Chapter 13: The Rankings (With Gratitude to the Serene Leader Wufeng!)
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I chatted with Ruolin until noon and ended up tagging along for her chicken hotpot lunch.
...
In the afternoon, the sunlight was lazy and warm.
The aftereffects of staying up late finally caught up with me. Feeling a wave of fatigue, I decided to head back to the internet café to find some chairs and take a short nap.
As I passed through a narrow alley, a few tourists on the left side walked by, laughing and chatting. On the right, I heard hurried footsteps and a maniacal laugh: “City inspectors are coming, run!”
A figure dashed out from the alley, clutching a bundle, looking frantic and constantly glancing back.
It was Lu Xiaobei!
I was momentarily stunned.
“Ding Han!”
Lu Xiaobei saw me too and hurriedly shoved the bundle into my arms. “Run, hurry!”
Without asking questions, I instinctively followed her, turning into another alley.
Lu Xiaobei seemed very familiar with the layout of the ancient city. She led me twisting and turning until we finally entered a quiet alley. The danger seemed to have passed. She collapsed onto a flower bed, panting heavily, her face flushed from the intense sprint.
“What’s going on?!” I asked, setting down the bundle. “What’s this?”
Inside, I found a pile of small tokens printed on the front with various surnames and on the back with an image of Xicheng. There were also small pendants bearing the Xicheng emblem—little souvenirs related to cultural tourism.
“Setting up a street stall these days isn’t easy...” Lu Xiaobei patted her chest nervously and smiled at me. “Luckily, I ran into you, or else those city inspectors would have definitely confiscated everything.”
I was speechless. “Is it really that serious? Doesn’t Feiyang Internet Café support you well enough?”
“You don’t understand,” she said. “There are four internet cafés on Qianjin Street. The competition is fierce. Although we’re next to Xicheng University, business isn’t great. Our café only has about 23 machines online, including the three you fixed, while the other three cafés each have 30 to 40 machines.”
She glanced at me and added, “If I don’t scrimp and save to buy new machines and grow Feiyang Internet Café stronger, sooner or later, the other three will eat up all our customers!”
“I didn’t expect you to have such a strong sense of crisis.” I said, somewhat resigned.
Lu Xiaobei squatted down and began sorting through the little items in the bundle.
“Weren’t you supposed to be taking photos for an inn?” I asked.
“I finished that.” She replied. “Although I’m pretty, my rates are high—one gets what one pays for. The inn owners are all stingy, so there isn’t much business to take on.”
She spoke to herself before looking up and smiling at me. “Business was good this morning. A few families on self-driving tours stopped by my stall. I sold over two hundred yuan worth in half a morning. Pretty impressive, right?”
“Impressive.” I said. “Are you going to set up your stall this afternoon too?”
“Of course. The weather’s nice today, the breeze gentle and the sun shining. Gotta make the most of it.”
She picked up the bundle and smiled. “I’m off to set up my stall. You should head back.”
“Alright.” I nodded. Watching her walk away, I couldn’t help but ask, “Lu Xiaobei, have you eaten lunch yet?”
“Why, are you inviting me?” she turned, eyes bright with expectation.
“Of course not. I’m still waiting for you to advance me your salary.”
“Enough talking, I’ve got a headache. I’m off.” She waved and cheerfully headed toward the group of tourists.
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...
Late at night.
The overnight shift had started again, but business was slow. Only twelve people stayed overnight, mostly young members of the “Zang Ai” clan playing Audition, with one or two middle-aged men puffing on cigarettes playing Legend of Mir. The night was quiet except for the clicking of keyboards.
I reclined the admin chair to make a bed and closed my eyes to rest.
Inside the star map, some players were chatting, and I began furtively spying on their conversations.
When their enthusiasm waned, I finally spent 1% of my experience points to officially enter the star map chat. “Brothers, I’m new here. Has anyone seen a player named ‘Chasing Light’?”
“No...” a deep-voiced player said with a laugh. “There aren’t many players around Xicheng. Most come from the wilderness. If you really want to find someone, I suggest you go to the Red Dragon Kingdom. Most national players spawn there—that’s our stronghold.”
“Oh, I see...” I felt a bit disappointed but smiled. “Thanks anyway, I’ll keep looking.”
“Yeah, many of us are looking for friends too, but the friend system isn’t available yet. We’re all waiting for it. Once it’s released, you can search IDs and add people. Finding someone won’t be so hard then.”
“Thanks a lot!” I nodded and stopped wasting precious experience points, quitting the star map chat.
