Chapter 57

"Ha ha, ha ha, ha ha..." In the bustling streets of Lingling, Dugu Fu alternated between covering his mouth and touching his cheek, laughing foolishly, causing passersby to glance at him sideways.

The first kiss of his past life and this life was thus extinguished! And it was with a beauty like Guo Xingxing, who made his heart race! How could he not be overjoyed, savoring the moment repeatedly in his heart—

In novels, they wrote about how the lips touched, the saliva was as sweet as nectar, and sparks flew in the brain, like lightning striking the ground... It was all fake! Dugu Fu couldn't help but lick his lips; the first kiss had no taste at all.

But the moment their lips touched, the soft and smooth sensation, and the slight trembling of the girl in his arms, like a frightened little animal, made him feel as if his heart would melt every time he recalled it...

After a long while, he suddenly realized that there was no taste... It seemed that it was just lips touching lips, and he had forgotten the wet kiss. Damn! Damn! Damn! How could he forget such a basic move! Dugu Fu pounded his chest and lamented, feeling utterly miserable.

After a while, he suddenly touched his cheek in relief.

Fortunately, he didn't. Judging from the strength of the slap Guo Xingxing gave him before leaving, if it had been a wet kiss, his tongue would have been bitten off! Well, well, save it for next time, gradually progressing, each time with a surprise!

On the busy street, Dugu Fu was thus filled with mixed emotions, both elated and anxious.

He walked as if no one else was around, but it infuriated the player who had been following him.

Indeed, he had been targeted by a player. And since becoming an NPC, he had also given away another first. But he was so absorbed that he didn't even notice.

Which first?

"Hey, buddy, do you have any quests?" This was the first. The first time his character received a system prompt for a mandatory daily quest.

While asking Dugu Fu this, the player sent a message to his companions. "Hey, hey, I found a good one here, coordinates xxx, yyy, hurry over. Not too old, not too much stuff, but very strong, perfect for mining."

Mining? Yes, mining.

After all, this was a game world, how could there be no mining? Among players, this was a trade as old and profitable as the slave trade in the real world.

Find a suitable NPC, team up for daily quests to bankrupt them, then force the NPC to sign a contract, making them work in brick kilns, coal mines, or mines. Of course, it didn't have to be mining; factories, plantations, workshops... anything would do. If it was a woman, they could be forced into a special industry, but that's a different story, everyone understands.

For these people, killing NPCs was too low-tech and... wasteful. Keeping them to make money was the way to go. But today, the usually self-proclaimed merciful slave trader felt a bit murderous.

Why?

Because after forcefully asking, Dugu Fu gave him an unexpected quest. "Quest? Yes." Instinctively, the guy reached into his chest and pulled out an old mulberry bark paper. "This brave warrior, my family has passed down this treasure map, which is said to record the location of the great pirate Zhang Baoguai's treasure..."

"But due to its age, the map has become somewhat blurred, and I have been unable to find any clues after years of searching. If you are willing, would you like to cooperate with me to find Zhang Baoguai's treasure and split the mountain of wealth?"

This was truly a pleasant surprise!

Who would have thought that a casual daily quest would lead to such a rare quest? Of course, the slave trader agreed without hesitation, and exclusively.

Quests between players and NPCs were essentially agreements. Players initiated inquiries, and NPCs had to provide a quest and prepare a reward, with the system as the mediator. The quest level was generally determined by the system. However, some tasks, such as evaluating the value of a treasure map, could not be assessed by the system and had to be negotiated between the player and the NPC.

Exclusive quests were a special type. Once signed, the NPC who issued the quest would be protected by the system, and other players could not ask for quests from them until the contract ended.

Such favorable treatment came at a high cost. Players had a limited number of daily quests, similar to a kill limit. An exclusive quest, depending on its level, could exhaust several days or even over ten days of their quota. But for a rare quest, it was worth it!

In fact, rare quests often had such requirements.

Without much thought, he agreed. After accepting the quest, he immediately notified his companions that he had made a mistake, there was no fat sheep here, no fat sheep.

Everything went smoothly until the player, after accepting the quest, began to investigate according to the map and gradually realized something was off.

What was off? Dugu Fu's level.

Not his martial arts level or character level, as this realistic world didn't have such things. Even if martial arts had levels, they were roughly categorized. This referred to the NPC level.

Indeed, NPC levels. A loafer on the street and a professional NPC with a trade were of different levels; professional NPCs and village chiefs, town chiefs, and elders were of different levels. A loafer on the street could only issue the most common daily quests; professional NPCs could issue more targeted, less costly quests based on their skills...

When the player first accepted the quest, he was too excited to notice. As he gradually calmed down, he suddenly realized that Dugu Fu was initially at level 0, a loafer on the street. After issuing this quest and successfully signing the exclusive contract, he jumped to level 2.

Was he... cheated?

The player couldn't believe it. Clever NPCs were not uncommon, and many had devised various ways to avoid quests, but he never thought he would encounter one, and especially one who looked like such a plump sheep...

Unbelievable, he had to find a way to verify it. Taking the mulberry bark paper to the nearest antique shop, the appraisal result showed it was fake, and... if he wasn't mistaken, it was from this shop, sold just this morning...

Since he had become an NPC, Dugu Fu, well aware of the drawbacks of NPCs, had of course prepared for such a situation. If it had been a few days earlier, it would have been no different. The treasure map would not have been on mulberry bark paper but on a few pieces of slightly smelly, pure natural snake skin...

Extracting the map's pattern and comparing it to the map database, there was no matching point. The slave trader, enraged, stormed out to find Dugu Fu.

It didn't take long for him to find Dugu Fu at the fish market by the river.

The guy was acting as if nothing had happened, negotiating with a fish vendor: "Hey, this turtle is quite big, how much does it weigh? Is it alive? How much per pound? These snails are very fresh, give me a bag, um, use that sturdy net, I'll pay for it."

"You scoundrel! How dare you play tricks..." The slave trader couldn't stand it anymore, roared, and jumped over, reaching out to grab Dugu Fu.

But before he could touch him, Dugu Fu suddenly leaped up, his body parallel to the ground, and his feet kicked out in an unnatural manner.