Chapter 80: Illusion Magic

The bed was covered entirely with money!
“Don’t be so surprised. I think you’ve already guessed your identity for today.”
The elder snapped his fingers and conjured up a black top hat, mimicking Chen Fan’s gestures as he slowly raised it above his head, then suddenly flipped it over. Money poured out of the hat like a waterfall.
Chen Fan was still buried in the sea of bills, unable to recover from the shock. A barely perceptible smile crept onto his lips as he said, “So… you’re saying I’m a magician today? And the kind who can conjure up piles of cash at will?”
“You can conjure, yes, but…”
Before the elder could finish his sentence, Chen Fan couldn’t resist lunging forward, eager to grab all the banknotes and luxuriate in the thrill of reaching the pinnacle of life. But when he swept his hand, he grasped nothing—the money on the bed had vanished.
“But it’s all just illusion magic, nothing tangible,” the elder said smugly, picking up a stray banknote from the floor and flaunting it before Chen Fan.
Chen Fan protested, “So your magic is real, but mine is fake?”
The elder shook his head, “No, no, mine is fake too. But perhaps because it’s completely fake, it looks even more real.”
Still dissatisfied, Chen Fan tried to conjure a flying dove in his palm, but before it could flutter its wings, it vanished with a soft ‘pop.’
“All these tricks are just for show, nothing truly useful,” he complained.
The elder explained, “Don’t say that. Even simple tricks can be useful. If you performed these on the street, you’d definitely draw a bigger crowd than playing with fire—and there’s no risk of getting arrested.”
“That’s true, but you need some cover. Producing things out of thin air is too unbelievable. You need a prop, like a top hat, to make it convincing.”
Chen Fan searched around, but couldn’t find anything suitable. He didn’t have a hat, only a few snakeskin bags, but using those for magic was far too tacky—he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
“Right, didn’t Wei Youlong leave an Armani knit cap here before? That should do.”
He rummaged through Wei Youlong’s belongings and found the green knit cap amid the heap of knock-offs.
Dusting it off, Chen Fan tried it on with some amusement.
“Too small, doesn’t fit my head.”
He regretfully took it off, gauging its depth. It wasn’t as classy as a black top hat, but it would suffice to fool the crowd for tips.
“In the morning, I’ll play Werewolf, and in the afternoon, I’ll perform on the pedestrian street. Yes, that’s the plan.” Chen Fan donned a serious expression, cheerfully settling his itinerary for the day.

It was still the usual place. Chen Fan knew the way and walked briskly. Upon arrival, he waited a few minutes for Li Peijun, who showed up fashionably late, sporting a pajama party look and paying no heed to his appearance.
“Are you… sure you don’t want to go home and change?” Chen Fan asked awkwardly, pointing at Li Peijun’s pajamas.
Li Peijun was proud of it, deliberately displaying the Winnie the Pooh on his chest. “Such a cute bear—what’s the harm? It’s not like we’re in class. What’s there to be afraid of? We’re college students, not wandering around in matching couple outfits every day.”
Chen Fan had no way to reason with him. Li Peijun had always been blunt and carefree; it was a wonder he’d managed so well.
“I’ll show you the way. I know where to go.”
“Alright, lead on.”
Li Peijun put on airs, clasping his hands behind his back and striding exaggeratedly, as if inspecting the premises like some big shot.
This early in the morning, many were still asleep, and without any organized call, enthusiasm was lacking. The activity room was sparsely populated, nearly two-thirds of the seats empty.
“Xiao Yuhe? You’re here so early too.” Chen Fan, intending to find a quiet corner, spotted Xiao Yuhe just finishing a game.
Beside Xiao Yuhe was another girl, but her size could easily lift two Xiao Yuhes into the air.
Xiao Yuhe introduced them briefly, “This is my roommate, Xie Yuqi—the one I mentioned during the club interview last time. This is Chen Fan; we met playing Werewolf. And this is…”
Li Peijun chimed in, “I’m Li Peijun, also a Werewolf player, but not from this department.”
“Sorry, I forgot your name,” Xiao Yuhe said with a shy smile.
“No worries.” Li Peijun instinctively tried to put his hands in his pockets, only to realize his pajamas had none.
“How long have you been playing? Planning to keep going?” Chen Fan asked curiously.
“We just played a round. Yuqi’s a beginner—she didn’t understand much and got tricked badly in the first game,” Xiao Yuhe said, turning to Xie Yuqi, who grinned sheepishly back at her.
“Let’s play as a team. The more, the merrier,” Li Peijun interjected, beating Chen Fan to the suggestion.
Xie Yuqi jumped in, “Sounds great! You all need to help this newbie out.”
Xiao Yuhe leaned in, lowering her voice in earnest, “I only pulled her into this last night. If you end up on opposing sides, please go easy—don’t crush a beautiful girl’s gaming dreams.”
Chen Fan immediately gave an “OK” gesture, but then he reconsidered, thinking, “Last time you two teamed up and tricked me so badly. I’d better stay alert.”

As the saying goes, “Four in a row at the internet café, never a win.”
Chen Fan didn’t believe it—he couldn’t win alone either, so where did his hundred-game losing streak come from?
“This Republic Detective map looks nice. Let’s use this one,” Li Peijun, the host, scanned the options and picked his favorite.
Chen Fan hurried to object, “Wait, wait, that map’s cursed! The NPCs love to slap you, and you end up kneeling for the whole game. Pick another, pick another.”
“Oh, really? Any recommendations?” Li Peijun was new to it and unaware of the pitfalls.
Xiao Yuhe and Xie Yuqi shook their heads, “We played the Grand Ball before, but you guys wouldn’t like that—it requires wearing evening dresses, some strapless, even.”
“Well then, let’s randomize it. Chen Fan, if we pick the Republic Detective out of twenty maps, you’ll just have to accept your fate—only a four percent chance.” Without waiting for Chen Fan’s reply, Li Peijun set the map to random and pressed match.
“Only four percent? Then I’m not worried.” Chen Fan breathed a sigh of relief; surely the odds were too low to hit.
Game match successful. Loading…
“Oh come on…”
The familiar cell, the familiar atmosphere. Chen Fan realized he’d landed in the Republic Detective map again.
“Hehehe~”
Chen Fan stomped hard on the haystack, venting his frustration, and felt something hard beneath his feet. Brushing aside the straw, he found a tortoiseshell and a few copper coins.
“Hahaha~ Chen Fan, there’s nothing you can do. It’s fate, all fate!”
The voice came from the neighboring cell; Chen Fan guessed Li Peijun was locked in number five or seven.
“I’ll check you first thing,” Chen Fan growled, picking up the shell and jamming a copper coin into the opening.
But before the shell could reveal the result, his screen went black…