Chapter 75: Scorpio Mode

Desire Tower, Ji City, Longshan District.

In Hanjing Park, many people are playing Go. This is a city with a rather thick atmosphere for Go. Occasionally, some matches even draw crowds of homeless people and passersby.

It is ten o'clock in the morning, and a homeless man is listening to a radio.

"Rumors of the Hanjing water monster are intensifying. Experts state that this is an invasive species that has entered the Hanjing waters. The general public need not worry; a professional cleanup team is already exploring the depths of the Hanjing."

"There is no such thing as water ghosts or water monsters in this world. Please trust in science, citizens; the Hanjing monster is merely a movie."

This was also the first sentence Wen Xishu heard after arriving at Desire Tower.

Wen Xishu originally wanted to leave, thinking of finding A-Miao first, but he was quickly drawn in by the second item on the radio.

"Three days ago, a reporter reported that religious activities were taking place at Miracle Tower. Currently, the reporter has issued an apology, stating that they harbored resentment for failing to secure a residence at Miracle Tower, which led them to distort the facts. Furthermore, the reporter has volunteered to go to Miracle Tower to promote it."

"The claim that the staff inside Miracle Tower are members of a cult is purely a rumor. Other residents of Miracle Tower have also spoken out, stating that life inside Miracle Tower is happy and fulfilling."

Wen Xishu smiled, but he could not keep smiling for long.

He silently recited to check his attributes, and that mirror soon appeared. It was just that the people around him could not see it.

Observing himself through the mirror, Wen Xishu discovered that his appearance had not changed much, only that he was dressed in rags—or rather, it should be said, he was dressed too shabbily.

This opening certainly gave Wen Xishu a bit of a headache.

All his luck points had been dumped into this identity—a beggar.

"How am I supposed to... find An Jincheng, the youngest son of the greatest financial tycoon of the Three-Ball Group, without knowing his location or any information? And within 48 hours, no less."

Fortunately, it seemed that everything was still quite early; the timing of his entry into the Desire Tower mission was not bad.

"An Jincheng has not yet changed his name to An Zhenqi. But Miracle Tower has already been completed. It is possible that the seven households, including An Jincheng, have not yet moved in."

"However, Miracle Tower seems to have already begun to turn strange."

This was the information Wen Xishu had obtained so far. He stood up and walked toward the owner of the radio. That was also a homeless man.

However, the standard-issue radio made the homeless man look at Wen Xishu with a very smug expression.

Wen Xishu thought to himself:

"Being chosen as a homeless man is unreasonable in terms of mechanics. I have hands, I have feet, and I'm young... to be set as a homeless man. Really just skipping a lifetime of detours, aren't we?"

The homeless man looked at Wen Xishu and said:

"What's up, young man?"

Wen Xishu remained very polite:

"Could you tell me in which direction Miracle Tower is?"

The homeless man laughed loudly:

"Are you trying to go there to beg for food? Hahahaha... don't even think about it, you can't get into Miracle Tower!"

"People like us, whom no one would care about even if we died, should just listen to the radio. How about you buy me a can of cola, and I'll lend you the radio for two hours?"

Wen Xishu turned and walked away, not wanting to waste time with this homeless man. But at this moment, Wen Xishu suddenly found that he could actually see a prompt.

[In Scorpio Mode, behavioral options will be listed based on all your attributes, including exclusive options. Your abilities will influence the generation of certain options and the tendency of the judgment values.]

What the hell?

Wen Xishu didn't react for a moment.

However, after seeing the options appear before him, Wen Xishu understood what Scorpio Mode actually meant.

[You have just arrived in this world and are unsure of where to go. Hanjing Park is your starter village. Now you intend to:]

[1: You decide to beat up this old man. (This option is provided by the Inverted Dice.)]

[2: You decide to leave immediately.]

[3: Invite the old man to play Go.]

[4: Kill the old man. (This option is provided by the Inverted Dice.)]

[5: You intend to politely ask the old man.]

[6: You intend to help the old man with his work first.]

[7: Use words to push the old man's emotions to the extreme and peek into his thoughts (provided by Strange Sequence 37: Mental Barrage and the corresponding Hundred-Senses Link rune).]

[8: Blend in (This option is provided by the item "Gradient Indifference").]

There were over a dozen similar options...

Wen Xishu looked at the string of options and was shocked. He understood in an instant that the so-called Scorpio Mode was a game mode.

He had lost a certain amount of freedom of action, but he could use the options to perform some more unreasonable actions.

Wen Xishu chose to leave immediately.

At this moment, Wen Xishu suddenly saw a giant die spinning. The people around him all seemed to have frozen.

The roll: 17.

[Some actions require a roll greater than 15 to take effect, but for this option, the roll only needs to be greater than 2 to take effect normally.]

[You rolled a 17, a great success. Your action was highly successful; you successfully left the old man and completed your first choice. New ideas immediately entered your mind.]

Wen Xishu found it quite interesting.

