Lin Yu said goodbye to Chen Zhuo, who had become completely confident in himself.
After experiencing "the brink of life and death" and that bizarre Death game, Chen Zhuo had already undergone a transformation.
It was just that his habitual thinking still kept him from daring to resist.
With Lin Yu giving him that little push, even though the potions had already been used up and even though those school bullies might refuse to accept it—
Chen Zhuo probably would not be bullied again.
Lin Yu was quite satisfied with that.
"Although the original purpose was to complete 'Fraud,' judging from the results... I guess I did a good deed for once!"
Of course, compared with Chen Zhuo, Lin Yu himself had gained far more!
The collapsible bat and potions in his Backpack had all been transformed into real "Game items" through Chen Zhuo's belief!
Lin Yu was even somewhat grateful that he had arrived at exactly the right moment, when Chen Zhuo was being bullied.
Otherwise, Chen Zhuo probably would not have believed in this "Fraud" of his so naturally.
After all, it would have been far too abrupt for Lin Yu to give Chen Zhuo several Game items for no reason!
Although Chen Zhuo might not have refused to believe him, any doubts in his heart would have greatly reduced the degree of his "belief," and the effect of making things "real" might have been worse.
In that case, he might not have been able to turn all the Items into reality!
After all, Lin Yu could sense that...
Turning every Item in his Backpack into something real with Chen Zhuo's "belief" had already been somewhat difficult.
"It looks like I have no choice but to attend this 'gathering.' Besides Chen Zhuo... I'll have to find some other easy-to-deceive Players, too, so I can extract their trust later!"
Lin Yu muttered to himself.
Friday evening arrived before long.
The "Jiang City" Players' gathering was about to begin!
Following the instructions in the "guide," Lin Yu covered his face with a mask, put on a baseball cap and sunglasses, parked his bicycle far from the abandoned restaurant, and walked to the "gathering" venue.
Many Players who participated in the Death game had already become twisted through one game after another. To them, killing and robbing others was an entirely ordinary tactic.
Over the past few years, as the two fair and righteous organizations, the "Forum" and "Order," had grown stronger, they had jointly established some customary "Player rules." They had also jointly created the "managers" organization to punish Players who violated the "Player rules."
The rules were quite straightforward—for example, Players were forbidden from using their abilities to commit crimes in the real world, and Players were forbidden from killing one another in reality.
The appearance of the rules and the managers greatly improved the atmosphere among the Players, and vicious incidents became far less common.
But one could never be too cautious when dealing with others!
Fewer vicious incidents did not mean they had been completely eliminated.
Although the "Forum" and "Order" were widely acknowledged to be powerful, and the senior experts of both organizations made up the subordinate "managers" organization... they still were not powerful enough.
At the very least, they were not powerful enough to make everyone too afraid to cause trouble!
Therefore...
Most guides still recommended that when attending an offline "gathering," one should conceal one's identity as well as possible.
In fact...
Unless one was powerful enough to be completely confident, one should conceal one's identity as a Player in most circumstances.
And whenever acting as a "Player," one should do everything possible to avoid exposing one's identity.
Lin Yu took advice well, so before attending the gathering, he naturally dressed in full disguise and planned his route with care.
He had left home shortly after six...
But by the time he reached the entrance of the abandoned restaurant he had visited a few days earlier, it was already around eight in the evening.
Lin Yu noticed many people nearby who were dressed much like him and moving about furtively.
People whose faces were hidden behind scarves of various materials, masks, and even hoods all silently made their way toward the restaurant.
Lin Yu understood at once.
These people were definitely all "Players"!
He quietly walked among the crowd, and soon everyone spontaneously formed a line at the entrance.
Two tall, sturdy men stood by the door. Wearing bandit masks and tank tops, they held machines and were responsible for "scanning people in."
What they were scanning, naturally, were the backend QR codes of the "Forum" APP.
Since no one was making a fuss, the process was very efficient.
The seemingly long line reached Lin Yu in no time!
He imitated the people he had seen ahead of him and displayed his personal QR code from the backend of the "Forum" APP.
Then...
"Beep—"
The device, which looked much like a supermarket payment scanner, gave a sound signifying "approved."
A slip of paper was then printed from the top of the machine.
"Nickname: Director"
That was Lin Yu's Forum ID.
The sturdy masked man at the entrance tore off the label and stuck it to Lin Yu's chest.
"Don't fight inside. If you want to set up a stall, just find a table and sit down. Don't lose the label, or you'll be expelled."
The man, who looked like a bandit, seemed to realize that Lin Yu was a first-timer and reminded him.
Lin Yu nodded, then entered with his bag on his back.
The abandoned restaurant, which had been clean but desolate a few days ago, had now become completely bustling.
The restaurant was clearly filled with seasoned Players who knew the ropes. Many had already set up stalls on the tables, laying out the things they wanted to sell one by one and waiting for others to choose.
A few Players focused mainly on "buying." They wandered among the scattered stalls, and whenever they saw an Item they liked, they began haggling.
"Boss, how much for this toolbox?"
"Fifteen points, firm price!"
"Damn, why don't you just rob me... I'm a student. Can you make it cheaper?"
"Ha, even if you were an animal, I wouldn't lower the price! That trick doesn't work on me!"
Listening to those down-to-earth exchanges, Lin Yu smiled helplessly and shook his head.
Although he had been a little nervous at first...
After actually entering, Lin Yu discovered that—
This so-called "gathering" actually felt much like browsing the small-goods street that afternoon!
After all... they were all just selling things.
Once he realized that, Lin Yu relaxed considerably and found a table.
He began arranging his collapsible bats and potions on it one after another.
Then, imitating the other stall owners, Lin Yu calmly sat behind the table and waited for "customers" to come ask for prices.
But...
Lin Yu had barely sat down and had not even gotten comfortable when he was about to play with his phone to pass the time.
That was when he heard an eager voice asking about the price.
"Brother, how much are you selling these collapsible bats for?"
"If I buy them all, can you give me a discount?"
Lin Yu looked up and saw a masked young man staring at him with burning excitement.
"Ten points each... Cash would be best. I can make it cheaper that way."
"Damn, ten points? I'll take all of them!"
The masked young man's eyes glowed with avarice.
But before he could take out his phone to pay, someone beside him hurriedly interrupted.
"Don't sell them to him, brother! I'll pay thirteen points each! Cash, and you don't need to give me a discount!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a middle-aged man wearing a mask and a bucket hat rushed over!
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