Chapter 46

Chapter 46: The Terrifying Brutality of Hardcore Tough Guys

The meeting at Si Chu lasted for two whole days with no progress.

Despite many people unwilling to admit it, from the assassination attempt on Bai Fu, it was highly likely that there was a spy from the Truth Society among the intelligence bureau’s higher-ups. This raised a pressing issue—

Could the intercepted intelligence from headquarters be fake news released by that spy?

If so, then acting according to the original plan would be jumping into a trap.

If not, because they didn’t know if the spy had already passed the information to the Truth Society, they couldn’t act rashly now and could only send someone to scout first, but this reconnaissance could easily miss the best time for an attack.

“Damn.”

The leader of the action group had a hot temper. Seeing no one else in the conference room speak up, he slammed the table hard.

Not everyone was like Chief Lu Yulin, who had given up. He thought this operation would allow him to show off and lay a solid foundation for promotion and salary increase, but now, with no resolution on the spy issue, the operation couldn’t move forward.

“If I find out who the mole is, I will definitely jam my gun barrel up his ass and make him experience the ecstasy of being shot in the prostate!”

Seeing the action group leader getting more out of line, Lu Yulin coughed lightly to change the topic: “Let’s see what headquarters says first. I trust the people here.”

The action group leader snorted.

The conference room fell silent again, but this time not for long.

Another high-ranking official, Secretary Li Cheng, broke the silence: “We can try to lure the spy out.”

“How?”

“Bai Fu,” Li Cheng slowly said, “the spy was exposed to kill Bai Fu. After the assassination failed, the Truth Society immediately raised the bounty on Bai Fu to half a million. This is no small amount; the chief’s head is worth only a million. This shows they consider Bai Fu a must-kill target. If there’s a chance to kill Bai Fu, I believe the spy will surely strike again.”

The action group leader responded: “Li Cheng, if I remember correctly, you were saying just the other day that Bai Fu might be a spy sent by the Truth Society, and all her actions were part of a ploy. Why are you suddenly teaming up with Bai Fu now?”

Everyone’s eyes turned to Li Cheng, but his expression remained unchanged.

“This is also a test for Bai Fu. We can use this opportunity to observe her. I’d rather believe this assassination was staged by her than believe there’s a spy in our ranks. It’s not difficult for her.”

“That’s a good idea, but how do you get her to cooperate with us? We both know how dangerous it is to be bait.”

Li Cheng remained calm: “She wants to see our advanced spiritual knowledge. Tell her that if she helps us find the spy, we’ll let her see it.”

The action group leader’s lip twitched: “Are you kidding me? Even if the higher-ups agree to your proposal, adding the condition of finding the spy before seeing anything, only a fool would do it. What if she dies midway? She won’t get any benefits. What are you thinking? I’m not doing it.”

Others dared not confront Li Cheng because he had connections above, but Lu Yulin was fearless too because he had connections above as well.

Li Cheng’s face darkened, but he did not explode: “I’ll apply to the higher-ups. Of course, if you have a better idea, I’ll shut up right away.”

At this critical moment, Lu Yulin stepped in as a mediator: “It’s late. Since we won’t reach a conclusion anyway, let’s eat first.”

This immediately sparked interest among most present.

“What’s for dinner tonight?”

“Fried chicken legs.”

“Great, this means we can eat more rice.”

Li Cheng left silently, his face pale.

…

Upon hearing that Bai Fu not only survived but also killed three assassins sent after her, the Truth Society’s president’s face turned green.

“Three against one and got killed, is this a joke?”

He immediately called the head of the combat forces and harshly scolded him.

“You said you could handle the enemy and let me rest assured. Is this how you let me rest assured?”

Failing to kill the Gene Progenitor’s leader was one thing, but now they couldn’t even defeat a low-level member relying on bursts to break free from Youlia’s illusion, and they exposed the existence of a spy. What next, being humiliated by ordinary passersby?

They lost all face!

The head of the combat forces was sweating profusely and hurriedly explained:

“Bai Fu wasn’t killed because she is a Spiritual Prayer Mage. No one knew this intelligence before, so she used the information gap to turn the tables. Now we’ve figured out her background, and we can send more powerful assassins to finish her off. But…”

“But what?”

The head trembled and recounted the situation at Si Chu.