"There are a few options that others probably don't have, but I do. And this Scorpio, it's not just about making a choice..."

"After making a choice, you have to roll the die once. If the die roll doesn't appear in the successful judgment range, it will still fail."

"But if it's in the success range and the roll is high... it seems there will be extra attribute bonuses."

Wen Xishu hadn't expected Scorpio Mode to be so interesting. Compared to the styles of Strange-Virgo and Strange-Gemini he had thought of earlier, he liked this Scorpio better.

Although he didn't know whether to call this mysterious existence Desire-Scorpio or Strange-Scorpio while in Desire Tower.

Wen Xishu immediately had an idea for heading to Miracle Tower; his method was simple—create fear.

In the park's public restroom, a young man who had come for a bike ride had just parked his bike outside. Wen Xishu slipped directly into the restroom and went to the urinal.

He was right next to the cyclist. After the other man finished relieving himself and gave a shake, Wen Xishu said:

"I ride bikes too. I used to love doing extreme mountain biking."

The cyclist was stunned, clearly not expecting anyone to suddenly strike up a conversation.

Wen Xishu smiled:

"Hello. Although I know you once lived a real life in this world, it isn't anymore..."

"And you aren't the type of person who needs to be saved to anchor history."

"So, unfortunately, you little cutie have been chosen by me. I need a bike, and at the same time, I need a mobile phone. But considering you might call the police, I chose to act in a place like a restroom where there is no surveillance."

The cyclist looked at Wen Xishu's ragged attire and cursed:

"What kind of psycho are you? What are you talking about? Get lost, go ask someone else for money!"

He zipped up his pants at lightning speed and thought about escaping quickly.

The timing Wen Xishu chose was also very precise, just when no one else was around.

He said with a smile:

"I'm sorry, please feel fear as quickly as possible now."

Before he had even finished speaking, Wen Xishu's fist had already landed on the cyclist.

At this moment, Wen Xishu's options appeared once again. This also confirmed to Wen Xishu that any action capable of advancing the plot would trigger options.

[Evil Value +1.]

[You have quickly seized an opportunity to get closer to the main objective. Your transgressive behavior has begun to change your Good/Evil value.]

[Now you decide:]

Based on the suspicion that listing too many options would be padding, I will not dwell on the uninteresting options here; Wen Xishu directly chose the option provided by the Inverted Dice to beat up the other party.

The roll: 24.

[Some actions require a roll greater than 15 to take effect, but for this option, the roll only needs to be greater than 3 to take effect normally.]

[You rolled a 24, a great success. Your beating action will receive extra attribute bonuses; the other party will be completely unable to resist and will quickly beg for mercy.]

Wen Xishu's Desire Tower level and Strange Tower level were both level 9.

The combat attributes added by the Desire Tower and Strange Tower levels were very, very small, but they were not non-existent; they were just negligible compared to the Slaughter Tower.

Moreover, Wen Xishu's own physique was tough, which led to his sudden attack and the extra attribute bonus, making it impossible for the other party to parry.

"Be afraid. The sooner you're afraid, the sooner you stop getting beaten."

Wen Xishu was telling the truth; his expression was very serious, so much so that in the other person's eyes, it looked more like he was having a psychotic break.

Who just starts a fight without a word?

Wen Xishu had absolutely no psychological burden. Would one have a burden killing people in Grand Theft Auto? The mission to save An Jincheng might benefit all of humanity in the bunker...

So, carrying a sacred sense of mission, he beat him wildly.

Because he had obtained a cheating ability from the "two-stage link" option of the Inverted Dice, this allowed Wen Xishu to use one extra ability and rule from a tower system while inside a tower.

Wen Xishu chose to be able to use Strange Tower abilities in Desire Tower, and to be able to use Desire Tower abilities and items in Strange Tower.

In other words, this time, Wen Xishu could not use "Forgot the Key" to break down the door. Because that was an item belonging to the Slaughter Tower system.

But he could use sequences.

[So scary! Damn it, so scary! Why did I run into this lunatic! I was just riding a bike and taking a leak!]

Due to the existence of the Hundred-Senses Link rune, when the mental barrage appeared, Wen Xishu could sense memories related to the content of the barrage.

He suddenly stopped and said in a very polite and slightly apologetic tone:

"I'm sorry, I forgot to add a keyword just now. I was too focused on making you feel afraid quickly. Let's do it again. Now, please think of An Jincheng, Miracle Tower—any one of those words will do."

After a brief pause, another round of beating began!

The barrage soon appeared again.

[Fuck, someone save me! Isn't An Jincheng the young master of the Three-Ball Group? What does that have to do with a loser like me!]

[Miracle Mansion... is that the Miracle Mansion in the Gangnam District?]

Extreme anger, extreme sorrow, extreme joy... none of these were things Wen Xishu could easily summon.

But extreme fear was simple; one only needed to beat the other party until they were afraid.

The style of conduct Wen Xishu used in the Desire Tower was actually established at this very moment. Based on this success, he developed his habit of resorting to violence at the slightest disagreement later on in the Desire Tower.

