novelraw Chapter 204 : The Past is the Past, Now is Now
Chapter 204 : The Past is the Past, Now is Now
The electric scooter, fully loaded with joy, sped along the seaside.
The nervousness gradually faded, but the sweaty hands recorded it.
Just as Chen Yuying had said, when other vehicles appeared in the distance, especially oncoming ones, even if they were still far away and safe, she would still panic a little.
Seeing the scooter start to wobble, and confirming there were no cars following behind, meaning stopping wouldn't cause any problems, Lin Li immediately squeezed the brakes. The scooter came to a sudden stop, and he used his feet to brace it, stopping steadily.
Due to inertia, their bodies uncontrollably leaned forward, but Lin Li, gripping the scooter's tail wing with his left hand, had a very stable stance.
Only his right shoulder briefly touched Chen Yuying's shoulder for a few moments.
I don't know what shampoo she uses, but it smells so good and feels so silky.
Much better than Bai Bufan's Bawang. I should interview the girls another day about what shampoo they usually use.
With these thoughts, watching the car pass by them a full five seconds later, Lin Li said with some amusement: "Class Rep, your safety margin is a bit too large."
"My life is very important," Chen Yuying stuck out her tongue and said softly.
Lin Li waited for a second, didn't get it, so he blinked: "Ahem, did you forget to mention someone?"
"No."
"I feel like someone's knee is pressing against my neck, I can't breathe! I'm going to start a Lin Lives Matter movement." Lin Li got angry.
"Bleh bleh~~" Sticking out her tongue again, Chen Yuying withdrew her hands, gently wiped them on her top, got off the scooter sideways, and said to Lin Li: "You drive. I'm done experiencing it.
"Although it's really fun, it's still quite scary when encountering cars. I'll drive again when I'm more proficient."
"That's fine, I'll look forward to it!" Lin Li smiled and nodded, withdrawing his right hand, which had long since turned from cool to warm, and wiped it on his top.
Lin Li moved forward, sat back in the front seat, and honked the horn:
"The Lin Li, restarting! Let's go to the dock and get some awesome fries!"
(Translator's Note: A reference to a meme about seagulls wanting fries).
When Chen Yuying got on, Lin Li twisted the throttle all the way and set off again.
Chen Yuying gripped Lin Li's clothes with both hands, looking at the sparkling sea in the distance.
...
When they returned to the chosen sunset viewing spot, Ding Sihan and Qu Wanqiu were already there. Bai Bufan was standing far away on the rocky shore by the sea, looking a bit stiff.
Seeing Lin Li and Chen Yuying return, he breathed a sigh of relief as if he had been saved.
The two made eye contact. Bai Bufan smiled, and Lin Li smiled too.
Then, Lin Li, who had been preparing to slow down and stop, looked straight ahead, accelerated again, and passed by the "house" for the fourth time without entering.
Keep serving your sentence—that was probably what Lin Li's eyes meant.
Bai Bufan: "?"
"You fucking come back here!" This time Bai Bufan really couldn't hold it in and shouted.
Lin Li was naturally joking. After parking the scooter on the side of the road where it could be seen when looking back and wouldn't obstruct traffic, Lin Li and Chen Yuying got off and joined the other three.
Someone's phone was already playing music. Qu Wanqiu and Ding Sihan were searching for the remains of some marine life nearby.
Lin Li sat down nearby.
Only then did he look at the system.
Did I actually complete two tasks at once?
Because his mind hadn't been on the system just now, Lin Li hadn't noticed at all.
Completing Task Two was understandable, after all, Chen Yuying was getting more and more proficient at driving the electric scooter. But how was Task Six completed?
Did it count Chen Yuying's happiness and excitement from driving the scooter towards me?
So there was no need for tickling or massages at all.
At this moment, both tasks were asking him if he wanted to use the "Random Reward Doubling Card (2/3)".
The reward for Task Six was relatively poor, so there was no point in doubling it. Therefore, Lin Li only doubled Task Two.
[You have received rewards: Physique Improvement: Mecha Synchronization Index +10; Random Ability 1; System Currency 300.]
