Chapter 3

Suddenly, Tao Shushu understood what had been puzzling her: why she had fallen asleep during the exam. It was because while she was thinking through the answers, Su Momo’s system was "cutting" her thought processes. After the exam, when she answered simple questions without much thought, the female protagonist’s system no longer affected her.
How did such a system operate? Did it recognize brainwaves or extract activity from the cerebral cortex? Tao Shushu stared intently at Su Momo, burning with curiosity to dissect the female protagonist’s system and study it.
Su Momo felt so uncomfortable under the gaze that she nervously adjusted her hair and clothes. Only then did Tao Shushu reluctantly look away. No, she was in peaceful world now and had to adhere to the principle of harmonious retirement, no violence.
"Classmate, the next exam is about to start. Why were you called to the principal’s office during the exam? Is something wrong? Do you need my help?" Su Momo asked.
Tao Shushu couldn’t be bothered to respond to such a deliberately ignorant question.
[Will playing the game be enough?] Tao Shushu asked in her mind as she opened the game.
She first checked Nan Yuan’s health bar, good, it hadn’t dropped.
Then, Tao Shushu was shocked. Although she had only been away for a little over ten minutes, the scenery in the game had drastically changed. A sun rose from the horizon, casting a golden glow over the vast wilderness.
However, wherever the sunlight reached, animals vanished and plants withered.
The Bloodsucking Grass that had been growing wildly just moments ago now drooped under the sunlight. Their numbers had decreased by more than half, undoubtedly making Tao Shushu’s mission much easier.
Tao Shushu immediately spotted Nan Yuan’s figure. Alone, he faced numerous enemies and a terrifying environment without a trace of fear.
Several patches of Bloodsucking Grass, coveting Nan Yuan’s blood, tentatively lashed out with their leaves. But in the blink of an eye, they were met with the cold gleam of the cub’s particle gun.
Seeing that Tao Shushu completely ignored her, Su Momo leaned in closer. "Classmate, I heard Huiwen’s entrance exam is very important. Aren’t you going to review? It seems you’re very confident in your results."
Tao Shushu turned off her phone and sneered. Su Momo clearly knew that even if she studied, it would only benefit Su Momo herself. And with that "again," she was practically broadcasting her ulterior motives.
"No need to worry," Tao Shushu said without even looking up.
Su Momo clenched her fingers, sizing up Tao Shushu with a mix of envy and resentment. "Well, I hope you achieve good results, Tao Shushu."
Unfazed by the other’s gritted teeth, Tao Shushu simply smiled. "I hope you can also perform at your true level. Show your style, show your strength, and don’t break any rules. Good luck."
Tao Shushu had no time to bicker with the female lead. The cub was so adorable, of course, she had to watch him.
In the game, the sunlight grew increasingly intense, and the Bloodsucking Grass instantly collapsed.
The Q-version Nan Yuan’s face gradually turned red, sweat trickling down his forehead, yet he continued to fight.
The sunlight shone on the cub’s skin, leaving small black spots on his pale complexion.
This sunlight was toxic!
Tao Shushu panicked. She opened the game’s item bar and realized there wasn’t a single item that could provide shade.
If this continued, even if the cub managed to eliminate the Bloodsucking Grass, he would still be scorched to death by the sun.
Tao Shushu tapped the cub.
Nan Yuan, who had been in the midst of combat, immediately stopped and turned to look in her direction.
Tao Shushu had the illusion that the cub’s gaze pierced through the screen, seeing right through her.
She attributed the reason to the chibi character's eyes being too big! They almost took up half of his face.
Tao Shushu couldn't resist rubbing the cub's head.
Spotting the fire extinguisher in the hallway, Tao Shushu got an idea.
She zoomed out the screen scale. In the frame, the Bloodsucking Grass was about the size of a sports field, densely packed, with the cub standing right in the center, completely surrounded. Unless all the Bloodsucking Grass was eliminated, the cub couldn't escape the encirclement.
Tao Shushu curled her fingers and drew a circle with the cub as the center.
The wasteland was covered in gravel, and after three attempts, she successfully drew the circle.
Looking at the firebreak she had created, Tao Shushu felt it was feasible.
But she still needed to arrange a protective device for the cub that could shield him from both fire and the sun.
Tao Shushu opened the in-game store and immediately spotted a prop priced at just 1 gold coin, it seemed tailor-made for the cub:
Item Name: Fisherman's Sun Hat
Price: 1 gold coin
Description: The ultimate gear for fishing and sun protection! Want to block solar particle radiation? Want to become a heat reflector? Want to move freely around a volcano? Want to experience a massive temperature difference of 500°C outside the brim and 37.5°C inside? Get it now!
Although the description was exaggerated and full of salesmanship, the sun hat’s function was exactly what the cub needed. Tao Shushu didn’t hesitate and bought it.
1 gold coin, what a steal.
After purchasing it, Tao Shushu equipped it.
The "Fisherman's Sun Hat" was an oversized conical hat with an extra-long brim. Both sides of the hat were fitted with veils that could be extended freely, providing all-around coverage.
Instantly, the little figure on the screen was engulfed by the hat, with only a flurry of question marks and exclamation marks popping up incessantly.
A gust of wind blew, pressing one side of the veil tightly against the cub’s cheek.
For some reason, Tao Shushu was reminded of the poetic line, "half-hidden behind the pipa." She gently reached out, lifted the veil, and fastened it to the clasp.
Another cascade of exclamation marks burst out above the cub’s head.