He lightly touched the second mental barrage. A memory immediately appeared in his mind.

This also made Wen Xishu feel exceptionally relieved and at ease. It was as if it were related to that time he exchanged truths with Tang Rui.

It was a sunny afternoon, and two young men leaned their bicycles against the roadside, eating popsicles, possessing quite a beauty of peaceful, quiet years.

"Ah Hui, do you think we could sign up for Miracle Apartments? The rent is so expensive now... that place has a great location, over in the Gangnam District, and it's cheap too. I heard the amenities are super high-end."

"What are you thinking about? Do you really think the rich do charity? Damn, let's go, let's ride our bikes. Stop daydreaming. I tell you, it's not guaranteed that the people who move in there in the future won't be extorted and bled dry by those conglomerates!"

Ah Hui was the person Wen Xishu had just beaten.

Wen Xishu liked smart people; after sensing this memory, he immediately stopped:

"I didn't expect your intuition to help you dodge a bullet. That's right, that place will indeed be a bloodsucker. Hui-zai, work hard. But I'll be taking your phone, money, and bike first."

With one more punch, under the great success judgment of a 24, he precisely knocked the other party unconscious.

Afterward, Wen Xishu changed into the other party's jacket and pants:

"Hui-zai, thanks for your help. If you enter the bunker in the future, you can mention my name."

Wen Xishu was just saying it for fun. After changing his clothes, he immediately rode the bike away from the park. Although the conversation presented in Ah Hui's memory only had those two segments...

...Wen Xishu could sense things beyond the conversation, such as the location. These memories also entered Wen Xishu's mind together.

After the mental barrage expanded, Wen Xishu felt the power of this sequence for the first time.

Ji City, Zhongcheng District.

A-Miao woke up.

Because there was no luck value allocation, A-Miao's entry identity, initial funds, and distance to the mission target were all completely random.

But there was one point: as people who entered the game as a team, the time point of A-Miao and Wen Xishu's entry mission was the same. The two were not on different timelines.

Also, A-Miao was likewise in Scorpio mode. It was just that unlike Wen Xishu, her options would not include things like "beat the target," "kill the target," or "manipulate the target's emotions."

At this very moment, A-Miao suddenly had many more memories; they were all memories regarding her new identity.

She discovered she was in a car, in the driver's seat.

She had also been woken up by the sound of a car horn. In this instant, A-Miao realized she had become a driver in the Three Towers world.

This wasn't just an ordinary driver; A-Miao discovered a long line of cars in the rearview mirror. To be precise, she should be called a race car driver.

"I... how strange. I have never learned these things, but I feel like this stuff is actually very simple."

This was the first time A-Miao had such a feeling. She had been to the Desire Tower many times, and this was the first time such a situation had occurred.

Thinking that her teammate was Wen Xishu, the great Lord, and a genius youth from the Three Towers Academy, A-Miao was no longer afraid.

[You have just arrived in this world and are not yet clear on where to go, but you quickly composed yourself and realized you are participating in a race. You decide—]

A series of outrageous options appeared in A-Miao's line of sight. A-Miao also made a decision in an instant.

This was a road race.

Location: Zhongcheng District. This was considered a relatively peripheral area of Ji City; the roads here were quite good, but there were not many cars passing through.

A-Miao's memories gave her unparalleled driving skills, and she was also very familiar with the car she was currently driving.

At this moment, the vehicles behind began to emit the roar of engines; this race was about to begin.

But suddenly, an incident occurred on the track. Because the Ferrari A-Miao was driving started early.

As the biggest favorite in this road race, her start drew huge attention.

A staff member in the distance said in a daze:

"What the hell! How did she suddenly start!"

It wasn't just the staff who were stunned; even the contestants on the track were stunned.

Because A-Miao's car suddenly performed a 180-degree sharp turn, reversed direction, and drove in the opposite direction! This maneuver was something they had only seen in *Ready Player One*.

"What's the situation? Is this woman crazy! Is she forfeiting the race?"

"The organizers are too shameless! Playing like this? Who will bet on car races in the future! The top favorite just turns around and forfeits?"

The scene turned into a mess. A-Miao chose to head straight toward the Miracle Mansion. This was also the only way she could imagine to rendezvous with Wen Xishu.

Far away in the Longshan District, Wen Xishu was currently pedaling his bicycle, wondering in his mind if A-Miao had been assigned to a very distant place, and how A-Miao, who couldn't use violence, would manage to get to the Miracle Mansion.

Although Wen Xishu didn't know what the situation at the Miracle Mansion would be like either, he was confident that as long as he could reach the Miracle Mansion, he would be able to investigate where the mission target was.

Now there were only forty-eight hours left, and Wen Xishu could only temporarily set A-Miao aside, assuming A-Miao was useless.

What he didn't know was that he was riding a bicycle while A-Miao was driving a supercar; the gap between people is sometimes just that huge.

(End of chapter)