Membership Cards

It was late at night.

The overnight customers at the internet cafe had gradually all gone online. I'd heard Creek City was about to crack down on internet cafe operations, even planning to eliminate overnight service and ban major internet cafes from operating late at night. So I pulled down the shutter early. No matter who came after that, I definitely wouldn't open the door.

After taking apart and repairing a malfunctioning computer several times, I lay back in the manager's throne and took a short rest.

When I opened the regional rankings, I couldn't help but feel a slight chill. My rank had risen quickly!

1, Gun Like a Dragon Level: 18 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

2, One Blade Into Soul Level: 17 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

3, Milk Tea Life-Extending Immortal Level: 17 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

4, Shadow Chaser Level: 16 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

5, Chaos Demon King Level: 16 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

6, Lu Xun Deletes Comments Overnight Level: 16 Class: Starry Sky Super Weapon

7, Bunny Critical Hit Level: 15 Class: Firepower Specialist

8, Zu'an Liberal Arts Top Scholar Level: 15 Class: Psionicist

9, Ruolin Level: 14 Starry Sky Super Weapon

10, I'm Bad But Can Talk Trash Level: 14 Class: Firepower Specialist

...

I was currently in fourth place. It was honestly a little too eye-catching!

And I had to admit, the top three were leveling up incredibly fast. Unless they'd taken on major quests, they must have obtained Instance Crystals like I had. Otherwise, they shouldn't have been leveling this quickly!

Of course, if someone had plenty of money and formed a squad with unlimited ammunition to mow everything down, their leveling speed definitely wouldn't be slow either. But players at this stage were basically all broke, so the possibility of RMB players could mostly be ruled out.

I made my daily call and continued.

I consumed 1% of my current level's Experience Points and activated the star map. In a deep voice, I said, "Player Shadow Chaser is looking for player Chasing Light. If any player has information about Chasing Light, please contact me! Thank you!"

"Wow, it's Shadow Chaser..."

A player entered the star map chatroom almost instantly. It was still that female player called "What Are You Eating? Let Me Have a Bite Too." "Shadow Chaser, you still haven't found your friend?"

"Not yet. The sea of people is vast. It's a little difficult..."

"That's true, but your level has risen so quickly lately! I feel like if you work a little harder, you might make it into the top three of the Creek City rankings!"

"Just luck. My leveling speed won't be that fast from now on."

At that moment, a male player entered the chatroom. It was actually "I'm Bad But Can Talk Trash," ranked tenth. He immediately asked, "Brother Shadow Chaser, fourth place already... That's badass..."

He laughed and asked, "Can I boldly ask what your Overall Combat Level is now? Let this little noob experience just how terrifying the Combat Power pressure of a top-five big shot is..."

"Take a guess?" I laughed.

"At least 150 points, right?"

He cautiously said, "A couple days ago, I heard One Blade Into Soul's combat level officially broke through 150 points. You're ranked fourth now, and two more days have passed. Logically, your Combat Power should be close to 150 by now, right?"

"Not yet. I'm still a little short."

I glanced at my own Overall Combat Level of 325 points and didn't reveal my true strength.

"Oh, that's still pretty good."

What Are You Eating? Let Me Have a Bite Too said, "Cai Cai, how much do you have?"

"Just hit 140 points. What about you, Kou Mei?"

What Are You Eating? Let Me Have a Bite Too, who had been called Kou Mei, laughed. "I'm just a nobody. I just passed a hundred. I'll take it slow. I don't dare get greedy and push too hard. I'm afraid of dying outside. I heard death means real death, and I don't want to die yet."

I smiled, then left the chatroom.

Cai Cai, Kou Mei...

This group of players was pretty interesting.

So I folded my arms, closed my eyes, and rested, trying to get a little more sleep.

I didn't know how long I'd slept when someone suddenly shook me awake.

"Ding Han, my computer's having problems! It's a critical moment, hurry and take a look!"

The person who woke me was a regular customer, someone who came almost every night. He played Legend and was known as Old K. He seemed to be a professional player, running a Taoist character and making a living by farming treasure and selling it.

"Oh?"

I immediately got up. "What's the problem? Let me see what's going on."

"Take a look, quick. The screen started shaking just now, and I don't know why."

Old K was a little anxious. "I've been poisoning that Yellow Springs Cult Master for twenty minutes already. It's about to die. Ding Han, hurry up and take a look. Don't hold me up."

I hurriedly tested it. There wasn't any major problem; a restart would solve it.

Not long after, the computer restarted, and everything returned to normal.

"Holy crap..."

Old K's face was covered in sweat.

"Don't panic yet."

I dragged over a chair and sat beside him, smiling. "What's yours will still be yours. Maybe the computer problem was just a little hiccup. Just take it easy. Want a cigarette?"

"Give me one."

I pulled out a Liqun cigarette and handed it to him, then lit it for him.

With the cigarette in his mouth, Old K logged into his account and went online, narrowing his eyes with a thoroughly contented expression.

Soon, his character went online.

"The cult master didn't recover much health. Great!"

Old K looked thrilled. With a cigarette in his mouth, he began operating. Red poison, green poison, summoning a divine beast—his whole sequence had nearly become muscle memory. Then he threw out a flurry of fire talismans, wearing down the BOSS's health.

