DSMC Chapter 142

Uh I forgot to upload yesterday, so I combined both updates into one today (this chapter has 3.9k words, which normally will be split into two).

The thunder kept rumbling nonstop, and Yan Jiyun hid behind Teacher Qu.

Instance A also had a “Teacher Qu’s Anger” mission , but compared to this one, the two were completely different. This was the difference between difficulty level 2 and difficulty level 4. The mission titles were the same, yet the difficulty gap was worlds apart.

After the rolling thunder came torrential rain. This rain meant their progress in searching for clues would be affected.

Click!

All the lights in the school suddenly went out, and cries of alarm erupted from the teaching building ahead. Combined with the gloomy weather, the blackout made it impossible to continue classes.

After getting used to the thunder, Yan Jiyun turned to look at Teacher Qu’s expression. It was still dark and heavy, perfectly matching the atmosphere around them. He wondered whether the girl in the recording had some connection to Teacher Qu.

Several questions now needed answers.

Who exactly was the girl in the recording? Where was she now? Was she alive or dead?

Which classes did those three male students belong to? What was their relationship, and what had they done?

When had Yang Pingping recorded that audio?

At present, the only confirmed information was that the incident took place in the music building. Could this be the reason the music building had been abandoned ever since? The music building in Instance B probably had corresponding rumors as well, but because Yan Jiyun had seen it sealed off, he subconsciously ignored the issue. 

While Yan Jiyun was deep in thought, Teacher Qu picked him up, apparently believing he had been frightened. His fingers gently stroked along Yan Jiyun’s back.

Yan Jiyun could feel the faint stiffness in those fingers. Ever since listening to the recording, Teacher Qu had remained in this state. He had hoped Teacher Qu would explain something himself, but clearly the system had no intention of letting him clear the instance too quickly. Teacher Qu didn’t say a single word to him.

Just when the relationships among Han Ruibai’s group had finally started to take shape, new characters had appeared. Yan Jiyun felt as though clumps of fur were falling off his body.

Teacher Qu suddenly remarked, “Guoba, you’re shedding quite badly. My hand is full of fur after touching you.”

Yan Jiyun: “…” Was he really shedding fur like crazy now?

Compared to the rumbling thunder outside, he was suddenly much more concerned about his fur!

The rain poured heavily, and Yan Jiyun didn’t want his paws or fur getting wet, so he stayed in Teacher Qu’s office until the students finished class.

The class representative brought the assignments Teacher Qu had given in class to the office, and together they examined one cat painting after another. 

Yan Jiyun felt as though he were looking at photos of himself. As expected of NPCs, their artwork was on another level. He wanted to keep every single one.

When the class ended, the rain finally stopped.

Yan Jiyun looked at the puddles on the ground with obvious disgust. If he went outside now, his paws would definitely be covered in mud.

Teacher Qu remained in the office grading student work.

At this moment, he didn’t seem rushed at all. In Instance A, he had always appeared and disappeared unpredictably.

Time passed second by second. Looking at the countdown timer for too long only created anxiety, so Yan Jiyun simply stopped checking it.

How was he supposed to find the next breakthrough point?

Main Mission 1 being completed meant he had already discovered the shared wish made by Han Ruibai’s group of five. The voice recorder was the key item that solved this problem.

They had been praying that the girl would not come back for revenge.

After Teacher Qu finished reviewing the last drawing, he gathered up all the artwork with satisfaction.

Putting on his coat, he scooped Yan Jiyun up and headed out, stuffing the six-month-old cat into his arms while the cat’s long tail stuck out from the oversized coat.

Yan Jiyun realized it was lunchtime now. After running around all morning, he was hungry too.

Teacher Qu carried Yan Jiyun toward the teachers’ cafeteria. Whenever they passed students who knew him, the students would greet him, but everyone’s attention focused on the black cat head peeking out from his coat and the long black tail dangling outside.

Lan Mo and the others, who had just been trapped inside the teaching building, also encountered Teacher Qu at the cafeteria entrance.

Lan Mo whispered into Shi Yan’s ear, “So that black cat actually has an owner.”

What Shi Yan noticed instead was Teacher Qu. “How come I’ve never seen that teacher before? His aura feels completely different.”

