Lu Xiaobei

Internet cafe manager area.

The long-legged beauty poured me a cup of warm water from the dispenser using a disposable plastic cup, then looked at me with bright eyes. "I'm the owner of this internet cafe. My name is Lu Xiaobei. What's yours?"

"Ding Han."

"Alright!"

Lu Xiaobei said, "Our internet cafe managers work three rotating shifts. The day shift runs from eight in the morning to four in the afternoon, the evening shift runs from four in the afternoon to midnight, and the overnight shift runs from midnight to eight in the morning. Three managers rotate through them. The monthly salary is eighteen hundred, with no days off all year. Can you accept those terms?"

"???"

I stared at her, thinking, She's such a beautiful woman, so why is her heart so black? Is there any capitalist in the world more ruthless than her?

"Boss."

I cleared my throat. "I was being a little modest earlier. Actually, I can fix pretty much any problem with the computers here. I can maintain the hardware too, and I can even help redo the internet cafe system. A technical worker like me isn't the same as an ordinary internet cafe manager. Why don't you reconsider and raise the pay a little?"

"Well..."

Lu Xiaobei was clearly tempted, but she wanted talent without spending more money. The words "cheapskate" might as well have been written across her face.

"As you can see, business at our internet cafe is pretty average. There are hardly any people here in the morning, and even around eight at night, the online rate is only about thirty percent at most. Under these circumstances, I really can't afford to offer a higher salary."

She frowned. "How about I secretly raise your pay to two thousand? But you can't tell the other two managers."

"Fine."

I nodded. "But I've just arrived, so I hope meals and lodging will be included."

"Meals and lodging?"

Lu Xiaobei bit her lip. "Food isn't a problem. You can take three cups of instant noodles from the counter every day. As for lodging... how about I put you on the overnight shift? There aren't many people during the overnight hours anyway. You can just push some chairs together into a bed. What do you think?"

I sighed. She really was being honest enough, and I had no other choice at the moment.

"Fine. Then I want a cup of instant noodles right now."

"Sure!"

Lu Xiaobei was overjoyed.

"Boss, do you help pay for Five Insurances and One Fund?" I asked again.

"What Five Insurances and One Fund?"

Lu Xiaobei looked at me in surprise.

I stopped thinking about it and quickly opened a cup of instant noodles, pouring in hot water. A few minutes later, despite it still being scorching hot, I wolfed it down. I even drank every last drop of the broth.

Delicious!

Master Kong Braised Beef Noodles really lived up to the name!

"Ding Han, did you just arrive in Creek City?" Lu Xiaobei asked.

"Mm."

I nodded. "I'm a wanderer from the wilderness. I just entered the city."

"Oh..."

Lu Xiaobei pursed her lips and said, "Three computers in the internet cafe have broken down recently. Can you fix them?"

"Sure!"

Before her words had even faded, a quest arrived.

[You have triggered the daily quest Fault Maintenance (C-rank)! Quest details: Repair the faulty computers at Feiyang Internet Cafe and restore at least three computers to working condition. Quest reward: Large amount of experience, Step Slash (B-rank) Skill Tome!]

Step Slash?

My heart leaped with joy.

Step Slash was a first-tier universal skill for Super Weapon Masters. It could greatly increase movement speed, mobility, and short-term survivability. It was one of the essential skills for Super Weapon Masters!

Getting Step Slash from a mere C-rank quest was an absolute steal!

So, I got to work.

I found a screwdriver, opened up one of the computer towers, and checked for the problem.

Lu Xiaobei stood beside me with both hands on her knees, holding a flashlight to illuminate my work. Her waterfall-like hair hung down, carrying a faint fragrance.

"The graphics card is broken."

I frowned. "Do you have any spare parts here?"

"I bought some old computer components before. They're all piled up in the storage room. But I don't know what a graphics card looks like, so you'll have to look for it yourself."

"Alright."

Led by Lu Xiaobei, I pushed open the storage room door. A damp, moldy smell immediately hit me. After turning on the lights, I found that the storage room was actually fairly spacious. There were quite a few broken computers piled inside. Lu Xiaobei had probably bought them all cheaply, and many of the computers in this internet cafe had likely been assembled this way.

I easily found a suitable graphics card in one of the towers. After replacing it, the first dead computer rebooted and began working normally.

"That's amazing..."

Lu Xiaobei was a little excited. She lightly patted my back. "Ding Han, what did you do before? How do you know such complicated things?"

"I once attended Jingxi Technical School and learned how to repair computers. Learn a trade, go to Jingxi—the number one school for computer repairs. Haven't you heard of it?" I glanced back at her and spouted nonsense.

"No..."

Lu Xiaobei lowered her head, ashamed of her own ignorance, though it only lasted a few seconds.

I began repairing the second computer. This one was even simpler. Its disk space was full, and it had a virus. So I downloaded Kaspersky and ran a virus scan. After that, it was able to function normally.

Come to think of it, the system at this internet cafe really had major issues. The entire management system needed to be redone to prevent this kind of thing from happening.

"Ding Han..."

Lu Xiaobei looked at the second computer that had resumed normal operation. Her pretty face was full of joy, and when she looked at me, her eyes shone with the delight of having found something cheap and good.

