Chapter 51: The Self-Cultivation of a Fool

"The game begins. Good luck to you all."

Chen Fan had wanted to check the sky outside, but there were no windows in the room. Still, through the drafty wooden door, he could sense the deadly intent lurking in the night beyond.

"I just hope I’m not the first to be killed tonight." Sitting on the bed, Chen Fan swung his legs and looked down. "Hmm? I can change my clothes now?"

His original black-and-white suit had been replaced by brown suspenders. His tight undergarment was now exposed for all to see, but unfortunately, his figure left much to be desired. Knee-high, pointy boots were strapped to his feet, and he felt utterly flamboyant from head to toe.

"Like a circus clown—what a ridiculous getup." Chen Fan touched his nose, relieved at least it wasn’t a clown’s.

The furniture in the room was meager—a wooden table missing a corner, a chair with uneven legs, and a damp wooden bed. Beside his pillow lay a small copper mirror, likely the most valuable item in the house.

"Life here is rough. Hardly enough to eat, I imagine." Chen Fan picked up the copper mirror and examined his face. "What the—when did I get so pockmarked? And a lazy eye, too?"

Startled, Chen Fan couldn’t believe how quickly his heroic image had collapsed.

"Don’t tell me I’m—"

Muttering to himself in the mirror, he suddenly noticed his front teeth were uneven, one bigger than the other.

"What kind of idiot character is this? I’ll be recognized the moment I step out looking so vivid and ridiculous!" Unable to bear his reflection, Chen Fan sat on the bed and grinned foolishly.

"Daybreak. All players, please begin your activities."

Looking at his outfit, Chen Fan wished he could stay holed up and wait for the exile vote. But since he rarely got to experience a VR scenario, he summoned his courage and stepped outside.

The virtual sun was as glaring as the real thing, overwhelming him.

"My eyes!" Chen Fan slammed the door shut, the rickety wooden door crashed to the ground.

"Seriously? With this kind of quality, what am I going to do tonight?" He tried to put the door back in place, but accidentally broke off another piece.

"Forget it, just leave it." He propped the door upright, leaning it carefully against the wall.

A gust of wind shattered it in two with a thunderous crack.

"I’ll just die tonight," Chen Fan sighed, stepping over the door’s remains and out into the village.

Dustwald Village wasn’t large. A crossroads stretched barely a hundred meters in each direction, with just over twenty houses in total. Most were much like his, but all seemed sturdier—at least their doors were intact.

Chen Fan’s starting point was at the village edge; beyond lay forest, with farmland hugging the outskirts. It wasn’t harvest season yet, so he couldn’t judge the crops.

At the village entrance, he gazed out but saw no one. He dashed toward the woods.

"The grass is so lifelike—are there random wild animals out here too?" He bent down, running his hand through the foliage. It was nothing like the pixelated textures he’d seen before.

After wandering a while and finding no end to the map, he gave up on exploring and headed back to the village.

Suddenly, something long fell from a branch above. Thinking it was a vine, Chen Fan grabbed it.

"Damn, it’s a snake!"

As the "vine" squirmed in his hand, he flung it away and scrambled back to the village in terror.

"Li Peijun! I finally found you! Where were you just now? I couldn’t find you anywhere—you even went exploring in the forest. There was a snake, and it was freakishly real, tongue flicking and all!" Chen Fan ran into Li Peijun at the crossroads, vividly recounting his ordeal.

"I was scavenging in the houses. Look what I found—rolling pin, pot lid, dried fish, black bread. Oh, and a copper mirror." Li Peijun untied his pouch and displayed his spoils.

Chen Fan rolled his eyes. "We’re not playing a battle royale here. Why are you looting houses?"

Li Peijun paused, then smacked his forehead. "Oh, right! I kept checking if a safe zone would appear. No wonder I didn’t find any weapons. I went into one run-down house—nothing inside, not even a proper door."

"That’s my place," Chen Fan retorted. "No idea why I spawned in such a dump."

Looking closer at Li Peijun’s outfit—plain short tunic, a rope for a belt, woven grass shoes—Chen Fan made a mental note: "Villager attire."

Catching Chen Fan’s stare, Li Peijun said, "Why are you looking at me like that? You’re dressed the same. Your pants are just holier."

Suppressing his doubts, Chen Fan glanced down—sure enough, his clothes had changed too, just as shabby as Li Peijun’s.

"When will we ever get decent clothes? I don’t even have underwear," Chen Fan complained.

"Well, I do!" Li Peijun grinned, rolling up his pants to reveal a flash of red.

Chen Fan flipped him off. "Is it just the two of us in this game? I haven’t seen anyone else alive."

"That’s because everyone else is used to waiting in the council hall, unlike you two wandering about," came a voice from behind. Chen Fan turned to see Xiao Yuhuo.

"You mean the big house in the village center?" Chen Fan asked, for it was the only distinctive building around, a fair bit larger than the others.

"Exactly," said Xiao Yuhuo, leading the way. "Everyone’s been waiting for you two. Hurry up and take your seats—the exile vote is about to begin. Game time is accelerated here; the sun will set soon, so make haste."

Li Peijun glanced at Xiao Yuhuo, then at Chen Fan, giving him a knowing look before quickening his pace to walk ahead.

"I actually ran into you on the school path earlier, but you had company, so I didn’t want to interrupt," Xiao Yuhuo said softly, leaning in.

"Sorry, I thought you’d have someone with you too. Didn’t expect you to come alone," Chen Fan apologized.

Xiao Yuhuo smiled. "It’s all right. My roommate was supposed to join me, but she got stuck at the anime club and wouldn’t budge, so I came by myself."

That reminded Chen Fan of the grand scenes he’d seen in the anime club earlier—no wonder she couldn’t be dragged away.

Xiao Yuhuo was dressed as a villager too. So much for identifying people by their clothes.

"Hey, hurry up, you two!" Li Peijun was already at the door, waving them over.

"Friendship first, game second," Xiao Yuhuo muttered with a smirk.

"Mmm," Chen Fan whispered in reply.

"Chen Fan, we saved seat number six just for you," Li Peijun signaled, sitting down in seat seven.

"I now declare the exile vote about to begin."