Versatile Sword Cultivator

Chapter 53 – Game update

"Announcement! In ten minutes, 'Tale of Immortal' will undergo its first major game update. All players will be forcibly logged out. The update will last for 24 hours. Please look forward to it!"

The announcement was repeated three times.

Lin Jichen didn't expect the game to update so soon.

In his previous life, although he started playing a year late, he had heard that the first major update happened more than a month after the game went live.

Why is it happening so quickly this time?

Could it have something to do with him?

Lin Jichen wasn't particularly concerned about the update itself; he was worried that the first update was happening so quickly.

Would the time when the game and reality merge also be brought forward?

There was no answer for now.

Lin Jichen could only resolve to work harder to gain more advantages in the early stages of the game.

With the forced logout imminent, players could still meditate in mindfulness mode during the update time.

Lin Jichen hurried back to the Sword Palace's backyard, where leveling up was fastest.

When players log out to meditate, their characters don't disappear.

If they log out in dangerous places, they could easily be killed and respawn at the spring when they log back in.

But even in safe places, it's important to find areas rich in spiritual energy; otherwise, the experience gained from meditating is pitifully low.

"Sister, thank you so much today. I am deeply grateful."

Nangong Yue gave him a playful glance with her beautiful eyes.

"Do we need to be so formal?"

Lin Jichen understood and smiled sheepishly. "My bad, my bad. By the way, Sister, I'll head back to the Sword Palace now."

"You're leaving already?" Nangong Yue looked a bit reluctant.

The more she looked at Lin Jichen, the more pleasing he seemed to her eyes. She wished she could spend all twelve hours of the day by his side.

"After this experience, I feel I've gained some insights into my cultivation, so I want to go back to the Sword Palace to meditate. Once I'm done, I'll come back to find you."

Lin Jichen found an excuse.

Nangong Yue nodded in understanding. "Cultivation is most important. You should go quickly. It's best if you don't come here for a while; my grandfather is probably still angry. I'll come to find you instead."

"Alright, I'll be waiting for your command, Sister."

"Good boy, go on then~" Nangong Yue's worry turned into joy.

Lin Jichen, holding the Iron-Eating Beast, returned to his quarters.

With two minutes left, he made a nest for the Iron-Eating Beast right beside his bed.

"By the way, you don't have a name yet. What should I call you..."

Lin Jichen thought for a moment and came up with an answer.

"You're from the bear family, so your surname is bear. You look like a cat, so I'll name you... Bearlike!"

Ignoring the Iron-Eating Beast's angry dissatisfaction, the name was set.

It didn't have a chance to protest, as Lin Jichen had already logged out.

***

Coming out of the gaming pod, Lin Jichen was still full of energy.

He had been inside for three days, yet his body felt no discomfort, no hunger, and no need to relieve himself.

That's the benefit of the gaming pod; within its set time, players enter a state akin to inedia.

After exiting the game, Lin Jichen checked the time. Tomorrow was Gu Qiuxue's birthday.

Even if the game wasn't updating, he had planned to log out at this time.

In his previous life, he had completely ignored Gu Qiuxue's messages to go out with Guo Jie.

In this life, no matter how important something was, he would set it aside to keep his promise.

The two girls he had wronged in his previous life were Ren Lan and Gu Qiuxue.

Gu Qiuxue was Lin Jichen's cousin, currently an intern nurse at a hospital in the Capital City.

Though they were cousins, their families were no longer closely related, only in name.

Gu Qiuxue was three years older than Lin Jichen. Although their families didn't live in the same city, they often visited each other when Lin Jichen's parents were alive.

They were childhood sweethearts, innocent and inseparable.

When they were young, Gu Qiuxue often came to Lin Jichen's house to play.

Wearing braces, she was often bullied and teased as "metal mouth" by other kids.

Every time Gu Qiuxue came back crying, Lin Jichen would bravely stand up for her, fighting boys much taller than him, even if it meant getting bruised and battered.

So Gu Qiuxue always liked to stick close to Lin Jichen.

When Lin Jichen started middle school, his parents passed away. Gu Qiuxue was heartbroken and called him every other day to chat.

She asked about his school life and homework, and shared funny stories from her high school.

When Lin Jichen went to high school and Gu Qiuxue to college, she would rush to his house during every holiday.

She cooked, did his laundry, tutored him, and even saved her living expenses to give to Lin Jichen.

She was the lighthouse in Lin Jichen's dark days after losing his parents.

Lin Jichen thought Gu Qiuxue only saw him as a younger brother.

Until after the college entrance exams, when he visited Gu Qiuxue's house and accidentally found her diary.

The diary was filled with her admiration and love for him since her college days.

Reading it left Lin Jichen stunned. He realized then that Gu Qiuxue liked him.

But he didn't say anything, put the diary back as if he hadn't seen it.

Later, when he went to college and got infatuated with Guo Jie, he never thought about it again.

He avoided Gu Qiuxue as much as possible, and was perfunctory in his responses to her concerned calls.

Even so, Gu Qiuxue continued to care deeply for Lin Jichen.

Despite barely making enough to support herself during her internship, she still saved part of her salary to give to Lin Jichen.

Her kindness towards Lin Jichen never sought any return.

She never questioned him, despite his perfunctory responses and avoidance.

After Gu Qiuxue's depression and suicide, he was heartbroken for a long time.

Thinking back, it seemed that after that birthday, Gu Qiuxue had started to distance herself from him.

Lin Jichen was determined to uncover the truth.

He couldn't let Gu Qiuxue walk the same path as in his previous life.

That afternoon, Lin Jichen appeared at the Capital City airport.

Although Gu Qiuxue's birthday was tomorrow, he decided to come a day early to be safe.

As soon as he got off the plane, Lin Jichen took a taxi to the hospital where Gu Qiuxue worked.

With his tall and slender figure, handsome face, and sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, Lin Jichen attracted a lot of attention as soon as he entered the hospital.

Especially since he had just started college and was only nineteen, he still had a bit of a scholarly air, exuding a "puppy" charm.

But his eyes were full of steadiness, leisure, and a sense of having seen the world.

These two contrasting qualities combined to make Lin Jichen even more striking.

Even female patients couldn't help but cast admiring glances at him.

"Hey, handsome, need any help?"

A nurse quickly approached him.

Lin Jichen showed no sign of nervousness or shyness at being approached by a girl. He smiled slightly and asked politely.

"Could you tell me where the gynecology department is?"

"It's in the annex building, through the corridor past the emergency department. Are you visiting a patient? If you can't find it, I can take you there."

The nurse eagerly offered to guide him. These days, good-looking guys and pretty girls easily attract the opposite sex's goodwill.

"Thank you, but I can find it myself."

Unfortunately, the pretty nurse's attempt ended in failure.