[You have received rewards: Physique Improvement: Mecha Synchronization Index +10; Random Talent; System Currency 50.]
He had struck it rich, actually doubling the prize that originally only had 150 System Currency.
With this 350 System Currency credited, Lin Li's balance instantly rose to 540. He hadn't been this wealthy in a long time.
[Random Quality Spirit Stone: 20 System Currency (Daily Purchase Limit: 1)]
[Luck Rune: 150 System Currency (Daily Purchase Limit: 1)]
[Charging Crystal: 50 System Currency (Daily Purchase Limit: 1)]
[To unlock refreshable product slot 4, you need to accumulate 2100 System Currency. (1800/2100)]
[To unlock refreshable product slot 5, you need to accumulate 2800 System Currency. (1800/2800)]
At the same time, obtaining this 350 System Currency brought Lin Li's cumulative System Currency to over 1500, unlocking the third product slot.
[Charging Crystal: Use on any mecha, attach to the mecha to be automatically absorbed. Depending on the mecha's quality, it restores 50~100% of the energy required for its operation within three seconds.]
Although he didn't know if he would have the chance to use it, he might as well buy one and let it gather dust in the [Inventory].
He could save another one later. Lin Li had almost no single items in his [Inventory].
Lin Li had once refreshed a B++ armor. One of the problems he considered at the time was whether there was a way to charge a mecha in the modern world. Now, with this crystal, that problem was solved.
In addition, it should also be able to charge "mechas" in reality, such as the electric scooter behind him.
But Lin Li wouldn't test it; it would be too wasteful.
[You have acquired the talent: Cooking.]
It's actually this talent? It came a bit late. If it had come earlier, maybe he could have amazed everyone when cooking earlier and directly completed the praise task.
No, if I had obtained it earlier, who knows if the task would have even been triggered.
[You have acquired the active ability: Wind Control]
[Wind Control: Within ten minutes after use, based on your current strength and abilities, you will possess the ability to control wind. You can control the surrounding wind and airflow, or consume extra physical stamina to generate wind and airflow.
Accumulates one use every eight hours, with a maximum storage limit of 3 uses.]
Sounded like a very cool ability.
However, Lin Li didn't have too high expectations. After all, the use of the ability depended on his own strength. The last ability with such wording was [Healing], which so far only slightly alleviated symptoms and made the pain fly away.
There were still two "Ability Amplifiers" in the [Inventory], but there was no need to use them for now.
He checked the sunset schedule. Today, the sunset time in Shanting was around 5:22 PM, which was still an hour and a half away.
The girls were taking photos. Lin Li didn't plan to join them, so he got up and walked a few steps to Bai Bufan's side.
He was skipping stones, and he wasn't even using stones, but those larger shells. In a way, it was like using the original soup to digest the original food.
"Want to compete with me?" Hearing footsteps, Bai Bufan turned around and provoked.
"I can't compete with you. You've accomplished nothing in your past fifteen years, your whole life has been skipping stones (wasted). You could be considered a top national athlete in the field of skipping stones. Who can compete with you?"
Lin Li shook his head, becoming a cowardly lizard.
Bai Bufan: "..."
Even though the other party surrendered, this fucking guy's words are really fucking hurtful.
"I'm depressed," Bai Bufan had to say.
"The past is the past, now is now—" Lin Li first finished speaking using the Guangjun ant pincers gesture, then apologized and comforted: "Gold will always shine. I believe in you, bro."
(Translator's Note: A reference to a meme by streamer Guangjun).
"You motherfucker."
It would be quite touching—if he didn't call me 'bro'.
Sometimes Bai Bufan really envied cats, because cats could slap things they hated or didn't understand without hesitation. But he couldn't slap Lin Li anytime, anywhere.
Because he couldn't beat him.
Bai Bufan squatted down, picked up a heavy rock with all his might, and walked towards the sea.
"He understands, he understands, I can't afford to live! So he turns and walks towards the sea!" Seeing someone wanting to cosplay Qu Yuan, Lin Li not only didn't rescue him but also provided BGM on the side. "From now on, October 4th will commemorate Bai Bufan throwing himself into the river. If anyone jerks off, the target of their spellcasting must be Bai Bufan!
