They Are Very Hospitable (2)
His personality was often described as being like a little lamb, but in front of people he was close to, he was more like a proud, long-haired cat.
Although the system wasn’t human, at least it was clearly on the same side as him for now, so Chen Li let a bit of his real personality show.
He complained, though without any real threat: [Why didn’t you remind me?]
System 001: [Hmph, I was afraid someone might find me too talkative.]
The system was fuming. It was the most unique system in the world, crafted by the Father himself—and yet here it was, being looked down on.
Chen Li blinked. Thinking back on it, he realized it was actually his fault first. So, acting very obediently, he said: [Sorry.]
The system that was calculating how to scold paused for a moment.
Even though it was a conversation in its mind, it could still hear the soft, hook-like intonation at the end of his words, with a sticky sweetness unique to a youth.
The anger vanished instantly.
System 001 cleared its throat dramatically: [Alright then, I’ll be a generous system and forgive you. Do you even know how to drive this kind of bus?]
If he didn’t do something soon, the humans behind him would start giving him suspicious looks again.
They all believed that the spot where the NPC had sat was suspicious, so most of them moved further back.
Only Fu Moyang still sat directly behind that spot, looking in a good mood.
This action drew the attention of the others, who had initially tried to keep a low profile. Though his face was unclear, his imposing aura, long legs, and broad shoulders were enough to leave room for imagination.
A skinny red-haired guy sneered, “Tch, definitely ugly with that mask on.”
The girl in the pink clothes secretly rolled her eyes at him.
Taking advantage of the small interruption, Chen Li placed his hands on the steering wheel under the system’s guidance.
The steering wheel, made of an unknown material, felt incredibly smooth and cold, almost like holding a piece of lotus root jade.
Sure enough, the car started on its own, smoothly driving along the only road through the mountain.
It drove straight toward the lush green forest.
The passengers busied themselves observing the road conditions, and no one spoke.
For a while, there was only the sound of the car moving and the rustling of leaves in the wind.
Chen Li felt a bit nervous.
There was a strange, indescribable feeling in his heart.
The brief information he had was very limited, and his understanding of the Hospitable Village they were heading to wasn’t any greater than that of the other players on the bus.
The task panel displayed only three things.
One was an introduction to his character, which had to match the character design.
The second was about what he needed to guide the players to do and some necessary things to say.
The third was the fear level progress bar, currently at twenty.
System 001: [If I hadn’t arranged for you to participate in a game with many newbies, your initial fear level wouldn’t be this high. You should be grateful to this lord.]
The childlike way it said “this lord” was odd, but the system didn’t seem to mind.
At the very bottom of the task panel, there was a line of text in blood-red font: [No lying! No cheating!! Concealment is allowed!!!]
The last word was overemphasized, leaving a slowly trickling blood-red mark.
Chen Li closed the task panel: [Such little information…]
Especially the second point, which said that after guiding the players to stay in the Hospitable Village for five days, the task would be over.
System 001 sounded a bit guilty: [You’ve just started. The higher-level guide NPCs have access to more information.]
Generally, guide NPCs could choose which instance they wanted to go to and knew what would happen there.
Chen Li: [Do other NPCs have a system too?]
System 001 grumbled: [Of course not! When Father created me, it was destined that I would be one of a kind. You can think of me as your exclusive golden finger.]
Chen Li honestly replied: [But you don’t seem that useful.]
Except for talking too much.
System 001: [That’s because it’s my first time binding with a human, I’m not very experienced yet.]
It silently added in its mind: This is also its first time in real combat.
Before this, it hadn’t even bound with any non-living beings.
Chen Li didn’t dwell on it any longer because he finally saw their destination.
A small village hidden deep in the mountains, with the words “Hospitable Village” written in red paint on a stone tablet at the entrance.
The bus slowly stopped.
The players started to stir, peeking out of the windows to observe.
Chen Li unbuckled his seatbelt. The car’s seat cushions were the most comfortable he had ever sat on, and after just ten minutes, it felt like all his fatigue had melted away.
As he moved to get off the bus, the door swiftly and automatically swung open.
What a practical bus.
The thought flashed through his mind as he obediently stepped off the bus bearing the little red flag.
In line with his role, he spoke up: “All tourists, please disembark.”
The human players glanced at one another, hesitant and reluctant to move.
It was as if the person standing at the bus door wasn’t a delicate-looking tour guide NPC, but a man-eating crocodile.
This was the first time Chen Li had ever been avoided like this. Usually, thanks to his gentle appearance and mild personality, people were naturally drawn to him. But he was never fond of crowds or socializing. His natural “people magnet” trait had always been a bit of a nuisance. Over the years, only one friend had ever stuck with him persistently.
Chen Li found the situation a little novel, though he didn’t show it. Standing under the sun, he frowned slightly in discomfort.
So delicate.
Fu Moyang silently made that comment in his mind as he stepped off the bus and walked over to him.
His tall figure, whether intentionally or not, blocked most of the sunlight.
With someone finally taking the lead, the rest of the passengers followed and got off the bus.
The last one was the red-haired guy, and the bus door slammed shut violently behind him, nearly knocking him over.
After regaining his balance, the red-haired guy cursed loudly and crudely.
System 001 glanced at the bus thoughtfully—was this bus… playing favorites?
Chen Li had a bit of social anxiety and didn’t like to speak unless absolutely necessary. Once he saw everyone had gotten off, he silently took the lead toward the village.
This behavior only added to his aura of mystery in the eyes of the veteran players.
After all, other guide NPCs would usually start the game by terrorizing the players into submission, sometimes even killing off one or two who broke the rules.
They were no less dangerous than in-game bosses, and some of them even took pleasure in torturing players to death.
