Chapter 294 - 59: A Very Simple Job

"I was just an ordinary, second-generation rich kid. I spent my days eating, drinking, and tipping streamers... over three thousand a month..."

"Just three thousand?" Duan Fei cut into Eight Desolates’s boasting.

"I wasn’t finished. I left out the ’ten thousand’ part."

"Someone, feed this young master to the Tiger Head Chopper."

"Wait, let me finish. Ever since I started playing Abyss, I’ve opened a company. Even though I pay out over ten million in salary every month, I can sell some materials, so I still come out ahead. I can even take on the occasional ad deal, and I’m profitable by the end of the year. That’s why my family is very supportive of me building my career in the game."

After explaining why he became a Professional Player, Eight Desolates looked at Duan Fei and said, "Alright, I’ve introduced myself. How about you tell me why you play the game?"

"It’s fun."

"And besides it being fun? For example, have you achieved any of your ideals or found your self-worth in it?"

"Eight Desolates, I feel like I’m on a blind date."

"This is far more important than any blind date. I’m looking for a partner to work with. Women and stuff like that can’t even compare to you guys."

For a moment, Duan Fei didn’t know whether to feel overwhelmingly flattered or just log off immediately.

However, after a quick search online, Duan Fei found that the other party wasn’t lying; all the information checked out.

That was why players were randomly assigned positions in this event instance. Of Eight Desolates’s thousand-plus employees, only a dozen or so were here.

But these people were completely loyal to Eight Desolates. After all, he was generous with pay, and there were extra bonuses for key items. Who wouldn’t like a boss like that?

After chatting about some basic matters and establishing a general understanding, Eight Desolates finally got to the point. Looking at Duan Fei, he asked, "Duan Someone, work with me. Let’s clear this instance."

Duan Fei already had the same idea, so he and Eight Desolates hit it off instantly. The two of them put their heads together to scheme about how to squeeze the other players here, how to acquire more resources, and how to turn more players into a part of their military-industrial complex.

After they finished planning, the two discussed the matter of splitting the profits.

When Eight Desolates learned that Duan Fei only wanted the event points and didn’t even care about the empty fame of being the first to clear the instance, he was filled with emotion.

What a coincidence!

He wanted fame, and Duan Fei wanted profit. In the end, they would each get what they wanted. They were truly perfect partners.

Having established a plan for cooperation, Eight Desolates didn’t hold back and directly sent over the intelligence his team had gathered.

This intelligence overlapped in some parts with the Witch’s notes, but it contained even more information.

Specifically, about the instance’s background setting outside the Dungeon.

According to the intelligence gathered by his other employees, this instance had a typical swords and Magic setting.

Magic could destroy the heavens and extinguish the earth, and Swordsmanship was no less impressive. However, overly refined Magic and Swordsmanship didn’t exist; for the most part, it was all about trading overwhelming blows. It came down to a simple principle: whoever had the bigger guns won.

Magic Elixirs were already a rare, high-tech product here. All sorts of Magic Elixirs had unbelievable effects, like the one that had gotten Duan Fei and the others drunk earlier.

After Duan Fei finished reading, Eight Desolates continued, "According to the information provided by the Witch, we’re already clear that there’s only one way to get through the fourth-floor castle: constant searching. It might seem huge, but the number of rooms in the castle is finite. As long as we get a large number of players to the fourth floor, then..."

Duan Fei picked up where he left off, "Then we just cause endless destruction and turn the entire fourth floor upside down. After that, we’ll easily be able to find the exit."

Clenching his fist, Duan Fei stood up and continued, "And we can’t let the world inside the mirror off the hook, either! Those guys actually dared to send us back here—that’s absolutely unforgivable. Later, we’ll lead an army of tens of millions of players, charge in, smash their mirrors, and bash their dog heads in!"

Seeing how worked up Duan Fei was getting, Eight Desolates whispered to Darts Guest, "Isn’t he a bit too extreme?"

"Duan Someone doesn’t like being killed, especially not when it’s for some unknown reason. So cut the chatter. It’s best we all just work together."

"Mm, understood, understood."

Now that they had decided to form a united front, they first needed to understand the Dungeon and its surrounding area.

Every Dungeon entrance generated a sort of "dungeon effect," which was similar to the effect of a subway station entrance.

The Dungeon entrance would attract Adventurers, and once the Adventurers arrived, they would need people to provide food and water, open inns for lodging, and run blacksmith shops to repair weapons and armor.

Alchemists would need commoners to transport herbs, and this demand for transportation would make roads a necessity. The gathering of villagers would, in turn, make schools and hospitals necessary. In this way, towns and villages were established around Dungeon entrances.

In times of peace, these towns would inevitably fall into decline, but once the Demon King’s active cycle began, they would once again become the front line in the resistance against Demons.

After looking into it, Duan Fei discovered that many of the village’s basic facilities had fallen into disrepair, but they were all in a state where they could be reactivated. With a little tidying up, they could be operational again.

Looking at the investigation report sent by Eight Desolates, Duan Fei thought for a moment, then looked at Hans and Gretel beside him and asked, "You two, are you interested in working for us to earn a little spending money?"

"We don’t need spending money, just mashed potatoes is fine."

"Stop thinking about your mashed potatoes all day long. You should get some clothes for your sister. Here’s the deal..."

After laying out the plan, Duan Fei checked and double-checked everything. Once he was sure there were no issues, he finally let the two siblings go.

The two children walked out to the square, carrying a bamboo basket filled to the brim with Spiritual Elixirs that Duan Fei had concocted.

These Spiritual Elixirs had every function imaginable, from temporary buffs to rapid healing. They were definitely top-quality items, rarely seen within this instance.

Some sharp-eyed players immediately noticed the two children and saw the potions in their basket.

[Giant Dragon Potion]: Increases Strength Attribute by 20 points for five minutes after consumption. Cannot be taken out of the instance.

[Spirit Cat Potion]: Increases agility Attribute by 20 points for five minutes after consumption. Cannot be taken out of the instance.

[Withered Wood Potion]...

These potions were all made to be small enough for a Slime to swallow in one gulp. The various effects made the players green with envy.

After noticing the two children weren’t NPCs, they crowded around them and asked eagerly, "How much are these potions?"

"Can I pay with my body?"

"I’m actually pretty tasty. If you don’t mind, you could take a bite. How about one bite for one potion?"

"I’m good for two bites!"

Looking at the swarming Slimes, Hans thought, ’These Slimes have no money but still want to freeload. How annoying.’

However, he still remembered Duan Fei’s instructions. He pointed to the abandoned blacksmith shop in the distance and said, "Right now, I need someone to help tidy up the blacksmith shop. If you’re willing to go clean it up until it’s usable, then I will give you five potions."

"Alright, I accept this quest! Let’s go, form a temporary party! We’re fixing up the blacksmith shop!"

"Let’s go, let’s go!"

Watching the Slimes hop toward the blacksmith shop, Hans realized that manipulating them was surprisingly simple.