"An infinite-power electric chainsaw..."
Gu Mian looked at the most eye-catching item on the shelf.
This area had all kinds of things, from stepladders down to screwdrivers. It had everything.
There were plenty of weapons with serious stopping power, too. For instance, there was that sharp cleaver over there. Gu Mian had no idea how it had ended up in the mechanical tools section.
A short distance away stood a plump salesman, his face beaming.
When he spotted Gu Mian, his eyes lit up. He seemed delighted to finally have a customer.
Then he hurried over on his short legs, the flesh on his face bouncing with every step.
"Sir!" The plump salesman panted as he reached them. "What can I get for you?"
Gu Mian looked at the chainsaw on the shelf in front of him.
It looked incredibly intimidating, much bigger than an ordinary chainsaw. It was about a meter and a half long—nearly as long as a middle school student. Its handle was bright orange and impossible to miss.
Its teeth were like a shark's, each one sharp enough to slice through someone's throat.
The body of the saw was extremely sturdy and wouldn't break easily.
Seeing that Gu Mian seemed interested, the salesman hurried to explain.
"This is an infinite-power electric chainsaw. You can use it without plugging it in, and you can store it in your inventory. Of course, you can't put it away while you're in the supermarket, or you wouldn't be able to pay for it. It's a little heavy to carry, probably around ten or so pounds..."
"And it comes with a fancy carrying case! Put the chainsaw inside and sling it over your back, and it'll look just like a guitar."
Gu Mian looked at the price tag hanging below the chainsaw.
It cost 100 Game Currency. Not expensive—at least, not for him.
Meanwhile, Chu Changge and the Fatty had just crossed the bedding section when Gu Mian came toward them, carrying the intimidating chainsaw.
"Whoa!" the Fatty cried. "Doctor, what are you doing? Planning to chop down trees and build yourself a house?"
Gu Mian glanced toward the supermarket entrance. "Didn't you say we had people watching us? I don't really want to fight them barehanded."
By now, more than a dozen people had gathered outside the supermarket entrance.
The man at the front was tall and broad. He narrowed his eyes as he watched the entrance.
Wang Xiaolong, standing beside him, lit a cigarette and handed it over. "Big Brother Zhang, I watched them buy tickets and go into this supermarket. They only went in a little while ago, so they'll probably be a bit longer."
"It's fine. I can wait." Big Brother Zhang took the cigarette and inhaled deeply. White smoke slowly rose into the night.
Wang Xiaolong lowered his voice again. "Big Brother Zhang... after we take their stuff, do we just leave, or...?"
His voice wavered. Now that it was about to happen, he seemed a little afraid.
Big Brother Zhang flicked the ash away. "Depends on whether they know what's good for them. If they do, they'll hand over their stuff without a fuss. I won't make things hard for them. If I'm in a good mood, I might even leave them a little..."
"If they don't, then they can't blame me for showing no mercy. That guy during the day put up a hell of a fight, but his stuff still ended up in my hands. Heh. Greedy for money and careless with his life."
As he spoke, he tossed away the cigarette butt and ground it into the ground with his foot. "That guy earlier was dirt poor. I wonder how much these three have on them tonight."
Everyone nearby shivered slightly at his words, the gruesome scene of the man's death rising in their minds again.
Meanwhile, inside the supermarket, Gu Mian had gone out of his way to get a shopping cart and placed the chainsaw in it. That would save him some effort.
The supermarket had three floors. The first was for household goods, the second for clothing, and the third for food.
The food section on the third floor was much like the supermarkets Gu Mian usually visited, except the prices were worlds apart.
The Fatty was standing in front of a row of refrigerated display cases. Behind them, a smiling attendant held a large knife. Inside the cases were rows of pre-cut meat.
"Pork tenderloin... 200 points a pound?" The Fatty stared at the price tag in shock.
It wasn't his fault.
The prices in the household goods section on the first floor and the clothing section on the second were fairly reasonable. Clothes cost around 10 points each, and household goods were even cheaper.
But once they reached the food section on the third floor, the prices shot up dozens of times, making meat cost an incredible 200 points per pound.
A pound of pork cost as much as two infinite-power electric chainsaws. The price was a real rip-off.
The attendant behind the display case, still holding the large knife, gave them a helpless smile. "You can't blame us for being greedy. The supermarket set the prices this way. Food is in a completely different price bracket from everything else..."
Gu Mian patted the Fatty. "This is probably one of the ways the game motivates players."
As he spoke, he looked at the other meats in the display case. "You don't have to buy tenderloin. Get something else. Pork belly is only 100 a pound."
The Fatty turned his mournful gaze elsewhere. At least they could afford it.
Chu Changge was wandering around the rice and flour section, so Gu Mian went over.
Rice and flour were a little cheaper than meat, at around 50 points a pound.
That was a lot less than meat, but still far beyond what ordinary players could afford right now. This game was a real rip-off.
Thinking as he went, Gu Mian wandered over to the produce section.
The produce section had every kind of vegetable imaginable, most of them costing a few dozen points a pound.
Snacks, bread, instant noodles, and the like weren't cheap either. All in all, it was more economical to buy ingredients and cook for yourself.
The three of them spent quite a while shopping before they finished. When it came to buying food, they couldn't afford to be careless.
The Fatty was especially fond of meat.
Gu Mian saw that he'd bought several pieces of pork belly, half a bag of chicken wings, a piece of lamb, and a large bottle of cola.
He grinned. "I'll make cola chicken wings tonight."
What a conscientious cook.
Chu Changge had brought over a bag of rice, a bag of flour, and a box of eggs. It looked like enough to last a long time.
Gu Mian bought some vegetables and fruit. Now that someone was finally cooking for him, he might as well make good use of it.
When the three of them pushed their groceries to the checkout, the cashier stared at them in disbelief.
Her hands trembled slightly as she took each item. The total price of all the goods appeared on the register.
"That'll be 2,050 points." She looked at Gu Mian uncertainly. "Do you have enough money?"
It wasn't her fault for doubting them.
The game had only just begun, and it hadn't given out many Game Currency. An ordinary player would be lucky to scrape together 100 points by now—enough to buy a pound of flour and head home.
But these three had chosen the most expensive items like they were robbing the place. It was hard not to be impressed.
"Of course we do."
The friend system was very well designed. Players could transfer money, and Chu Changge and the Fatty sent their funds to Gu Mian, bringing his total to more than 2,000 points.
Although Gu Mian knew he could attack NPCs, he had no intention of slapping the cashier aside and running off with the cart. So far, he'd managed to maintain his reputation as a good person.
When Gu Mian successfully paid more than 2,000 Game Currency, the cashier still seemed unable to process it.
Only after the three of them left with their bags did she start marveling. "There are so many talented players around. It's only been a few days, and someone's already saved up this much money?"
Another cashier beside her spoke quietly. "I heard someone broke the hearse instance not long ago and got a thousand points in compensation..."
When Gu Mian and the others walked out of the supermarket, they immediately saw a dozen or so people nearly crowding the entrance.
To prevent players from stealing, they weren't allowed to put anything in their inventory while inside the supermarket. That meant the people outside could see exactly how much they were carrying.
The man at the front looked up at Gu Mian and the others, smiling. "You're loaded, huh?"
Before you continue