People are in Star Iron; who says they're just NPCs?

"Lin Li~" Her soft voice sounded like a plea, yet also like encouragement. "I'm here."

Lin Li wore a faint smile, as warm as a spring breeze. He softly responded to the girl's call, but his hands never stopped handing out the rewards.

gurgle gurgle~

A faint sound of water drifted from the bedroom, not loud, yet exceptionally clear and pleasant. The girl's pretty face was radiant like the morning glow, her beauty beyond compare, like a blooming azalea.

In this scene, Lin Li couldn't help but think of a line of poetry she had read before: "I especially cherish the most secluded spot, where the flowing water splashes and murmurs!"

The splashing water stopped amidst the girl's sweet, soft voice. Lin Li withdrew her hand and displayed her fingers to Estella. Lin Li's fingers were long and slender with distinct knuckles, and the clear liquid clinging to them was so conspicuous.

"Ah~!" Estella covered her face in embarrassment, not daring to meet Lin Li's gaze. "Don't cover it, look!"

Lin Li chuckled and poked the back of her hand with her other hand.

The girl still didn't dare to lower her hand, but she secretly opened her fingers a crack, revealing her bright, star-like eyes.

Under her gaze, Lin Li's fingers came together and then separated, pulling out several crystal-clear threads. "Oh! You... clean yourself up quickly!"

Thinking of what was stuck to Lin Li's hand, Estella covered her eyes tightly again. She knew Lin Li had the [Clean] skill and urged him repeatedly.

"Did Dabao like today's reward?" Lin Li didn't use any skills, but instead took out a tissue and slowly wiped the water off his hands.

The girl blushed, lowered her hand, pursed her lips, and whispered, "I...I like it!"

"Huh? What did you say? I didn't hear you."

"I said, I really like you, I like the reward you gave me!" Estella suddenly found a surge of courage and hugged Lin Li tightly, whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

The heartfelt confession exhausted the girl's last bit of courage. She rolled out of bed and rushed into the bathroom, leaving only a lingering fragrance. Watching the girl's flustered figure, Lin Li smiled, rubbed his fingers together, and brought them to his penis; a faint, sweet scent of the young girl still lingered on them. At this rate, the day Da Bao had prepared shouldn't be far off.

Estella didn't spend too long washing up. A girl who has just fallen in love always hopes to spend more time with her sweetheart, and she didn't want to keep Lin Li waiting too long.

After her bath, Da Bao carried a hint of a young lady's languor. She climbed back into bed and nestled into Lin Li's arms.

"Now can you tell me how you know what's happening in the real world?" Estelle tilted her head back, her big eyes pleading. "Hmm, I can tell you, but you have to promise me you won't tell the Black Tower."

“Huh? Why can’t I tell Lady Black Tower?” Estella didn’t quite understand. “Because it’s my secret, and I only trust you now.”

Lin Li's words made Aistar feel sweet inside, her face turned rosy, and she couldn't hide her joy.

Chapter 1 is here! Thank you for the monthly pass support from Lead-Free Battery!

Chapter Thirty-Two: Lin Li's Direction of Struggle!

"Lady Black Tower is just a little proud, but not a bad person." Although she felt a sweet warmth in her heart, she didn't forget to say a good word about her teacher. In Aista's eyes, Lady Black Tower was bound to come to this NPC world sooner or later.

She knew Heita's personality all too well; he was arrogant and looked down on everyone, and very few people could catch her eye. When the time came, she might clash with Lin Li over a single word.

So she wanted to take precautions in advance, since Lin Li's temper was hard to describe as good, especially when they first met, it was incredibly awful.

If Lady Black Tower were to be bullied like I am—wow, that would be pretty exciting to think about!

Wait, Estella, what are you thinking? That's your teacher!

The girl quickly shook her head, banishing the thought; it was far too offensive!

Little did she know that the Black Tower lady she respected had already come before. Not only had she come, but she had also been bullied and even lost a bet!

"Hehe, don't worry, we'll get along very well when she arrives." Lin Li gave a meaningful smile and then began to explain his [Perspective Sharing] and [Real-time Communication] abilities to her.

There's really no need to keep these two abilities a secret. He only needs to communicate with girls in the real world a few times, and anyone with a normal IQ can guess the gist of it.

Estelle and the Black Tower had already guessed it, and Estelle's question was simply to confirm her own guess.

After exchanging a few words, Lin Li changed the subject: "By the way, there's something else I'd like you to help me with." "What is it?"

"I need a place to live. Could you help me set up a separate place in the real world, and I can map it into the NPC world? It's not good to always stay in your room."

"Kuan, it's actually quite nice for you to stay here with me!"

"More and more people will be coming into the NPC world in the future. Are you sure you want me to bring them all here?" Lin Li pointed to the NPC version of Liu Ying, who was still sitting on the sofa.

That's true. Estella already knows a certain amount about Lin Li; he's definitely a womanizer and a philanderer.

