Player Reload

The bustling slum seemed even more crowded as a major event approached, with many new faces visible (various guilds brought out players with rare qualifications).

Stores along the street also started various promotional activities.

"Seize this major historical opportunity! Armor and protective gear are unmissable!"

The armor shop on the left side of the street, bearing a sign with the words "Armor is the root," had the owner dressed in a dazzling full set of armor, fervently drilling his chest with a power drill,

shouting a cryptic slogan, "Armor is the root, the root is armor! Spread the culture of ’Armor is the root’!"

Uh... Most mid- to low-level players are high-attack, low-defense, and a reliable armor that combines protection and lightness can significantly improve their survival rate.

"Hey handsome, come on in and have fun~"

Next to "Armor is the root" is a high-end nightclub called "Earthly Paradise,"

from the lavish decor, tasteful music, and attractive male and female staff, it’s clear that this nightclub is likely an Evil Science Alliance establishment,

with dazzlingly good-looking individuals handing out flyers at the door,

showing a muscular man with a side-swept hairstyle, resembling a fragmented hand grenade, dressed in a black vest, named KING, presumably the nightclub’s new top host.

Gray Rain looked at the flyer for a while, then leaned his head back and commented, "This looks won’t cut it; why is he the top host?"

"Rich folks get tired of gourmet food and want to try wild vegetables, probably,"

Li Cheng replied casually, as the Evil Science Alliance’s nightclub business reached perfection, squeezing out most competitors.

Moreover, humans as a species have a tolerance for appearances,

instead of battling the cosmetic surgery techniques of Goblins and Bear Goblins, it’s better to train staff in appearance, etiquette, and charm—

the peak of a mortal’s looks is no more than a Charm of 9 to 10 points, and beyond requires boosts in temperament, aura, and personal charisma.

"My mom has two ’husbands,’ one’s my dad, the other she sees twice a year. She barely dresses up for dates with my dad, but meeting the other, she can’t wait to wear a wedding dress."

A loud advertisement from a shop ahead caught the attention of Li Cheng and Gray Rain,

"? Actively claiming a wild dad? What kind of absurd product can produce such an ad?"

The two stepped forward and found, surprising them, a biotechnological clinic named "OddO" at the front, advertising test tube babies, gene editing for infants, clones, and organ transplants.

"Good evening to you both."

The lobby manager at the door saw Gray Rain wearing an Alan Walker hoodie and mask, adorned with Adidas shoes,

Li Cheng dressed in a cockroach mascot costume, with the antennae swinging as he walked.

With such unconventional attire, they appeared to be mid-high level Transcendent bigwigs with unique aesthetics.

Thus, the lobby manager greeted them warmly, offered tea, and enthusiastically introduced, "We ’OddO’ belong to GS Biotechnology and are a comprehensive clinic. Here’s our business card."

"What’s up with this advertisement?"

Li Cheng was curious, as gene-editing seemed unrelated to claiming a wild dad.

"With this major event, there will inevitably be casualties."

The lobby manager explained, "A small fraction of Transcendents are highly self-centered and care about nothing beyond themselves,

but most Transcendents still cherish their human part.

Our ad essentially aids players in cloning themselves or their parents, so even if the elderly pass away, players can fulfill filial duties."

"What?"

Even Gray Rain, who lacked biological parents, was stunned: "Can this really work? If you have spare cash, why not spend it on life-extending medicines?"

"Those are so expensive,"

The lobby manager asserted, "And in the Extraordinary World, accidents are rampant. Some players even face script-based curses keyed on bloodlines,

when returning to Earth, they find the tragic eradication of their family registry.

Compared to that, cloning young versions of parents as backups is more economical and practical.

Anyway, memories can be transferred, the parents are still the same—even the aging reverses, they become younger."

"So your ad refers to biological mom dating cloned young dad, right? Is this pure love or some NTR business?

Quite a filial act."

Li Cheng slapped his forehead, every time he assumed slum store owners had already reached the maximum creative capacity to expand their business, they surprised him.

Not just these three stores, almost all street shops are trying their best with promotion activities, striving to earn Game Coins.

Like billion-dollar subsidies, super discounts, reducing 100 out of 300, etc.

"Wow, even a buy 100 get 50 off, so exaggerated,"

Gray Rain noted, seeing assault rifles neatly lined up like cabbages on plastic sheets by stalls, exclaiming: "Can you recoup the costs? Isn’t that a sure loss?"

"It’s subsidized by the Shabby Street Community Committee."

Li Cheng remarked, "The committee collaborates with banks and financial institutions to lower interest rates, release market liquidity, and subsidize merchants based on sales,

aiming before the major event to empty wallets of game currency.

That lobby manager wasn’t wrong; any major event involves casualties, rather than players dying with Game Coins confiscated by the Killing Field System,

it’s better to conduct promotes and keep the Game Coins circulating within the slum system.

It’s not only a profit-driven financial strategy, but also a consideration for Earth’s entire civilization."

During this process, inevitably some financiers might try to hoard, then the community committee would show what ’solid boots trampling invisible hands’ means.

Sure enough, when Li Cheng and Gray Rain returned to the Star-casting Anvil, a sealing-wax-stamped envelope was on the counter, signed by the Shabby Street Community Committee.

Upon opening, it contained a carbon fiber letter explaining the committee’s subsidy campaign, recommending stores to lower prices for promotions, with higher sales yielding bigger subsidies.

"The committee covers all expenses,"

Li Cheng muttered, instructing the intelligent cash register system to auton calculate discount proportions, while he retrieved several items from the warehouse.

Including special material protective suits against high-temperature lava, underwater exploration drones, prophecy ability-based hostility detection devices, etc.

He left Gray Rain to mind the shop and took off swiftly via Teleportation Phone Booth to a Hidden Room named "Fiery Flame Bay."

This Hidden Room is jointly controlled by the FBI, French National Security Bureau, Japan Anomaly Investigation Office, Holy Temple Knights, along with medium-sized guilds like Saladin’s Eagle,

harboring ships capable of traversing treacherous terrains unattainable for common people, similar to the green train that originated from the Killing Field.

Li Cheng paid a deposit of 50,000 Game Coins and a rent of 10,000, renting a small single-sailing schooner to head to the location mentioned by the God of Mankind.

At the same time, Wanli Sealed Blade, with clothes unchanged and tears on his jacket’s shoulders,

frowned slightly, looked up at the blue glass-adorned building with 1980s and 90s style Special Affairs Bureau office on slum,

striding in to the receptionist, saying: "Hello, I’m Wanli Sealed Blade, here to see Xing Hechou, the director of Yin City Special Affairs Bureau."