Chapter 21: Preparations Before Departure

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Gu Xi raised an eyebrow at Wang Yiyi’s sudden conditions. As expected, things weren’t that simple.

“Go ahead, tell me,” she said, curious about the specifics.

“First, the food you just gave me—you must ensure there’s plenty of supplies on the road. That’s one. Also, you need to keep my itinerary secret. I don’t want to be caught by the cyber police once we enter the territory.”

That wasn’t too much to ask.

But Gu Xi wasn’t one to always play nice; just because you make demands didn’t mean she’d agree.

“You’re hard to keep fed like this. Forget it, I’ll go on my own. Bye.” Saying this, Gu Xi turned and started walking out without looking back.

Wang Yiyi panicked seeing Gu Xi break the usual patterns.

What was going on? The long-term meal ticket wasn’t even attracted by her skills?

Something was off—very off.

She was different from the others who came here.

If someone tried to mess with her, her system couldn’t be hacked.

Not to mention brainwashing her equipment with her skills was out of the question.

Though her skills weren’t top-tier like her master’s, she could still “trick” some of the helmeted people on the road.

Gu Xi’s approach was a slap in the face to this street “con artist.”

Seeing her plan to freeload food fail, Wang Yiyi nervously caught up and grabbed Gu Xi’s sleeve.

“Don’t go! I—I’m still useful!” In Lingdu, surviving was more important than how you survived.

As long as you stayed alive, you could make it to the next reshuffle day.

Then, on reshuffle day, you’d have a chance to draw a better identity.

After all, she had maxed out her luck value through her own skills.

Gu Xi heard Wang Yiyi shouting behind her and smiled faintly.

“If you want to team up with me, the first rule is no bargaining,” Gu Xi said firmly.

“Secondly, with your amateur skills, you need to train more. If you behave, I can help you. Isn’t that right?”

From the moment Gu Xi met Wang Yiyi, she felt it wasn’t by chance.

Normally on the streets, everyone was neatly dressed and cold-hearted.

But this warm-hearted little beggar gave her a sense of ‘living presence.’

Though she hadn’t reached Taolin Town yet—

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—Gu Xi suspected Wang Yiyi was a kind of player.

In her memory, there were 42 players in this game.

If Wang Yiyi were one of them but unaware, she would be a good companion on the road.

But if Wang Yiyi knew she was a player and was deliberately hiding it, Gu Xi would be in great danger.

Judging by Wang Yiyi’s current state, she didn’t pose much threat.

And her survival goal was quite transparent: not to starve.

“Y-yeah, you’re right. Big sister, you’re absolutely right. I’ll listen to you. Just give me some food,” Wang Yiyi instantly backed down.

She knew she had no bargaining chips against this woman.

“Good, then I have a condition,” Gu Xi turned, serious.

“You must change into clean clothes and shave your head entirely,” Gu Xi said calmly.

???

Changing clothes was understandable, but shaving her head? That was a first.

“I don’t want to shave,” Wang Yiyi said, feeling wronged as she touched her tangled, dirty hair.

“I’ll shave too,” Gu Xi stepped forward, approaching the butcher doctor’s surgical knife.

She picked up scissors and a razor and pressed them to her hair.

Back on the floating island, her long hair made it easy for enemies to judge her gender at first glance.

Once gender was locked in, attacks came easily.

If she cut her hair short, wrapped her chest, and wore work clothes—

At her height, it would be hard for others to immediately identify her as female.

This would create a feint during combat.

Ever since her rebirth, Gu Xi’s experiences had left her mind struggling to adapt.

Now she had to go against the grain. Only upon reaching Taolin Town could she unravel these mysteries!

So necessary disguise was crucial.

“But won’t that make people think we’re men? I don’t want to be a man,” Wang Yiyi shook her head.

“We want a disguise. You know this place is super safe. Leaving means danger. Besides, your hair’s a mess—who cares if you look like a man?” Gu Xi said, cutting as she spoke. If Wang Yiyi had escaped from somewhere else, this place might be the best refuge for now.

Wang Yiyi said nothing.

Indeed, outside this place, Lingdu was divided into two factions:

One was the Alliance Army, responsible for military management.

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The other was the Linghua civilians, in charge of culture and entertainment.

Wang Yiyi had been expelled because, as a Linghua soldier, she accidentally hacked into the Alliance Army.

Ordinary people here survived as Linghua civilians.

Gu Xi was incredibly clever.

She could piece together the situation elsewhere from Wang Yiyi’s fragmented words.

It seemed wise to follow her for a while. If possible, it would be good to take on a formal Linghua civilian identity, at least to avoid living like a stray.

“Alright, cut it…” Wang Yiyi finally picked up the scissors and began cutting her hair like Gu Xi.

The butcher doctor was seeing something new—a girl willing to shave her head!

In all his years, he had only heard of one person like this.

That person reminded him somewhat of the girl named Gu Xi before him.

Only now, that person held a high position unreachable by ordinary people like them.

Soon, Gu Xi and Wang Yiyi shaved their heads completely.

Their bald scalps shone under the white woven lights.

“I think you should each take a hat. That way, you won’t stand out in a crowd. Even men don’t shave that bald,” the butcher doctor advised.

“Is there anywhere nearby to buy clothes?” Gu Xi wanted to see if she could buy some men’s clothes for going out.

“There’s nothing like that here. I’ll give you two white coats, and you can try to scavenge some others on the road,” the doctor replied.

“By the way, doctor, I need to borrow some gauze strips—large ones,” Gu Xi said.

Gauze?

“You can’t use gauze after an injury; the blood will seep through,” the doctor said.

“I have another use. Please give me extra,” Gu Xi requested.

Though puzzled, the butcher doctor handed over the gauze strips.

Then Gu Xi pulled the surgical curtain over the operating table.

She quickly stripped off her clothes and wrapped the gauze strips tightly around her upper body.

Next, she put on the coat.

Pulling back the curtain, Wang Yiyi gasped, “Wow, you look so cool!”

It turned out Gu Xi had bound herself with gauze.