“The scenario has been completed. Calculating the reward.
“Obtained EXP: 8,000. Game Coins: 80,000.
“Obtained Equipment: Anti-Gravity Gun, Hard Drive 2455-A-1
“Completed/Accepted Quests: 1/1
“Completed Special/Hidden Quests: 2. Unlocked Worldbuilding: None
“Time of Terror Points Increase: 0. Highest Terror Points: 0%. Average Terror Points: 0%.
“Your Terror Rating is: Embodiment of Valor. Extra reward obtained, can be selected later.
“Obtained Skill Points: 320
“Additional Reward from Skill Points Gained: EXP: 3,200; Game Coins: 320,000
“Scenario Cleared Reward: Thirty Percent of Current Maximum EXP
“Side Quest cleared Reward: A random draw of Puzzle Card
“Hidden Quest Cleared Reward: Additional 20,000 EXP
“Calculation complete. Please continue.”
Doomsday Assault did not actually perish from depleting his potions and Life Points. In actuality, after searching Crystal Lake lab twice, he came to the conclusion that the enemy team had already left the place. Feeling that victory was impossible, he logged out of the scenario. The time he left was much earlier than Feng Bujue had anticipated; therefore, when the two heard the system announcing that they would be transported in 180 seconds, they had been quite flustered. Thankfully, communication with the Solar System Research Center had been established by then. Feng Bujue used this last three minutes to share some words with Hank as he dismantled the hard drive from the machine.
Feng Bujue’s inventory was filled. He considered placing the hard drive 2455-A-1 in his shirt pocket or holding it in his hands as he was transported back to the log-in lobby, but he soon realized his workmanship had been upgraded to Level D, so he could finally put on the Echo Armor, clearing a space in his inventory.
When Feng Bujue studied the rating review, the system added in his ears, “You have reached level eighteen. Maximum Stamina Points increased to 1,800.”
This time, he sped through two levels, and his current level was already a third of the way through the next level. Even though he could not rely on the additional EXP from the good terror rating to rise directly to level nineteen, if he did select the additional EXP as well, after the following scenario, Feng Bujue might just jump right to level twenty.
At that moment, Flashes of Sword’s message came. “Brother Feng, have you checked the reward for the hidden quest?”
“I did,” Feng Bujue replied. “What about it?”
“Don’t you think the EXP given is a bit much?” Flashes of Sword asked.
“Perhaps our exploration of the maps and the plot has gone far beyond the system’s original prediction,” Feng Bujue said with curiosity. “Actually… if there was enough time, I would have appreciated the chance to visit Second Earth.
“When we were fighting the group who had a combat rating of about five in the Village of Heavenly Blessing, Jason was massacring a whole spacecraft of people. At the end of the movie, I remember, it was a African American soldier who used the legendary Lu Shan Ascending Dragon skill on Jason, attempting to sacrifice his life to end Jason’s. The two of them careened toward the Second Earth, and when they shot through the ozone layer, the friction ground them to dust. However, Jason’s mask survived, and it fell into a lake…”
“Sounds like the scriptwriter had his head squeezed by the door when he wrote that,” Flashes of Sword commented.
“In any case, that is how movies are nowadays. There has to be a know-it-all scientist, a beauty for gratuitous scenes, and a black guy who will sacrifice himself,” Feng Bujue added. “Of course, there’s one thing that will not be missing no matter how bad the movie is, a hint toward a sequel at the end of the movie.”
He chuckled drily. “Unfortunately, this is a Killing Game, not a Team Survival Mode. In terms of time, I don’t think we could have gone to the Second Earth, or else we would have had the chance to play with Jason.”
“What do you mean by play with Jason\u003e What are you up to?” When Flashes of Sword heard him say that, goosebumps rose on his skin.
Feng Bujue ignored that question and changed the subject. “Since the scenario’s over, let’s talk about an imminent problem.”
He took out Hard Drive 2455-A-1 from his inventory. As he studied it, he said, “We should discuss how to share this hard drive taken from the Room of Heavenly Decree.”
———
Item Name: Hard Drive 2455-A-1 (20/20)
Item Type: Other
Quality: Excellent
Special Effect: Can only be used at the conference room’s 3D table. When activated, it can reveal the blueprint for a random tool-type item. Will disappear after twenty uses. Cooldown time is twenty-four hours (in real life).
Remark: Not all hard drives are used to store ’homework’.
———
“How about… you just store it for now?” Flashes of Sword replied. “When there are only seven or eight uses left, you can mail it to me.”
“Have you gone through the game’s explanation about the workmanship mastery?” Feng Bujue suddenly asked.
“Hmm… I can’t say I have…” Flashes of Sword answered after some hesitation. “Why?”
