Shanhai hadn’t planned on telling him, but Jian Xingyi was, for once, pestering him relentlessly. “Just tell me, even just a little bit.” Jian Xingyi grabbed Shanhai’s shoulders and shook him. “I really won’t get mad. I’ll be a puppy if I’m lying.”

“……” 

In that case. 

Shanhai mused as he spoke, “It seems like we were a couple… I saw energy sources that only exist in the real world. We must have been on a mission together to collect them, right? After we finished collecting, before heading back to base, I pulled him aside at a street corner… and kissed him.” 

Seeing that Jian Xingyi didn’t react much, Shanhai continued, “Then we went to a hotel while kissing, but that hotel was run-down and no longer in operation. The building looked like it was struggling to survive in the apocalypse.” 

Jian Xingyi: “…Go on.” 

Shanhai stared intently at Jian Xingyi. 

Jian Xingyi usually wears his thoughts on his sleeve, but at that moment, he was, for once, completely expressionless. Shanhai said, “That’s it for today.” 

Jian Xingyi smiled and said, “I don’t even need to look to know what’s coming next, do I? You were at the hotel— surely you’re not going to discuss academic assignments in bed?” 

“……” 

“Are you… upset?” 

“Not at all.” 

Jian Xingyi pointed toward the nearby building and said, “Let’s go inside and see what’s there.” 

Just as Jian Xingyi was about to step forward, Shanhai grabbed her arm. He paused for a moment and tentatively said, “Xingxing, I don’t want to lie to you, but I also don’t want you to get upset.”

“……” 

“Xingxing.” 

“……” Still no response. 

Shanhai wrapped his arms around Jian Xingyi from behind, rested his head on his shoulder, and whispered, “Don’t be mad anymore.”

“……”

Jian Xingyi took a deep breath, then suddenly said with a pout, “I’m a puppy.” 

“You’re not.” 

Jian Xingyi felt even more wronged. “I am.”

Shanhai smiled. “I like puppies.” 

Jian Xingyi’s ears turned a little red, but he still felt a bit angry. “You don’t like me. You like the person in that memory bubble.” 

Jian Xingyi thought to himself, just as he’d forgotten the friend who’d invited him to play, could Shanhai have forgotten his former lover, too? 

“No,” Shanhai said gently. “I… like you.” 

Jian Xingyi felt even more wronged. “Then… then why were you so intimate with that person in the memory bubble, but not with me…?”

Shanhai froze. Wasn’t that because they hadn’t triggered the reward under the Sacred Tree? And when he’d asked Jian Xingyi if he had those kinds of feelings for him, hadn’t he said himself that he didn’t know? 

If Jian Xingyi wasn’t sure of his own feelings yet, and his affection for him was merely that of a friend or family member, how could he possibly do anything more than that? 

So now that Jian Xingyi was so jealous and had said that, did it mean… Shanhai suddenly let out a very soft, brief chuckle. 

Jian Xingyi’s ears turned even redder. “What are you laughing at? I’m still upset.” 

Shanhai leaned in close to Jian Xingyi, took his hand, and said, “I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened in that memory bubble either, but I can assure you that I only have special feelings for you. The reason I’m keeping my distance now is simply because I’m afraid you might not want this.” 

Jian Xingyi whined, “I want to.” 

Shanhai simply wrapped his arm around Jian Xingyi’s waist and leaned down to kiss his cheek affectionately.

“All right…” 

Jian Xingyi pushed him away. “Our clothes are all wet. Let’s start a fire and warm up.” As the campfire was lit, Shanhai immediately took off his shirt. 

Jian Xingyi’s eyes widened. 

W-well, that’s true. Before, there were other people around, but now they were on a deserted island, so it was really more convenient for Shanhai to do this. Jian Xingyi’s gaze met Shanhai’s muscular chest, and below that, his rock-hard abs, and his heartbeat suddenly quickened. 

Jian Xingyi hugged his knees and turned his head away, trying to stop his mind from wandering. He… he really did have those kinds of feelings for Shanhai. 

Jian Xingyi was a little surprised by his own feelings. 

But the moment he heard Shanhai being affectionate with someone else, he did feel a bit upset. He didn’t want to share him; just the thought of Shanhai being so gentle with 

someone else made him feel a bit queasy. But after all… Shanhai was his boyfriend! 

Feeling jealous? That’s perfectly justified! 

Jian Xingyi convinced himself of this, and the flush on his face faded. 

While they waited for their clothes to dry, Jian Xingyi organized the findings from the memory orbs and posted them in the cadre group chat. The news was undoubtedly a bombshell, leaving everyone stunned—it took them quite a while to process it. 

Bai Jie: 【This… if it’s true, that’s absolutely mind-blowing. There are only two remaining questions: one, is this actually real? Two, why are they using our identities and faces?】 

Le Ke: 【Damn, my embarrassing real name just got exposed like that?!】 

Bai Jie: 【……】 

Wu Yun: 【……】 

Cangshui: 【……】

Wu Yun: 【Why do you have a problem with both your username and your real name?】 

Le Ke: 【……】 

After their clothes were dry, the two decided to explore the interior of the isolated island. 

There must be some connection between the memory bubble surfacing and the system teleporting them here. The two explored the area, while Jian Xingyi, as always, activated her skill. 

【Harvest successful, absorbed 【essence】 x30】 

【Harvest successful, absorbed 【essence】 x41】 

So much…! 

That’s really a lot!!! 

Jian Xingyi was a bit surprised; these essence values were higher than most places on the map. Could it be because the soil here is so pure? 

