Chapter 323: Only on the Brink of Life and Death Can You Break Through
"Brother, you have to think about it carefully."
The bartender Afeng held Su Xia's shoulders and whispered, "Wang Teng is strong and cunning. Even the boss's boss may not be able to deal with him."
As he spoke, he pursed his lips and pointed at Liu Jinjia, a level 5 creature standing next to the bar.
This big boss has been based in a big city in the north all year round. This time he came to see his apprentice Liu Yinjia and to participate in the hunt for the masked monster.
It is well known that he has a bad temper and is extremely powerful. Even if you didn't know him before, you will get to know him through the tragic incidents in which several gangs were destroyed.
Su Xia smiled and said, "I'm not really going to kill Wang Teng. I'm just taking on a mission."
The bartender Afeng said: "But I always feel that you just have to try it."
"Why, could it be that your psychic talent is related to perception?"
"No... My psychic talent has not yet awakened, and I don't know when it will awaken..."
Talking about his talent, Afeng sighed, a powerful talent can often change a person's life.
However, many psychic creatures are unable to awaken their psychic talents until death, so this is all a matter of luck.
It is rumored that the Mechanical Clan once asked Anluo Company to develop a special method to stimulate the awakening of every psychic creature.
If it succeeds, then every mechanical individual will be able to awaken and the combat effectiveness will be greatly enhanced.
However, Anluo Company expressed its inability to meet such a request. Not to mention psychic power, even old-fashioned energy such as oil has not been thoroughly studied.
"Little boss, have you awakened?" bartender Afeng asked Liu Tongjia.
"It's difficult. It depends on the opportunity."
Liu Tongjia shook his head, he was also not awakened.
It’s okay that it hasn’t awakened yet, but I’m afraid that I will awaken useless talents in the future.
"I have something else to do, please take your time chatting."
After chatting for a few words, Liu Tongjia took out his ID card from the self-service machine and followed his master Liu Yinjia out to complete the mission.
There is a store manager master who is a level 4 creature. I think he should have a smooth early stage and won't encounter too much danger.
After he left, the bartender Afeng whispered, "I heard that many people's psychic talents awaken on the brink of life and death."
"Breakthrough on the edge of life and death?" Su Xia was stunned. "Isn't this a treatment only enjoyed by the protagonist of a novel?"
"yes."
Not everyone is the protagonist of a novel. It is difficult to have even a slight chance to be the protagonist. Most people are just passers-by in life.
There are not many creatures that have awakened their psychic talents. Many of the creatures Su Xia encountered before have awakened their talents. That's because he has always been playing high-end games and has never touched the sufferings of the lower-level creatures.
Many members of the North Wind Organization have been walking on the edge of life and death for a long time, so the probability of awakening is higher than that of normal people.
"Alas, I have been a psychic creature for almost three years." A Feng inexplicably felt a little more emotional. "If anyone can help me awaken my psychic talent, I am willing to recognize him as my big brother and follow him for the rest of my life."
"Then I wish you wake up soon." Su Xia said.
"How about you, brother?" Afeng asked.
"It has not awakened, and it is still stagnant."
"It seems like we are all in the same boat. I'll buy you a drink!"
"Treat me? The kind of wine you just drank?"
"No, that's high-grade medicinal wine sent from a city in the east." A Feng smiled awkwardly, "That wine is too expensive, I can't even bear to drink it myself. You don't know how envious I was just now that you were treated to a drink by Boss Hu."
“Oh, I see…”
Su Xia seemed to be thinking about something. He took out his ID card from the self-service machine and put it away carefully. This card was related to his bounty of tens of millions.
He looked at the time and saw that it was already late, so he refused Afeng's glass of wine.
"I have something else to do. Come back and drink after you're done. I'll go get some more news."
"good."
It was working hours, Afeng nodded and took Su Xia back to the elevator.
The two took the elevator back to the ground floor.
This time, as a registered member, Su Xia bought more relevant information, such as those with the [lock] symbol.
One of the locked messages recorded the speculation of the Zero Point Tavern about the identity of the masked man.
[Identity hypothesis 1: The father of the Coral City Pharmacy]
[Reason: The masked man first appeared in Luoxing Town, a suburb of Coral City. The subsequent incidents were all related to Coral City. He is most likely a strong man who has lived in Coral City for a long time... As one of the most mysterious creatures in Coral City, Dad is very powerful...]
【……】
The first guess is similar to what Su Xia thought.
Not only the Midnight Tavern suspected that Dad was the masked man, but the mechanical tribe must have suspected it as well, otherwise Yu Tuo would not have come to the pharmacy in person several times.
After Dad disappeared, this speculation gradually spread, and many people in the player community believed this.
On the forum, some players even created special threads to analyze [the similarities between Dad and the Masked Man], [what Dad is hiding], [whether Pharmacist Su knows Dad's secret identity], etc.
In Su Xia’s private messages, some people asked him similar questions, and even several roommates asked him, but he always answered - I don’t know.
As his father's apprentice, Su Xia seems innocent.
Because he is a player.
It is generally believed that the player cannot be the masked monster.