Then, I casually opened the regional leaderboard. A list of unfamiliar IDs appeared:
1. Dragon Gun Level 14 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
2. Soul Piercer Level 13 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
3. Milk Tea Lifesaver Level 13 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
4. Chaos Demon King Level 12 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
5. Lu Xun Deleting Reviews Overnight Level 12 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
6. Bunny Critical Hit Level 12 Class: Firepower Specialist
7. Zuan Liberal Arts Top Scorer Level 12 Class: Psychic
8. Chen Jinnan Level 11 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
9. Ruolin Level 11 Class: Starry Sky Super Warrior
10. I’m New But Can Talk Level 11 Class: Firepower Specialist
...
Looking at the levels on the leaderboard, I frowned slightly. There are still many formidable players!
The top three—Dragon Gun, Soul Piercer, and Milk Tea Lifesaver—were undoubtedly tough. To reach such high levels at this stage means either exceptional skill or deep resource backing.
From what Ruolin mentioned earlier, players don’t “clone” into this world as legends say. Instead, they appear directly in substitute versions of their characters. I can attest to this: my new body is almost identical to my real one, even down to scars and birthmarks. It’s far beyond simple cloning.
However, the hosts players inhabit are mostly not wealthy or prestigious. Nearly everyone starts from scratch, so the top-ranked players must be incredibly powerful!
Inspired by the virtuous, I resolved to learn from them.
*Beep!*
Just then, my phone buzzed with a WeChat message.
It was from Ruolin: “Tomorrow we’re forming a five-person team to explore a newly spawned map outside the city. Just checking if you want to join?”
“Sure.” I replied. “Are my 1,000 nine-millimeter peanuts ready?”
“Ready. Rest assured, Sister Ruolin has it covered.” She sent a playful dog-head emoji.
I asked, “Where do we meet tomorrow?”
“At the bus stop at Health Road, outside Xicheng Third People’s Hospital, at 9 a.m. Just wait there. Someone has an old Santana car and can drive us out of the city.”
“Deal. Don’t be late.”
“Yeah, don’t be late!”
After putting down my phone, a trace of excitement stirred in my chest. Finally, I could leave the city to hunt monsters and level up. My SS-level Yuan Power Furnace was desperately in need of experience extraction!
...
Early the next morning.
“Admin, overnight’s over. Open up.”
I was awakened and grabbed the keys to raise the shutter, letting out a group of pale-faced “Zang Ai” clan members who looked like walking corpses.
Outside, Zhao Yihang arrived with a bag of steamed buns and a bottle of soy milk, smiling. “Ding Han, how’s the night shift treating you?”
“Like a charm, my foot...” I muttered.
“Hahaha!” Zhao Yihang patted my shoulder. “Boss Lu trusts you with the night shift because she wants to groom you as the commander of Feiyang Internet Café. Wonder why she doesn’t make me do the night shift?”
“Tsk tsk, so fresh.” I laughed. “How about we switch?”
“No way, I’m afraid staying up late would ruin my kidneys. The girls in the School of Economics and Management still need my protection.”
Zhao Yihang wasn’t great at much, but he sure was a top-notch braggart—utterly convincing.
Just then, footsteps sounded upstairs. Lu Xiaobei came down, looking sharp and elegant. She ignored Zhao Yihang as if he didn’t exist, her gaze landing on my phone.
“You got a phone?”
“Yeah,” I nodded. “A friend lent it to me—I’m broke.”
“Add me on WeChat. That way, if anything happens in the café, we can communicate quickly.”
“Alright.”
As I added her, Zhao Yihang grumbled nearby, “Boss, I’ve worked here so long, why have you never added me on WeChat?”
“One call solves everything. Why add WeChat?”
Lu Xiaobei made her clear preferences perfectly obvious.
I saw her WeChat name: “Northern,” followed by a cherry blossom, a wave, and a leaf—perfectly matching her restless personality.
Later, Lu Xiaobei and I parted ways in front of the internet café. She went to the old city district to take photos; I took a detour to a breakfast shop, bought a few buns and a soy milk, then headed to the bus stop. Sitting there, I finished eating, crossed my arms, and rested a bit, gathering energy for today’s adventure.
...
Before nine o’clock, a rusty old Santana pulled up slowly at the bus stop.
The driver was a middle-aged man with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, somewhat handsome. What caught attention most was his aura—a composed, calm, and steady presence typical of middle age. He held the steering wheel with his left hand and glanced at me.
In the front passenger seat sat a burly man with wide eyes staring my way.
“Ding Han!”
A rear window rolled down, revealing Ruolin’s beautiful face. She smiled as she scooted inside. “Come on up, squeeze into the back seat.”
I looked down and saw another woman beside Ruolin. She was also very pretty but had a rather cold expression—not as warm as Ruolin.
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