Chapter 19

Chapter 19 As Long As I’m Strong.

Ning Rong’s feet stepped onto the wet soil, her shoes sinking slightly.

It had probably rained heavily in this small forest not long ago. The damp moisture in the air had not yet dispersed. There was not a single road suitable for walking—almost every path was muddy.

On her way to find Zhou Yujing, she ran into several players who had also been matched into the game.

Neither side had any intention of exchanging greetings.

Ning Rong simply was not in the mood, while the other players were highly wary.

[Dead serious laughter, the little newcomer brushed shoulders with Juanjuan’s most loyal dog.]

[Good good good, this is really interesting. If Chen Chu knew what the little newcomer came here for this time, would he explode on the spot?]

[Explode? What right does he have to explode? Though he barely counts as a high-level player, in my eyes he’s nothing but useless trash. He’s far beneath the little newcomer.]

[Brothers, do you know what’s most interesting about this livestream room? Both sides have already met, but because they don’t know each other, the meeting passed calmly. But we all know this peace is temporary. Something more interesting, more exciting, is about to happen.]

[Let the storm come even fiercer.]

In a short time, Ning Rong encountered four players.

Among them were Chen Chu and A Leng.

But she herself did not know them.

They also did not know her.

There was no communication at all between either side.

After Ning Rong walked some farther, she vaguely heard a rather large disturbance coming from the small forest to the southeast.

Her footsteps paused slightly, and she turned directly toward that direction.

[My god, are they about to meet?]

[Good good good, a legendary scene is coming.]

In the silent night, even faint rustling sounds seemed magnified several times, clear as if right beside the ear.

“Hee hee hee hee hee hee.”

“Ring ring ring ring ring ring.”

Within the ambiguous little forest, beneath the cold moonlight, Ning Rong saw two figures pulling and tugging at each other.

Because the light was insufficient, and because of preconceived assumptions, Ning Rong subconsciously mistook one of the figures for that so-called Juanjuan.

As for the other figure, even though it was only a blurry outline, she recognized at a glance who he was.

Good, good, good.

Playing extreme push-and-pull in the little forest, huh?

[Zhou Yujing, you’re finished.]

[I’m kind of looking forward to what happens next.]

[What will the little newcomer do?]

[Charge, little newcomer.]

Burning with rage, Ning Rong strode forward.

Before either of them could react, she directly smashed both figures to the ground.

The seductive ghost currently luring lives away: ???

The somewhat famous boyfriend in the infinite game: ???

[???]

[!!!]

[As expected of the little newcomer! If violence works, she’ll never waste words!]

[Wow... just as exciting as I imagined!]

[This is satisfying.]

Ning Rong’s calm voice slowly rang out across the boundless scenery.

“What are you two doing?”

Hearing that familiar voice and tone, Zhou Yujing froze slightly.

Using the dim night as cover, he lifted his head a little and clearly saw the person standing upright before him.

The familiar features.

The familiar clothes.

What was unfamiliar was the cold expression on her face at this moment.

“Rongrong? Rongrong! How did you enter the game?”

Ning Rong crouched down.

“Zhou Yujing, first explain to me what exactly is going on right now.”

Zhou Yujing’s mind was in complete chaos at this moment.

He had many questions he wanted to ask, but habit made him obey Ning Rong first and explain himself.

“Rongrong, the moment I entered the game, I got entangled by a seductive ghost.”

“How did you get here? It’s dangerous here!”

A seductive ghost?

Not Juanjuan?

While the two were talking, the seductive ghost had already quietly hidden her form and gone off to play with someone else.

On the first day after entering a game, the NPCs inside could not take players’ lives, but they could still toy with them.

She had already gotten bored here anyway. Since Ning Rong had arrived looking aggressive, she simply took the chance to slip away.

A player who could punch her down in one hit definitely was not an easy target.

Better run, better run.

Only after the seductive ghost had disappeared did Zhou Yujing cautiously ask,

“Rongrong, how were you chosen too?”

Ning Rong had not expected that seductive ghost to run so quickly.

But it did not matter.

The game had only just begun.

[Why does it feel like the little newcomer is more dangerous than the NPC?]

[I’m dying laughing. Of all people for the seductive ghost to lust after, she had to choose Zhou Yujing. Great, now she offended the big sister boss.]

[The seductive ghost was probably remembered by the boss now.]

[The seductive ghost Zhou Yujing couldn’t handle got knocked down in one punch by the boss. What does that tell you? No wonder Zhou Yujing is completely controlled by her.]

Right after speaking, Zhou Yujing realized something was wrong.

Because the number displayed on Ning Rong’s chest was not 0, but 1.

That meant she had not entered the game for the first time today!

She had already cleared one game!

The moment he realized this, Zhou Yujing grabbed Ning Rong’s wrist.

Anxiously, he said, “Rongrong, you entered a game before? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Ning Rong glanced at the number 5 on Zhou Yujing’s chest and replied calmly,

“Didn’t you also not tell me?”

A flash of understanding ran through Zhou Yujing’s mind.

He now roughly knew why Ning Rong had been cold to him these past two days.

He also knew why no one answered when he called her earlier.

At that time, she was probably still inside the game and had not come out yet.

Zhou Yujing pressed Ning Rong’s hand against his cheek.

“Rongrong, I’m sorry. Don’t be angry with me.”

[Good, good, good. So this is how you play it?]

[Wasn’t Zhou Yujing expressionless before? Why is he like this now???]

[Incredible. In front of big sis, he becomes a pitiful puppy, huh?]

Ning Rong looked at him and said word by word,

“Fixed team? Juan-Yu CP?”

Hearing Ning Rong say Juan-Yu CP, Zhou Yujing was not surprised.

Since she already knew about the game, then she certainly knew about everything else too.

