Meeting an Online Friend (Thanks to "Come Have a Black Lanzhou?" for the Leader Tier!)

After three consecutive chimes, a star on the star map finally lit up, followed by a rather pleasant female voice.

"Yo, a newbie!"

She laughed. "First, where did you come to Creek City from?"

"The wilderness."

I lowered my voice. "And what should I call you, miss?"

"My name is Ruolin."

The other party smiled. "My ID is Ruolin, my real name is Zhang Ruolin, and I'm from Chengdu. What about you?"

"My name is Ding Han, my ID is Shadow Chaser, and I'm from Suzhou."

"Oh..."

Zhang Ruolin smiled. "What level are you? What's your Overall Combat Level?"

"Just reached level 10."

I glanced at my stats and said modestly, "My Combat Power isn't that high. It's only 80 right now."

"Combat Power of 80 is actually pretty good."

Zhang Ruolin smiled. "Is this newbie looking for a carry, or what?"

"I'm looking for some help."

After a moment of thought, I said, "I just arrived in Creek City. I don't know the place or anyone here, and I'm flat broke. I don't even have a phone. I want to buy one from other players. Ruolin, do you have any connections?"

"I do, but..."

Zhang Ruolin smiled. "To be honest, all the players are pretty poor right now. And you might not know this, but with the players' arrival, this Star Abyss World is undergoing drastic changes. The Star Maple Federation calls us players 'Descenders' and believes we'll bring disaster to this world, so they've issued a kill order to wipe out every Descender. The higher-ups in Crimson Dragon Country and Creek City haven't made their stance clear yet, but it definitely doesn't look optimistic."

"So..."

I said helplessly, "Sis, are you helping me or not?"

"I can help, but there has to be an equal exchange. You need to have something I want."

"Sure."

I nodded. "I have a few fairly powerful Explosive Grenades, as well as a white MP25 Roarer Submachine Gun. I want to trade them for a phone from you, plus some ammunition for a Wind Whisperer sniper rifle. It'd be best if you could throw in a little cash too. Can you manage that?"

"Yes."

Zhang Ruolin said, "How about this? Chatting through the star map wastes too many Experience Points. Let's meet tomorrow at the Island Coffee Shop on Health Road. What do you think? What time are you free?"

"Nine in the morning."

After thinking briefly, I said, "I'll be wearing dark blue jeans and a white T-shirt. What about you?"

"Me..."

Zhang Ruolin smiled. "Of course I'll dress up to meet an online friend. Just wait in the coffee shop at nine. I'll recognize you."

"Fine. Don't stand me up. I don't have a single cent on me, so I can't afford the coffee."

"Don't worry. Coffee's on me."

"Alright, see you then."

"Mm, see you then!"

Early morning, around eight.

A student wearing black-rimmed glasses, looking pale and frail as though he had taken too many drugs, arrived at the internet café. His name was Zhao Yihang, a college student and the third internet café manager besides Sakura and me.

After the shift change, I immediately left the internet café and headed for Health Road. Zhang Ruolin was treating me to breakfast today, so I wasn't eating at the café. Still, I grabbed a cup of instant noodles and tossed it into my Dimensional Storage Space.

"Ding Han."

Not far from the internet café, Lu Xiaobei's voice came from behind me.

"Mm?"

I turned around, and my eyes immediately lit up. Lu Xiaobei had long black hair today. She wore a gray skirt below, a beige blouse above, and a striped cardigan in dark blue, white, and gold. She radiated youthful energy, dressed casually and so beautifully it was almost absurd.

"Boss, what's this?"

"Now that the internet café has three managers, I can finally set myself free."

Lu Xiaobei sounded a little dissatisfied. "It's fine if you call me Boss at the internet café, but we're outside now. Just call me Lu Xiaobei."

"Alright."

I asked again, "Lu Xiaobei, where are you going?"

"The Old City District across the street."

Lu Xiaobei pointed ahead. "There are only a few months until the New Year. It'll be peak tourist season then, and an inn in the Old City District asked me to take promotional photos for them. Five hundred a day."

"Damn..."

My eyes reddened. "Do they need male models?"

"Maybe."

Lu Xiaobei said, "I'll ask around for you later. If there's a chance, I'll definitely take you along to make some money."

"Sounds good."

I nod heavily. "A gentleman's word is his bond. If there's a chance to get rich, you have to remember me. I'm lacking everything right now, but what I lack most is money."

"I know~~~"

Lu Xiaobei waved as she lightly crossed the street, her figure disappearing into the crowd of the Old City District.

I looked at her retreating back, then turned and headed straight for Health Road.

Health Road was only a few hundred meters from Forward Street, and there was only one Island Coffee Shop on the entire road. It was easy to find.

After entering the coffee shop, I ordered a latte along with some cake and desserts. Zhang Ruolin was paying anyway, so I definitely couldn't shortchange myself. And if she stood me up, that was fine too. At worst, I could activate Bio-Optical Invisibility, smash a window, and skip out on the bill. That wouldn't be too difficult for me.

Time passed bit by bit, and soon it was nine o'clock.

Business at the coffee shop was sparse in the morning, with barely anyone around.

