48 Hours a Day

It was the early hours of the morning, and vehicles and pedestrians on the streets were sparse. Due to the time stop, the whole road looked like a stage play waiting to happen, exacerbated by the street lights projecting a beam on the spot. When Zhang Heng shuttled through it, he felt like an actor, performing on a different stage. In fact, he had been living like an actor recently. Because of his time bug, his gaming duration was often several times that of others. Each round was more like a whole lifetime for him from a nameless desert island to the remote Caribbean Sea, to gloomy 19th century London and a chaotic Kyoto at the end of the shogunate. He would usually play different roles in different quests.

To this day, all the game time he accumulated exceeded even his age. Sometimes, Zhang Heng would experience a momentary trance when he opened his eyes in bed, not knowing where he was and where his next journey would take him.

He became a NASA astronaut, was a pirate king of Nassau, a geek in the future world, and even a rookie wondering ancient Kyoto... Miss Bartender once said that experience and lessons were things that made us who we were today. Although it had been less than a year since he joined this magical and mysterious game, he was now completely different from who he was a year ago. These changes were not just about a series of high-level skills to display on his skill bar or even those strange and useful game items. His soul had also grown a lot-every choice he made in every round of game had drawn him closer to his true self.

However, this ‘true self’ was making Zhang Heng feel more and more alien. His bicycle was parked in front of a stationery store, and he looked at his reflection on the glass door. A few months ago, he had noticed the changes on his face. Although it seemed no different from before, he suddenly realized that he looked grumpy all the time. Previously, it wasn’t that obvious. It wasn’t until his observation ability had reached a new level after the Deductive Reasoning quest that he could finally see where that grumpiness came from.

His skin, features, eyebrows, and hair were all the same as before, except for one thing that was slowly fading away-his feelings.

Zhang Heng and Shen Xixi once briefly talked about it before. As the players progressed more profound into the game, they would begin to go through a process of awakening. And when life itself hung on the very balance, they would thus free themselves from the shackles civilized society tied them in; primal instinct would be released, gradually revealing the bottom of their hearts. However, all Zhang Heng could see was mist, a mist of nothingness.

And there seemed to be something waiting for him behind the mist, calling out for him.

It was like the end of all stories.

Zhang Heng’s mind told him that he should stop moving forward. However, he did not sense any threat from the being behind the fog. On the contrary, he felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy, as if he was going home.

At that time, Zhang Heng knew that a trip to Greenland had to be on his plan as soon as possible.

After returning to school, Zhang Heng first took a cold shower, then headed to the gym for his daily training. After the break, he read a book in the library for a while until time began to flow again. Heading to the parking lot, he sorted out his game items in the trunk and drove to Miss Bartender.

“These belonged to Arc of Light’s guys. I still remember this flashlight. I just identified it not long ago. It seemed you had a good yield that night.”

“How many points are these items worth?”

“There is a C-level item among it, which is very valuable. If you put it up for auction, it can go for 2,000 to 3,000 game points. However, if you mortgage it, you’ll probably get 1,600 points. The other game items can be sold for around seven to eight hundred game points each.”

Zhang Heng now had 1,000 game points with him. Besides, he had killed a small team of players because of Han Lu’s affairs. The items that he got from them were placed at Fan Meinan’s place temporarily, and it should be enough if he added the value of those.

“I guess I have to wait a while before I earn those final seven hundred game points,” Zhang Heng said.

“No problem. Anyway, it takes almost a month to cast the blade. You can pay the balance after it is done.” It was rare that the bartender actually said something right. It was probably because she was not the one earning that money.

“Thank you,” Zhang Heng said. When he was about to leave the game checkpoint, the bartender smiled and said, “Since you are here, have a drink first.”

After finishing talking, she made a glass of Martini as quickly as possible for Zhang Heng. This time, he did not mess around.

Zhang Heng sat down in front of the bar, “You look happy. Did something good happen to you recently?”

“Hmm, you are right,” the bartender smiled slyly. “Have I told you that I’ve been waiting for someone? Recently, I received news that that person is coming back soon.”

“Who? Is this person your fiancé?” Zhang Heng took a sip of Martini and asked.

“He is much more important than my fiancé!”

This was Zhang Heng’s first time seeing the bartender so excited. She looked like one of those female fans obsessed with their internet idols. She was basically worshipping the person. “He is my master, my belief, and the meaning of my existence!”

“Sounds like a powerful man... Is he the master behind this game?” Zhang Heng guessed.

“No, he doesn’t have much interest in games or anything. He is the real thing. That’s why I admire him so much,” the bartender gushed.

“That must be a pretty cool guy,” Zhang Heng figured that the man that the bartender was waiting for was not a human being. The person was at least on the same level as the old man in the Tang suit and the Einstein that he met. Since the bartender refused to elaborate on the matter, Zhang Heng didn’t pursue the matter. He then drank down the Martini in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and put the empty glass on the table, “In that case, I wish you good luck.”

“Good luck to you too,” replied the bartender. “I got news that the proxy war will start in at most half a month. Your showtime is coming.”