[Ding!]
[User 'Lu Li' has recharged you with 5 million B coins and attached a message: 'You're doing great, be brave and be yourself!']
A message popped up on the backend.
Bai Zhiyuan immediately perked up. After seeing the message, her eyes gradually brightened...
"Be brave and be yourself..."
"Lu Li... sir..."
"Is this your reward... I will definitely be brave and be myself!"
Bai Zhiyuan completely ignored the recharge amount of five million. The message was the reward she truly cared about.
This almost pathological preference was something she couldn't share with others.
She had also taken the time to understand traditional forms of BDSM, but clearly, she didn't particularly like things that ranged from light whipping to no upper limit.
Compared to that, she preferred in-game, specifically psychological torment.
The more she understood, the more Bai Zhiyuan felt that she was her true self when she was navigating games late at night. Only when playing games could she feel genuine happiness.
Studying, working, and earning money were all things she had to do to fulfill her family's expectations, under the weight of their hopeful gazes.
Since childhood, she had been her family's pride, the very capital her parents used to boast about to neighbors and friends.
They had never bothered to ask what she liked, only making her learn dance, play piano, and attend tutoring according to their own wishes...
Perhaps this was what parents believed to be the best things they could give their children.
Little did they know, beneath Bai Zhiyuan's quiet exterior lay a very restless heart.
On the surface, she was a good girl, but in reality, she didn't want to be good at all. She just wanted to be a wild horse, galloping freely.
However, lacking anyone with whom she could truly resonate, she grew isolated. This was especially true when she entered the workforce, where people scurried about for various purposes.
They pursued her with lust because of her appearance, yet no one ever truly understood her.
She wasn't aloof; she simply lacked people on the same wavelength to communicate with.
Therefore, she couldn't integrate into normal social circles.
Even in niche circles with a touch of eccentricity, she couldn't find people on the same frequency.
That sense of loneliness, of being abandoned by the entire world, had always accompanied her, until—
《Undertale》 appeared!
The feeling of being constantly tormented yet constantly improving and breaking through in the game allowed her to find her own happiness!
Later,
A tentative exchange gave her the feeling of finding a kindred spirit.
At the time, she was merely testing the waters, not expecting Lu Li to truly understand and even give her feedback.
Before this,
Bai Zhiyuan's life had always been shrouded in gloom. She wasn't truly happy.
But,
Where sunlight couldn't penetrate, Lu Li could!
With light,
Her life gradually became fulfilling. Her work efficiency increased, she received frequent commendations from headquarters, and she was recently appointed as the Art Director for the VR department.
While the tangible bonuses weren't as substantial as Lu Li's rewards, they were not far off.
However,
For Bai Zhiyuan, money wasn't the priority.
In this regard, she was quite similar to Lu Li.
"Eee-yah~~~"
Bai Zhiyuan stretched lazily. Her beautiful figure, accentuated by her form-fitting slip dress, was like a work of art.
Alas,
A beauty alone in her chamber, the lovely scenery appreciated by no one.
"《Returnal》, highest difficulty level 6, this frequency... it's so good."
After downloading the game, Bai Zhiyuan murmured, "For my next video, can I subtly ask for contact information?"
Human nature is inherently greedy, and it is precisely because of this that human progress is so rapid.
"Ah, I shouldn't think about it. Let's just enjoy the charm of the new game!"
Bai Zhiyuan blushed, looking like an innocent young woman who had never experienced anything.
Although the new game had been released for some time, Bai Zhiyuan preferred to focus. For the past three months, she had been immersed in the world of Dark Souls, completely ignoring other messages.
She was simply enjoying the pleasure brought by wave after wave of bosses at different difficulty levels.
She rose from the bonfire again and again, each time feeling something new.
She was too fascinated by this continuous stimulation.
It felt like a charge,
More valiant each time. When all energy gathered at its peak.
Conquering the castle battlements in one go, that sense of achievement was something no tool could provide.
Even after clearing the eighth difficulty, she still felt unsatisfied and re-experienced the powerful bosses in the DLC before preparing to edit footage for a video to establish communication.
Bai Zhiyuan's initial plan was to create a video ranking the bosses by difficulty in the eighth iteration.
Who knew that Artorias in the eighth iteration's DLC was not only outrageously difficult but also presented a completely different plot compared to her first playthrough of the DLC?
This surprised her greatly, and she spent the night clearing all the DLCs from difficulty levels one to eight.
After satisfying her cravings, she had an inspiration.
Thus, the video titled "Interesting Easter Egg" was born, perfectly conveying what she wanted to express.
Her thoughts, previously hazy, began to focus.
She opened the game, her attention instantly captured by the pixelated cell person with flames on its head.
An unnatural protagonist clearly held some deeper meaning.
The story could be explored in depth.
Then, Bai Zhiyuan entered the game. The moment she saw the shield and the rusty short sword, she understood that this game might share similar mechanics with Souls-like games—
Parrying.
But she had parried enough in Dark Souls. This time, she wanted something more stimulating.
She chose the rusty short sword at the start.
When she dropped the blueprint for the Balanced Blade, she switched to it without hesitation.
Later, she obtained the blueprints for the Nutcracker and the Blade of Blood, choosing to replace the short sword with the Nutcracker.
Equipped with the Spartan sandals, Bai Zhiyuan's build was complete. Clearly, she was also attempting a dual-wielding style, similar to Mo Zhi.
However, Mo Zhi didn't persist, and the Bone Castle Swords Saint did not grant her passage with dual blades.
Bai Zhiyuan unexpectedly followed Mo Zhi's old path and obtained the teleportation rune, encountering the "sword-qi-fierce" killer in the Bone Castle – the three-sword-style Swords Saint.
In her first attempt, she was predictably defeated by the Swords Saint.
"Fast, faster, slow."
Her lips parted slightly, and Bai Zhiyuan calmly noted the Swords Saint's attack rhythm.
Facing the Swords Saint again, Bai Zhiyuan charged without hesitation. They exchanged blows initially. When the Swords Saint unleashed a sweeping diagonal attack, she decisively retreated by one and a half body lengths.
This was just within the extreme range of the Swords Saint's uppercut. The Swords Saint's second attack was quick, but Bai Zhiyuan reacted faster. The moment the second attack ended, the Swords Saint began charging a heavy blow.
At this moment, Bai Zhiyuan moved!
She unleashed a barrage of attacks on the charging Swords Saint. Since she had invested in attack points from the scrolls picked up in previous levels, the Swords Saint, also a glass cannon, died before the third attack could be launched.
She was decisive, not wasting a single opportunity to attack.
Even when facing three or four Swords Saints surrounding her, she could accurately control her distance and defeat them one by one.
After passing the Bone Castle, her attack equipment was significantly improved. The "givers" on the Black Bridge were easily overcome with little effort.
Bai Zhiyuan had only recently emerged from the battles of Dark Souls, her hands still hot.
The zero-cell difficulty posed no pressure for her. It was a smooth run.
Soon,
Bai Zhiyuan reached the Throne Room and encountered the final boss – the Hand of the King.
This fellow, clad in massive armor and wielding a symmetrical long spear, seemed rather interesting.
She flexed her wrists, determined to turn this Hand of the King into a "kid's hand" today.
...