Chapter 92: Are You JJ?

    With the dead player as a terrifying example, no one dared to complain about the task anymore.

    Fatty patted his chest with a lingering fear. He had also complained about the task earlier, but fortunately, he had not said anything that could be considered as discourtesy. Otherwise the one laying in the pit right now would have been him!

    Not knowing how to deal with the corpse until it was wiped out by itself, Zhang Lei and Fatty could only use the shovel to move the body to the side. The ever silent female intermediate player dragged Luo Qing’s body to the side lest she would fall into the pit by accident.

    And just like that, the players began to grab a shovel for themselves and dug into the sand.

    Not counting the dead player and unconscious Luo Qing, only Shen Nianzu and Jin Jiuchi stayed on the edge of the pit while the rest of the players were toiling away with the NPCs.

    Jiang Shun’s female companion, Lang Zhenya, grew displeased when she saw this and commented on purpose, "Us women are not excluded from the hard labor, so how can a child’s life be so good?" She then glanced at Xinxin and the female intermediate player, asking for support.

    The players raised their heads to look at the tiny Shen Nianzu who was clutching onto his big white dog as though seeking comfort, and even if they wanted to be ruthless, they could not bring themselves to do it.

    Forget it, the child already looked so pitiful...

    Jiang Shun furrowed his brow and shot her a annoyed glare, "Why are you being so petty with a child? Doesn’t your face hurt when you say something like that? If you still have saliva to talk, then you’d better move your hands faster!"

    Xinxin harshly thrust his shovel into the sand and gave Lang Zhenya a sweet and beguiling smile, "I don’t mind at all, Jiejie." Though inwardly, he harrumphed in disdain. Want to order our Xiao Shen to work? Not a chance, you black-hearted lady!

    Meanwhile, the female intermediate player did not even bother to respond as she continued to shovel the sand, acting as if she heard nothing at all.

    Not getting the support she wanted, Lang Zhenya could only grit her teeth and stew in her anger alone. As she furiously excavated the sand, she muttered under her breath, "Nai?ve fools, who can say if that child is truly a child and not a fucking adult who’s using a prop to change his age?"

    In a sense, Lang Zhenya’s mindless grumble had struck home. But unfortunately, no one paid attention to what she was saying.

    Jin Jiuchi, who heard her words loud and clear, turned to the jade doll with bright eyes. For the first time, he was finally enlightened as to why Shen Nianzu chose to enter the Cycle in this form again. So this was the advantage of being a child. No one would ask him to do hard labor. And he, a mere dog, also got to enjoy the luxury!

    However, just as Jin Jiuchi was feeling happy for his decision to stay in this form, he heard Jiang Shun call out to the jade doll in an annoyed tone, "Hey, little brat! If you can’t help with the task, lend us your dog and order it to dig the pit! Aren’t dogs the best at digging sand?!"

    Jin Jiuchi: "..."

    Jin Jiuchi offered Shen Nianzu his best puppy eyes and let out a soft whimper. ’Nian’er, are you really going to send me down there?’

    The corner of Shen Nianzu’s lips twitched into a smile he painstakingly tampered down, and he reached out to rub Jin Jiuchi’s fluffy head. "Go and do your best, Da Shen." Seeing how the dog’s ears and tails dropped in rejection, Shen Nianzu got the urge to laugh again. He leaned in to whisper into Jin Jiuchi’s ears, "If you do a good job, I will give you beef jerky for dinner tonight."

    B–Beef jerky?! Where did this extravagant food come from? Jin Jiuchi showed an astonished look. He recalled how Shen Nianzu had once told him that it was futile to bring food from the real world as it would all disappear once they entered the tunnel. Wait, don’t tell him... had Shen Nianzu bought it from the App’s store?! But food in the store was very expensive, for they would automatically be preserved fresh throughout the players’ entire duration in the Cycle. Even a mere vegetable sandwich was ranked Valuable at the very least!

    "Woof!" Jin Jiuchi instantly turned vigorous, his tail wagging excitedly. Nian’er was so kind! How could Nian’er be so kind to him?! Unable to help himself, he leaned in to lick a stripe across the jade doll’s face before he rushed down the pit to join the other players, digging enthusiastically with his forepaws.

    Meanwhile, Shen Nianzu stood frozen on the spot when he felt sticky wetness on his face. He only snapped back to his senses a few seconds later, and a curse slipped off his lips. "That fucker..." With a dark face, he rubbed the saliva from his cheek and lips.

