Chapter 45.1
Tang Mianmian cried out, “What is this? I thought you liked me, but you used me as a substitute for your lover!”
Xiao Tangqiu rebuked, “Shut up!”
Tang Mianmian laughed, “It doesn’t matter, I don’t discriminate against gay men.”
“Shut up, you rotten man!”
Xiao Tangqiu ignored Tang Mianmian and turned to read the post carefully.
He said softly, “…No one knows when he first arrived at the city of the abyss. People only know that he may be among the first generation of players to come to the city of the abyss and the only survivor among all the first generation players.”
Tang Mianmian asked, “So all the other first generation players died?”
“The reincarnation team established by Shen Yuan is the first team in the city of the abyss but now most of the members of the reincarnation team are not the original members. It is rumored that the reincarnation team once encountered an instance with a difficulty exceeding S-level. Except for Shen Yuan, all the other members of the first generation were killed and Shen Yuan was the only one who survived…”
Tang Mianmian was dumbstruck. “So all of great god Shen Yuan’s former teammates have died? And S-plus level mission exists? S-level missions are already so crazy! How much crazier are S-plus level missions?”
Except for Shen Yuan, all the other members of the first generation were killed and Shen Yuan was the only one who survived…
Shen Yuan was the only one who survived …
Xiao Tangqiu suddenly felt his heart slamming hard against his chest. Even if he knew that it might be considered normal for complete annihilation to occur in an S-plus level mission, the thought that Shen Yuan had this sort of encounter made his chest stuffy. He seemed to be holding his breath with no way to let go or vent. He dared not imagine Shen Yuan’s feelings at the time or how Shen Yuan managed to escape later and became how he is now.
Tang Mianmian saw that Xiao Tangqiu was lost in thought and read aloud for him, “According to unreliable rumors, Shen Yuan may have encountered the Abyss Demon in the S-plus level mission, but since no one else has survived an S-plus level mission and no one has survived the Abyss Demon in the instance, this source of information isn’t reliable. But if this is true, Shen Yuan will be the only one who survived a battle against the Abyss Demon in the city of the abyss and lives up to the title of the number one player of the city of the abyss.”
“That’s all it says. There’s nothing else below,” he continued to scroll down. “We don’t know the people below him… Wait a minute! I see a few people we know! Duan Hongzhen, Yu Fuling, Sai Lulu… Who is this Xue Junli? It says that he also belongs to the reincarnation team.”
Xiao Tangqiu didn’t snap out of his daze until now. He perked up and looked at the rest of the list with Tang Mianmian, but just like Shen Yuan, there wasn’t much information on Duan Hongzhen and the others. However, the ability of the loli, Sai Lulu, was somewhat remarkable.
“Prophecy – the ability to predict using divinations. Doesn’t that make her a sorceress?” Tang Mianmian spit out a sentence, “Don’t tell me that if she takes out a bunch of tarot cards before fighting the BOSS, she’ll know what the BOSS’ next moves are?”
“Xue Junli – a gifted hacker and the think tank of the reincarnation team. Never speak ill of any of the reincarnation team members on the forum, or be careful of him hacking your computer,” Tang Mianmian snickered. “Why do I feel like he’s a Chuunibyou? He’s even a genius hacker… Can he hear me speaking ill of him across the screen?”
Xiao Tangqiu was about to say something but in the next second, the computer suddenly went black.
Tang Mianmian jumped in fright. “Fuck my life! Did he really hear that? He can really hear me speaking ill of him across the screen?!”
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
Xiao Tangqiu also jumped up in fright at once. “He’s even here in the flesh to PK?”
The knock on the door got louder and louder. Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian looked at each other for a moment but both of them didn’t dare to open the door.
Suddenly, the originally black screen returned to normal and a line of words appeared on the screen: “Quickly open the door.”
Xiao Tangqiu, “Fuck!”
Tang Mianmian, “…A ghost!”
Tang Mianmian fearfully hugged Xiao Tangqiu while the latter took a deep breath and summoned up the courage to open the door.
When the door opened, the person standing outside left them dumbstruck.
“Duan Hongzhen?” Xiao Tangqiu was very surprised. “Why are you here?”
The person standing at their door was Duan Hongzhen whom they had been acquainted with in their last instance… They had obviously gone their separate ways in the Abyss Square before. How did Duan Hongzhen know their new address?
Duan Hongzhen folded his arms. “I’ll explain it to you later. Follow me.”
With that, he grabbed Xiao Tangqiu by the wrist and dragged him downstairs.
“Wait a minute! Where are you taking me?” Xiao Tangqiu was shocked and frightened but couldn’t shrug off Duan Hongzhen.
Tang Mianmian ran after him. “Where are you taking Qiuqiu? Let him go! Otherwise, take me with you! “
Duan Hongzhen tutted, “You’re so annoying. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think that you’re gay lovers.”
Tang Mianmian, “We are brothers in socialism!”
“I don’t care what you are, quickly come with me!”
