Chapter 196: Genius Kindergarten (Part Nine)

Chapter 196: Genius Kindergarten (Part Nine)

Drip… Drip…

In the pitch-black shop, Zhan Xiaoming held a thunder talisman in his hands as he curled up inside a box.

He was mutilated, half his torso missing, the school uniform he wore emphasizing the twisted curvature of his abdomen.

One leg was severed at the root, and the other was gone below the knee. The cross-sections of his wounds revealed torn flesh and exposed bone, yet there was still not a drop of blood. Whenever Zhan Xiaoming wanted to move, he had to rely on his magical smoke-emitting item.

The “parent” was furiously bellowing.

"Zhan Xiaoming! You dare to smash the lights in the shop! Come out right now, or I swear I'll beat you to death!"

Only a fool would go out!

That's what Zhan Xiaoming thought as he further retreated into the cabinet.

He had stumbled upon this by chance; although the monster could "see" him even with its eyes closed, it required light to have a line of sight.

As long as the room was pitch-black, it would lose its bearings and fumble around the store like a headless fly.

However, referring to it as a “shop” was increasingly a misnomer; over time, not only had this “parent” turned more and more into a horrifying monster, but the hardware store itself had also transformed.

The environment had become damp and dark, and the constant dripping sound seemed to be coming from nowhere.

The shelves that once displayed goods had morphed into jagged, spiky metal caves, making every hiding spot potentially hazardous for Zhan Xiaoming.

It was challenging to pinpoint the monster's location based on its voice; the “parent's” voice seemed to come from everywhere, just like the omnipresent hazards around him.

Zhan Xiaoming had tried to make a run for it. Once, he even managed to reach the door of the hardware store and, in his panic, even managed to roll up the shutter door.

Outside was the warm, golden light of the early evening sun, and the streets bustled with people coming and going.

He had experienced simulation instances before. Generally speaking, monster NPCs are much stronger than ordinary NPCs, so asking those regular NPCs for help is useless.

But he had no better alternatives—

"Help! Help me!!"

Zhan Xiaoming, appearing as a child and already limping on one leg, stumbled out and immediately clung to the leg of a nearby NPC.

At this point, he had no concern for his actual age; he looked up imploringly at the NPC.

"Uncle, please save me!"

"Ah!" The NPC, startled by his embrace, looked at the "parent" who had emerged behind him.

Oddly enough, the "parent" NPC, who had morphed into a monster inside the store, returned to its original human form at that moment.

Not only that, but even Zhan Xiaoming, who had lost part of his leg, seemed to have his injuries magically heal the moment he stepped out of the hardware store; his body was whole under his long sleeves and trousers.

Following him was the "parent," a figure who appeared to be a frail and unassuming man, who then took hold of the collar at the back of Zhan Xiaoming's neck.

"I apologize, I apologize. My child was misbehaving at school and received quite the lecture from the teacher. I've come to discipline him."

Upon hearing this, the bystander NPC seemed to have an epiphany.

Zhan Xiaoming wanted to continue speaking, but despite exerting himself to the fullest, his voice remained as faint as a mosquito's hum.

Quickly, with the help of the passerby NPC, he was dragged back into the hardware store.

It was then that he lost a leg once more.

Zhan Xiaoming quivered from the pain, becoming incredibly lucid in that moment.

There was no way out.

He had neither allies nor hiding places now; he could only face this parent NPC head-on.

Though Zhan Xiaoming was generally timid, under the pressing circumstances of pain and impending death, he had no choice but to grow quickly.

Don't be afraid, this is just a Level-1 instance, and even if this parent NPC is the big boss, he still had a plethora of items in his system backpack, courtesy of his uncle!

Those items should be enough for a reasonably strong newbie to clear a Level-2 instance. Zhan Xiaoming knew his limitations but figured that with all these resources, he couldn't possibly die, could he?

"Click!"

Zhan Xiaoming's ears perked up; amid the surrounding roars from the "parent," he heard the faint sound of a lock being opened.

It was the cabinet near him!

Zhan Xiaoming held his breath and focused, swiftly pulling a leaf from his backpack with his right hand.

