Chapter 7: Advancing Toward the Minotaur Warrior

[Page 1/3]

“Your scumbag man persona has taken root. First-day check-in successful. You have received a reward: 10,000 yuan.”

A wonderful day began with the system’s prompt.

Qin Luo threw off the covers, rubbed his slightly throbbing head, and glanced at the mess scattered across the dormitory.

Li Chenggang sprawled on his bed in all directions, Wu Xuan and Wang Chen had collapsed onto one bed together, empty alcohol cans littered the floor, and the entire room was permeated with a pungent, unpleasant smell of alcohol.

To celebrate Qin Luo’s escape from his misery, the four men from room 404 had drunk themselves senseless the night before, and even now, they were still somewhat unconscious.

Li Chenggang loved to drink; whether there was a reason or not, he liked to rally everyone for a drink. That was one thing. But Wu Xuan and Wang Chen weren’t great drinkers, and even they were in this state. It was clear they were genuinely pleased deep down about Qin Luo giving up on Xu Ke.

No matter how much they cursed and grumbled on ordinary days, when something mattered, their true feelings came through. True friends were rare in life, and having a few such roommates made Qin Luo feel quite fortunate.

“Bro, if you can’t drink, go sit with the dogs…”

“Brother Luo, I can’t take it anymore, let me rest a bit…”

“Old Qin, why don’t you chase after Xu Ke again, then introduce her roommates to us…”

Qin Luo: “…”

Listening to their slurred murmurs, Qin Luo felt several strands of black lines slide down his forehead. He sluggishly turned over and got out of bed. The first thing he did was pull back the curtains and open the window.

Facing the morning sun and the warm breeze of an eight o’clock dawn, he took a deep breath, feeling unusually refreshed.

Since gaining the system these past months, he had repeatedly increased his stamina attribute, improving his physical condition. So while the others were still dazed from drinking, he remained relatively clear-headed.

After tidying up the dorm a bit, Li Chenggang slowly woke up. Seeing Qin Luo dressed and ready to leave, he groggily asked, “Why so early, where are you going?”

Qin Luo casually answered, “To class.”

Hearing that, Li Chenggang was half sober, his eyes wide as he yelled, “There’s no class this morning! Where do you think you’re going? Don’t tell me you were lying to us yesterday and planning to accompany Xu Ke to class again!”

In recent months, Qin Luo had stopped at nothing to get close to Xu Ke, even attending her classes when he had none of his own—that was routine.

Li Chenggang, fearing Qin Luo’s stubbornness, tried to struggle out of bed to tie him down, but his head was still fuzzy. When he got up, he bumped his head on the ceiling with a “thud” and fell back flat on the bed.

Youth was indeed a blessing—he immediately fell asleep again. Qin Luo fought back a smile and turned to look at Wang Chen and Wu Xuan.

Because of the noise Li Chenggang made, the other two also slowly woke up. They were now clinging to each other, their eyes meeting in bewilderment.

After a moment, they sobered up suddenly, pushed each other away in panic, and simultaneously covered their backsides with great coordination.

Once they confirmed there were no strange sensations, they let out a quiet sigh of relief and then looked toward Li Chenggang and Qin Luo.

[Page 2/3]

“Old Qin, you’re up so early?”

“Brother Gang, what was all that noise just now?”

Li Chenggang struggled to lift his head and gritted his teeth, “Tie this bastard to the bed quickly! He’s trying to lick Xu Ke again!”

At those words, Wang Chen and Wu Xuan immediately sobered up and made as if to pin Qin Luo down.

Qin Luo could only smile wryly and explain, “Nonsense. I’m going to music class. Xu Ke isn’t even taking that course.”

“You’re not taking it either,” Wu Xuan replied instinctively, then suddenly realized something and exclaimed, “Yao Yanyan is in the music major… Damn, Old Qin, you’re not seriously chasing Yao Yanyan, are you?”

Qin Luo changed the subject, “None of your business. Anyway, I’m not planning to find Xu Ke… By the way, it’s still early. I’m going to the cafeteria for breakfast. You coming?”

“Uh… I’ll pass.”

“Me too. I’m still hungover, headache and all.”

“Knowing you’re not going after Xu Ke makes me feel better. I’ll skip breakfast and catch some more sleep.”

