Tch, The Plot is a Bit Off...

"Brother Shui, could you please take a look? Can this thing still be fixed?"

A half-dragonite girl with a scaled head pointed at a pile of scrap iron and spoke to Wang Shui.

Wang Shui pinched a fracture with severe metal fatigue using his fingers, and asked very professionally and earnestly:

"What was this pile of things originally?"

"Ah! It's the [BS433-A3-[Black Sword]] micro mobile armor!"

Wang Shui continued to furrow his very professional eyebrows and sent out an email, then quickly received a reply.

"Hmm, the damage is extremely severe. A major overhaul will be very expensive. Have you considered replacing it with a new one?"

The half-dragonite girl looked somewhat dejected and said, "If it's too pricey, never mind. A new mecha costs over twenty thousand... Next time, I should just go to a fantasy world for the [Mandatory Mission]. The [Real World Frontline] is still way too dangerous for newcomers like us who haven't reached the First Tier."

Good grief, you've got more nerve than sense; aren't those tiers all just as dangerous wherever you go? Wang Shui couldn't help but complain inwardly.

Though come to think of it, the mobile armor was smashed into such a state and you actually didn't die-you practically possess the bearing of a heroic man, oh no, a heroic dragon, umm... a heroic dragoness!

"As for the repair price, there's still some room for maneuver. Do you have 5,500 Dream Points on you? Alternatively, it can be converted into silver coins for a 500-point discount-only 5 silver coins."

"5 silver coins! Is this price okay?! As expected of Brother Shui, the best repair master in the newcomer district!"

Wang Shui waved his hand. "Alright, alright. Add me as a friend, and I'll send it back to you around the day after tomorrow. If you agree, sign the repair contract too."

The half-dragonite girl happily left after signing the contract. Wang Shui looked at this pile of unsellable scrap metal, his mouth twitching slightly as he pushed it directly into the repair shop to see if any undamaged parts could be salvaged.

Just two or three minutes later, a flat, unmanned transport cart drove over and initiated a sign-for-delivery request with Wang Shui.

Wang Shui signed his Awakener codename [Half Bottle of Water] on the light screen. The cart used a mechanical arm to push a medium-sized composite material box onto the ground, and then nimbly and swiftly burrowed out of the complex, winding alley.

Opening the box, inside was a nearly new set of [Black Sword] mobile armor.

"Can't be turned into a card anymore..." Wang Shui muttered to himself while moving the various parts of the mecha to the workbench.

The close-fitting micro mecha constructed from alloy rigid structures and composite material linings weighed only slightly more than traditional iron full-body armor, but the technological gap was like a starship violently beating up an ape.

That scrap-dealing kid is getting more and more savvy; he cleaned it with a cleaning agent before sending it over, saving Wang Shui a lot of trouble.

Having been appeased, Wang Shui this time readily paid the full amount in one go.

[Paid Dream Points to "Bloodthirsty Mad Dragon MAX": 1500. Trading contract completed!]

Text and a mechanical female voice appeared simultaneously; for some reason, every time he saw the name Scrappy, Wang Shui had a strange, agonizing feeling in his gut.

After finishing the trade, Wang Shui first took out a professional mecha repair kit and began initial disassembly.

Energy module, no problem;

Energy shield module, a bit old, no problem;

Muscle strength module, no problem;

Tri-meter, huh? Why is this thing installed on the mecha? Confiscated.

Perception system, damaged; replace it with a piece of glass first.

Combat restriction module, hm? Where's my fire control???

No wonder it couldn't be restored to card form-it turned out to be completely devoid of the fire control chip, leaving only a shell for the entire combat restriction module.

Sigh, Wang Shui sighed, returned to his small shop that looked like a garbage dump, and rummaged through the half-dragonite girl's pile of scrap iron.

Good grief, her machine was even more terrifying; her entire combat restriction module had melted into a lump.

"A dead loss, a dead loss~"

Muttering under his breath, Wang Shui found a box on a dilapidated shelf bent under the weight of various metal scraps.

Inside were two crystal-textured cards. He drew out one card, shoved it into the weathered desktop computer beside him which was stained with brownish-black oil, rooted out the fire control files for the [Black Sword] from a mess of random data, and began flashing the system into the crystal chip card.

A fourth-generation First-Tier mecha; the fire control and intelligent control systems of such ancient antiques were integrated. Without the system, it naturally couldn't start or turn into a card for easy carrying.

Moreover, it was now hard to find the system for this mecha on the [Dream Network] anymore. Only an equally antique junk repair shop would possess such useless treasures.

Wang Shui wasn't idle during the system flashing process.

The mecha, which looked like it was in ninety-percent-new condition, actually had many hidden structural flaws in its alloy materials. Its defense performance was far worse than what was labeled, and its long-outdated intelligent control system couldn't perform real-time detection-no, this old system couldn't detect metal performance at all.