He Yuanle added, “I think he’s the best-looking teacher among all of them. Usually teachers this striking are important NPCs.”

Lan Mo said, “Definitely. That black cat led us to Yang Pingping by the lake and even brought me to witness Cheng Su falling from the building. If even the pet has an important role, then the owner must be even more important.”

Yan Jiyun secretly gave them a mental thumbs-up. Looks like he had found a way to guide Lan Mo’s group toward the quests. Since they already believed he was some sort of guidance NPC, he might as well continue staying beside Teacher Qu. The only problem was how to tell them about the recorder.

Shi Yan suddenly asked, “By the way, where’s Yan Jiyun? Didn’t we agree to exchange information in the cafeteria at noon? Is he reliable or not?”

He didn’t know Yan Jiyun at all and had never interacted with him, so naturally he was suspicious of his sudden appearance.

He Yuanle firmly defended Yan Jiyun. “Of course he’s reliable. He literally saved my life. He’s a good person. Something probably delayed him.”

Yan Jiyun hadn’t expected He Yuanle to think so highly of him, and warmth rose in his chest. It seemed even casually doing good deeds brought rewards.

Shi Yan said nothing further. After all, Main Mission 1 had been shared by Yan Jiyun, and now that it was completed, the instance’s overall progress had advanced another step.

The game had not grouped them into official teammates, and after entering a high-difficulty dungeon, the game intentionally reduced public notifications to prevent players from taking shortcuts.

Could Main Mission 1 really have been completed by Yan Jiyun?

As long as players had triggered Main Mission 1 and discovered related clues, they would still receive points during the final score settlement, though naturally fewer than the player who actually completed the quest.

One of the seven days had already passed, six left. Yet only now had they completed Main Mission 1. This instance clearly wouldn’t be easy.

Of course, for high-level players like them, this was normal. It wasn’t unbearable.

Teacher Qu ate separately from Lan Mo’s group while carrying Yan Jiyun in his arms. The presence of the black cat caused his popularity to skyrocket. He normally seemed difficult to approach, but now he suddenly appeared gentle and easygoing.

At lunch, Yan Jiyun ate fish and chicken that Teacher Qu had rinsed with water.

Following NPCs really did mean good food. For now, continuing to stick with him seemed worthwhile.

After the brief lunch break, Lan Mo’s group resumed searching for clues, still focusing on the major NPCs tied to Main Mission 1.

Meanwhile, Yan Jiyun focused on Main Mission 2. He needed to find a way to share Main Mission 2 with the other three. Of course, he also hoped Lan Mo’s group could trigger Main Mission 2 through other means, which would save him some card usage time.

So far, he hadn’t used much of his Human Form Time Card time in this instance, but he couldn’t afford to get careless. There were still six days left, and no matter what, his cards wouldn’t last long enough. If he could stay in cat form, he should remain in cat form as much as possible.

After leaving the cafeteria, Teacher Qu disappeared from everyone’s sight along with Yan Jiyun. Lan Mo’s trio also split up, and because Lan Mo was agile, he decided to follow the black cat and its owner.

Yan Jiyun thought to himself that in Lan Mo’s eyes, he had truly solidified his role as an NPC.

Teacher Qu’s footsteps were light, and he knew the school layout extremely well. He could shake Lan Mo off at any moment, but whenever Lan Mo was about to lose them, Yan Jiyun deliberately meowed twice to reveal their location.

After circling the student dormitories once, Teacher Qu returned to the old faculty dormitory building near the school’s north gate. It was not the apartment Yan Jiyun had discovered when first entering Instance B.

Standing far away, Lan Mo watched them enter before climbing a nearby tree to hide and keep watch.

After entering the room, Teacher Qu set Yan Jiyun down and let him roam freely.

Compared to Teacher Qu’s apartment in Instance A, the Teacher Qu of Instance B lived in an old faculty dormitory building. There was no elevator, and he lived on the first floor. The place was extremely damp. Black mold and peeling stains covered the walls, chunks of plaster had fallen away, and the windows were fitted with rusty iron bars.

Teacher Qu had painted many pictures. The newest one was likely the painting before him now, depicting the backs of a group of teenage boys and girls.

