Jinghai's cultural industry is well-developed, so there are quite a few live streamers residing in Jinghai. This, Lu Zhixing was aware of.
But the problem was, with Jinghai being so vast, how could he have expected such rotten luck to actually run into one?
"Damn it, it's not some no-name small-time streamer, but a big one that could make me famous...
"What should I do now...
"I can only keep praying she didn't see me..."
Lu Zhixing strived to lower his presence as much as he could, silently praying the other party would overlook him in their field of vision, all the while continuing to seriously play his part as a tree, hoping to blend as much as possible with nature.
One step, two steps...
Xu Jing didn't walk fast, and Lu Zhixing felt as if each moment lasted an eternity, having an uneasy sensation as if he were playing a horror game.
Finally, Xu Jing reached the end of the path and prepared to turn towards the park exit.
Only then did Lu Zhixing let out a long sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, she really didn't see me!
"Seems like the 'I Am A Tree' skill is somewhat useful? Not only do I feel like I've become a tree, but I've also perfectly blended with the surroundings, making it even harder for others to notice anything off."
"This game isn't entirely useless, at least the skills it provides are pretty useful..."
However, Lu Zhixing's happiness was short-lived.
Because Xu Jing hadn't gone far when she suddenly said, "Huh? Why is the chat saying there's a person? Where is the person?"
Damn it!
Lu Zhixing almost spurted blood. You guys must have cheats for seeing through things, right?
The streamer herself didn't notice anything unusual, yet you guys managed to see me through that blurry front-facing camera, beyond the streamer's face on the screen's edge?
If you're going to be a fan, at least do it properly. Focus on the streamer's face when they're live, why bother looking beyond the screen?
At this moment, Lu Zhixing wished he could jump right into Xu Jing's phone screen, delete those alerting comments in the chat, and then, via the internet cable, find those netizens to ban them permanently.
But it was already too late, Xu Jing, with a look of curiosity on her face, was now approaching Lu Zhixing with her phone.
"There really is someone! How didn't I notice before!"
Shock was written all over Xu Jing's face, mixed with a hint of fright since she truly hadn't noticed someone standing in the tree hollow until just now!
On closer inspection now, she realized how bizarre the scene was: In the park at dusk, in a secluded corner, a person clad in a hoodie, wearing a mask covering themselves tightly, stood in the tree hollow striking a strange pose, no clue what they were up to...
"Jingjing, get closer, can't see clearly!"
"Better not get too close though, what if it's a pervert or a lunatic?"
"No worries, Jingjing is fast, a pervert wouldn't catch up."
People in the chat began to stir things up, relishing in the commotion.
Xu Jing edged a little closer and tentatively asked, "Hello, do you need any help?"
A herd of grass mud horses were stampeding in Lu Zhixing's mind: Go away! The best help you could give me is to just leave!
But he couldn't say anything, for at the moment, he was in the midst of playing Big Tree, and trees don't talk.
Of course, he could break character, but doing so might reset the progress bar and start it all over, which was absolutely unacceptable.
Moreover, he might be disturbed by other tourists later on; he couldn't be stopping to explain each time, could he? And how exactly would he explain? "I'm playing a tree, please don't disturb me?"
The more explanations, the more awkward it gets!
So the best course of action was to not respond, waiting for the other person to leave on their own.
Xu Jing moved even closer, and finally, with the help of the dim streetlight, she saw that under the shadow of the baseball cap, the person's eyes were open.
"Ah! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you!"
Xu Jing immediately backed off, apologizing profusely.
However, the next second, she realized that even though his eyes were open, his gaze was not focused on her. Instead, he seemed to be in a state of self-oblivion, his gaze diffuse, as if looking through the vicissitudes of life and the warmth of human relationships with a detached equanimity.
It was then that Xu Jing finally understood why she hadn't noticed him at first: the man seemed to naturally blend into the environment, just like a tree, not sticking out at all!
Just at that moment, a breeze wafted by.
The nearby trees gently stirred, rustling the leaves with a soft sound.
And Lu Zhixing swayed his body lightly, his movements almost perfectly mirroring the other trees.
"Ah?
"Could it be... this person is performing? Is he imitating a big tree?"
Xu Jing felt as if she had discovered a new continent; all those eerie phenomena from before finally had a reasonable explanation.
The previous feelings of fear vanished, and she even felt a touch of respect.
As a host who was constantly learning how to create show effects, she was very envious of those naturally talented at pulling pranks.
Moreover, most prankster hosts perform in front of a camera. Rather than saying they entertain their viewers with monkey tricks, it's sometimes as if the monkey is also playing tricks on the viewers, isn't it?
But this man, despite having no audience, was still performing seriously, undoubtedly reaching a higher level of artistry.
If this guy wasn't mentally ill, he might actually be a genius!
Only, she didn't know that at this moment, Lu Zhixing just wanted to find a crack in a rock to crawl into.
He wished he could jump up immediately, smash Xu Jing's phone onto the ground, and then loudly ask, "Ever heard of manners?"
But he couldn't, because he was a tree.
"Then... then carry on, I won't disturb you."
Finally, after satisfying her curiosity, Xu Jing decided to turn and leave.
But as she walked away, she kept looking back every three steps, obviously reluctant to leave.
Lu Zhixing continued to pose as a big tree, and after ten more minutes, the performance progress bar in his field of vision finally reached 100%.
"Phew!"
Lu Zhixing hurriedly jumped out of the tree pit and chose a direction opposite to Xu Jing's, walking quickly towards the park exit with his head down.
He didn't want to spend another second in this socially mortifying place!
"I hope the reward from this game can compensate for the trauma my soul has suffered..."
...
Back in the internet cafe, Lu Zhixing took off his mask and hat, feeling reborn.
Big brother Lu Mingyuan hadn't returned yet, probably because the dinner with the game company's promotion manager wasn't over.
Lu Zhixing went up to the storage room on the second floor to check the completion of the posing task.
[Main posing task completed!]
[Reward received: Material - Tree in the Wilderness, 200 points!]
"A Tree in the Wilderness? What kind of material is that!"
The next second, an image formed in Lu Zhixing's mind.
It was a vast wilderness with hills, rivers, lush grass, fluttering butterflies, the sun shining brightly in the sky, and a gentle breeze blowing.
However, this scene could also have a variety of changes, with unpredictable weather, sometimes suddenly becoming windy or rainy, and then clearing up after a while. Besides that, different small animals would appear randomly.
Clearly, it was a very complete dynamic game environment.
Moreover, one of the trees had a highlighted effect.
Its level of detail was clearly higher than that of other materials, and when Lu Zhixing zoomed in his view, he could see every texture on the tree's bark and the dynamic of the leaves swaying slightly in the breeze.
Lu Zhixing was speechless: "...Is that it?"