"Holy shit, look! That couple over there is French-kissing!!"

I pointed to a random corner of the hot pot restaurant while my chopsticks leaped back and forth across the table.

Lin Yixin turned but saw nothing. When she looked back at the hot pot, she exploded, "I didn’t see anyone like that! Also where the heck is the golden needle mushroom I just put in the hot pot!?"

Me: "I don’t know!"

"Oh yeah? What is that in your mouth!?"

"It’s a nian gao!"

"What kind of nian gao has feelers on it!!?"

"A hairy nian gao, of course!"

He Yi put her palm to her forehead. "Please eat properly, you two. Zhou Ping and Bear Bear [1] are right here…"

Zhou Ping giggled. "It’s fine, it just means they are having that much fun. To be honest, I’m quite envious of you three. Despite your positions, you three seem so happy and carefree when you’re together!"

I replied, "That isn’t true. It only seems that way because we hid our river of sorrow from view…"

"Cut the crap, you think I didn’t notice that you stole my mudbug?"

"The fuck, you can cook mudbugs in a hot pot? Why don’t you drop a bunch of bananas then?"

"Waiter! Can you grab us a bunch of bananas? Thanks!"

"..."

……

Two hours passed by in just the blink of an eye. It was now past 9 pm, and we were all filled to the brim. As we entered Chance Bar with Zhou Ping and Hugging Bears in Silence, we discovered that it was called her flagship bar for a reason. The venue was insanely huge, and heavy bass was rocking against our bodies and eardrums already.

Zhou Ping had booked us a booth that could fit between 5 to 8 people. However, there were only three of us, and Zhou Ping had other things to attend to. So, Zhou Ping asked Hugging Bears in Silence to stay with us and introduced another two youngsters to our booth to keep us company. They were between 23 to 25 years old, and their attire was slightly more flamboyant than mine. I personally thought that the golden earrings they were wearing were a bit excessive, but that was just my opinion.

"Excuse me, but I have to leave for a bit to receive Zhou Xiaomeng. As the host, it’d be terribly discourteous of me to neglect the star of the night, no?"

After Zhou Ping shook hands with me, she said, "Don’t worry though, I’ll come back in a jiffy. In the meantime, please have a good time, Lu Chen, He Yi, Lin Yixin."

Leaning against the sofa, He Yi gave her a nod and a smile before answering, "See you later!"

After Zhou Ping left, Lin Yixin stuck out her tongue playfully and asked Hugging Bears in Silence, "So, what are we playing? Honestly, I haven’t been to a bar for too long. I don’t even remember the process anymore."

Hugging Bears in Silence smirked. "Let’s start off with a Truth or Dare, shall we? Lu Chen, Lin Yixin, Sister He Yi, Big Niu (one of the youngsters) and I will be playing. Is that okay with you?"

Lin Yixin nodded. "Sure!"

"Alright, let’s begin!"

Truth or Dare is a fairly straightforward game. If someone asks you a question, you must answer the truth no matter what. If you refuse, you will have to carry out a request instead. Technically speaking, any question or any request can be asked of a player. Therefore, the most shameless person in the group usually would win the game. Thank goodness Murong Mingyue hadn’t come with us, or she would have absolutely wiped the floor with all of us.

……

After the turn order was decided—Hugging Bears in Silence, He Yi, Lin Yixin, Me, Big Niu and repeat—we immediately began the game.

"Ahem…"

Hugging Bears in Silence let out a polite cough before looking at He Yi. "Here I go. Sister He Yi, my first question is—who do you like most out of everyone in this booth?"

Already, He Yi looked a little caught off-guard. I couldn’t see her blush due to the dim lighting, but her voice already said it all, "Lu Chen…"

Hugging Bears in Silence smiled. "I see. Your turn…"

He Yi turned to look at Lin Yixin before smirking. "Yiyi, when was your first kiss?"

Lin Yixin was lost for words for a second, but she looked at me and answered, "Nine months ago…"

He Yi: "Alright, I’m done…"

Lin Yixin giggled and raised a menacing eyebrow at me. "Ready, Little Cheat?"

I replied, "Ask away!"

"How many porn films do you have on your PC?"

It was like I had been struck by lightning. After stuttering for an indefinite amount of time, I finally answered, "T… ten, I guess…?"

Everyone including Big Niu and Little Niu guffawed at my answer.

It was my turn now, so I looked at Big Niu and asked, "When was your first time, Big Niu?"

"Bro, you aren’t pulling your punches at all, are you?"

That was what he said, but he answered without hesitation, "When I was 13 years old…"

I trembled. "O-okay…"

……

Big Niu asked Hugging Bears in Silence a question next, "Are you still a virgin, Bear Bear?"

Hugging Bears in Silence fell silent for a moment. "Can I not answer this question?"

"Sure. All you need to do is head to the aisle and shout, ‘I’m so lonely’!"

"OMG!"

It was a terrifying request, but that was how the game went. Having no choice, Hugging Bears in Silence straightened her skirt, walked to the aisle and shouted, "I’m so lonely!!"

Right as she finished, an uncle holding an empty beer glass walked up to her and said, "Want me to keep you company, beauty?"

Hugging Bears in Silence could only shake her head and stick out her tongue before returning to us.

"You want shameless, don't you? I’ll show you shameless!" an obviously displeased Hugging Bears in Silence declared. She looked at He Yi and said, "Sister He Yi, what is the brand and color of your underwear you’re wearing right now?"

He Yi blanched visibly. "I… er…"

"If you won’t answer, then you’ll have to fulfill my request!"

"Tell me…" He Yi surrendered.

