Equipment, Weapons, Skills

He raised his beer glass again, looked left and right, and wore an expression of excitement as if sharing a secret.

"Let me tell you guys, do you know that internet-famous master, Wang Tiechui?"

"Wang Tiechui?" Li Jie's eyes lit up. "Is that the guy who livestreamed making armor for Di Qin and even trended on the hot search list?"

"Yes, yes! That's him!"

Chen Yu felt validated and grew even more enthusiastic.

"That guy is a master who has made armor for top-tier historical blockbusters like Di Qin. Last time I went to his studio, I saw the armor he made for a buddy participating in the Full Armor Combat Tournament—it was so thick and imposing!"

"But let me tell you, even though it looked heavy, it actually wasn't that heavy at all because the main material was titanium alloy. I've even touched the scraps of that titanium alloy; it's both light and tough!"

The more he spoke, the more excited he became, his spit nearly spraying onto the skewers:

"Find him! We have to find Master Wang! Use aviation-grade titanium alloy, follow the style of the Qitian Battle Armor from the game, and forge a real, wearable set. Then, pair it with a solid alloy staff—that's what you call a collector's item! That's what you call a man's romance!"

He rubbed his fingers together and chuckled:

"Brother Yi, we've been desk mates for so long, and you never accept anything I try to give you. Since you invited me to your Graduation Banquet, I can't exactly show up empty-handed..."

"I'll get him to make a set for you, just consider it... consider it a graduation gift from your buddy! Don't you dare say no this time, it's settled!"

"Holy crap! Brother Yu is generous! Aviation-grade titanium alloy!"

Li Jie exclaimed dramatically, and Zhang Haotian chimed in, "Brother Yu, your graduation gift is truly hardcore!"

"You know it! Besides..."

Chen Yu winked at everyone, "I only got into the same university as Brother Yi by 'relying on my father,' so I'm counting on him, the real straight-A student, to cover for me in the future."

After saying this, Chen Yu immediately pulled out his phone, not giving Lin Yi a chance to "react," and dialed the number.

"Hello? Master Wang! It's little Chen! Yes, yes, yes... I have a big job! A rush job!"

"Armor, the Dark Great Sage! Yes, yes, that monkey! The full set! Armor plus two short staves that can be joined into a long staff!"

"Materials? The best, of course, aviation-grade titanium alloy! It needs to be light and sturdy... The timeline? Two weeks? Brother Wang, you're like a real brother to me, please help me out, make it a rush order!"

"...Okay, okay, you're the best. I'll send you the blueprints."

Chen Yu nodded and bowed to the phone, his tone exaggerated, but his face wore a smile of absolute certainty.

On the side, Lin Yi watched his friend busy himself with the armor and observed the good-natured teasing and cheering of his companions. Even though this scene was almost identical to his simulations, a wave of warmth still couldn't help but surge in his heart.

In his plan, to quickly gain a foothold in the early stages of the apocalypse as a high school graduate with no foundation—and to do so in a way that could withstand scrutiny—this set of weapons and armor was an extremely important prop.

It wasn't a matter of price.

Although the money to forge weapons and armor was significant, he had several ways to acquire it in a short time. The key was finding a master-level figure to help him jump the queue; that was the troublesome part.

Given his current status, he theoretically wouldn't have any contact with such a person, so the simplest, fastest, and most logical way was to obtain it through Chen Yu.

"A Yu, then I won't stand on ceremony with you."

Lin Yi smiled candidly, "Since that's the case, I'll have to practice hard these next few days. On that day, I'll wear the gear you gave me and show everyone a set of staff techniques."

This time, he didn't refuse Chen Yu's gift as he had in his past life.

In the past, he didn't accept it because the relationship felt unequal; he had nothing to give back to his friend, and he cherished this friendship too much to just be a taker.

But now it was different; he deserved this.

In his past life, when the apocalypse first arrived, transportation collapsed and the city turned into a chaotic slaughterhouse. He had tried his best, but only managed to save his parents and a few neighbors alongside his uncle, who happened to be visiting.

Many more lost their lives in the initial chaos.

But this time, he would not only help them avoid the initial turmoil, but he would also do his best to help his friends gain the ability to protect themselves.

Seeing that Lin Yi had actually agreed, Chen Yu was slightly stunned at first, then overjoyed, swallowing the words he had originally intended to use to persuade him. "Oh, Brother Yi! Who are we to each other? No need for formalities!"

He downed the remaining wine in his glass with bravado and patted Lin Yi hard on the shoulder. "It's settled then! On the day of the Graduation Banquet, just wait to be the coolest guy in the room! Hehe, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven arrives at Hongfu Tower!"

He seemed to already see the dashing scene of Lin Yi suited up in armor, his eyes crinkling into slits with joy.

After the dinner ended, as soon as he returned home, Lin Yi slipped back into his room.

He then turned on his computer and played a compilation of staff techniques from the Dark Great Sage and instructional videos on traditional martial arts staff techniques.

After watching for a while, he ran to the balcony, grabbed the clothes-drying pole leaning against the wall, and began practicing in the air with a "focused" and even slightly "clumsy" expression.

His movements were far from standard; he was simply imitating the basic strikes, sweeps, flicks, and pokes from the videos, and he even looked a bit stiff. But that earnest effort made him look exactly like a middle-schooler obsessed with roleplay, secretly practicing hard in private.

"Xiao Yi? It's so late, why aren't you asleep? What are you clattering about?"

His mother, Zhou Jinghua, passed by the living room and couldn't help but ask when she saw her son acting like a monkey.

Lin Yi's movements paused. He held the drying pole, an awkward smile appearing on his face as he scratched his head and said:

"Mom, it's... it's nothing! After watching the game video, I'm learning some of the staff moves; it's cool, right?"

"Besides hosting the Graduation Banquet, I have to perform something, and I figured singing or whatever wouldn't be that interesting..."

"This game is super popular right now, even the national station has reported on it. I thought if I performed some staff techniques to the game's animation, it would be quite novel."

Zhou Jinghua leaned in to look at the fine beads of sweat on her son's forehead and his slightly flushed face. She felt both annoyed and amused, which eventually turned into a helpless sigh:

"You child... how old are you to still be playing with this? Be careful not to bump into anything, don't disturb the neighbors downstairs, and get to sleep early."

She shook her head, simply assuming it was her son letting off steam after the Gaokao.

Seeing his mother return to her room, the silly grin on Lin Yi's face faded, his eyes regaining their clarity.

He picked up the crude long staff again, continuing his seemingly clumsy practice.

Although he had used a blade in his past life, his realm remained, so using Staff Techniques to get through the initial period was not a problem at all.

When it was inconvenient to obtain a sharpened weapon, a staff was almost the most reasonable and common high-power Cold Weapon.

Every one of his substandard movements and every deliberate pause now was laying the groundwork so that, in the "life-and-death race" a few days later, he could "self-teach" and skillfully wield a heavy alloy staff to carry out efficient slaughter, making it all seem perfectly logical.

A hot-blooded youth obsessed with the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, secretly practicing staff techniques in private, driven by extreme fear and survival instinct to "burst forth" with combat potential far exceeding that of an ordinary person.

This chain of logic had to be quietly implanted in the minds of all potential onlookers before he made his official debut.