Starting Work

The smell of Niulanshan immediately put me on high alert.

"No, I won't drink Niulanshan, I'll have some beer instead."

"Ah?"

The fat man asked in surprise, "Weren't you known as the Niulanshan Killer'?"

"Times have changed."

With a gentle lift of my hand, strands of text appeared in my palm—my "Intestinal Fortification" skill. I directly shared the skill illustration with Fatty; this was a scene only the player could see, not others.

"Holy crap... what kind of garbage skill is this?"

The fat man gave him a sympathetic look. "You're using your skill points on skills like this?"

Not entirely.

I shared two more skill illustrations, namely Bio-Optical Invisibility and Bio-Electromagnetic Pulse. From childhood to adulthood, there have been no secrets between Fatty and me, so it's okay to show him all our skills.

"Holy crap..."

The fat man was completely astonished. "Wow... where did those two skills come from?"

"After finishing the beginner village, I went straight into a Samsung beginner dungeon. This is the dungeon reward."

"Holy crap..."

The fat man grinned. "Please take me with you..."

"So my current alcohol limit is only three bottles of beer. If I drink that much, I'll definitely black out, so please don't try to persuade me to drink more."

"Understood."

The fat man laughed and said, "Anyway, we're happy today, so do whatever you want. I'll drink baijiu, and you can drink beer. After we're done, let's go out and have some fun. There's an arcade outside the neighborhood; I go there all the time!"

"Wow, what a great place! Let's go after we finish our drinks!"

"Absolutely! Let's go together!"

So the two began to eat and drink.

I glanced at the proprietress serving the food and asked, "Isn't this Couple's Kitchen? Why do I only see the proprietress? Where's the owner?"

The fat man glared at me. "Who do you think is wielding a big ladle and clattering around stir-frying vegetables in the kitchen?"

"Got it! How the hell are you keeping fish in such a tiny cup? Drink it all!"

"Get lost! You, a beer drinker, have the nerve to accuse me of raising fish? Seriously, is there no justice in this world?!"

"Drink up, and stop talking nonsense!"

"Fine, you're a higher level, so you get to call the shots, you bastard..."

After finishing his meal, the fat man readily pulled out a hundred-yuan bill, and the landlady gave him over forty yuan in change. It has to be said that the prices in <Star Abyss> were indeed quite good, belonging to the price level of the early 2000s. If it were the price level of 2027, hmph... this meal might not even have cost a hundred yuan!

"Let's go play some arcade games!"

"Walk!"

The two went out drunk, arm in arm.

Outside the residential area, right next to the sex toys store, there's a small storefront covered by a dark blue cloth. Lifting the curtain reveals two rows of densely packed arcade machines, filled with smoke and fumes, frequented by both adults and children.

Further inside were some gambling-related "apple machines," where a few shady-looking men were operating them. On the outer edge, several elementary school students in school uniforms were playing with a few machines. They were all very alert, glancing outside every now and then, seemingly afraid of being caught red-handed by their parents or teachers.

This scene is so nostalgic.

"I'm going to buy coins!"

Fatty was determined to be a good host today, so he took out ten yuan and bought a full 50 game tokens. The game tokens here were so cheap, much more affordable than those shady little shops like Grandpa Li's that charged one yuan per token.

After that, the two went on a crazy rampage.

From Knights of Valour to Captain Hook, from Captain Hook to Famous Generals, and from Famous Generals to Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, his superb skills and rich experience left several elementary school students who skipped school to play games in awe.

So they played until evening.

"I'm hungry, let's go eat and drink!"

"Walk!"

The two left the arcade arm in arm and went back to the Couple's Kitchen restaurant. The fat man waved his hand and said, "Boss lady, cook some sauerkraut fish, braised chicken, and crucian carp tofu soup, and stir-fry a few side dishes to go with the drinks. A bottle of Erguotou and three bottles of beer, please!"

"Okay!"

The still-charming proprietress smiled and said, "Xiao Yang, Ding Han, will you two be living in this neighborhood from now on?"

"Almost."

I nodded and smiled, "Boss lady, we'll definitely patronize your shop often. Remember to give us two brothers a discount!"

"Yes, hit them with the force needed to break a bone!" the fat man chimed in.

The proprietress smiled and said, "Of course, you two can rest assured!"

And so, another round of feasting ensued.

The effects of the midday alcohol had worn off, and I drank two more bottles of beer, barely managing to stop myself from blacking out. My mouth was a little dry, so Fatty and I each ordered a bottle of orange juice and headed out.

"The moonlight is lovely tonight..."

The fat man looked up at the sky and said, "There's a foot massage place across from the apartment complex that I've been to once. The masseuse Number 66 there is quite attractive. I think we could..."

"Don't."

I coughed and said, "Young man, please suppress your animalistic instincts. Use the money you'd spend on a foot massage to buy bullets!"

"It's not impossible..."

The fat man grinned. "When are you planning to go out and level up? Take me with you. With you here, I'll dare to leave the city."