[Item: Leaf of Return·Grade E]

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This was the strongest offensive item Zhan Xiaoming had at his disposal. For a newbie like him, who had never cleared an instance, utilizing ordinary items to their fullest was straightforward. But when the item had a grade—even the lowest E-grade—it was a significant burden for him.

This was his trump card; using it once would essentially deplete his energy for wielding any other items.

Zhan Xiaoming wasn't sure if this was the optimal time to use it, but could he keep playing hide-and-seek with this "parent" monster forever?

He was already in this state; he couldn't run away. His only option was to give it his all or face certain death.

Time to go all out!

Another "click" resounded.

This time it was close—right in front of Zhan Xiaoming's eyes.

Now's the time!

Zhan Xiaoming activated the item in his hand, and in the blink of an eye, he transformed into an inconspicuous, thin leaf.

The leaf clung to the edge of the cabinet, waiting for the door to open, ready to shoot out and slice open the monster's throat!

Don't be afraid!

He had gone through training like this countless times; he was well-practiced!

All he had to do was dash out when the monster wasn't paying attention!

All he had to do was catch it off guard...

Just had to...

A massive eyeball appeared in front of the cabinet—nearly as large as Zhan Xiaoming himself.

The monster had little sclera, its black pupils glowing with a bluish light in the darkness, staring directly into the cabinet.

This cabinet was empty, too.

The monster closed the cabinet door impatiently, its gigantic eyeball shifting elsewhere.

The sound of the monster moving its body came from outside the cabinet; it had gone to check elsewhere.

The leaf that Zhan Xiaoming had transformed into remained rigidly affixed to the cabinet's edge. After a few seconds had passed, the item's usage time expired.

The leaf transformed back into Zhan Xiaoming.

His body was stiff, soaked through with sweat.

The moment he transformed into a leaf and saw that enormous eyeball, he felt as if he were under a paralyzing spell, remaining firmly stuck to the cabinet, too afraid to move.

He was scared.

For that brief moment of locking eyes with the monster, Zhan Xiaoming felt all his wounds throbbing with pain.

What if he failed?

It's true that he had an E-grade item, but the power of an item is determined by its user.

Even if a lowest-tier E-grade Hunter used an S-grade item, its potency would be limited.

On the other hand, when an S-grade Hunter uses even a basic, ungraded item, it can become unbelievably potent.

He was just a rookie who had never cleared an instance; how could he possibly defeat that "parent" NPC?

If he couldn't beat it and ended up in the creature's clutches, wouldn't that be a certain death?

In the end, Zhan Xiaoming chose to evade at the critical moment.

Now that the monster had moved away, he returned to his original form, sitting quietly in the cabinet.

This is... still okay, right?

The physical toll of using the E-grade item had begun to manifest. Zhan Xiaoming felt weak in his limbs. He wasn't sure if it was the side effect of using the item or if his innate timidity was making him increasingly fearful.

Luckily, he didn't burst out earlier.

Had he done so without killing the NPC, only to provoke it instead, he would likely be dead by now, right?

It's probably better this way; the monster had already searched this cabinet and probably wouldn't return for quite some time, right?

Was he relatively safe now?

He wondered how long this game of hide-and-seek would last. It couldn't possibly go on all night, could it?

What time was it outside? Could it be close to dawn?

Leaning against the cabinet, Zhan Xiaoming found himself drifting in aimless thoughts.

Just then, he realized something.

It was eerily quiet outside, as if there hadn't been any noise for a very long time.

Where had the monster gone?

"Click, clack."

Zhan Xiaoming's neck stiffened.

A foul, fishy wind blew in from the cabinet door. Without turning his head, Zhan Xiaoming caught a glimpse of a bluish glow in his peripheral vision.

A massive eyeball was staring directly at him.

"So you're hiding here," the monster sighed ominously. "You've done wrong and refuse to be punished; you're not a good child. You must be punished!!!"

Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Zhan Xiaoming slumped in despair, like a wind-up toy that had run out of spring.

He was yanked out of the cabinet by a colossal hand that was large enough to grasp him entirely.

Zhan Xiaoming's body reflexively struggled for a moment, eliciting an extreme fit of rage from the monster.

