“……”

That’s not what I meant, I didn’t mean it, I was just talking nonsense!

Is it too late to take it back…?

Obviously, yes.

The white-robed woman didn’t even wait for him to respond before she casually said:

“Since you’re so eager to deal with the Apartment Boss… I’ll give you a quest. Accept it.”

What?

The other top players in Apartment 9999 were completely dumbfounded.

No way? He really got an NPC quest out of this?!

But this quest…

Probably isn’t going to be easy!

Jiang Ye was also confused, because suddenly a system prompt rang out in his mind:

【Ding!】

【Apartment resident Yin Su has issued you an SSS-tier Confidential Quest:】

【Quest Objective: Eliminate the Apartment Boss in your current region】

【Time Limit: Before the Beginner Apartment is destroyed】

【Phase One: Kill the Apartment Administrator (S-tier)】

【Phase Two: Kill the Apartment Wandering Merchant (SS-tier)】

【Phase Three: Kill the Apartment Boss (SSS-tier)】

【Phase One Rewards:】

【1. 50 million game coins】

【2. Skill Scroll (Bronze-Tier) ×1】

【3. Bronze Treasure Chest ×3】

【4. Privilege-Exempt Card ×10】

【5. One Golden-Tier Duel Machine】

【Special Setting from Yin Su: Phase One rewards will be issued upon accepting the quest】

【Quest Failure Penalty: None】

【Do you accept the quest: Yes / No?】

H-holy sh*t??

50 million game coins?!

A Skill Scroll, Bronze Treasure Chests, Privilege Cards…

And a Golden-Tier Duel Machine?!

That’s practically instant riches!

Even though Jiang Ye didn’t know exactly what a Golden-Tier Duel Machine could do…

Since it was listed last, it had to be valuable, right?

The key point is—

Just accepting the quest gets you the rewards.

And there’s no penalty for failing?

That sounds way too good to be true.

If he accepts but doesn’t complete it, wouldn’t Yin Su take a huge loss?

Or maybe… she plans to “personally” punish him herself?

Looking at it that way…

This SSS-tier Confidential Quest didn’t seem that bad after all.

Since he’s officially on a quest, maybe she won’t give him trouble anymore.

Plus, Phase One of the quest seems to line up with what the game players are aiming for.

If he tags along with them, taking down the Apartment Administrator shouldn’t be a problem.

So… should he accept it?

Just as Jiang Ye thought that—

The Yes/No prompt in his mind automatically selected 【Yes】.

And immediately, another system prompt followed:

【Ding! Congratulations on accepting the SSS-tier Confidential Quest!】

【Ding! You have been marked by the Apartment Boss!】

“……”

Jiang Ye had a sinking feeling he just stepped into a huge trap.

Was there really no failure penalty for this quest...?

No time to think.

From the black lines stretched across the ceiling, one strand slowly descended.

Tied to it was a silvery-white ring, which dangled in front of Jiang Ye.

He took it—it was a Level 1 Spatial Ring.

As he checked the contents, another black line wrapped around the test tube in his hand.

Looked like she was retrieving her hair at the same time.

Jiang Ye checked the items inside the Spatial Ring and saw they matched the quest rewards.

After a brief hesitation, he relaxed his grip on the test tube and let it float up with the black line, vanishing into the ceiling.

Moments later, the white-robed woman’s voice came from above again:

“You should know, right? The [Madman Mask] required to kill the Apartment Administrator only has a chance of dropping after achieving 100 consecutive wins in the Duel Room.”

“That’s why I gave you 10 Privilege Cards and a Golden-Tier Duel Machine.”

“Hurry up and win 100 in a row, get the [Madman Mask], and kill the Apartment Administrator…”

“Once you complete Phase One, I’ll give you a massive surprise :)”

“……”

Jiang Ye couldn’t help feeling that the word “surprise” coming from her mouth had a weird undertone.

What if it’s not a surprise, but a heart attack?!

He wanted to say something else, but then the black lines on the ceiling shifted, quickly disappearing.

The eerie atmosphere that had engulfed the 99th Floor seemed to return to normal.

The quest prompts had only appeared in Jiang Ye’s mind, so no one else had heard them.

But the last words from the white-robed woman—everyone did hear those.

Wan Xin couldn’t hold back and yelled, “Holy sh*t!”