Tao Shushu used one finger to poke the struggling cub, forcibly wrapping him entirely in the hat.
Glancing at the time displayed at the top of the screen, she realized she had only fifteen minutes left before entering the exam hall.
Tao Shushu opened her backpack, found a fire source, and set a large patch of Bloodsucking Grass ablaze.
Nan Yuan stopped moving.
He looked at the surrounding flames and obediently sat inside the firebreak. Sheltered by the hat’s brim, the raging fire outside couldn’t affect him at all.
Nan Yuan thought to himself, So, did that person just go to find equipment?
That person’s appearance and disappearance were both too mysterious, leaving no trace to follow.
Nan Yuan stretched out his hand, the skin on his palm was smooth and flawless, with no sign of injury.
That person had healed his wounds and given him such incredible fire-resistant clothing. Could he secretly hope that this person wanted to help him…
Nan Yuan suddenly slapped himself hard.
It was because he had trusted artificial intelligence that he had ended up in this predicament. Now, this person who hadn’t even shown their face clearly possessed absolute power yet paid attention to someone like him, on the verge of death, how could there be no ulterior motive?
Nan Yuan pinched his palm, forcibly ignoring his rapidly beating heart.
Tao Shushu, rushing to the teaching building for her exam, didn’t notice the tiny heart that had appeared above the cub’s head on the screen.
Just as she reached the exam hall entrance, Tao Shushu heard the system announcement.
[Congratulations, player, for completing the first mission: eliminating the Bloodsucking Grass. Reward obtained: Primary Clarity Card ×1. Effect: Blocks the Stupidity Aura and provides immunity to damage from other systems. Use now?]
Tao Shushu turned her head and saw Su Momo, dressed in a white dress, walking over accompanied by Zhang Hai, the homeroom teacher of the international class.
Zhang Hai explained in a low voice, "Su Momo, at Huiwen, exam seating is arranged by academic performance. Since you’ve just arrived, you’ll be placed in the last exam hall for now. But I believe you’ll make it to the first exam hall next time."
The last exam hall was the area for academically weak students. Tao Shushu smiled faintly. [Do not activate now.]
She took out her phone and quickly glanced at it. The Bloodsucking Grass had all been burned away. The wasteland was devoid of any other plants, and after the fire died down, it had turned into scorched earth.
The cub was completely hidden under a large hood, its cute, stubby legs struggling to move across the charred ground.
Tao Shushu couldn’t resist tapping the cub with her finger, then generously bought it a bottle of Health Potion before packing up her things and queuing up to pass through the security check.
Fifteen minutes later, the exam began.
Tao Shushu received her test paper but didn’t start working on it immediately. Instead, she asked her system, [System, has the signal jammer been activated?]
[Yes.]
[Activate the Primary Clarity Card now.] Tao Shushu pursed her lips into a smile. Of course, she had to wait until the female lead was seated in the last exam hall, surrounded by no top students, before activating it. She hadn’t forgotten how the female lead had launched an attack during their first encounter outside the principal’s office.
Tao Shushu was strong in science subjects. She swiftly completed half of the test paper.
Meanwhile, in the last exam hall, Su Momo, who had been highly anticipated, was sweating profusely, her face pale and her hands and feet cold. The questions on the test paper were far beyond her level. Su Momo spent a long time calculating on scratch paper, coming up with three different answers after three attempts.
Frustrated, she threw down her pen and began interrogating her system in her mind.
In the first exam hall, Tao Shushu’s pen flew across the paper. With half an hour left in the exam, she finished early and submitted her paper.
She then headed straight to the security office, claiming she had lost a valuable accessory, and requested to review the surveillance footage.
In her dream, the female lead, Su Momo, had falsely accused her of cheating. Tao Shushu had wanted to use the security check footage to clear her name but was told that the footage from that time had coincidentally been corrupted.
This time, Tao Shushu deliberately positioned herself under the surveillance camera during the security check and used her phone to record a video proving she had passed the check without any issues.
By the time she returned to the teaching building, the exam was not yet over.
Some students in the last exam hall grew restless and began turning in their papers one after another. As the examinees pushed the door open to leave, Su Momo was still anxiously chewing on her pen. Through the open door, she caught sight of Tao Shushu calmly walking through the hallway. A chill ran down her spine, why had Tao Shushu broken free from the influence? It was impossible!
Tao Shushu didn't notice Su Momo.
She had returned to the teaching building because her phone had run out of battery. She wasn’t usually fond of using her phone and didn’t have the habit of carrying a power bank, so she had to come back to borrow one from a classmate.
After the exam ended, Tao Shushu met up with her friends, charged her phone, and worried that something might have happened to her parents. As soon as the signal was unblocked, she called them.
Dad and Mom were about to go sign a major contract.
Tao Shushu knew this was the very contract that had bankrupted the Tao family in her dream. She whined over the phone, "Mom, I suddenly fainted during the exam today and got scolded by the examinator, boohoo."
"Sweetie, did you go to the hospital? Are you feeling unwell?" After a brief discussion on the other end, they said, "We’ll come find you. The contract can wait until tomorrow."
Tao Shushu smiled. It was precisely because she had parents who unconditionally worried about and cared for her that she cherished her life on Blue Star so much. Therefore, she would never allow anyone to use underhanded methods to step on her entire family as a stepping stone.
Tao Shushu left the school gate, went to her usual restaurant, ordered a few dishes, and while waiting for her parents, opened the game.
At a glance, she couldn’t help but marvel at how fast her cub was at pioneering.