It let out an inhuman roar, its two hands clutching Zhan Xiaoming's arms as if intending to rip him in half and throw both pieces into its mouth.

"As a child, how dare you disobey your parent! You're as good as dead—"

"Thump, thump, thump."

"I'm going to kill you right now—"

"Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump." The rolling door was being knocked on, and the person knocking seemed quite polite. "Hello, is anyone there?"

Receiving no response, the person at the door mumbled something like, "Would it be too much to just break in?"

But the ominous aura I sensed is right here, isn't it?

What is Zhan Xiaoming doing inside?

Just as the person at the door was contemplating whether breaking in would be appropriate, the rolling door was finally opened from the inside.

In the presence of an outsider, the creature once again morphed into a frail, meek-looking man.

He looked down to see a five- or six-year-old cub standing in front of him, dressed in the uniform of Genius Kindergarten and carrying a little backpack.

"...What do you want?"

Standing at the entrance of this hardware store was Jie Fangcheng.

It was his first time meeting a parent, and he was quite polite.

"Oh, I came to look for Zhan Xiaoming."

"He's not here," said the parent, about to lower the rolling door again.

Quick as a flash, Jie Fangcheng slipped into the store.

"Nonsense, I clearly sensed he's nearby." Saying so, Jie Fangcheng stepped around the shelves filled with various goods. Turning the corner, he indeed spotted Zhan Xiaoming. "See, there he is..."

Zhan Xiaoming lay on the floor, dressed in his full-sleeved and full-length uniform, still showing no visible signs of injury.

But Jie Fangcheng could see it.

A spiritual attack?

Though its power was minimal, the importance of the spirit far outweighs the physical body for humans; hence the pain is magnified.

"Alright, whose child are you? Hurry back home."

Zhan Xiaoming's "guardian" approached, impatiently trying to shove Jiefang Cheng out.

Lying on the floor, Zhan Xiaoming contemplated seeking his help. Yet, in Xiaoming's eyes, this newcomer named Jiefang Cheng probably wasn't even as capable as he was.

Should he ask for assistance?

What if it endangers him as well?

As Zhan Xiaoming hesitated, Jiefang Cheng turned and asked, "Where's your household lamp?"

Mentioning that, the "guardian" snorted disdainfully.

"This brat is uncontrollable! He even dared to break the lamp! I..."

"You must have a flashlight, right?" Jiefang Cheng persisted. After asking, his eyes brightened as he found a high-powered flashlight on a shelf.

Ignoring the skinny man's angry shout of "Whose child are you? Do you want a beating?", Jiefang Cheng placed the flashlight next to Zhan Xiaoming.

"It's so dark; it wouldn't be good if you knocked into the merchandise, right?"

Jiefang Cheng remarked contentedly.

What is he talking about?

Zhan Xiaoming wanted to pose the question, but he genuinely had no energy left.

It hurt.

Every inch of him ached.

The pain felt as if it reached his soul. Far from ebbing with time, it seemed to intensify.

All Zhan Xiaoming could do was watch as Jiefang Cheng set down the flashlight and thoughtfully switched it on.

The light from the flashlight pierced through the darkness, illuminating the dimly lit shop.

He then ignored the irate "guardian" and walked towards the door.

At his current height, Jiefang Cheng wasn't even a meter tall.

After reaching the doorway, he looked up at the roll-up door overhead and launched himself from a standing position.

Firmly grasping the edge of the roll-up door, Jie Fangcheng exerted a slight force.

"Whoosh—"

The rolling door closed.

"Hey! What on earth are you doing??"

After shutting the door, Jie Fangcheng flexed his wrists.

He looked up at the "parent," who stood nearly twice his height.

"So you like hitting people?" Jie Fangcheng's eyes narrowed as he casually grabbed a steel pipe from a nearby shelf. "Come on, let's have it out!"

What unfolded next completely defied Zhan Xiaoming's understanding.

All he saw was a figure who appeared even shorter than himself, despite looking like a five- or six-year-old. He was wielding a stick that was over a meter long.

When the stick made its first impact on the howling monster, the creature let out a blood-curdling scream.

"Ahhhhhh, I'll kill you!!!"

