The first thing Qin Chuan did after logging into the game was open his friends list.

"Peppermint Tea"'s avatar was lit up, showing she was online.

He sent a message, but she didn't reply for a long time.

Qin Chuan clicked on "Peppermint Tea"'s profile and found that she was in a party.

"Eight Whiskers" wasn't around either, which meant "Peppermint Tea" was in a party with someone else.

Qin Chuan used his main account to fight a few PK matches on the Celestial Ascension Platform. Every time he came out of the arena, he would glance at his friend messages.

It never blinked.

"Peppermint Tea" was still in a party.

Qin Chuan looked at his own friends list.

Even though this account of his was his main, possessing the number one combat power on the server, the people he usually interacted with were actually not that many. The other high-combat-power players would only exchange a few words when partying up for dungeons. More often, it was either bored low-level accounts coming over to chat him up or low-level accounts asking for all kinds of help.

As for close friends, aside from "Peppermint Tea" and "Eight Whiskers," there were none.

Qin Chuan knew that as long as he was willing, if he formed a party now and called out in the public channel, countless people would immediately respond and join. There were plenty who had higher combat power than "Peppermint Tea" and her group, but these people were like shifting sand, gathering and dispersing in an instant, coming and going in a flash, scattering with a gust of wind, and wouldn't leave the slightest imprint in his memory.

But Bo He was different from Qin Chuan.

She had many friends in the game. Perhaps their combat power was very average, but as long as she called out, a group of friends would gather around her. Just like last time when they were dealing with "Shield of Zeus," before Qin Chuan's main account showed up, it seemed like Bo He and her group were at a disadvantage. But in reality, "Shield of Zeus" spent every day chasing and trying to kill Bo He, and often failed because someone would tip her off or obstruct them. After a few times, "Shield of Zeus" also deeply regretted it, but an arrow once shot cannot be recalled. At the time, they couldn't bring themselves to lose face and give up the chase.

Some people are naturally good at making friends, like "Peppermint Tea." When she first started playing the game, perhaps using a male character saved her a lot of trouble, but now, even if she revealed her gender, it would no longer affect her popularity in the game.

Because in others' eyes, "Peppermint Tea" was forthright and generous, would go through fire and water for her friends, and was extremely loyal, which had little to do with her gender.

In this aspect, most people fell far short.

"Peppermint Tea" without "An Endless Stream" could still be like a fish in water.

"An Endless Stream" without "Peppermint Tea," however, didn't even have a single person to chat with.

Of course, Qin Chuan didn't need to find people in the game for idle chat. If he was willing, in reality, there were plenty of people, of all shapes and sizes, who would come to him, for him to choose from.

The friend message finally started blinking.

He clicked it open, and sure enough, it was "Peppermint Tea."

Peppermint Tea: Disciple, you're here. Whiskers just logged off. He said he hasn't seen you online these past two days. Your schoolwork must be busy, huh?

Qin Chuan: Yeah, we have exams soon, so my studies are pretty intense.

Peppermint Tea: I'm running a dungeon with your Junior Sister. This dungeon is a bit difficult for her. You should go fight in the arena with others first.

Qin Chuan: About how much longer will you guys need?

Peppermint Tea: Not sure. You're number one in combat power now, and your skills and techniques are better than the average person's. You'll be more than fine just grabbing a random party. It doesn't have to be me. Besides, I'm only at the Core Formation stage; I'll just drag you down.

Qin Chuan: It's fine, I'm used to our fixed party. I don't have good synergy with others.

Peppermint Tea: Whiskers isn't here today either, so we can't form our group. Why don't you go run the dungeon with someone else first? I'll call you when I'm done.

There was a place in Nine Heavens called Mirror Sea Gate.

Mountains and sea overlapped, the sky reflected in the sea, flowers and trees grew together, all in perfect harmony.

The scenery here was so beautiful it made one linger and forget to return, praised as the game's best trysting spot.

Qin Chuan stood by the shore of the Mirror Sea, watching the reflection of the sun on the distant water gradually sink to the west, melting into a purplish-red, hazy afterglow, which then scattered across the firmament, becoming a sky of fine, glittering stars. Yet, he still received no word from "Peppermint Tea."

Just then, several messages popped up in the server's world channel.

Player "Beauty That Topples Cities" has set off an "Endless Lovesickness Firework" for her master "Peppermint Tea." As the saying goes, "When the golden wind and jade dew meet, their single encounter surpasses countless unions in the mortal world!"

Player "Beauty That Topples Cities" makes an affectionate declaration to "Peppermint Tea": Announcing to the whole world, this is my master. I have the best master in the world!

Not long after, two more world messages popped up.

Player "Peppermint Tea" has set off an "Endless Lovesickness Firework" for her disciple "Beauty That Topples Cities." As the saying goes, "When the golden wind and jade dew meet, their single encounter surpasses countless unions in the mortal world!"

Player "Peppermint Tea" makes an affectionate declaration to "Beauty That Topples Cities": I also have the cutest disciple in the world.

Qin Chuan was a little displeased.

He didn't know if this displeasure stemmed from "Peppermint Tea" forgetting their prior arrangement and being busy sending flowers to her new disciple, or from the fact that the attention of one of his only two friends in the game he could chat with was now occupied by this new disciple.

Until she sent him a message.

Peppermint Tea: I was going to look for you to play some battle royale, but I couldn't find you on my QQ friends list. Did you delete me?

Qin Chuan: ...

If she hadn't mentioned it, Qin Chuan himself would have almost forgotten about it.

When Bo He joined the company, she was originally an unknown rookie. If Qin Chuan hadn't personally selected her for the interview list, she wouldn't have made it into the CEO's office.

But she soon made a small mistake sending an email. Although it wasn't a major error, Qin Chuan had already casually judged her as careless and not meticulous.

Not long after, the incident of their chance encounter in the parking lot blew up. Even though it was later indirectly confirmed that Bo He hadn't leaked the news, that some ill-intentioned person had undoubtedly fanned the flames, and that even Bo He's appearance was likely exploited, this also showed that she still wasn't cautious enough.

Qin Chuan had too many things to do every day. Once he had formed a judgment about someone, he wouldn't spend any more time getting to know them in detail, let alone a mere workplace rookie—until he learned of her identity in the game.

The confusion between the real and the virtual made him resolve to pull away.

But the moment he logged back into the game, his resolve was actually not so firm anymore.

If he wanted to draw a clear line with her, now was the perfect opportunity.

He could either say nothing and log off directly. As long as "Peppermint Tea"'s emotional intelligence was normal, it wouldn't be hard for her to understand what that meant, and she would definitely not bother him in the game anymore.

Or he could admit it directly, saying he looked down on her for having such low combat power and disdained to associate with her. Given "Peppermint Tea"'s character, she would presumably not pester him anymore.

Qin Chuan thought for 0.01 seconds and then typed a line in the chat box—

I had exams these past few days and wasn't online. I think my account was hacked.

As expected, she didn't suspect a thing: Then you should hurry and change your password and get your account back. Remember to set a more complex password.

Qin Chuan: Got it. Master, want to run a dungeon?

Peppermint Tea: Sorry, I just promised your Junior Sister I'd do a two-person quest with her.

Qin Chuan: Does she know you're a girl?

Peppermint Tea laughed heartily: What are you thinking! I told her, too. She's a bit older than you, already graduated from university. Even though she's your junior disciple, you can also call her Big Sister.