"I want you to circle around the aisle once before shouting, ‘I won’t wet the bed anymore’!"

He Yi nearly turned into stone there and then. Biting her lips and rising to her feet with determination, she circled around the aisle as Hugging Bears in Silence requested before stopping under a dim fluorescent lamp. She then said with a deep blush in her cheeks, "I won’t… I won’t wet the bed anymore…"

I facepalmed. "Heavens, what a shameless game this is…"

Lin Yixin simply snickered and said nothing.

After He Yi returned to her seat, she turned toward Lin Yixin and smiled evilly. "My turn!"

Lin Yixin sat up straight and declared warily, "Come, Sister Eve! I’ll handle whatever you throw at me!"

He Yi’s smile widened. "Alright. I want you to describe to everyone your latest wet dream in detail!!"

"Ah!?"

It was an instant one-shot. After Lin Yixin’s mouth opened and closed a couple of times, she finally surrendered and said, "You’re ruthless, Sister Eve. Fine, what’s the dare?"

He Yi said, "I want you to buy a popsicle at that store over there and ask the clerk, ‘should I eat it together with the wrapping paper?’"

"OMG, this is going to be a new low for me, Sister Eve…" Lin Yixin complained, but she ultimately obeyed the game’s rule and went to the shop. Blushing like an apple, she asked the uncle, "I want a Green Mood popsicle, and er… should I eat it together with the wrapping paper?"

As expected, the uncle got the implied meaning instantly. "Oh pretty, this is the first time you’re here, aren’t you? Do you have a boyfriend yet? If you don’t, I have a nephew who’s studying in Nankai University. Do you want me to introduce him? Even if you don’t, I would like to have your QQ number…"

Lin Yixin escaped like the wind.

……

We all had a good time playing and drinking in the bar. The alcohol smelled terrible, but it was sufficient to liven things up. Somewhere in the middle, I called a hotel to book our rooms for the night. Unfortunately, they had three available rooms. I was so looking forward to sleeping together with He Yi and Lin Yixin too.

When the time ticked past 11 pm, Zhou Ping finally returned to us. She was accompanied by a beautiful woman wearing a pair of sunglasses and followed by a couple of bodyguards. I already had a feeling who she was when she walked over to us, and my suspicions were confirmed after she sat down at our booth and removed her sunglasses. She was none other than the "star of the night" Zhou Ping had mentioned earlier, the popular singer Zhou Xiaomeng. Her rather shameless—and I meant no disrespect, it was just a fact—songs and dances were paraded across every street and school.

"Allow me to make the introductions. This is—" Zhou Ping began, but Zhou Xiaomeng interrupted her with a smile,

"There’s no need, I recognize all of them. This man is the number one player of Heavenblessed, the man who defeated Candlelight Shadow, the Little Heavenly King Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand. No one who dabbles in gaming has not heard about you. As for these two, I bet they’re the Fruit Knife Goddess Lin Yixin and From Water He Yi. Again, I’ve seen your posters everywhere on the internet and the streets. I don’t play a lot of Heavenblessed, but it’s impossible to not know about the three most famous players in the game."

I smiled. "Nice to meet you, Zhou Xiaomeng. My younger sister is your super fan. She often sings Miniskirt to me, sometimes all day and all night…"

Zhou Xiaomeng broke into a grin. "Oh, you’re talking about Beiming Xue, right? I like her a lot too. Miniskirt, huh? Very well, when I sing it on stage later, I shall dedicate it to you alone…"

I hurriedly waved my hand. "Heavens, no. Your fans will destroy me…"

"Haha, you truly are an interesting man…"

……

A quick chat later, Zhou Xiaomeng left to sing on the stage. She really was quite popular. The audience were going crazy over her performance, and her Miniskirt nearly caused some people to have a heart attack. Then again, how many people could handle a cute girl saying "Do you really know that I am waiting to drop my miniskirt for you" to them? All that useless pride and shame would’ve been grinded down and reformed to two words: Yes, please...

After the short performance, Zhou Xiaomeng left the stage and returned to our booth. Then, she offered me a cup and some dice and said, "You wanna play a round or two, Lu Chen? If you guess right, I’ll drink. If not, you drink."

I nodded. "Sure. Let’s go!"

Unfortunately for me, Zhou Xiaomeng was way smarter than her appearance suggested. By the time I downed my seventh glass of beer, she had only drunk three. It was such a terrible defeat that even Lin Yixin and He Yi were shaking their heads in exasperation, "How are you so smart in the game, but so dumb in real life…"

Me: "..."

It was at this moment two youngsters holding beer glasses walked up to Zhou Xiaomeng and asked, "Miss Xiaomeng, our Brother Chao would like to invite you to his table to have a drink. If you would be so kind…"

"Brother Chao who? Tell him to come over himself," Zhou Ping interrupted.

The two youngsters looked surprised. "Oh, you’re… Chance Meeting?"

"You know me?" That surprised Zhou Ping.

A third youngster wearing a full set of brand clothes entered the scene. "Of course we do…"

I looked up. Both the youngster and the sexy woman clinging to him looked very familiar. "Roaming Dragon, Coldmoon Rose?"

"Lu… Lu Chen?" Coldmoon Rose’s lips parted. "Why is Lu Chen here?"

At this point, everyone in Roaming Dragon’s booth was looking at us. I saw Little Piglet, Wang Dongliang, Profound Puff, Shangguan Wan’er and more. The world was a small place sometimes. Of all the bars Purgatory Mad Dragon could’ve visited, they just had to show up at Chance Meeting’s bar at this time.

1. T/N: I would translate this as Momo, but it reads the same as Stranger of Three Lifetimes’ nickname, so