NEW Extra #1
"You absolutely! You absolutely won't find a worse, more rubbish novel than 'Proud Immortal Demon Way.' Anyone who likes this kind of novel will be looked down upon for life; that person's taste is definitely questionable!!"
Shen Qingqiu lay on the hospital bed, maintaining a smile throughout. Only after the young intern had finished his tirade, gesticulating wildly and slacking off, and swaggered out of the room, did he turn around and say expressionlessly, "A miscalculation. It turned out to be a '"Proud Immortal Demon Way' hater. Look at the mess you've made."
Shang Qinghua slumped onto another hospital bed, heartbroken. Tears welled in his eyes as he accused, "You humiliated me… Cucumber-bro, you actually watched others humiliate me…"
Shen Qingqiu, his head throbbing with pain, yelled and pulled the curtain between them shut. "Shut up!!"
It's a long story, but to make a long story short...
In short: One day, Shen Qingqiu and Shang Qinghua simultaneously received a system notification.
System: Recently, the system store launched a New Year's gift pack event!
System: In recognition of the host's consistently excellent performance, 50,000 points of satisfaction will be deducted, which can be redeemed for a "Homecoming Gift Pack". This gift pack can be used for a one-week trip in the host's original world.
What?
Shen Qingqiu was stunned. He asked, "Wait, I'm in the present world, aren't I already dead? How can I go back? Go back?"
What will happen?"
System: It has been confirmed that the user's body in the original world is not dead, but is in a state of shock.
What?!
Turns out he's not dead!!!
But logically, food poisoning shouldn't cause shock, right? Could it be that he was so enraged by "Proud Immortal Demon Way" that he went into shock...? This is truly a complicated situation...
System: This gift pack is a limited-time offer and will expire soon. Please decide whether to redeem it immediately.
Do you still need to hesitate?!
After a brief exchange, Shen Qingqiu and Shang Qinghua immediately decided: Buy!
The two originally planned to buy it first, then study it thoroughly, and finally discuss it with Luo Binghe and Mo Beijun before using it. Unfortunately, a small problem arose in the process.
This is all the system's fault. Previously, the items it provided all had a confirmation process. A dialog box would pop up asking "Use? Yes/No." Clicking "Yes" was required for it to take effect.
But this time, it ignored the warning and took effect immediately after the two people exchanged the items!
—And so it turned into this unexpected situation.
Preliminary research indicates that for Shen Qingqiu and Shen Yuan, there is one piece of extremely good news and one piece of extremely bad news.
Fantastic news: Time flows much slower in the present world than in the world of "Proud Immortal Demon Way". Several years have passed in the book, but only one day has passed here!
Terrible news: This might mean that for him, two days here could mean several years in the world of "Proud Immortal Demon Way"...
It's simply unimaginable what Luo Binghe would do.
But now that everyone has arrived, there's no way to contact them. Shen Yuan was extremely troubled and worried.
Although he missed Luo Binghe, he quickly adjusted his mindset.
Even when there is nothing more that can be done, at least one should be saved.
Shen Yuan never does things to end up with nothing. He decided to dedicate his time fully to his family first.
After all, the gift pack rewards are a windfall, and they're time-limited. Who knows if there will be another chance like this in the future?
Fortunately, Airplane was in the same hospital as him, so they weren't separated in the vast sea of people with no one to discuss the situation with.
As soon as Shen Yuan woke up, he wandered around the VIP ward and caught Shang Qinghua holed up in the four-person ward.
Although there was a slight awkwardness along the way.
Here's the thing: after being someone's master for so many years, he's always had this habit of putting on airs, and he felt incredibly awkward without his fan. While strolling around the hospital, Shen Yuan encountered several elderly women and men asking for directions. He led them to the pharmacy and chatted casually for a few more minutes. As he left, he overheard an elderly man, leaning on his cane, exclaiming to his belated grandson, "This young man is extraordinary! It's rare to see someone his age with such presence! He's got connections, he's got real skills!"
Shen Yuan: "..."
Compared to his own food poisoning, Shang Qinghua's physical body suffered from electric shock, which was more serious. Even now, he still experiences occasional numbness.
