Chapter 17: Announced Quest, Dungeon Master

Page 1/3

Seeing that the fragrant sachet had been accepted by the other party, Ji Yan was about to happily return to report and claim his mission reward. But just as he turned around, he saw the landlord holding a notice and posting it by the stairwell. Driven by curiosity, Ji Yan, who was about to go downstairs, couldn't help but take a look.

[Important Notice: A parasitic rat has appeared in the drainage ditch behind the apartment building. To maintain a good environment and protect the rights of the tenants, seven residents are required to come together to eradicate it.]

[Completion of the clearing task will grant all participants a 50% rent discount for the current month. Group size limited to seven residents. Please be informed.]

Ji Yan glanced at it and reached out to touch the notice. Immediately, a task panel popped up in his field of vision.

“Ding! You have triggered an optional mission: assist the apartment in clearing the drainage ditch rat. Completing the task will increase the favorability of all mysterious residents by 5%.”

“You will also randomly receive a treasure chest—50% chance to obtain a collector-grade item, guaranteed at least one rare-grade item.”

“Note: Players can choose whether to accept this mission. Once confirmed, it cannot be changed.”

“The reward is so generous?”

Putting aside the half-month rent discount, simply the 5% favorability boost from all tenants plus a treasure chest already made this as tempting as an A+ level mission!

Ji Yan was slightly surprised. After the notice was posted, it immediately attracted many residents, but all were player residents; clearly, this announcement did not involve the mysterious tenants.

One by one, players who touched the notice had the task panel pop up, their eyes widening.

High rewards often come with high difficulty and mortality rates.

Many suspected a trap.

Still, despite this, a few players accepted the mission without much hesitation.

Knowing the danger but choosing to face it head-on—these players were not ignorant; they simply had no choice. If their survival hadn't been so precarious, who would risk their lives for such blood money?

Ji Yan himself had no interest originally.

After eliminating the nightmare parasite, his survival conditions in Room 404 were quite good.

There was no need to risk his life.

But then a hidden message popped up, causing him to pause.

[Hidden Task Information: Players are informed that “Talent Fragments” have been detected during this mission. It is recommended to participate actively.]

“What’s this Talent Fragment?”

Ji Yan checked further.

He discovered that his “Omniscient Comprehension” talent could actually be upgraded, and the requirement was these so-called talent fragments.

“This bugged talent can actually be upgraded?”

Ji Yan’s expression showed mild astonishment.

Page 2/3

He then considered carefully.

At this point, six people had already joined the mission by responding to the notice; only one slot remained.

Whether driven by curiosity or instinct, Ji Yan bit his lip and took the last work badge pinned under the notice.

Taking the badge meant accepting the mission, and withdrawal was no longer possible!

Though the “Omniscient Comprehension” talent was powerful, its trigger conditions were still quite rigid, only activating upon touching relevant items—somewhat restrictive.

Perhaps upgrading it would improve this flaw?

At worst, if danger arose during the mission, he could expose Liu Nianqing from Room 702 as backup; after all, that mysterious tenant owed him a favor.

“Hey man, you’re really going for this deadly grunt work too?”

Upon confirmation, the man with the middle-parted hair beside him couldn’t help but comment.

He had been about to grab a work badge himself but was two seconds late—Ji Yan had beaten him to it.

“Why can’t I accept it?” Ji Yan retorted.

“Don’t joke. Look at you—your face is rosy, body healthy, survival conditions look great. Why would you want to take such a dangerous mission?”

The middle-part man could not understand.

In the dungeon, one’s appearance roughly reflected their survival status.

For instance, a player who hadn’t eaten for one to three days would look gaunt; after three to seven days without food, they would be emaciated with signs of decay.

Hunger, lack of sleep, and so forth would lower various stats.

Players could check basic status values when near each other.

The middle-part man had clicked on Ji Yan’s status and saw all values were full.

Wow, with such good survival conditions, taking a life-risking mission to bring trouble on oneself—what’s wrong with him?

Ji Yan glanced behind the middle-part man and said, “Isn’t the person behind you in even better shape?”

Behind him, a man with an afro had also taken a work badge.

He was well-dressed, tall, and muscular.

Looking closer, his clothes and jewelry were all cursed artifacts; the cleaver hanging at his waist radiated strong resentment and was clearly high-level.

It was like a max-level expert decked out in divine gear appearing in a beginner’s village, complete with a mount.

Ji Yan clicked open the man’s public profile and his expression changed.

“Player: Long Yuan.”

“Dungeon survival time: 109 days.”

“Dungeon progress: Completed one main storyline, defeated 12 mysterious tenants, eliminated 4.”

“Equipment: Not disclosed.”

“Status: All six values full.” (Hexagonal chart)

Page 3/3

This magnificent profile stunned even Ji Yan, let alone the other players who glanced over.

One by one, they widened their eyes. “Damn, this is a real big shot!”

Only a few veteran players quietly withdrew their gaze, astonished in their hearts. “This guy has been sleeping all this time and actually came out today!”

Long Yuan took off his work badge, chewed gum while glancing around, then turned and headed downstairs, utterly indifferent to the astonished gazes.

After Long Yuan’s back disappeared, the middle-part man turned to Ji Yan and said, “That big shot is here for the main storyline mission, not like us.”

“You haven’t survived long here, right? You don’t even know Long God, the player with the longest survival time in Scarlet Apartment. This big shot finished clearing the apartment ages ago; he refreshed the last main storyline.”

“You must be wondering, since he cleared the dungeon, why not move on to the next one? Well…”

“I’m not asking, nor do I want to.”

The middle-part man, clearly a fanboy of Long Yuan, was talking animatedly but was cut off by Ji Yan waving his hand and turning to leave.

He wasn’t interested in these so-called big shots—what good was knowing them if they wouldn’t share the spoils?

Descending the stairwell, Ji Yan didn’t return to Room 404 but went straight to the first floor to meet the team.

Once the cleaning squad was full, they would depart immediately and had to return before nightfall regardless of completion.

In the apartment lobby, the full team had assembled; Ji Yan was the last to arrive.

The seven-person squad included five gaunt and pale players. As the middle-part man had said, most who accepted this notice mission were on the brink of elimination, hoping to seize a chance for survival.

Everyone was anxious.

Outside, thick fog enveloped the apartment, making unknown dangers unpredictable.

But upon seeing Long Yuan come down, everyone’s expressions suddenly shifted 180 degrees.

Long Yuan was part of this mission too!

Then the task to clear the drainage ditch rat was practically a done deal.

Though Long Yuan would take the lion’s share of credit, being carried to victory and getting a slice was satisfying enough.

Facing the gazes around him, the tall Long Yuan didn’t look up. Wearing headphones, holding a book, chewing gum, he was lost in his own world.

This scene formed a stark contrast.

Those around him looked like malnourished refugees from a slum, while Long Yuan seemed like a wealthy elite on vacation.

Ji Yan took out a piece of wheat bread, stuffed it into his mouth, and stared at Long Yuan not far off, muttering, “Why does he seem so fake?”

Just after speaking, Long Yuan suddenly took off his headphones and looked over.

Noticing Ji Yan staring at him, Ji Yan’s face showed mild surprise. “No way, you can hear me with headphones on?”