Chapter 1066: Just Do It

Chapter 1066: Just Do It

[Remaining Sentence: 232 hours (+168 hours)]

Perhaps to cater to the players' gaming experience, the player-exclusive cells in Dawn City were quite intelligent, even updating the remaining sentence on a palm-sized screen.

Yet, staring at that three-digit remaining time, Professor Yang fell into utter despair.

How was the sentence getting longer the more he sat?!

Outside the barred door, a player dressed in a rather avant-garde style fiddled with his VM while scratching his head with an expression that was hard to describe.

“…Through a wall, huh? It’s amazing you two could still start a fight.”

His ID was [Pig Is Read Backwards], and his sequence level had just hit twenty.

He had originally planned to head to the Panghuang Swamp for a quest, even bought a train ticket, but then suddenly received a newbie guidance commission from the Guard.

He never thought that he, who once trailed behind big shots, would one day become a “pro player” in the eyes of NPCs.

With the thought “How embarrassing,” he accepted the commission without hesitation, even though the reward wasn’t particularly generous.

But what he didn’t expect was to run into two famous figures from the forums here.

How to describe it?

Professor Yang’s in-game appearance matched the impression he’d always had of the guy—a sleazy vibe that reminded him of the bespectacled guy from CS 1.6, and if he shaved his head, he’d look even more like him.

As for Brother Ye’ao… uh, Sister?

If you set aside that beastly aura, she could pass for a petite, delicate girl.

Had something gone wrong?

“He started it! He, he, he molested me!” The iron bars rattled loudly, as if a tank had rammed them.

Glancing sideways at Ye’ao, who was gripping the bars with both hands, practically trying to squeeze her face through the gap, a now-calm Professor Yang clicked his tongue in disgust, the word “disdain” etched all over his face.

[Pig Is Read Backwards] scratched his head and tapped his VM twice with his index finger.

“Is that so? Even if you say that… the surveillance footage says otherwise.”

The jail’s surveillance was managed by AI; he was just a player helping out, so naturally he didn’t have the authority to check that stuff.

Still, the gist of the incident was updated in text form on the quest interface.

Simply put, this time Ye’ao provoked first, sticking her mouth out of the cell, around the corner, and spitting toward the next cell.

Of course, Professor Yang throwing a punch wasn’t exactly innocent either.

What happened next was roughly that Professor Yang missed his punch, and Ye’ao grabbed his fist and bit down hard.

Eventually, the AI probably couldn’t stand it anymore and called the guards, adding 7×24 hours to both their sentences.

Seeing her framing attempt fail, Ye’ao’s face turned green instantly.

“Sur, surveillance?! There’s surveillance here?!”

[Pig Is Read Backwards] shrugged helplessly.

“What’s so strange about that? You’re not the only player on this server. You should have some idea how outrageous players can get… don’t you?”

A big shot named Silver’s Father once told him that every brick in this jail was a lesson from history.

Including the cameras, of course.

Though players above level 10 were rarely banned, there was still a certain percentage of banned players during the newbie phase.

Most players only started behaving normally after getting past the newbie period.

Even if they didn’t care about others’ gaming experience, they had to care about their own precious accounts.

Ye’ao Couldn’t Bully Me couldn’t save face. Her brow twitched, and her hands gripping the bars made a creaking sound.

“You… pretty cocky, huh? What’s your name? What level?”

“Pig Is Read Backwards.”

“Pfft hahaha, who names themselves something so weird? Pig Is Read Backwards… backwards it’s Pig… pfft! You bastard! How dare you mock me! I’ll kill you, believe me!”

“…That’s my name. You’re the one who insisted on reading it backwards.”

“@#%&!”

Head throbbing from the noise, Professor Yang let out a deep sigh and cut off their conversation.

“Alright, alright, I’ll take the fall… Just tell me, what quest did you get?”

Level twenty.

That level might be a big shot to other newbies, but in the eyes of Professor Yang, who had been lurking for five years, it was no different from a child.

Just barely crossing the threshold of “ordinary player”—not worth his attention.

His ambition was to become a T0-level powerhouse!