“President, it’s not necessarily bad that Bai Fu wasn’t assassinated this time. The Gene Progenitor Intelligence Bureau is in chaos due to the spy, and they’re using Bai Fu to lure out the spy. They don’t have the energy to focus on other actions.”

The president pondered for a moment.

This was indeed true. From this perspective, Bai Fu was a valuable pawn, tying up much of the Intelligence Bureau’s attention.

“Let Bai Fu live a few more days. Let our people play with the Intelligence Bureau, and when the time comes, send Bai Fu on her way!”

The head of the combat forces quickly agreed.

The president sneered, a low-level member couldn’t possibly cause such trouble.

…

Bai Fu waited for a day.

During this time, because Jiu Jiao hadn’t seen her for nearly two days, many players on the forum thought something had happened to her. She specifically sent word to Jiu Jiao that she was fine, just encountering some minor troubles. However, this small action triggered intense discussions among players, many believing there must be deeper meaning behind it.

【What? Bai Fu is in trouble?】

【Why is this so surprising? If Bai Fu wasn’t in trouble, where would we come in?】

【Jiu Jiao is only level 9, still far from unlocking an advanced class.】

【I remember this game’s quests are dynamic; unlike other games where you can drag tasks indefinitely, the recent plot clearly pushed for Jiu Jiao to level up. If she doesn’t level fast, she might miss out on subsequent tasks.】

【Suddenly rushing her, is Bai Fu in danger?】

【Judging by her tone when talking to Jiu Jiao earlier, she shouldn’t be in serious trouble.】

【But tone doesn’t mean much. Maybe Bai Fu is pretending to be relaxed to avoid worrying us. Don’t forget she’s injured; I don’t believe that injury has no impact on her.】

These words made the players anxious, regretting they couldn’t go to Lin En to help.

They no longer envied Pai Da Xing and others arriving in Lin En, instead continuously @ing them on the forum, urging them to level up quickly upon arrival and confirm Bai Fu’s troubles.

Pai Da Xing and the others became serious upon receiving the message.

They were also anxious, but leveling up wasn’t something that could be rushed. They were completely clueless about Lin En. They hoped to unlock an advanced class and trigger new quests before the deadline. Who knew if they’d have another chance to trigger Bai Fu-related quests after this?

With great urgency, once the car arrived at Lin En station, Gui Yi Wo Fu sprang into action.

“We’ll split up first to familiarize ourselves with Lin En. See if we can find experience-grinding quest chains. If nothing turns up, we’ll regroup and look for Jiu Jiao. Sound good?”

“I’m okay with that.”

“Agreed.”

Gui Yi Wo Fu’s suggestion received unanimous approval.

After separating from other players, he opened a livestream.

He wasn’t particularly interested in livestreaming; he played games for his own enjoyment and had no intention of sharing it with others. However, he was a novice at finding quests, so he felt it necessary to consult the audience in his livestream.

Crowdfunding novels in ancient times, crowdfunding games today—it’s logical!

Once Gui Yi Wo Fu started streaming, a large crowd of players flocked in, and Bai Fu also arrived after seeing the related posts.

Since she had nothing better to do, she decided to observe these players’ actions to better understand them next time they met.

At eight o’clock in the evening.

“Now I’m level 8. To unlock an advanced class in a short time, I need 37,000 more experience points to reach level 11. Honestly, the pressure is immense.”

“In the abandoned cooling plant, I could form teams with other players to grind on amoebas, but there aren’t many players here. Group grinding isn’t feasible, so I’ll have to start with errand quests first.”

“Preferably those that reward both experience and money. Only with money can I buy advanced weapons and food. This game’s hunger system is too realistic; hunger reduces stats and can even lead to death. Dying would be a waste.”

Gui Yi Wo Fu wandered through the streets of Lin En, discussing his current predicament.

Following the advice from the livestream viewers, he triggered several hidden tasks without prompts. Unfortunately, after an hour of effort, he only accumulated over 1,000 experience points and a few dozen credit coins.

At this rate, who knows when he’d gather enough experience? Perhaps it would take four or five days. The problem was, would Bai Fu’s quest still be available after that?

Gui Yi Wo Fu realized he needed to change his approach and resort to hardcore tactics.

First, he’d get some money, then spend it on equipment, and finally engage in grinding or completing grinding quests.

“Should I rob a bank?”

Soon, Gui Yi Wo Fu dismissed this idea.