At that moment, a figure entered the coffee shop. It was a woman.

She had short hair and wore sunglasses, making it impossible to see her eyes. She wore a white inner shirt beneath a coffee-colored jacket, loose gray-blue jeans, and white sneakers. She had a distinctly sporty look.

The moment she entered the coffee shop, she tilted her head and glanced at me. Then she walked over with a smile and sat across from me.

"You're kind of handsome. You didn't disappoint me."

Zhang Ruolin took off her sunglasses. When she saw what I had ordered, her expression immediately turned pained. "Wow, are you eating me out of house and home?"

"Sorry about that."

I said helplessly, "I wandered around the wilderness for days, and I arrived in Creek City completely broke. I really haven't eaten anything good in a long time. Sister Ruolin, you're so pretty and kind, I'm sure you understand."

"This newbie's skin is really thick..."

Zhang Ruolin smiled speechlessly. "Why do you talk like such an old man?"

As she spoke, she waved her hand. "Waiter, coffee."

She only ordered a serving of tiramisu and a latte.

"How long have you been in Creek City?" I asked.

"I was born in Creek City."

Zhang Ruolin lowered her voice and smiled. "You could say I'm a local, so you can ask me anything you don't understand."

"Mm."

I nodded. "Did you bring the phone?"

"Of course."

Zhang Ruolin slowly pushed a new phone toward me. "The latest Xiaomi model. Good quality for the price. It cost me a full 3,000 Star Coins. Also, I got you a SIM card using Grandma Liu's ID from next door."

She gave me a meaningful smile. "Players like us... need to be careful about hiding our identities. Otherwise, we might get exposed somewhere without even knowing how."

"Mm, thank you."

I accepted the phone and charger.

"Download WeChat. Let's add each other as friends. We can contact each other through WeChat later and avoid wasting Experience Points."

"Alright."

I connected to the Wi-Fi on the spot and downloaded WeChat. Then I registered an account with my own SIM card, using "Shadow Chaser" as my username, and added Zhang Ruolin's WeChat by scanning her code.

"Done."

Zhang Ruolin said, "Show me your goods through the trading system?"

"Sure."

I immediately opened the trading system and placed a white Roarer and three Dark Tide Explosive Grenades inside.

Other people couldn't see transactions between players. From the outside, Ruolin and I simply looked like we were sitting across from each other drinking coffee.

"Wow..."

Zhang Ruolin pursed her lips in a smile. "Honestly, the goods are pretty good, especially the grenades. Undercurrent Technology?"

"Mm."

I nodded. "To be honest, Dark Tide once captured me and took me to a concentration camp. I only escaped from a Dark Tide base later through a lucky coincidence. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in such a sorry state."

"Then you got the hell-difficulty newbie village."

Zhang Ruolin smiled. "My condolences."

"One MP25 and three grenades are definitely worth more than just one phone." After a brief pause, I said, "I also want some ammunition and cash. Without cash, there's no way I can survive."

"True."

Zhang Ruolin said, "Don't worry. I won't shortchange you."

As she spoke, she placed two boxes of ammunition and a stack of bills into the trade window. The bullets were large-caliber rounds compatible with the Wind Whisperer sniper rifle, two hundred in total, while the cash amounted to a full 5,000 Star Coins.

After the transaction was completed.

I frowned slightly. "Actually, I also need some standard Roarer ammunition. Can you get it?"

"As long as you have money, ammunition won't be a problem."

Zhang Ruolin said, "In the current player market, 9mm rounds compatible with the Roarer cost roughly one to three. How many do you need?"

"One thousand rounds."

I handed her 3,000 Star Coins and said, "Get them for me as soon as possible."

"Mm."

Zhang Ruolin accepted the money. "There aren't many ways for players to level up in Creek City right now. If you want to leave the city to kill monsters and level up, extracting Essence Furnace experience, you can contact me. I have a squad here. Every so often, once we've gathered enough ammunition, we head out of the city."

"What are the target monsters?" I asked.

"Bugs."

Zhang Ruolin smiled faintly. "Things aren't peaceful outside Creek City either. Bug nests keep spawning everywhere. Players have the coordinates for some of the nests. Usually, we kill first-tier Nest Bugs. Nest Bugs don't have much attack power. As long as several players cooperate and suppress them with covering fire, we can basically farm them without losses. Once our ammunition runs out, we leave. No dragging things out."

"Not bad..."

I nodded in full agreement. "Take me along next time you leave the city. Are there any requirements?"

"Of course there are requirements to join the squad. We don't raise Experience Points babies."

Zhang Ruolin said, "What ranged weapon do you have?"

"I have a green Roarer."

"That works."

Zhang Ruolin smiled calmly. "A green Roarer, plus one thousand rounds, and you also have a Wind Whisperer sniper rifle. Your Overall Combat Level isn't low either. You meet the requirements. I'll call you next time we leave the city, and we'll use a code phrase on WeChat."

I nodded and stood up to leave.

"Wait."

Zhang Ruolin frowned lightly. "Keep me company a little longer. I haven't talked to a normal person in a long time."

"Then I need to order a little more food."

"Are you a pig? How can you eat so much?"

She looked utterly helpless. "Go ahead."