I said nothing and simply watched from the side.

About five minutes later, accompanied by the BOSS's miserable howl, it dropped a huge haul!

"Holy crap!"

Old K's eyes suddenly widened. Before I could even react, he controlled his character to rush over and pick up the loot. Then he opened his inventory and burst into laughter. "Ding Han, look what this is?!"

I saw a thick, black rod in his inventory.

"Judgment! Fuck, Judgment finally dropped! The first Judgment in this server!"

Old K laughed loudly. Without another word, he immediately returned to town and stored the weapon called Judgment in the warehouse. Then he turned to look at me with a smile. "Ding Han, kid, you really are my lucky star. The moment you showed up, the first Judgment in the server dropped. Guess what price the big shots in our server are offering for Judgment?"

"How much?"

"This much..." He spread all five fingers.

"Five hundred?"

"Bullshit, five thousand!"

Old K looked ecstatic. "Awesome! I've got two months' rent and internet fees in one go!"

I smiled slightly. "Congratulations. That means Feiyang Internet Cafe is your lucky place."

"That's right!"

Old K laughed. "To be honest, I was the one who got the first Limitless Staff in this server too. But I didn't sell it—I used it myself. That's how the snowball started rolling. I'm the only Taoist in the whole server who can solo this BOSS. Isn't that badass?"

"Badass..."

I nodded.

Old K quickly logged into the forum, posted a screenshot of the Judgment, and wrote that it would go to the highest bidder, leaving his contact information as well. Then he couldn't even be bothered to go back online. He asked for another cigarette and puffed out smoke as he smiled. "Ding Han, you're not from Creek City, are you? Your accent doesn't sound like it. You sound like you're from around Tengshan City in Crimson Dragon Country, though it's a little like the Huaining City accent too."

"Is that so?"

I smiled. "Boss K, where are you from?"

"Don't mention it. I don't want to bring up the past."

Old K seemed deeply wary of his past. "I think you're a decent guy. I heard last time Lu Xiaobei was caught by city management while setting up a street stall, and you were the one who bailed her out."

"It was nothing. Just something I did on the way."

"Hmph..."

Old K lightly blew out a smoke ring. "Ding Han, do you know Lu Xiaobei?"

"Why do you ask?"

I was slightly stunned. "To be honest... not particularly well. But I can tell Lu Xiaobei probably isn't local. And this internet cafe probably hasn't been in her hands for very long, right?"

"Mm."

Old K nodded. "I knew the former owner of this internet cafe too. He couldn't keep the business going. There weren't many computers in the cafe, and their performance was terrible. Later, I heard his son got into a university in BH City, so the couple planned to transfer the shop. It just so happened that Lu Xiaobei came to Creek City around then."

He narrowed his eyes and smiled. "When she first came to Creek City, she was really lavish. She wore designer brands from head to toe, and even the bag she carried was designer. Later, I heard she sold the bag and used the tens of thousands she got from it to take over this internet cafe. She's kept it open ever since, but she didn't know how to run it. It only started getting a little better after you came."

"No wonder."

I nodded. "I could tell at a glance that Lu Xiaobei wasn't someone used to hardship. Her skin is so delicate—you can tell she was spoiled from childhood. How could she be suited to running an internet cafe from dawn to dusk?"

"So you should treat her better..."

Old K gave me a meaningful smile. "If Lu Xiaobei ever goes blind and falls for you, kid, maybe you won't have to work hard for the rest of your life. If you go home with her, what gold mountains and silver mountains wouldn't you have?"

"Give me a break."

I couldn't help laughing. "I've had a strong stomach since I was young. I was born not to live off a woman!"

Old K burst out laughing.

After that, the two of us chatted for a while longer. Then Old K took several calls, all from people who wanted that Judgment. This game really was wildly popular in this era. A Judgment was actually that sought-after.

In the morning, not long after I opened the shutter, I saw a figure dart downstairs. Lu Xiaobei, dressed in a pretty casual outfit, rushed outside.

"Where are you going?"

"Buying breakfast!"

She didn't even turn around, as if she would starve to death if she delayed for another second.

I was speechless and waited for Zhao Yihang to come take over the shift.

Not long after, Zhao Yihang arrived alongside Lu Xiaobei. Zhao Yihang didn't look too good and kept his head lowered, while Lu Xiaobei lectured him, pointing out all sorts of shortcomings in his work.

"Ding Han, breakfast."

Lu Xiaobei plopped down into the manager's throne and opened the breakfast bag. She'd actually bought enough for two people.

"Boss, I haven't eaten breakfast either." Zhao Yihang grinned shamelessly. "Is there a share for me?"

"No. Go buy your own."

"Boss, you're so biased!"

I didn't stand on ceremony either. I was hungry anyway, and the steaming meat buns, fried dough sticks, and Hulatang really were much better than instant noodles. So I ate breakfast with Lu Xiaobei.

"Ding Han."

She pressed her red lips together and said, "Business has dropped again these past two days. The online rate during peak hours is still too low, and it's hard to keep customers. Do you have any ideas?"

"If you want to keep customers, there is one way."

"What way?"

"Give them membership cards!"