Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Ying Yuanxing felt a pang of nervousness as he reached into the trash can. In the game, rummaging through trash cans was a simple click; in reality, it was a hands-on affair.

But once he started, Ying Yuanxing didn't hesitate. He was determined to see what was inside—perhaps even find some recyclables.

What he found, however, froze him. The bottom of the trash can was utterly empty, yet his hand distinctly felt something, discerning its shape and texture.

The livestream didn't show the inside of the trash can. To the audience, Ying Yuanxing had simply plunged his hand in and was now rooting around.

Yuan Xiu, however, knew better. While every house in the village had a trash can, they were practically empty because the trash cans themselves were living entities. Any refuse thrown in would be consumed by them.

They weren't picky eaters. Inanimate objects, living creatures, even body parts—once something entered their domain, escape was nearly impossible.

Yet, Ying Yuanxing’s hand was inside, and the Weird Trash Can remained motionless. This was peculiar.

Could it be that the Weird Trash Can found Ying Yuanxing unappetizing?

Yuan Xiu watched Ying Yuanxing thoughtfully. Though Ying Yuanxing’s dumpster diving had initially startled him, an indomitable curiosity surged anew, making him wonder.

Considering Ying Yuanxing’s earlier question, he'd clearly hoped to find food in the trash can. If he didn't, what would he do?

Would he seek out the village chief, or... would he come to Yuan Xiu for help?

After all, in this entire village, wasn't he the one Ying Yuanxing was most familiar with?

The thought of Ying Yuanxing potentially seeking him out made Yuan Xiu’s teeth tingle. He suddenly yearned to take a bite out of Ying Yuanxing—just a small one, nothing excessive.

Yuan Xiu’s appetite surged, his honey-colored eyes deepening with a faint golden hue, radiating an innate ferocity. Yet, the moment his gaze landed on Ying Yuanxing, that hunger receded slightly.

Ying Yuanxing was leaning exceptionally close to the Weird Trash Can as he rummaged. Even though Yuan Xiu knew the Weird Trash Can consumed everything and wasn't dirty, the sight still unsettled him. It was like seeing a delectable cake placed atop a trash can—even if the cake remained spotless, most people wouldn’t immediately feel like eating it.

Ying Yuanxing carefully felt around for a while, realizing the object in his hand felt like wood—hard and rough to the touch. But he didn't recall the game allowing players to dig up lumber from trash cans.

No matter. Since the game had become reality, changes were to be expected.

Ying Yuanxing gripped the wood and pulled, feeling as though he were dragging something from a swamp. Fortunately, he still had some strength. After a brief stalemate, he prevailed—the wood came free.

But without the opposing force, Ying Yuanxing yanked too hard. The object flew out of the Weird Trash Can, slipping from his grasp and soaring backward.

Ying Yuanxing quickly gave chase. Though he’d only caught a fleeting glimpse, he could tell it wasn't the wood he’d imagined.

After a couple of steps, the object landed in someone’s hand—and indeed, it wasn't wood, but a baguette-shaped, golden-brown loaf of bread.

Realizing he’d unearthed food, Ying Yuanxing was both delighted and relieved. Thank goodness someone had caught it—if it had fallen to the ground, he wouldn't have known how to clean it.

Except… that hand looked familiar.

Ying Yuanxing followed the arm upward and met a pair of unfairly handsome, familiar features. His words of thanks stuck in his throat, refusing to come out.

Why was Yuan Xiu here?!

Ying Yuanxing stiffly glanced back at where he’d last seen Yuan Xiu and realized this spot offered a clear view of his original position. So… Yuan Xiu had seen everything he’d just done… right?

How was he supposed to explain this?

Yuan Xiu stared at the bread in his hand, deep in thought. He’d thought he’d already overestimated Ying Yuanxing, but it seemed he’d still underestimated him.

The Weird Trash Can had always been a one-way street—things went in, but never came out. Yet Ying Yuanxing had managed to fish out bread. Even Yuan Xiu couldn’t pull off such a feat.

Strangely, Ying Yuanxing noticed that Yuan Xiu’s gaze held something like amazement rather than the disgust he’d expected.

Could it be… Yuan Xiu was an environmentalist who abhorred waste, so seeing him salvage food from the trash made him admire him instead?

Ying Yuanxing quickly pulled up the relationship meter. Since he’d only met Yuan Xiu and the village chief so far, only two locked profiles had been unlocked. And Yuan Xiu’s relationship points… had already filled half a heart icon.

Though a single red heart looked pitifully small next to the nine grayed-out ones, if he remembered correctly, that half-heart hadn’t been full this morning.

Well. Ying Yuanxing hesitated, unsure whether he should continue dumpster diving in front of Yuan Xiu. If it really boosted relationship points…

Even if the benefits weren’t obvious yet, what gamer could resist such temptation?

More importantly, Ying Yuanxing genuinely wanted to search through the other trash cans. Since he’d already done one, he might as well finish the rest and see what else he could scavenge. Thinking about the bare necessities in his wooden house, he figured every little bit helped.

“Yuan Xiu, do you know where the other trash cans are?” Having made his decision, Ying Yuanxing didn’t waste time and went straight to Yuan Xiu for directions.

After all, he wasn’t familiar with the village. If he tried to explore on his own, he’d definitely take detours. Better to let Yuan Xiu help—the time saved could be used to hurry back to the farm and harvest seeds.