[Pig Is Read Backwards] scratched his head with his index finger, staring at the quest interface on his VM screen.

“Simply put, your sentences here exceeded 168 hours, so the system judged that you might have some misunderstanding about the game rules. It arranged for me to help you integrate into the game world sooner—”

“Hehehehe, rules? They’re meant to be broken!”

Ye’ao crossed her arms, her defiant look practically tilting her nostrils to the sky.

“Once I get out, I’ll kill you all!”

Her attitude was certainly enough to draw aggro.

But [Pig Is Read Backwards] felt she might just be trying to say that line for the sake of it, so he couldn’t be bothered to argue with her.

“Yeah, yeah, once you get out, you’ll kill us all. So, to leave this place sooner… want to try operating a sewing machine?”

Ye’ao’s eyes went wide.

“Huh? Why would I do something like that?”

[Pig Is Read Backwards] continued reading from the script.

“Brugra City urgently needs relief supplies, including gauze for bandages and tents for refugees. You’ve been assigned to the curtain production workshop. Simply put, you attach zippers to two pieces of cloth. Easy, right?”

“So why the hell would I do that—”

“It can reduce your sentence.”

“I, I, I want to do it!”

The sturdy iron bars creaked as if hit by a wild boar. Ye’ao, gripping the bars with both hands, had a face full of pleading and longing.

Her face, streaked with snot and tears, startled [Pig Is Read Backwards].

Was it really that serious?

She’d only been in jail for 24 hours… hadn’t even reached 24 hours yet?

Real-life jails mostly had communal sleeping quarters; here, at least she had a private cell.

“Ahem, I’ll sign you up then…”

Ignoring that look as if he were a savior, [Pig Is Read Backwards] turned to Professor Yang, who was squatting in the next cell, and glanced at his hand, which was covered in a row of “dog bite marks.” His brow couldn’t help but twitch.

This guy really bites...

"What about you? Your hand okay?"

"Nothing serious, just a scratch."

Unwilling to admit defeat, Professor Yang stubbornly tossed out a line.

He rolled his neck, stretched his arms and legs as if warming up, and a sinister grin crept across his face.

"Consider it a test from the administrator—whether it's a sewing machine or the sand from the reservoir, bring it all on!"

Sooner or later, he would trample everything underfoot!

This path of conquest—

Would start with pedaling a sewing machine.

"Forget it... everyone goes through this phase." Pig is Reciting Backwards coughed, retracting his curled toes, and hastily unlocked the cell door for the two. "You two, stick close to me. Don't wander off."

Glancing at the pair poised to bolt, he added a helpful warning.

"...If you add to your sentence, you'll be transferred to a real prison."

Having barely secured a closed beta slot before the public release, being thrown into an actual prison now would mean—forget becoming the server's top player—they'd be stuck playing "Prison Bars OL" for a long time.

The two goofballs instantly cooled down, abandoning all their shady schemes.

At least for now, they had no other ideas...

...

While Lord Pride Defies Me and Professor Yang were smoking the sewing machines, the White Bear Knight Order, having set out from Dawn City, had already reached the northernmost edge of the Central Continent—Morokova City, near Ice Sea City.

In this bitter, frozen land where snowdrifts stood as tall as a man, sat the smallest variant slime mold nest on Earth.

Its name was Momo.

Unlike the other nests on this planet, it was a creature that had completely given up, lingering in long-term hibernation.

Big Shot Luo Yu had once brought Xiao Yu here, originally planning to eliminate it, but later abandoned the idea, just like with the nest in Baiyue Province.

According to Momo itself, the citizens of Morokova had already evacuated due to climate reasons before its arrival, and it only woke up fifty years after landing.

Because of the extreme cold, it spent most of its time drifting between half-sleep and half-wake, pondering the "life of a slime."

Eventually, it reached a conclusion: no matter how it developed, it could never surpass its siblings that landed near temperate zones. It would either become their nourishment or be wiped out by humans. So it simply gave up, handing over its ambition to conquer the world to the latter.

With plenty of time to waste, it even developed "artistic bacteria," creating a unique musical system and dances to amuse itself in the harsh winter.

This surprised everyone.