The reason is simple. If Su Xia pretends to be a masked man at night and practices medicine making during the day, when will he rest? His day does not have 48 hours.
Unless he is cheating, it is impossible.
Su Xia continued to read.
[Identity Guess 2: Iron Fist Golden Wolf]
[Reason: Three years ago, a senior member of the tavern, 'Iron Fist Gold Wolf', who could also control metal, suddenly disappeared. His strength before his disappearance was close to level five...]
[When the Masked Stranger first appeared, his strength was about the beginning of level three, and then he grew rapidly. The last time he appeared, he was close to level five. It is not difficult to judge - the Masked Stranger may have been extremely strong, but he lost some of his strength for some reason, such as being captured by the Mechanical Clan and having his spiritual energy extracted...]
【……】
Iron Fist Golden Wolf, this is a relatively unfamiliar title.
There are so many masters in the Zero Point Tavern. New masters are born every once in a while, and masters also disappear constantly.
Some of those who disappeared were simply tired of the life of killing and lived a leisurely life in anonymity.
Some of them really failed.
For example, this Iron Fist Golden Wolf, everyone believed that he died in a sea storm while on a sea escort mission three years ago, but his body has never been found, so he was judged to be [missing].
No matter how powerful an individual is, he or she will be as fragile as an ant before the roaring storm of nature.
Before Su Xia became famous, Iron Fist Golden Wolf was the most famous owner of metal abilities.
Next, there were several people who were speculated to be the masked man.
Like the Iron Fist Golden Wolf, they are also missing.
Some have never demonstrated the ability to control metal, but as long as they awaken their talent, there may be a certain probability of drawing this ability.
"Iron Fist Golden Wolf, what a pity for this big guy." The bartender Afeng sighed, "Three years ago, when I first became a psychic creature, he took me on a mission. He had extremely strong metal abilities, was free and easy, and came and went like the wind, no less than the current masked weirdo."
"Do you think it could be him?" Su Xia asked.
"It's very possible, but I can't explain where he went during the three years he was missing... Could he really have been captured by the Mechanical Tribe?"
So far, the disappearance of many psychic creatures is related to the mechanical race.
Everyone knows this, but few dare to point it out publicly.
After all, this is an age where everyone is in danger, and no one wants to be targeted by the mechanical race.
Time passed quickly, and in a blink of an eye it was already twelve o'clock noon.
After reading all the messages, Su Xia returned to the public area on the first floor.
At this time, the atmosphere on the first floor was lively and the aroma of wine was everywhere. The group of people who had gone out to hunt the masked monster before came back. They were all in high spirits, with flushed faces, drinking and boasting loudly.
As soon as she walked out of the door of the corridor compartment, Su Xia heard the drunken roars of several people.
“Almost!”
“This time it’s really just a little bit!”
"I almost touched the edge of the masked man's clothes, but he still ran away!"
"I will definitely catch it next time..."
“…”
Some people drank too much and could not speak clearly. Their tongues seemed to be tied. In the end, all they could say was random yells.
There were also people who were conscious and sat among the crowd, carefully describing the chase scene that had just happened.
The scene was thrilling, full of crises, ups and downs, and very exciting.
"…At that time, the masked man and I engaged in close combat, our swords collided, and spiritual energy exploded. My sword was only half an inch away from his throat, and his sword pierced my heart…Perhaps it was a hero appreciating a hero, we both put away our weapons at the same time, passed each other, and he just floated away…"
"Is it so dangerous?"
Many people listened attentively, with the images of swords and sabers constantly appearing in their minds. They savored the scene for a long time and felt it was extremely exquisite.
After listening, some people felt that they still knew too little about the masked man.
If I knew him better, maybe I could succeed this time.
As a result, more people came to buy news and information.
"We want all the information about the masked man!" Someone found the bartender Afeng and spoke in a tone that showed he had no shortage of money.
A Feng resumed his business smile and said seriously, "Is the guest a registered member of the tavern?"
The man shook his head: "No."
A Feng said: "Those who are not registered members of the pub cannot access important information."
The man asked, "Is it not possible to buy it?"
A Feng: "No... But the registration procedure is very simple. If the customer is willing..."
He started recruiting people again and was very skilled in his job.
On the first floor, besides him, there are many bartenders and waiters doing the same thing.
Seeing this, Su Xia did not stay any longer and left the tavern.
He didn't get the information he wanted in the tavern, and didn't even find any trace of his father's team.
The inside information that the Zero Point Tavern knew was not as much as Su Xia himself knew. Even the real reason why the mechanical clan sealed up the pharmacy was not written down, nor was there any mention of "mixed experimental subjects".
Of course, perhaps because the information is too confidential, only the tavern's top management knows it.
"It's time to go check on those people."
Su Xia stood at the door of the tavern, clicked on the mission [Bury the Bones in a Foreign Land], and found the locations of several targets in Seahorse City.
These targets lived very close to each other, just outside the east side of the city, probably in an area outside the third ring road, which saved Su Xia from running around the city.
He hailed a car at the door of the pub and took a taxi to his destination.
While in the car, Su Xia asked the taxi driver: "Master, how about the area outside the third ring road in the east of the city?"
