Battle Roar

"Xiao Bei, you..."

I was as if I'd seen a ghost. "Weren't you under house arrest in BH City? How did you suddenly end up in Huaining City?"

What do you think?

Lu Xiaobei frowned slightly and said, "If it weren't for you, you heartless bastard, would I have bothered climbing over the wall? Hurry up, it's not past midnight yet, we still have time!"

As she spoke, she grabbed my sleeve and dragged me out of the residential area.

Where are you going?

"Don't ask, just follow us!"

Outside the residential area, a taxi with its hazard lights flashing appeared to have been waiting for a long time.

After Lu Xiaobei helped me into the car, he got in himself and said, "Master, let's go quickly!"

As he spoke, he directly slapped several hundred-yuan bills on his wrist and gave them to the driver.

As expected of her, rich and arrogant!

"Alright, you two, please sit down!"

The driver stepped on the gas, and the taxi sped off, arriving in less than ten minutes, stopping right outside the Feiyang Chain Internet Cafe!

After getting off the bus, I looked up and couldn't help but marvel at the efficiency of the decoration construction team.

In just a few days, the exterior walls have been completely transformed and now bear the sign "Feiyang Chain Internet Cafe". The overall design is full of technology and has a bit of an e-sports theme.

"Time is running out, hurry!"

Lu Xiaobei carried the cake and led me up to the third floor.

The internet cafe's interior was not yet fully renovated, but the original decorations had been demolished, leaving it in a bare, unfinished state. However, renovations had begun on the third floor, with a sign on one of the rooms that read "Manager's Office." When Lu Xiaobei pushed the door open, he found that the interior was actually quite well-renovated, and even a large desk had been placed inside.

"Good heavens..."

I asked in surprise, "This is the office you and Old K arranged for me?"

"Um."

Lu Xiaobei smiled and asked, "Are you satisfied?"

"Certainly..."

She placed the cake on the desk, lit the candles, and said, "Would you like to sing 'Happy Birthday'?"

I found it funny. "You're going to sing?"

"Um!"

"Start!"

Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to you...

Lu Xiaobei actually started singing. Her voice was sweet and clear; to be honest, she sang very well.

"Alright, make a wish!"

"Um!"

This is my second wish today, so I closed my eyes again and made my second wish, silently praying. "I hope everyone I know is safe and happy, and I hope to reach level 100 soon, with a full set of top-tier S14 gear, sweep through the Star Abyss, and lead all players back home!"

After making a wish, cut the cake.

"I really can't eat anymore, but I'll just try a little," I said.

"Yes, I'll eat!"

Lu Xiaobei cut himself a large piece and then stood by the window to enjoy it.

She ate a lot in one go.

"Xiao Bei, you didn't even eat dinner, did you?" I asked.

"Um."

Lu Xiaobei said, "After escaping from home, I went straight to the airport. I didn't have time to eat anything. After arriving in Huaining, I picked up the cake, which was quite late. But the cake tasted good and didn't disappoint me."

Under the glow of the streetlights outside, I looked at her stunning face and suddenly fell silent.

"How?"

Lu Xiaobei smiled sweetly, "So you finally know how to care about me?"

"No, I just..."

"Alright, stop saying things I don't want to hear."

Lu Xiaobei wiped his mouth and said, "My flight back to BH City is at 2 AM, so I have to leave now."

"So rushed?"

"Um."

I'll take you to the airport.

Okay~~

In the taxi, neither of them spoke, each lost in their own thoughts.

"Drop!"

A WeChat message from Lin Qingying: "I'm home, aren't you done yet?"

"It's over."

I didn't intend to lie to her, so I told her the truth, "A friend came to Huaining City to celebrate my birthday, and I'm taking her to the airport now."

"Okay, be careful."

She didn't send any more messages after that.

I looked out the window, a slight unease creeping into my heart. It seemed that without realizing it, I had found myself facing a choice between Lin Qingying and Lu Xiaobei, something I certainly didn't want.

Airport.

Lu Xiaobei, carrying a small backpack with a little bear tied to it, turned around and said, "Okay, I'm going to security now. You should go home early and get some sleep too."

"Um!"

I nodded. "Xiao Bei, don't travel so much in the future, it makes me feel really guilty, you know?"

"I want to make you feel guilty..."

Lu Xiaobei laughed, "I'll only feel a little happier if you, you beast, feel guilty. Alright, I'm leaving."

"Um."

She turned and walked towards the security checkpoint, but stopped after a few steps, turned back to me, and said, "Ding Han, take care of yourself."

With that, she turned and left without looking back. As she entered the security checkpoint, she wiped her face, perhaps already in tears.

My heart was filled with mixed feelings. After watching Lu Xiaobei disappear into the crowd, I finally left the airport and hailed a taxi home.

It was past 1 a. m. when I got back to my place.

The living room was dark; Lin Qingying must have already gone to sleep.

I quickly washed my face and went to bed. The thought of having to go to work tomorrow to gain Skill Experience immediately killed my desire to stay up late. I quickly adjusted my state and drifted off to sleep.

The following day, in the afternoon.

The work at Luo Mei's repair department remains busy.

"Ding Han."

Xu Hao pushed off the ground and slid the chair over, laughing, "You and Lin Qingying..."

Don't ask, we're just friends.

I shook my head and said, "Really, why would I lie to you?"

