Help Big Brother Get Started

The morning clouds glowed.

Lin Bai bid the city lord farewell and led [Lao Mi] and [Jing Mi] out through a side gate of the City Lord's Residence. As they walked, he said, "...I was the one who told Beggar you were Notorious Bandits and got you sent to the City Lord's Residence. You can use that as an opening to establish contact with them. But you'll have to figure out how to fit into the Beggar Gang yourselves. I can't get too involved. Do you understand?"

"Everything was planned, wasn't it?" [Lao Mi] couldn't help recalling how he had inexplicably been framed as a Notorious Bandit.

"More or less!" Lin Bai glanced back at him. I didn't fucking expect you to choose to become a beggar, either!

Still, fortunately, everything had gotten back on track.

Looking at it another way, having his dear big brother become a beggar chief was better than having him become some immortal king or martial alliance leader. At least this profession made reaching the top relatively easier. The outcome was actually pretty good.

Besides, for Lin Bai, who had systems, the help his big brother could offer fell far short of the systems' rewards.

"See? I told you it was a hidden quest," [Lao Mi] told [Jing Mi] smugly in private chat.

"But I still don't want to be a beggar," [Jing Mi] said. "Right now, it doesn't feel like we're playing a game at all. It feels like the game is playing us."

"You can think of it as a role-playing game with an unknown storyline," [Lao Mi] said, trying to persuade his teammate. "Or another life with different experiences."

The players' private conversations always revealed plenty of information. Listening to the two of them, Lin Bai considered whether he should recruit another employee for his shop.

[Deng Libuduo] was too quiet.

A silent employee wasn't a good employee.

"Big brother, are you confident?" There still hadn't been a quest completion notification. As Lin Bai walked, he adjusted his thinking.

"Of course. Nothing can stump us," [Lao Mi] said confidently. "Besides, this is a mission the city lord gave us."

Lin Bai paused, suddenly realizing why the quest hadn't succeeded.

From beginning to end, his dear big brother [Lao Mi] had treated becoming a beggar as a mission, not a career.

Glancing back toward the City Lord's Residence, Lin Bai lowered his voice. "Big brother, have you ever considered being a beggar for the rest of your life?"

"What?" [Lao Mi] froze.

"No matter how good a Shadow Guard you become, you'll still only be a Shadow Guard. Your fate and your future will be in the city lord's hands." Lin Bai's voice grew lower still. With the glowing morning clouds behind him, his entire face was hidden in shadow. "But if you take control of the Beggar Gang, you'll have a vast force of your own."

"..." [Lao Mi]'s eyes widened in surprise. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether Lin Bai was testing him or being serious.

He seemed to have gotten caught up in a conspiracy...

Lin Bai and the city lord weren't even on the same side?

"Big brother, do you remember what I told you when we first met?" Lin Bai asked.

"I do." [Lao Mi] nodded.

"Dragons and phoenixes among men." Lin Bai walked ahead of them with his hands behind his back. "I wasn't lying to you. Heroes rise from the wilderness. Your future achievements will surely surpass the city lord's, and I want to invest in you. Once my big brother, always my big brother. The city lord's vision is limited. You two are my future."

Seen from behind, Lin Bai seemed cloaked in golden light. [Lao Mi]'s heart pounded wildly. He instinctively looked at [Jing Mi] and swallowed hard.

"Think carefully. Didn't the city lord just give you a mission without offering any help?" Lin Bai said. "When you rise to become the leader of the Beggar Gang as an undercover agent, and the city lord orders you to destroy the gang, will you be willing?"

"Definitely not." [Lao Mi] imagined the scene and firmly shook his head. What a joke. I barely even know her!

"In that case, why not use the City Lord's Residence's resources to build your own career?!" Lin Bai stopped, took two hundred-tael banknotes from inside his robe, and turned to place them in [Lao Mi]'s hands. "The Beggar Gang is a major force. Big brother, let's cross the sea under heaven's nose and get our hands on it together!"

Holy shit!

Looking at the banknotes in his palm, [Lao Mi]'s wavering heart instantly became firm.

There was no need to choose!

The city lord had only made a verbal promise, while his little brother had handed over real, hard cash!

Besides.

Going undercover and ending up as the leader of the Beggar Gang sounded like an incredible achievement no matter how you looked at it!

In a flash, countless thoughts raced through [Lao Mi]'s mind. The expert [Deng Libuduo] had made a name for himself through marketing; he could do the same through a gang.

With his little brother's support, he might already be leading a gang while everyone else was still learning martial arts and doing quests.

