This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 186: The Easter Egg that Drives OCD to Death

Chapter 186: Chapter 186: The Easter Egg that Drives OCD to Death

Exploration missions are not about scavenging.

This mission is different from scavenging; players who enter the map can only look around and cannot take anything with them.

After all, this place can no longer be considered the wilderness, even the data cards are available.

Teng Teng speculated that the Dog plan must have arranged this event to check for bugs in the map, hence using the game currency to freeload off the players’ labor.

Looking at it this way, it’s hard to say whether there is an easter egg or not!

After depositing his beloved gun in the storage locker, Teng Teng followed the footsteps of other players, passed through the buffer room of two gates, and finally stepped into this dust-covered shelter.

The space here is very spacious, with a ceiling height of a full five meters, and a semicircular hall behind which is the residents’ square, with two arc-shaped corridors outlining the square’s contour with four fan-shaped sections on both sides of the square—this actually bears some resemblance to the layout on Level B2 of Shelter No. 404.

However, judging from the structural diagram, printed on the wall of the hall’s front desk, the overall structure of this shelter is very different from that of Shelter No. 404.

Shelter No. 117 has only three levels, from B1 to B3, with the area decreasing successively, looking like an upside-down pyramid in space.

In contrast, Shelter No. 404 is the complete opposite. Although players have not yet visited below Level B3, it’s obvious that the areas below are bigger than Levels B1 and B2.

After a quick tour on Level B1, Teng Teng returned to the residents’ hall and happened to meet Brother Mosquito, coming out from the right side of the area.

This guy said enviously,

"I think my side must be the functional zone! Inside, there are a dining hall, a viewing room, and a medical room! Damn it... I even saw a basketball court!"

Teng Teng laughed and said, "That’s not surprising. This shelter only accommodates a hundred people, so it’s normal to have higher specifications. I also saw a separate bath and toilet in their rooms, and every room has one."

Brother Mosquito said with envy,

"I’m asking out of ignorance, but can we switch shelters after the open beta?"

Teng Teng gave him an incredulous look.

"Where’s the value in that? The game’s not called ’Shelter’; the content is all on the surface. Even if you change the respawn point, it’s not going to give you a BUFF."

Brother Mosquito: "Damn, when you put it that way, it makes a lot of sense."

It’s not that it makes a lot of sense.

It’s just a given...

Teng Teng was about to tease him, when at that moment, two players walked out from a secure passage next to the elevator.

Gnome King Riches said excitedly, "Did you guys go to Level B2? It was freaking amazing down there!"

Teng Teng curiously looked at them.

"What did you see?"

Elena said with resignation, "Geez, it’s just an artificial greenhouse. I don’t get why he’s so excited."

Gnome King Riches: "Isn’t it awesome to be able to farm in a shelter? And it’s not just a plantation, there’s also a water purification device and a processing workshop... and other stuff I didn’t understand. Man, this is basically an artificial ecosystem!"

As he spoke, he, like Mosquito Brother, couldn’t help but sigh.

"Ah, this is what you call a shelter! Not like ours, which has nothing, and you have to pay for showers and using the restroom!"

Teng Teng asked, "So, who went to Level B3?"

Gnome King Riches: "We both did. There’s not much to see in B3, it’s really small, except for the Manager’s Office and an extinguished reactor. I thought it would be radioactive, but when I went in there, I found nothing... By the way, have you guys finished exploring Level B1? Find anything?"

They had rushed straight to Level B2 the moment they entered, and hadn’t had the chance to see Level B1.

Teng Teng shook his head and said,

"I inspected the rooms on Level B1 more carefully."

However, it seemed some quick players had already finished touring Level B1 and were heading to Level B2.

Teng Teng had just seen a short-haired female player, excitedly dragging another with a high ponytail, heading towards Level B2.

Even a white bear was following behind.

A thought flickered in his mind, and Teng Teng looked at his VM, switching to the activity mission page.

It was then that his expression froze for a moment.

[Server-wide Exploration Progress: 90%]

Not sure if it was an illusion, Teng Teng had a feeling that this mission wasn’t going to be as simple as he thought.

...

In fact, even though he was not a Perception-type, his intuition proved to be very accurate.

He spent a full hour opening every door that could be opened, and visited every room that could be entered.

Yet, even after he had visited every corner of the shelter and even after tracing the walls again, his "Personal Exploration Progress" was still stuck at 90%.

No matter how hard he tried, that number just wouldn’t budge!

"Yikes, this is freaking weird!" Staring at the map on his VM screen, a perplexed Teng Teng couldn’t understand what was happening.

Apparently, he wasn’t the only one with this problem.

It was the same for the other players.

If there were some missed place, that would be fine, but even the "server-wide exploration progress" is stuck at 90%.

In other words, everyone is stuck in the same place...

After logging off for the day.

Over half the posts on the official forum were discussing this.

Construction Lad and Brick: "I have a bad feeling about this, could it be another bug?"

Canyon-Running Mole: "+1, the progress is stuck at 90%, and I’m sure I haven’t missed a single corner, I’ve run through the entire shelter time and again!"

