Above the clouds, countless wandering spirit creatures floated as glittering particles of light shimmered among them. Dragons rolled through the clouds, churning up waves in the sea of clouds below and occasionally letting out a realistic-sounding roar.
It all resembled a fairytale paradise.
A large door, crafted from a water-like mirror, hung in the sky. Waves rippled within its surface, and iridescent characters glowed above it.
[“Carefree Wanderings” Second Server · Eastern Continent · Login Point #138]
Today was the opening day for the second server of the full-dive game “Carefree Wanderings.” Players stood in line before the door, waiting to enter the game.
Jiang Ye lounged apart from the crowd, lying on a couch formed of white clouds. She lazily crossed her legs and yawned.
She had already waited two hours.
Jiang Ye glanced over at the watery gate.
On the door, a plump little long-tailed tit bird was using its wings to cradle a megaphone, calling out in a loud voice, “Player 319424, please enter to create your character and start your game adventure.”
The moment she heard that number, Jiang Ye perked up.
Just one more and it would be her turn!
She got up, and the cloud bed beneath her diffused, merging into the sea of clouds.
Jiang Ye ambled toward the crowd, only to realize, once she drew near, that the people had formed a circle.
A throng of players had crowded together, caught up in the spectacle.
Jiang Ye wandered over and took a glance.
A beastfolk girl was being bullied.
She had a pair of fluffy white cat ears, the insides pink and the tips sporting a tuft of clever little fur. Her eyes were as blue as Lake Baikal beneath a clear sky.
Seeing her, Jiang Ye was instantly reminded of a stray cat she had once taken in back on Blue Star.
Pure white fur, blue eyes, standoffish but became spoiled after being brought home, always purring for attention, soft and cuddly but shed a lot.
Fixing her gaze on the cat-eared beastgirl, Jiang Ye’s hands itched to reach out.
The girl was small, and a transparent number—319424—floated above her head.
She glared at the man gripping her wrist, snapping fiercely, “Let go of me!”
The man didn’t look very old, but a bald patch claimed his crown, leaving only a few strands of hair.
“So you’re a little beastfolk, trying to play games too?” He grinned, leering, and deliberately tugged the girl’s slender white cat tail. “Big brother here hasn’t seen a beastfolk in a while. How about this—you give me your spot, let me enter first, and I’ll let you go.”
How could the girl take this? She gritted her teeth and bared her claws, swiping for his eyes. The man flinched, dodging, but didn’t let go. His lecherous hand was sliding up the girl’s tail.
Jiang Ye rolled her eyes. Were there men who only thought with their lower half even in outer space?
Irritated, she grabbed a handful of cloud, picturing it as a rock in her mind, and hurled it at the man.
She had figured this out when she first entered this waiting zone: the game company had hidden an Easter egg in the queueing area. The clouds here could change their form and properties according to the user’s will.
When the cloud ball shot toward him, the man didn’t think much of it, but it seemed to grow eyes and smashed directly into his wrist bone with a crack, breaking it.
The onlookers gasped, “Whoa! You can do that?”
“Aaagh!” The balding man yelped in pain, clutching his wrist and forced to release the girl’s tail. He looked around, fuming, and shouted, “Who did that? Who dared to hit me?!”
Jiang Ye stretched lazily as she stepped into view, facing the man with a raised brow and a look of wild provocation, positioning herself between him and the cat-eared girl.
Stunned for a moment, the girl tugged Jiang Ye’s sleeve and whispered a quiet, “Thank you.”
Jiang Ye’s hand moved before her mind did—probably a reflex from being a cat owner.
She reached out and ruffled the girl’s hair. Sure enough, the cat ears felt as lovely as she’d hoped.
The girl instinctively rubbed into Jiang Ye’s palm.
They both felt a bit awkward when they realized what they were doing.
Jiang Ye coughed softly and withdrew her hand.
A blush crept over the catgirl’s cheeks, her ears twitching pink. After a pause, she murmured another thank you and dashed off toward the login gate. The little cat’s body leapt and was transformed into light as she entered the doorway.
With his prey escaped, the man’s anger boiled over. He looked Jiang Ye up and down with a sneer. “And who are you? Black hair and black eyes—just some low-grade interstellar riffraff. Think you can get in my way?”
