"Just the other day, for the first time in many years, I got to eat something that's not soup or porridge!" Yuan recalled to Yu Rou the wonderful food he'd eaten in the game. "Even though I'd spent all of my money on it, I do not regret it!"
"And let me tell you— eating food in the game feels no different than eating in real life! You can taste every flavor and spice in the food! I don't know how they did it, but this kind of technology is simply otherworldly!"
"Is that all you've been doing in the game? Eating food?" Yu Rou chuckled at him. "What about your cultivation? Isn't that the main focus of the game? How far have you progressed?"
"I don't know how I am doing compared to the others, but I think I am progressing at a steady pace."
Hearing his words, Yu Rou said, "Most of the top players around the world are just reaching the ninth level Spirit Apprentice Realm. What level are you, Brother?"
'What? They are just reaching the ninth level? Why are they so slow? Does this make me a top player?' Yuan pondered to himself.
"Uhh… I am at the fourth level…" Yuan said a moment later, purposefully leaving out the 'Spirit Warrior Realm' so he can surprise her later on.
"The fourth level only?! Just how much have you been slacking, Brother? At this rate, I will catch up to you even though I am a week late to the game!"
"Does one's cultivation really matter? It's not as though you cannot play the game without cultivating..." Yuan said to her, unable to comprehend why everyone is trying so hard to improve their cultivation.
"And I feel like cultivating normally takes too much time, and it's too boring since you only sit there and breathe."
"While it's true that you do not need to cultivate to play the game, you are going to get bullied by other players and even NPCs if you are not strong in the game. The saying 'only the strong survives' is deeply rooted in the game's world and it's almost like nature itself there, so if you are not strong enough, you won't be able to survive, much less enjoy the game."
"There are even many players who are killing other players to loot their items, and Player Killing is getting more popular by the day." Yu Rou said to him.
"Ah? Player Killing? What a pain in the ass…" Yuan shook his head inwardly. Now he not only has to deal with psychopathic NPCs who will kill you if you even slightly bother them but also other players?
"Why can't everyone just enjoy the game peacefully? Why must they dirty such a beautiful world with blood and corpses?"
"It's the nature of the game so there's nothing we can do about it. Even if you try to mind your own business and not cause trouble for others, other players will still cause trouble for you. And if it's not a player, it'll be an NPC. That's why you should cultivate seriously if you wish to enjoy the game, Brother. I don't want to see anyone bullying you."
Hearing her concerned voice, Yuan spoke with a smile on his face, "Don't worry, Yu Rou. I won't let anyone bully me, nor will I let anyone bully you in the game. If they cause even the slightest trouble for you, your brother here will cut them down without mercy."
Yu Rou chuckled at his words and said, "Before you start cutting anyone, you should start improving your cultivation first."
"Then I shall raise my cultivation just for you, Yu Rou," Yuan said.
Sometime later, after Yu Rou finished cleaning and feeding Yuan, she asked him, "Do you have anything else you want to say before I leave?"
"Yeah, just one thing." Yuan said, and he took a deep breath before continuing, "Thank you, and good night."
"Good night, Brother. I can't wait to play with you in a few days." Yu Rou said to him before leaving the room.
After Yu Rou left the room, Yuan went to sleep shortly later.
Meanwhile, inside her own room, Yu Rou surfed the internet for the latest Cultivation Online news.
"Hmm? Player Yuan makes the headlines again? He sure is popular, even having his own forums." Yu Rou clicked on the link without even thinking and began reading the forums that only had posts about Player Yuan.
[Player Yuan has become the first player to accumulate over 1,000,000 gold coins in Cultivation Online, which is worth over 10,000,000 dollars at the current market rates!]
[Player Yuan is currently the only player on the Wealth Leaderboards!]
[Player Yuan becomes the first person to slay a Demonic Spider!]
[Player Yuan managed to solo the dungeon 'Demonic Spider's Silent Cave', even achieving the First Clear!]
[Just who is this Player Yuan?! Click here to find out!]
[Top 10 theories on Player Yuan and his real identity!]
[Another player claiming to be Player Yuan has appeared!]
There were over a hundred topics on Player Yuan on the forums, and it would take Yu Rou the entire night if she wanted to read through all of them.
"This Player Yuan's reputation is growing by the day— to the point where there are already people impersonating him. The questions people have about his existence are almost countless. It would be interesting if I could somehow meet this player in the game."
After spending an hour on the internet, Yu Rou entered her bed and went to sleep.