Cheng Shuili let out a dry laugh. Only 25% of Lin Mo's loot this time, but it rivaled Li Erqiang's haul. Lin Mo was a busy killer.
The great Xiao Cheng, purging the wasteland of filth once more.
Sorting through the spoils, she grinned. Murder was a hell of a get-rich-quick scheme.
Lin Mo's electric tricycle stayed put, joined by a stash of materials, some food, and a pile of men's and women's clothes—obviously stripped from her victims. Loot box clothes auto-fit players, split by gender and season, but these were a mix of mismatches.
She tallied the take: Iron Blocks x8, Nails x13, Glass x3, Thermal Insulation Material x2, Wires x5, Winter Female Clothing (Fitting Size) x1, Mismatched Clothing x4, Compressed Biscuits x5, 500ml Mineral Water x10.
And that tricycle.
Once, she'd have drooled helplessly, but now? She whipped out her BUG-bought store employee badge, aiming it at the tricycle per the instructions.
[Electric Tricycle x1, 99% new, a rare item in beastman towns! But since it needs batteries, it's also rare there, so the price is heavily discounted. Can be sold for 32 game coins. Sell?]
Cheng Shuili blinked. "Seriously?"
She'd hoped for a fortune, but the system played dirty. Just admit it's a lowball, no need for the song and dance.
"Sell," she sighed.
Small wins were still wins, and she couldn't haul it. She'd checked—vehicles couldn't be traded. Want a ride? Kill for it. Want a better one? Kill and steal.
The system was a sadistic genius.
32 game coins credited. Her balance wasn't zero anymore. Grinning, she gunned the cart forward, eyes on the leaderboard. Top spot, treasure chests—come to mama. All this hustle better not be for nothing.
Days of grinding had drained her cart's battery below 100. She'd swapped in a spare, ready for the swap when it died.
A system ping broke her focus. Flipping to the chat, she saw [Glory Shines on Blue Star].
[Glory Shines on Blue Star]: We've discussed it. We can trade with loot, but we don't have much. Hope you'll make some concessions.
Her lips curled. One guy's stash might be thin, but a group like theirs crying "not much"? Pure humility.
[Crow Takes Flight]: I need 25 vehicle upgrade material fragments.
[Crow Takes Flight]: I've got two pieces of info. First, how to enter beastman towns. Second, a way to get game coins.
She shrugged, typing on.
[Crow Takes Flight]: You can pick one.
[Glory Shines on Blue Star]: What about the other?
[Crow Takes Flight]: That's 50 fragments.
Squinting, she eased the cart to a stop by a wooden chest. Just two iron blocks inside. She hefted them aboard and climbed back in.
Both tips were one trick: the store employee badge. It unlocked beastman towns and let you sell for game coins. But getting the badge took 3999 coins from the Beast Commerce Guild—a perfect catch-22.
The second tip was filler, padding the deal. Selling one for 75 fragments total was a bargain. Other coin sources probably existed, but no one had sniffed them out.
Across the network, Zhao Hong shot to his feet, staring at the message. He didn't reply, forwarding it to his bosses instead, nerves jangling. As the organization's mouthpiece, he just relayed; the big calls were above his pay grade.
These tips were dynamite. He'd seen the trading post's wares—coins could gut the game's difficulty. But beastman towns were vital. Cheng Shuili's hospital hint? A game-changer. Self-medicating was a gamble; a clinic meant security.
Zhao Hong thanked his stars he wasn't calling the shots. He'd be a wreck.
Ten minutes later, the verdict landed. He frowned at the reply. The bosses chose 25 fragments for beastman town entry. The coin method, at 50 fragments, was too steep—they'd scraped to hit 25.
Breathing deep, he typed.
[Glory Shines on Blue Star]: We'll take the first piece, 25 fragments are ready. How do we trade?
Cheng Shuili's smirk widened.
[Crow Takes Flight]: Just send a gift, I'll give you the full details.
Zhao Hong trusted her bluntness—her channel roasts proved she didn't mince words.
"You received a gift from player [Glory Shines on Blue Star]: Vehicle Upgrade Material Fragments x25."
Her grin flashed, fingers flying over the virtual keyboard. "To enter beastman towns, you need a store employee badge. Bonus tip: it costs 3999 game coins at the Beast Commerce Guild."
Deal sealed, Zhao Hong stared at the message, his face a kaleidoscope of shock and frustration.
"This…" he muttered. "3999 game coins? We don't even know how to get game coins!"
The organization's chat blew up.
"She played us?!" someone raged.
"No, the info's legit," Zhao Hong countered, shaking his head. "But she hid the crux—how to get game coins."
"And the second piece…"
"Is the coin method," he said, laughing bitterly. "She knew we'd pick the first, so she split them."
Silence gripped the group. Cheng Shuili had them in a bind: fork over 50 more fragments or grope in the dark. Time was a luxury they didn't have.
Cheng Shuili leaned back, the cart's hum blending with the eternal "50% off" jingle. Checkmate. She'd played them like a fiddle, and it felt damn good.