This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 177: Academy Branches and Players’ Tactics

Chapter 177: Chapter 177: Academy Branches and Players’ Tactics

When Yin Fang mentioned the word "apology," the atmosphere in the office became subtly charged.

Chu Guang pondered for a while but couldn’t come up with anything Yin Fang might have done to wrong him.

After a moment of silence, Chu Guang looked at him and asked,

"You forgot the password?"

"No, that’s not it," Yin Fang coughed dryly, seemingly caught off guard by Chu Guang’s question, and said, "My memory is still quite good."

"Did you dismantle Xiao Qi?"

"...?"

Apparently not.

Chu Guang sighed, "So what is it, exactly?"

Yin Fang’s face showed difficulty in broaching the subject; after hesitating for quite some time, he finally spoke, "It’s about what I said on the road... about wanting to hand over Doctor Principle’s relic to the Academy. I owe you an apology; I didn’t think it through."

That’s it?

Relieved, Chu Guang also couldn’t help feeling speechless.

With a grave expression on his face, this guy had made it seem like some serious issue, only to reveal it was such a trivial matter.

"Oh, that... no need to worry about it; I had almost forgotten if you hadn’t mentioned it."

Chu Guang was not one to harbor petty resentments over such insignificant matters.

Seeing Chu Guang didn’t take it to heart, Yin Fang relaxed, yet continued earnestly,

"Regardless, I indeed didn’t give it enough thought... After considering it more carefully later on, if I had given the relic to the Academy, they would surely come here to investigate the whereabouts of that briefcase after watching the complete recording."

"Congratulations, you thought of something anyone would have realized," said Chu Guang, looking at him and continuing, "Besides, even if you gave them this recording, it wouldn’t redeem you; at most it would give them another reason to want you dead."

Yin Fang was taken aback.

"Why...?"

"You said it yourself, this goes against the history of the Academy you know of. Doctor Principle, one of the three founders, had never been to River Valley Province, much less to Qingquan City in the southernmost part of River Valley Province. Have you considered the reason the Academy might hide this clue?"

Yin Fang fell into thought.

It was clear that the kid was naive but not foolish.

After taking a sip of warm water, Chu Guang paused for a moment and then continued,

"Let’s make a reasonable guess. There are two possibilities. The first is that Doctor Principle had an accident on the way to the Grand Canyon, or at the Grand Canyon itself, but this is implausible, as you mentioned, Doctor Principle made distinguished contributions to the establishment of the Academy."

Yin Fang nodded earnestly.

"That’s right... the foremost among the three branches is named after him, including our laser rifles. Without him, the Academy wouldn’t have been born."

Chu Guang: "Thus, there remains another possibility: after establishing the Academy, Doctor Principle thought that the worst-case scenario, Plan B, might happen, so he chose to keep the holographic recording a secret."

Yin Fang objected, "That doesn’t make sense either. Since the worst-case scenario he anticipated has already happened, shouldn’t he instead guide his descendants to find hope?"

Chu Guang: "Perhaps he didn’t count on you guys."

Yin Fang was stunned.

"...What do you mean?"

Chu Guang lightly smiled and said,

"Nothing much, you’ve said it yourself, the history of the Academy spans two hundred years, and a lot must have happened. Perhaps, it’s no longer the same institution as it was back then."

When he heard this, Yin Fang instinctively concluded that it was baseless speculation; however, he could not come up with a well-reasoned argument to counter it.

In fact, over these two centuries, the influence of the Academy had indeed weakened too much. From its spread across the entire Wasteland to its current retreat deep into the Wandering Swamp, even to the point of having to offer bounties to bounty hunters to chase down traitors.

Watching Yin Fang’s silent contemplation, Chu Guang offered him some comfort,

"In fact, you shouldn’t feel too disheartened. Whether it’s due to a lack of trust or merely a wish not to put all eggs in one basket, we have ultimately come into possession of the holographic image. If you are puzzled by Doctor Principle’s decision, shouldn’t what you need to do now be to uncover what exactly happened two centuries ago?"

Hearing Chu Guang’s last words, a glimmer of enlightenment surfaced in Yin Fang’s bewildered gaze, as if he had come to a realization.

"Thank you... I think I understand now."