Of course, NPCs had to follow certain basic rules when killing in the game—otherwise, most players wouldn’t even survive the opening scene.
Game Rule #1: [NPCs and humans are always enemies.]
There were also some famously silent NPCs. ‘The Butcher,’ for example, was a guide NPC who barely spoke. Among all the types of NPCs, only guide-type ones would appear repeatedly in different game scenarios. All other NPCs stayed in their respective instances, waiting for players to enter.
Because of that, guide NPCs were the most discussed in the forums. There was even a leaderboard showing the top fifty most dangerous NPCs. ‘The Butcher’ held the tenth spot on that leaderboard.
But it was already clear—silence didn’t mean friendliness toward humans.
In the players’ eyes, Chen Li now felt about the same as ‘The Butcher.’
He had no idea how he was being perceived, still mentally preparing himself.
No matter how scary things got later, he mustn’t scream, mustn’t buckle.
The more he thought about it, the more nervous he felt—but his pace remained calm and steady, as always. Years of habit had trained him to walk with measured, even steps.
System 001 was very pleased with his performance.
He might be timid, but at least he didn’t show it.
The terrifying ghost village they imagined never appeared. Instead, what lay before them was just a completely ordinary-looking village.
Following the system’s instructions, Chen Li led the players to their lodging for the next five days.
It was a somewhat rundown house with a small courtyard.
Despite the worn-out look typical of rural homes, it wasn’t cramped. The layout was unusual—there was no living room, just six small rooms lined up in a row. The toilet and dining area were both located outside in the courtyard.
The bald man commented, “Looks like this house was specially prepared for guests.”
The village was, after all, named ‘Hospitable Village’—simple and direct.
Suddenly, a voice called out from the entrance.
“Hahaha, so you’ve arrived!”
An elderly man, skin tanned and dark, hobbled over with a cane. “Welcome. I’m the village chief of Hospitable Village.”
His cloudy eyes scanned the group kindly as he smiled.
The players all greeted him with their own guarded thoughts.
Stroking his long beard, the village chief said, “You’re here for the once-a-month celebration, right? Get some good rest tonight—the festival will be held four days from now.”
Chen Li silently made a note of that.
This was a survival-type game, and the objective was to last five days. If the celebration was on the final day, then it would likely be a key thread running through the entire game.
The village chief didn’t seem to care about the contemplative looks on their faces. He just continued stroking his beard as he walked away, saying, “I’ll have someone bring food over shortly.”
He wasn’t lying. Not long after he left, a young girl arrived with a basket of food.
She was dressed in slightly dusty clothes, and there were soot marks on her face from cooking. “Hello, everyone,” she said, her voice a bit shrill.
After the greeting, she laid out the food.
Just two simple dishes—pickled vegetables, stir-fried shredded potatoes—and white rice.
Maybe sensing that such a meal was a bit shabby for guests, the girl—Sana—blushed. “Our village is poor… Please bear with it for a few days. Once the celebration comes, there’ll be meat to eat.”
When she said ‘meat,’ her throat visibly gulped.
The red-haired guy muttered, “This is what they call ‘Hospitable’ Village?”
Sana looked visibly uncomfortable, reacting just like any ordinary village girl might—hurt by cruel words, her honest heart unable to hide it.
A woman next to the bald man quickly spoke up to ease the tension. “It’s fine. This looks really nutritious.”
She had played games where there was no food at all, and almost starved—so as long as a game offered meals, she was grateful.
Sana gave her a thankful smile, picked up her basket, and ran off.
Only then did the players sit down and start eating the humble meal laid out before them.
The pickled vegetables was so dry it was hard to swallow, and the shredded potatoes were gone after just one bite each. Sitting in the empty courtyard felt especially miserable.
They comforted themselves, thinking, Everyone’s eating the same thing—just tough it out and it’ll pass.
Chen Li stood off to the side watching them. His stomach was beginning to growl too. His body had always been delicate, and of course his stomach was no exception—if he didn’t eat on time, the cramps would start.
Clearly, in this situation, NPCs weren’t allowed to eat with the players, and the human players treated him as nothing more than a pretty decoration.
Each guide NPC had a different personality and habits. Some would appear and vanish mysteriously throughout the game, while others followed players from start to finish. But no matter the type, guide NPCs were not allowed to interfere with players’ actions in the game. Players could get important clues from them, but NPCs could also maliciously withhold parts of the information—like only saying half of something or playing word games.
Before he could start feeling too wronged, System 001 appeared just in time:
[This lord has prepared a staff meal for you!]
It was also the first time System 001 had ever seen an NPC that needed to eat during a game. Humans really are troublesome.
So, just as everyone was struggling to choke down their food, a delicious aroma suddenly drifted from the other corner of the courtyard.
Chen Li was a bit at a loss as he held the croquette rice bowl that had been teleported by the system.
The fried aroma wafted straight into every player’s nose. Aside from the croquette, the bowl also had a generous variety of colorful side dishes that looked incredibly appetizing.
Players stuck with just pickled vegetables: ???
This NPC has to be doing this on purpose, right?
Before Chen Li could get buried under the weight of their accusatory stares, an even stronger aroma suddenly filled the air, joining the croquette’s scent in overwhelming the players.
Fu Moyang had somehow gotten up from the table without anyone noticing, and was now calmly holding a steaming hot bowl of—instant noodles.
The kind with sausages added in!
The other players: !!!
What is wrong with these two?!
Author’s note:
A couple that attracts hate ✅
Someone fell in love with Li Bao (Chen Li) the moment they saw him. The reason for the attraction will be explained later. This is my first seme character who’s a bit of a scoundrel.
Two chapters in and the couple is already rage baiting players. Love them already.