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Chapter 042 Want to Take a Bath?

Aside from that, there wasn’t much valuable information online anymore. Perhaps the only useful thing left for them was navigation.

Xia Xinyan even tried dialing the emergency number, but every line was busy, just like what that passerby had experienced.

This was quite expected.

Rather, it would be abnormal if one could get through in this situation.

That passerby NPC ultimately chose to stay at the hotel. Though he was somewhat scared of Ling Mo and the others, the situation outside was even more dangerous. Choosing the least bad option among a bunch of terrible choices was good enough.

However, he was staying on the ground floor, the room closest to the front door. Xia Xinyan paid a little attention and noted that at least that guy hadn’t shown any unusual behavior for now.

As for the rest of the time today, the four of them engaged in some team-building activities—because there was nothing else to do.

Mainly, they showcased their respective abilities to one another. The chubby guy had used his ability before; in short, he could control lightning elements. But it wasn’t just an ordinary superpower setup—his ability was, to be precise, a lightning element created through casting spells.

In other words, the chubby guy was a bonafide mage.

The biggest difference between using magic and innate control is a matter of medium. The former requires an extra step to use the ability, making it harder to master. However, spellcasting often relies more on the world’s elemental properties, so its ceiling is generally higher than that of the self-created elemental superpower system.

The chubby fellow relied on this ability to rank in the top thirty in his past life, but Xia Xinyan hadn’t encountered him that early because he had started out in the Battle Zone. By the time she stumbled upon the chubby guy, they were completely in different circles. Even with a high school friendship, there was no way their relationship would revert to what it once was; at best, they’d just nod at each other.

Even though she eventually zoomed past him on the leaderboard thanks to her OP ability, their circles had already solidified, making it hard to find any common ground.

So seeing the chubby guy now made Xia Xinyan feel a bit strange.

It was her first time intuitively realizing how significant her own weight was—

A speck of dust capable of altering the entire future.

As long as she wanted.

This kind of power, which even emperors couldn’t possess, can easily consume one’s heart. But considering Xia Xinyan had died once, her mentality on this front was much steadier. Apart from some sentimentality, she had no other thoughts.

Ahem, getting off-track.

As for Murong Yue’s ability, like Xia Xinyan’s, it was beast transformation.

But her attribute was a Leopard.

Murong Yue didn’t share much about her ability, only mentioning enhanced power, increased speed, and transforming her hands into leopard claws as a built-in weapon. Besides that, it seemed there wasn’t anything particularly special.

To be honest, Xia Xinyan now knew more about Murong Yue’s power than Murong Yue herself.

Feline species generally possess immense explosive power, and Murong Yue’s ability was no exception. Once she grows stronger, when she activates her leopard transformation, her maximum effect can grant her a hundredfold boost in certain targeted aspects—sounds even more ridiculous than Ling Mo’s ability.

And indeed it was so. In her past life, Murong Yue ranked at 57, but under this condition, she could take on players ranked in the top ten, and she actually stood a chance.

But the reason she was only at 57 was due to a colossal flaw in this ability.

Leopards have strong explosive power but lack sustainability. Her ability was similar; it had powerful strength for a brief initial period but quickly weakened until it stabilized at a reasonable level. Judging from that level, she wouldn’t even make the leaderboard.

So in her past life, someone once evaluated her as—”The three-second real woman.”

—That person later got hammered into the ICU by her.

But Murong Yue, now unfamiliar with her ability, clearly looked disdainful of her own chicken-like powers—at least much weaker than the chubby guy’s explosive attack earlier.

Ling Mo was even more disdainful of himself, especially when he pulled out a brick for demonstration.

Thus, Xia Xinyan repeatedly emphasized one thing: there are no weak abilities in this game; there are just players who haven’t developed or don’t know how to use their abilities.

For instance, Murong Yue’s ability was strong, but if she had to wait for her three seconds of “the real woman” time to fight, she wouldn’t even touch the leaderboard.

For the chubby guy, his ability was also strong, but if he chose to be a melee mage, even Xia Xinyan now could probably smash the peak-status chubby guy on the leaderboard into the ground—because the chubby guy’s melee prowess was really super weak; apart from being a bit hefty, there was nothing admirable about him.

For Ling Mo, he couldn’t code yet complained about the computer lacking software.

That statement would probably apply to Xia Xinyan too. She hadn’t figured out the correct way to use her cat form ability yet.

The succubus was about on the verge of grasping some hints but really didn’t want to use it.

Felt like it would lead her into a downfall…

Time quickly rolled into the evening, and the four of them returned to their rooms to get ready for rest. The chubby guy discussed watch duty with the others and voluntarily took the first shift.

The rooms chosen by the four were all close together to ensure quick responses in case of any sudden situations. The chubby guy found a chair and a flashlight at the front desk on the ground floor, and sat down in the corridor on the second floor, beginning a long night.

While this was a hotel, the guest room conditions were pretty good. Twin beds, a spacious area, and the beds were rather comfortable—most importantly, the bathroom had frosted glass.

After Ling Mo and Xia Xinyan returned to their room, he couldn’t help but glance towards the bathroom from time to time, unable to resist.

God knows what he was thinking.

Technically speaking, this wasn’t their first night together. In the previous Dungeon, he and Xia Xinyan had squeezed together in a tent for a night, and the position they woke up in had embarrassed him for a long time.

But this time was different.

At least the atmosphere was different.

While adventuring in the wild, he mostly thought about how to survive, and back then, his interest in the game somewhat masked his awkwardness as a virgin. However, now that he had some understanding about the game, he was more focused on the experience, yet that awkward virginity lingered unchanged. So facing a scene that looked just like a couple checking into a hotel… his anxiety was understandable.

The only regret was that this wasn’t actually a hotel room. There was no way they could have a normal shower and sleep in this situation.

…No, no, no, it couldn’t be called a regret.

Ahem, what was he even thinking…

“Mo Mo, want to take a bath?” Suddenly, Xia Xinyan’s voice came from behind him, carrying a hint of barely noticeable teasing, “There’s hot water here…”

Ling Mo jumped in surprise: “?！”

 

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