Chu Guang hadn’t expected the guy to be so easily persuaded; he had merely offered some words of consolation, and yet Yin Fang appeared greatly impacted.

Regardless, it saved Chu Guang a lot of trouble.

"If you’ve understood, then now—"

"Just as you said, the reason Doctor Principle left that holographic image there without allowing the Academy to recover it must hide certain truths. Perhaps that image was left for us," Yin Fang’s eyes grew resolute as he seriously said to Chu Guang, "I’ve decided, I must find out what exactly happened two hundred years ago!"

Chu Guang was slightly taken aback before nodding.

"This idea isn’t bad, but... it’s not likely that I’ll let you go, at least not for a short while."

Yin Fang shook his head and said, "I won’t be leaving; on the contrary, I’ll stay. This isn’t a trade but a request; I need your help."

Chu Guang, "...what do you need my help with?"

"I want to form a scientific research team!"

Yin Fang looked at him with determination and continued, "When I served the Academy before, I was always on the front lines of data recovery work. I’m very familiar with the entire workflow of research data recovery, and I can do the secondary line of data analysis too! If you would lend me some manpower, I could replicate the Academy’s model and rebuild a research data recovery system at your shelter!"

"I understand what you mean. It’s like an independent branch of the Academy, right?"

Chu Guang got up from his computer chair with a pleased expression, walked over to Yin Fang, patted his shoulder, and gave him an encouraging look.

"I’m glad you have such an aspiration. Feel free to go ahead! Someone must correct the mistakes that occur, and Shelter No. 404 will be your strong support. We have ample manpower; we can go places the Academy can’t reach, and we can do the things they can’t do."

"I will give you a generous budget. We’ll start with Qingquan City, mine all its treasures, then move on to the next city. You will become the Academy’s fourth founder!"

Yin Fang was surprised and touched by Chu Guang’s enthusiasm.

Although his goal wasn’t to unearth any treasures but to find the truth, it seemed the two weren’t in conflict.

Gratefully glancing at Chu Guang, Yin Fang responded with a firm look, reciprocating this trust and support.

"Thank you, thank you for your support."

"You’re welcome!"

Chu Guang’s face bore a brilliant smile.

Yin Fang got the truth he wanted, and finally, Shelter No. 404’s "scientific capability" was no longer zero; players unlocked more tasks—or rather, richer gameplay.

This round, ah.

Was a triple win!

Was there anything more pleasing than this?

Probably not.

...

On the edge of Qingquan City’s fifth ring.

Near the Subway Entrance of Garden Street, two gunshots from within the subway broke the street’s silence. An agile player ran out of the subway entrance, followed by scores or even hundreds of swarming Eaters.

They weren’t particularly swift or nimble, but they were enduring enough to pursue for a whole day. Once they amassed in numbers, with individuals exhibiting speed and strength anomalies, even experienced Waste Land Wanderers would find them troublesome.

But, this was generally the case.

What they faced now was not a bunch of poverty-stricken Waste Land Wanderers but an organized, coordinated, logistical, relentless group of players.

Agility system players began accelerating, passing the line drawn on the snowy field while players ambushing on the streetside lit the fuses.

Almost when the Eaters came about ten meters from the subway exit, the glaring barrels of black powder on the street exploded instantly.

Boom—!

The thick smoke swallowed half the street in an instant, and the explosion’s flames scattered shrapnel throughout the area, knocking down the leading Eaters like cut wheat.

"Damn it! You almost blew me up too!" The exhausted rookie gasped heavily and glared angrily at Mosquito.

To lure more creatures, he had run long and hard below and almost hadn’t made it back.

"It’s just because I was afraid you’d be caught," Mosquito chuckled, then yelled out to the front, "Brothers, it’s time to finish them off, hurry!"

"Attack!"

"Howl howl howl!"

"Beat them down!"

The players, who had been waiting for some time, seized their weapons and charged up after hearing the command.

Some wielded spears, some axes, and there were those who had made hammers imitating the Manager. Various melee weapons were brought down upon the Eaters.

The stronger Eaters usually ran faster, and those who led the pack were already blown away, leaving the stragglers, who hardly warranted wasting bullets and were easily dispatched in close combat.

Night Ten, who was watching the battle from the side, couldn’t help but remark,

"This fight must cost you a fortune."

