Chapter 75: Scorpio Mode

Desire Tower, Jicheng, Longshan District.

In Hanjiang Park, quite a few people are playing Go. This is a city with a rather thick atmosphere for the game. Occasionally, some matches even draw crowds of homeless people and passersby to watch.

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

"Rumors of the Hanjiang water monster are intensifying. Experts state that this is an invasive species that has entered the Hanjiang waters. Citizens need not worry; a professional cleanup team is already heading into the depths of the Hanjiang to explore."

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

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

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

"Three days ago, a reporter reported that Miracle Building was involved in religious activities. Currently, the reporter has issued an apology, stating that because they failed to move into Miracle Building, they harbored resentment and twisted the facts. The reporter has also voluntarily gone to Miracle Building to promote it."

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

Wen Xishu smiled, but soon he couldn't smile anymore.

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

Observing himself through the mirror, Wen Xishu discovered that his appearance hadn't changed much, only that he was dressed in rags—or rather, it should be said, overly ragged.

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

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

"How am I supposed to... find An Jincheng, the youngest son of the largest financial tycoon of the Three Balls Group, without knowing any location or information? And within 48 hours, at that."

Fortunately, it seems everything is still quite early, and the timing of his entry into the Desire Tower mission is not bad.

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

"However, Miracle Building seems to have already started to become strange."

This is the information Wen Xishu has 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 makes no sense in terms of mechanics. I have hands and feet and am young... to actually be set as a homeless man. Really just skipping a lifetime of detours, aren't I?"

The homeless man looked at Wen Xishu and said:

"What's up, young man?"

Wen Xishu was still very polite:

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

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 Building!"

"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 to listen to for two hours?"

Wen Xishu turned and left, not wasting time with this homeless man. But at this moment, Wen Xishu suddenly found that he actually saw a prompt.

【Under 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 judgment values.】

What the hell?

Wen Xishu didn't react for a moment.

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

【You have just arrived in this world and are not yet clear on where to go. Hanjiang Park is your newbie village. Now you intend to:】

【1: You decide to beat up this old man. (This option is provided by the Dice of Inversion.)】

【2: You decide to leave directly.】

【3: Invite the old man to play Go.】

【4: Kill the old man (This option is provided by the Dice of Inversion.)】

【5: You intend to politely ask the old man.】

【6: You intend to help the old man with work first.】

【7: Use words to push the old man's emotions to the extreme and peek into the old man's thoughts (Provided by Mysterious Sequence 37: Mental Barrage and the corresponding rune, Hundred-Sense Linkage)】

【8: Integrate (This option is provided by the item "Gradual 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 is a game mode.

One loses a certain degree of free will, but can make some more unreasonable moves through the options.

Wen Xishu chose to leave directly.

At this moment, Wen Xishu suddenly saw a huge die spinning. The people around him all seemed to be 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. You successfully left the old man and completed your first choice. New ideas immediately appeared in 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 still have to roll the die. If the roll doesn't appear in the successful judgment range, it will still fail."

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

Wen Xishu didn't expect Scorpio Mode to be so interesting. Compared to the styles of the Mysterious Virgin and Mysterious Gemini he thought of earlier, he likes this Scorpio more.

Although he doesn't know whether to call this mysterious existence Desire-Scorpio or Mysterious-Scorpio in the Desire Tower.

Wen Xishu immediately had an idea for heading to Miracle Building. His method was simple—create fear.

In the public restroom of the park, a young man who came cycling happened to park his bike outside the restroom. Wen Xishu slipped directly into the restroom and then came to the urinal.

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

"I also ride bikes. I used to love extreme mountain biking."

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

Wen Xishu smiled:

"Hello, although I know you once lived a real life in this world. But now, after all, it's not..."

"You are also not the kind 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 still 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 mental patient are you? Saying all this nonsense, get lost, go ask someone else for money!"

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

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

He smiled and said:

"I'm sorry, please feel fear at the fastest speed possible now."

Before he 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 that could advance the plot would trigger options.

【Evil Value +1.】

【You quickly captured an opportunity to get closer to the main target. Your boundary-crossing behavior has caused your Good/Evil value to begin to change.】

【Now you decide:】

Based on the suspicion that listing too many options is padding, I will not elaborate on the uninteresting options here. Wen Xishu directly chose the option of beating the other party provided by the Dice of Inversion.

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 an extra attribute bonus; the other party will be completely unable to resist and will quickly beg for mercy.】

Wen Xishu's Desire Tower level and Mysterious Tower level are both level 9.

The combat attributes added by the Desire Tower level and Mysterious Tower level are very, very few, but they are not non-existent, just negligible compared to the Slaughter Tower.

And Wen Xishu's own physique is tough, which also led to his sudden attack and the extra attribute bonus, making the other party completely unable to parry.

"Fear, fear early and you won't get beaten early."