"Are you from another place, young man?" asked the taxi driver.
"Yes, I came to Haiba City to visit relatives." Su Xia replied.
"That place is not very good. It's full of refugees who later joined Kaiba City. You have to be mentally prepared, young man."
The driver thought that Su Xia couldn't make it out there, so she came here to live with her relatives.
"Well, thank you very much..."
Su Xia looked out the window, thinking silently.
It seems that few of the family members of the Old North Wind organization have a good life. They all live in slums, refugee camps, sewers, downtown areas and the like. Their lives are difficult and extremely hard.
It’s normal to think about it, only suffering can create such a team.
How many of those who live a comfortable life are willing to rebel?
If people can eat and drink delicious food every day and have no worries about food and clothing, few people would be willing to change the status quo. Even many of the rebels are weak-willed like Zhao Si.
"I'll take a rest for a while. Master, please call me when you arrive." Su Xia estimated the time and it would take about half an hour for Mo to arrive.
"Okay, don't worry, young man."
"Um."
Su Xia leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and clicked to log off.
He returned to Earth, got out of bed quickly, left the dormitory, ran to the cafeteria, ate lunch as quickly as possible, and then hurried back to the dormitory.
Several roommates went out to experience the VR Hive, so the dormitory was empty and quiet.
Su Xia brushed her teeth, went back to bed, activated the bracelet, and went back online.
In the game world, taxis are still running smoothly.
"We should be there soon." Su Xia looked at the time, silently opened the small map and checked his location .
wrong……
Why is the destination further away?
Su Xia's face turned cold and she almost pulled out a knife, thinking that the driver was a kidnapper and trafficker.
But he immediately thought that if he really wanted to kidnap him , he should knock him out first.
"I met a greedy person." Su Xia quickly figured out that the driver heard that he was from another place and was unfamiliar with the local area, so in order to make more money, he actually took him around the city.
It's okay to cheat money, Su Xia doesn't care about this little money, the main thing is that it's a waste of time, and time is much more valuable than money.
He took out a card and flicked it.
"call out--"
There was a loud bang, and the taxi meter was split in two by the rapidly spinning card, the wire broke, and sparks flew.
The driver who was driving trembled all over and almost lost his grip on the steering wheel. He said tremblingly: "Young man, what are you...what are you going to do?"
"Master, please be faster. I'm in a hurry." Su Xia said calmly.
"yes……"
The driver's face turned pale and he swallowed, realizing that he had met a ruthless person and dared not have any other thoughts.
Su Xia said again: "Master, there are many outsiders coming here recently, some of them are desperate criminals, do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand, I understand..."
The driver's world still belongs to ordinary people, there is no fighting and killing, and there should be no intersection with the world of the masked monster.
Su Xia's words saved his life.
If he continued to overcharge customers like this, and happened to be killed by a foreign killer with a bad temper, his life would most likely be in danger.
On the map, the little red dot representing Su Xia finally began to approach the gray dots that represented the targets.
The tall buildings gradually became fewer and fewer, and the further we went outside, the more desolate it became. Gradually, only some low-rise houses were left outside the car window, and they all looked gray at a glance.
“Ding Di——”
Suddenly, a horn sounded from behind, which sounded several times in a row.
The driver looked nervous and quickly turned the steering wheel to the right side of the lane to clear the fast lane on the left.
Soon, several old trucks sped past with their wheels spinning rapidly.
The taxi was actually not as fast as the truck. Su Xia couldn't help but remind him, "Master, relax. Being nervous will cause your muscles to become stiff and your body to become rigid."
"Yes, yes, I understand..."
The driver forced a smile and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the handkerchief beside him.
The car speed did not increase until 1:30 in the afternoon when Su Xia finally arrived at the destination.
The third ring road outside the east city is where a large number of poor people live.
The city of Seahorse was founded by refugees. The first batch of city builders received many benefits, but after the population was sufficient, there were no benefits for the refugees who joined later.
Su Xia got out of the car. The sunlight outside was a little pale. He squinted and looked forward.
"Not bad, clean and tidy, life should be fine."
Although it is where poor people live, it is not as messy as the slums in Coral City. Instead, it is clean and orderly.
Rows of gray cement resettlement houses stand in front of us, looking very dense. The quality of life may not be high, but at least they can shelter from wind and rain, which is much better than iron sheds and rotten plastic sheds.
Su Xia noticed that the old trucks that he had just overtaken were also parked outside this area.
He took out the fare, handed it to the driver, and asked, "Master, do you recognize these trucks?"
"Yes, it's the city lord's motorcade." The driver replied immediately.
"The city lord's convoy is so shabby?"
"No, no, I heard that it was privately organized by his son, specializing in bringing aid to the poor."
Taxi drivers are a city’s living database. They travel around the city every day, come into contact with different people, and often know many things that ordinary people don’t know.
Su Xia nodded silently. He had heard Cheng Men talk about the city lord's son before.
He was an alternative. Instead of enjoying his wealthy life, he admired the masked weirdo and liked to imitate him. He was caught by the Zero Point Tavern not long ago.
“There are actually people like this in the world.”
