Wu You pointed at the website on the screen and said,
"Didn't you read what it says? It's going up for auction! The starting price is already 10 million. I can put up 12 million. I can't do it alone this time—we all need to chip in. Once we get Greedy Blue Moon, the monthly profits will be divided according to how much each of us contributes. What about you, Second Brother?"
Wu You's gaze was sharper than ever as he swept it over them one by one.
"6 million."
"8 million."
"44 million."
Fifth Brother hemmed and hawed for a long time before giving a number. "Two million."
Wu You immediately blew his top. "Fifth Brother, right after New Year's you were bragging that your mother gave you a 5-million red envelope. Normally, everyone eats, drinks, goes clubbing, and pays for women with my money. Where the hell did your money go?"
Fifth Brother stayed silent. Fourth Brother immediately backed him up from the side. "Don't mention it. Haven't we been locked in a fierce fight with Heaven on Earth these past two months? Fifth Brother bought a huge villa, then went to the capital recently and brought back a young woman from Heaven on Earth to keep hidden away. He acts timid and submissive online, but goes wild offline. That's where all the money went. But to be fair, that woman was pretty good!"
??? Wu You's face was full of question marks. You two really know how to have fun.
"Fuck, look at the pathetic amount of ambition you two have. Fifth Brother, I don't care whether you sell your Ferrari or your mansion, or go ask your loving mother for more. Come up with 5 million. Otherwise, don't blame your brother for leaving you out this time! Fourth Brother, you need at least 5 million too!"
Seeing the men who had been so impassioned moments ago lose their spirit, Wu You grew furious. They were hopeless.
"An opportunity to make 10 million a month is right in front of us! With the worthless degrees we bought, none of us could earn even a million in this lifetime without our parents! We have three days left. Stop screwing around for now. Once this is done, you'll be able to adjust the equipment however you like. Hurry up and raise the money—the more, the better!"
Wu You's final words ignited their ambition.
"Remember, this is our business! Don't you want to give your parents some pocket money in the future?"
Wang Qi owned an Internet café. A month earlier, he had launched a private server called Bug Legend, which was fairly famous in the area. His Internet café brought in twenty to thirty thousand a month, while the private server earned several times that amount, making him a substantial profit.
He was no longer satisfied with his original private server, so he set his sights on Legend of Mir: Greedy Blue Moon. He had previously sent an email to the business cooperation address of the Legend of Mir Private Server Alliance, expressing his desire to purchase Greedy Blue Moon, but had been instantly rejected.
That day, Wang Qi suddenly received a call from someone claiming to be from the Legend of Mir Private Server Alliance. It took him a while to react. The other party then asked for some basic information about him and his private server. They spoke so quickly that he answered almost instinctively. Finally, the other party said that Greedy Blue Moon was now being sold. After he expressed his desire to buy it, they told him to check his email and hung up.
Wang Qi opened the email, and sure enough, it said they were willing to sell Greedy Blue Moon. There were two packages, blah blah blah. After paying the corresponding deposit, they would provide the address of the transaction website.
Package One required a 20,000 deposit. Seeing that, Wang Qi thought he had encountered a scam email or phishing website, but the address clearly came from the Private Server Alliance.
The website was handling more than a million in transactions a day. There was no way they would scam people over such a small amount. He transferred the deposit to the bank account listed in the email.
They were very efficient. A few minutes later, he received a new email. Wang Qi opened it and found a website address.
He opened a browser on the computer and typed it in.
Package One? As an Internet café owner, he knew a little about technology. Looking at the address, he pondered. Then is the Package Two address taocantwo?
Sure enough, it wasn't that simple.
Wang Qi gave up and returned directly to the regular website to look around.
The first thing that caught his eye was a blank rectangular field whose purpose he couldn't identify.
On the left was a promotional video. Internet speeds still didn't support online streaming, so Wang Qi could only download it locally first.
Below the blank field was a vertical comparison chart that compared Shanda's official Legend of Mir with Greedy Blue Moon across various aspects, including equipment, maps, monsters, and skills.
The basic premise was that whatever the official game had, Greedy Blue Moon had too. And whatever the official game lacked, Greedy Blue Moon not only had, but did better.
Below the comparison chart were screenshots showing Greedy Blue Moon's approximate revenue. The private information in the screenshots had been processed. Several large words appeared as a watermark on the images: Greedy Blue Moon exclusive—use by others prohibited!
At the very bottom were some transaction procedures and notes—notes, to be precise.
Looking at the screenshots showing 5 million a month, Wang Qi swallowed. His own private server made only a little over a hundred thousand at most.
The promotional video finished downloading. Wang Qi clicked play. It wasn't long, only a few dozen seconds.
The production was undeniably crude, but what it conveyed—the dazzling skills, flashy equipment, bustling city, and massive siege battles—made Greedy Blue Moon's popularity and the players' enthusiasm unmistakable.
Wang Qi's eyes burned with excitement. He calculated that if he bought Greedy Blue Moon and renamed it Bug Legend, his revenue could probably multiply several times over. With some savings and the income from the past two months, he gritted his teeth. It's only 500,000. I'm buying it!
May 20, clear skies.
Exactly ten in the morning.
"Website updated. Download address added. Happy trading!"
Wang Qi looked at the pinned message in the QQ group and immediately opened the website he had bookmarked long ago.
At the very top, he saw a button to download Greedy Blue Moon.
When he clicked it, an information panel popped up containing an IP address and an account and password.
Oh, it was an FTP file-transfer server address. There was an explanation at the bottom of the webpage.
Fortunately, Wang Qi had prepared in advance. He opened FTP file-transfer software, entered the relevant information, and began downloading Greedy Blue Moon.
An hour later, the installation was complete. When he launched it, a prompt appeared stating that he had one hour of trial time, after which he would need to purchase a permanent authorization code to continue.
Wang Qi took three unused computers from the Internet café. Following the detailed instructions, he ran various tests and trials. After checking everything, he found no problems.
He transferred the remaining payment.
When he refreshed the website, the previously blank rectangular information field was filled with a list of purchases.
Before long, Wang Qi discovered that his own information was on it too.
Twelve people had purchased it in total. Congratulations, you were the third purchaser.
Wang*—Internet café owner in XX Province—ID number: 14050********35371—contact: 138****4633—purchased
Li**—self-employed individual in XX Province—ID number: 44090********1922X—contact: 139****9888—purchased
Qu**—Internet café owner in XX Province—ID number: 45048********34431—contact: 138****9782—purchased
The purchase information scrolled by like a marquee.
After watching for a while, he found that most of the buyers were Internet café owners.
Wang Qi clicked the authorization-code button and entered the account he had used to make the payment. A string of eight letters appeared—the authorization code.
500,000 for eight letters. Sure enough, technology was the primary productive force!
After Greedy Blue Moon was verified successfully, Wang Qi called in the network administrator from his home. He posted an announcement suspending Bug Legend, and the two of them followed the foolproof tutorial step by step to synchronize the data.
Then he renamed Greedy Blue Moon Bug Legend and switched servers.
Wang Qi launched a new Legend of Mir that belonged to Bug.