Mosquito chuckled and said,

"Actually, it doesn’t cost much. I made the bombs myself, so there’s basically no cost."

Night Ten rolled her eyes and said, "What about the black powder? And hiring those extras, those must cost money, right?"

Due to gradually increasing mission rewards and difficulty, as well as the unique gameplay of Wasteland OL, players had developed a third set of loot division rules beyond the existing equal division and G-group rules.

That is, the mercenary system.

A new player’s average hourly income median was 1 Silver Coin and 1 Contribution. For the cost of 2 Silver Coins’ worth of income, one could hire a fearless mercenary.

They didn’t need good equipment, as they couldn’t afford it anyway. In contrast, when dealing with Eaters or Devil Moths, creatures of relatively weaker individual strength, guns were less useful than crowbars.

After all, bullets cost 1 Silver Coin each, while crowbars were lying all around in the Wasteland.

Night Ten estimated, they probably charged those newcomers around 3 or 4 bronze coins per Eater.

After all, if it was too low, it wouldn’t be worth it compared to chopping wood.

"To deal with those Eaters, we don’t need good black powder; regular Black Powder will do. As for extras, well, that might cost a bit more, but not much..." Mosquito’s expression turned a bit awkward, and she quickly changed the subject, "Speaking of which, aren’t you guys going down today?"

A smug smile appeared on Night Ten’s face.

"We just cleared B3 level, so we decided to relax and split up for a day."

Old White and Wild Wind took Quit Smoking to the Elm District for leveling, Fang Chang had disappeared to who-knows-where, and being on her own without anything specific to do, given that her Perception Type wasn’t suited for solo play, she had wandered over here for some excitement.

"Rich people," Mosquito clicked her tongue enviously, "If you guys clear the last level, the total earnings could be in the tens of thousands."

Greenhouse Ruins was currently recognized as the most lucrative map, especially after the problem of spinning Devil Silk was solved. The earnings from one level, to say the least, should be over a thousand. That Fang Chang was too inconsiderate, keeping the earnings to himself since B2 level, a real shitty move.

Why be so secretive about earnings?

Just share it openly and let everyone have a look!

How can you know if there is any dark curtain behind it if you don’t check, maybe some unspeakable transactions are going on, huh?

"Hehe, not too shabby," Night Ten was about to boast, but suddenly remembering Fang Chang’s morning reminder to keep quiet, she coughed and changed what she was about to say, "Actually, it’s not as exaggerated as you think. Once you consider equipment wear and tear, supplies, and all sorts of miscellaneous expenses, there’s not much profit. Besides, the farther down you go in this crappy map, the harder it gets, and then the earnings have to be split four ways. Sigh, I’m broke."

This time, Mosquito was the one who rolled her eyes.

"Can you ever tell the truth? Just how much did you make?"

"Really not that much."

"Damn!"

The battle nearby had ended.

With the wave of monsters cleared, the players began to tidy up the Battlefield, tallying their victories.

Meanwhile, Brother Mole, who had fought side by side with the newcomers, was verifying their tallies and dispensing their deserved rewards.

The Battlefield was buzzing with lively chatter and laughter; one could hardly tell that a brutal battle had just occurred.

"This mission is too easy, I alone hacked down eleven."

"Niubi! I got eight, haha! All those with their heads split by an axe are mine!"

"5 Silver Coins in hand! Wooo, now I can watch Little Fish count money!"

"Brother Mole, remember to call me next time you get such good Work!"

"Definitely, definitely! Thanks everyone for supporting!"

Mole, handing out the cash, had a smile on his face but his heart was bleeding internally.

He had counted earlier—there were a total of 136 Eaters on the ground, having blown up 20 on the spot with a barrel of Black Powder and personally taken out 15. The newbies had dealt with 101, and at a rate of 5 bronze coins each, he had to pay them 50.5 Silver Coins.

Damn!

That’s almost enough to buy an Iron Fist Rocket Launcher!

Mole truly felt that he and Mosquito Brother were like contractors working for the Manager, and a "no upfront payment" and "finance your own Work" kind at that. If he couldn’t finish this mission in two days, he feared he would be driven to bankruptcy.

"Oh, planner dad, I beg you, hurry up and release the new version!"

Looking at those newcomers getting their payment and bubbling with joy, Mole had a look of faint sorrow on his face.

