The Undercurrent's Gaze

After much persuasion and pestering, Lu Xiaobei finally agreed to lend me money. She initially tried to lend me a smaller amount, but she didn't realize I had already seen the internet cafe's backend records of card top-ups and consumption. With an income of 20,125 yuan, if I borrowed 20,000 yuan, she'd still have 125 yuan left to buy herself a boxed meal.

At 4 PM, I clocked out on time and headed straight for the Old City District.

"Swish!"

As I passed a small alley in the Old City, a blur of motion suddenly streaked past me from ahead, making me doubt myself. It looked like a person, and it somewhat resembled Lu Xiaobei carrying something!

Immediately after, two city guards came chasing after it, already out of breath after only a few steps.

"Forget it, forget it."

One of the city guards panted heavily, "Just chase for a bit to show we're trying. Captain Wang said this woman is a bit… eccentric, so don't bother with her."

"What a shame…"

The other city guard lamented, "Such a pretty girl, but she's got a screw loose."

"Exactly, exactly…"

As I brushed past them, I almost burst out laughing. It seemed Lu Xiaobei had already made a name for herself with the city guards, accidentally becoming a notorious outlaw in the Old City District's urban management!

So, I bypassed the areas where Lu Xiaobei might set up her stall and went directly through several sparsely populated alleys, eventually arriving at the Player Black Market.

"Buddy, ID!"

Two burly men were still guarding the alley. Although they recognized me, the procedure still had to be followed. After I flashed my health bar, one of them chuckled, "Oh, it's the Shadow Chaser! Please, come in, come in~~~"

"Thanks, you two!"

I pulled out a pack of Jinliqun cigarettes and handed one to each of them before leaving.

The Black Market was bustling with people. There were quite a few players who had spawned in Stream City. I didn't waste any time and headed straight for the trading hall. That's where I saw a person with a horse-like face.

"Old Ma!"

"Huh?!"

Old Ma was grabbed by me, looking flustered, "What the hell, who are you…"

"I came with Zhang Ruolin and Ling Baiwei, remember?"

"Oh… it's Ding Han!"

He immediately put on a fawning smile, "Here to restock ammunition?"

"Mhm!"

I nodded, "Let's go, we'll talk details inside!"

"Sure, sure, come on!"

The two of them walked towards the trading counter, arm in arm.

After we sat down, Old Ma asked, "What kind of bullets do you want?"

"Roarer's 9mm caliber bullets. I need to buy quite a bit."

"How much is 'quite a bit'?"

"Nine thousand rounds. Do you have them?"

"We actually do!"

Old Ma said in a deep voice, "Buying so many bullets, are you preparing for the regional mission after midnight tonight?"

"What else?"

"Haha, I knew it. Many people have come to buy bullets today. Fortunately, our ammunition reserves are sufficient, otherwise, we might have been sold out today."

I took out the 20,000 yuan Lu Xiaobei lent me, then took another 7,000 from my own little stash. This left me with only 200 yuan for food, but for the first-place reward in the regional mission, it was worth it!

My goal has never been the top ten, but to aim directly for first place. The reward for first place must be extraordinary, possibly the kind of reward that you'll never get a second chance at!

"Old Ma."

I placed the money in front of him, my expression solemn, "I'm buying 9,000 rounds of bullets in one go, and I haven't haggled for a single cent. Do you think I qualify as a major customer?"

"While not the most, you certainly qualify as a major customer." Old Ma savored the deeper meaning in my words, narrowed his eyes, and smiled, "What do you want, kid?"

"Can I get some freebies? Like, two Explosive Grenades?"

"Are you crazy? You can't just give away grenades like that?"

Old Ma looked speechless, "If you asked for something else, I might have been able to give you something within my authority, but grenades are truly impossible to give away. Not even one."

"Fine then."

I nodded, "In that case, can you give me some empty Roarer magazines? I want ten."

"Ten empty magazines?!"

Old Ma was stunned, "That's a bit much, brother. These aren't freebies anymore; they're practically a wholesale order for magazines."

"They're just magazines, not expensive. With your status in the Black Market, Old Ma, isn't this a piece of cake?"

He rubbed his nose, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Alright, ten it is. I'll get them for you later. I'll go get the goods."

"Mhm!"

Not long after, Old Ma brought two helpers with bullets, nine thousand bullets, neatly stacked. In addition, there were ten brand new magazines for Roarers. This brought my total to 15 magazines. Fully loaded, that's 750 rounds for a single use, plus the firepower of the Blue Roarers. It should be more than enough to handle most small-scale encounters!

"Old Ma."

I gave him another deep look. "Do we really have Explosive Grenades in the Black Market?"

"Yeah..."

He smiled slightly. "Forget Explosive Grenades, I even have RPGs and modified Blue Fire Gatling guns if you want them. But the price is too high, I'm afraid you can't afford them."

"Forget the RPGs, I can't afford them. What's the price for an Explosive Grenade?"

"3000 each."

"Holy crap..."

I was dumbfounded, utterly shocked. They were that expensive. No wonder Zhang Ruolin was so heartbroken when I used three of her grenades back then!