In short, after confirming its danger was within controllable limits, the Alliance allowed it to continue living in its territory, replacing the ecosystem of the Wandering Swamp that had been completely destroyed.

Besides the nest named Momo, there was also a special zone jointly established by the Academy and the Alliance, and adjacent to it, "Site 4."

The former was the Alliance's largest save point in the Wandering Swamp, while the latter was the aerospace industrial base under the Science Committee.

Especially the latter—for a long time, this aerospace base played a crucial role in both the Academy's and the Science Committee's systems.

But that was a long time ago.

Since the Academy and the Alliance reached an agreement, the engineers at Site 4 gradually moved south, and the base's strategic importance was slowly replaced by the neighboring special zone.

Some factories began supplying the Lagrange point space station, while the rest were abandoned during the production transition.

Staring at the massive, ice-covered factory and the structural materials in the warehouse that loomed like icebergs, the fluffy Rourou couldn't help but widen her eyes.

"All of this... is no longer needed?!"

An old engineer, about fifty, stood nearby, white mist puffing from his grinning mouth.

"Yeah, no longer needed. Our boss changed his mind—he's building our doomsday ark directly at the Lagrange point."

Zhima Hu sighed sincerely.

"It feels such a waste to let it all rot..."

Tail nodded with mock seriousness.

"Exactly, exactly! Such a waste!"

Hearing their regret, the old engineer shrugged nonchalantly.

"Think whatever you want. If you feel it's a waste, hurry up and buy it all."

Though outsiders might find it regrettable, he didn't feel that way at all.

If he had to choose between Dr. Conclusion's grand plan and keeping his family warm and fed, he would unquestionably pick the latter.

After all, even if he built the ark like heaven, only a handful of people would ever board it.

Rumor had it that the ark's cabins weren't even enough for the Academy's own people, let alone the Science Committee's external staff.

Compared to that unreachable paradise, the harsh march along the pilgrimage road was his truest reality.

Before the Alliance's special zone was established, the man in charge of building heaven had never even tasted beef.

Of course.

Now this planet was entering a new era, and it seemed fewer people were willing to leave. Suddenly, the ark's cabins were sufficient, and the Academy's higher-ups seemed to be fretting over other matters.

But that was another story.

For him, once this factory and everything in it were dealt with, his mission would be complete.

"Why not haul all this to the Lagrange point space station for assembly?" Rourou asked, puzzled.

The old engineer shook his head.

"No idea. Probably not cost-effective. Besides, a starship launched from the ground and one assembled in low Earth orbit are two completely different designs. It's not just moving stuff from the ground to space and carrying on... So, are you buying or not?"

Staring at the warehouse contents, Sisi carefully compared them with the list on her tablet for a long time.

What was stored here were mainly mining module hulls and unfinished reactors.

Combined with the anti-gravity devices she'd ordered from the Eastern Empire and the plasma thrusters purchased from Abu Aerospace, all they needed was a warp drive and a cabin with basic life support to piece together a frigate-sized starship capable of basic faster-than-light travel.

Before arriving at this warehouse, she'd planned to just pick up parts and leave, but what she found here exceeded her expectations.

This place was practically a Lagrange point space station sprawled on the surface!

No—

Not "practically"—it "was"!

This factory was almost a 1:1 replica of a Lagrange point space station's structure, redesigned for standard gravity as a surface spaceport!

No wonder the Academy knew the Lagrange point station's layout so well!

"Unbelievable... you've replicated a Lagrange point space station on the surface?"

Surprised to find someone who recognized its value, the old engineer raised an eyebrow and, for once, smiled with pride.

"Replicating a Lagrange point station is an overstatement, but this assembly workshop was indeed built to its specifications. Including the assembly arms, plasma welding equipment, and so on. If you're interested, you could even use it to build a tank the size of a starship... provided it can actually move."

"Ohhh! Can we use it to replicate the Pioneer?!" Tail's eyes lit up.

"The Pioneer? Uh... what's that?" The old engineer blinked.

He had lived his entire life in Zone 4, and his understanding of the wasteland probably amounted to little more than knowing there was a Federation to the south.

