Ch 21: TGCIR

News quickly spread in the Tenglong Base that a very arrogant second-generation rich kid named Lan Li had come from a little-known small base named Noah. He claimed that he was there to buy food from their Tenglong Base.

No one had heard of the name Noah before, so it was likely not a big deal. It could be just a gathering place for a few people, who were calling themselves a base to make themselves look important.

But there was one thing that made people at Tenglong Base jealous: the person from the unknown base actually had a Black Crystal Card, which was a proof of identity that required at least 100,000 credits!

Since he had a Black Crystal Card, it was unlikely that his “shopping” would be for a small amount.

In the afternoon, when Li Weilan took Xi Nan to the shopping street, Xi Nan was surprised by the warm welcome from the vendors. He wondered if it was because these people were so enthusiastic toward potential big spenders. Maybe the reason why he was treated so coldly before was because his poor nature was exposed.

For Li Weilan and Xi Nan, the market in Tenglong Base was considered orderly compared to other bases in the post-apocalyptic world. At least there was no situation where people would draw their swords and kill each other over a disagreement during bargaining.

However, from the perspective of Shen Cheng, who was not in the game, everything in this map was vastly different from the only other base – Noah – she had seen.

The base color of Tenglong was a green-gray, as if all the buildings were covered with a layer of gray mist and veil. However, this mist looked uncomfortable in the game, as if the whole Tenglong was covered with a debuff.

There were not many people buying things in the market, but there were more red lanterns hanging on the roadside buildings, shining with red light in the mist.

This market in Tenglong Base really looked gloomy!

In this environment, Shen Cheng had to spend more money and buy more to make herself feel better!

If I command Zaizai to buy more, would that count as completing an interaction?

Shen Cheng tried clicking on the various items displayed on the roadside, and the game gave her a flood of messages:

【Li Weilan refuses to buy instant noodles】

【Li Weilan refuses to buy beef jerky】

【Li Weilan refuses to buy used underwear】

“… Oops, it seems like I clicked on something by mistake.”

“Waaah, today’s interactive task seems a bit difficult!”

“What exactly is this kid coming to buy on this street?”

“You have a hundred thousand credit points, why don’t we buy something other than European and American brands? Although I can’t buy things for you directly, we can use this discounted shopping card (Black crystal card) that only costs one yuan. If we spend it quickly, maybe we can even get another one?”

Li Weilan’s hand was carefully pushed by someone, and he turned towards the direction of the small stalls, as if he was being followed by the person behind him, who was very interested in these little things that were worth nothing.

Although Li Weilan’s guardian angel sometimes spent money extravagantly, and sometimes behaved like a curious little girl, he actually felt the itch and wanted to just buy everything according to her finger’s direction. After all, it was normal to make the sponsor happy with the sponsor’s money, right?

But he brought Xi Nan here to “go shopping” for a big deal, and now that the little hamster had yet to be satisfied, the big deal at the back would have to be postponed. So even though the light push in his hand was so tempting, Li Weilan… suppressed the itch in his heart like a feather, and obediently followed the direction she pushed.

“How much is the instant noodles?” He said in a tone that was cool and indifferent, as if he didn’t know how much he deserved to be beaten.

“Ten credit points?” The stall owner asked tentatively.

“Tsk, it looks so unappetizing.” He sneered and glanced around other items. “Do you have any from X Valley’s martial arts dojo?”

“Well…” The stall owner was at a loss for words.

After the apocalypse, he was the first person she had ever seen who was so picky. He was simply a terrifying young master who knew nothing about the hardships of life.

At the next stall, Li Weilan continued to pick and choose, asking, “How much is this beef jerky per pound?”

“This is mutated beef,” the stall owner hesitated for a moment, “I’ll give it to you for 30 credit points per pound if you buy the whole thing.”

“What level is it?”

“Level One…” The stall owner looked at the young master who immediately dropped the beef jerky and turned away. He quickly said, “Don’t go, we can still negotiate the price.”

“What do you mean?” Li Weilan suddenly turned his head and stared at the stall owner with a cold gaze. “Do you think I can’t afford it?”

“Hmph,” Li Weilan sneered and turned away.

He stopped in front of another stall, his face seemed a little pale, and pointed to all the underwear on the stall. “How much are these?”

“10… 10 credit points,” the stall owner replied nervously, not knowing why he felt particularly scared of this Mr. Lan in front of him.

Li Weilan picked up a pair and flipped it over, murmuring softly, “Too small, I can’t wear it.”

Then he left.

He walked around all the small stalls and had no chance to spend any money. He was so picky that he went from the beginning of the street to the end, and all the vendors looked at him with resentment, but they all swallowed their unsatisfaction. This man with a handsome but somewhat punchable face lazily stretched and spoke to his follower who followed him step by step, “It’s not interesting. I thought we could come out of our base for a rare trip and buy some good food, drink, and fun, but after seeing it all, it’s just ordinary stuff. It seems that although the Tenglong Base is known as the largest base, it’s just like this.”