First, he lacked suitable weapons, and second, Lin En was different from the abandoned cooling plant. It was a large settlement directly under the Gene Progenitor’s jurisdiction, with not only intelligence agencies but also police and other law enforcement institutions.

If he robbed a bank, he’d truly be like a dung beetle going far—finding trouble.

Even if he wasn’t killed on the spot, he’d be arrested and locked up.

Robbing banks wouldn’t work, and forging money was out of the question. What else could he do—become a con artist, mercenary, assassin, or something else?

Gui Yi Wo Fu was in distress.

As he walked, he saw someone smiling and walking out of a side street.

“Haha, I have money now. I’m sure I can recover my losses!”

Wow, a gambler?

Gui Yi Wo Fu turned around and saw about ten people gathered near what seemed like a factory gate.

He approached and listened for a while before realizing they were borrowing money with very high interest rates.

The lender was a guy called Brother Dao, and these borrowers were all poor, with their only collateral being themselves.

“I’ll mortgage one of my kidneys.”

“I’ll mortgage…”

Gui Yi Wo Fu’s thoughts immediately became active. He couldn’t do anything else, but he could definitely default on loans.

He quickly moved closer and grabbed a person who had just borrowed money.

“Don’t you worry about them running off without paying back?”

The borrower shrugged: “Run off? Where? Everywhere except the station is filled with mutated monsters, and there are always people watching at the station. Calling the police won’t help either; they have connections in the police station.”

Hearing this, Gui Yi Wo Fu was delighted. That meant Brother Dao wouldn’t refuse to lend him money just because he was a stranger.

Sure enough, after hearing his request to borrow money, Brother Dao’s face lit up like a chrysanthemum. But when he heard that Gui Yi Wo Fu wanted to mortgage everything he had, Brother Dao’s expression turned strange.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

“Brother, you seem to have a heavy gambling streak. Since you want to gamble, I’ll join you.”

Thus, Gui Yi Wo Fu successfully obtained 5,000 credit coins. He couldn’t help but complain.

“Mortgaging everything I had only got me 5,000 credit coins. Although credit coins have high purchasing power, this is still too exploitative.”

After getting the money, he asked about the black market’s location and immediately went to purchase weapons.

Lin En was after all Lin En. Handguns, which were almost nonexistent in the abandoned cooling plant, could be bought through the black market here.

Just as Gui Yi Wo Fu was playing with the newly purchased handgun, Brother Dao suddenly showed up with a group of people.

“The repayment date isn’t due yet. Why are you here?”

Brother Dao had a cold expression: “Brother, you bought so many weapons. This looks like you’re planning something big. I think you don’t have the ability to repay, so I need to reclaim what you mortgaged ahead of time.”

This was like a fuse.

Seeing the opposite party ready to take action, Gui Yi Wo Fu didn’t pretend anymore.

Did you think I couldn’t get money from you after coming here?

He shot the first person charging at him dead, and then shot himself to escape when others tried to grab him.

This ruthless move stunned the others.

Who the hell is this guy, shooting himself when things got tough? It feels like he’s involved with something huge.

After reviving, Gui Yi Wo Fu immediately contacted Pai Da Xing and others.

[Pai Da Xing, I found a way to make money.]

He shared the story of borrowing money with Pai Da Xing and others.

That night, several loan sharks in Lin En Settlement encountered extremely bizarre situations.

An unknown group of tough guys appeared, mortgaging their entire bodies to borrow money. After borrowing, they went to buy weapons. When these tough guys’ people came looking for them, they attacked without hesitation and then committed suicide.

Seeing the corpses on the ground, they were bewildered.

What the hell?

They felt a surge of anger, but it was pointless because the ones who angered them were already dead. All they could retrieve were some weapons and a corpse.

They didn’t know that Gui Yi Wo Fu and the others had already gathered together. After borrowing the money, they hid part of it immediately. After reviving, they secretly retrieved the hidden money. In total, they earned 20,000 credit coins in just one night!

[Damn, is this how you play?]

The players in the livestream were shocked.

[Impressive, but this trick can’t be used often. If you use it too much, the other side will become wary.]

[Unbelievable, manipulating NPCs like this, where is your conscience?]

Bai Fu was speechless.

No wonder you can enchant weapons with gold juice!

PS: Thank you to Tropical Storm Luo Xuan Flying Penguin for the donation.

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