Chapter 543 Set Item?
The war between the union and the Arc of Light started without warning and ended just as abruptly. However, everything was settled now. Arc of Light announced that it had reached a settlement with the union and promised to stop hunting for the four murderers. Everyone knew how they had managed to bring the union down, and even if Shen Xixi managed to keep the four ‘murderers’ alive, the union couldn’t return to its previous state. Arc of Light was clearly the winner in this war, and the union, the obvious loser.
The union was now less than a tenth of its original size and dominated by independent player groups. The large and small guilds working with the union had left before midnight and were too embarrassed to ask to rejoin. After the war, everyone was well aware of Arc of Light’s goal—they would not allow anyone to form the third-largest faction or union in this city. Hence, no one in their right mind would go against their will.
Zhang Heng met Shen Xixi in the cafeteria that night. She sat in the corner alone, eating a bowl of barbecued-meat rice. Thanks to the rumors, no one would eat with her anymore. Even her own dorm’s residents refused to befriend her, where everyone deliberately avoided her. It was as if she was carrying some kind of plague.
Shen Xixi, however, took it all in lightly. After all, there were too many things that required her attention. This wasn’t the time to spend energy on such trivial matters. She ate and read a book at the same time, her face showing not the slightest concern.
Suddenly, a plate was placed opposite her. Shen Xixi looked a little surprised. She raised her head to see that the person was Zhang Heng. “Are you reading a book about self-cultivation?” Zhang Heng pointed to the book she was reading.
“Yeah! I’ve been missing out a lot, and I read it when I’ve got the time,” said Shen Xixi, adding, “This game will end one day, and we will return to normal life, right?”
“I hope so,” Zhang Heng looked at Shen Xixi and signaled with his eyes to ask if he could sit facing her.
She nodded.
“If and when this matter comes to an end, what do you want to do after graduation?”
“Me?”
It was rare to see a spot of embarrassment on Shen Xixi’s face. “I… want to open a pet store. It’s a dream I’ve had since I was ten. I’ve told nobody about it, not even Rabbit or Li Bai. You are the first to know. Remember to visit my shop when my dream comes true.”
“Definitely. Inform me when your pet shop is open for business.”
“What about you?” Shen Xixi asked after a sip of her millet porridge.
“I don’t know, I have never thought about these. The old me wanted to live life according to the way he likes… Nothing has changed. Maybe I will go on a trip first. There are so many places in the world that we haven’t been to and the life we’ve never seen before. I wish I could experience it all if possible.” Zhang Heng said.
“I wish you a smooth journey in advance then.” Shen Xixi picked up the bowl of millet porridge.
“I also wish your pet shop a prosperous business,” responded Zhang Heng as he picked his bowl of seaweed soup.
The two did not talk too much about the game because it was a public place, after all. All kinds of people would pass them from time to time. Nobody would understand or believe what they had been through so far.
Five minutes later, Shen Xixi finished the barbecued-meat rice in the bowl, wiped her mouth, and looked at Zhang Heng. Zhang Heng has almost finished his food as well. Maybe he had been with Holmes for too long, that his eating speed had slowed down a lot since finishing the last game. Quote from Sherlock Holmes—This was the way a gentleman should be eating. It was actually not that bad. Eating slowly enable the person to chew the food more thoroughly and made it easier to digest. And now Zhang Heng has developed a rhythm in eating. Shen Xixi saw the way Zhang Heng ate, and she was fascinated by it. Secretly, she hoped that he could eat a little longer.
It was not until Zhang Heng put down the chopsticks that Shen Xixi realized that she had been staring at him for some time. Suddenly, she felt embarrassed to ask the questions that she wanted to ask.
After that, Zhang Heng raised his eyebrows at Shen Xixi, “I have finished eating, and there is still an elective course that I have to attend in the evening. I will take off. Take car!”
“You too.” Shen Xixi watched Zhang Heng stood up and walked to the counter to return his food tray. She had indeed suspected that the mysterious sniper who caused a lot of trouble to Arc of Light last night was Zhang Heng. After forming the union, she had made a lot of friends. However, none of them was outstanding in marksmanship and close-quarters combat. Zhang Heng’s strength had always been a mystery to her. Shen Xixi and Zhang Heng had not been through the same quest together. The only time when they worked together was during Han Lu’s case, where they entered her dream to end the Dreamland of Death’s curse.
However, the situation was quite special at that time. After entering the dream state, everyone was separated. Zhang Heng was with Hypnos, and in the end, Shen Xixi did not know why Hypnos gave up and left. It must have had something to do with Zhang Heng-In other words, among so many players, only Zhang Heng had successfully solved the Dreamland of Death’s curse. Not even the three major guilds could deal with it.
However, Shen Xixi was a little shaken during the meal just now. Justitia mentioned that the mysterious sniper had unimaginable evil in his body. After knowing Zhang Heng for so long, she was sure that Zhang Heng might not do everything out of justice. However, the latter did have its own rules of conduct, with a bottom line and principles, far from evil.
Therefore, Shen Xixi decided not to ask him about it and watched him leave instead.
Since the time between afternoon and evening class wasn’t long, so Zhang Heng went directly to the classroom after eating. He did not want to tell Shen Xixi that he was the mysterious sniper last night. Firstly, he did not do it to her gratitude. Secondly, his plan was executed halfway through and was interrupted by the old man. Technically speaking, he did not help much. Hence, it did not matter to him whether Shen Xixi knew about it.
After evening class was over, Zhang Heng ran to the parking lot outside the school and opened his Polo’s trunk. He risked his life to help Shen Xixi and the union to go against Arc of Light, working hard through night, but it wasn’t without gain. During that time, he killed several of Arc of Light’s assault team and collected some game items.
Since he was in the real world, he did not receive any notification from the system. Hence, he did not know whether the items that he took from them was game item. Besides, the Arc of light did not leave him too much time to take care of his enemies. Hence, he must end the fight as fast as possible. And he could only make use of his experience to collect those game items.
But there was one thing that Zhang Heng sure of. The necklace pattern that he acquired from the man with wings was very familiar to Zhang Heng’s Shadow Moment. The crow’s image, coupled with the Shadow Key that he had, these three things were obviously from the same set of items that remind Zhang Heng of the concept of set items in this game. Now, he just needed to figure out how to put these three things together.