Hearing Ying Yuanxing’s question, four words flashed through Yuan Xiu’s mind: *leaving no stone unturned*.

“You…” Yuan Xiu hesitated. He wanted to ask, but Ying Yuanxing had already surprised him too many times—he was afraid of guessing wrong.

This time, however, he wasn’t mistaken. Ying Yuanxing nodded. “I want to search through them, see if there’s anything good.”

His tone was so nonchalant that Yuan Xiu didn’t know how to respond. The ‘people’ he’d met before weren’t like this—not entirely unreasonable, but calling this ‘reasonable’ was hard to swallow.

In silence, Yuan Xiu led Ying Yuanxing around the village, watching as he rummaged through trash can after trash can. Though most yielded nothing, a few actually gave Ying Yuanxing some finds—a small soda can, a lump of coal, and an amber crystal.

Yuan Xiu tried to figure out how Ying Yuanxing was managing to retrieve items from the Weird Trash Cans, but the more he watched, the more baffled he became.

Ying Yuanxing seemed to just reach in, rummage around, and pull something out—without any hint of Weird Qi. But Yuan Xiu knew those trash cans shouldn’t have anything inside…

Then again…

Yuan Xiu paused. He only knew the Weird Trash Can’s habits, but had *all* the trash inside really been consumed?

Ying Yuanxing was satisfied with his haul. It wasn’t much, but something was better than nothing. Besides, trash cans could be checked once a day—the only downside was having to trek all over the village, which wasted time.

Come to think of it… could he just move all these trash cans to his farm? He only needed to search through them, not rely on villagers to throw trash in.

After checking every trash can in the village, Ying Yuanxing had a vague sense of his ability. The trash cans he could loot seemed to be conceptual—borrowing the appearance of the villagers’ trash cans. So… would relocating them to his farm work?

If it did, he wouldn’t mind becoming a dumpster diver for once.

Both the human and the Great Weird were lost in their own thoughts. Though their positioning wasn’t the most dignified, the scene was strangely harmonious—especially with Yuan Xiu gazing sideways at Ying Yuanxing. To an outsider, the two seemed to share excellent chemistry.

Meanwhile, inside the house, a Weird huddled fearfully, not daring to move as it watched Yuan Xiu blocking the doorway. Instinctively, it mentally labeled Ying Yuanxing as ‘not to be crossed.’

In the Weird world, weaker ones avoided stronger ones—getting too close meant risking being devoured. Yet Ying Yuanxing stood so close to Yuan Xiu. Even if he seemed like a regular human, it might just be a disguise. After all, Yuan Xiu was fond of disguises himself.

“Are there any more trash cans?” Ying Yuanxing asked.

“No, you’ve hit them all,” Yuan Xiu shook his head. “But I know of some elsewhere. Want to go?”

Yuan Xiu reasoned the reason he hadn’t understood Ying Yuanxing’s technique was simply because he hadn’t seen enough of it.

“Are they far? Outside the village?” Ying Yuanxing asked automatically, but then remembered he’d already scoured the village. If he left now… He glanced at the sun—it was almost noon. He’d already burned enough daylight today and couldn’t afford to drag this out further.

“Forget it, maybe next time,” Ying Yuanxing declined. “I should get back to the farm. You…” He looked at Yuan Xiu, recalling how he’d tagged along the whole way. After a moment’s thought, Ying Yuanxing pulled out the amber crystal from his loot and slipped it into Yuan Xiu’s hand.

"Here, this is for you. I’ll head back first—see ya." Ying Yuanxing handed over the present and spoke in one smooth motion, before Yuan Xiu could even react, grabbing the bread and leaving.

Yuan Xiu had received many gifts before, and this yellow crystal was far from the most valuable among them. But after spending time with Ying Yuanxing, he knew money was tight for him—yet he still chose to give it to him. He ought to have been moved.

But this crystal was something Yuan Xiu had personally watched Ying Yuanxing fish out of a trash can. And Ying Yuanxing must have known that too. So why would he just hand it over like this? Didn’t he find it strange at all?

Staring at the crystal in his palm, Yuan Xiu’s face almost twitched. He wanted to toss it away, yet some inexplicable urge made him consider keeping it.

Whatever. He’d take it back and check it out—maybe he could trace its origin and find clues about Ying Yuanxing’s abilities.

Tucking the crystal away, Yuan Xiu turned to leave, then suddenly paused. He glanced around—Ying Yuanxing was already some distance away and unlikely to look back.

After a moment’s hesitation, the trash can lid levitated open. Yuan Xiu peered inside, confirming his suspicion: it was completely empty.

From inside the house, the specter watched through the window, its eyes bulging out of its head. But after yesterday’s incident—where another specter had been injured by Yuan Xiu for witnessing something it shouldn’t have—the news had spread through the village. Realizing what it had just seen, the specter quickly cupped its eyes in its hands, not daring to look further.

Only after a long silence, when no movement came from outside, did it cautiously reattach its eyes.

Peeking out nervously, it found both Yuan Xiu and Ying Yuanxing gone. Relieved, it turned its attention to the trash can outside the door, curiosity bubbling. That stranger digging through trash was one thing, but why would Yuan Xiu do it too? Could there really be something valuable inside?

Greed got the better of it, and the specter caved. It rushed to the trash can, flipping open the lid to peer inside—only to find nothing. Wait, no… was there—?

The lid slammed shut with a faint sound, followed by absolute silence. Everything was calm again, like nothing happened.