Wen Xishu was telling the truth; his expression was very serious, so much so that in the other party'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 there be a burden to killing in Grand Theft Auto? The mission to save An Jincheng might benefit all of humanity in the bunker...

So he carried a sacred sense of mission and beat him frantically.

Because he obtained the cheating ability from the two-stage chain option of the Dice of Inversion, this also enabled Wen Xishu to use an extra tower-system ability and rule in one tower.

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

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

But he could use sequences.

【So scary! Damn, 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-Sense Linkage 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 fear quickly. Let's do it again. Now, please think about An Jincheng, Miracle Building, any word will do."

After a brief pause, it was another round of beating!

The barrage appeared again quickly.

【Fuck, someone save me, isn't An Jincheng the young master of Three Balls? What does it have to do with a loser like me!】

【Miracle Building... is that the Miracle Building in Jiangnan District?】

Extreme anger, extreme sadness, extreme joy... none of these are things Wen Xishu can easily mobilize.

But extreme fear is simple; it only requires beating the other party until they are afraid.

Wen Xishu's Desire Tower working style was actually established at this moment. Based on this success, it fostered his behavior of starting a fight without a word in the Desire Tower in the future.

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

This also made Wen Xishu feel exceptionally effortless. It seemed to be related to that time he exchanged truths with Tang Rui.

It was a sunny afternoon, two young men leaned their bicycles on the side of the road, eating popsicles, with a rather beautiful sense of peaceful years.

"Ahui, do you think we can sign up for Miracle Apartment? The rent is so expensive now... that place, the location is good, over in Jiangnan District, and it's cheap, I heard the configuration is also super high."

"What are you thinking? Do you really think the rich do charity? Fuck, let's go, let's ride. Stop daydreaming. I think, it's not guaranteed that the people who move in in the future will be extorted and bled dry by those tycoons!"

Ahui was the person Wen Xishu was beating.

Wen Xishu likes smart people. After sensing this memory, he immediately stopped:

"I didn't expect your intuition to help you escape a disaster. You're right, that place will indeed bleed people dry. Little Hui, work hard. But I'll take your phone, money, and bike first."

Wen Xishu threw another punch. Under the great success judgment of 24 points, he precisely knocked the other party unconscious.

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

"Little Hui, thanks for your help. In the future, when you enter the bunker, you can use my name."

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

But Wen Xishu could feel some things outside the dialogue, 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.

Jicheng, Zhongcheng District.

Amiao woke up.

Because there was no luck point allocation, Amiao's entry identity, initial amount, and distance to the mission target were all completely random.

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

And, Amiao was also in Scorpio Mode. It was just that unlike Wen Xishu, her options would not include options like "beat the target," "kill the target," or "mobilize the target's emotions."

At this very moment, Amiao suddenly had a lot more memories, all about her new identity.

She found herself in a car, in the driver's seat.

She was also woken up by the sound of a car horn. At this instant, Amiao realized that she had become a driver in the Three Towers World.

This was no ordinary driver. Amiao found that there was a row of cars in the rearview mirror. To be precise, she should be called a race car driver.

"I... so strange, I have never learned these things, but I feel like this thing is very simple."

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

Thinking that her teammate was Wen Xishu, the great Lord, the genius youth in the Three Towers Academy, Amiao was no longer afraid.

【You have just arrived in this world and are not yet clear on where to go, but you quickly collected your mood and realized that you are participating in a race. You decide—】

A string of outrageous options appeared in Amiao's line of sight. Amiao also made a decision in an instant.

This was a road race.

Location: Zhongcheng District. This is considered a rather peripheral area of Jicheng. The roads here are not bad, but there are not many cars coming and going.

Amiao's memory gave Amiao unparalleled driving skills, and she was also very familiar with the car she was driving.

At this very moment, the cars behind began to roar with engine sounds. This race was about to start.

But suddenly, an accident occurred on the field. Because the Ferrari Amiao was driving started early.

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

The staff in the distance were confused:

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

Not only were the staff confused, but even the contestants on the field were stunned.

Because Amiao's car suddenly made a 180° sharp turn, reversed direction, and ran in the opposite direction! This operation was something they had only seen in Ready Player One.

"What's the situation, has this woman gone crazy! Is this a withdrawal?"

"The organizer is too shameless! Playing like this? Who will bet on cars in the future! The top favorite directly turns around and withdraws?"

The scene was in chaos. Amiao chose to run directly toward Miracle Building. This was also the only way she could imagine to reunite with Wen Xishu.

Wen Xishu, far away in Longshan District, was pedaling his bicycle at this time, thinking in his mind whether Amiao would be assigned to a very far place, and how Amiao, who couldn't use violence, would get to Miracle Building.

Although Wen Xishu didn't know what the situation at Miracle Building would be like, he was confident that as long as he could get to Miracle Building, he could find out where the mission target was.

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

What he didn't know was that he was riding a bicycle, while Amiao was driving a supercar. The gap between people is sometimes just that huge.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 76 =====