There Really Are Mosquitoes WC: "MMP, more than just run through, I’ve done it three times! I’m about to rub the paint off the walls!"

Gnome King Riches: "Could there be a hidden passage?"

Si Si: "There really might be... But isn’t this too well hidden?"

Tail: "Damn, Tail has run eight laps! Found nothing!"

Canyon-Running Mole: "Tomorrow I’ll go take another look at that manager’s office. I always feel like there might be something hidden inside..."

Crow: "Hmm, I have the exact opposite feeling from you. When I was exploring Level B2, I kept having this weird feeling... like something was missing."

Night Ten: "Missing some mushrooms? (Face with tears of joy)"

Crow: "Go die! I’m serious here! (`Д´*)9"

There Really Are Mosquitoes WC: "What if that Easter egg is the remaining 10%!"

Midnight Chicken Killing: "This isn’t good, my OCD is acting up."

Looking at the discussions on the official forum, Chu Guang was just as confused as these players.

To be honest, while he fabricated that Easter egg, that OCD-inducing 90% was not his fault.

The "server-wide exploration progress" that the players saw was, in fact, the progress bar he saw on the Manager’s System page.

Could there be some hidden and not marked on the design area inside Shelter No.117?

That would be unlikely.

There was no rush for activities, half the players had not explored yet.

Chu Guang decided to wait and see if the remaining players would discover anything new.

Meanwhile, the Bull and Horse Squad, on their adventure to the Central State Aerospace Ecological Experiment Base, made a new discovery.

Based on the terminal machines and other electronic devices they retrieved from the guard room, after Yin Fang restored data from the storage hardware, they concluded that the entire facility was actually a fully enclosed artificial bio-dome built around a thermal nuclear fusion reactor.

"... Currently, there’s no direct clue that proves which specific project is related to that ecological experiment base. Maybe it serves the shelter plan, or perhaps it’s researching how to establish colonies in outer space."

After listening to Yin Fang’s report, Chu Guang directly asked his most pressing question.

"Is there a chance to find fuel rods?"

Yin Fang nodded.

"It should be possible, but based on the information your players have explored, there seem to be quite a few Variants hidden inside. Clearing them out might take some time."

Hearing this, Chu Guang breathed a sigh of relief.

Taking time was a minor issue.

As long as the fuel rods could be secured, spending any amount of time would be worth it.

...

While the players were busy with their own tasks, Chu Guang wasn’t idle either.

The guard team’s number expanded from 15 to 45; among the 30 new recruits, half were from Bet Street and the other half from the refugee camp.

As his own direct troop, it wasn’t possible to leave them completely unchecked.

Furthermore, Pruitt and others captured before, after being watched for a day, Chu Guang had them all sent to the brick factory for labor reform.

Looking at the new workers, Eugene recognized at a glance that these guys had the same status as him. They were prisoners of the Blue Jackets.

Not just that, he also smelled a familiar scent on them.

Lunchtime.

The new prisoners sat in a corner to eat.

Eugene, carrying his lunchbox, walked over and struck up a conversation with the four of them.

"Hey, newcomers, how did you get in?"

Pruitt glanced at him.

"Mercenary, you?"

"What a coincidence, me too," Eugene grinned, glancing at the bandaged arm of one, "Speaking of which, what happened to your hand?"

Karl with a stone face, expressionless, said.

"Fell down."

Eugene whistled: "Fell down and you’re still doing okay, must have fallen on a vise to break your wrist like that."

The gunman Lambert took a step forward, his eyes fixed on the guy, and said in a deep voice,

"Are you here to pick a fight?"

Eugene raised his eyebrows, not taking his provocation seriously at all.

Lambert was annoyed, about to take action, but it was at that moment when a voice came from the side,

"I’d advise you not to cause trouble,"

"If you don’t want to be hanged."

Lambert’s expression faltered, and the other three also turned their gaze towards the voice, only to see a man with a prominent bridge bone in the middle of his nose standing there.

Pruitt gave Lambert a look, and the latter grudgingly swallowed his anger and stepped back,

The tense atmosphere eased slightly.

Coincidentally at that moment, a man looking like a guard entered from outside, glanced at everyone, and said expressionlessly,

"Who is Vanus?"

The man who had previously stopped the conflict raised his hand,

"That’s me."

The guard didn’t waste words and said straight to the point,

"Come with me."

Vanus nodded, put down his food container, and got up to follow the guard.

The atmosphere in the room was somewhat subtle.

Pruitt turned to Eugene and asked,

"Who is that person?"

"You mean him?" Eugene looked at the man walking out of the brick factory with the guard, clicking his tongue and said, "He’s no small fry."

Pruitt asked,

"What do you mean by that?"

Eugene responded,

"In all respects. Have you heard of the Army?"

Pruitt nodded.

The Army had been fighting with the people of Grand Canyon to the north for a year now, and refugees from the north never stopped coming. One could always hear rumors about the Expeditionary Army in the pubs of Giant Stone City, but most were unreliable.

