Training Grounds, Another Trial

The training ground, another trial.

Big Brother Hui squinted, his figure rapidly circling around Xiao Yu, firing his 'toy gun' continuously, releasing special bullets.

Currently, Big Brother Hui can fire three types of bullets: flame bullets that can explode in an area, ricochet bullets that refract twice, and fist bullets with attack power comparable to sniper bullets.

At this moment, bullets were hitting Xiao Yu almost non-stop from all directions.

Big Brother Hui can maintain the reload action while firing at high speed, and this alone makes 99% of players kneel down and shout "666".

"Elite-level gunfighting, huh? No wonder."

Among the crowd, the senior engineer's personal alternate account and the rich woman's little wolfhound were quietly observing.

As one of the few skilled players who could "force back" the mechanical swordsman, Big Brother Hui earned a large number of mission points, which qualified him to choose some higher-level modifications.

For example, the wrist—

Wrist Bone Modification (Excellent): Refines eight wrist bones, readjusting the structure of the scaphoid, lunate, triquetrum, and pisiform bones to better suit wielding firearms. Perception +1. When using firearms, attack speed +10%, critical hit rate +5%.

At this moment, Brother Hui's bullets were fast and steady, almost in a continuous barrage. With the special effects of his bullets, Xiao Yu finally couldn't help but make a move.

The mechanical energy of just over 20,000 units propelled the girl's swordsmanship to a terrifying level. Almost the instant she made her move, Big Brother Hui felt a sense of suffocation, as if he were facing an endless torrent of steel.

"Aura AOE!"

Thanks to his heightened sense of danger honed through battles with numerous clone brothers, the eldest brother, Hui, almost instinctively lunged to the side. The violent blade flashed, tearing through the ground and adding another wound to the uneven concrete.

"We avoided it!"

Many players exclaimed in shock, because with this move, 90% of the players would be doomed.

Not only did they avoid it, they even threw out two smoke grenades during the process.

Thick fog covered most of the dojo.

The next moment, a dense barrage of gunfire erupted, unlike normal firearms, but rather a loud and booming sound similar to that of a musket.

The smoke from the smoke grenade was violently dispersed.

Xiao Yu saw a blurry figure frantically fleeing at the edge of the fog.

The snake blade in Xiao Yu's hand shot towards the opponent like a venomous python emerging from its hole.

A human head shot into the sky.

A hint of surprise flashed in Xiao Yu's eyes. In the battle just now, although she hadn't used her full strength, she hadn't held back either.

As the fog dissipated, the 'head' revealed its true form: a top hat, which was grabbed by the eldest brother, Hui, and pressed onto his head.

A crack was visibly added to the brim of the hat.

"Looks like I passed the test."

Big Brother Hui calmly stepped off the stage, but the players in the audience were even more excited than him.

"666".

"Wow, that's a pro!"

"What an awesome baby."

"What baby? That's Boss Hui!"

Next, another group of players came up to challenge them. In fact, the real threat came from the first thirty or so who arrived. Their levels not only did not drop, but they also leveled up one or two levels because of the mission rewards. In addition, with the cybernetic modifications, their combat power increased to another level.

If these thirty-odd players are unreliable, then the other players are naturally even less reliable.

Baozi, Dajiba, and Feiji, the original members of the small group, also went up to try, but were quickly eliminated.

"A new generation replaces the old," I, the muscle-bound tycoon, said sourly. "My newly sculpted biceps can't make up for the experience I've lost."

Baozi shrugged, taking it all in stride. "The more skilled players there are, the higher the probability of completing the quest chain, which isn't a bad thing."

"Why is the plane getting weaker and weaker? What did you modify?" the Red Flower Fairy asked, puzzled.

The plane waved its hand without saying a word, a very rare behavior for a chatterbox.

"Brother, why don't you give it a try?" Baozi said, looking at the rich woman's little wolfhound.

"I'm not one of those people. I'm just an ordinary pay-to-win player," the young wolf said modestly.

The second player to complete the game quickly emerged; it was the strange player who carried a lantern and said, "I will always love Zhang Aiping."

This player's skill was peculiar; he could summon holographic projections using lanterns. Xiao Yu destroyed most of the projections with three strikes, but still couldn't find the main body, allowing him to pass the level safely.

Is holographic projection really that amazing?

Many players were thinking to themselves, "This thing is sold on the market, should I buy one to lure monsters?"

Only a senior engineer could see that holographic technology was just the surface; the real reason was that strange lantern and his own modifications—AI totem (basic version).

Using that lamp, the other party dispersed the AI totem onto each holographic projection, causing the simulated data to scatter everywhere, greatly confusing Xiao Yu's perception.

Otherwise, with this little angel's combat intuition, how could she not have discovered the opponent's true form?

Corporate Investigator – I'd heard of this hidden profession in my previous life; it was a job only available to monopolistic companies, or rather, level-five companies.

This profession involves investigating classified data and studying the system operation of a planet's main brain, thereby helping companies identify new technology projects and directions.

It's a bit like a retired official being laid off and having to find new employment.

However, in this cyber testing ground, such research is very dangerous, and it is easy to die from all kinds of accidents.