    The players continued to toil away for hours, only stopping once in a while for break. Sometime in between, the male intermediate player’s body vanished without a trace, but no one could afford to care about it as they were utterly drained from the task.

    Luo Qing roused awake not long after, and her tears started flowing again as utter terror gripped her heart. Alas, left with no other choice, she reluctantly grasped a shovel and joined the other players in their excavation mission, though her every thrust was accompanied by swaying and trembling.

    A distance away from her, Xinxin was rendered utterly speechless at the sight of her endless tears. He could finally understand why Xiao Shen had snapped at him when he broke down in Shishen Apartment’s underground chamber last time. Clearly, they were stuck in a precarious situation but all she did was cry, cry and cry again! Did she even think of how crying would only drain the moisture in her body faster? It would be better if she could swallow her tears to replenish the liquid she had lost!

    Shaking his head, he continued to shovel the sand with renewed vigor. He promised himself that in the future, he would not cry anymore no matter how desperate and bleak the situation was!

    At lunchtime, the players received an hour break.

    The two NPCs led them to a resting tent not far from the pit. It was made only with a large piece of cloth draped over the wooden posts. Though shabby, it provided sufficient shade for players who almost died from the heat. Not caring about their image any longer, they sprawled on the ground like a row of salted fish, as they lacked the energy to even move their limbs.

    Shen Nianzu, on the other hand, was the one who fared the best among them. He sat gracefully on the ground while maintaining a pristine demeanor, while Jin Jiuchi rested his head on his lap, panting for breath. Shen Nianzu carded his fingers through Jin Jiuchi’s fur and brushed the grains of sand away from the pure white coat. After that, he took out wet wipes to clean each of Jin Jiuchi’s dirt-stained and meaty paws.

    The two NPCs players returned a moment later carrying two huge pots with them. One was filled with thick meat porridge, while the other was fruit juice with refreshing ice cubes floating on the surface.

    The players’ eyes lit up when they saw this, and they hastily swarmed the food like a pack of ravenous wolves. At least, this Cycle was not stingy with the quality of food!

    "Do we..." Fatty swallowed a large mouthful of porridge and glanced at the NPCs who were resting a few meters away. He lowered his voice, "Do we really have to keep this up for three days? I will really die... even my mom can’t make me exercise this hard for years!"

    Luo Qing looked at her broken nails and the ugly cuts on her hands. She nodded with a glum look.

    Jiang Shun bit down on the fruit Lang Zhenya had fed into his mouth and chewed before replying with a sneer, "I forgot how ignorant newbies are nowadays. I will choose this hard labor a thousand times rather than being constantly put under the threat of death. Low level Cycles are like this. As long as you don’t act and speak out of line like that idiot earlier, you will survive just fine as long as you earnestly do the task. Had this been a mid level Cycle, we would have been attacked by poisonous scorpions, snakes or wolves."

    Fatty, Luo Qing, Zhang Lei and Lang Zhenya gave him an admiring look.

    "Have you been to mid level Cycles, Jiang Shun?" Zhang Lei asked in great interest. "What is it like?"

    Jiang Shun’s nose was turned up to the sky from the look of admiration and respect he received, but he still tried to act humble, "Well, all I can say is that it’s beyond terrifying. These low level Cycles are nothing at all."

    Lang Zhenya tried to flatter him by telling the players around them, and she even deliberately raised her voice for the others who did not join in on the conversation, such as the quiet female intermediate player, Xinxin and Shen Nianzu. "Jiang Shun is so close to making it to the leaderboard. If he had challenged the Cycles a few more times, he would have definitely risen to the top 100!"

    "No way..." Zhang Lei was full of awe. For him who only hovered around rank 500-ish, the leaderboard was akin to an unattainable hope. "That’s so cool!"

    "Leaderboard?" The two newbies were confused. "What is that?"

    Alas, Jiang Shun’s mood immediately turned sour once his rank was brought up. He shot a deadly glare at Lang Zhenya, silently cursing her for being such a blabbermouth. Who was he to boast about his rank when the player ranked 100th, JJ, was in this Cycle as well?!

    Slightly embarrassed, he cleared his throat, "I am just so-so. There is an even stronger player than me in this Cycle. That’s why I would like to use this opportunity to ask..." he suddenly turned to the quiet female intermediate player and asked with a polite smile, "Are you JJ?"