Shen Yuan moved him from the regular ward to a higher ward, informed the hospital, and added a bed to his VIP room.
As a result, the two had many opportunities to communicate.
Shang Qinghua was very surprised: "Brother Gua, you're actually a 'second-generation rich kid'? Not only are you handsome, but you're also a 'second-generation rich kid'?"
Shen Yuan raised an eyebrow: "Is it worth being so surprised?"
Shen Yuan hadn't seen his original appearance in a long time, and at first glance, he felt incredibly familiar with it.
His demeanor and appearance, as his sister put it, were utterly deceptive. The visitor had placed Shen Yuan's favorite lily of the valley (yes, he knew it was poisonous) in the room; clusters of drooping lilies of the valley clung to Shen Yuan, their slender green leaves also clinging to him. Shen Yuan, like the lily of the valley, possessed a refreshingly natural sense of relaxation. He sat there, his forearm casually draped over the railing, clearly an elegant and composed young master. Anyone looking at his airs would absolutely assume he was a wealthy idler, a playboy, a party king (just kidding)!
So how could this be a semi-otaku? It's a scam!!
Shang Qinghua was very puzzled: "Okay... no wonder you have so much money to tip, and no wonder you despise 'The Arrogant Immortal Demon Path' so much. It really is a bit brainless for a 'real-life' like you... Since you're both handsome and a 'rich second generation,' why do you insist on reading a pure, lighthearted novel like 'The Arrogant Immortal Demon Path'?"
This was the first time Shen Yuan had ever witnessed someone who could sacrifice eight hundred of their own strength to kill a thousand of their enemies while being humble.
He wants to know this too!
He just can't control himself, what can he do? While reading this book, he's always in a state of constant back and forth: one minute he thinks it's rubbish, the next he thinks the author seems to have some ideas, and then a while later he's cursing it out loud, saying it's definitely rubbish!
Let's not talk about this anymore, let's change the subject.
Shen Yuan said, "So your real name is Xiang Fei."
Shang Qinghua nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
He was able to guess that the person was Shang Qinghua because he saw the name. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have been able to make the connection, because...
Because the appearance of the airplane teacher was really not what he had imagined.
Shang Qinghua is undeniably a handsome man.
But Xiang Fei, he clearly looks like a handsome, quiet, shy, and introverted high school boy! Add to that his melancholic profile, white short-sleeved shirt, drab color scheme, and ambiguous props, and he'd be the kind of guy who could be the cover of a melodramatic teen romance novel!
You'd get cornered on the stairs by a burly, menacing male classmate and get your face slapped!
Shen Yuan realized.
No wonder Airplane's aesthetic sense regarding male appearance was that of the handsome and arrogant type like Mobei Jun. Looking like that, he's probably been through a lot of masculinity, which explains his strong yearning for the kind of masculine physique that makes him the leader of the group. He wasn't dissing Mobei Jun, he really wasn't!
It's just that he admires the appearance of a top student like Luo Binghe, the student council president.
Taking the opportunity, Shen Yuan asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time: "So your real name is so normal, why did you choose such a lewd pen name?"
Shang Qinghua said aggrievedly, "This isn't my fault, Cucumber-bro. It wasn't my idea to choose this pen name. When I was young, I was naive and had no sense of privacy. I originally wanted to use my real name as my pen name, but someone already had that name. I tried from 'Xiang Fei 1' to 'Xiang Fei 12345,' and then from 'Xiang Fei's Fish' to all twelve zodiac animals like pig, dog, horse, ox, and sheep. I even tried 'Xiang Fei,' and while no one had the same name, the system said it was too long. Finally, in a fit of anger, I chose a pen name that absolutely no one would have the same name as me. I acted on impulse. All the proper names were already taken, so it wouldn't let me have it! And to be honest, absolutely..."
The name "Peerless Cucumber" isn't much better!
Shen Yuan's face darkened, and he said, "Who do you think is like you? It's because my sister was watching 'Peerless Crown Princess' at home every day and kept nagging about it, plus I was chasing 'Proud Immortal Demon Way' day and night, staying up late into the night and getting hungry but not wanting to bother anyone to get up and cook for me, so I often just ate cucumbers. I was mentally polluted by those two things when I named myself!"