Especially the damage to important parts like the shoulder armor was what had junked this decent-looking mecha. It looked very new, but when actually driven, there was a danger of it disintegrating and collapsing at any moment.

Lacking maintenance, lacking upkeep.

After all, it was a First-Tier cannon fodder mecha-no, it probably couldn't even count as cannon fodder, at most a trainer mecha.

Selling such a self-destructing piece of trash to a client made even someone like Wang Shui feel a tiny bit of reluctance, since it might affect his good reputation, but who told the client to have no money? Wasn't this the client's own problem?

Steeling his heart, Wang Shui fished out a jar of metal repair oil from the counter that was likewise covered in grease, of unknown usage count, yet somehow never ran out, and began performing maintenance on this mecha.

Half an hour later, the sky quickly grew dim, and a meat-mountain-like figure appeared at the shop's entrance.

"Yo, Brother Shui, shift change."

"Kazan, stand outside for a moment, or I won't be able to get out." Wang Shui hurriedly stopped the giant mixed-blood brawny man.

The crystal card loaded with the fire control system was inserted into the combat restriction module. The energy pathways initiated a self-diagnostic check, and after the module connection normalized, Wang Shui's consciousness connected to this mobile armor. Once the table full of modules completed their self-diagnostics, it directly transformed into a card.

[Item Card: "Black Sword" Mobile Armor (White)]

In Wang Shui's field of vision, a faintly glowing screen appeared, visible only to him. After all, the light signal acted directly on his brain rather than being projected as light.

Everything was fine. The card's information had connected to Wang Shui's Computing Terminal, which meant its basic functions were working normally.

But for quality control, Wang Shui still went outside the shop. He held the card between the index and middle fingers of his right hand, connected to it with his thoughts, and issued a voice command.

"Activate item card."

His body suddenly felt light, and Wang Shui floated about twenty centimeters off the ground. Illusory rays of light formed the shape of the Black Sword mech around his body, then black light coalesced, and a form-fitting black suit of armor appeared on him.

Holy crap!

Wang Shui abruptly bent forward, feeling a burst of intense pain beneath his right ribs!

Crap, crap, crap! He'd forgotten-he was wearing old work clothes, not professional combat gear. His pockets were full of screws and wrenches, and they'd nearly broken Wang Shui's bones!

He hurriedly deactivated the armor. Three seconds later, the powered armor reverted to a card, and Wang Shui breathed a sigh of relief.

The results were decent. The panel on the helmet showed that the system was functioning normally. Although he hadn't inserted any extra energy coins, the mech could absorb ambient energy to maintain basic operation, which meant the energy module was fine too.

As for inserting an energy coin to test the shield and combat-assist systems, Wang Shui didn't dare. Inserting an energy source was practically the same as installing explosives.

The mech, which relied only on mechanical assistance, wasn't very heavy, so its overall rigid frame was intact too. That was enough.

Well then... Wang Shui tossed the card into the mailbox beside him, set it to be sent out the night after tomorrow, and attached the contract details.

All done~

He couldn't let the customer receive it too early. He had to make the customer think he was working hard on the repairs, pulling all-nighters right up to the last moment he'd promised. Only then would the customer feel the money had been well spent!

Mmm~~ Ah~~

Wang Shui, who'd scored a big job for free, stretched and saw the utterly bewildered meat-mountain of a little giant, Kazan, standing nearby. He beckoned to him.

"Kazan, until Brother Hei or I get back, you're in charge of watching the shop. If anyone comes asking, tell them all the craftsmen are out. Got it?"

"Got it. Kazan will sleep in the shop and wait for Brother Hei and Brother Shui to come back!"

Brother Hei was probably dead in the red-light district.

After grumbling to himself, Wang Shui was just about to leave when the simple-minded Kazan called out loudly from behind him:

"Brother Shui, are you going to another world to do a mission?"

"Yeah. Even life-class Awakened have to complete a solo exploration mission once every six months. It's the system's rule."

"Brother Shui, Kazan can protect you! Let's go together!"

"Get lost. Mandatory missions can only be done solo. Keep a good eye on the shop, and don't go eating the materials in the boxes! If you get hungry, you can eat the scrap metal outside."

"Oh~ Brother Shui, be careful. Kazan only has two friends, Brother Hei and Brother Shui..."

Having a dimwit like you worry about me is oddly comforting.

After leaving Craftsmen Street, where metal trash was piled everywhere, Wang Shui, dressed in worn-out work clothes and covered in grease, couldn't think of anywhere else to go. He could only walk aimlessly toward the city center.

The streets gradually grew wider and brighter. All around him were food shops, general stores, and shops selling brand-new equipment.