No rush.

I pointed to the ceiling. "Brother, you still have a near-death Severely Injured mark on your forehead. Let's talk about it tomorrow. I definitely can't leave the city in this condition."

"Um!"

The fat man nodded emphatically. "Stay at my place for now. The bed is big enough that you can sleep as long as you don't move around too much. What are your plans after that?"

"Find a job first, otherwise the local police will easily spot you, and if they find out you're a player, you're finished."

"Too."

The fat man said, "Why don't you come work for me? Our company is short-staffed."

What company are you from?

"I sell electrical appliances at Luo Mei Mall. I work in the repair department, responsible for after-sales service for customers. I usually work in the plaza, repairing faulty appliances and solving technical problems."

"Oh?"

My eyes lit up. This department was quite suitable for me. Repairing electrical appliances would allow me to gain a lot of Skill Experience, and I could also use this job to conceal my identity as a player.

As for Qin Lang, I believe he'll help me conceal my player identity because of Cheng Feng's connection. If not, there's nothing I can do but find an opportunity to eliminate him.

What's the point of the Great Wall Watch Sentinel Captain? He's nothing to us players.

"Sure!"

I laughed and said, "How about I go for an interview tomorrow?"

"OK!"

The fat man chuckled, "Our repair department is under the after-sales department. The after-sales manager is Lu Zifeng. Old Lu is a pretty good guy, but are you an expert in appliance repair?"

"Have you forgotten that my side job is in maintenance?"

"Damn, I forgot. What's your skill level? Some appliances are quite complex, like laptops. If your skill level is low, it might be difficult to repair. I'm already at Basic Repair level 10, so I can basically handle all repair work. What's yours?"

He didn't advance to the second job advancement, so his Repair Skill couldn't be upgraded.

"Me? Advancement level 10."

"..."

The fat man fell silent; his supposedly superior advantage no longer seemed to hold any advantage over me.

"Never mind, I'll call Old Lu first."

"OK!"

So, the fat man stood under the tree, made a phone call to his boss, and bowed and scraped...

It seems he didn't learn much about fighting or leveling up in Star Abyss, but he was quite adept at interpersonal skills and dealing with people in the workplace.

Shortly after, he hung up the phone and laughed, "Okay! I'll head over tomorrow. Old Lu said it's just a formality; he'll give you a broken machine, and once it's fixed, you can start working immediately."

"Okay, sure!"

It was late at night, around 10 p. m.

"Drop!"

A message came from Cai Cai: "Brother Han, Kou Mei and I have arrived in Huaining City. Which district are you in?"

"Southern District."

"Okay, then let's rent a place and look for jobs in the southern part of the city, and try to be as close as possible."

"Alright, you guys settle in first. We'll meet again after I'm settled here, and then we can discuss going out to level up."

OK!

Cai Cai readily agreed.

Meanwhile, the fat man was already snoring loudly.

I lay in bed, looking at the moonlight outside the window, smelling the fat man's stinky socks...

Damn, this place doesn't seem much better than Old K's room!

The next morning.

After the two boys finished washing up, I took out my cleanest and most presentable clothes and put them on. I went downstairs with Fatty, ate breakfast at a breakfast shop outside the community, and then took the bus with Fatty to the square where we go to work.

The bus was crowded in the morning, mostly with elderly men and women. They were so strong that they even pushed off a fat person who had already boarded the bus.

I darted onto the bus and forcefully pushed the fat man, who was about to be squeezed out, back into the vehicle.

"Those getting on, move to the back! Hurry up, the doors are closing!" the driver yelled frantically.

The fat man sullenly muttered, "I really need to increase my strength, otherwise I can't even squeeze onto the bus as fast as these pensioners..."

"Shh, keep your voice down, or I won't help you if you get beaten up."

"Yeah, two of them lying down would be enough to bankrupt the two of us brothers..."

The bus kept stopping and starting. Fatty and I exchanged a smile, as if we had returned to the time right after we graduated. We used to squeeze onto the bus every day to go to the job market, neither good enough for high-paying jobs nor good enough for low-paying ones. We were busy every day but achieved nothing.

After wandering around for about ten minutes, we finally arrived at the square.

The square is divided in two by a road. On the right, a building stands tall with the words "Luo Mei" on it. On the left, across the road, stands another building, much taller and more imposing than Luo Mei's, with a huge logo and the words "Yue Ning Mall" on its facade.

"Yuening..."

I was surprised; those two words looked familiar.

Back in Creek City, Lin Qingying had seen countless documents that began with "Yue Ning Group" in the title. Was there any connection between the two?

"Hmph, Yue Ning Mall..."

The fat man looked at the building across the street and sneered, "Our company's arch-rival, our main competitor. Don't even look. Although Yuening pays well, the entry requirements are also high. People like us without education have no chance of getting in. Come on, I'll take you to get in."

"Good."

I nodded and followed him toward the Luomei Building.