Jiang Ye stared at him coldly.
A month ago, she had transmigrated from Blue Star to a trash planet in the Dalibik Empire star system.
The star system was divided into five major circles, beyond which were the wasteland planets.
Here, your genetic and spiritual strength determined your status.
According to the Empire, people with black hair and black eyes like Jiang Ye, regardless of their spirit power, were prone to genetic instability and mental breakdowns. So double-black types were usually ranked as E-class.
This was why the balding man looked down on Jiang Ye.
Unmoved, Jiang Ye stuck her hands in her pockets, lifted her chin, and replied provocatively, “Never mind my hair color—I have hair. Do you? At least I’m not a balding young man with a Mediterranean hairline!”
After being roasted to his face, the man was furious. He frantically grabbed at his head, and a handful of hair fell loose into his palm. That made him angrier, and he swung a fist at Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye dodged nimbly, weaving her way to the watery entrance.
The plump bird was just announcing her number.
As soon as Jiang Ye heard her number, she turned around and, without hesitation, kicked backward, aiming squarely between the man’s legs.
She hadn't entered the game yet and couldn’t adjust the pain settings.
So the balding man was in agony, howling, “Aaaagh!”
Pain forced him to collapse to the ground, legs pressed together, clutching himself as sweat beaded on his contorted face.
The crowd gasped, “Ouch!”
Someone even clapped. “Great kick!”
The pain had exceeded his threshold and triggered a hardware warning. He had to leave the game to stop the agony.
Before logging out, the man glared at Jiang Ye, eyes nearly popping with rage. “If you’ve got guts, tell me your real name! And your game ID!”
“My name is Descendant of the Dragon, and my ID is 'The one with black hair is your dad.'”
His face twisted in fury. As he tried to reach for Jiang Ye one last time before exiting—
Jiang Ye leaned back coolly and closed her eyes, tumbling into the game portal.
The expected sense of free-fall didn’t come. When she reopened her eyes, Jiang Ye was floating in a blank white expanse, surrounded by dazzling bands of colored light.
The plump bird flitted over and scanned her head to toe with beady eyes, issuing a warning.
“Player 319425, the login device you’re using has been detected to have malfunctions and has been classified as a factory-rejected defective product that should have been destroyed. Continuing to use this device may cause unforeseeable issues and affect your experience. Do you still wish to proceed?”
Living on a trash planet, Jiang Ye had pressured a crooked boss to let her buy the login device on credit. She sighed. “Continue.”
“If you can provide your proof of purchase and order number, we can replace your login device now. Delivery to your door within three days, tweet~”
“Continue.”
Even if the game company wanted to replace it, she wouldn’t dare.
This device was basically black market tech. How could she exchange it?
The bird still looked to persuade her. Sensing its intent, Jiang Ye said directly, “I promise to take full responsibility for anything that goes wrong if I continue to log in. It has nothing to do with your company. Can we proceed now? I am in a hurry to enter.”
The bird sounded pleased, fluttering as it helped Jiang Ye finish character creation.
Not good at picking names, Jiang Ye used the game’s random name generator.
Character ID: A Leaf Boat.
When it came to customizing her appearance, the bird reminded her cheerfully, “You can adjust your appearance however you like, even changing your hair and eye color.”
“No need, just start the game.”
“Character created. Now, your adventure in 'Carefree Wanderings' begins. Have a great game.”
White light flashed before Jiang Ye’s eyes, morphing into a dazzling galaxy. She seemed to be speeding through a cosmic tunnel, bands of starlight streaming past so quickly that individual stars stretched into streaks. After watching for a long time, Jiang Ye had to shut her eyes. Just as she started feeling nauseous, everything suddenly slowed.
She felt herself touch gently down. Opening her eyes, Jiang Ye was ready to take the game world by storm.
She was silent when she saw her surroundings.
An endless ocean spread before her, the sun reflecting diamonds on the waves and making it seem as if a thousand jewels were drifting across the sea. There was nothing but ocean as far as the eye could see. No sign whatsoever of any continent.
Jiang Ye looked down and saw that the island beneath her feet was barely four square meters—not even as big as the bathroom back home.
