Waiting For You Online

Hou Dongyan: “I just searched player’s feedback for the helmet and gosh, unexpectedly someone had been trying to enter the game using the helmet since morning and had yet to land successfully until now. He said he always gets warnings of wrong Association ID, so he is now busy scolding the helmet for being retarded...”

Feeling interested, He Jin pulled his chair closer to take a look. Hou Dongyan was looking at discussion threads under the official forum, the top one was about players’ experience with the helmet trial. The post was only made in a short half-day, but already has hundreds of pages of discussion.

Hou Dongyan turned a few pages for He Jin to see.

“Can’t log in because of supposedly wrong login ID, am I the only one?”

“Comment above, you are not alone!I’ve been wearing the helmet for half a day and still stuck in the input login name interface! I thought of what and the helmet entered what! The delete is simply not clean as well! This helmet is retarded!”

“Playing holographic games requires a great deal of attention, those who are easily distracted certainly would not be able to play well ah!”

“Mom, this helmet is terrible, I think it knows everything! It’s black technology!”

“Yes, whatever appears in your mind is all shown in the character’s expression!”

“After being wrong 18 times, I finally landed successfully! Haha! The helmet is great! If you can’t use it then you suck!”

“The character image really can be changed casually! It can also scan our appearance, too good!”

“Experience feedback–want to become a beautiful handsome boy, want to rejuvenate, want to change gender, people with eyesight problem, people with hearing loss- this game is your gospel!”

“Patients with stroke and brain damage can’t play...”

“Comment above, don’t talk nonsense!”

“Want to rage at the helmet. I wanted to change my ID to [sparkly] but it became [I Love Dumpling] instead. So unsophisticated! Want to cry!^[1]”

“Fuck! To eat medicine in this game we have to actually take it out from our trouser’s pocket and plug it into our mouth! Jesus, I was fighting and hit by a bow-type weapon until I had no blood left, and yet still had to dig into my pocket to find the medicine to eat! Crazy ah!”

“When I was starting to get mad enough to not return, the landing was finally successful... (=_=) ”

“Female friends who want to maintain youthful appearance, remember to choose ‘stability’ at the end ah, or this father’s trap system will make you slowly grow up until you are old ah Ah! This is suggested at the end choice ah! QAQ”

“The scenery is very beautiful, also very real, unexpectedly cool, but it is difficult to play, difficult to coordinate, helmet completely does not listen to our words.”

“As someone with singing profession, I used to sing the skill mantras and now it’s singing them over and over again ah... So shameful, I want to die!”

......

The two guys looked at those replies in silent humor. He Jin also felt a few actually hit the mark, even though most of them are saying that the helmet is stupid and bad to use. Hou Dongyan asked He Jin: “What do you think? Is it really hard to coordinate?”

He Jin: “Yeah, I also got it wrong two times, you must concentrate... But the helmet is still very smart, it is not only able to capture whatever you are thinking, but it can also improve based on your own imagination.”

Hou Dongyan pounded the table: “I decided to buy it!”

***

Demon God’s holographic opening was held on Sunday. In the morning, Qin Yu went to participate in the first official holographic players fitness test as one of the conditions to receive a free helmet.

The test process went smoothly, he landed in the game without difficulty, set his initial information, and changed his game name back to “Fire”, and also completed a series of experience testing under the guide of the Novice Elf.

Two hours later, Qin Yu took off his helmet, the technician handed out the test report to him, smiled and asked: “Great God, what do you think?”

Qin Yu took the form, looked at the total score bar “100%” written at the lower right corner of the report and smiled: “Very good.”

When he went out, he was stopped by someone calling his name, Qin Yu turned back: “Flower?”

Hua Yiyi^[2] was wearing a woolen plaid skirt and dressed in a warm yellow wool shawl. She stood in the game company’s doorway, also holding a newly-acquired helmet in her hands- she is the game’s “Flower Yiyi”, the most attention grabbing player.

Yes, the Demon God company sent one free helmet to each of the top ten players in all servers, and as long as the players were from the same city, they would all come to do this test today... But Qin Yu didn’t expect to run into her here.

It was their second meeting after the gathering that Dead Water had organized before.

“You also came,” Hua Yiyi used one of her hands to smooth her wind-blown disorderly hair, smiled and asked, “Have you eaten?”

It was lunch time, and since they had just come out from the game company, they certainly had not eaten.

Hua Yiyi looked around: “There are many restaurants nearby, want to go eat something?” Her voice was very light, with a cautious hoping tone. Since her “confession” to Fire Ruthless, the man’s attitude towards her had changed, so she did not dare to just assume the other player would agree.

In fact, Qin Yu was also thinking of refusing, but she continued: “I want to talk to you about the tournament.”

Qin Yu hesitated for a moment. If the other party could be open-minded and able to maintain the distance of ordinary friends with him, then they might still be able to communicate. After all, they had been Master and Apprentice all these years, Qin Yu also couldn’t think of her as a stranger overnight.

“I can’t eat now, I have an appointment with others... Let’s just sit in a nearby Starbucks and talk.” Answered Qin Yu.

For a moment, a flash of joy blossomed on Hua Yiyi’s face. Qin Yu pretended not to notice, turned around, and walk in front... not knowing that this move of his would just make the other player continue in her mistaken belief.

Hua Yiyi walked behind him, looking at the young handsome figure, too enchanted to move.

It was like their time in the game with him flying ahead and her following in the back, she had been accustomed to silently looking at his back...

