65: Chapter 65 Respecting the Fate of Others, A Bright Future

"It's time to settle the matter of the recruitment tokens' ownership."

With a single thought from Lin Ye, his figure vanished instantly.

Returning to the real world, he glanced at the time: 5:30 PM.

Lin Ye was just about to get out of bed when his ears twitched suddenly.

He walked to the window, drew back the curtain, and looked down.

A black SUV was parked at the villa's entrance. The doors opened, and a group of people stepped out.

The person leading them was none other than Manager Zhou.

Dressed in a gray suit, his hair meticulously combed.

Behind him followed a middle-aged couple.

The couple looked to be in their forties. The man was dressed impeccably, and the woman carried a designer handbag—clearly people of considerable means.

Manager Zhou gestured towards the villa as he walked, his words flowing incessantly.

Seeing this, Lin Ye understood immediately.

They saw that he had lived here for a month without incident, decided this so-called haunted house wasn't that sinister after all, and immediately brought people over to view the property.

Or perhaps, this had been their plan from the very beginning.

All that talk about wages increasing by 10% for each day lived beyond a month was complete nonsense to fool ghosts.

They never intended for him to stay beyond a month in the first place.

If the villa truly had problems, he would surely be unable to bear it and leave on his own.

If the villa had no issues, even better—they could directly bring potential buyers to view it.

After all, it was a labor contract, not a rental agreement. Making him leave would be as simple as saying the word.

"Still lacking in life experience," Lin Ye chuckled, shaking his head as he opened the door and headed downstairs.

Manager Zhou was currently standing in the living room, explaining the villa's layout to the couple. Hearing movement from the stairs, he turned and saw Lin Ye. A flicker of embarrassment crossed his face, but he quickly forced a smile.

"Mr. Lin, you're here too."

"I'm truly sorry, but a client has taken an interest in this villa. I'm afraid our cooperation will have to end ahead of schedule."

"But rest assured, since I'm the one breaching the contract, the wager is void. You'll receive every cent of the agreed-upon wages."

As he spoke, he pulled an envelope from his bag and handed it over.

"There's three thousand here. You stayed for twenty-nine days, at one hundred per day—that's twenty-nine hundred. The remaining hundred is a token of my personal appreciation."

Lin Ye took the envelope, counted the money, and tucked it into his pocket.

"Alright, I'll pack my things."

Manager Zhou was momentarily stunned, clearly not expecting Lin Ye to agree so readily.

He had even prepared to call security.

But since Lin Ye was being so cooperative, it saved him the trouble.

College students really were easy to deal with.

Lin Ye turned and went upstairs to start packing.

He didn't have much: just a few changes of clothes, a backpack, and a suitcase.

Ten minutes later, he dragged his suitcase downstairs. The couple was standing in the living room. Seeing Lin Ye descend, the woman asked, "Young man, I heard you've lived here for a month?"

"Mm-hmm," Lin Ye nodded.

Hearing this, the woman's eyes lit up. The man didn't speak, but a flicker of interest also crossed his face.

Originally, hearing this villa was haunted had made him hesitant.

If the price weren't so attractive, he wouldn't have even considered coming.

Now, seeing that Lin Ye had indeed lived here for a month, most of his worries instantly dissipated.

If someone could live here for a month without issue, then the so-called haunted house couldn't be that bad.

With Lin Ye's heightened perception, he could naturally discern what the two were thinking, but he said nothing more.

Did the villa have problems? Who would know better than him?

He could only hope these two had strong enough Physiques not to be too severely eroded by the Yin Qi.

As for warning them, he didn't even consider it.

Not to mention he'd be delighted if Manager Zhou faced complaints from clients.

Even if he did warn them, they might not believe him, perhaps thinking he was just trying to extend his stay by making such claims.

Thus, Lin Ye chose not to meddle.

After all, one must respect others' fate!

Dragging his suitcase, he left the villa and hailed a ride-sharing car to head back to campus.

By the time he returned to the university, it was already dark.

Street lamps illuminated the campus as students walked in small groups.

Lin Ye pulled his suitcase along the familiar path, feeling as if a lifetime had passed.

For the past month, he had spent most of his time in the game, only occasionally logging off to check in.

Often, he couldn't distinguish between reality and the game.

Pushing open the dorm room door, a familiar scent washed over him.

Instant noodles, dirty socks, laundry detergent—all mixed together into a rather potent aroma, especially since Lin Ye's senses were now far beyond ordinary.

The olfactory assault in that moment was... quite the experience.

Entering the room, his three roommates were lying on their beds, each holding a phone.

"Bro Ye," Cheng Yuan was the first to see him and immediately greeted.

"Whoa, Bro Ye!" Wang Hao was as excitable as ever.

The steady-tempered Zhu Ming didn't speak, just smiled and nodded at Lin Ye in greeting.

Lin Ye leaned his suitcase against the bed and smiled. "Guys, gaming together?"

"Yeah, playing ranked. Lost three in a row already! Haozi is dragging us down!" Cheng Yuan said with a pained expression.

"Perfect timing. Want to join a four-man squad? I'll carry."

"Sure, let's play a round."

Lin Ye pulled out his phone and sat on the bed.

The four formed a team, matched with a random player, and entered the game.

Lin Ye controlled the character on his screen—positioning, last-hitting, using skills—every move executed flawlessly.

Cheng Yuan kept directing from the side, Wang Hao occasionally cried "Save me!" and Zhu Ming stayed silent but performed well in every team fight.

Lin Ye smiled. It had been a long time since he'd experienced days like these.

They played two rounds and won both.

Cheng Yuan cheered excitedly, while Wang Hao exclaimed, "Bro Ye, you're amazing!"

For the current Lin Ye, such skill-based games were rather simple.

Taking advantage of the gaming session, Lin Ye looked at the three and abruptly asked a question.

"Hey, let me ask you something."

"If you were given a chance for a Heaven-Defying change of fate, but that chance likely came with life-threatening danger, what would you choose?"

Cheng Yuan didn't even look up, answering as if it were obvious. "What's there to think about? Of course, choose the Heaven-Defying change! How many chances do you get in life to go all out? If not now, then when?"

"Haozi, let me have that kill."

Wang Hao chimed in, "Exactly. Life is short—just a few decades. If you can live it dramatically, who would choose to remain mediocre forever?"

"Password, you stole my kill!"

Zhu Ming, however, didn't answer immediately. After thinking, he said, "It depends on whether the risk is proportional to the reward."

"If the risk is too high and the reward too small, it's not worth it."

"But if the reward is substantial and the risk manageable, then it might be worth a try."

Lin Ye nodded, having a general idea now.

He mentally reviewed their responses.

Cheng Yuan and Wang Hao were both passionate youths, daring and willing to fight. Zhu Ming was more steady and rational, weighing gains and losses.

Though their personalities differed, all three shared one common trait: none wanted to live an ordinary life.

Soon, the time reached 11:30 PM.

Seeing the countdown on the recruitment tokens about to reach zero, Lin Ye hesitated no longer. With a wave of his hand, he sent the three tokens into their bodies.

"May we all have a bright future!"

Watching their figures vanish, Lin Ye focused his thoughts and re-entered the game.