"You'll kill me?" Jie Fangcheng was infuriated. The stick in his hand whirred through the air as he lunged forward, striking twice more, all while yelling, "I can't stand people like you who resort to violence at the drop of a hat! Do you have any moral awareness? Any legal awareness? Any...anything!"

Jie Fangcheng had little regard for the players of this game, and even less for these NPCs.

He vividly remembered just how noisy those child NPCs were back in school; not only were they noisy, they were also man-eaters.

He vented his growing anger with each swing of his stick.

"You little monsters want to eat people? Do you know the prison sentence for cannibalism? Do you know how many pages a cannibalism report has? No one is writing my reports for me now, and you still want to eat people? Eat people! You cannibals and peepers!!"

The monster he was beating rolled around on the ground, its initial ferocity gone.

"I didn't eat anyone! I swear, I was just trying to scare him!"

"Scare him?" Jie Fangcheng paused with his stick in the air, but then lifted it again, "You say you're scaring him now, but you'll eat him later! It's not a loss for me to preemptively beat you! Ah? Still considering cannibalism? Still?"

With that, he brought the stick down once more.

The monster was no match for his onslaught. Even if Jie Fangcheng had no intention of killing it outright, several successive blows left the creature twitching, knocked out cold.

With its swollen, bruised face, it looked much worse off than Zhan Xiaoming.

Having dealt with the monster, Jie Fangcheng responsibly returned the stick to its shelf—quite an ethical person, returning what he took.

After putting back the stick, he squatted down to examine the nearly lifeless Zhan Xiaoming.

"Hey, you alright?"

Ever since Jie Fangcheng started beating up the monster, Zhan Xiaoming had been staring blankly, as if stupefied.

At this point, Jie Fangcheng had already knocked the monster unconscious, but Zhan Xiaoming still wore a dazed expression, looking as if he'd been struck silly.

Jie Fangcheng muttered something and extended his finger to touch Zhan Xiaoming lightly.

Zhan Xiaoming's situation was different from that of Liu Feiyao at noon. Liu was too weak and had nearly died then; Jie Fangcheng had no choice but to imbue her with some merit-based divine light.

Zhan Xiaoming was much stronger. Although he had been beaten and bitten by the "parent," the pain was indeed there, but Jie Fangcheng's timely arrival meant that his life wasn't in immediate danger.

So Jie Fangcheng merely channeled a bit of ghostly energy into him. For a regular person, it would feel like a small prick with a needle, having a slight revitalizing effect.

However, Zhan Xiaoming remained in a stupor; even after being pricked, his eyes still looked lifeless.

He stared straight at Jie Fangcheng, who felt somewhat perplexed.

"Did it not work?"

As soon as he uttered those words, Zhan Xiaoming's eyes suddenly filled with tears.

"Jie Ge..." His cry was miserable, and the term "brother" was said with such genuine sincerity.

Jie Fangcheng immediately felt overwhelmed. Even though he knew that the person inside this young body could very well be a burly man standing over six feet, Zhan Xiaoming's current form was that of a 5- or 6-year-old child, making it hard for Jie Fangcheng to even muster the will to threaten him.

"Okay, okay, it's not a big deal."

For some reason, Zhan Xiaoming's post-traumatic cries seemed to grow louder.

Quickly changing the subject, Jie Fangcheng asked, "Haven't you eaten?"

Zhan Xiaoming hesitated, sensing some ambiguity in the question, but eventually nodded.

Jie Fangcheng also nodded: "I haven't eaten either. Want to grab something?"

"Uh..."

"What do you mean, 'uh'? Isn't it getting late? Aren't you hungry?"

He was hungry, but Zhan Xiaoming felt a sense of dissonance.

Just five minutes ago, he was struggling to survive, and now, five minutes later, he's discussing whether he's hungry or not with a player who seems like a newcomer but doesn't quite act like one.

Not only did they discuss hunger, but Jie Fangcheng also asked, "Do you have any money?"

"Uh... no."

"Oh." Jie Fangcheng thought for a moment, then walked decisively over to the unconscious "parent," nudging the fainted creature. "Wake up."

The monster groggily opened its eyes, and upon seeing that terrifying face again, it immediately wanted to faint once more.

Trembling all over, it looked like it wanted to cry, "What are you going to do now?"