In Starbucks, out of courteousness, Qin Yu went in line to buy coffee: “What do you want?”

“Sugar-free latte, thank you.” Hua Yiyi sat down, staring intently at the figure of Qin Yu. She looked at his expressionless face as he ordered, took out his wallet to pay, then holding two cups while leaning on the bar; his every move was so handsome ...

He did not know that she was in love at first sight with him.

When he agreed to be recognized as her master, she never thought of playing with him as something more than apprentice, she had only wanted to worship his skills. However, when she saw Fire Ruthless at Dead Water’s meet up party, she lost her heart.

No matter online or offline, Fire Ruthless is too perfect.

Qin Yu brought their coffees back and sat down leisurely before talking straight to the point: “So, about the competition.” Qin Yu regreted agreeing to this “discussion” a little, because the emotion in this girl’s eyes was still too explicit..

Hua Yiyi held her coffee cup and asked: “You will create the team?”

Qin Yu: “Yes.”

Hua Yiyi: “I heard that each team will have 10 members in total: eight official members, and two substitutes. Two of the official players must be Spiritual Pet players... Your wife is playing as spiritual pet, so she’s going to be on the team, isn’t she?”

Qin Yu: “I’m trying to convince him to take part.”

Hua Yiyi was surprised: “She does not want to participate?” ”

Qin Yu chuckled: “He is timid.”

It was the first time Hua Yiyi saw Qin Yu laughing, and she was dumbfounded...

Qin Yu drank a sip of his coffee and went on to the point: “Were you looking for me to ask if I will invite you into the team?”

Hua Yiyi: “Yes...”

Qin Yu: “I recognize your strength, so if you want to come, I naturally will welcome you. But Flower, are you sure this is right for you?”

Hua Yiyi: “... What do you mean?” Ruthless doesn’t want her?

Qin Yu simply said: “I want you to promise, let it go? If you can’t let go, we being in the same team will only become a problem.”

Hua Yiyi’s facial expression changed. Ruthless is forcing her to choose, either to give up her feelings and choose his team, or to continue holding onto her hopeless crush and have Ruthless turning her away from the team!

Hua Yiyi’s heart felt hurt; she was only liking him, but he was so cruel...

“I’m not going to bother you again.” Hua Yiyi forced out a smile, in her heart saying, ‘I will continue to secretly like you, staying by your side silently to accompany you, without you knowing...’ Thinking of this, Hua Yiy’s heart gave birth to some kind of humiliation and sad feeling.

Qin Yu looked at her suspiciously, a little not too convinced: “If you have no other questions, then we’ll talk later in the game, I’m going back.”

Hua Yiyi held back her impulse to retain him from leaving and pretended to say casually: “Okay, see you in the game.”

When Qin Yu arrived back at school, it was already evening. Just as he entered his dormitory, he received a video call from Peng Yuhao Video: “Qin Ge, I have found out about the information that you want...” the guy’s expression was a bit strange.

Qin Yu put the helmet on the table and asked: “What’s wrong?”

Peng Yuhao: “Well, I hope you’re mentally prepared...”

Qin Yu sat down idly: “Just say it.”

Peng Yuhao: “That, that Xiao Xian-Jin... This... ”

Qin Yu: “Why are you tongue-tied?”

Peng Yuhao whispered: “Your wife is a man.”

Qin Yu nodded, naturally said: “Yes, I know.”

Peng Yuhao: “.....”

Qin Yu raised his eyebrows and asked: “Is he called He Jin?”

Peng Yuhao reacted, exclaiming in shock, “No way, how did you know!”

The corner of Qin Yu’s mouth curved up, now, the last 1% is also confirmed.

He did not want to disclose too much and only said: “I met him soon after I told you to check the data, so I found out accidentally.”

Peng Yuhao: “You don’t mind?” ”

Qin Yu: “Mind what?” ”

Peng Yuhao: “He is a man!”

Qin Yu said in his heart, I waited for him for so many years, I don’t even care if he is a dog, how can I mind whether he is a man or a woman...

He narrowed his eyes and said to Peng Yuhao: “It’s only a game. Since I want him to continue to be my wife, I’ll keep his real name a secret.”

Peng Yuhao shivered, suddenly felt in Qin Yu’s burst of momentum just now there was a sense of... Evilness!

Qin Yu: “Right, has the game company sent him a helmet yet?”

Peng Yuhao: “Has been emailed earlier, with the City Express, he must have received it by now. I actually got the information from the staff’s verification receipt. I’ll send it to you in a moment...”

Satisfied, Qin Yu hung up the phone, immediately put on the helmet and entered the game.

Proof-read by: Eileen

T/N:

[1] This was originally written in some unreadable gibberish:

用頭盔后不能用火暒呅孓啊，本姑娘原本閃閃锝☆噯水餃ヽooid變成爱水饺了好土嘤嘤嘤......

Some people I asked on discord actually called it Martian Language, as in something people on earth won’t be able to read. So I just took a guess on the meaning based on my friend’s suggestion lol. Please inform me if you know more a correct translation!

[2] Hua Yiyi is Flower Yiyi’s real name. Her name is written as 华依依; while her IGN is 落花依依. Both 华 and 花 read as “Hua” and can be translated as Flower.

Also, if you are wondering why when QY and YY talk about HJ, QY uses ‘he’ while YY uses ‘she’: QY says 他 which can be used to refer to either men or generally (gender-natural); meanwhile, YY says 她 which refers to women. Both characters are read as “ta”.