Chapter 11: Damn it, is the world gaslighting him?
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Right after successfully changing his profession, Chen Kun suddenly noticed that the wounds on his body were healing rapidly. His previously foggy and near-collapse mind instantly became remarkably clear, indistinguishable from normal. He felt his body had never been better.
According to the information on his wristwatch, he realized that each time he leveled up, all his injuries and negative statuses would be healed and cleansed. After the successful profession change, new functions appeared on his watch, including his player information panel.
-
“Player Name”: Chen Kun.
“Player Level”: Level 1 (15/100).
“Player Profession”: Torture Apostle.
“Player Points”: 83.
“Player Assets”: None.
-
When he saw the “Player Assets” entry, Chen Kun recalled a message flashing briefly on his cornea: he had completed the main quest and successfully acquired ownership of this coffee shop. At first, he hadn’t understood the meaning of this reward.
Did the coffee shop belong to him now? Had he asked the previous owner’s opinion?
At that moment—
The dim streetlamp, the corpses beneath his feet, and the shops along the street all slowly dissolved like bubbles into shadows. Simultaneously, a panel appeared before him again.
-
“The Daylight Strange Incident ‘Enlightenment Coffee’ is about to conclude.”
“Here is the performance evaluation for player Chen Kun...”
“You single-handedly killed over 70% of the ghosts and monsters. There is no doubt that despite experiencing great fear when facing these entities, you maintained excellent combat ability, successfully completed the main quest, and obtained permanent ownership of ‘Enlightenment Coffee.’”
“Event Reward: 100 points.”
“Because player Chen Kun’s fear value reached 100% during the event and he survived, the reward is tripled, granting 300 points.”
-
After the panel disappeared, a flash of white light enveloped him, and Chen Kun found himself seated once again at the outdoor tables of the coffee shop. The clean tables and the intact coffee shop seemed to suggest it had all been an illusion.
Only the bloodstained clothes on his body told him that what he had just experienced was no hallucination.
The pack of cigarettes in his pocket was gone.
Black Hao sat across from him, eyes wide with the shock of survival.
The coffee shop was surrounded by police officers in uniform.
“Chen Kun!”
A middle-aged policeman approached rapidly, scrutinizing Chen Kun from head to toe. Standing beside him, he said with a complicated expression, “The incident is over. Six people were involved, and only you two survived.”
After a pause, his voice grew hoarse.
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“Since you survived this event, I assume you have obtained permanent ownership of Enlightenment Coffee... This is both a blessing and a curse. Expect many people to come knocking; you should prepare yourself mentally.”
“Mm.”
Chen Kun nodded tiredly, acknowledging the warning. He spoke softly, “Got any cigarettes?”
“Yes.”
“Give me one.”
“Alright.”
Black Hao coughed lightly, raising his hand quietly, “Make that two.”
Chen Kun brought a cigarette to his lips and looked toward the group of police officers carrying away body bags. The corpses of those who died during the event had mysteriously appeared near the coffee shop. After a moment, he whispered, “Thanks.”
Without lingering any longer, he planted the black cane he held firmly on the ground, bypassed the policeman, and began walking away.
Black Hao smiled kindly at the middle-aged policeman before hastily following Chen Kun.
...
In the alleyway.
Black Hao trailed behind Chen Kun, puzzled as he glanced at the black cane in Chen Kun’s hand. “Kun, where did that cane come from?”
“The last ghost, the ‘Ghost Apostle,’ had it. That old man walked silently, only the cane tapping against the ground made noise. Didn’t you notice?”
“I noticed that... but I didn’t realize when you slipped the cane into your pocket.”
“Near the end of the event.”
“But weren’t you emotionally collapsed at that time? How did you have the presence of mind for that?”
“Just a casual thing. Doesn’t affect anything.”
“...”
Black Hao’s mouth moved slightly as if to say something but hesitated. Scratching his bald head, he gave up on the thought. Suddenly recalling something, he asked instinctively, “By the way, Kun, are you close with that policeman?”
“I met him this morning.”
“Oh, then what’s this about permanent ownership of Enlightenment Coffee?”
“It means all future profits from the coffee shop belong to me.”
“So, does that mean we can drink coffee here for free?”
“No. We still have to pay, 34 points per cup. Don’t even think about it; I’m not buying any for you.”
“Oh... I don’t really like coffee anyway. But what about the previous owner of this place?”
“There wasn’t one.”
“No owner?”
“Well...”
Chen Kun rubbed his temples wearily. “It’s a bit complicated. You can think of it as a neutral coffee shop without an owner before, like a neutral building in a game. It served humans during the day and ghosts at night.”
“But from now on, this shop belongs to me. I’ll explain more later. We have more important things to deal with right now.”
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“What things?”
“Buy some cigarettes... and have a meal. I just finished eating before all this happened, but now I’m almost done digesting and starving.”
“Well, that’s a good thing, right, Kun?”
“That’s true.”
Chen Kun shook his head and smiled helplessly. It was indeed a blessing. With this shop, he was much closer to securing a safe house of his own. Thinking that way, the shock he’d endured seemed somewhat bearable.
Wait... was he slowly giving in to this damned world?
Damn it, was this world manipulating him?
First, it gave him a big stick, then a sweet carrot, and now it made him feel that the stick he always despised might be acceptable? Isn’t that just manipulation?
Forget it.
He shook his head, unwilling to think any further.
Sooner or later, either this damned world would crush him, or he would crush this damned world.
He had been lucky this time. In theory, the “Daylight Strange Incident” was almost a death trap. But before the “Ghost Apostle” appeared, he had miraculously killed all the minor ghosts, leaving the old man with no ghosts to control, so he had to control himself.
...
In the dim, narrow alley, Chen Kun and Black Hao walked steadily forward.
The light at the end of the alley brought a deep sense of security.
Even in darkness, seeing sunlight meant the future was still hopeful.
“Kun,”
“Hmm?”
“I just realized something. The coffee shop sells coffee to humans during the day and to ghosts at night. What is that coffee made of? Both humans and ghosts can drink it. Can it really be made from regular coffee beans?”
“I don’t know, but it’s better not to think about it. If you do, you won’t be able to drink it.”
“Anyway, neither of us really likes coffee, and we have to pay points to drink it.”
“That’s true, but I’m planning to take you to a ‘fast food’ place, also a ‘Yin-Yang’ shop, open day and night. If you overthink it, you won’t be able to enjoy the delicious pork knuckle rice.”
Chen Kun licked his dry lips, rubbing his stomach with some hunger. “I ate before you came, but just a vegetarian dish soaked in soup with rice. Now that I have some points, I’m planning to order two pork knuckle rice meals for us to feast on.”
“...”
Black Hao stiffened slightly, then hoarsely said after a moment, “Can we go somewhere else...?”
“No way. I just learned that apart from this fast food place, almost all affordable eateries in Qingyuan City are Yin-Yang shops.”
“If it’s not a Yin-Yang shop, we can’t afford it.”
“Well, just eat one bite. What’s food if you start picking at it? Before you came, I was so poor I couldn’t even afford a pack of cigarettes.”