Most of the people who ran businesses here were local natives. They weren't managed by the system and didn't have to pay taxes to it, but they'd end up coughing up the money they earned somewhere else.

After all, the Dream System wasn't exactly a nice thing.

There were plenty of Awakened like Wang Shui among the pedestrians. The city beneath Wang Shui's feet was now under the Dream System's control, and they, the Awakened belonging to the system, had been hauled here from various worlds.

It wasn't exactly a beautiful city.

After leaving Craftsmen Street, which bordered the slums, the buildings around him began to tower higher. Many brick-and-concrete structures were gradually replaced by steel towers, and even the ground slowly gave way to roads made of specially coated steel.

There were more and more dazzling animated billboards, and the streets grew busier, while low-level Awakened like Wang Shui became fewer.

This was no longer the beginner area.

Steel Edge City's name didn't actually come from the fact that over eighty percent of its urban area was made of steel.

In reality, the old city had originally been around the slums. The ancient stone fortifications had long since become unrecognizable, and the Dream System had only taken control of the city seven or eight years ago.

Wang Shui was much the same. He'd only been chosen by the system as an Awakened six months ago, and now he'd been transformed beyond recognition, inside and out.

Half a year ago, he'd been a corporate drone who spent every day slacking off, until the fateful dump truck sent him into an unexpected near-future sci-fi world.

Then the Dream System contacted him and told him that it had intercepted his soul and rebuilt his body. He now belonged to the system as an Awakened, and he had to complete his initial Awakening mission, choose an Awakening suited to his soul's inclinations, and become someone who transcended the ordinary... cannon fodder.

So my life is an infinite, hot-blooded adventure?!

With the excited mindset of a protagonist, Wang Shui finished his first journey through an infinite world.

And then there was nothing more.

If you asked, he'd say he hadn't lost his nerve.

As he wandered through the neon-bright streets, Wang Shui's attention drifted. Tomorrow was the final deadline for his mandatory mission. The system didn't support idlers, and it was good at reading people. The Awakened here were all either ruthless and eager to fight, sinister and cunning, or decisive killers. Some who seemed quiet and dull-witted were actually sure to be fervent believers in violence.

How could they have intercepted someone as pure, simple, and kind as me...? That was something Wang Shui had never been able to figure out.

Wang Shui wasn't looking down on himself. He genuinely, from the inside out, felt that he didn't fit in with this crowd of Awakened.

He was afraid of death, afraid of pain, afraid of going hungry, and afraid of all kinds of harsh living conditions.

So up until now, he'd only experienced his first Awakening mission.

Besides, he hadn't completed the main quest back then.

He'd spent a month barely surviving on a battlefield where mechs grappled with each other, until the system determined that he couldn't complete the mission.

The system had tossed him the lowest-tier [Random Awakening] reward, then dumped him in this city.

Other people's infinite worlds: they slaughtered their way through the first world, claimed every reward, and launched straight into a conquest of the myriad realms.

Wang Shui's infinite worlds: he barely survived through sheer luck, with nothing to his name and hardship at every turn.

What could he do? Before coming here, he'd been a bottom-tier CRUD programmer, a loser in real life who needed a keyboard to throw a punch.

In the end, Wang Shui had survived thanks to his decent social skills and Brother Hei's help.

Once he learned that life-class Awakened could participate in missions at a bare minimum, he'd switched to the life class without a moment's hesitation, bidding farewell to the world of the strong.

Life-class Awakened had access to only thirty percent of the combat-class system exchange list, and it basically contained nothing that directly enhanced their combat power.

The rewards life-class Awakened received after completing any mission were also replaced with things related to their production abilities.

So, life-class Awakened only got weaker and weaker, and missions became harder and harder. If they were lucky, they could latch onto a combat-class Awakened they'd been matched with. If they weren't... On Brother Hei's advice, Wang Shui should find a small guild to join and do menial work in exchange for help from the guild's big shots, who had higher permissions.

But trying to find a big shot to lean on for his first official mission? Even if Wang Shui didn't care about saving face, no guild was willing to waste time protecting a newcomer like him.

A wave of melancholy and unease hung over him all the way to the mission center.

It was a vast plaza paved with white stone bricks. In its center stood a huge stone sphere statue, raised like a chess piece on an enormous circular platform.

The somewhat old-fashioned stone plaza sat incongruously in the very heart of the steel city.

As long as you stepped onto the plaza, you could connect to the stone sphere through your personal [Computing Terminal]. You could view, accept, and start missions from anywhere on the plaza.

So although the enormous plaza was crowded, everyone wasn't packed in front of the stone sphere statue in the middle.

White light flashed constantly as missions began and ended. Some Awakened were transported away in the light, while others returned. The ones ready to set off and the returnees in one emergency capsule after another took turns working in an orderly fashion.

