Since Lou Yan’s favorability toward her had dropped into the negatives, Lin Jielin felt that something was off.
Lou Yan must have found a helper; otherwise, why was his fortune gradually being restored?
Yet, she had been monitoring him all along. His daily life remained dull and simple. No new people around him, no system notifications about any woman he liked.
Could it be… an online romance?
Unfortunately, she had no way to monitor his every move on the internet.
With the mission progress regressing so severely, Lin Jielin was already frustrated. To make matters worse, those four people from the slums had been pestering her frequently these past few days. Irritated beyond measure, she ordered security to throw them out and harshly warned them. She had no further use for them anyway.
But no matter what, she had to check on Lou Yan…
Just thinking about Lou Yan’s troubles made her anxious. She activated her super wristband and the full-body sensory suit. In an instant, her surroundings visually transformed. Standing before her was a man exuding an air of restraint, calling her name, “Linlin.”
Lin Jielin pushed him down and straddled his abdomen. “Andy, let’s use last night’s position, hmm?”
Andy blinked slowly, then cupped her face and kissed her. “Alright, Linlin.”
The game <Palm Pet> had taken on a different tone. Wealthy players who splurged on in-game purchases could now make their virtual companions more obedient and lifelike. They could manipulate them freely, issuing any command they pleased. At this point, the players were essentially raising virtual lovers.
In the original world’s storyline, the game had never evolved this way because Lou Yan had never given anyone special privileges. If he detected any excessive mistreatment, he would immediately ban the player and prohibit them from creating a new account.
Although Lou Yan didn’t forbid players from engaging in certain activities in the game, everything ultimately depended on the virtual companion’s mood index—a highly humanized system.
However, the current Sou Ben Corporation had removed that restriction.
Take Andy, for instance, his mood index was obviously low, yet he still wouldn’t defy her.
Lou Yan had changed the password to his basement, leaving Lin Jielin locked out. Even after ringing the doorbell, no one answered. Asking the neighbors, she learned that Lou Yan had gone out.
Just as she was about to leave, she spotted Lou Yan returning.
“Lou Yan…”
Hearing her voice, Lou Yan’s gaze lifted from his optical computer screen, instantly turning sharp and icy. When he saw Lin Jielin, his expression was one of complete discernment, like he could see through all her malicious intentions. His look carried mockery and disgust.
It felt like she was being stared down by a beast freshly unleashed from the depths.
A shiver ran through her, but the next moment, he averted his gaze and coldly spat out two words : “Get lost.”
Lin Jielin instinctively stepped aside.
Wan Tong was playing a single-player game. It was a gam Lou Yan had specifically created to entertain her.
But in the blink of an eye, she accessed Lin Jielin’s phone through the network.
The experience wasn’t pleasant. Her entire body felt weak, like the exhaustion after intense exercise. Still, she wanted to see if Lin Jielin had any secrets hidden in her phone.
Currently, Lin Jielin was a placement manager at Sou Ben Games—a cushy, well-paid position thanks to her wealthy background and direct relatives in the company’s upper management.
Wan Tong finally navigated to Lin Jielin’s <Palm Pet> account.
Tch. A cozy, warm decor—but it housed a grown man? What annoyed her most was that the man’s face bore some resemblance to Lou Yan!
The game had a visiting function. Andy, the virtual companion, seemed rather composed, but Wan Tong immediately grabbed a baseball bat nearby and swung it at his shoulder.
Watching Andy collapse, she bolted. He seemed momentarily stunned but didn’t turn gray.
However, the moment she returned to Lou Yan’s optical computer, she was met with his unfathomable expression. His lips curved slightly in a smirk that made her feel embarrassed.
“Where did you go?”
“Master, I…” Wan Tong stretched out her soft little hand. “My hand hurts~”
Lou Yan instinctively reached out, touching the screen. Though it was still cold and rigid to the touch, the tiny figure inside his device seemed to sense his gentleness, rubbing her palm lightly against the invisible air.
“Master, that woman’s Andy looks a lot like you,” Wan Tong remarked at the right moment.
“Oh?” Lou Yan replied casually, as if unsurprised.
“I hit Andy, but he’s really tough. He didn’t even flinch.”
“Must be well-equipped,” Lou Yan murmured, then narrowed his eyes. “Wanwan, don’t wander around too much, okay?”