Jie Fangcheng extended his hand: "Pay up."

“……”

Even as he sat in front of a barbecue stand near the residential gate, Zhan Xiaoming felt as though he couldn't snap back to reality.

Night was falling, the lanterns were beginning to glow, and the street was bustling with traffic. The aroma of grilled meat wafted through the air.

Everything around him didn't feel like it was part of a game dungeon; rather, it felt like ordinary life.

This disorienting dichotomy left Zhan Xiaoming at a loss. Before he knew it, a skewer of grilled meat was shoved into his hands.

"Eat, eat, eat," Jie Fangcheng encouraged him with practiced ease, not pausing in either his eating or speaking.

Restricted by the body of a child, many items Jie Fangcheng ordered were refused by the vendor, who declined to add chili and persistently inquired, "Where are your parents, kid?" as if fearing the boy had run away from home. It felt alarmingly normal.

This gave Jie Fangcheng a peculiar feeling.

Something was odd about this dungeon. Teachers, parents, student NPCs, none of them seemed normal, but the bystanders were all perfectly ordinary.

Ordinary to the point of being indistinguishable from the real world, save for the existence of a "Genius Kindergarten."

What in the world was this game about?

Thinking wasn't Jie Fangcheng's strong suit. As he continued to eat and ponder, Zhan Xiaoming remained in a daze, leaving both of them silent for a moment.

Just as Jie Fangcheng was about to abandon any further contemplation, Zhan Xiaoming snapped out of his lingering terror.

He earnestly picked up the disposable cup in front of him and raised it towards Jie Fangcheng.

"Jie Ge, I can't thank you enough for saving me. I owe you a debt I'll never be able to repay..."

"It's fine, it's fine," Jie Fangcheng interjected. Had Zhan Xiaoming been a full-grown, burly man, this moment might have had the gravity of a legendary alliance. But as a 5- or 6-year-old, it seemed amusingly out of place, especially given the puzzled looks from those around them.

However, there was something Jie Fangcheng was genuinely curious about.

"I haven't entered the game before and am quite unfamiliar with it. Would you mind explaining what this game is?"

Zhan Xiaoming's expression didn't change much; he even looked like he had an epiphany.

"So you really did come from a 'small world,' didn't you?"

"Small world?"

"Yes, this game is called 'Three Thousand Worlds.' I'm not entirely sure about the specifics, but there are three types of players. One kind is like you, brought in from another small world... Although it's a bit odd. Those I know who were brought into the game from other worlds usually spend a month preparing in the player base before entering the dungeon. You seemed to have been directly introduced into the game... Perhaps I just haven't seen enough. The second kind is like me, a second-generation gamer. My parents were players, and I was born inside the game."

After saying this, Zhan Xiaoming paused: "There is a third type of player, but you're unlikely to encounter them."

"What are they?"

"We call them 'Exiles,'" Zhan Xiaoming explained. "These players generally sneak in from small worlds on the brink of collapse. They don't have player status and can't enter the player lobby. They can only survive in dungeons. But without access to the player lobby, they can't identify items, upgrade skills, or change their bloodlines. In short, they can't improve their abilities and actually grow weaker over time. So, not many of them survive, and none are particularly noteworthy."

Jie Fangcheng furrowed his eyebrows, "Worlds on the brink of collapse?"

"Ah, right, you wouldn't know about that, let me tell you—"

Just then, Zhan Xiaoming felt a shadow cross the corner of his eye.

He looked up.

Standing next to their barbecue table was a high school student dressed in sportswear. He seemed to have just run over, slightly out of breath, but he was quite handsome and carried himself well—immediately striking Zhan Xiaoming as a kind and approachable person.

The high schooler glanced at Zhan Xiaoming before fixing his gaze on Jie Fangcheng, who was still munching on skewers.

Jie Fangcheng was also startled, "Oh, it's you."

Wasn't this the kind-hearted neighbor who had come to pick him up from school the other night? What were the odds of running into him here?

Zhang Siquan steadied his breathing and gave a slight nod.

"Your dad called me; he said he came home and couldn't find you." He looked somewhat exasperated as he continued, "Don't just wander around; it worries the adults."