head and his eyes instinctively fell on the young man's back.
It was originally just a casual glance - for Song Yang, although this strange friend gave him a familiar feeling, it did not arouse much interest in him.
His mind is now full of all kinds of weird faces, and he doesn't even look at normal faces.
But it's just such a simple glance...
Speaking of the previous copy, Lu Chenfei complained that he could judge people by the back of his neck.
When Song Yang saw the familiar white and slender neck of the young man, he suddenly stopped and something flashed through his mind.
Noticing his pause, Tang Yi looked up and asked blankly, "What's wrong, brother?"
Song Yang stared at the young man's back as he walked away, feeling surprised and confused.
His Adam's apple rolled, and he patted Tang Yi's shoulder, motioning the child to follow. Then he quickened his pace to catch up with the person in front and stared at the other person's face.
The young man curled his lips and smiled without turning his head: "Sir, is there something on my face? Why are you looking at me like that?"
This tone.
Song Yang's heartbeat quickened.
He asked bluntly, "...Your name is Jing Qiu? Which one is Jing and which one is Qiu?"
The young man was still laughing. When he heard this question, he said slowly, "Maybe it's the well of a well, or the hill of a hill?"
At this moment, Song Yang was completely certain.
No one else would react or answer like this!
Song Yang laughed angrily and said, "Are you sure your name isn't Jingdong? Jing for well, Dong for east?"
The young man looked at him in surprise, as if asking why he gave me such a random name?
Song Yang was almost fooled by this acting!
Song Yang was unaware of the joy in his heart at this moment.
He only felt that his brain seemed to be excited with the appearance of this person, and his heart was beating fast. At the same time, a new sense of dissatisfaction emerged in his heart.
He asked, "What's with your mask? Who painted it for you?"
If it weren't for the mask, he would have recognized this guy in a second.
Xia Jing touched his face and asked him, "Do you feel bad?"
Without answering the question directly, Song Yang became more and more certain that Xia Jing's mask this time was definitely not painted by himself.
He couldn't explain what was going on in his mind, so he said without thinking, "No, it doesn't have your own flavor."
Xia Jing looked at him for a while, thought for a moment, then turned around and said calmly, "Well, it was indeed drawn by someone else. I'll draw it myself next time."
Song Yang asked persistently, "So who painted this for you?"
Xia Jing glanced at him strangely, as if wondering why he was bothering with this question, and said seriously, "A friend named Tuanzi."
Song Yang narrowed his eyes: "Friends like me?"
Xia Jing smiled: "That's much longer than you've known me."
Song Yang: "..."
There are no man-made stairs leading up from the mountainside, so everyone has to find their own way up through the mountains and forests.
They stepped on the ground covered with fallen leaves, carefully looking at both sides. The mountains and forests were quiet and silent, and the shadows of trees in the distance swayed in the wind.
An hour later, they finally reached the top of the mountain. By then, Zhao Mingjing and Zhao Leya, mother and daughter, were so tired that they had to support each other, and Zhang Yan was also leaning against a tree, gasping for breath.
Deng Kai originally wanted to sit down on the ground, but the scene not far away made him stunned, and he forgot his fatigue in an instant.
Xia Jing, Song Yang and Tang Yi followed the main group and came up at the end. They stopped talking and looked ahead.
On the top of the mountain, the wind was howling.
In a huge charred crater created by the impact, a huge silver disc-shaped UFO was quietly tilted on the ground, one side of it stuck in the mud, and a hatch at the bottom was tilted to the side. Many NPCs gathered around the hatch, some taking pictures and some recording.
The UFO was as big as a small plane. When it crashed, it knocked down many trees around it, and the entire scene was in a mess.
Seeing them appear, the NPCs seemed to have found their backbone.
One of the leaders hurried over and said, "You're finally here! You brought a bunch of new people with you, and it's hard for me to get started."
"You probably already know the situation. This UFO crashed here at 3 o'clock this afternoon. Some residents nearby saw other objects falling out of here and onto the mountain when the UFO fell."
"We don't know what it is yet. We can only confirm from the videos taken by residents that there are unidentified objects scattered on all four sides of the mountain."
"No traces of alien life were found inside the UFO. We all took the same path up the mountain, and we found no clues along the way. The pilot couldn't see anything from his high altitude, so I'm afraid we still need to search the mountain carefully."
The person in charge waved his hand, and several subordinates dragged two large boxes over and opened them.
There were ten backpacks and ten guns in the two boxes.
Suddenly, everyone had a bad feeling.
The person in charge said, "All the equipment is here. Let's search the mountain before it gets dark."
Deng Kai couldn't help but curse: "Fuck, there are so many NPCs, but they don't give us any use, and only let ten of us search the mountain. What's going on? Do they have no legs or no eyes?"
What a shitty copy, throw it away!