"A colossal land fortress, our friend drove it all the way from the East Coast to the center of the world... Never mind that, let's talk about this factory instead."

Putting away the tablet in her hand, Si Si fixed her gaze on the massive factory building before her, her eyes gleaming with a sharp, spirited light.

"We've changed our minds. If possible, we want to buy this entire factory."

The production capacity at the Lagrange Point space station was limited, especially since it was currently busy fulfilling the Academy's large order. Even if they placed an order right now, they'd probably have to wait in line until next year.

In that case, why not do it themselves?

After all, what they needed wasn't a colony ship capable of carrying hundreds of thousands or even millions of people, jumping across several star systems in succession. What they needed was an enlarged version of a "research vessel" equipped with faster-than-light cruising capabilities.

A small civilian starship with a capacity of fewer than a hundred people—surely it was feasible to produce it directly on the surface, even without relying on the Lagrange Point space station's manufacturing equipment!

Who knows, by the time the Lagrange Point space station finally finished the Academy's order, their civilian starship might already be ready.

"Buy the whole thing?" The old engineer stared at her in astonishment, stammering, "This... this is beyond my authority. May I ask, if it's not too forward, what do you intend to do?"

Si Si didn't hide it. She smiled and revealed her plan.

"We plan to move the entire thing to Settlement One on the Death Coast, integrate it with the resources of the industrial belt around the southern sea, and turn it into a new aerospace industrial park, specializing in producing small and medium-sized civilian starships for mining and transport."

"As my friends said, it would be a shame to let all this go to waste. Better to let it serve one last purpose... Who knows, it might even ride the wave of the Solar System Revival Plan."

The old engineer stared at her, dumbfounded, then scratched the back of his head, unsure whether he felt gratified or embarrassed.

"I don't really understand that Solar System Revival Plan... But if you're interested in the production equipment here, I can discuss it with the relevant person in charge of Zone 4. Honestly, as long as you can afford the price, I don't think it'll be a problem."

These machines would only rust if left here. Selling them while someone still wanted them wouldn't be a loss.

Since the Academy had already decided to hand over the "Doomsday Ark" to the Federation's Lagrange Point space station, even sending their technical staff to that station, it seemed unlikely that policy would change course.

At least for now, the Federation had never gone back on its promises.

Especially not for a partnership that benefited them so much.

"Mm, I'll leave it to you."

Si Si pulled a business card from the pocket of her cold-weather coat and handed it to the old engineer with a smile.

"By the way, we plan to take the workers and management here with us as well... If you don't mind moving your families to live by the scenic seaside, we're willing to pay each employee three times their original salary and a minimum of thirty thousand silver coins as a relocation allowance."

Hearing such generous terms, the old engineer was overjoyed, grinning from ear to ear. He almost wanted to rush straight into the factory director's home, drag him over, and sign the contract.

Of course, that was just an exaggeration.

The specific acquisition method and relocation plan couldn't be settled without several meetings.

But Si Si wasn't in a hurry.

After all, she needed some time to prepare as well.

Although the White Bear Bank had deep pockets, considering the return cycle of aerospace projects and the issue of deposit reserves, even she had to be cautious about the potential liquidity risks.

The best approach was to bring a few more people on board to share the deal.

For example, the Ox-Horse Group, the Baiyue Company, the Boulder Military Industries, and so on.

As long as she could get that LYB Fang Chang on board, the success rate of the entire plan would at least double!

And considering the employment and economic development the project could drive, the local authorities of the Death Coast would surely be interested in this investment.

Besides tax breaks and land, the local authorities might even offer them a loan with interest so low it could be ignored!

All of this was entirely possible!

Grasping Si Si's hand with endless gratitude, the old engineer immediately went off to contact his factory director and the relevant person in charge with her business card.

After working in his position for over twenty years, he had never been as enthusiastic about his job as he was today.

As for Si Si and her group, they returned to their hotel in the Special Economic Zone to wait for news.

Standing in front of the fireplace in the snow-view suite, Rourou shook off the ice and snow clinging to her fur, then turned to look at Si Si, who was sitting on the sofa drinking black tea, and asked with confusion.