After walking happily with Shanhai for a while, Jian Xingyi came upon a field covered in flowers. “Wow…” 

Before his eyes lay a sea of blue flowers. They resembled lilies, but their petals were crystal-clear and shimmering, like flowing seawater—absolutely stunning. 

“So beautiful…” Jian Xingyi was momentarily mesmerized. 

Jian Xingyi cast a skill on the flowers, but while he didn’t gain much, the essence value was surprisingly high. 【Collection successful, absorbed 【essence】 x43】 

【Collection successful, absorbed 【essence】 x51】 

Even more…! 

There are quite a few flowers here, and Jian Xingyi is having a blast collecting them. At the same time, Jian Xingyi notices that his Plant Compendium has been unlocked. 

【Sea God Flower】

【Effect: ???】 

Perhaps because Jian Xingyi hadn’t used it yet, its function was unknown, but this meant… just like the snow lotus, it was a plant with benefits that could be harvested and used directly. 

Jian Xingyi carefully transplanted a few flowers into his backpack, then planted them in the field just in case. 

With the Sea God Flower and the surrounding plants, Jian Xingyi’s Essence Value, which had been at 6,660, shot up to 7,355—an increase of over 600 in one go. Now, he was just a hair’s breadth away from reaching his goal. 

As a result, the biggest gap on his to-do list was actually the fields. 

The fields…! 

That’s it! 

Jian Xingyi looked around. “This place is so remote, and the essence value is so high—it feels like the perfect spot to buy some land!” Jian Xingyi walked around, looking for a suitable plot of open land, when he suddenly froze. 

Amidst the flowerbeds, he spotted an inconspicuous gravestone. 

The tombstone was almost completely hidden by weeds and sea god flowers, but Jian Xingyi crouched down and cleared away the overgrowth. 

—Colonel 

Unlike the heroes’ graves on Peace Mountain, this headstone bore only two hastily scrawled characters, with no inscription whatsoever. Jian Xingyi murmured, “So that’s it…” 

Now he understood why the system had teleported them here. This was the colonel from the memory bubble. 

In the memory bubble, the colonel had said he was heading to the front lines. Perhaps that was why he had fallen in battle, and perhaps he had died somewhere nearby, which explained why the tombstone was here. 

Jian Xingyi said, “I wonder why the colonel’s gravestone is separated from the other five heroes, situated in this remote corner?” Shanhai speculated, “Based on your story, perhaps the colonel died earlier, while the five heroes all perished together in the final battle against the zombie horde.” That made sense.

Since they were already here, Jian Xingyi and Shanhai worked together to clean the tombstone, then picked a sea god flower to offer as an offering. Unlike the five heroes, there were no achievements or rewards; this tombstone wasn’t even registered in the system—utterly unknown. 

That’s just… too lonely. 

Jian Xingyi took one last look at the tombstone. After they finished paying their respects, Jian Xingyi continued exploring the area and found a suitable plot of land. 

This plot was the largest on the entire small, desolate island, and as a result… it was extremely expensive. 

It was arguably the most expensive plot of land Jian Xingyi had encountered so far, but at the same time, it offered the highest score and the most Grade A farmland. 

Although it was priced at 13 million—1 million more than the Flag-Raising Mountain Spirit Tomb—it offered a whopping 280 points and 40 plots of Grade A farmland!! 

Forty Grade A fields… 

That’s a massive number. It’s a bit pricey, but it’s a great deal. 

Jian Xingyi chuckled softly, wondering if this was a blessing from the Colonel. 

After Jian Xingyi purchased the land, the goal set by the Merchants’ Guild regarding land acquisition… was now fully achieved!! This was the first goal Jian Xingyi had completed, and he happily checked it off his list. 

【Xingxing’s Goal: Reach Peaceful Mountain 

and Open the Letter】 Collect 70/70 B rank or higher fields √ 

Collect Essence Points 7355/7500 

Raise funds: 465 million / 500 million 

Essence Points and Dawn Coins are almost there; the guild’s establishment is within reach. With the land purchased, after exploring the deserted island, Jian Xingyi and Shanhai decided to leave. 

After summoning and boarding the ship, Jian Xingyi began idly tapping around the edge of the deck again. Who knew that randomly tapping on sea creatures could yield quite a bit of essence? With a bit of luck, there might even be some good loot…?! 

【Player 【Xinghe】 has successfully obtained Salt!】 

【Detected that Player 【Xinghe】 has reached Management Level 8 or higher, unlocking the 【Salt】 crafting recipe】

Jian Xingyi’s eyes lit up. 

Salt?! 

He opened the recipe and saw that all it took was seawater to craft salt! 

Then why hadn’t he gotten anything after tapping the seawater so many times before, yet it dropped this time? Jian Xingyi asked Shanhai, “Where are we right now?” 

Shanhai replied, “The deserted island we were on is near the edge of the map—specifically, the air wall of Wave Mountain.” No wonder it was so remote and deserted… 

No wonder he was able to obtain salt here—if the area beyond the air wall is a backup of reality, then this is the closest point to the real world. In any case, he’d been fantasizing about salt for ages. 

Now that he’d finally obtained it, his food would no longer taste like the system’s default flavor—it would have so many more possibilities!! Jian Xingyi opened the salt in her backpack. 

【Salt】 

【Function: Not only adds flavor to recipes, but also 【System not yet unlocked】】 

Besides flavor, are there other effects? 

But it seems this function hasn’t been unlocked yet. Jian Xingyi couldn’t help but feel a sense of anticipation. 

Shanhai was sailing toward the 【Beyond the Sea】 guild; they were about to meet up with them and head to Peaceful Mountain together. Jian Xingyi thought to himself, it seemed he was just one step away from opening the doctor’s letter…