Volume One, Chapter 13: Identity Revealed?

The next morning, at dawn.

When the clock struck eight, Lin Yu, who hadn’t slept all night, was already logged into the game early.

After all, he had forgotten to hide his nickname yesterday, which likely exposed his identity, so he felt compelled to act quickly.

In the early stages of the game "Continent of Gods and Demons," the daily reset time for the game helmet’s availability was set for 8 a.m.

No matter how anxious Lin Yu was, he had to wait until after eight.

...

As soon as he entered the game, Lin Yu hurriedly opened the system panel.

The moment he opened it, a transaction notification popped up.

[Congratulations, player Ji Yu! Your "Ghost Scorpion Battle Armor" has been successfully auctioned for a final price of 1,000 gold coins!]

“The Ghost Scorpion Battle Armor actually sold for 1,000 gold coins?”

Lin Yu was visibly stunned by the message.

One thousand gold coins was equivalent to one million Huaxia currency—a price he never expected anyone would pay.

Though the Ghost Scorpion Battle Armor had impressive attributes early in the game, making a high selling price plausible, 1,000 gold coins far exceeded his expectations.

It was at least ten times the market value.

However, instead of excitement, Lin Yu felt a hint of unease.

Where there is abnormality, there is always something suspicious.

Sure enough, barely had this thought crossed his mind than he noticed there was an unread message in the information panel.

The sender was a player named “Xiao Xiaoran.”

When Lin Yu opened the message, his expression turned grim.

The message was simple, just one sentence:

“Little brother Lin Yu, I’ll be waiting for you in Ghost Scorpion Valley at 1 p.m. tomorrow afternoon. I might have news that interests you.”

“How does this guy know my real name? And why does he know about Ghost Scorpion Valley?”

Reading the brief message, Lin Yu felt a chill run down his spine, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Xiao Xiaoran not only knew his real name but was also aware of Ghost Scorpion Valley, which made Lin Yu suspicious about his identity.

“Could this guy be someone from the official team?”

Thinking along those lines, Lin Yu frowned.

He had never revealed his game nickname to anyone—not even Lin Xin.

Therefore, besides the game’s backend system, no one else should know his nickname.

But soon, he dismissed this theory.

...

Because the entire game ran on an autonomous system called SkyNet, there was no so-called official team.

So who was this person?

While Lin Yu pondered deeply, a bold hypothesis suddenly flashed through his mind.

Perhaps, like him, this person was also a time traveler.

Because he could not think of any other reason.

After all, he had never disclosed his nickname to anyone.

Moreover, the other party even knew about the hidden map Ghost Scorpion Valley.

This suggested they were likely aware of the hidden quest "The Resolute Adventurer."

All these signs strongly indicated that the other player might also be a reborn individual.

At the thought, Lin Yu’s expression grew grave.

He racked his brain, trying to recall any information about Xiao Xiaoran from his previous life.

Since the other person was able to purchase the Ghost Scorpion Battle Armor at a price far exceeding the market rate, their backing had to be formidable—possibly one of the top ten families in Huaguo.

This narrow scope made his search easier.

Yet, after a long effort, Lin Yu found no trace of Xiao Xiaoran in his memories.

...

“It seems the only way to uncover the truth is to meet this Xiao Xiaoran in person,” Lin Yu muttered, frowning.

With the information he currently had, he couldn’t determine Xiao Xiaoran’s identity.

At this point, Lin Yu saw no reason to stay in the game and logged out directly.

Until he clarified who Xiao Xiaoran was, he had lost all interest in playing.

After all, having a stranger suddenly know his real name unsettled him deeply.

...

As Lin Yu logged out, Lin Xin was just waking up.

Seeing that Lin Yu had already logged into the game, Lin Xin’s expression turned strange.

This was unusual.

“Brother Yu, you’re playing games so early?” Lin Xin rubbed his eyes, almost instinctively asking, though his tone betrayed disbelief.

Even he, a teenage internet addict, was not this eager.

“No, I just remembered something and wanted to check the game,” Lin Yu casually made up an excuse to brush it off.

Then he looked at Lin Xin and changed the subject, “Since you’re up, let’s go to the cafeteria for breakfast.”

“Okay.”

Although Lin Xin was puzzled by Lin Yu’s behavior, he nodded and didn’t press further.

...

After a quick freshening up, the two headed toward the cafeteria.

...

After breakfast, Lin Yu didn’t return to the dorm with Lin Xin but instead went to a nearby bank to open a Huaxia bank card compatible with "Continent of Gods and Demons."

In the game, to withdraw gold coins into real currency, a special Huaxia bank card was necessary.

Just as Lin Yu finished opening the card and was about to return to school, he unexpectedly ran into someone familiar—Su Yao.

However, Su Yao was not alone; beside her stood a boy dressed entirely in designer clothes.

She was linking arms with him, their behavior quite intimate.

Seeing this, Lin Yu’s expression changed slightly, surprised by how brazen Su Yao was.

She had broken up with him only yesterday, and today she was already cozying up to another man.

It seemed he had truly been a clown all along.

Shaking his head, Lin Yu decided to walk away directly.

He no longer wished to have any connection with such a person.

“Lin Yu?!”

Just as Lin Yu was about to turn and leave, a sharp exclamation sounded behind him.

It was none other than Su Yao, who had clearly spotted him.

But her face was visibly displeased.

After all, Lin Yu had humiliated her publicly in the cafeteria yesterday afternoon.

Even now, many posts on Qing Teng University’s forum were discussing the incident.

“Oh? Su Yao, the junior who begged you for a game helmet and then went back on his word?”

As soon as Su Yao spoke, the designer-clad boy beside her suddenly perked up, his high-pitched, nasally voice ringing out.

Wang Duojin’s favorite pastime was showing off in front of beautiful women to win their favor.

Now that he had the opportunity, especially with Lin Yu, his poor ex, as a backdrop, he wasn’t about to miss it.

“Senior Wang, you flatter me. He’s just a useless loser,” Su Yao snorted coldly, casting a frosty glance at Lin Yu’s retreating back.

She was full of disdain.

Lin Yu had no intention of responding to their taunts.

He didn’t want to waste his precious time on such petty theatrics.

Just as he was about to turn away, Wang Duojin’s shrill voice rang out again.

“Wait! Friends meet and don’t even say hello before leaving?”