Online Game: Me, with Unparalleled Comprehension

The two ate in silence. The only sounds in the courtyard were the soft rustling of bamboo leaves and the occasional faint shouts from the street in the distance.

Halfway through the meal, Wu Feng looked up at her.

He said, "I have to go out for a bit, I might be back later."

Wu Xingyun paused in her chewing, looked up at him, nodded, and continued eating.

After finishing the last bite of the pancake, Wu Feng put down his bowl and wiped his hands with a cloth. "Go back inside and rest. Don't go outside."

Wu Xingyun nodded.

Wu Feng got up and went back to his room. He bolted the door, opened the control panel, and logged off.

The soft sound of the hatch sliding open was particularly clear in the quiet room.

Wu Feng opened his eyes, sat up, and rubbed his temples.

I managed to get out of the game pod by holding onto the edge.

I put on a coat, grabbed my phone and keys, opened the door, and went outside.

The city outside has already woken up.

The morning light blurred the colors. People were jogging on the street, and breakfast stalls had set up their tents, with steam rising and the aroma of food wafting through the air.

He found a breakfast shop and sat down on a plastic stool at the entrance.

"A bowl of soy milk, two fried dough sticks, and a basket of steamed buns," he said to the shopkeeper.

"Okay."

While waiting for his food, he took out his phone, unlocked it, and opened the official forum for "Jianghu Dream".

The update announcement is pinned to the top of the homepage.

He clicked on it and read down line by line.

Companion System: You can form a companion system with NPCs or other players. After forming a companion system with an NPC, that NPC will become your battle partner, growing and fighting together. Companion NPCs can equip weapons and armor, learn martial arts manuals, and increase their affinity to unlock more interactions.

Partner System: Players can form partner relationships with NPCs whose affinity reaches "Mutual Understanding" or higher. Partner NPCs can accompany players on adventures, participate in battles, and share experiences. Each player can have a maximum of four partners.

好感度系统：NPC好感度分为五个等级——素昧平生（0）、萍水相逢（1-200）、点头之交（201-499）、意气相投（500-999）、生死之交（1000+）。好感度达到相应等级可解锁不同奖励和互动选项。

Direct Currency Exchange: In-game currency can be directly exchanged for real money, in silver taels. The initial exchange rate is 1 tael of silver = 1000 RMB. In-game currency will be deducted immediately after the exchange, while real money will be credited to your linked bank account within 24 hours. The exchange rate will fluctuate based on the quantity purchased and sold.

Wu Feng read through them one by one, then rolled his eyes.

Why open it now of all times?

Previously, those wealthy individuals were happily buying gold at 1,400 taels each, but now the official exchange rate is set at 1,000 taels, meaning the silver in their inventory has instantly shrunk by 30-40%. They've suffered a huge loss.

But then I thought, it might be good to open it.

At least it will be easier to exchange money in the future. I won't have to go to those gold dealers anymore, I won't have to worry about being cheated, and I won't have to go through all that trouble.

He'll just have to accept the loss; he doesn't have time to go back and talk to the rich guy now.

After carefully reviewing the details of the companion system and partner system, he raised an eyebrow slightly.

NPCs who become partners can help in battle, equip weapons and armor, and learn martial arts manuals—isn't that like having another combat unit that can be trained?

The favorability system is also clearly defined, with five levels, and rewards can be unlocked upon reaching a certain level.

He thought of Duan Yu, and the time in Dali. Saving Duan Yu only earned him a dozen or so points of favorability.

Based on this classification, it's just a casual acquaintance, far from the point where NPCs would give gifts.

I thought of Wu Xingyun again. I wonder what level of affection I have for him now?

He leaned back in the plastic chair, squinted, and thought for a moment.

Since leaving Lingjiu Palace, I have accompanied her all the way, provided her with food and lodging, bought her clothes, never asked about her background, and never pressured her.

This kind of interaction suggests a high level of mutual affection.

At least it's better than Duan Yu's chance encounter.

The owner brought over a tray with soy milk, fried dough sticks, and steamed buns laid out on the table.

He put away his phone, picked up his chopsticks, and focused on the food in front of him.

After finishing our meal and paying the bill, we took a walk back to our accommodation. I took a hot shower and changed into clean pajamas.

It's still early, only eight o'clock, and the game maintenance isn't over yet.

Wu Feng sat down on the sofa, sinking into the soft fabric, and picked up his phone to open the game forum.

The most prominent position on the homepage displays the real-time online user statistics: 68,730,000.

He stared at the number for a few seconds, raising an eyebrow slightly.

This number is a bit frightening. I remember when the server first launched, there were only a few million concurrent users. In less than two months, that number has increased more than tenfold.

No wonder the official team is so eager to open up the currency exchange function. With a large player base and increased transaction volume, the official team can make a fortune by taking a cut of the transaction fees.

He leaned back on the sofa, his fingers swiping across the screen.

The forum has exploded. In just a few hours, the number of new posts has exceeded ten thousand, and the information feed on the homepage can't keep up with the volume.

Everyone is taking advantage of the downtime during maintenance to flock to the forum and chat.

He randomly clicked on the most popular post.

The title reads: "[Companion System Explained: How to Bring Your Favorite NPC Home]".

The poster wrote several thousand words, analyzing everything from how to gain favorability to gift-giving tips, from dialogue options to task triggering conditions, in a very logical and thorough manner.

The comments below have already reached over two thousand, all of them discussing their favorite NPCs.

Wu Feng scrolled down a few pages and saw a post with a screenshot.

She is an ordinary female NPC, the proprietress of the town's inn, around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with her hair in a bun, wearing a coarse cloth apron, and smiling as she holds a tray.

Her features weren't exactly stunning, but her eyes and brows were curved, giving her a gentle and down-to-earth charm.

The comments section below was filled with howls of wolves:

"This is great! This is so down-to-earth!"

"Famous NPCs are too difficult to befriend; only the ordinary ones offer a chance."

"I've saved the screenshot. I'll go find her in that town as soon as I log on!"

Wu Feng twitched the corner of his mouth. He exited the thread and browsed other posts.

There isn't much discussion about direct currency exchange; occasionally a few posts do the math, but they're mostly just simple questions.

On the contrary, the topics of the companion system and partner system are extremely popular, with almost one in three posts discussing how to win over NPCs.

Some people posted photos of their favorite NPCs, some analyzed how to gain favorability with NPCs from different factions, and some even started a poll asking "Who is the female NPC you most want to romance?"

He casually clicked on the poll post and glanced at it.

The options were listed in a long string, ranging from well-known NPCs to ordinary NPCs, from chivalrous women to young ladies from noble families, and even a few nuns and Taoist nuns.

Li Qinglu ranked fifth, with a considerable number of votes.

Wu Feng shook his head; this was getting more and more elaborate.

The game company probably anticipated that players would react this way, so they simply went with the flow and made the companion system a formal feature.

He browsed the forum for a while longer, looking through other posts.

Some people posted screenshots of their accumulated contribution points, asking if these points could still be used after Murong Fu's death; others complained that the Murong family's power had collapsed, and that they had worked for nothing.

Someone even posted an analysis of the impact of Murong Fu's death on the subsequent plot, writing it in great detail, and the replies below were full of "Awesome, master."

He looked through them one by one, his finger swiping across the screen.

I checked the time. 8:47. There are still thirteen minutes left until maintenance ends.

He put his phone on the coffee table, leaned back on the sofa, and closed his eyes.