Could the girl mentioned in the recording have some relationship with him? A younger sister, perhaps?

But if she really were his younger sister, why hadn’t he gone on a killing spree? Instead, he was merely investigating the truth. That was strange.

Yan Jiyun believed the girl in the recording was not Teacher Qu’s sister.

He began rummaging through Teacher Qu’s paintings to see whether any clues could be found.

However, Teacher Qu specialized mostly in landscapes and architectural paintings. There were very few portraits.

Yan Jiyun carefully examined each painting. They all looked strangely familiar.

Wasn’t this the teaching building? The colors and number of floors were exactly the same.

He pushed aside another painting beneath it. This one depicted the laboratory building, and underneath that was the music building.

The music building in the painting wasn’t the ruined version from Instance B, but the brand-new vibrant style from Instance A, full of life and energy.

Could it be that the Teacher Qu of Instance B had entered Instance A and painted this after returning? But the painting had been buried underneath the others, so it didn’t seem newly painted.

Yan Jiyun jumped away from the pile of paintings and turned around just in time to see Teacher Qu rising from the chair where he had been painting.

The old dormitory building was gloomy, and the heavy rain earlier only made the room even damper.

Yan Jiyun suddenly felt suffocated. Why did his body feel so uncomfortable?

Looking out through the barred window, he realized the sky had darkened again without warning. The air was oppressively hot and stuffy.

Teacher Qu walked toward him. In the dim room, his face looked terrifyingly pale.

Alarm bells exploded in Yan Jiyun’s mind. Only one thought remained:

Run!

[Player has triggered the mission “Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings”.]

[Mission Details: Welcome to Teacher Qu’s private territory. You have seen Teacher Qu’s most precious paintings, but Teacher Qu dislikes others touching his belongings. If the player can evade Teacher Qu’s pursuit for five minutes, the player will gain Teacher Qu’s trust.]

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 4 min 58 sec.]

Fuck, he hadn’t come here voluntarily, so how had he triggered Teacher Qu’s “secret base” quest?!

The room was so small, where was he even supposed to run?

Suddenly, the world spun around him. Yan Jiyun realized that the first floor of Teacher Qu’s old faculty dormitory had expanded, and Teacher Qu’s room door now stood wide open.

He saw Teacher Qu striding toward him.

Yan Jiyun bolted for the exit!

What else could he do? Running was the only option!

He had thought Instance B had no environmental threats during the daytime. Turns out the biggest ticking time bomb had been right beside him all along.

Damn it! He was probably isolated from Lan Mo, who had been guarding outside. He could only complete this quest by himself now!

[Want to be Human] livestream channel: 

“Whoa, Kitty Baby entering sprint mode again? Qu-laoshi’s trust level in InstanceB is way too hard to obtain. NPCs who already interacted with Kitty Baby usually stop triggering death missions, so why does he still have to pass Qu-laoshi’s psychological hurdle this time?”

“Because this is a level 4 instance. You can’t earn NPC trust just by acting cute and meowing a few times. The harder the instance, the harder the NPCs are to befriend. Think about it — NPC favorability difficulty in a level 2 instance might be two stars, so naturally the favorability difficulty in a level 4 increases too. Totally normal. Though… it really is rough on our Kitty Baby. I’m exhausted just watching him, hahaha!”

“Man, so tragic ah! (schadenfreude.jpg)”

“Strange though… Why are all of Kitty Baby’s hidden missions in both instances connected to Qu-laoshi? I remember Teacher Qu-laoshi not having a particularly major role in this dungeon.”

“NPCs with hidden missions are usually key characters in the instances, either protagonists or antagonists. So… which is Qu-laoshi?” 

“If you put it that way, does that mean Qu-laoshi is the mastermind behind Yang Pingping’s and Cheng Su’s murders?”

“AHHHHH! Can someone tell me whether Qu-laoshi is actually a villain?! Is Kitty Baby going to get killed by hidden mission Qu-laoshi?!”

In this game, every villain had terrifying combat ability.

The audience knew it. Yan Jiyun knew it too.

All he could do now was run and hide.

Teacher Qu had suddenly switched personalities. All the gentleness from earlier had vanished into thin air.