“First, only players with a mastery level over B in workmanship can turn blueprints into items. Secondly, the production process will exhaust a large amount of resources, and the success rate is tied to the mastery level. In other words, level B gives a ninety percent success rate, and level A will be one hundred percent. Therefore, I believe most people will not waste the blueprint and materials to manufacture an item before they reach level A, especially someone like me.
“Furthermore, my workmanship is only level D, and this upgrade… is because I both used a skill and dismantled a machine in the Room of Heavenly Decree earlier. This should give you an idea how difficult it is to level up this mastery.
“In conclusion… if we do it your way, you’ll have to wait for someone in a small guild like Underworld Frontline to increase their workmanship to A. Based on the current online time of my guild’s members, you’ll probably have to wait half a month before you hear a message from me.”
“Then, I’ll just give you the item. After all, you did most of the work to acquire it,” Flashes of Sword said. “On top of that, the rewards gleaned from this scenario are already far beyond my expectations. If I didn’t team up with you, in the same amount of time, I wouldn’t have acquired the same level of rewards no matter the mode that I played.”
When Flashes of Sword said that, other people would have accepted the compliment politely and probably responded in kind, but Feng Bujue replied in a mocking tone, “[beep], you have the face to say that you own a gaming studio?”
Flashes of Sword was startled, thinking, Did the man just curse at me?
“Er… Brother Feng…”
Flashes of Sword was about to ask him about his outburst when Feng Bujue exclaimed, “Why wouldn’t you find someone to train this mastery‽”
“The member in Jiang Hu who is supposed to specialize in workmanship only has it at Level D,” Flashes of Sword said.
“But since he is tasked with focusing on that mastery, he would level it faster than us casual players, right?” Feng Bujue argued. “Furthermore, not every raw material can be purchased at the market. For a big guild like yours, pooling the resources should be easier than a small guild like mine.”
“Er… So?” Flashes of Sword had a feeling that he was a little lamb being led into a scam.
“We were in such a hurry to leave the scenario earlier that I did not have the time to go through the item attributes. If I did, I would have handed it to you directly,” Feng Bujue said as he operated the screen. “I will mail the item to you down and leave it with Jiang Hu. Based on my prediction… you’ll need around six to seven weeks to manufacture all the blueprints. Of all the items, I only need three, and the rest are yours.”
“So, let me get this straight. We’re providing both the crafter and the materials, and you will reap the rewards,” Flashes of Sword said.
“Don’t make it sound like you’re losing a lot here,” Feng Bujue said in a sincere tone. “Looks like I’ll need to teach you a bit of math… If we do it your way, you might need to wait for two to three months before you can get a hard drive that only has eight uses left. And when you get the hard drive, Jiang Hu will still need to provide the materials and crafter, and on top of that, you will need to wait eight days due to the cooldown. And in the end… you’ve wasted three months to get eight items.”
He paused to let the implication sink in. “On top of that, I don’t need you to loan me this favor by giving me this item. That is not the way to go. Think about it, this is not an item but twenty items. With the scenario that showed a technological advancement that is about four centuries ahead of ours, the twenty ’tools’ created with level B workmanship mastery, even with a conservative prediction, should be worth about 200,000 Game Coins each, and in total, they will fetch around 4,000,000 Game Coins.
“Now, if we do it my way, you will get all the twenty items in around one and a half months, and you have the right to dispense the created items. You can send me the three most useless items, and you can use the remaining seventeen yourself or sell them at the market. All you need is to pay for the materials and find a crafter. The former won’t cost more than ten percent of the profits, and the latter, you already have. Yet, you are still not satisfied with such a profitable transaction?”
Flashes of Sword was silent for a few seconds. “Brother Feng… No… Brother Jue, where do you live in real life? Are you interested in changing your work environment?”
“Why? You want me to work for you?” Feng Bujue said. “No interested.”
A moment later, he added. “Alright, I’ve mailed the item to you. I’ll hear back from you before summer.”
“What if I just disappear from your friend list and run away with all twenty items?” Flashes of Sword asked.
“I personally think the chance of that is very low,” Feng Bujue said. “You still need face. Compared to me, you are much too lacking.”
“How did you manage to make it sound like your shamelessness is something to be proud of?”
“Think about it,” Feng Bujue said, “they are not contradictory.”
“Hmm…”
“Go and queue for your favorite Killing Game. I’m going to try out the Team Survival Mode.” Feng Bujue said. “After the scenario earlier, you should understand that if you team up with me, it’ll be a waste of your martial arts talent. Such a waste.”
“Okay then, keep in…” Before Flashes of Sword could say ’touch’, Feng Bujue ended the call and left the team. He pressed the button for storage and walked out of the elevator, excited to get this time’s additional reward.