"All right."

Xu Hao was a little disappointed. "I thought there was something fishy going on..."

"Wouldn't it be great if there was something fishy going on?"

The fat man laughed, "We can leverage Ding Han and Lin Qingying's relationship anytime to jump ship to Yue Ning Group and rise through the ranks. It's much better than being stuck in Luo Mei's repair department with no end in sight, isn't it?"

"Holy crap..."

Xu Hao said, "Fatty, you're practically a mind reader! How do you know all this?"

"With your little tricks up your sleeve, you think you can escape my sharp eyes?"

"Damn, awesome..." Xu Hao gave the fat man a thumbs up.

Just then, a message popped up from Cai Cai: "Boss, what are you busy with?"

"Going to work? What's wrong?"

"Come to the Player Black Market!"

Cai Cai said, "A player was just selling a Tier 3 skill book for a Starry Sky Super Weapon on the black market called Berserker Roar. It says that roaring increases attack power proportionally. I've already asked him to remove the book from the stall. You can talk to him yourself when you get here!"

"OK."

I nodded. "Coming right away, stop him!"

"Okay!"

So I immediately stood up and said, "Fatty, ask Old Lu for half a day off for me. I need to go out for a bit, something's come up."

"OK."

The fat man didn't even look up.

Leaving home, hailing a taxi—all in one smooth motion.

Player Black Market.

"Boss!"

Cai Cai greeted me from afar, then led me towards the black market compound. Inside, many players were setting up stalls, and all sorts of dazzling items were gleaming.

A few seconds later, we arrived in front of a player named "Huo Bingzhi Ri". This person was a level 31 Dark Priest, who was quietly squatting in a corner of the Black Market courtyard, selling goods.

"Bingzi."

Cai Cai laughed and said, "My boss is here, you can chat by yourself."

Huo Bingzhi Ri immediately stood up and said with a smile, "Brother Shadow Chaser, I've heard so much about you. I'm a casual player from Huaining City, you can just call me Bingzi. I heard you want this book, 'Raging Roar'?"

"Um."

I nodded. "Battle Roar skills are indispensable, who wouldn't want one... Bingzi, how do you plan to sell this book?"

"Currently, there are countless Tier 3 Super Weapon Master in Huaining City, so Battle Roar skill books are extremely scarce. Someone had already offered me 180,000, but I didn't sell them because Cai Cai stopped me from doing so."

"I see..."

I glanced at my Dimensional Storage Space. I had very few Star Coins, only 20,000+, which was definitely not enough to buy this skill book. However, I did have some other miscellaneous items, especially a skill book that I got from the blue BOSS Ability Crystal. I hadn't seen it last time because it was hidden in a corner of my storage space by the mini robot, but now it came in handy.

This is a second-tier skill for Dark Priest called "Whispers of Fear." Its effect is to instill fear in enemies with chaotic whispers, rendering them unable to act for 1.5 seconds. It's a very useful skill, but its drop rate is low, and it's not commonly seen on the market.

"I don't have anything else good to Bingzi right now."

He pulled out Whispers of Fear from his storage space and asked, "Have you learned this skill?"

"Holy crap..."

Huo Bingzhi Ri's eyes instantly lit up. "Fear skill... I haven't learned it yet. The drop rate for this skill is fucking low. More than 99% of Dark Priest haven't learned it."

"OK."

I nodded. "How about I trade this Whispers of Fear, plus some Star Coins, for your Battle Roar book?"

"Can."

Huo Bingzhi Ri, "Brother Shadow Chaser, how much are you planning to add?"

"I don't have much money, only 20,000 Star Coins in total."

I looked at Cai Cai: "Do you have any money left? Lend me 80,000."

"No problem!"

Cai Cai took out 80,000 Star Coins and threw them over.

I put the two sums of money together and said, "Bingzi, this copy of Whispers of Fear, plus 100,000 Star Coins, should be enough to get your Battle Roar, right? You didn't lose out on this deal."

"OK!"

Huo Zhuozhi said, "However, I have one more request. Brother Shadow Chaser, could I add you on WeChat? If you create a guild in the future, I'd like to join and become a member!"

"Can."

I nodded and immediately added Huo Bingzhi Ri on WeChat.

Afterwards, the other party traded the Battle Roar skill to them.

[Raging Roar] (A-Rank Skill Tome): Unleashes Battle Roar, increasing the attack power of the user and nearby teammates by 30% for 30 seconds. Cooldown: 60 seconds. Required level: 30. Required class: Super Weapon Master.

It's done!

This Battle Roar skill can increase attack power by up to 30%, lasting for 30 seconds with a 60-second cooldown. This means you can enjoy this 30% bonus for half the battle time. Moreover, if teammates use Battle Roar on each other, you can almost always enjoy the 30% attack power bonus!

My current attack power is 1070-1466, and with a max-level Battle Roar buff, it drops to 1391-1906, a significant leap. Once I get the Battle Roar effect, I can kill anyone I hit right now!

"Alright, it's been a pleasure working with you, Bingzi!"

"Alright, goodbye, Brother Shadow Chaser!"

Huo Bingzhi Ri nodded with a smile, but the next second, his gaze fell behind me, and his smile froze on his face.

"Um?"

I slowly turned around and saw someone appear not far behind me.

One Blade Into Soul!!