Shang Qinghua's focus was completely off. He was actually deeply moved, saying with deep emotion, "So, so, Cucumber-bro, you've always felt this way about me!..."
Shen Yuan couldn't take it anymore. However, faced with Shang Qinghua's seemingly innocent and easily bullied high school student face, he couldn't bring himself to yell at him or lay a hand on him!
So he exclaimed "Ah!" again and pulled the curtain shut.
The hospital called Shen Yuan's family as soon as he woke up.
His parents had long since handed over the family business to their unfilial son, and Meimei had entered a semi-retired state, so he immediately asked his high school sister to take leave and they rushed to the hospital together.
Upon seeing his family, Shen Yuan struggled to hold back the tears welling up in his eyes.
Having spent so long in the world of "Proud Immortal Demon Way," how could I possibly not miss my family?
But he knew very well that for something that was beyond his control, he could only try not to think about it.
Because the more he thought about it, the more painful it would become. He never dared to give himself a moment to think about home, and always made himself appear as if he were busy and overwhelmed.
His two older brothers weren't there. After all, one was conducting scientific research in the icy wilderness of Antarctica, and the other was searching for ancient tea trees in the mountains. Shen Yuan missed them very much, but by the time they finally made it back, he figured he'd already been pulled back by the system and wouldn't be able to see them at all.
Moreover, not long ago, they heard that Shen Yuan had suffered food poisoning and went into shock. They had already dropped their busy work and rushed back. It was a double blow, and they really felt sorry for their colleagues.
So, they simply sent him some photos they had taken of his brother's "death" as a gesture of sympathy.
Deeply moved by this, Shen Yuan summoned his two older brothers in the family group chat, sending them a long string of vomiting, insulting, and beating emojis. He then used text to inflict psychological violence on them, which resulted in a bunch of red envelopes from them begging for mercy.
His family had no objection to him taking a stroll around the hospital and picking up a patient. His sister, Shen Tang, said while playing a game without looking up, "It's the usual thing. My brother always liked to bring patients home when he was little."
He picked up unwanted puppies, secretly bathed them, secretly took them to bed and slept in the same blanket with them, then had nightmares with the dog pressing against her chest.
Shang Qinghua was initially puzzled by the sudden "enema procedure," then moved by Cucumber-bro's apparent love for animals, and finally realized: Hello, so I was picked up by Cucumber-bro...?
In short, after undergoing a full set of examinations and finally proving that he had fully recovered, Shen Yuan was able to go home, holding several large bouquets of flowers.
Of course, Shang Qinghua also received a full set of medical examinations from Shen Yuan, and was found to be fine. He then prepared to return to his rented apartment.
Before parting, Shen Yuan thought for a moment and called out to Xiang Fei, "Do you want to come to my house? My house isn't big, but I can still fit you in."
The main issue is that he knows that Airplane lives alone, his family doesn't care about him, and no one has come to check on him. Given how unreliable this guy is—he could even get electrocuted while eating instant noodles—what if he collapses again? He's worried no one will care.
He sensed that the teacher seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then chuckled and said, "Cucumber-bro, you really do love me! But time is precious, so let's leave it for your family reunion. I have to go back to work."
Shen Yuan didn't want to comment on his "love," so he simply said, "Okay, you get back to work, I'll talk to you in a couple of days."
As for what kind of work he was doing, Teacher Airplane said that of course he had to hurry up and eat his favorite instant noodles... Oh no, he had to organize his manuscripts and write a side story for "Proud Immortal Demon Way"!
Shen Yuan had absolutely no hope for this. It's important to understand that the worst thing you can do with a wildly popular novel is to create a sequel or side story after it's been running for years. That would be a thankless task, and readers would often say, "It's not the same anymore!"
This is unavoidable, because even if the author remains unchanged, the readers will not. Both are progressing on different paths; how can one expect them to converge again?
In short, he meant that he highly doubted the airplane instructor would create some earth-shattering bomb...