The milk tea car braked just in time before the dungeon entrance. Q-chan held up the map with great seriousness, comparing it carefully. “Hmm—”
“This is a map captured from the Zone B forum. Xiao Qian translated it for us. Their exclusive dungeon… yup, it’s right here! Dungeon: Maze Courtyard!”
“Even though it’s called a maze, the guide says it’s not actually that hard to navigate. The real problem is the monsters inside. Apparently they can inflict a stun debuff that makes players dizzy and unable to tell directions—so that’s why it’s considered a maze.”
He Wuning pushed two cups of juice toward Yi Luo. “Drink.”
Yi Luo glanced at them and smiled. “Ah, is this what I’ve been waiting for all along—milk-foam watermelon juice?”
Q-chan protested loudly: “What do you mean milk-foam watermelon juice! It’s clearly Cheesy Gua-Gua Crunchy Pop-Pop!”
“Mhm.” Yi Luo replied perfunctorily, “Right, exactly, that one… with a name that sounds like some weird animal noise.”
Q-chan puffed up angrily, clenching his tiny short hands.
He Wuning ignored their secret war. He surveyed the surroundings. They were still on the vast grassland. Round, bouncy slimes rolled around as usual, but the edge of the safe zone no longer resembled familiar City A.
In front of them sat a lone flowerpot, with a bright red rose blooming in the center. It stood out sharply in the grassland, and somehow, none of the slimes passing by attacked it.
This was the entrance to the Maze Courtyard dungeon.
The two of them planned to drive the milk tea car straight inside, which meant they would have to run over the flowerpot.
Yi Luo scratched his chin. “No idea why, but I feel guilty… like we’re about to ruin something.”
He Wuning let out a soft laugh. “Then do you want to get off first and apologize to it?”
Yi Luo gripped the steering wheel. “On second thought, no. Let’s crash in first and apologize later.”
He was just about to hit the gas when a tall, brown-haired man jumped out in front of them. Broad-shouldered like a sturdy brown bear, carrying his weapon, he waved both arms frantically.
Yi LUo hit the brakes hard, sucking in a breath. “What’s with Zone B? Who’s still wandering around here this late at night?”
He rolled down the window. The brown-haired man shouted excitedly in a rapid foreign language. The two of them looked at each other, completely lost.
After calming down, the man seemed to realize they couldn’t communicate. Both sides stared at each other—then they reverted to the most primitive form of communication.
The brown-haired man pointed at the flowerpot, then took a piece of paper from his pocket and drew a skull on it, raising it solemnly in front of Yi Luo.
Yi Luo leaned back a little, studying the paper. “Hmm. We may not share a language, but art really is universal. This probably means the flowerpot is dangerous?”
Smiling, Yi Luo pointed at himself and He Wuning, gave a big thumbs up, and patted his own arm to convey “we’re strong.” The man clearly did not understand.
He Wuning rubbed his temples helplessly.
“Um…” Q-chan peeked forward. “I do have a database on all Blue Star languages. So if you want, I can translate for you~”
Yi Luo slowly turned back with a smile. “Next time, please say that before I start miming.”
Q-chan rubbed his hands shyly. “Aiya, but you guys looked like you were having fun communicating!”
He floated forward to the brown-haired man and spoke in sounds similar to his language. The man looked shocked, then even more agitated, speaking and gesturing rapidly.
Q-chan nodded nonstop, then translated: “Sweetie, he says the flowerpot is a very dangerous dungeon. Because of regional collaboration, they worry that players from other zones might wander in by accident, so he was assigned here for night duty to warn people.”
Yi Luo arched a brow. “Zone B is surprisingly civic-minded. Okay, help me tell him we know it’s a dungeon, and we’re here specifically to go into it.”
Q-chan relayed the message, but the man was not easily persuaded. He grabbed the door, speaking even more anxiously.
After listening, Q-chan translated: “He says because there are only two of you, you can’t go in. You don’t know how dangerous it is inside…”
“Ah, and if you insist on entering, he has to go with you.”
“He says he can’t let players from other regions die here without understanding what they’re getting into. …That’s what he said.”
“He’s actually really responsible. This night-watch uncle is pretty great.”
Q-chan blinked at He Wuning.
“Don’t insert your personal opinions in the middle of the translation,” Yi Luo scolded. “I thought this gentleman suddenly started praising himself.” He looked to He Wuning for input. “What do we do? We’re tight on time. If we keep stalling, it’ll be 8 a.m. in a blink.”
He Wuning nodded. “Let him get in.”
The night-watcher climbed into the vehicle. His expression was helpless, but he still muttered nonstop. Q-chan translated faithfully: “He says you young people never listen to warnings, but he’ll make sure everyone gets out alive… Wow, he sounds so reliable. Sweetie, do you think he might actually be super strong?”