I began repairing the third computer. This time, a power supply issue was causing games to crash and the display to tear. I found a replacement power supply in the storage room and swapped it out. The third computer went online and began working normally!

At that moment, a ringtone sounded by my ear. The quest was complete!

[Congratulations on completing the daily quest Fault Maintenance (C-rank). Reward obtained: Character Experience +30,000. Additional reward obtained: Step Slash (B-rank) Skill Tome!]

Done!

I took a deep breath. While Lu Xiaobei happily tested the computers, I first leveled up to Level 10. Then I turned around and took the Skill Tome out of my Dimensional Storage Space. It was a manual glowing with a pale green light.

[Step Slash] (B-rank): Instantly dash 5 yards forward and gain a layer of protective aura lasting 2 seconds. Cooldown: 3 seconds. Consumes 3 Essence per use. Class: Super Weapon Master.

With a wave of my hand, I learned it directly. A new icon immediately appeared in my skill bar.

Step Slash was a dash-type skill. It allowed me to instantly move five yards, and its cooldown was extremely short. It could be used to close in on opponents or evade enemy fire. At the same time, it granted a layer of protective aura that reduced health loss, making it extremely crucial in battle.

Its drawback was the high Essence consumption. Each use consumed 3 Essence, while players only had 100 Essence at full capacity. That Essence also had to support attack and defense skills. Once it was used up, they could only wait for the Essence Furnace to slowly restore it. Ordinary players simply couldn't afford to use such a high-consumption skill freely.

As for me, with an SS-rank furnace boasting a 99% conversion rate, I basically had no worries in that regard.

I checked my Skill Experience. There was still over 90,000 left, more than enough for the upgrades I needed.

So I raised Step Slash to Level 10 in one go, gaining an additional 6 Strength!

"You're on the overnight shift today. Find a chance to sleep for a while this afternoon."

Lu Xiaobei gave me a disgusted look. "Smell yourself. You're practically starting to stink. Want to take a shower?"

"A shower would be nice, but I don't have a cent on me."

Helplessly, I said, "President Lu, how about advancing my first month's salary? Then I can go soak at a bathhouse."

"Huh?"

Lu Xiaobei frowned. "Forget it. I'll make a sacrifice. I live in the attic above the internet cafe, and there's solar-heated water up there. I'll let you go up and take a shower, but only this once!"

"Alright..."

At four in the afternoon, a chubby girl with braided pigtails entered the internet cafe. Her name was Sakura, and she was another manager here.

After she took over the counter, Lu Xiaobei led me upstairs.

The entire Feiyang Internet Cafe was located in a single-story building. The attic above occupied roughly a quarter of the second floor's area. It had been built from the sort of plywood that looked far from sturdy, then reinforced slightly with steel sheets outside. A slightly stronger gust of wind could probably blow it away.

But the attic had everything it needed: a living room, bedroom, restroom, and bathroom. Lu Xiaobei's room was visible at a glance, its walls covered in all kinds of cute wallpaper. Even the lamps hanging from the ceiling were full of personality, making the place feel very cozy.

"The bathroom is over there. Go wash up quickly. Make it fast."

"Alright, thanks, Boss."

I took the fastest shower possible, then put the same clothes back on.

"Boss."

I glanced at Lu Xiaobei and boldly said, "Actually, there's quite a bit of space in this attic. If it really comes down to it, you could partition off a little area in the living room for me. I only need four square meters."

"No!"

A guarded look finally appeared on Lu Xiaobei's pretty face. "Ding Han, what are you trying to do?"

"Don't get the wrong idea."

Helplessly, I said, "I just want a good night's sleep..."

"Anyway, this definitely won't work."

Lu Xiaobei looked somewhat guilty, but her attitude did not yield in the slightest. "Once business improves a little, I'll advance your salary. You can find somewhere else to live on your own."

"Alright."

I nodded and said nothing more. Heading downstairs, I dragged over several chairs and lay down to sleep in the cramped space beside the chubby Sakura. She looked at me with utter disgust, as if she were looking at a pile of dog shit.

Perhaps I was too tired. I slept soundly until nearly ten that night.

After getting up, I grabbed a cup of instant noodles and devoured it without complaint. Sakura, beside me, gave me a smile. "Ding Han, the boss has gone upstairs to sleep. My boyfriend said he's coming to pick me up for hot pot."

"Oh?"

I glanced at her. "Is he inviting me to eat hot pot too?"

"Don't misunderstand. I mean, can you take over two hours early?" She gave me a cutesy expression that sent shivers down my spine. "Xie Xie! May good people live peaceful lives~~"

"Fine, but don't let it happen again."

For the sake of workplace relations, I did not refuse.

Sakura left happily, while I started work early, handling simple tasks like getting people online and settling bills. Not long after, a group of young people with dark circles under their eyes but boundless energy walked in. "Manager, overnight package!"

Normally, internet access cost one yuan per hour, but the eight-hour overnight package only cost five yuan, so business was fairly good.

After a brief rush of work, I pulled down the rolling shutter and stopped accepting customers.

The internet cafe echoed with the clattering of keyboards. A group of teenage boys and girls were playing Audition, while I sat in my chair and summoned the star map. Within it, I called out, "Newbie is online! Calling for nearby friends!"

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