Chapter 678: Chapter 439: Version 2.0 Launches – Part 2
The Judiciary Building’s inventory was stocked with a vast array of lower-tier Mystic Books, which could provide Chen Lun with plenty of Experience Points. After all, he was blessed with the “Collector of Knowledge LV2,” which allowed him to gain more experience through reading.
Maggie’s development of the “True Sight Potion budget version” was well-organized. Under the assault of Chen Lun’s Gold Pounds, she had everything she wanted, and her hardware needs were met without fail… Fortunately, she didn’t let Chen Lun down; in just a few days, she had made new progress and even boldly told him that she would definitely concoct a prototype within the next month.
As for Connie, Chen Lun did not make too many demands. He simply asked her to continue forging the existing models of weapons and equipment… Once the Western War officially began, the demand for weapons and equipment by players would be enormous, and that would be the time to make a fortune.
The Circus executives worked like well-oiled cogs with the Generous Church District as their pivot, spinning into action at tremendous speed.
Of course, this did not include Alec the “idle layabout” nor did it involve Antonio the “free-roaming cash cow.” The two of them, man and beast, did nothing but eat, drink, and be merry, aside from basking in the sun together in the square of the Church District.
Maggie had protested loudly more than once about Alec, claiming he was even less useful than the little hedgehog Dingding… However, in most cases, her complaints would provoke Alec’s angry reprimands and rebuttals, which led to a verbal spat that resembled the banter of fishwives.
Whenever this happened, Golov’s trio and the Black Cat Squad would tacitly bring out chairs and silently watch the spectacle.
Chen Lun only smiled at this, sometimes even remarking to Floey that the team atmosphere was really quite good.
Time flew by, and it was now May 11 of the year 4420 in the Solar Calendar.
“Era of Mystery” was about to embrace the iteration of version 2.0.
In a corner of the northern district market, a plainly dressed young man was haggling with the stall owner.
“Auntie, could you make the sprout vegetables a bit cheaper? 1200 Credit Points is too expensive, how about 500?”
“500?! You clod, do you think it’s the Doug Consortium’s ‘Tech Greens’? These are veggies I toiled over night and day in my own garden! Do you know how much Nature water and Nature light cost per unit these days? This is Splendid City, not some backwater hick village. You’d only get two wilted leaves for that price at any other shop here, be grateful!”
The stall owner, a woman who looked to be in her forties with pink-dyed hair and silver lipstick, scolded harshly while clenching an e-cigarette between her lips.
“And who are you calling auntie?! No manners! Can’t you tell I barely look over sixteen?! What a bumpkin!”
Having said that, the stall owner took out her personal terminal and started browsing short videos.
“Pay attention, everyone, this guy’s name is Xiao Shuai…”
On the screen of the personal terminal appeared a scene from “Era of Mystery,” where a player was exploring the Wonderland Nature Forest, adventuring with a narrative that was lifelike and emotionally charged, as narrated by an AI.
Polaris watched as the stall owner seemed thoroughly engrossed, but he himself shook his head helplessly.
He had taken advantage of the few days of the 2.0 version update to move to Splendid City, a bustling urban center of the Federation, with his grandmother. Despite having earned a decent sum in the game, his lifelong habit of thrift meant that he rose early every day to buy vegetables, then went home to cook for himself and his grandmother, not wasting even a Credit Point.
But much like a country bumpkin setting foot in the city in bygone days, he and his grandmother had yet to adapt to their new environment. Aside from some strange high-tech infrastructure, the main issue was… the people here seemed not so easy to get along with.
“Then… miss, let it be 1200, I’ll take a box. Could you also throw in two boxes of beef as a bonus?”
Polaris braced himself to continue bargaining.
The stall owner glared at him fiercely while pinching her e-cigarette.
“Who are you calling names?!”
Polaris suddenly realized that other stall owners were looking at him, and he felt somewhat bewildered.
“Call me a beautiful lady!”
The stall owner demanded, hands on her hips.
“The Doug Consortium’s ‘tough act’ will get you two boxes that will stuff you, since in this era, meat is dirt cheap.”
Seeing this, Polaris quickly addressed her as a beautiful lady, which immediately brought a smile to the stall owner’s face. She expertly picked out a box of gleaming green vegetables and two boxes of beef rolls, packing them into vacuum-sealed bags with a machine at hand and handed them over.
Polaris completed the transaction with his personal terminal, loaded the vacuum-sealed bags onto his portable transporter, and left, wiping the sweat from his brow.
But shortly after he left the market, his personal terminal chimed with a notification.
Polaris raised his arm and fiddled with it, projecting a screen in front of him that displayed a group chat-like window, filled with familiar names.
“Hey, hey, Polaris, are you done yet? The version update ends in an hour, don’t be late, huh!”
The window for Su Keying revealed her pink room, with cute dolls and figurines scattered across her bed and in her cabinets.
She seemed to have just woken up not long ago, still in her cartoon pajamas, with her hair unruly and sticking up.
“I just finished shopping and am about to go back to cook. It might take some time… but don’t worry, I’ll be online on time,” Polaris said as he pressed the “auto-navigate” button on his transporter, sitting down on it and chuckling.
“I say, you’re pretty much a rich man now, and yet you’re still so frugal. What kind of life are you living? You might as well start a new account and play with us as an [Ascetic],” Su Keying teased.