This is a new kind of guild creation token!

When the open beta began, he could even recruit a whole crowd of players into his Beggar Gang...

He would stay silent until he could stun the world with a single cry!

The expert [Deng Libuduo] was right. There was more than one way to play this game. He was in!

"Mr. Lin, we've only learned Basic Martial Arts. Without strength, won't it be hard to win everyone's respect?" [Jing Mi] hadn't been moved by the rosy future Lin Bai painted, but the banknotes had moved him.

He knew how hard it was to earn money in this game. Just two days ago, they had been worrying over a few hundred copper coins. In the blink of an eye, they had two hundred taels of silver in starting capital. It was a marvelous feeling, like soaring into the sky.

Lin Bai fell silent.

The Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms were the Beggar Gang's exclusive martial art, but he didn't know whether teaching them to [Lao Mi] would trigger the disciple recruitment process.

He couldn't have [Lao Mi] be both his big brother and his disciple!

Although the two identities didn't conflict, the Know-It-All Teacher System had requirements for a disciple's conduct. He couldn't stay by his big brother's side at all times, reminding him to do good deeds.

"Practice the City Lord's Residence's martial arts for now," Lin Bai said. "I'll figure something out about martial arts."

"Thank you, Mr. Lin." With those words from Lin Bai, [Lao Mi]'s heart finally settled back into his chest.

He had chosen correctly!

If he had committed himself wholeheartedly to the city lord's side, he probably wouldn't have gotten such excellent benefits.

Before [Lao Mi] had finished speaking, notifications had already sounded in Lin Bai's mind.

[One small step for big brother is one giant leap for you. A wavering big brother is destined to achieve nothing. As his little brother, you must establish firm convictions for him (completed); reward: fortune 3 (issued).]

[Big brother's outlook on his career has been corrected; reward: fortune 5 (issued).]

[Even a hero needs three helpers. How can big brother have no subordinates? Find big brother a loyal subordinate; reward: fortune 1.]

After glancing at the new quest notification.

Lin Bai looked at [Jing Mi] and said, "Lao Mi, Jing Mi, the Beggar Gang can only have one leader. You'll have to decide who leads and who follows. One of you will have to make the sacrifice and play support."

"I will!" [Jing Mi] glanced at Lao Mi. "I don't want to be the beggar chief. I'll play support."

The moment he finished speaking.

A quest completion notification sounded in Lin Bai's mind, immediately followed by a new quest: [Big brother needs territory. Give big brother authority over at least one street; reward: fortune 2.]

As quests popped up one after another, Lin Bai frowned. He couldn't single-handedly manage his big brother's entire career path. How would that make his big brother any different from a puppet?

His big brother needed to show some initiative!

"Let's leave it at that. You two can discuss how to get started. I have more important things to do, so I can't stay with you all the time," Lin Bai said. "Personally, I'd suggest infiltrating the Beggar Gang first. Ideally, fight your way to some territory of your own. Only with a voice that carries weight can you rise above the crowd. Come find me if you run into trouble."

"Understood, Mr. Lin. You've already given us plenty of support. We'll handle the rest ourselves." With an ambitious goal in his heart and ample money in his hands, [Lao Mi] was brimming with drive.

"Work hard!"

Lin Bai nodded to them, looked up at the sky, and activated the lightness technique Morning Flight.

Flying was everyone's dream. He had wanted to try it for ages.

A current of air seemed to appear out of nowhere, supporting his body.

Without swaying his shoulders or moving his body, Lin Bai floated straight up before the two of them. With a step, he drifted a considerable distance away, as though walking through space.

It felt like riding the wind as Zhuangzi had described. Apart from being a little slow, he cut quite a graceful figure. If he wanted, he could even keep flying upward.

Of course, that was within the allotted time. Using inner force would increase his speed considerably, but it would also ruin the beauty of the movement, and the speed increase wasn't all that great...

Fine!

Apart from showing off, Morning Flight really was a martial art as unrewarding as chicken ribs.

Yet even such an unrewarding martial art left [Lao Mi] and [Jing Mi] practically drooling.

[Jing Mi] said, "He clearly has such good martial arts. Why won't he teach us?"

[Lao Mi] rubbed his hands together and said, "Probably because the time isn't right! Most rewards are handed out after quests are completed. Once we've accomplished something, we'll go ask him for martial arts."

"Mm." [Jing Mi] watched Lin Bai enviously, his eyes sparkling. Floating through the sky like that—this lightness technique was unbelievably cool. He had to learn it.

[Confidence from Lao Mi and Jing Mi: +1, +1]