(Translator's Note: Qu Yuan was a poet who drowned himself, commemorated by the Dragon Boat Festival. The BGM is from the song "The Big Dreamer").
"I'll demonstrate first!"
Bai Bufan: "..."
This guy.
Bai Bufan walked to the seaside, but decided against jumping in. With a hard throw, he tossed the big rock into the sea. With a dull plop, it splashed a large amount of water.
He got splashed himself, but Bai Bufan didn't care and was actually quite happy.
Lin Li followed Bai Bufan, turned sideways, and threw a flat stone diagonally.
It skipped three times on the water's surface.
Bai Bufan smiled disdainfully, casually picked up a stone from the ground, and it drew an arc on the water's surface. Because the skips were too dense at the end, they couldn't be counted, but there must have been more than a dozen.
He's got some skills, no wonder he dared to provoke me. Lin Li sneered, a surging fighting spirit burning within him.
He carefully selected a flat stone with a perfect curve. This was truly a treasure. Bai Bufan was a bit jealous seeing it; why hadn't he found it just now?
Posing, aiming, charging up, Lin Li used all his strength and stumbled.
The treasure was wasted.
"Not fun, I'm going home." Lin Li's face darkened.
"Lin Li, I rarely take the subway, after all, it's crowded. You should know what 'crowded' (ren ji) means, right?" Bai Bufan looked at Lin Li with a smile.
(Translator's Note: "Ren ji" sounds like "cai ji" meaning noob).
Lin Li: "..."
"Lin Li, do you know what it is when you inhale smoke and then exhale it?"
Lin Li had already covered his ears.
"It's waste (fei wu), bro!"
(Translator's Note: "Fei wu" means waste/trash, but sounds like "lung fog").
Bai Bufan beside him casually picked up a stone, easily skipped it over a dozen times again, and laughed out loud without concealing it.
"Sigh, Lin Li, it's a pity my photo album is full, I'm not accepting pictures for now."
(Translator's Note: A meme implying the other person is too ugly/embarrassing to save pictures of).
Lin Li couldn't bear it anymore.
Next year on October 4th, we must commemorate Bai Bufan—his own opinion is not important, we'll commemorate him first and talk later.
...
"What are you guys doing?" Ding Sihan stepped on the gravel, walked up to the two of them, and asked curiously.
Half an hour had passed, and the girls had finished taking satisfactory photos. These two guys had been playing around by the sea the whole time, their laughter drifting over from time to time.
Occasionally, there were also Bai Bufan's screams.
Out of the concept of animal protection, Ding Sihan came to gather intelligence.
"See that plastic bag? We're competing to see who can throw a stone onto it without it falling into the sea," Lin Li pointed to a plastic bag floating in the distance and explained.
"That's it?" Ding Sihan asked in confusion.
"Yeah, come on, this is super interesting, okay?"
Lin Li nodded, threw the small stone in his hand, successfully hit it, but it bounced to the side and slid off. So he slapped his thigh in frustration.
Bai Bufan followed closely behind.
It could only be said that Ding Sihan didn't understand. Most of the time, boys aren't picky. Just throwing stones into the water is a very interesting thing.
Of course, sometimes they are very picky. For example, when looking for material on small websites, sometimes they can flip through more than seventy pages without stopping. If they don't find an approved spellcasting material, they'd rather stay bare-bottomed and do nothing.
"I don't feel like throwing stones is interesting." After throwing a few stones along with them, Ding Sihan shook her head.
"Then why don't you try throwing one at Lin Li's head?" Hearing this, Bai Bufan suggested. He sincerely hoped everyone could understand the fun of throwing stones.
Lin Li: "?"
Ding Sihan: "!"
"Just thinking about it makes it interesting!"
Looking at the world from another species' perspective might really reveal many different things. Inspired, Ding Sihan began to bend down to look for a lethal stone.
This one won't kill him, let's find another one.
"Just thinking about it makes me not want to think about it anymore."
It could only be said that human joys and sorrows are not connected. Lin Li left first.
(End of Chapter)