"By the way, do we have that much money?"

It wasn't just Rourou who was worried about this; Zhimahu also wore a concerned expression.

Although she wasn't very knowledgeable about business matters, she could tell the difference between buying parts and buying a factory.

It wasn't that she was stingy with money.

She was mainly worried that the final quote would exceed their budget, leaving them unable to afford it.

"Don't worry about the money."

Setting the cup back on the tray, Si Si smiled faintly.

"If our plan only served ourselves, then of course we'd have to pay for it ourselves."

"But as long as our plan is beneficial to the Federation's long-term development and we can pull it off, we won't even have to pay for it ourselves—someone else will cover it."

Tail's eyes lit up, and she gave a thumbs-up.

"Oh! So this is what it means to stay ahead of the curve? Sounds very Fang-like!"

"You could say that... But what do you mean 'Fang-like'? It was clearly my idea."

Her voice carried a hint of displeasure, but it quickly faded with Tail's next words: "As expected of my Si! Super impressive!"

Zhimahu was momentarily unsure whether to be amazed at how easily Si Si was appeased or at Tail's quick-witted response. A helpless, amused expression crossed her face.

"Indeed... very impressive."

That sincere compliment—she really hadn't expected that someone else could be made to foot the bill.

"You flatter me... It's not really that hard to think of. Even if we didn't do it, other players coming here would surely discover the business opportunity."

Si Si smiled modestly, but the pride in her expression was still unmistakable.

Clearly, she enjoyed the praise from her close friends.

"But what if it fails?"

Rourou scratched her head, falling into her usual habit of overthinking, even though it was a valid question.

How to move all this equipment south and reassemble it, how to integrate these production capacities—already abandoned by the Academy—with the local industrial chain of the Death Coast...

Any misstep in any link could lead to the failure of the entire plan and billions of silver coins going down the drain.

Si Si was still pondering how to answer when Tail, standing behind the sofa, spoke up in a worldly-wise tone, answering on her behalf.

"Rourou, there's no such thing as a guaranteed successful plan on this earth. Only by doing it do you have a 1 in 777 chance of success. If you never try, it's always zero."

Si Si looked at Tail in surprise.

"Unbelievable... I didn't know you could occasionally say something philosophical besides driving."

Tail smiled sheepishly.

"Hehe, I copied it from the forum!"

"Figures."

Seeing that everyone was in favor of going for it, Rourou finally stopped worrying. Her furry face lit up with an expression full of determination.

Come to think of it, she had almost forgotten... the person she used to be, a long, long time ago.

Back then she was still a novice, possessing a body even larger than Rubbish-kun's and an initial stat panel absurdly powerful, yet she was even more timid than Qiangrensuonan.

She had originally thought that after finally drawing an ultra-rare SSSR card, she could finally cut a swath through the game world, becoming a hero she dared not be in the real world—only to find that what she couldn't do in reality, she likewise couldn't do in the game.

The misfortune did not end there.

"Lucky people," if they "do not work hard enough," are almost certain to incur the jealousy and abuse of petty individuals. So much so that she once grew increasingly hesitant, even thinking of giving her helmet to someone else... if only it were possible.

Although she also tried to overcome her psychological barriers on her own, striving not to hold others back, time and again she lost to the fear within her heart... until one reckless fellow climbed onto her back.

'...If you're scared alone, then let's charge together!'

Later, by the time she realized it, she had become a legend of the River Valley and even the Sunset Province, a nightmare that struck terror into countless raiders across the wasteland.

And it didn't stop there—

She discovered that what she had overcome was not merely the diluted fears within the game.

The version of herself in reality—timid, unable even to meet another's gaze—had gradually grown brave as well.

There was really no need to overthink it.

The real world, where you only have one life, is one thing; but if you still hesitate and fear everything in the game, then you're truly wasting your time.

Once you've decided on something, just do it bravely!

"Alright, alright, I get it. Since you've all made up your minds... let's just do it!"

Watching Rou Rou suddenly brim with motivation, Tail's face immediately showed an expression of surprise.

Coming to her senses, she delightedly raised her thumb.

"Whoa! Let's just do it!"