The Cold and Ruthless Supporting Male Lead

Bing Jingxue was stunned, completely caught off guard by how things had escalated to this point. She had been full of confidence, but now she felt panic rising in her heart.

What she once believed to be her ace card had turned into a useless scrap of paper. A wave of exhaustion suddenly overwhelmed her.

When they returned to the gathering point from the wrong location, Bing Jingxue remained silent.

She looked blankly at Longde Chuanren, hesitated for a moment, and asked, “Could the entire map have been changed?”

There was still a glimmer of hope in her heart. However, when Longde Chuanren nodded, that last thread of hope shattered completely.

Left with no other options, Bing Jingxue pinned her final hopes on the mayor’s son. She had no idea if the crown would still be under the Elven King’s bed after the map was altered.

In the game, 2 days passed in the blink of an eye.

Early in the morning, Bing Jingxue waited anxiously at the entrance of the main hall, watching the guards with eager eyes, hoping they would bring the child out. However, all she got was the announcement of a new selection process for the Elven King’s guards.

For a brief moment, she was dumbfounded. Refusing to give up, Bing Jingxue asked indignantly, “What about that child?”

“The Elven King has already sent him back to his father,” the elf guard replied with a raised brow. He continued, “Our King grew very fond of the child and decided to grant him a wish. His wish was to reunite with his father, so the King sent him home.”

Bing Jingxue’s expression darkened instantly.

Looking at her constipated expression, Hai Ku found the situation amusing. Even he hadn’t expected things to develop this way. During the recent maintenance, the developers must have fixed a bug that had allowed a third-level player to reach the fourth level. Now, they seemed to be patching things up with a random excuse.

Bing Jingxue’s face turned even greener than a vegetable leaf. This also proved that she had lost her last trump card.

Sure enough, after fixing that minor bug, the selection requirements were changed again, and the difficulty increased to an absurd level, almost as if the game was trying to discourage players.

The new challenge required defeating the Elven King.

Listening to the complaints and wailing of the players around him, Hai Ku felt there was more to the situation.

From the start, the game had stated there wasn’t only one way to enter the palace. Now that the direct route required defeating the Elven King; a task near impossible, it was clearly pushing players to explore alternative methods.

“When something becomes this difficult, it’s practically forcing us to look for another way, isn’t it?” Hai Ku remarked with a sly grin.

“We should head over to the Elven Tree,” he said decisively, pulling his small group into a corner while the rest of the crowd debated teaming up to take down the Elven King.

Bing Jingxue, suppressing her frustration and her increasingly constipated expression, followed them.

“Do you have a plan?” asked Dong Hai, raising a brow as he noticed Hai Ku’s calm demeanor. He was curious about what scheme Hai Ku might be cooking up.

“Do you remember how we cleared the first level?” Hai Ku pointed at the Elven Tree, smiling. “Don’t you think its height is a little… unusual?”

“What’s so strange about it?” Bing Jingxue asked, confused. “In any game featuring elves, there’s always an Elven Tree. It’s usually set as the source of life or something like that.”

“Why don’t we climb it and find out?” Hai Ku’s grin widened. “The source of life, huh…”

Seeing Hai Ku so confident, Bing Jingxue was momentarily speechless. Although this team had been trailing behind her previously, their current confidence made her wonder if there really was something special about the tree.

Noticing Bing Jingxue’s gaze, Hai Ku thought for a moment before suggesting, “I’m not entirely sure what’s up there either. How about we split into two groups like last time? I’ll go with Longde Chuanren to check the top, and the rest of you can stay here. If there’s any news, we’ll message you. How about that?”

“I’m fine with that,” Dong Hai shrugged. He understood the quirks of puzzle-solving games. While the 2-day maintenance period seemed long, it was unlikely the developers had changed the entire map. They might have even left some of the original designs intact for later updates.

Taking advantage of the current situation to find an exit was the most important thing.

Bing Jingxue’s mind began to churn as she quietly squatted next to Dong Hai.

She reasoned that her previous failures must have been due to Hai Ku’s interference.

Now that he and Longde Chuanren were heading up the Elven Tree, she couldn’t believe she wouldn’t be able to win over the remaining men with her beauty and charm.

***

Hai Ku and Longde Chuanren set off quickly, their goal being the very top of the Elven Tree. Most of the players were still lingering around the palace, so no one noticed their departure.

After ensuring that they could no longer see the two figures, Bing Jingxue approached Dong Hai with a sweet smile. “You all seem very familiar with one another. Are you friends in real life too?”

Though it seemed like a casual question, Bing Jingxue was already listening intently.

“Mm.” Dong Hai nodded, but he didn’t have much interest in her.

Despite her face fitting his preferred type, he already knew what kind of person she was. No matter how attractive her appearance, Dong Hai couldn’t muster any interest.