A grenade costing 3000 – could a worker earning 2000 a month afford that?

Never mind, I'll just have to try and snatch some grenades from the Undercurrent Vanguard later...

After leaving the Black Market, I passed by the vegetable market and bought a fish, some lettuce, and green beans. Back at my place, I cooked a few dishes and then had a bottle of beer with Milo.

"Luo'er, I'm going to catch up on sleep later, so don't practice singing."

"Oh?"

Milo looked surprised. "Catching up on sleep at this hour isn't like you. What are you up to?"

"Dude, did you really turn off the Player System completely?"

I was speechless. "A regional mission will refresh in Stream City at midnight tonight. From tonight at 0:00 to tomorrow at 0:00, the player who eliminates the most enemies within 24 hours will receive a generous reward. So, I'm planning to go for first place."

"Alright, I wish you luck getting first place!"

"Oh, right. Lend me a thousand yuan."

"???"

Milo looked astonished. "How did you end up like this? Didn't you say you had quite a bit of private savings? Now you don't even have a thousand yuan?"

"Sigh..."

I sighed. "I went to the Player Black Market and bought 9000 bullets in one go, which cost 27,000. I borrowed 20,000 of that from Lu Xiaobei. Do you think it's easy for us who are desperately leveling up?"

"Holy cow..."

Milo was shocked. "Lu Xiaobei is really good to you, lending you 20,000 yuan just like that. Did you at least write her an IOU?"

"What IOU?"

"Damn it..."

Milo took out his wallet, pulled out ten hundred-yuan bills, and threw them at me. "What's this thousand yuan for? Don't tell me you're planning to find a girl to cool off after completing the mission at midnight tomorrow, huh?"

"You're so shallow."

I felt a little embarrassed. "I've already spent all my money. I forgot I needed another thousand yuan to teleport to the mission point. It really proves the saying that even the wisest can make a mistake."

"Shameless."

Milo took a swig of beer and said, "I did indeed turn off the Player System. It felt meaningless. I just want to live in this world like an ordinary person now and strive for my music dream."

"It's not impossible."

I glanced at him. "When you become a music superstar, and I become a true powerhouse behind the scenes of this world, if you ever get into trouble, don't worry, you've got me, your brother, to back you up!"

"For those words, I'm drinking to it!"

He directly opened a bottle of Heineken and chugged it down.

"Amazing..."

I took a deep breath, impressed by his drinking capacity.

After dinner, Milo went to the bar to practice singing early so as not to disturb my rest. I set my alarm, fully charged my phone, and then fell into a deep sleep.

I don't know how long I slept, feeling half-dead and half-alive, before my phone alarm finally rang.

"Baby tummy's rumbling, tummy baby's rumbling, rumbling baby tummy, tummy tummy baby rumbling..."

The ringtone was invigorating, and I woke up instantly, quickly turning off the alarm.

It was 11:30 PM, plenty of time to get to the Phase Teleportation Array in the Black Market.

When I passed by downstairs, I even splurged on a roasted chicken, some flatbread, and a few bottles of mineral water. After all, I'd be out for 24 hours, and I didn't want to fight the Undercurrent Vanguard on an empty stomach...

Not long after, I arrived at the Black Market.

A large number of players were already teleporting to the West Wind Forest. After paying 1000 Star Coins, I stepped into the teleportation array. With a "whoosh," I experienced the dizzying sensation of teleportation again. A few seconds later, I emerged from another teleportation array, facing the dense expanse of the West Wind Forest.

Not far away, players were gathered together, their health bars already visible. The highest level was 20, but they hadn't advanced yet. The advancement difficulty must be too great.

Not wanting to interact with the crowd, I immediately activated the skill "Bio-Optical Invisibility." My cells buzzed, and an optical energy instantly enveloped my entire body, putting me into a 12-second state of invisibility.

Instantly, I sped away, disappearing from everyone's sight and entering the vast West Wind Forest.

"Ding!"

A message arrived from Zhang Ruolin: "Milo, Xiao Bai, and Ax have entered the West Wind Forest. What about you?"

"I've entered too. Remember to share information and support each other if trouble arises."

"Okay!"

Not long after, a golden boundary appeared ahead. Players couldn't enter, likely because the regional mission hadn't started yet. So, I hugged my Blue Roarer and hid in the forest, waiting quietly.

Ten minutes later, a ding sounded in my ears.

[Please note, the regional mission "The Undercurrent's Gaze" has officially begun! Be wary of the Undercurrent's power; they are far more terrifying than we imagine!]

I didn't rush. Instead, I switched to the Wind Whisperer and used its night vision targeting system to observe carefully. After confirming there were no enemies, I entered the depths of the forest with my gun.

A few minutes later, lights flickered in the sky. Several large transport planes flew low, and then, through the scope, I could see figures descending from the sky – the Undercurrent Vanguard, beginning their air drop!

Just then, the western sky suddenly lit up. Streaks of fireballs rapidly tore through the darkness of the sky, heading towards the northern part of the West Wind Forest where players were gathered.

'Holy crap...'

I was dumbfounded. Was this a joke? A long-range bombardment in the first round!?