Satisfied that Qin Luo seemingly wasn’t going to make the same mistake again, the three animals promptly lay back down.

Qin Luo gave them a blank look and asked, “Want me to bring you some?”

“Two baskets of buns and a bowl of soy milk, thanks, bro!”

“Brother Luo, you know me—I’m not lazy, just too hungover… Two fried dough sticks and a bowl of tofu pudding, thanks.”

“Old Qin, remember when I brought you food last time? No more words needed. One bowl of Longjiang pig’s trotters rice—taste the romance of a man!”

“Heh, romance,” Qin Luo sneered coldly, turned, and was about to leave. But at the door, he suddenly stopped, turned back, and said softly, “Did you forget something?”

After three seconds of silence, the three animals shouted in unison, “Godfather!”

Qin Luo nodded with satisfaction, then slowly walked out, his mind already pondering what he should do next.

Since his new persona was that of a scumbag, if he wanted to milk the system for rewards, he had to continually reinforce that image.

So the question was: what did it mean to be a scumbag?

Qin Luo had never been a scumbag, but that didn’t mean he knew nothing about them.

The internet was full of descriptions and understandings of scumbags, summarized simply as: not taking initiative, not refusing advances, and not taking responsibility.

Qin Luo found that definition too one-sided, at least it didn’t fit someone like him who had few female friends. So he chose the opposite—taking initiative, which explained his strong move on Yao Yanyan yesterday.

[Page 3/3]

His goal was to make others believe he no longer liked Xu Ke, but had shifted his affections to Yao Yanyan!

Such rumors had already spread on the campus forum. As a well-known figure at school, Qin Luo quickly earned the “scumbag” label from some people, marking a successful first step.

But that wasn’t enough. The real challenge was what came next.

To solidify the scumbag image, he needed to have at least two women around him. And they couldn’t be ordinary women. Given that he had Xu Ke as a “former girlfriend,” any other woman he associated with couldn’t be inferior to her—otherwise, people would inevitably compare the new woman unfavorably to Xu Ke.

That would undermine his scumbag persona.

Therefore, the other members of the goddess group were excellent candidates.

Tang Yu, Yao Yanyan, Chu Sijin, and Chu Liunian—they were all renowned beauties on campus, with looks no less than Xu Ke’s, each with their own charm, adored by many male students.

Xu Ke’s popularity among the goddess group was largely due to her aura.

People always desire what they cannot have. Xu Ke’s aloof, highland-flower-like demeanor was a huge plus, and combined with Qin Luo’s three months of relentless pursuit, she had an invisible halo that helped her outshine the others in popularity. But that didn’t mean the others were inferior.

Take Yao Yanyan, for example. Tall and slender, she loved makeup and dressing up, always looking fashionable and radiant outside, with a maturity and allure beyond her years.

Countless men had fallen for her beauty, and due to her personality, many men in relationships found themselves hopelessly attracted to her, often ending in tragedy.

Qin Luo had frequently seen public online disputes tearing Yao Yanyan apart, accusing her of being promiscuous and reckless, deliberately seducing men who were already involved, only to break their hearts and walk away—playing a dangerous game with no concern for consequences.

Such rumors often surfaced on forums, making many girls regard Yao Yanyan as a public enemy. There was almost talk of forming an anti-Yao Yanyan alliance or a Yao Yanyan victims’ support group.

Especially for girls with boyfriends—if they encountered Yao Yanyan while together, they would immediately turn and leave, as if afraid that staying even a second longer might result in Yao Yanyan stealing their boyfriend.

Guys were torn between love and hate for Yao Yanyan: single men couldn’t get her, those with girlfriends feared being toyed with emotionally. The mental pressure and moral guilt often ended in empty hands, sometimes losing their original girlfriends in the process—a genuinely tragic state of affairs.

Because of all this, Yao Yanyan was also a well-known figure at school.

After extensive analysis and consideration, Qin Luo chose to establish the first step of his scumbag persona through Yao Yanyan, precisely because of her reputation.

After a hearty breakfast and bringing back three portions for his silly roommates, Qin Luo leisurely walked into a teaching building.

“Today, I’ll deal with this bull-headed warrior…”

He looked at the music classroom ahead and strode inside.

This was where Yao Yanyan usually attended class.