Forget how much trust he’d gain after clearing the hidden mission! The Teacher Qu in front of him didn’t look like he had much goodwill toward him at all. Did all the favorability he’d built up earlier not count?

Oh right. Starting from some instance onward, the system had stopped displaying NPC favorability levels.

The trash system was probably trying to prevent him from abusing NPC favorability to farm points. It was weirdly targeted against him.

Looks like his favorability with Teacher Qu really was too low, otherwise he wouldn’t have triggered such a deadly quest!

Yan Jiyun dashed toward the second floor of the old dormitory building.

Teacher Qu followed behind him. His expression had changed completely. It was one Yan Jiyun didn’t recognize. Cold, emotionless, and extremely dangerous.

This hidden mission space had probably been carved out separately by the system itself.

At some point, a cigarette had appeared in Teacher Qu’s hand as he pursued Yan Jiyun.

“Little cat,” he said, “you dirtied my painting.”

He hadn’t called Yan Jiyun “Guoba.” Clearly, this version of Teacher Qu had been reset to factory settings. He had no memories of him.

Tch. What a pain!

The old dormitory building only had four floors, and each floor held just a single room. There was practically nowhere to hide.

The resident on the second floor had cleaned the entrance spotlessly. It was tidy, but eerie gusts of wind howled through the corridor, creepy enough to scare anyone to death. Yan Jiyun could only keep running upward.

Teacher Qu climbed the stairs at an unhurried pace, while Yan Jiyun’s heart pounded wildly. This Teacher Qu was not the same Teacher Qu.

It was also Yan Jiyun’s first time encountering three different versions of the same NPC in a single game. Sure enough, farming NPC favorability carried much higher risks than other tasks. No wonder most players abandoned that option entirely — it was difficult and time-consuming.

Outside the third-floor room were piles of cardboard boxes, but hiding there would make him too easy to spot. It wasn’t suitable.

He continued running toward the fourth floor.

The fourth floor was even messier than the third. Besides cardboard boxes, someone had built a crude coal stove outside the door, probably for boiling water. There was no fire inside now, no coal either, and it had been cleaned thoroughly.

Oddly enough, on the fourth floor, not only were some doors open, but some windows were open too, letting in waves of eerie wind.

Yan Jiyun didn’t hear a single human voice from any of the apartments with open doors or windows.

Clearly, after entering the “hidden mission” space, the entire dormitory building had become abandoned.

He didn’t dare step inside any of the rooms. Who knew whether something unclean lurked in there? Right now he was alone, and he didn’t have the courage for that.

Standing at the stairwell, he looked left and right, searching for a suitable hiding spot.

[Want to be Human] livestream channel: 

“Guess where Kitty Baby is going to hide?”

“Qu-laoshi will definitely be able to find him anywhere. His observation skills have got to be insane.”

“Not necessarily. Cats are masters of hiding, and with black fur as camouflage, it’s even harder for the seeker. Honestly, I can’t tell whether this quest is difficult for our Kitty Baby or difficult for the NPC.”

“…when you put it that way, my perspective totally changed. From Kitty Baby’s viewpoint, he’s actually increasing the NPC’s difficulty level. Hahahaha! Imagine making the horror-game NPC struggle instead.”

“Holy crap, Qu-laoshi will never guess where the kitty’s hiding. Kitty Baby is way too cunning!”

“I only want to say one thing: Kitty Baby, you’re amazing! Qu-laoshi will never find you.”

After looking around, Yan Jiyun directly squeezed himself inside the coal stove.

As long as he didn’t make a sound, he wouldn’t be discovered.

The stove sat farther inside the corridor and fairly low to the ground. Outside, the sky remained gloomy, so even if someone looked inside, they probably wouldn’t notice him.

At a glance, the inside simply appeared empty.

It was basically a visual illusion.

If Yan Jiyun had been even two months older, he probably wouldn’t have been able to squeeze inside at all. The stove was actually very small.

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 3 min 48 sec.]

He only needed to survive the remaining time.

Yan Jiyun held his breath. The one chasing him now wasn’t another human player, but an NPC whose settings could be altered by the game at will.

Teacher Qu walked from the first floor to the second. All the doors and windows there were closed, and there was nowhere to hide in the hallway, so Teacher Qu headed straight to the third floor.