At this point, Zhou Yujing simply confessed everything in one breath.

“Chi Juan’s father is named Chi Cheng. He just happens to be my superior. He deliberately blocks my items. I wanted to report him, but... his skill counters me too much.”

“I’m sorry. I’m not strong enough, so I’ve been controlled by them and unable to break free.”

Hearing this, Ning Rong more or less understood the situation.

It was probably that Chi Cheng used his skill to suppress others, blocking every path Zhou Yujing had and leaving him trapped.

Earlier, from chatting with Yan An, Ning Rong had learned that during the early days of the game, there were not many players entering, and player death rates were high.

Because of that, some capable veteran players had gradually been placed into important positions.

Since manpower was desperately lacking at the time, personal ability had been valued more, while player character had been ignored.

Now, many years had passed since the game descended, and there were far more outstanding players entering it.

At present, the national side has already noticed the drawbacks left from earlier years and is planning to change them.

Fortunately, venomous parasites like Chi Cheng are not many, and on top of that, upper management is very determined to make reforms. Because of this, she could completely foresee that Chi Cheng could only act arrogantly for a while.

Ning Rong pinched Zhou Yujing’s cheek. “It’s fine.”

【Even though it was only three short words, I somehow heard the hidden meaning behind the strongest newbie’s words.】

【“It’s fine that you’re not strong enough. As long as I’m strong enough.”】

【Is this the sense of security big sister gives? Damn it! She showed off again this time!】

【Damn, she really knows how to do it!】

Just as Zhou Yujing was about to say something else, Juanjuan and the others happened to arrive.

Seeing this scene, Juanjuan’s expression turned ugly. “What are you doing?!” Her voice was sharp, and even cracked at the end.

Ning Rong slowly rose from the ground while being helped up by Zhou Yujing.

She said calmly, “Obviously, I’m doing something intimate with my boyfriend.”

Hearing those words, Gu Yu and the others who had come over all wore different expressions.

Chen Chu looked disdainful like Juanjuan, Teacher Dan was full of worry and afraid conflict would break out, A Leng was indifferent, while Gu Yu noticed even more things.

The number on the chest of Zhou Yujing’s girlfriend in front of him was 1.

That meant she was no longer a pure newcomer who had just entered the game.

Usually, no matter how steady this kind of rookie player was, some emotion would still show on their face.

After all, most people would not happily accept being dragged into a horror game.

But... she looked far too relaxed.

That sense of ease was displayed vividly through what she wore.

Since she had already cleared one game, then she definitely understood how dangerous this game was.

Even so, she was still wearing only a white fitted short-sleeve top, with a sun-protection light blue casual shirt over it. Below was a denim skort, exposing a pair of straight, fair, long legs. On her feet were white sneakers. Across her body hung a black small bag.

This was common attire on a university campus.

But placed inside a horror game, it seemed highly unusual.

Even someone as beauty-loving as Juanjuan had changed her habit of wearing short skirts, replacing them with long pants.

Because in this kind of infinite-flow game, short skirts really could get in the way sometimes and were less convenient than pants.

Think about it—if the apocalypse came, would you choose to flee while wearing high heels?

Most people would not.

Because running in high heels was inconvenient.

The same logic applied now.

Getting injured in the game was not a good thing. Even a tiny ordinary wound might cost a player their life.

At times like this, a pair of long pants might reduce some injuries for players.

In the dim forest, Ning Rong’s outstanding long legs were simply too eye-catching. She looked only a few centimeters shorter than Zhou Yujing, but in terms of presence, she was much stronger.

Gu Yu’s gaze swept across Ning Rong’s face.

Zhou Yujing could indeed be considered somewhat promising, but in One Thousand and One Nightmares, that level of promise was not especially remarkable.

But his girlfriend...

She looked like someone difficult to provoke.

Sure enough, Gu Yu’s guess was quickly proven true in the time that followed.

Juanjuan looked at Ning Rong with a very cold gaze, but she valued her status and would never choose to engage in a vulgar catfight. That would be beneath her. Still, even if she could not tear into Ning Rong, did that mean she could not control Zhou Yujing?

She looked toward Zhou Yujing. Her voice was still sweet, but everyone could hear the threat hidden inside it.

“Zhou Yujing, you don’t want to keep being unable to get items forever, do you?”

Ning Rong looked at the boyfriend beside her. Her tone was as calm and composed as ever, but smart people could sense the suppressed anger beneath that calmness.

“Oh? The thing they’ve been deliberately blocking you from getting—what item is it?”

Zhou Yujing had been tightly holding Ning Rong’s hand the whole time. Hearing that question, he lowered his eyes and said, “It’s an item that removes negative buffs.” After saying that, he quickly added, “Even without items, I can still hold on for a long time. Rongrong, don’t worry.”

Juanjuan let out a cold laugh. “Still hold on for a long time? Are you sure?”

Chen Chu mocked from the side, “Zhou Yujing, you really don’t know what’s good for you. Smart people all know how to choose. What exactly are you being stubborn about?”

Teacher Dan’s head was about to explode. She tried hard to mediate between them.

“How about we all sit down and talk calmly first? We’re all players on the human side. There’s no need for such a big temper. Whatever the matter is, we can discuss it properly. There’s no need to be like this.”

A Leng directly closed his eyes, too lazy to watch this farce.

Gu Yu, however, felt this matter would not end so easily.

If it were only Zhou Yujing alone, this matter might have just passed like that. But unfortunately, his girlfriend had come too. Clearly, this newly appeared girlfriend of Zhou Yujing did not look like a simple character.

Just as he thought that, he saw Ning Rong casually pull an item out of her black small bag.

In a light tone, she said, “The thing you’re talking about... is it this?”

Juanjuan: !!!

The livestream audience: !!!

The surrounding national team members watching: !!!