A coconut tree took up half the space, making her turn with extreme caution lest she tumble straight into the sea.
What was going on here?
Jiang Ye was terrified of deep water. She didn't dare stand at the edge, afraid one misstep would see her swallowed up by the sea.
She curled up beside the tree, hugging the trunk in a sloth-like grip as if it was her only safety.
Jiang Ye called for her in-game newbie guide.
The plump bird zipped in, voice sweet. “Dear player, is there anything I can help you with?”
Jiang Ye forced the tremor from her voice. “What exactly is going on?”
“You are now in the novice village, you can—” Upon opening his beady eyes and taking in the situation, the little bird's cutesy tone transformed into a boorish, rough squawk. “What the hell! What is this!”
He flapped in panic, flying around wildly. “Where is this? How are you here?”
Jiang Ye’s face was deathly pale. “Do I look like I know?”
The bird cleared his throat, returning to his sweet voice: “Dear player, perhaps try logging out and logging back in.”
Jiang Ye pulled up the menu and tried to exit.
She tapped it twenty more times.
Nothing happened. Everything was normal, but no response.
Jiang Ye was getting anxious. “My exit button isn’t working. What should I do?”
“I TOLD YOU to replace your login device, and you still went in, why would you do that—!!!”
“Poor people can’t be picky,” Jiang Ye grumbled, running a hand through her hair. After a pause, she asked, “Is this a bug? If I die here, will I be sent to the respawn point in the novice village?”
The little bird’s eyes lit up. “You can try!”
Heart steeled, Jiang Ye set the pain sensitivity to minimum and slammed her head into the coconut tree.
Smack!
A red message popped up above her head.
[-1]
She checked her character panel. At level one, her starting HP was 100. In other words, she'd have to bash her head 99 more times to “suicide.”
The bird suggested, “Dear player, you can also choose to drown. Once your stamina runs out underwater, you can suffocate to death and return to the respawn point! An all-new way to die! Faster than bashing your head, tweet tweet!”
Suffocating sounded even worse than headbutting a tree!
Gritting her teeth, Jiang Ye clung to the coconut tree and kept ramming it.
After eighty-eight hits, her HP was down to 11.
She was dizzy, seeing stars.
Suddenly, a coconut dropped to the ground.
Having sweated under the sun smashing her head, Jiang Ye was exhausted.
This full-dive game was so realistic that even her physical condition was simulated.
She felt parched, painfully so.
Sitting by the tree, she picked up the coconut and smashed it against her head.
Crack!
[-1]
She lost another point of HP. A crack ran through the coconut shell.
She pried it open and looked at the clear juice inside, then gulped it down.
Right as she finished drinking, regret flooded her.
[System: After drinking fresh coconut water, a sweet spring revitalizes your life, nourishing your soul. You feel wonderful—your HP is now 200.]
Had all that headbanging been for nothing?!
Just as Jiang Ye was despairing, another system alert sounded.
[System: Congratulations on discovering a new way to use coconuts! EXP +1000, Level 1, island expanded by 1 square meter!]
[System: Congratulations on unlocking the Island Collector achievement, current progress 1/100. Keep it up!]
Jiang Ye stared blankly at the notifications.
She asked the bird, “What’s going on? Explain.”
The bird began to sweat profusely.
It was over. Completely over!
Why had a feature meant for the next update appeared early?!
If the main game's dual AIs found out about this bug…
Horrified at the thought, the bird rolled his eyes and fainted dead away, his little soul fluttering up from his beak.
Jiang Ye crouched down and poked at the little body.
The little bird, soft and fluffy, didn't move—seemed truly unconscious.
Jiang Ye sighed.
Honestly, this full-dive game’s stress tolerance was pathetic. The customer service workers at her old game company back on Blue Star were more reliable!
She stuffed the little bird into her pocket, squeezed into the tree’s shadow, and took in her surroundings.
Vast ocean everywhere—a single person, a bird, a tree, an island.
A gentle sea breeze, peaceful and pleasant, like a seaside vacation.
Except not at all!
Jiang Ye was overwhelmed with anxiety. Right now, she wanted to know only one thing.
What exactly did she need to do to get back to the normal game world?!