“Damn it.”
Xu Bei saw his benefactor fall and instantly flew into a rage. His round eyes widened, he flung off his hat, stomped his left foot, and suddenly launched a headbutt on the spot.
“Bang!” With a loud noise, he smashed his forehead straight into the other guy’s iron-hard, casserole-sized fist.
A crisp crack echoed in the air as several bones snapped.
The Giant Strongman, who stood over 1.9 meters tall, staggered back several steps, his face flushed red but his lips turning ashen.
His left hand dangled, all five fingers broken. The pain was so intense it ran straight to his heart, making him drool as his eyes bulged, but he would rather die than utter a sound.
In contrast, Xu Bei’s head was completely unscathed and smooth. He bent down, picked up his hat, put it back on, and turned to help his little sister up—cool as could be.
“A bunch of Muscle Medicine Jars—what makes you think you can mess with a Demon?”
That simple threat was enough to make the gang of boxers retreat in fear, not daring to come any closer.
“I’m a Government-Certified Harmless Legal Magical Human. My harmlessness is for the powerful and the rulers. But for ants like you, who could die and no one would care, I’ll kill as many as come at me. Even the Demon Investigation Bureau won’t say a word to me…”
Xu Bei hadn’t even finished when the thug boxers, dragging their boss, had already run off at top speed, vanishing in an instant.
“Xu-ge, would you really kill as many as come at you?” Sun Xiaohui asked.
“Dummy, I was just bluffing. I’m a First-Class Good Citizen. Let’s go home.” Xu Bei retorted.
But just then, Xu Bei turned and saw an ad pasted on the Transparent Wall of the Convenience Store.
[Latest Ultra-High Difficulty Masochist’s Come Suffer Adventure Action Full-Dive Virtual Game “Dear Son” Officially Released!]
[Streamer Challenge Tournament! Contestants Wanted! One million yuan in prizes waiting for you!]
Xu Bei suddenly couldn’t take another step.
He didn’t know anything about games or streamers; he was just drawn in by the prize money.
“What’s this?” Xu Bei walked up to the advertisement.
“This is a full-dive game. The store just got a batch of Virtual Game Helmets. Oh, and there’s a group of guys in my class who love watching livestreams, I think they watch people playing games like this.” Sun Xiaohui replied.
“I’m not asking about that. What does this prize money mean?” Xu Bei pressed.
“If you clear the game, you get the prize money… I think that’s what it means?” Sun Xiaohui shook her head, barely managing an analysis.
“Let’s give it a try. So there’s actually a way to make big money like this? Before, I didn’t have an Identity Card and couldn’t log into any online device. Now I finally have the chance—let me try!” Xu Bei said excitedly.
Before, without an Identity Card, he couldn’t use most online services.
For example, these virtual games required an Identity Card to log in. He’d only ever heard of them, never played.
Now that he finally had a Legal Demon Identification Card, how could he not jump at the chance?
But the main reason was that even after wandering around, Xu Bei still couldn’t find a job despite having a Legal Demon Identification Card, so he could only try something unconventional for a shot at luck.
“Xu-ge, you really want to try? I’ll set you up with one.”
Sun Xiaohui agreed without hesitation, went back to the Convenience Store, and bought a full set of Virtual Game Helmet.
On the way home, Xu Bei hugged the brand-new Virtual Game Helmet, grinning like a kid.
“Xu-ge, we’re going to have to tighten our belts for a while and only eat the cheap stuff.” Sun Xiaohui, however, couldn’t quite smile.
Hearing this, Xu Bei stopped in his tracks and asked in shock, “Is this thing expensive?”
“It’s over ten thousand. The Game Disc costs several hundred more. Now I finally understand why the guys in my class only watch and never play—it’s because they can’t afford it.” Sun Xiaohui said with a bitter smile.
“It really sells for that much?” Xu Bei sucked in a breath at the price.
Ten thousand wasn’t much to his old self, but now, relying on a high school girl’s help and being penniless, it was a hefty sum.
“I’ll figure it out when we get home. I’ll definitely earn it all back.” Xu Bei said confidently, giving Sun Xiaohui some encouragement.
“Mm.” Sun Xiaohui nodded and smiled slightly.
She believed Xu Bei’s Classic Scumbag Quote.
That “if you let a woman pay, I’ll definitely earn back more,” but in the end, it always went down the drain.
But was Xu Bei really a scumbag?
Don’t jump to conclusions! Let’s see if I can actually earn the money back first!
“Xiaohui, you’re back? And you really brought this blond little punk with you!”
Back at the Rental Apartment, the Landlady, who was stationed at the door, immediately started yelling the moment she saw Xu Bei.
“He… he’s…” Sun Xiaohui was stunned and couldn’t get her words out.
“Boyfriend,” Xu Bei whispered as a prompt.
“He’s my boyfriend.” Sun Xiaohui followed along.
But as soon as she said it, something felt off. Her face flushed red, and she froze in embarrassment.
“Xiaohui, you’re so young and have a bright future—how could you pick a street punk for a boyfriend? Are you being tricked?” The Landlady screeched.
“Why do you care so much? Do you have to butt into who someone dates? Are you her mom? Or my mom? Do you have any sense of reason? Why do you look down on people like that? Do you even know what free love is?” Xu Bei rebuked sternly.
The Landlady’s face turned crimson with rage, about to explode with curses.
“We better run—bye, Landlady.”
Not giving her a chance to speak, Xu Bei quickly pulled Sun Xiaohui around her and dashed into the Rental Apartment.
The Landlady didn’t chase after them. As much as she wanted to curse them out, she held her tongue.
After all, they were her tenants, and it wasn’t easy to find reliable ones for her shabby place.
Back in the room, Xu Bei couldn’t wait to tear open the box and pull out the brand-new virtual game neural link helmet.
Besides the helmet, there was also a newly released game called “Dear Son.”
He picked up the manual and read it carefully.
It was extremely easy to use—just connect the Virtual Game Helmet to the internet, insert the Game Disc and Identity Card, and you could log in. Even an idiot could do it.
But Xu Bei wasn’t here to play games—he was here to make money.
He grabbed his phone and browsed the official website for “Dear Son,” looking up how to win the prize money.
“After entering the game, activate Streamer Mode, and the system will automatically create a Live Room.”
“Comprehensive Popularity Grand Prize? And a whole bunch of ranking rewards? What a mess.”
Popularity and all that had nothing to do with him. Those prizes were for the big streamers and pros.
“Fastest Clear Grand Prize! Five hundred thousand yuan!”
Now that was the challenge for ordinary folks like him—a chance to pocket half a million all by himself.
Also, any streamer who cleared the game within the designated time after launch could get a Consolation Prize of ten thousand.
The time limit was one week.
It was only the second day since launch—he had six days left!
Even just getting the Consolation Prize would be fine—at least it’d cover the cost of the Virtual Game Helmet.
“As long as I clear the game in a stream, I’m guaranteed at least ten thousand. Not bad.”
Muttering to himself, Xu Bei put on the Virtual Game Helmet and lay down on the bedding.
“Xu-ge, was it true when you said you were my boyfriend earlier?” Sun Xiaohui asked shyly.
But when she turned around, Xu Bei’s consciousness had already sunk into the virtual world.
Pouting in dissatisfaction, Sun Xiaohui nonetheless gently covered Xu Bei with a thin blanket, so he wouldn’t catch a cold.