Soon, Duan Hongzhen brought them to a corner where a statue stood. It was the exact same one as the statue in the middle of the square but much smaller. Xiao Tangqiu guessed that it was also a transmission array.
Sure enough, when they stepped into the transmission range of the statue, a transparent screen appeared in front of them. Duan Hongzhen stepped forward to click on it and a line of words popped up: “200,000 points are required to enter District S. Please confirm payment”
Naturally, Duan Hongzhen, as a resident of District S, didn’t need to pay any more points to enter. However, Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian, as rookies who had just left Newbie Village, needed to pay 200,000 points just to enter District S. For a long time, they silently counted all those zeroes, not saying anything.
“We don’t have so many points…” Xiao Tangqiu couldn’t help muttering.
“Even if you sold us, you won’t get that much!” Tang Mianmian also chimed in.
Duan Hongzhen merely ignored them and clicked to confirm. Xiao Tangqiu didn’t even feel anything as the surrounding environment changed in the next instant.
“Welcome to District S, the Fallen Paradise…” Duan Hongzhen curved his lips in a smile. “Follow me or you’ll get lost in this world of opulence.”
Duan Hongzhen’s description wasn’t in exaggeration at all. Compared to Newbie Village and District D, District S was simply a world filled with luxury. There were modern and futuristic looking buildings everywhere. Those tall buildings towered into the sky, their tops completely hidden from below.
Besides those buildings that looked like residential areas, there were all sorts of recreational ones – casinos, hunting grounds, racetracks, and a colosseum… All sorts of colorful buildings filled both Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian’s sight.
They were overwhelmed by different forms of transportation on the street. Carriages, trams, trains, flying cars – both old and modern styles coexisted. There was a sense of nostalgia mixed with a futuristic feel which made them wonder if they had crossed time and space.
Xiao Tangqiu suddenly realized, this was District S? So this was how District S was…
Duan Hongzhen was right. Compared to the slum-like Newbie Village and District D, District S was indeed a fallen paradise filled with opulence.
Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian obediently followed behind Duan Hongzhen. They didn’t dare to wander around casually for fear that they would be lost in this fallen city of temptations.
“Wait!” Tang Mianmian suddenly remembered something, “About those points… Let me make it clear to you, Qiuqiu and I don’t have so many points now! Even if we sold ourselves, we wouldn’t get that much!”
Duan Hongzhen said casually, “Then sell your bodies.”
Tang Mianmian’s face turned red, “Sell our bodies? If the object is a beautiful rich woman, then we might be able to consider… “
Duan Hongzhen gave Tang Mianmian a smile that could be hardly called one, as if trying to say something, but at this time, his watch suddenly rang with a ding.
Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian watched Duan Hongzhen press a button. In the next second, a transparent screen appeared in front of them, showing a human figure. The man frowned slightly, “Duan Hongzhen, have you brought him? Stop wasting time!”
“We’re heading back,” Duan Hongzhen said impatiently. “What are rushing me for? Anyways, the captain won’t wake up for a while.”
After that, he hung up the video call without waiting for the man to reply.
Xiao Tangqiu didn’t have time to guess who the man was. He quickly asked Duan Hongzhen, “Hasn’t Shen Yuan woken up yet?”
Duan Hongzhen expression was grim. “If he woke up, I wouldn’t have come to you.”
Xiao Tangqiu wondered what use there was looking for him. Despite this, he didn’t speak up. Even if he didn’t have a way to wake him, he still wanted to use this opportunity to see Shen Yuan.
A few minutes later, Duan Hongzhen brought Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian to the front of a building, which also towered up into the sky.
After entering the building, Xiao Tangqiu discovered that there were no human servers in this place. Instead, there were cleaning robots everywhere. Even the front desk was manned by a cylindrical robot. After seeing Duan Hongzhen, it greeted him with a cold mechanical voice, “Welcome back, Mr. Duan Hongzhen. Please register these two gentlemen.”
“Visitors.”
“Damn, it’s so advanced!” Tang Mianmian looked amazed, but before he could take a second glance at the front desk robot, Duan Hongzhen brought Xiao Tangqiu to the elevator. He quickly followed behind them.
Duan Hongzhen pressed on a floor button. After the elevator doors opened, the three entered.
This was a see-through elevator so Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian could see the scenery outside. But almost immediately, the elevator started to rise at an extremely terrifying speed.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck…” The two men couldn’t help but exclaim at the same time and in a few seconds, the elevator reached the designated floor. The scenery outside the glass looked extremely small now. Even if they didn’t have a fear of heights, this would definitely bring it out of them.
When Xiao Tangqiu and Tang Mianmian walked out of the elevator, they were once again shocked by the sight before them. The hall that extended as far as the eye could see was covered in soft carpeting, huge crystal chandeliers and all kinds of gold and silver ornaments. It was as if they had accidentally walked into a hotel specially built for the rich.
“What luxury!”
“How extravagant!”