…Even though he clearly knows Li Weilan’s intention is to provoke hostility, almost at this moment, Xie Nan felt the angry glares from all directions.

Big brother, you’re really something else. I know you’re not afraid, but I’m a little scared.

Xie Nan felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He watched as Li Weilan’s words had incited so much anger. He swallowed his saliva, but the corner of his eye caught sight of someone quickly approaching from behind.

“Wanna make a big deal?” The man’s voice was like a snake, with a slight hiss.

Li Weilan’s body trembled slightly.

He turned around, his face already showing the devilish charm that belonged to Lan Li, but on the screen in front of Shen Cheng, she clearly saw the dark cloud that seemed to have solidified on him in an instant!

Li Weilan looked into the man’s eyes, his hand gradually tightening and then relaxing, and in just a few seconds, he controlled his expression.

What he didn’t know was that in his mother’s eyes, the person in front of him was an NPC with a red bar above his head!

In other words, it was an enemy!

Li Weilan had been walking around the entire street, but this was the first red-blooded character that Shen Cheng had seen on the street.

She curiously looked at it and didn’t notice anything unusual until she saw a dialogue bubble pop up above her cub’s head:

“Yes, a billion-dollar deal.”

When Shen Cheng saw the dialogue, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing, “Hahaha.”

A billion-dollar deal?

What does my cub want to do?

Her cub was speaking boldly and the man hesitated before suddenly asking Li Weilan, “Can you make decisions on a billion-dollar deal?”

Li Weilan suddenly paused!

The mission prompt appeared again on Shen Cheng’s screen:

[“Do you agree to let Li Weilan enter the black market independently? Please note that this is a hidden mission map and may trigger the protagonist’s unique hidden mission (difficulty: extremely high). You cannot re-enter if you fail. Please confirm: Y/N”]

“!!!”

Shen Cheng looked at the two blood-red words ‘extremely high’ on the NPC’s head and hesitated.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

She had clearly seen that when the man approached, Li Weilan’s behavior was somewhat abnormal. And this map called the black market was obviously not normal.

On one hand, there was the safety of her cub, and on the other hand, there was perhaps a rich reward for the hidden task…

Shen Cheng was a bit hesitant.

Her finger hesitated on N, but for some reason, at this moment, she suddenly noticed a hint of pain hidden under her cub’s sinister face.

Is the hidden task related to his past?

His attitude is strange, and if this hidden task fails, will it once again cause him to feel uneasy, even becoming a long-lasting shadow?

She herself is like this. If some rotten flesh cannot be cut off, over time, it will become a festering scar.

Even though she is just a newbie in the game and has few friends in real life, Shen Cheng put herself in the other person’s shoes and hesitated for a moment before ultimately clicking “YES”.

If this is what Zaizai hopes for, then let’s do it. She just needs to be a responsible sponsor.

The smile on Li Weilan’s face almost came to life in an instant: “Of course, I can definitely make the decision.”

The man glanced at Li Weilan and nodded after a while, “Alright, follow me.”

Li Weilan followed behind him. At this moment, if anger could materialize, the man’s back would have been covered in arrows.

Yes, who could have thought that someone who had already been in hell would climb out again, and that someone who was thought to be dead would come back with a new face?

Not to mention them, even Li Weilan himself couldn’t help but exclaim that he was quite lucky.

Although this luck all came from the mysterious person’s gaze.

A faint smile appeared on his lips, and his gaze turned towards the void: If her gaze was just out of interest, may heaven bless that this interest lasts longer and comes more often.

This was also the only stroke of good luck in his life.

“Where exactly is your Noah Base located?” The man walking in front had the words “Li Mo” clearly displayed on his chest, and he casually asked without realizing the look in Li Weilan’s eyes behind him.

Li Weilan smiled and opened his mouth, “In the south, we are a new base with tens of thousands of people.”

“Tens of thousands of people?” The man repeated the words and smiled, “Then, what you must be lacking the most is…”

“Food.” Li Weilan nodded, “We don’t lack anything else in our base, but we need a large amount of low-pollution food for our ability users. I heard that you have a special channel, and I hope we can purchase a large quantity of food from you.”

“Oh,” Li Mo’s smile deepened slightly, “But you also know the price of low-pollution food.”

“Yes,” Li Weilan nodded, her gaze becoming slightly sharp, “Don’t tell me that Tenglong can’t produce enough reserves?”

“That won’t be the case.” Li Mo smiled, and a shrewd light flashed in his eyes. “Everything can be bought and sold as long as you can offer a suitable price.”