Chapter 40: Chapter 40: So Miserable
"Good, well said."
Qiansha excitedly opened the gene case as well.
A brilliant flash of light immediately erupted.
Everyone turned to look at the opened gene case.
When the light faded, a Type I CHCS-01 Insectoid Genetic Potion, a syringe filled with dark green liquid, was revealed.
His many subordinates were stunned.
"Dammit!"
When Qiansha saw the Insectoid Genetic Potion, his excitement vanished. His expression darkened, and he snatched the syringe and smashed it violently onto the ground.
SMASH~
At that moment, Qiansha’s subordinates all turned to glare at Old Ghost, interrogating him in cold tones.
"How dare you try to fob Sir off with this piece of trash!"
"Sir, please don’t be angry! I really didn’t know this was what was inside. I never broke the seal!"
Old Ghost hurriedly dropped to his knees, explaining in a panic.
Qiansha took a deep breath, suppressing his irritation, and looked at Old Ghost.
"Get up. I didn’t say you did anything wrong. But remember my words. Be more careful next time. This trash isn’t what I’m looking for, you understand?"
"Understood!"
Old Ghost nodded hastily.
"Go on, then. Don’t disappoint me."
Qiansha gave an imperious wave of his hand.
"Yes..."
Old Ghost scrambled to his feet and left.
Qiansha watched Old Ghost’s retreating back and said irritably,
"I thought I’d be the first to find the Genetic Potion I wanted, but I just got my hopes up for nothing!"
"Don’t worry, Sir. We’ve already dispatched everyone to collect them."
Captain Alang quickly tried to reassure him.
"Tell them to hurry up!"
"Yes, Sir!"
Everyone responded respectfully.
「...」
「Lower District.」
Long Ming dragged his exhausted body toward his rented apartment.
A short while later, in a dim hallway, Long Ming came up the stairs only to see a figure loitering suspiciously by his front door.
His eyes narrowed. He slowed his pace and approached quietly.
In front of the apartment door stood a slightly chubby man with a round face, dressed in loose-fitting green clothes. He was staring at the closed door, scratching his head.
’Strange, did I remember it wrong?’
"Are you looking for me?"
A cold voice suddenly came from behind him.
The man jumped in fright. He spun around, and upon seeing Long Ming standing there, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Brother Long, you scared me to death!"
"Scare you to death? What are you doing lurking around my door?"
"Looking for you, of course."
"Come in."
Long Ming opened the door and went inside.
Xiaopang immediately trotted into the apartment after him, closing the door behind him.
Long Ming grabbed a cup, poured some water, and handed it to Xiaopang before speaking.
"What do you want?"
"Hey, so impersonal! You just interrogate me right off the bat? No small talk? You didn’t even ask if I’ve eaten!"
Xiaopang looked at Long Ming with a wronged expression.
"Why would I ask if you’ve eaten? I haven’t even eaten myself."
Long Ming was a little speechless.
"Huh?"
Xiaopang was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Long Ming to be hungry too.
Long Ming sighed, then asked Xiaopang,
"All I have is instant noodles. You want some?"
"Yes!"
Xiaopang nodded eagerly.
Long Ming walked to the kitchen and took out two packs of instant noodles from a bag.
Just then, Xiaopang followed him into the kitchen and asked,
"Got anything to drink in the fridge?"
"No."
Long Ming replied flatly.
"I don’t believe you."
Xiaopang immediately opened the refrigerator and saw a red bag inside the otherwise empty appliance.
He curiously opened it and took a peek, then exclaimed to Long Ming in surprise,
"Holy shit! Is this a bull’s penis? And you said you didn’t have anything good."
"If you want to eat it, take it."
Long Ming replied nonchalantly.
"Really? I’d feel bad taking it."
Xiaopang said, suddenly a bit embarrassed.
"I don’t care, I don’t eat that stuff anyway. But I don’t have a pressure cooker, so I can’t cook it until it’s tender. You can take it home and cook it yourself."
Long Ming tore open a pack of noodles, put them in a small pot, added some tap water, and started cooking.
"Alright, then I won’t be polite."
Xiaopang replied cheerfully.
「...」
「A few moments later.」
Long Ming and Xiaopang sat on the old sofa, eating the freshly cooked instant noodles.
"Delicious."
Xiaopang was wolfing it down like a starving man.
Watching him, Long Ming frowned and asked,
"How long has it been since you last ate?"
"Two days."
"What the hell happened? How did you end up in such a miserable state?"
"Don’t even ask. You know those materials and equipment I bought off you?"
"Yeah. What about them?"
"The market completely crashed! I can’t sell them at all!"
"Then why don’t you just sell them for cheaper?"
"I sold them at a sixty percent discount, and others sold them at seventy. I sold them at seventy, and people started selling at ninety percent off. I just can’t move them."
"But that was only about twenty thousand, right? It shouldn’t have been that bad."
"Don’t get me started. Do you remember Zheng Lei?"
"I remember. He’s a merchant who flips equipment in-game, just like you. I rarely dealt with him, though, so I don’t know him well."
Long Ming nodded slightly in response.
"Zheng Lei told me he heard through some channels that the new game, Civilization Paradise, had a terrible player experience. He said it was dangerous, that getting hit really hurt, and that it was getting nothing but bad reviews. Everyone was quitting. So he suggested we team up to buy up equipment from Black Star. We each invested over a hundred thousand, but then the game shut down and the devs skipped town! We both lost everything. Now I don’t even have money for rent, and my landlord kicked me out."
Xiaopang explained with a tearful face.
Hearing this, a suspicious look appeared on Long Ming’s face. He then said,
"Doesn’t something seem off to you? Are you sure you *both* lost everything?"
"Huh? What’s the problem?"
"Is it possible he deliberately teamed up with you, then used an alt account to sell the stuff *to* you? That from start to finish, you were the only one losing money?"
"Holy shit! That bastard! I’m gonna go find him!"
Xiaopang instantly realized what had happened.
"Forget it, don’t go. It’s useless to look for him. It was a legitimate transaction, and you have no proof."
"*Sob*, what should I do then?"
"You could consider getting into Civilization Paradise."
"Can you make money in that game?"
"You can. With your knack for flipping things, you should have no problem making a living."
"Okay, I’ve decided! I’m going to stay here and get into Civilization Paradise with you to make a comeback!"
Xiaopang was suddenly full of fighting spirit.
"Get lost. I’m not used to living with other people."
Long Ming rejected him bluntly.
"Brother Long, are you really going to just leave me to die? We’ve been friends for so many years, how can you be so heartless?"
Xiaopang looked at Long Ming pitifully.
Long Ming picked up his phone, transferred 2,000 Mountain Coins directly to Xiaopang, and said coolly,
"I’ve sent you the money. Figure it out yourself."
"Huh, only 2,000 Mountain Coins? I can’t even afford a helmet. How am I supposed to play?"
Xiaopang glanced at the message on his phone and asked dejectedly.
"You don’t need to buy a helmet. Go to an internet cafe. Many of the cafes in Mountain City Mountain have upgraded their equipment now. The cafes in the lower district can’t afford the game pods, but they still have gaming helmets, and the hourly fee isn’t too high."
Long Ming directly pointed out a path for him.
"Okay! You just wait, I will rise again!"
Xiaopang said excitedly after hearing Long Ming’s words.
"Go on. I need to rest."
Long Ming said flatly.
"Okay!"
Xiaopang then got up and left, full of enthusiasm.
Seeing Xiaopang leave, Long Ming let out a sigh of relief. ’Finally got rid of that kid,’ he thought.
He quickly cleaned up the bowls and chopsticks, then went back to his room to rest.
「...」