If a new version isn’t released soon, once these little leeks level up, the labor cost will be even higher!

Right at that moment, the Agile Type little player who had lured the monsters earlier had finally finished counting the bodies on the ground and ran up to Mosquito.

"I just lured 136 Eaters here; you owe me 13 Silver and 6 bronze coins."

A sorrowful expression similar to Brother Mole’s appeared on Mosquito’s face, but she still managed a friendly smile.

"No problem. By the way, can we round it up? I just happen to be out of copper coins."

"You want to give me 20?"

Night Ten couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing. Mosquito’s brows twitched fiercely as he pulled out some coins from his pocket and stuffed them into the newbie’s hand.

The little newbie counted the coins, looking surprised.

"13 Silver, 6 Copper, just right... huh? Didn’t you say you were out of copper coins?"

Mosquito: "Suddenly got some."

Newbie: "..."

Night Ten patted the newbie on the shoulder with a smile and said, "Kid, not bad, not bad, what’s your ID, let’s team up next time."

But the newbie was not appreciative and gave him a glance, "Who are you calling kid? I’m already thirty, how old are you?"

Night Ten’s face turned embarrassingly red as he withdrew his hand.

"Pffhahaha!"

Watching him get shut down, Mosquito couldn’t help but laugh like a pig, cheerfully slapping Night Ten’s shoulder, and winking at the newbie.

"Him? Just a little bro. I remember he’s just started college."

Night Ten, face flushed, protested, "Screw off! I’m already in my second year of college!"

The newbie clicked his tongue, "Still just a little bro then."

Mosquito chuckled and said, "Dude, you’re really funny. What exactly is your ID?"

"Zhang Hai."

"Uh, no, I meant your game name. Why are you giving me your real name?"

"That’s what I use, Zhang Hai. My name doesn’t change, not even when I’m playing games," Zhang Hai said, eyes bulging.

Night Ten: "What if someone else registers that name?"

Zhang Hai snorted, "No problem, I’ve got Zhang Hai 001, Zhang Hai 111, Zhang Hai 000 too."

Night Ten: "Pfft."

Mosquito, easily amused, was laughing so hard he was in pain. Coughing, he said, "Bro, about your style... why don’t you play a Strength Type or Body Constitution System? Why choose Agility?"

Zhang Hai boasted passionately, "That’s because you don’t understand. In the world of martial arts, speed is unbeatable. Fast is strong; I am speed!"

Mosquito: "Hahaha, damn."

"Wait," Night Ten suddenly furrowed his brows, looking around vigilantly, "I’ve got this feeling that something is watching us."

"Don’t worry about it, it’s not embarrassing," Mosquito said, patting his shoulder, "Let’s go grab a bite after we finish work, yeah?"

Zhang Hai’s eyes lit up, "Come eat at my stand. I’ll make you guys hand-pulled noodles, authentic stuff."

"..."

Was it just imagination?

That feeling of being watched gradually faded, and Night Ten shifted his suspicious gaze away from the distant street.

Meanwhile, hundreds of meters away on a tall building.

A mercenary, clutching a sniper rifle, had an expression as if he’d seen a ghost and was pressing his back hard against the wall.

He had just aimed to observe the street below with his scope to see what was happening. However, before he could make out how many people were there, one of them suddenly looked around vigilantly and then looked directly his way.

Was it a coincidence?

But it was too much of a coincidence!

At that moment, the voice of his team leader came through the comm channel.

"Karl, what did you see?"

"A lot of people."

"How many?"

"I couldn’t see clearly... give me more time."

The mercenary named Karl swallowed hard, his face tense as he continued.

"Those people... might include Awakeners."

-

(Body can’t take it, endured two months of over 8K updates a day, only six hours of sleep; feels like my body is sending out warnings. The doctor advised me to rest up and not ruin my liver while I’m still young. Then he recommended some liver protection pills—I didn’t get paid for advertising, so I’m not advertising...

I’m truly sorry, guys. There might be only one update these next few days, but I’ll ensure the word count is around 5-6K, which should be considered normal compared to my previous two updates of 2K, right? Resuming double updates from the 24th, continuing the challenge for ten thousand words a day... let me catch my breath, and at the same time, take this opportunity to catch a breather and straighten out the plot a bit for a faster pace.)