Some said they had won half a year ago, and the Army had already stationed in River Valley Province. Others claimed they had lost thoroughly, and even the General had been captured. There were also tales that General Kras had died on the front line, and now a new General was leading the troops. And the most outrageous rumor of all was that, unable to make a dent in Grand Canyon, the Army decided to march south and invade Qingquan City.

One thing was for certain: those men were strong!

"I heard that people from the Army have a bump in the middle of their nose bridge..." Recalling the person’s features, Pruitt had a realization and said, "Is he from the Army?"

Eugene looked at him with an intriguing tone,

"Yes, he is, and he’s a Thousands of leaders."

Thousands of leaders!

Lambert took a deep breath, Jerry and Karl exchanged glances, each with an agitated expression on their faces.

Though they had never seen the Army in person, they had heard plenty of rumors about them.

Capturing a Thousands of leaders would require at least destroying a Thousand-person Brigade.

Pruitt swallowed hard, feeling a slight tremor in his index finger.

Just who exactly were they fighting against?

If there had been any dissatisfaction before, any regret for not having put on his power armor and fought his way out, now his heart was filled with relief.

The strength of these Blue Jackets was probably even more formidable than he had imagined!

It was good thing that there hadn’t been full-on resistance.

It was such a relief to be alive...

Meanwhile, outside the brick factory.

Following the guard’s footsteps, Vanus walked towards the North Gate of Wetland Park for a while, and couldn’t help but ask,

"Where are we going?"

The guard said expressionlessly,

"The high official wants to see you."

Vanus cautiously reminded,

"Outpost Base isn’t in this direction."

The guard said impatiently,

"Come on."

"The Lord went to Changjiu Farm before noon... You just follow if you’re told to, why all the fuss!"

Hearing this scolding, Vanus immediately shut his mouth, though he felt somewhat relieved inside.

When he first came out, he was a bit nervous, thinking he was going to be taken out and executed.

Now it looked like, at least, he wasn’t going to die...

...

Meanwhile, on Level B2 of Shelter No. 117.

Inside a massive artificial greenhouse.

Crow, who stood next to a hydroponic container, touched her chin as if pondering deeply, with a light frown on her forehead.

"There’s definitely something wrong here."

Teng Teng yawned, her face wearing an expression of resignation.

"Are you sure you aren’t mistaken?"

About two hours earlier, just as she had been preparing to start work, Crow had dragged her here without explanation.

To be honest, Teng Teng didn’t believe for a second that they would find a clue that the big shots on the forum had missed so easily.

As a laid-back lifestyle player, she preferred to wait for the guide to come out and then fill in the missing 10% rather than waste time on such details...

"I’m positive, I definitely saw it right!" Crow said seriously, "Don’t forget, I’m the Perception type!"

Hearing this, Teng Teng’s expression turned slightly odd.

Perception type?

Wasn’t it supposed to be the Mushroom type...

Crow, oblivious to Teng Teng’s nuanced expression, ran her index finger along the side of the hydroponic container and quickly discovered what seemed unnatural to her.

There was a thin, pale green mark on the side of the container!

"Poison?!"

Crow’s heart skipped a beat as she moved in for a closer look.

The trace was incredibly faint and slim, like a web spun by a spider. If not for her 10 points in perception, coupled with the "Toxin Intuition" talent, she would have completely missed it!

Realizing this, Crow’s face broke into immediate excitement.

There was no mistake!

It was poison!

Following the intermittent trail with her fingers, she quickly arrived at the side of a wall.

Following behind Crow, Teng Teng was utterly confused.

"Is there something here?"

"My talent is Toxin Detection, and there’s dried-up poison on the ground... but the clue ends here. Could it be inside the wall?"

Crow knocked on the wall twice with her hand.

But perhaps the wall was too thick; merely listening to the sounds made it impossible to confirm whether something was hidden behind it.

Teng Teng voiced her doubts.

"This is just an ordinary wall right? Could you be mistaken—"

Before she could finish her sentence, Crow, who had been feeling around on the wall, suddenly seemed to trigger some mechanism, and a clicking sound echoed from the wall.

Immediately after, the seemingly smooth alloy wall began to part, revealing a gap that steadily moved to both sides, exposing the passage behind it.

This wall was actually a secret door!

The two small players standing before the wall were stunned on the spot.

Teng Teng swallowed, muttering to herself in a hushed tone.

"Did we... discover a hidden map?"

A hidden map that even the big shots had failed to find was so effortlessly discovered by the two of them?!

Although the main credit went to Crow...

But clearly, this was not the time to discuss credit.

Looking at the passage hidden behind the wall, Crow’s face was flushed with excitement, and she suddenly hugged Teng Teng tightly.

"Easter egg! It’s an easter egg!"

"Hahaha, as expected of me, I actually found it!"

"Mmmphhh—"

Teng Teng, her head buried, emitted a sound akin to drowning.

They hadn’t seen the easter egg yet.

But she felt as though her health bar was about to be depleted...

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