Entering the intelligent system, he opened the character assessment interface. Something odd happened. Although his character value had dropped sharply from its peak, it was just at the warning line of the intelligent system where it stabilized into a flat line, coinciding exactly with the current character value threshold of the system. The system’s evaluation of his character had also changed, from “Respected Hero” to “Daring Warrior.” Beside it, there were several profile pictures of people. Upon closer inspection, these were individuals who had either clashed with or directly interacted with him recently: Wang Xiaoyun, Sun Dasheng, Cao Nan, Zhu Tingting, Jin Feng, Yin Feng, Chi Ying, Li Xiangdong, the old man, Cao Lei… This chart systemically listed everyone’s closeness to him, like a social network diagram. Each profile picture, when clicked, revealed more detailed information, though the content wasn’t particularly new or insightful, just things he already knew. It seemed these charts were automatically compiled by the system based on his memory and daily interactions with these people.
What felt strange to Lin Feng was how these contacts’ information got into his mind. He had personally witnessed the process of Wang Xiaoyun’s profile picture appearing; at the time, the system asked for further confirmation of some familial relationship, and he took the opportunity to forcibly kiss Wang Xiaoyun, nearly getting himself killed in the process. He had wondered what use such a contact might serve, but now, after just two days, Big Beauty’s system had autonomously added so many contacts. Contacts? If this were a real smartphone, contacts would imply the ability to communicate, like making calls, sending texts, or video calls. Could Big Beauty have these functions that he hadn’t yet discovered?
Subconsciously, he clicked on Wang Xiaoyun’s avatar. Pop! He kissed the virtual avatar, huh, when did her avatar turn into a smiley face? Could she feel my affection? Wondering how to initiate communication like a phone call, he tried messaging, but what about calls or video? Or perhaps there was another new form of… Focusing all his mental energy on Wang Xiaoyun’s avatar, his mind seemed to sink into a quagmire, uncontrollably plunging into the virtual image, which seemed like an endless abyss, pulling his consciousness in. Lin Feng was terrified, yet a strange sensation arose in his mind, as if behind that avatar lay another mysterious world, summoning him.
As Lin Feng’s mind relaxed slightly, a thunderous sound enveloped him with an irresistible force. When he tried to pull back his thoughts, a ripple-like oscillation shook his consciousness, and the virtual system background began to distort, with Wang Xiaoyun’s avatar blurring. In a flash, an extraordinary scene unfolded: Wang Xiaoyun and the old man appeared in Lin Feng’s mind, sitting on the living room sofa, seemingly arguing about something. Lin Feng was shocked, forcing himself to focus, and vaguely heard Wang Xiaoyun’s voice: “Grandpa, Lin Feng is definitely not that kind of person. If he really liked stealing women’s underwear, why didn’t he steal mine last night? We were so close, even sharing the same bed. Am I not charming enough?” The old man was also speaking, but Lin Feng couldn’t make out the words, just a jumble of noise. Wang Xiaoyun continued, “Grandpa, he might be a bit lustful, but I trust his character. Despite all the accusations at school, he never exposed me to clear his name, showing he has principles in matters of right and wrong!” The old man seemed very emotional as well. Wang Xiaoyun clearly disagreed with her grandfather’s viewpoint: “Grandpa, I know you’re worried he might go astray. I’ll call him out now, and we’ll talk it out. I don’t believe he would do such a thing!”
With that, Wang Xiaoyun ran to the bathroom and started knocking loudly: “Hey! Are you pulling the rope or what? Hurry up and come out, Grandpa wants to talk to you!” But before she finished speaking, there was a thud from inside, as if something had fallen. “Hey! Lin Feng, Lin Feng, what’s going on? Come out…” Hearing no response, Wang Xiaoyun panicked and yelled, “Grandpa, come quickly!”
Finally finding the key, they opened the locked bathroom door to find Lin Feng collapsed on the floor, convulsing. The toilet lid was down, and his pants were on; it was clear he had intentionally stayed inside. In a fluster, they pulled him out, with the old man checking his pulse and listening to his heart. Meanwhile, Wang Xiaoyun seemed to have anticipated this, showing no urgency. “He’s passed out again; he must have used his power again. Is the scoundrel trying to apologize to me via text? But I haven’t received any new messages.” “What are you talking about, girl?” “Ah, Grandpa, I’ve told you, Lin Feng has a unique ability. He must have gone into the bathroom to use it again.” “What ability?” “Look, Grandpa!” Wang Xiaoyun handed over her phone, “He sent me another silly text before running into the bathroom. It’s infuriating! Just look at what he thinks about all day!” The old man furrowed his brows in confusion, staring at Lin Feng, who was still unconscious: “I’ve truly opened my eyes today!” What’s the deal with this underwear thief? How could a trip to the bathroom take an entire afternoon? Lin Feng was utterly bewildered by this statement; how could such an odd thing happen? No matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t figure out what was going on with himself. Could it be another glitch with the ‘Big Beauty’ inside him? The excitement of discovering new skills was long gone. Now, things seemed to be spiraling out of control. He had passed out in the bathroom for an entire afternoon without waking up? During that time, he hadn’t done something outrageous like stealing underwear again, had he? A cold sweat broke out on Lin Feng’s back, chilling him to the bone! He laughed awkwardly, unsure how to respond to the old man’s sharp gaze. The atmosphere suddenly became tense as neither spoke.
“Lin Lin, are you hiding something from your grandpa?” Mr. Wang, after observing Lin Feng for a moment, suddenly said.
“Ah… Grandpa, what are you talking about? What do you want to know? I can tell you anything!”
“Lin Lin, do you know that you sleepwalk?”
“Sleepwalk?! Are you joking, Grandpa? You’re saying I sleepwalk? Is that true? Have you actually seen me sleepwalking?” Lin Feng jumped up in shock; this information was crucial to him. He hadn’t expected the old man to bring this up, thinking he was about to confront him about something else.
Sleepwalking?! After getting a confirmation, a long-standing doubt in Lin Feng’s mind suddenly became clear. So, all these days, it was sleepwalking that caused all the trouble! No wonder he had been surrounded by strange events these past two days, not to mention sending harassing text messages in his dreams. Ever since acquiring the game equipment inside him, he had first gotten involved in a pervert’s underwear theft, then listened to his mother’s heart-to-heart all night, and felt an odd sense of déjà vu about many things. All of these things made perfect sense when he heard the word ‘sleepwalking.’
Big Beauty, oh Big Beauty, it seems you never rest, do you? What exactly are you? How can you control my body to wander around while I’m asleep? What’s your goal? Why repeatedly, again and again, go to… steal women’s underwear? This hobby is just too… Lin Feng even thought that being controlled to become a womanizer would be better than playing this perverse game. He was almost afraid to imagine if one day he truly turned into a lecherous underwear thief; he might as well jump into the river now.
