Chapter 374: The Outsider
(To be revised later)
Xu Huo's gaze flickered, then he looked at Little Pink Hat. The little girl shook her head, "I'm just a little kid, how would I know that much."
There was plenty of information about instances on the 011 District network, but what could be directly searched out was mostly vague stuff meant for outsiders. Specialized instance guide trading existed here, so specific information about instances wasn't widely disclosed.
"Can't you open an instance here?" he asked.
The little girl tried it. "No can do."
Xu Huo's thoughts churned, his mind spinning back and forth between Super Players and Super Instances. It took a while before he calmed down.
Little Pink Hat looked at the man and the painting. "Your business is settled, so I'm off. Remember to bring me good food next time."
The awakened puppet's eyes lit up, and the little girl, along with the snacks and clothes on the bed, vanished completely.
Tu Ge's eyeballs swiveled toward Xu Huo, and he said in astonishment, "You actually subdued an instance boss! She's the boss of Pink Hat Amusement Park, isn't she! That kind of twisted pink hat!"
"Subdued?" Xu Huo looked at him with amusement. "Do you think a D-rank instance boss is that easy to subdue?"
"Then how could she possibly help you?" Tu Ge didn't believe it.
"Isn't it normal for friends to help each other out?" Xu Huo said. "I have pretty good connections. Someone like you, who has no friends, probably can't appreciate the benefits of having many."
Tu Ge choked for a moment, then said enviously, "You made it to 011 District, huh. Lucky you."
Lucky indeed—at least staying here meant no worry about being dragged into a random instance.
"Time's about up." Xu Huo glanced at his watch, put the painting into his item slot, changed into a suit he'd picked out earlier, grabbed his umbrella, and left the room to go downstairs.
Ran Ying was already waiting in the lobby. She had changed into a wild-style black dress and high heels, exuding a wild beauty different from most women.
Many passersby were sneaking glances at her, but Ran Ying didn't care and occasionally smiled back at them. When she saw Xu Huo, she closed her magazine interface, stood up, and walked over.
Ran Ying wasn't short to begin with, and in high heels, she was a head taller than Xu Huo. But she seemed to enjoy this state, taking his arm proactively. "There's a new restaurant that's pretty good. They have fresh white fish lips—once you try that stuff, you'll be absolutely hooked."
"I don't eat anything bred from xenomorphs," Xu Huo said with a smile.
Ran Ying tilted her head to look at him, then laughed after a couple of seconds. "I like how honest you are. Don't worry, they're all natural species. In 011 District, any food related to xenomorphs is strictly prohibited. You couldn't eat it even if you wanted to."
Xu Huo nodded approvingly and rode in Ran Ying's car to the restaurant.
In a private room, they could see videos playing in the city's public areas. No special effects or stunt doubles—the videos featured genuine players, fully immersive and realistic.
"In 011 District, players can take up any profession. You could say it's even more relaxed than before gamification. Many ordinary people have carved out a place for themselves here thanks to their player status." Ran Ying ate as she spoke. "Have you found a place to stay yet? Yongxing is too expensive for long stays. If you want to rent or buy a place, I can help."
"I haven't decided yet," Xu Huo said. "But I prefer to live a bit farther from the bustling areas."
"Good taste. The main city isn't all that great anyway. 011 District is huge." Ran Ying agreed.
011 District was made up of several game zones, connected by Dimension Trains. The zone Xu Huo was currently in was the original 011 District area. This place was vast, not inferior to 014 District. Garden Castle Station was just one stop, relatively close to the core of the nuclear government and the Game Government Base.
Of course, 011 District also had several important and bustling super cities, but those cities were far from the Game Government Base.
"By the way, you just arrived in 011 District, right? How do you know people from the base?" Ran Ying mentioned Shi Youzhi. "Although the Game Government has set up a base here, they only handle game-related matters. Usually, they just maintain order on the train tracks and pick up trash or something."
"Doesn't the base have any dealings with 011 District?" Xu Huo asked curiously.
"Basically none. We don't interfere with each other." Ran Ying glanced at him and added, "But you need to be careful. The base often recruits newly arrived players to work for them, but those players don't live long."
"Why?" Xu Huo paused. "Isn't working for the Game Government a good thing? I heard you can become a Gray Player and escape instances."
Ran Ying let out a "pfft" laugh. "There's no such good thing. All the on-duty personnel in the Game Government Base come from other districts. The players they recruit from the zones are all called contract staff and are never given Gray Player status."
"Gray Players don't have to do instances, but they keep the game program and can still use items and traits. Contract staff don't have it so good—they have to work and still enter instances. At most, they get a little pay, with no other benefits."
"Even so, it shouldn't be enough to make them die young, right?" Xu Huo pressed on.
"It's hard to say the exact reason, but it's a fact that the contract staff the base recruits die quickly." Ran Ying propped her chin on one hand and swirled her wine glass with the other. "You'll understand once you've lived in 011 District for a while."
Xu Huo looked rather disappointed. "My level isn't high. I was hoping to find a reliable place to register in 011 District to settle down."
Ran Ying reached across the table and patted his hand. "What's so hard about that? I'm at least a squad leader in the Enforcement Department. As long as you don't cause trouble, with me around, not many people in 011 District will give you a hard time."
Their eyes met, and Xu Huo gave a slight smile. "How many people have you said that to?"
Ran Ying withdrew her hand, a flush of post-drink redness appearing on her cheeks. "Oh, why bring up the past? Cherishing the present is the real truth."
Xu Huo raised his glass to toast her. "You have a point."
The meal was quite pleasant for both host and guest. Afterward, Ran Ying was called away by a bee communicator, saying there was an emergency to handle, leaving Xu Huo alone.
The bill was paid by Ran Ying. After leaving the restaurant, Xu Huo paid to buy a real-time map of the station, took the city's public transport to check out a few important landmark buildings, and then used his citizen ID to enter so-called high-end public venues.
These were places like natural parks, amusement parks, and historical culture halls. The environment was excellent, and they even provided free emergency potions or gift packs distributed by some companies. Probably because the living environment was good, the people who came here were all looking to relax, and there was no crowding to grab gift packs.
Identity documents were also available for ordinary residents of 011 District, but outsiders were classified separately. Of course, this included not only players but also some family members who had migrated with players.