“That explains it. I think you guys are so lucky, being able to play games together. It’s not the same for me. My dorm mates are always out and about, and since I’m in a science and technology university, there are barely any girls around.” Pretending to inadvertently reveal her identity in the real world, Bing Jingxue thought that by sharing some of her own information, she could gradually win the other party’s favor. Especially with men, whether they were working professionals or college students, this could spark conversation.

“Oh, so you’re a college student too,” Bei Hai said, looking surprised. “I thought you were in middle or high school.”

Talking so much, yet with such little substance…

Of course, Bei Hai didn’t dare to voice that thought.

Taking his comment as a compliment, Bing Jingxue smiled. “I’m not that young. Don’t judge me by my appearance; I’m actually a third-year student at XX Science and Technology University.”

“XX?” Initially disinterested, Dong Hai and the others perked up upon hearing the name of their university. “We’re pretty familiar with XX University too. Why haven’t we ever seen you before?”

Bing Jingxue was taken aback. She hadn’t expected such a coincidence. “Maybe it’s because we’re in different departments? Haha, I’m majoring in computer science.”

Before she could finish, Xi Hai chimed in, “What a coincidence!”

“Could it be…” Bing Jingxue was completely stunned. Such incredible luck actually existed?

Without a hint of embarrassment, she flashed a sweet smile. “Since we all go to the same university, let’s grab a meal at the cafeteria together sometime.”

“Sure, sure. Let’s arrange it the next time we log off.” Before Dong Hai could refuse, Xi Hai enthusiastically agreed, his attitude especially warm.

Though this woman hadn’t left the best impression on him, Bing Jingxue was indeed beautiful. For Xi Hai, good looks always earned a higher tolerance.

Dong Hai frowned. While he felt this wasn’t quite appropriate, Xi Hai had already agreed, so he decided to let it go.

***

After 3 days in the game world, Hai Ku finally sent them a message.

It turned out that the trunk of the Elven Tree extended directly to the palace, leading to the Elven King’s rooftop. However, the trunk was concealed by clouds. If they hadn’t climbed the tree themselves, they would never have discovered this route.

Instructing them to wait in place, Hai Ku and Longde Chuanren stealthily slipped inside.

“She helped me clear two levels before, so should we take her with us this time?” Inside the palace, everything became much simpler. After discovering the crown hidden under a vase, Longde Chuanren hesitated before suggesting this.

“I don’t mind.” Hai Ku shook his head, knowing that Longde Chuanren had been feeling troubled over this matter. If helping the protagonist once could ease his mind, Hai Ku didn’t see a problem.

In the game world, the female lead no longer had her aura of invincibility. She wouldn’t have the absolute confidence to defeat them anymore.

Hai Ku asked Dong Hai and the others to bring the female lead into their team, secretly messaging each of them individually.

When Bing Jingxue received an invitation from Xi Hai to join their team, she was overjoyed and quickly accepted.

In cooperative missions like this, success for one meant success for all.

When the announcement that someone had entered the fifth level appeared in the global chat, the entire game world was in an uproar.

They had been guarding the temple entrance all this time without seeing anyone go in. How had someone suddenly advanced to the fifth level?

Meanwhile, Hai Ku and his team, who had entered the fifth level, had no time to worry about these announcements. After joining their team, Bing Jingxue was ecstatic.

She firmly believed that all these men had fallen for her charms.

Without Hai Ku around, everything seemed to be going smoothly for her.

However, the rules for the sixth level left them all feeling conflicted.

The sixth and seventh levels only allowed two players per team, meaning their seven-person group had to split up.

After making it through so many levels together, the sudden need to separate shocked them. Unable to decide on their own, they proposed drawing lots to determine the teams.

But with Bing Jingxue joining, they were now seven people, which meant one person would inevitably be left out.

Just as they were about to kick Bing Jingxue out, Xi Hai suddenly said, “I’ll team up with Menghuang Zhixue.”

Hai Ku: “…” What was going on now?

It was clear that the female lead’s aura was at work again, but Hai Ku hadn’t expected the male lead to remain unaffected. Yet his roommate had fallen for it?

Almost instantly, they left the team, and the two immediately formed a new one.

***

Even though only 3 days had passed in the game world, how had these two gotten together so quickly?

[I told her we should meet up in real life. She’s actually a pretty cute girl, though she might have been a bit willful before…] After leaving the team, Hai Ku received a private message from Xi Hai.

Reading these words, Hai Ku was left speechless. But this was their choice, and Hai Ku felt there was nothing he could do to interfere, though he never expected this situation to arise.

It seemed like Bing Jingxue and Xi Hai must have been chatting privately, and not long after, both of them logged off.

“He’s never had a girlfriend, and now she’s directly revealed that she’s from our department and school. They’re probably meeting up in real life,” Dong Hai said, feeling a little frustrated. He hadn’t anticipated such an event after spending so much time in the dorm together.

