Translator: AnubisTL
"I don't believe it," Wang Defa said, shaking his head expressionlessly. "You're definitely lying to me. It's impossible! I refuse to believe it!"
"There's no way any game could be more fun than a game of Hide-and-Seek where no one's life is at risk!"
Scar Dog paused, a strange look on his face, before pulling out several photos from his pocket and handing them over.
In the next moment—
After staring at the photos in silence for a long time, Wang Defa turned without a word and walked toward the perpetual motion machine's humanoid battering ram device. He then began unleashing a furious barrage of punches, each blow instantly killing a mutated beast.
"Is... is the kid upset?" Scar Dog asked, watching Wang Defa's retreating figure, a pang of sympathy in his voice. "I mean, were we too harsh? Should we have kept it from him? He was so happy playing Hide-and-Seek."
"Yeah, maybe a little," Li Hao agreed, sighing. "But it's fine. Next time we go out, we'll take him to the Rose Club for a change of pace. He deserves a break—killing mutated beasts every day must be exhausting, to be honest."
"You're right," Scar Dog nodded in deep agreement before turning to Brother Jiang. "Brother Jiang, what's next?"
"Next?" Chen Jiang leaned on his cane, gazing into the distance. "First, we'll open those three treasure chests. Then, we'll take care of some loose ends after we leave, like the items produced by the Trash Manufacturing Machine."
He then shifted his attention from Scar Dog to the treasure chest in his arms.
[Item Name]: Three-Star Random Treasure Chest
[Item Star]: Three-Star Item
[Item Effect]: Choose one of the following seven categories: [Vehicle], [Weapon], [Armor], [Life], [Fashion], [Miscellaneous], or [Building].
After making your selection, you will receive a random item from that category.
This item will be unique.
Only you will possess this item within the entire Ten Thousand Races Arena.
[Item Description]: "Did you know? Someone once opened this chest and found destiny." — From the rambling prose of a novelist on some distant planet.
After leaving the Ten Thousand Races Arena, he spent 24 hours in the galactic federation. During that time, many things happened, and he gathered a wealth of useful information.
For example, there were many three-star items available, but their prices varied wildly. A three-star rule-defense item could cost several times, even dozens of times, more than a three-star Life Item.
Therefore, without hesitation, he chose the "armor" option from the Treasure Chest, despite already possessing the rabbit badge, an item that provided near-absolute defense.
The only drawback of the rabbit badge was that he needed to tell it jokes regularly to maintain its mood.
Soon—
An item panel popped up before him.
[Item Name]: Absolute Purification
[Item Star]: Three-Star Item
[Item Effect]: You can instantly remove all negative effects from yourself under any circumstances. Each use triggers a seven-day cooldown period. Negative effects include but are not limited to rule restrictions, severe injuries, time suspension, mental fragmentation, near-death states, and pericoronitis.
[Item Restriction]: While wearing this item, roses will bloom beneath your feet with each step, making you highly visible in the dark.
[Item Description]: "When darkness engulfs you, heed that faint glimmer. Yes, that's my spit aimed at you." — From a non-profane essayist on some distant planet.
"A rule item?" Chen Jiang murmured, slightly surprised. Though he had chosen the "armor" option, he hadn't expected to draw a three-star rule item, especially one with such a potent effect.
Rule-defense items like this one were the real deal, unlike non-rule-defense items like Zhao Ritian's, which relied on energy shields to block damage.
In the galactic federation, such an item would easily fetch seventy or eighty million credits, perhaps even exceeding a hundred million.
The item itself was shaped like a blooming rose.
Not a real flower, but something akin to an eternal rose, with paper-thin, crimson petals that seemed fragile to the touch. Its overall texture exuded luxury.
With a slightly peculiar expression, he took the item in hand, momentarily unsure how to wear it. After a pause, he tucked it into the breast pocket of his shirt.
He then gave it a few tentative shakes. The rose remained firmly in place, as if glued to the pocket, reassuring him that it wouldn't fall out during combat. The thought of suddenly realizing his three-star rule defense item had gone missing mid-fight was absurd.
However, as soon as he placed the rose in his pocket, he noticed roses blooming beneath his feet—the item restriction mentioned on the item panel.
He took a few steps, staring at the gradually vanishing roses beneath him, his expression remaining impassive as he stood in silence.