Although Estella was a little jealous, she knew she couldn't control him, nor should she. After all, Lin Li was so lonely in this world; it would be good for him to have more girls to keep him company.

Estella couldn't stay there indefinitely; she was a kind person after all and couldn't bear to let Lin Li suffer loneliness any longer. "Alright then, I'll prepare a super luxurious house for you when I get back!" Estella, true to her status as a wealthy woman from the interstellar world, spoke with confidence.

emboldened.

"Hehe, then I'll wait and see!" Lin Li didn't really care about material things, but he could feel Da Bao's good intentions.

Besides, this was the first time in his life he'd ever experienced being taken care of by a rich woman, especially a young and beautiful one from another planet. It felt pretty good!

After spending some more time with Lin Li, Estella reluctantly left and returned to the real world.

Upon waking up in the real world, Estella immediately pulled out her phone and began a shopping spree on online shopping websites.

As the heir to a family that spans the stars, she has no shortage of money. Of course, she would buy the best for her beloved! After Estella left, Lin Li fiddled with his phone again and opened Estella's character card.

[Member: Estella] [Age: 18+]

[Affiliation: Black Tower Space Station]

[Status: Bonded] [Affection Level: 60]

[Operable functions: View sharing, real-time communication, reality mapping]

Estelle's favorability rating has reached 60, and as he predicted, another feature, Reality Mapping, has been unlocked.

[Real-world mapping]: Changes caused by members in the real world can be selectively mapped to the NPC world by the host.

This is why Lin Li arranged for Estella to go to the real world to prepare a room for him; he could use this reality mapping function to modify the environment of the NPC world.

This is also a huge step forward for Lin Li!

Previously, although he possessed far more advanced powers than Estádio and the Black Tower, allowing him to do whatever he wanted with them, he had no ability to change this NPC world.

All the changes he made were reset at 12 o'clock every day.

Now, through [Reality Mapping], he can also adjust and modify this NPC world to a certain extent, such as having Estella prepare a special place for him to live.

Not only that, there were also several system messages on the phone.

[Congratulations, host, for raising the bond level of one of your recruited members to 60. You are rewarded with 100 experience points and 300 skill experience points.] [Long-term quest triggered: The More the Merrier (Part 1)]

[Task objective: Increase the affinity of five recruited members to 60.]

[Mission Rewards: 600 Host Experience Points, 1600 Skill Experience Points.]

It seems that raising Estelle's affection level to 60 is indeed a significant milestone, unlocking a lot of new things at once.

Lin Li noticed that his interface had also been updated. [Host: Lin Li]

[World Level: 1 (100/1000)] [Destiny: Not yet unlocked]

(0/500); [Restore] (100/500)

[Mastered Skill: [Cleanse] [Unused Skill Experience: 300]

This panel reveals a lot more information than before.

The most important thing now is to upgrade the world level. Once the level is upgraded, the ununlocked Destiny Paths and new skills should all be secured.

And most importantly, Lin Li's method of returning to the real world is most likely related to the improvement of the world's level. Of course, he doesn't want to stay in the NPC world forever; returning to the real world has always been one of his goals.

Previously, we couldn't find a solution and had no clue what to do, but now the path has been pointed out: continuously recruit new members and increase their bond level.

Just keep striving in this direction!

Lin Li's fighting spirit soared instantly, completely erasing his usual lazy and leisurely demeanor.

However, he quickly lost heart. With no one in the NPC world right now, it would be difficult for him to even raise his bond level! He could monitor the status of his recruited members in real time via his phone, clearly seeing whether they were in or out of the NPC world. Speaking of which, is Xingbao really that energetic? Estella has come twice already, and she hasn't slept even once?

Lin Li was just about to check Xingbao's perspective to see what the girl was doing when he suddenly noticed Black Tower's character card had reacted. This top genius in the universe had finally returned.

Will she renege on her bet after losing, or will she accept defeat gracefully? The second update is here!

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Black Tower's Struggle

To be honest, Black Tower really wants to renege on its promise; it could just stop coming to this NPC world altogether!

As she said, for a genius like her, finding an alternative to sleeping is not difficult.

However, she was really reluctant to give up researching the NPC world, and there were still many things she hadn't figured out yet.

Although Black Tower was under the watchful eye of the Venerable Master of Knowledge and was prevented from seeing the Star Gods several times, she was actually a disrespectful person who was not subject to the Star Gods and had a great dislike for certain Star Gods.

However, her own power was ultimately limited, and it was far too difficult for her to master a power capable of directly confronting the Star God. The existence of this NPC world, however, showed her that this was a possibility.

The NPC world is clearly not bound by the current laws of the universe. Neither the forces of destiny that have recently appeared on the space station—whether it be [Intelligence], [Exploration], or [Destruction]—can be detected or interfered with.

This is a being whose power level may be even higher than that of a Star God!

If it weren't for Estelle's living example, and the fact that the Black Tower itself had successfully entered the world, the Black Tower wouldn't even be sure that this world truly existed.