“10 Privilege Cards and a Golden-Tier Duel Machine?!”

“Don’t tell me you actually planned this out? That you’d get an NPC quest out of being hunted, and the rewards would conveniently help you speedrun ten wins?”

“That’s why you agreed to that ‘10-minute 10-win’ thing so confidently earlier?!”

“And when you were stalling instead of getting into our Duel Machine, you were actually waiting for the NPC quest to hand you a Golden-Tier Duel Machine?!”

Wan Xin was fuming, looking like he wanted to skin Jiang Ye alive.

Even Wang Chengjin couldn’t help giving him a weird look and said, “No wonder you said you’d hit 100 wins faster than Lin God… turns out you’ve got a Golden-Tier Duel Machine in your pocket!”

Jiang Ye actually had no idea what benefits the Golden-Tier Duel Machine offered.

But hearing what the white-robed woman and the other two just said—

It sounded like it was something that could help players fast-track their way to 100 wins?

He was about to ask them exactly what it did—

When suddenly, a commotion broke out at the location of Duel Machine #1 on the 99th Floor.

Mixed into the noise were murmurs from powerful players:

“Lin God! Lin God’s out!”

Hearing that, Jiang Ye quickly turned to look toward Duel Machine #1.

He saw a slim young man in a black tactical jacket stepping out from the machine.

He passed through the crowd and walked straight toward Jiang Ye.

His footsteps were calm and measured, matching his voice as he spoke slowly:

“You took a quest to kill the Apartment Administrator?”

“Even if someone has succeeded in the game before, the Administrator in the Beginner Apartment isn’t that easy to kill.”

“First of all, when a player attacks him, he gains the right to instantly erase that player.”

“And that terrifying privilege can only be countered by the [Madman Mask] earned through 100 consecutive wins in the Duel Room.”

“But the 100-win reward lets you choose one of three items.”

“So the chance of getting the [Madman Mask] is only one-third.”

“That tells you how rare the item is.”

“Even worse, it only nullifies the erase privilege for 3 minutes.”

“In other words, even if you’re wearing the [Madman Mask], you still have to finish off the Administrator within 3 minutes.”

“I remember in the game, it took a group of whales forming a 10-man squad to barely manage to kill the Administrator.”

“And even then, it took countless failed attempts beforehand.”

“In short, there’s no way someone like you could solo the Apartment Administrator during the beginner phase.”

...For real?

It took at least 10 players working together to kill the Apartment Administrator?

And those 10 must’ve been the top players in that beginner zone too, right?

So…

Jiang Ye swept his gaze across the 99th Floor of Apartment 9999, which was filled with Duel Machines.

Then he casually asked Lin Jing,

“You’re all gathered here for the [Madman Mask] from 100 consecutive wins, to take down the Apartment Administrator?”

His tone was relaxed.

At the same time, Lin Jing stepped in front of him.

This big shot had a sharp, serious face and wasn’t one for small talk.

But now, he suddenly gave Jiang Ye a meaningful smile and said,

“You’re definitely not a game player.”

Jiang Ye didn’t try to hide it and nodded directly.

After all, acting like a top student pretending to be a slacker is easy—pretending to be a top student when you’re not is the hard part.

He really had never played the Doomsday Apartment game before, so it was only a matter of time before he got exposed.

And these Apartment 9999 veterans had assumed from the start that he was a game player.

If they gave it a little more thought, it wouldn’t be hard to realize he wasn’t.

“I accidentally killed a cross-apartment player, and used his cross-apartment chip to unintentionally arrive here at Apartment 9999, far from home.”

He said it openly and confidently.

All the big-name players present were stunned!

Especially Wang Chengjin, who suddenly connected the dots:

“Holy sh*t? So when you asked me about NPC items earlier, you really didn’t know?!”

Wan Xin was just as shocked:

“So you’re not a game player, and you still one-shotted Zhao Yudie? What about the three-win streak? Are you the bald guy the Duoe Organization is hunting?”

Jiang Ye seriously bullsh*tted, “There are tons of bald guys using Disguise Masks. Doesn’t necessarily mean it was me. I really don’t know.”

Wan Xin rolled his eyes hard. “Quit playing dumb! The announcement listed a seat number! You seriously gonna tell me you don’t know if it matched yours?”

Eh? That’s right.

