Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Storage Slot

By evening, Huang Fu Miao Miao finally woke.

She sat up slowly and stared at the red-gold light outside the window, disoriented enough that she couldn’t tell if it was sunrise or sunset.

“You really can sleep,” Feng Ling said, chin in hand. “Twelve full hours.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao went blank for a moment.

Since logging in… how long had it been since she’d slept like that?

She couldn’t remember. It felt like every day had been the same—panic stacked on panic. Afraid the inspection bureau would catch her. Afraid her ability card would be taken. Afraid she’d fail missions. Afraid of everything.

Later, she’d thought the forum might save her.

Instead, it had dropped her into another trap.

If she hadn’t been cornered, who would ever risk working with a Boss?

Her mind cleared. Her eyes focused. She noticed the new clothes, new shoes, and a cartoon watch on the floor beside the sofa.

“This is for me?” she asked, curious despite herself.

Feng Ling’s eyes narrowed with a pleased smile. “Yeah. It’s a phone watch. The SIM card’s already in. I set it to silent so it won’t suddenly ring in the tunnel and screw up the operation.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao fell silent.

So the tunnel trip wasn’t optional. Not for Feng Ling. Not for her.

“I bought supplies,” Feng Ling continued. “I carry half, you carry half.”

She dragged over two heavy hiking backpacks and placed the smaller one in front of Huang Fu Miao Miao like it was a command, not an offer.

Huang Fu Miao Miao unzipped it.

Food. Water. Rope. A shovel. A flashlight. And hanging from the outside strap—a long-handled hammer that looked like it could crack concrete.

She wasn’t a real human child. Even if she looked small, her body was tougher than an ordinary person’s. Still, the hammer’s weight settled into her hands like a promise.

She glanced at Feng Ling, expression complicated.

“Want to test it?” Feng Ling asked.

In her own hands was the battle axe—the eighteen-hundred-yuan alloy steel monster Feng Ling had been so offended by. Feng Ling’s gaze was strangely gentle, like she was offering a toy.

“Same shop,” Feng Ling said. “Same-city delivery. No idea if the quality’s any good.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao understood instantly: Feng Ling didn’t hand her a weapon out of trust.

She handed her a weapon because Feng Ling wanted excitement.

And Huang Fu Miao Miao wasn’t going to give her that kind of chance.

She pressed her lips together, zipped the backpack closed, and put it away. Then she put the hammer away too.

Feng Ling blinked.

The backpack and hammer vanished—right in front of her.

“How did you do that?” Feng Ling reached out and patted the empty air where the bag had been, like she expected it to be hidden under an invisible cloth. “What ability is that?”

“It’s not an ability,” Huang Fu Miao Miao said. “It’s the player inventory function. Every player starts with two slots.”

“Starts with?” Feng Ling’s eyes sharpened. “So storage slots can be increased?”

“Yeah.” Huang Fu Miao Miao counted on her fingers. “I started with two after I logged in. I earned one slot from a mission reward. Then I spent ten points to buy one. So I have four slots total. Each slot can store items under ten kilograms.”

Feng Ling smiled like she’d just discovered a new favorite tool. “That’s more useful than an ability card. Why didn’t you buy more?”

Huang Fu Miao Miao’s mouth tightened. “Too expensive. The first time is ten points. The second jumps to fifty. Third is two hundred. Fourth is one thousand… the fifth needs five thousand.”

Feng Ling’s eyes flickered with a private thought: if that were an ability card power, she’d be tempted to kill for it.

Huang Fu Miao Miao looked at her carefully. “Do you want me to store your backpack too?”

“No.” Feng Ling swung her pack onto her shoulders and kept the axe in hand. “If everything’s too clean, it looks suspicious. Bring your hammer out, too. Otherwise people will wonder where you pulled something that big from.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao hesitated, then nodded.

The hammer appeared in her hands.

Feng Ling checked the time. “Hungry?”

“Hm.” Huang Fu Miao Miao nodded, honest.

“Go change,” Feng Ling said. “I’ll take you out to eat. Once you’re full, we’re heading to Jiang Kou City.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao’s heart warmed in spite of herself.

If she ignored the last sentence, it sounded like the kind of kindness she’d been starving for.

…

They went to the city’s most famous buffet restaurant.

It used to be packed so tight you’d have to take a number and wait. Now it was half-empty, the air quieter, the staff’s smiles thinner.

Feng Ling stepped inside and asked in a low voice, “Any aberrants here?”

Huang Fu Miao Miao scanned the room with practiced focus and shook her head. “No.”

“No…” Feng Ling patted her head like a reward. “Eat.”

After they filled their stomachs, Feng Ling drove toward Jiang Kou City.

Cars still flowed along the road, but the night was chewing away at the traffic. Feng Ling asked again, almost lazily, “Any aberrants?”

Huang Fu Miao Miao stared out for a few seconds. “…No.”

Feng Ling sighed and leaned forward against the steering wheel for a heartbeat. “So many cars. Not a single aberrant.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao opened her blue virtual screen and stared at the number in the top left corner. It shifted now and then. After a moment of hesitation, she spoke. “Current online players: 97,681. Spread across the world, that’s less than ten players per city on average. It’s normal not to run into one.”

Feng Ling straightened, suddenly alert. “You can see the online player count?”

“Yeah.” Huang Fu Miao Miao checked again. “Now it’s 97,679. Two died…”

Her voice caught on the last word—something small and bitter, a grief she didn’t dare show.

Two of her compatriots were gone.

And Feng Ling had lost over ninety thousand.

We’re enemies, she thought, the fear settling in her stomach like cold metal. Even if we’re fine right now… sooner or later…

Sooner or later she’ll kill me.

“That doesn’t add up,” Feng Ling said, eyes on the road. “Qing Jiang City gets hit by aberrant attacks all the time. It feels like there are plenty.”

“I don’t know,” Huang Fu Miao Miao said, thinking hard. “Maybe it’s the system’s placement mechanism. Your world has games, right? Players usually spawn in villages, not in monster camps out in the wild. So on a full map, some places are crowded, some places are empty. It makes sense.”

“Monster camps,” Feng Ling repeated, amused. “Interesting. You’re players, and we’re monsters.”

She freed one hand, pulled a tablet from the side pocket, and tossed it into Huang Fu Miao Miao’s lap. “Write that down. That kind of info matters.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao caught it clumsily. “Okay…”

…

The night deepened.

The road thinned.

When they reached Jiang Kou City’s train station, there wasn’t a person in sight. Streetlights stood tall over empty pavement. The place felt like it was holding its breath.

“Look ahead,” Feng Ling said.

She flicked on her high beams. Light slammed across a van parked up the road.

A grin tugged at her mouth. “Someone’s inside. At this hour, still hanging around out here? Suspicious.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao squinted through the glare. When she recognized the van, her eyes widened.

“It’s…”