Chapter 114: Faction Clash (Revised)

Resolved the bed‑ownership issue, and Ying Duo seemed to have hit his limit.

Today, after running around outside investigating, taking part in a warehouse melee, and returning to school, he played games for a long time.

Almost the moment his head touched the pillow, his eyelids closed, his breathing instantly became even and long, and he fell into deep sleep.

Just as Luo Jinyou was about to freshen up, he saw the scene and his mouth twitched again.

He looked at Ying Duo, who hadn't even covered himself with the blanket, hesitated, then resignedly walked over and clumsily pulled the blanket over Ying Duo's body.

He covered the dust‑specked hoodie, and also observed the other's side face—still expressionless even in sleep—and the green hair that stubbornly emitted a faint glow in the dormitory.

After doing all that, Luo Jinyou returned to his familiar, comfortable little nest and habitually hugged the Starry Sky Rabbit Plush at the foot of the bed.

He turned off the main light, leaving only Ying Duo's hair still stubbornly emitting a faint green glow.

Luo Jinyou glanced at the green halo, sighed, and buried his face into the rabbit plush.

At least he doesn't have to turn on a night light.

With that self‑comforting thought, he gradually drifted into dreamland.

————————————————

The next morning, at dawn, Luo Jinyou was still playing chess with Zhou Gong when a ruthless shaking jolted him awake.

He groggily opened his eyes, and what met his gaze was a dazzling swath of Ying Guang Lu.

Ying Duo was already standing at his bedside, holding a game controller, his hollow golden eyes seeming to flash.

"Get up, how can someone as young as you still be sleeping? Keep grinding."

Luo Jinyou's brain froze for three seconds before he fully broke free from the dream.

He looked at the invigorated Ying Duo, still a bit dazed.

"What time is it now? Did you forget you have class today? It's not the weekend!"

He glanced at the in‑game time, then calculated the route and travel time from the dormitory to the teaching building; playing now would indeed be cutting it close.

In short, his agility is just too low.

Finally, Ying Duo could only reluctantly give up the game.

He stood in place, tilted his head to think, and wasn't ready to abandon raising affection.

What does Luo Jinyou like?

Games.

With that in mind, Ying Duo began rummaging through his own backpack, trying to find something related to games.

He searched for ages, finally pulling out an item.

It was a small robot wreck about the size of a palm, missing a leg, with a few exposed wires still attached at the joints.

The Ying Guang Lu effect quickly enveloped it, the Modification skill activated, and soon a tidy, as‑new small robot emerged repaired.

Ying Duo handed this "gift" to Luo Jinyou, his tone still flat.

"A meeting gift."

???

This kind of robot… I stopped playing with them at three.

Luo Jinyou hesitated for a few seconds, then finally reached out and took the shabby robot, forcing a slight smile and dryly saying.

"…Thank you." He truly didn't know how to evaluate this on‑the‑spot "generous gift."

No, or rather…

"A return gift?"

Ying Duo stared intently at Luo Jinyou, as if waiting for a System Prompt sound.

However, the imagined affection‑increase prompt for Luo Jinyou never appeared.

He felt a bit regretful.

As expected, the gift type was wrong and couldn't raise affection.

Since the gifting strategy failed, Ying Duo no longer dwelled on it.

He turned without hesitation, walked straight out of the dormitory, leaving the still‑staring Luo Jinyou alone in the room.

Luo Jinyou looked at the post‑modern wasteland‑art style "gift" in his hand, then at the slammed dorm door, and could only sigh helplessly, carefully placing the thing in the corner of his desk.

Fine, at least it's a bit better than stealing his bed and forcing him to game all night… right?

——————————————

When Ying Duo entered the classroom with his signature green hair, the previously noisy room fell noticeably silent.

Countless gazes swept over him.

Yesterday, his being expelled on the spot by Professor Gu Siyuan and his jubilant escape, after fermenting all night, remained their hottest discussion topic.

Ying Duo was oblivious to all this, walked straight to the window‑side seat in the back row, sat down, and entered standby mode, eyes vacant, staring out the window.

Everything around him was irrelevant, just waiting for the NPCs to arrive to show him what a class actually does.

The students whispered, but no one dared approach him.

In their eyes, the freshman Ying Duo was still too odd; keeping distance was wise.

When class time arrived, the classroom door was opened promptly.

Professor Gu Siyuan entered carrying the lesson plan, his gaze habitually sweeping the room; when it passed the back‑row swath of Ying Guang Lu, he paused briefly, eyes narrowing slightly.

However, he wasn't here to lecture today.

He placed the lesson plan on the podium, hands braced on the desk, and got straight to the point.

"Today I have an announcement regarding this cohort's entrance assessment."

A small stir rose in the classroom.

Gu Siyuan ignored it, continuing to announce the school's decision.

"This year's assessment format has undergone major reform; it no longer has each department conducting separate theory or practical tests, but adopts a 'Camp Confrontation' mode."

"Camp Confrontation?"

"Our Manufacturing Department also has to participate?"

"Are you kidding? We're supposed to go to the research institute later, not the front lines!"

Complaints erupted from the audience instantly.

Most Manufacturing Department students aim to enter the Church Research Institute, so they naturally reject assessment formats involving fighting.

Gu Siyuan pushed up his glasses, and the gaze behind the lenses swept over the faces below—some dissatisfied, some panicked—and he coldly suppressed their voices.

"What's the rush? No one expects you to grab a wrench and fight the Combat Department's gorillas."

He paused, his tone carrying a hint of sarcasm.

"The main purpose of this assessment is to train your 'battlefield survival and adaptability', especially—your ability to flee."

His gaze drifted again, intentionally or not, toward the last row, where a green figure was still in AFK State, and he added pointedly.

"After all, if someday the research institute is raided by Aberrant Species, or some other sudden emergency occurs, you wouldn't be completely clueless about how to effectively avoid danger and keep your own life, would you? Learning a bit more about running away can't hurt."

He said it very bluntly, and many students showed embarrassed expressions.

Some quick‑witted ones, already following Gu Siyuan's gaze, recalled yesterday's textbook‑level 'instant evacuation' performance by a certain classmate, and couldn't help glancing back secretly.

All else aside, when it comes to fleeing, Ying Duo is definitely a professional.

Gu Siyuan looked at the students' varied expressions, said no more, and began briefly outlining the assessment's timing and general rules.