But Jiang Ye shamelessly insisted, “I really don’t know if it was me.”

Wan Xin rolled his eyes again—he didn’t buy it at all.

Meanwhile, the crowd of veteran players around them couldn’t hold back their chatter:

“Dmn! This kid picked up a cross-apartment item and ended up in our Apartment 9999? Could it really be that much of a coincidence?”

“F**! How did none of us even consider the possibility of a newbie stumbling in?”

“It’s only Day 1! What newbie manages to cross apartments on Day 1? And of all places, lands here?”

“But this newbie isn’t normal! Got guts—got chased cross-apartment by an NPC, and somehow turned that into an NPC quest!”

“Most insane part? That NPC quest gave him a Golden-Tier Duel Machine out of nowhere!”

Jiang Ye ignored all the chatter.

He was more concerned about the Apartment Administrator’s combat power—

And whether there were any detailed strategies for killing him aside from the [Madman Mask].

He was just about to ask Lin Jing—

When the serious-faced young man, after a brief moment of thought, narrowed his eyes and said in a low voice,

“Given your situation, using a Golden-Tier Duel Machine might not be a good idea.”

“Remember our previous deal?”

“If you hit ten wins in ten minutes, we’d let you join us. If not, we send you packing.”

“Well now, you don’t need to rush for the ten-win proof.”

“Just hand over the Golden-Tier Duel Machine to me, and I’ll bring you along. How’s that?”

...

How’s that?

Not good at all!

Jiang Ye immediately frowned, giving Lin Jing a strange look, and said coldly,

“If I can get ten wins in ten minutes, why the h*ll would I hand over the Golden-Tier Duel Machine to you?”

As soon as he said it, the atmosphere froze.

All the quiet whispers around them abruptly died.

Lin Jing’s stern face looked even more stone-cold.

After a short pause, he said in a deep voice,

“When I said I’d bring you along, that includes helping you fight the Apartment Administrator.”

He paused again, then added,

“Basically, in this 0000–9999 Beginner Zone, all the players who stand a decent chance at hitting 100 wins, earning the [Madman Mask], and playing a real role in the Administrator battle—are all in Apartment 9999.”

“In other words, if you don’t join us, your quest to kill the Apartment Administrator is practically impossible.”

Jiang Ye thought to himself:

If killing the Administrator requires a team and can’t be done solo,

then how the h*ll am I supposed to complete Phase Two—killing the Apartment Wandering Merchant—and Phase Three—killing the Apartment Boss?

So if he really wants to complete the quest he got from the white-robed woman,

he’s probably going to have to solo the Administrator anyway.

Whether these guys help him or not… doesn’t matter.

Besides—

Jiang Ye stuck to the same line:

“So you’re really going to go back on your word—

That deal about ‘ten wins in ten minutes and you’ll bring me in’ was just bulls**t, huh?”

His tone carried a sharp edge, laced with provocation.

The tension in the room grew even thicker.

Plenty of eyes turned toward him like he was insane.

No one said anything, no one messaged in the group chat.

But their stares clearly screamed—

Is this kid fearless or just brain-dead? He’s just a Level 1 trash with 50 Combat Power—how does he dare talk to Big Shot Lin Jing with that kind of attitude?!

Did he really think landing an NPC quest made him hot sht?

Using a Golden-Tier Duel Machine on a guy like him is a total waste! Lin Jing could’ve just taken it by force, but instead tried to make a deal—and this punk actually refused?!

F**! Lin God, hurry up and put this arrogant rookie in his place!

And yet…

While the onlookers were all itching for a fight—

Lin Jing didn’t make a move.

He stayed calm and didn’t get angry over Jiang Ye’s tone.

Instead, he followed up smoothly,

“When I said I’d bring you along, I meant help you in a Life-or-Death Duel, not against the Apartment Administrator.”

“Oh, I see,” Jiang Ye raised a brow and replied, “Then no problem. I don’t need you to help me fight the Administrator.”

The subtext was clear—

I’d rather go for the ten-win streak than hand over the Golden-Tier Duel Machine.

Lin Jing’s face didn’t change, but his gaze turned a little more complex.

After a pause, he asked, “You sure?”

Jiang Ye nodded. “I’m sure.”

And added, “I’m sure I’m planning to solo the Apartment Administrator.”