However, there weren't many of them-or rather, they made up only a small portion of the crowd on the plaza. Most of the people in the vast plaza were street vendors and shoppers who had come to buy things.

That's right, the mission plaza was also the biggest open-air market. Setting up stalls here was permitted by default, and no tax was collected. It was much better than the system's Awakened Mall: the online marketplace took a twenty percent cut, while offline, all you needed was a fist. If your fist was big enough, you could have a stall.

But none of this bustling scene had anything to do with Wang Shui.

He was a little hungry, hadn't showered or changed his clothes, and wandered around the outskirts without attracting any attention.

The closer a stall was to the central stone sphere, the higher its rank. He was only fit to mill around the outskirts.

But he was here to shop, too, to buy equipment suited to his level. Tomorrow, he'd be setting out from here as well.

He connected his thoughts to the [Computing Terminal], a virtual machine that used a small portion of his biological brain's processing power but could perform data calculations with remarkable efficiency. A small window popped up in his field of vision.

"Personal Information," he silently instructed.

[Name: Wang Shui]

[Code Name: Half Bottle of Water]

[Profile: Human (First Series Human Race) - Male - AM101C0622]

[Class: None (Awakened)]

[Level: Level 1 (Tier Zero)]

[Life: 100% (A simple quantification of life activity)]

[Energy 1: 50/50 (Tier One, non-elemental energy)]

[Physicality: 1.12] (A composite measure of strength, constitution, and other physical attributes)

[Coordination: 1.77] (Physical coordination, neural reflexes, and so on)

[Perception: 0.82] (Observational ability, environmental awareness, and so on)

[Mind: 1.88] (A composite measure of thinking, learning, computation, and other abilities)

[Spirit: 1.22] (A composite measure of soul, spirit, willpower, focus, and so on)

[Talent Awakening · Arrogant Knower (Dark Silver): Cannot obtain a supernatural class or change bloodline; can only acquire skills through learning. Learning ability has no limits and is greatly enhanced.]

----Skills Mastered----

[Forging (Advanced)], [Mechanical Engineering (Advanced)]

----Alchemy Arrays----

[Array: Interaction], [Array: Computing Terminal]

That was it. Tier Zero, Level One, with his five basic attributes hovering around the standard human value of 1. His perception was even lower than the average person's.

The only thing worth a second look was his dark-silver talent awakening ability.

According to Brother Hei:

The [Dream System] categorized all data into ranks based on strength, with [Gray, White, Green, Blue, Gold, Dark Gold] as its main grades. Of course, these grades referred to items of the same tier. A piece of first-tier gold equipment was nowhere near as good as a piece of third-tier gold equipment.

Brother Hei's point was that the system's official classifications didn't include silver. It was just that silver was rare. After all, the categories were based on strength, and while silver items or skills occasionally appeared among Awakened, they were rare, not nonexistent.

Taken together, it seemed to be somewhere between blue and gold.

So the [Knower] talent was rare, but not very strong. Its drawbacks were even glaringly obvious.

Being unable to obtain a supernatural class cut off the safest and most systematic path to supernatural development.

Being unable to change bloodline was a real pain, given the low baseline abilities and slow growth of humans, both in the early stages and later on.

Most importantly, the seemingly simple condition that he could only acquire skills through learning meant that Wang Shui couldn't obtain skills directly through system infusion!

Other people could get their hands on a powerful skill by fighting for it or buying it with exchange points, slap their hands together and learn it instantly, then practice a little and have a sudden realization. In the next world, they'd start slaughtering everyone on the battlefield.

But Wang Shui couldn't. Never mind slapping his hands together; even a long, comprehensive infusion of knowledge wouldn't work. In fact, he still hadn't figured out what "learning" meant in the description "can only acquire skills through learning."

The only two skills he'd mastered, [Forging] and [Mechanical Engineering], had been acquired in his first world, during his Awakening mission. A major arms manufacturer had captured him and forced him to work, and he'd spent a whole month hammering iron.

During the half year he'd spent scraping by in the city, he'd raised both skills to Advanced by working day in and day out.

Put that way, his learning ability really had been greatly enhanced. The poor guys in the slums were all amazed by how quickly Wang Shui's repair skills had improved.

But! Advanced scrolls for these two skills only cost one or two thousand!

This was half a whole year. Other Awakened whose code numbers began with the same letter as Wang Shui's, the so-called [C Cohort], had already reached Tier Three in six months. Even quite a few of the latest [E Cohort] rookies had reached Tier One and become official supernatural beings.

The pathetic veteran Wang Shui was now wandering past a bunch of low-level stalls, carrying the little bit of hard-earned money he'd saved over the past half year.

Then his wandering gaze caught on that patch of black.