Martial Arts Hall

With that handled, all that remained was to tally the issues on their end.

Don't Want to Work let out a sigh of relief. Although not all the supplies for the previous bulk purchase of duel cards had been recouped, after all, human lives were at stake...

When this idiom appeared in his mind, he was visibly stunned for a moment. In this world, did human lives really count for anything?

If they truly didn't count for much, how long could the organization's current mode of operation last?

He suddenly straightened his back and, with a resolute expression, gave his own face a light slap.

He had truly lost his mind. As a mere wage earner, why was he considering these things? Were they paying him a salary?

Not a damn cent.

Don't Want to Work waited a while longer and finally received the news from his tallying staff. He immediately contacted Crow.

【Don't Want to Work】: We need 628 cards in total. You name the price.

How refreshing.

Cheng Shuili didn't rush to state her demands; instead, she first checked the remaining cards in her possession. Trading on the Regional Channel had mostly wound down, and 001 was currently idle. Hearing Cheng Shuili's inquiry, it immediately provided an answer.

【There are 3581 cards left, Boss! Because the Designated Player Duel Card has irreplaceable utility, this system suggests you hold onto a few more, Boss.】

Cheng Shuili furrowed her brows. Was this a new feature?

She hadn't heard 001 offer suggestions like this before.

Now was not the time to dwell on that. Cheng Shuili pondered for a moment. If she had her pick, she would certainly want Vehicle Upgrade Material Shards, followed by vehicle cards and blueprints.

However, the organization had just provided three blueprints in the last trade, so they might not have any more now.

The same went for Vehicle Upgrade Material Shards.

Just as she was agonizing over it, Don't Want to Work sent another message.

【Don't Want to Work】: I must mention in advance that we have plenty of game coins, but we really have no more Vehicle Upgrade Material Shards, nor do we have any blueprints. If you need materials, perhaps this trade will be just as pleasant as the last.

This...

Wasn't there no choice left at all?

It was either game coins or materials.

Comparing the two, Cheng Shuili would definitely choose the game coins.

After another round of pointless haggling, Cheng Shuili accepted the price of 7000 game coins. It worked out to just over eleven game coins per duel card—the organization was making out like bandits, wasn't it?

Cheng Shuili pursed her lips. They had made enough profit this time; she wouldn't let them drive the price down again during the next processing job.

001 seized the opportunity to report the earnings from this trade.

Cheng Shuili scanned the figures briefly. Excluding the trade with the organization, she only had a little over five hundred game coins, and not a single vehicle card.

She hadn't seen any blueprints before, let alone this time.

It was essentially all materials.

Cheng Shuili shook her head, though she wasn't disappointed.

She was already quite satisfied with the haul from this time.

After lunch, Cheng Shuili followed Su Rui to open two more supply crates.

After the protective barrier was upgraded, the monsters emerging from the supply crates were clearly much stronger.

Fortunately, just as the servant stall owner had said back then, Su Rui was the best; she could handle anything well. Therefore, even though the monsters had grown much stronger, they didn't pose any real threat to her.

Cheng Shuili was very gratified.

Especially when she saw Su Rui wield a dagger with such supernatural skill.

She was often curious about what Su Rui had done previously, but unfortunately, she had never found the right opportunity to ask. However, based on the level of martial prowess she displayed, she certainly wasn't an amateur.

Su Rui easily dispatched a sick wild boar, wiped the blood from her dagger with her sleeve, and only then put the blade away to climb back onto the vehicle.

Her clothes were refreshed automatically by the system every day, so using them as a rag wasn't an issue.

As soon as Su Rui boarded, she saw Cheng Shuili staring at her curiously.

To be honest, it was actually quite frightening.

"What's wrong?"

She couldn't help but ask.

Cheng Shuili finally asked the question she had been curious about for a long time: "What did you do before?"

Su Rui clearly hadn't expected Cheng Shuili to ask this. She hesitated for a moment before saying, "I was just a regular white-collar worker. Our industry was quite niche."

Is that so.

Cheng Shuili was a bit disappointed. She stared at Su Rui for a while longer; she always felt something was off. Which white-collar worker was so skilled at spinning a dagger?

The last time Cheng Shuili had seen someone handle one so skillfully, it was Qi Wanyi. She was a chef, so that was still considered normal... right?

Cheng Shuili shook her head. Setting aside whether Qi Wanyi was normal, Su Rui was definitely not!

"What other hobbies do you have?"

Cheng Shuili asked very cautiously.

Su Rui probably understood what she wanted to know. There was naturally no need to hide such things, so she explained the origin of her 'kung fu' in great detail.

"I grew up in a martial arts hall. My grandfather was a successor of traditional martial arts. Actually, I'm not that good with a dagger; I just thought it looked cool when I was a kid and learned a few flashy tricks. Our family specializes in spear techniques—not the rifle kind you're thinking of, but the red-tasseled spear kind."

Cheng Shuili truly hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise. Her eyes lit up instantly: "Really? Then you must know how to handle a spear, right?"

"A little bit."

Su Rui nodded lightly.

That statement was definitely an exercise in modesty.

Cheng Shuili couldn't help but look her over a few more times. She hadn't felt it before, but now that she knew Su Rui could wield a spear, she felt that Su Rui suddenly had the air of a reclusive master.

Cheng Shuili shook her head, then thought of the store's treasure in Tiger Brother's weapon shop.

If Cheng Shuili had only been coveting it before, now she was truly impatient to get her hands on it.

Cheng Shuili had previously thought that since Su Rui was no longer a player, she couldn't increase her attribute points, which meant she was essentially stagnant.

If the monsters kept getting stronger, then in a battle of attrition, there would come a day when Su Rui couldn't beat them, and at that point, Cheng Shuili would have to open the supply crates herself.

But now, Cheng Shuili had discovered a new way to make Su Rui stronger: giving her better weapons.

That's right.

If she could be armed to the teeth, even a dog would be a dog capable of killing!

Cheng Shuili's gaze was resolute, while Su Rui felt a chill run down her back.

As the sun tilted to the west, Cheng Shuili stared at the scenery outside the window and couldn't help but sigh that the famine was indeed different from the previous disasters.

Every time a disaster refreshed, the environment on both sides of the highway would change accordingly.

During the extreme cold, it was a vast expanse of snow; during the extreme heat, it was surging waves of heat.

Now, however, there was only a lifeless, withered forest—the kind where even the bark had been stripped away.

Cheng Shuili had thought about collecting some wood now to use as fuel when the next extreme cold hit. Unfortunately, these things were only for them to look at; there were air walls on both sides of the highway.

Aside from following the road, they couldn't go anywhere.

After personally crashing into an air wall, Cheng Shuili slapped her forehead as it dawned on her.