“It’s fine. After all, I’m going to win this game,” Hai Ku said, no longer bothered by any blame. They had already reached the sixth level, and he just wanted to complete the mission and leave this world as soon as possible. Hai Ku also left the team, “I’ll do it on my own. When you split, I won’t hold back.”

“Of course,” Dong Hai nodded. “We believe in your abilities.”

They had pretty much just been riding on Hai Ku’s coattails for experience, and Dong Hai couldn’t argue with that. Though Xi Hai’s actions didn’t concern him directly, Dong Hai still felt a bit guilty, considering they were from the same dorm.

“Don’t overthink it. Their quitting the game actually works in my favor. At least there are two fewer competitors now, right?” Hai Ku noticed Dong Hai seemed a little down and figured it was because of guilt, but this wasn’t something Dong Hai could be blamed for.

As someone focused solely on completing the mission, Hai Ku began searching for the mission point for the sixth level after their conversation.

It was also an opportunity to finish the mission faster while the female lead wasn’t around.

This story had started as a love triangle, and now that the love triangle was broken up, the protagonist was just an ordinary passerby to Hai Ku. As for what happened to her afterward, Hai Ku truly had no interest.

Dong Hai and the others were students and couldn’t stay in the game as long as Hai Ku, but when they were close to finishing the sixth level, Dong Hai sent Hai Ku a private message.

Though it wasn’t anything important, it surprised Hai Ku.

He had originally thought that since she was the protagonist, perhaps after meeting Xi Hai in real life, their feelings might grow stronger. But he had spent half a year in the sixth level; 6 months in the game world, which was only about a month in real life.

In that one month, Xi Hai and Bing Jingxue had experienced two breakups and reconciliations.

Focusing on Bing Jingxue wasn’t his main task, so Hai Ku could only consult the system.

“Should I check on her situation?” Hai Ku asked the system as he reached the exit of the sixth level.

The sixth level was a mirror maze. When entering the maze, the official map had already been released. Yet, even with the map, Hai Ku had still spent half a year in the maze, proving how difficult it was.

During this time, many players had entered the sixth level, and the numbers were increasing rapidly. Most of them got stuck in the mirror maze, especially since the sixth level only allowed two players per team. In this environment of fierce competition, no one was willing to back down.

[Sigh, why bother checking on her? You should just finish the seventh level and get out of this world. I was just annoyed about her using cheats, humph ╭(╯^╰)╮]

“But…” The plot had already diverged so much. The female lead hadn’t even entered the game world anymore, which felt wrong to Hai Ku. After all, this was supposed to be a game about infinite leveling up, so why wasn’t the protagonist playing anymore?

[I know what you’re thinking, but everything has cause and effect. The reason the plot revolves around the game is because of the love triangle. The male leads were both vying for the female lead, so they had to stand out in the game. But now, neither of you like her anymore. Can’t she search for her own true love?]

The logic made sense, and if it weren’t for Dong Hai sending him another message, Hai Ku might have been convinced.

But the final message was truly shocking…

***

He had always thought the reason so many people flooded into the fifth level was that they had all passed the level on their own efforts, but he didn’t expect Bing Jingxue had been selling the exit location for a low price.

Though Xi Hai still liked her, he couldn’t tolerate such a lack of principles.

He had already been somewhat disappointed when they met in real life, but at least the protagonist was still pretty innocent and cute. Xi Hai had been momentarily infatuated and got caught up in it. After he accidentally revealed the exit to the fifth level, he regretted it.

He truly hadn’t expected Bing Jingxue to sell that information. Though she wouldn’t make much money from it, the thought behind it… he wasn’t sure how to put it.

But by this point, Hai Ku had already reached the seventh level and didn’t really care about Bing Jingxue’s reckless behavior.

However, when he reached the seventh level and saw Lan Bai sitting there with his legs crossed, Hai Ku was genuinely shocked.

“Congratulations on reaching the seventh level.” Lan Bai elegantly stood up and circled around Hai Ku, “And thank you for saving my naive self.”

Hai Ku: “??????”

Just as he was puzzled, the mechanical voice from the system space suddenly changed, [Do you know why I’ve been so persistent about getting you into this world?]

The voice suddenly matched Lan Bai’s tone, and Hai Ku immediately sensed something was wrong.

“You…”

Before he could finish saying “you,” a large screen appeared in front of him.

[Lan Bai! I’ve told you before, the person I like is Dong Hai. You’re just an NPC in the game; it’s impossible for you to come to the real world.” Bing Jingxue said with a troubled expression, gently petting Lan Bai’s rabbit head. “But don’t worry, I’ll come up to see you in the future.”

The blue-eyed rabbit in her arms blinked, its expression a little sad.]