Wan Tong obediently nodded. “Okay.”
In truth, she wanted to test her abilities, to see if she could infiltrate any networked system. If she could… she would be unstoppable.
But her promise hadn’t even lasted long. While Lou Yan was finishing his self-heating meal, he received a notification. His bank account had just increased by ten million yuan.
In this era of extreme inflation, ten million yuan was merely enough to support an average person’s lifestyle for a year or so.
Yet Lou Yan’s face darkened. His thick lashes cast shadows over his eyes as he uttered a single name:
“Wanwan.”
The optical computer remained silent.
But Lou Yan knew she could hear him.
“Wanwan, come out and talk,” he said, his lips pressing into a thin line, though his voice softened slightly.
Wan Tong knew that he had only temporarily suppressed his anger.
He was mad at her.
She paced a few steps inside the small <Wanwan’s Little House> before finally squatting down silently at the corner of the bed. Forget it—she’d just pretend she hadn’t heard anything.
One moment, she had promised him not to act recklessly; the next, she was attempting to transfer ten million yuan to his account. She hadn’t expected it to go through, so when she saw the success notification, she knew the storm was coming.
With his upright personality, there was no way he would allow her to do something like that.
As she let her thoughts wander, the world outside her optical computer seemed to have quieted down. Just as she was wondering why, she suddenly heard faint footsteps.
Soft and light—like a cat treading on a carpet.
She looked up in confusion and saw a figure standing before her.
“Mas… Master…” Her voice trembled slightly, and she blinked sluggishly.
Right. How could she have forgotten? These past few days, he had been working day and night to develop a mini-game. Today, he had used the quick earnings from it to purchase a super bracelet and a full-body sensory suit.
He must have set the transparency to 0%, which was why the surroundings still looked like <Wanwan’s Little House>.
But something was off. Wasn’t the super bracelet only compatible with <Palm Pet>? Why could it project both her and the little house into reality?
“I tweaked the program a bit and linked it to the super bracelet,” Lou Yan answered her unspoken question at just the right moment. Then, he slowly crouched down in front of her. “Now, we can have a proper talk about that ten million yuan, Wanwan.”
Wan Tong : “…”
She had seen him up close in the virtual game before, but the feeling now was slightly different.
She wasn’t sure if it was because he was too close, but she almost felt like she could sense his breath. Curious, she reached out and touched his cheek.
“Ah…” She let out a small gasp and covered her mouth, her clear, deer-like eyes blinking. “I can touch you, Lou Yan!”
Excited, she called him by his name.
Lou Yan was caught off guard. The full-body sensory suit allowed him to feel the faint tickle on his cheek.
Silently, he adjusted the sensitivity to the highest level.
Five years ago, the country had passed a law allowing applications for marriage with virtual 2D characters, but very few people were obsessed enough to actually go through with it.
Lou Yan had never even considered such a thing, until now.
At this moment, the law suddenly surfaced in his mind.
“Wanwan.” He braced his hands on the carpet beside her, his figure nearly enveloping her completely, leaving her with no room to escape.
“Mm?” Wan Tong stared at him blankly, retracting her hand from his face. For some reason, her voice sounded even more delicate than usual.
“Help me test the sensory suit, okay?” His voice was inexplicably hoarse.
“…How do I test it?”
Lou Yan’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he glanced at the emotion index above her head, which remained at a steady 100%. He took her hand and placed it against his chest, his voice low and husky. “Touch me.”
Wan Tong : “…”
If she had initially believed he was serious about testing the equipment, she certainly didn’t now. Not with the way his dark eyes smoldered like ink.
Hmph. He was clearly trying to take advantage of her. Did he really think she wouldn’t understand?
She poked his chest with her finger and pouted slightly. “Master, are you trying to do something bad to me?”
“What bad thing?” He leaned in closer.
“Then why are you so close to me?”
“Testing.” His lips moved slightly, his expression still utterly righteous and dignified.
Wan Tong poked his chest again. “Then, is the test over?”
Lou Yan was not satisfied with the sensory feedback. He should have been able to feel her more clearly, yet the device was evidently crude and poorly made. Even at the highest sensitivity, her touch felt no more than a feather brushing past.
“…Not done yet.” The words slipped from his thin lips, one by one.