He lingered there briefly, rummaging through the cardboard boxes outside the corridor. After failing to find the cat, he continued upward to the fourth floor.

And all of that had taken only two and a half minutes.

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 2 min 30 sec.]

He still had to stay hidden for another two and a half minutes.

While Yan Jiyun prayed silently, Teacher Qu’s footsteps finally approached the fourth floor.

He first walked toward the room on the far left with the open window.

The window pushed open easily, and he climbed inside. A moment later, he emerged again.

Then he continued checking every room with an open door or window.

Teacher Qu’s pace gradually slowed. He didn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about finding the cat anymore.

But Yan Jiyun felt the pressure mounting. Teacher Qu was getting closer and closer to his hiding place.

Teacher Qu entered the final room with an open door. The furniture inside each room was simple and clearly visible. There’s no complicated sofas, only ordinary wooden chairs and plain wooden beds. If a cat hid inside, it would be easy to spot.

After leaving the last room, Teacher Qu frowned slightly.

He still hadn’t found the cat.

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 30 sec.]

Yan Jiyun’s heart hammered wildly. Teacher Qu stood only one meter away now. From Yan Jiyun’s angle, he could clearly see the man’s long legs.

Teacher Qu hadn’t found him yet, and he seemed almost doubtful of himself.

Just as Yan Jiyun silently counted down to the end of the quest, Teacher Qu’s toes suddenly turned toward the corner where the coal stove sat!

Yan Jiyun clenched his paws tightly. He had nowhere left to retreat.

Teacher Qu walked toward him step by step, every footfall matching the pounding of Yan Jiyun’s heartbeat.

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 10 sec.]

Teacher Qu was now only one step away.

The top of the coal stove was where a kettle would normally sit, while Yan Jiyun hid in the bottom ventilation opening.

If the vent had been any smaller, he wouldn’t have fit inside.

Teacher Qu stopped in front of the stove.

He removed the rusty kettle sitting on top. Nothing was underneath.

Yan Jiyun knew Teacher Qu paid extreme attention to detail while looking at paintings. He would definitely inspect the ventilation opening too.

Sure enough, Teacher Qu tugged at his pant leg and crouched down, turning his head to peer into the vent.

Yan Jiyun immediately shut his eyes and refused to make eye contact.

As long as he closed his eyes, nobody could see him!

[“Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings” countdown: 3 sec.]

Teacher Qu glanced inside and didn’t notice anything unusual. He stood up and turned to leave—

Then suddenly paused, sensing something wrong.

2 seconds—

1 second—

He abruptly spun around, crouched again, and reached his hand toward the stove vent.

Yan Jiyun’s tightly shut eyes snapped open—

[Congratulations, player, for completing the hidden mission “Do Not Touch Teacher Qu’s Paintings.” Teacher Qu’s trust toward you has increased.]

The mission ended.

Yan Jiyun returned to Teacher Qu’s original first-floor room and realized he was standing directly atop the painting of the old faculty dormitory building.

This trash game was disgusting!!! It didn’t even tell him how much Teacher Qu’s trust level had increased.

Teacher Qu picked up the black cat who had left four little plum-blossom pawprints on his painting.

“Guoba,” he said, “don’t step on my paintings again, got it?”

Yan Jiyun was still traumatized by the hand that had nearly grabbed him moments ago. Dazed, he nodded instinctively.

Only after realizing he was in Teacher Qu’s arms did he start struggling to jump down. But Teacher Qu gave him no chance. The room was filled with paintings.

Still, Yan Jiyun twisted violently enough that he finally managed to leap from Teacher Qu’s arms to the floor.

He shot out the door and sprinted toward the music building.

Without hesitation, Teacher Qu chased after him.

“Guoba, stop running around!” he shouted behind him.

Meanwhile, Lan Mo — who had been hiding outside the whole time — saw the little black cat running ahead with its owner pursuing it from behind. He immediately gave chase as well.

Before long, the black cat reached an old building and glanced back once at the teacher chasing him.

The iron gate of the old building stood open. The black cat and Teacher Qu both rushed inside.

Lan Mo thought some kind of mission was probably about to trigger there, so he followed them in too.