He Wuning didn’t seem bothered. He handed Q-chan a cup of milk-foam watermelon juice and motioned for him to pass it to the night-watcher. “Then go make friends with him. Who knows—we might need him to save us later.”
Q-chan bounced excitedly. “Leave it to me!”
The night-watcher took it as goodwill from their Blue Star friends. He raised a small bottle, wanting to share something in return.
Q-chan translated, “This seems to be some kind of specialty liquor! He says it can raise fighting spirit! Ah—but not in a buff sense. More like psychological effect… maybe something like going wild after drinking?”
Yi Luo declined with a smile. “I’ll pass. No drinking and driving.”
He Wuning thought for a moment. “Then I won’t drink either. I might need to drive later.”
With the night-watcher looking disappointed, Yi Luo stepped on the gas. The milk tea car charged straight into the flowerpot, and a burst of brilliant light exploded before their eyes. Q-chan gasped, “Wow! The effects are different for each region!”
The milk tea car vanished from its original spot.
It reappeared as if teleported into a neatly trimmed courtyard. The lawn was dotted with topiary spheres carved into various shapes, while the surrounding shrubbery formed the walls of a maze, trapping players inside.
The night-watcher immediately went on high alert. He quickly stuffed two plug-like things into his nose, then took out a few more to hand to He Wuning and Yi Luo.
Q-chan reminded them, “Mm, according to forum info, the monsters here spread a stun effect through their ‘scent.’ Plugging your nose helps reduce it a bit, but it can’t block it fully—humans still have to breathe, after all.”
He Wuning gave Q-chan a look. “He still hasn’t realized? Tell him to check his status bar.”
Q-chan gestured and translated. The night-watcher looked at the “Stun Immunity” on their status bar and froze in disbelief.
Only now did he seem to realize—these two really had come prepared.
A narrow footpath lay between the hedges, clearly not designed for vehicles. Driving the milk tea car through it was difficult; even a slight deviation would scrape against the shrubs.
Yi Luo crept forward. The night-watcher gripped his weapon tightly, expression tense. Q-chan gave live commentary: “Over there! Around the corner is the first wave of monsters, they’re—”
Before he finished, the creatures appeared: slimes?
They looked slightly different from normal slimes—each one had a rose perched on its head, in various colors, resembling a herd of flower-topped jelly blobs.
Q-chan watched the night-watcher gesture, nodding as he translated, “Oh, he says we can’t underestimate them. The scent from the flowers they wear causes the dizziness—”
Yi Luo drove straight over them with a blank expression.
A bunch of flower-topped jelly blobs were sent flying, bursting into shimmering drops mid-air and scattering items on the ground. Their roses fell along with them.
Night-watcher: “……”
His expression was almost comical, but he dutifully finished his warning.
Q-chan said, “He says that even after killing the slimes, the flowers on the ground will keep releasing fragrance. The longer you inhale it, the worse your condition gets. That’s why it’s dangerous.”
He turned to reassure the night-watcher. “Don’t worry! We’re immune to stun now. We can enjoy the fragrance while clearing the dungeon!”
The night-watcher frowned and scratched his head. He pointed ahead. Q-chan nodded. “He says you still can’t underestimate them. The gatekeeping giant aromatic slime ahead has fast regeneration—you should use fire.”
As he spoke, a giant pink slime appeared in their view. He Wuning nodded, reached under the milk tea car counter, and pulled out a handheld rocket launcher. He politely said to the night-watcher, “Step aside.”
Even without translation, the night-watcher understood enough. Looking dazed, he stepped aside with his weapon.
“We don’t have any fire-element awakening ability,” He Wuning explained as he leaned his upper body out of the milk tea car window, the rocket launcher resting on his shoulder. A giant slime like that didn’t really require aiming anyway.
“But we have the power of science.”
With a “BOOM,” the missile trailed smoke as it slammed into the giant aromatic slime, evaporating nearly half of its body instantly. Smoke sizzled from the wound as it rapidly shrank, its HP bar collapsing like a broken dam.
“Heave-ho.” Q-chan struggled to lift another missile from the floor. “Lend a hand?”
The night-watcher, still stunned, helped him load it. He Wuning fired the second shot, cleanly ending the sinful life of the giant aromatic slime.
The night-watcher opened his mouth, speaking in a dry, hoarse voice. Q-chan translated: “He asks—who are you people?”
He Wuning, carrying the rocket launcher, turned around and thought for a moment. “Just tell him… we’re the righteous partners of Blue Star.”
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The author has something to say:
Mini bonus skit (not canon):
Night-watcher: You all! Are very dangerous!
He Wuning: Mm. We are very dangerous.
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