With each step, about a dozen roses would instantly bloom beneath his feet, completely enveloping his shoes, creating the illusion of walking on a carpet of roses.
As he lifted his foot to continue walking, the roses beneath him would rapidly wither, turning from crimson to purple, then black, before crumbling into dust that seeped into the ground and vanished.
These roses also emitted a faint, scarlet glow, creating an incredibly realistic special effect.
He cautiously took another dozen steps forward. Beneath his feet, roses bloomed and withered in rapid succession, turning to ash with each step—a spectacle of ostentatious extravagance.
Yes, ostentatious.
That was Chen Jiang's assessment of the item's inherent limitation.
"What the hell is this thing?" he muttered, sighing and rubbing his temples in exasperation. He was at a loss for words. This gaudy display would instantly make him the center of attention in any crowd, rendering any attempt at assassination utterly futile. With such an obvious effect, even a fool would glance his way first.
But he quickly dismissed the thought. He realized he was no longer the same man he once was. He no longer needed such primitive assassination methods. Now, his methods were so refined that his enemies rarely even saw him coming.
At that moment, Scar Dog noticed the effect beneath Chen Jiang's feet. His jaw dropped in astonishment as he blurted out, "Brother Jiang, that thing under your feet is so fucking... showy!"
Indeed, if one had to describe it in two words, "showy" would be the most apt.
"What's with all this 'showing off' nonsense?" Li Hao retorted, feigning annoyance. "It's called 'simultaneous blooming and withering.' It means Brother Jiang is walking a path forged from both, where some rise and others fall, but only Brother Jiang will stand at the end."
Scar Dog stared blankly at Li Hao, tilting his head. "You think you're so cultured, huh? You're just a damn excavator operator! Does what you're saying even make sense?"
"I may drive an excavator, but why call me a 'damn excavator operator'?"
Ignoring the escalating argument between Scar Dog and Li Hao, Chen Jiang glanced at the rose-strewn path beneath his feet and dismissed it. Though it had minor flaws, the item's overall effect was impressive enough to overlook them.
At least the special effects were well-executed. Cheap, five-cent CGI would have been far more irritating.
He strode toward the treehouse, intending to rest. Before that, however, he planned to find a secure location to transfer the forty million one-star items Wu Jinshen had sent him.
After trading barbs with Li Hao for a while, Scar Dog waited until Chen Jiang had walked far enough away before falling silent. He licked his dry lips, lit a cigarette, and stuck it between his teeth.
Then he forcefully exhaled a mouthful of smoke onto his hand.
Rubbing his hands together with a hint of anticipation, he took a deep breath before opening the three-star item random treasure chest before him.
"Mom, grant me good luck one more time!"
"Next time I go out, I'll bring you back something nice!"
He had chosen "Weapon."
His offensive capabilities were somewhat lacking. Although Brother Jiang's presence meant he didn't need to worry too much about firepower, drawing a close-combat weapon would at least enhance his melee attack strength.
Otherwise, their current close-range combat methods were rather weak.
Soon—
An item panel popped up before his eyes!
[Item Name]: Crimson Eye
[Item Star]: Three-Star Item
[Item Effect]: An amber containing an embedded eyeball. When activated, it emits a crimson beam. Enemies struck by this beam are instantly plunged into the most terrifying nightmare from their memories, from which they cannot escape for one hour. Each use requires a 24-hour cooldown period.
[Item Description]: If you embed this amber into your forehead, its effect duration will be extended to six hours. Once embedded, it cannot be removed.
Scar Dog stared expressionlessly at the item in his hand for a moment before saying, "To be honest, I'm a bit disappointed. The effect seems rather mediocre."
"The only noteworthy aspect is that the crimson light appears to be unavoidable, with no escape possible."
"Never mind, never mind," he sighed, waving dismissively as he turned to leave. "You stay here. I'm pulling out."
As for embedding the amber into his forehead, that was out of the question. If it were some powerful item capable of killing with a single glare, that would be a different story.
But with its current effect, it simply wasn't worth the price.
He didn't want his future children asking, "Dad, why do you have three eyes?"
Still, this item might serve as a pinpoint control tool in certain situations.
Li Hao watched Scar Dog's retreating figure, shrugged, and turned his attention to the Treasure Chest in his arms.
(End of the Chapter)
Translator's Corner
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