If I had to put it that way, this profession is also a form of corporate espionage, only on a more mystical side.

"Corporate investigator, interesting. I'll mark you; you might come in handy."

Generally speaking, corporate investigators are highly selected loyalists who are almost impossible to betray—unless they are players.

Just as the senior engineer was figuring out how to motivate the players, a gasp rang out.

The third player has emerged, and surprisingly, he wasn't among the first batch of players to arrive at Red Rain Street.

In other words, the other party has died once.

Xiao Yu's mouth opened slightly, making her look both silly and cute.

Before her stood a trial participant who had been nearly reduced to a human stump. Three deep, bone-revealing knife wounds marred his shoulder, abdomen, and head, cutting through his muscles, severing his tendons and bones, and reaching his internal organs.

As a kind-hearted girl, Xiao Yu would never accidentally hurt someone during a test.

And it was precisely because of this that "Listen to the Eclipse" managed to withstand three blows.

Although Xiao Yu avoided vital points with every strike, seeing the throbbing internal organs in the opponent's abdomen and the "tofu pudding" rolling in the gap between the head, any normal player would have lost all their health long ago with such injuries.

However, the person in front of him was laughing like a silly husky, clutching his stomach to prevent his internal organs from spilling out, while excitedly leaning closer.

"Little sister Xiao, may I take a picture with you?"

"Uh, oh, okay."

While the group photo was being taken, a large amount of flesh and blood gushed out from the wound. By the time the photo was taken, the wound had been almost completely filled in.

It's just that it looks a bit ugly.

After receiving the photos, I was overjoyed to hear about the eclipse.

"Hey bro, what's your profession?" a player in the audience couldn't help but ask.

"I do research."

"What kind of research?"

"Being studied."

Just as they were talking, two NPCs wearing white coats rushed up. One NPC injected the eclipse with a needle, while the other NPC pulled out handcuffs and handcuffed him.

He wasn't surprised to hear about the solar eclipse, and let the two push him away, saying as they walked:

"Guys, my break time is over. I probably won't be able to participate in the next task. Good luck, you guys. I'll be cheering you on from the lab!"

After speaking, the eclipse head slumped, and it passed out cleanly. Then, like a fat pig being boiled and shaved, it was carried away by several NPC experimenters.

"..." a group of players.

After a long pause, Baozi finally managed to utter, "This guy's pretty cool!"

The plane glanced down at its crotch and sighed.

Soon, the fifth quest appeared—

[Fifth Mission: Slaying the Dragon Crossing the River]

Difficulty: Hard

Mission Briefing: Ko Chun, the leader of the Welfare Gang, aspires to become the new king of the underworld and establish his own criminal empire. He shows no mercy to rival gangs, often carrying out massacres. His ambitions extend far beyond drug manufacturing plants, illegal organ trafficking, vigilante justice facilities, arms smuggling, and data addiction. Our task is to utterly destroy his ambitions.

Mission Objective: Destroy all Welfare Gang strongholds and kill the leader, Ko Chun.

Task duration: 10 days (starting from when the task is posted)

Task Rewards:

Destroy a small outpost, experience +5000

Destroy a medium-sized stronghold, gain 8000 experience.

Destroy a large stronghold, experience +10000

Destroy the Welfare Gang's headquarters, experience +20000

Killing a peripheral member of the Welfare Gang grants +200 experience points.

Killing a regular gang member grants +500 experience points.

Killing a welfare gang elite grants +2000 experience points.

Killing a Double-Flower Red Stick grants +10,000 experience points.

Killing Gao Jin, the leader of the Welfare Gang, grants +100,000 experience points.

Note 1: This task is the final link in a task chain and is unique; it will not be refreshed after it is published.

Note 2: Task contributions are exchanged for 0.01 experience points.

Note 3: The higher the completion rate, the more likely it is to attract new forces. Conversely, if all players die, or if the stronghold is less than 50% destroyed by the end of the mission time, the mission will fail.

Note 4: Players can purchase guns, ammunition, and melee weapons from Xiao A as needed. Due to the high difficulty of the mission, the AI Xiao A provides a loan service. Players can exchange weapons here according to their expected returns, with refunds for overpayments and additional payments for underpayments.

Looking at the final quest that had been scrolled through several pages, the player remained silent for a moment, then exclaimed "Holy crap!"

What does it mean for new players to enter the market?

"They actually offer loans? Can we just not pay them back?"

"Is the little angel coming on stage? Ah, I want to be the little angel's protector!"

"Holy crap, they can even trade in rocket launchers? Are gang fights really this extreme?"

On the river, a smuggling boat was sailing at a leisurely pace. The bearded captain looked at the strange people on board with surprise. Some were assembling what looked like high-tech machinery, some were fishing, some were staring blankly with their third eye open, and some were playing with their metal limbs.

"Gao Da, stop fishing and hurry up and assemble my mech. We need it to get into the city."

"Okay, Sister Xiaoju."

A fair-skinned young man eagerly approached.

"Captain," a crew member whispered.

"Don't meddle. They chartered an entire ship; they have connections."

The bearded captain exhaled a puff of smoke and muttered to himself, "Another powerful dragon crossing the river."

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