Most importantly, this world seems to be ownerless, without any supreme, godlike beings.

Lin Li, the only living human, wields immense power in the NPC world, almost like a god. But he is still a living, breathing human being with human emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness; he's even a lecherous fellow.

He was not at all as elusive and unpredictable as the Star God.

She had a feeling that if she could figure out this NPC world, she might be able to find a power that could directly confront the Star God. This was a rare opportunity, and she didn't want to miss it!

Another reason is that she has discovered that Lin Li has the ability to interfere with the real world, and she suspects that even if she tries to escape into this world, she may not be able to escape Lin Li's entanglement.

Considering these two points, after much hesitation, she finally decided to talk to Lin Li.

Lin Li also knew that things wouldn't go so smoothly. How could someone as proud and arrogant as Black Tower give in so easily?

Another piece of direct evidence is that when Black Tower's character card lit up, a [Task] popped up with the message: "Make Black Tower accept defeat and fulfill the bet."

[Task Rewards]: Black Tower Favorability +10, Skill Experience Points 100.

The fact that the system has specifically issued a task indicates that Black Tower definitely doesn't want to fulfill the bet. You should know that this is the first task Lin Li has received since watching the stars with Estelle.

Lin Li was determined to complete any quest that could directly increase his bond level. He stroked his chin and headed towards the Black Tower's room.

Black Tower was still undecided about whether to go directly to Estella's room. She was afraid of accidentally catching him and Estella playing games again, and of course, part of the reason was that she was currently too afraid to face Lin Li.

Just as she was hesitating, Lin Li pushed open the door.

"Oh, so Ms. Black Tower keeps her promise. Is she here to fulfill the bet?" Lin Li's faint smile was seen by Black Tower and she felt extremely annoyed.

Lin Li's intense gaze swept over Hei Ta, scrutinizing him from head to toe, causing her to unconsciously turn her head and puff out her cheeks.

This man's gaze is like he has X-ray vision; even though I'm fully clothed, it feels like he can see right through me! He really is a lecherous scoundrel!

"Huh? Not saying anything?" Lin Li feigned surprise, clapping his hands repeatedly to tease her. "Tsk! Is the infamous Black Tower lady trying to renege on her debt?"

"How did you do that?" Black Tower answered irrelevantly; what she really wanted to understand was why she had lost.

How could someone who can't even go to the real world find the Star Core Hunter faster than her? You have to understand that the Star Core Hunter isn't some random nobody; even she would need some time to make a move!

"Hehe, you probably guessed it. I can now connect with the real world. Want to know how I did it?" Lin Li clapped his hands: "Even if you want to know, I won't tell you. Who told you to try and renege on your promise?"

"I...I didn't intend to renege on my debt!" Black Tower's voice sounded a little dejected. "Can we...talk?" If Estella or anyone else who had contact with Black Tower saw this scene, they would definitely be shocked.

Anyone who knows Ms. Black Tower knows that although she is beautiful and kind-hearted, she has a terrible temper, is arrogant, narcissistic, sharp-tongued, and scheming, and is very difficult to get along with.

Anyone who dares to anger her will inevitably suffer the most severe blow.

Those people never imagined that the unparalleled Black Tower Lady would have such a craving, and one day have to beg for help!

There was no other way; she had already tried, and at this stage in this world, she was no match for Lin Li. "What does Lady Black Tower want to discuss?"

"Can we change the stakes? I can get you anything else you want, but this stake is just too... unacceptable!" Black Tower bit her lip, and her usually proud and beautiful face suddenly looked pitiful and touching.

Even Lin Li felt a flutter in his heart for a moment when such an expression appeared on the face of an extremely arrogant and narcissistic person. Despite the flutter, Lin Li still ruthlessly rejected Black Tower's request.

"Hey, looking across the entire galaxy, there's no such thing as asking to change the stakes after the outcome has been decided, right?"

The reason is simple: he's constantly monitoring the Black Tower's status through the information bar, and the three big words "Performing" above the girl's head right now don't lie.

"You! Aren't you afraid I'll really never come back to this world?" Black Tower, having failed to play the victim, was getting exasperated. This self-proclaimed perfect top genius, after repeatedly hitting a snag with Lin Li, was finally starting to panic.

"Oh, didn't you want to know how I connected with the real world? I can tell you—" Lin Li walked up to the Black Tower, almost face to face with her.

"I have a capability called perspective sharing, which allows me to share your perspective anytime."

Talking to smart people is so easy. Lin Li didn't even need to spell out his meaning; Black Tower understood what he was trying to say. Even if he didn't come to this NPC world, he couldn't escape it when Black Tower wanted to see it!

Not sleeping is one thing, but you can't just stop showering and changing clothes, can you? That would be living like a completely inhuman person!

Moreover, Black Tower instantly understood how Lin Li found the Star Core Hunters. He had shared the perspective of a Star Core Hunter who had visited the NPC world, so finding their location was a piece of cake!

So from the very beginning, she had no hope of winning this bet!