Chapter 23: Whether it is or not, it most likely is.

During dinner, before Yu Xun'ge could even bring it up, Yu Qingshan and Yi Qiuguo had already urged Yu Xunhuan to reach out to Su Yitong for information.

Yu Xun'ge advised, "But don't alert her. If she’s already a player, asking like that might make her think you’re suspicious of her or testing her, which would hurt your relationship."

Yu Xunhuan nodded repeatedly.

Yu Qingshan asked for more details about the game. Yu Xun'ge shared everything she could, explaining how hard it was to earn money. She had only played for two hours and earned a mere two silver coins and a tattered bag. The bottle of healing potion she had was bought right before she planned to leave the city to hunt monsters; but as soon as she bought it, even before she could get a weapon, the game vanished.

Yu Xunhuan said in a low voice, "The game will surely appear again. It’s just a matter of figuring out the pattern."

Yu Xun'ge shook her head. "I couldn't find anything online. That day, I just felt a whim to search for the World of Warcraft we used to play in high school, and I stumbled upon something with a similar name, so I downloaded it. But the game has no ads, and no one is discussing it online."

Yu Qingshan commented, "That’s normal. People wouldn't broadcast something like this; at most, they’d tell their families."

Yi Qiuguo asked, "Should we stockpile anything? I have a feeling things are about to get chaotic."

The family discussed it for a long time before dispersing. Whether it was psychological or not, Yu Xun'ge felt that Yu Qingshan and Yu Xunhuan’s attitudes toward her had improved. They had always been affectionate, but after her rebirth and newfound clarity, that warmth had previously felt a bit forced. Now, however, it carried a genuine sense of belonging.

A few days later, the family reunited at the hotel. This time, it was Yu Xunhuan bringing the news: Su Yitong’s ears had been cut off.

Before Yu Xun'ge could speak, Yi Qiuguo said, "Could that matter of yours have been the work of the Su family's enemies? They couldn't get to her, so they took it out on you!"

Yu Xunhuan’s expression made it clear he thought the same, but he kept his lips pressed tight, unwilling to be the kind of person who makes baseless accusations.

Yu Xun'ge advised, "Regardless of whether it was them or not, you’re about to become family. You’ll be safer inside the Su residence than you would be out here."

*Regardless of whether it was them or not*—it most likely was, but you might as well pretend it wasn't, right?

Yu Xunhuan was deeply unsettled. He felt certain the Su family’s troubles had dragged him into this, but he was also worried: if it were the Su family's enemies, did Su Yitong know that *he* had been... compromised?

He suddenly recalled the morning of the 6th, when he had inexplicably fainted. At the time, he blamed it on irregular sleep and low blood sugar, but what if the Su family’s enemies didn't want him playing that game...

No, that didn't make sense either. He hadn't even known about the game then; he had just been watching short videos on a whim to kill time.

Yu Xunhuan slumped against the sofa, feeling defeated. Just as Yu Xun'ge said, *regardless of whether it was them or not*... what else could he do?

***

Although things were going smoothly, Yu Xun'ge had her own troubles.

Gold-casting was explicitly for goblins. Even though she had learned the skill, it turned grey once she left the game. She had to use her Disguise skill to transform into a goblin for the skill to light up.

The Disguise skill was incredibly useful, but it had a long cooldown, allowing only four uses per day. To avoid interfering with her daily activities, Yu Xun'ge spent the last ten minutes before bed as a green-skinned goblin, sitting on the edge of her bed to mint three gold coins before sleeping. That way, the cooldown would reset just as she woke up.

After transforming into a goblin, she didn't just stick to her minting routine; she would also cast Invisibility and use Phantom Shift to sneak into the bedrooms of Su Yitong and Liang Yuchuan. She would steal just a little—a single point from each—then head home with 60% of her health remaining to catch up on sleep.

But after only two days, she discovered that Su Yitong's bedroom—no, the entire Su estate—had been equipped with atomizing sprayers. From the gardens to the interior of the villa and every single room, these devices were everywhere. She had Phantom Shifted out of the Su residence the moment she sensed the water mist. As soon as she got home, she realized her Invisibility potion had worn off; she could see her own body.

What a massive expenditure. How much Reveal potion were they going through every day?

Wait, weren't they worried about their furniture molding? No matter how fine the mist or how high-end the furniture, it couldn't withstand 24-hour spraying, could it?

It didn't matter, though. She drank another Invisibility potion and returned to the Su residence, this time landing under Su Yitong's bed. It didn't matter if she became visible there; she could just steal and leave.

Peering out from under the bed and seeing that the Su household wasn't in chaos, she felt relieved. It seemed she hadn't been discovered.

She just wondered if there were surveillance cameras in Su Yitong's room. Even if she were caught on film, it wouldn't matter. She was so cautious that she not only layered a disguise over her Invisibility potion, but she even wore a swimming cap and a mask before transforming. Ever since she started using the goblin form to mint coins, she had been visiting the Su and Liang residences in that form every day.

Because of the Su family's setup, when she went to Liang Yuchuan’s house, she tried to shift directly under his bed... only to find herself appearing beside it. Looking down, she realized he had changed beds, and the space beneath was now sealed off.

Fortunately, the Liang family hadn't started using Reveal potion sprayers yet. After stealing from Liang Yuchuan, she walked through the walk-in closet in his bedroom to map out the area, planning to shift directly there next time.

Yu Xun'ge persisted in her daily visits to the Su and Liang residences. After a month, she had succeeded twice: she stole 1 point of Intelligence from Su Yitong and 1 point of Strength from Liang Yuchuan.

Yu Xun'ge’s current attributes were:
[Strength]: 7+1
[Constitution]: 7
[Intelligence]: 10+1
[Agility]: 18
[Luck]: 10 (Max)
[Charisma]: 10 (Max)

Beyond that, her biggest headache was her professional skills.

She knew of many items and equipment that would mutate after the game invasion, but priorities were important. Those things wouldn't run away; her most urgent task was to level up her Alchemy and Engineering.

These days, Yu Xun'ge holed up in her villa with a strict routine: morning for Alchemy experience, afternoon for Engineering experience, and three meals a day for Cooking experience. She made sure to leave a portion of meat by the cat bed every day. Ever since she started using cat toys, cats would stay in the bed at her doorstep almost every night.

In the evenings, she practiced archery on the second floor, and before bed, she studied her Alchemy or Engineering notes.

On weekends, she would go to the lake in the villa district to practice fishing. After the game invasion, the fish in many waters mutated; she needed a high enough fishing level to catch higher-quality fish.

Unfortunately, her Alchemy soon hit a bottleneck at Advanced (77/100,000). There were no real-world substitutes for the herbs required at the Advanced level. She could only use what she had bought from the game, and now, all her materials were exhausted.