Chapter 2: Lucky Gift Pack

Game Watch retail store.

Fang Yue, who had just arrived at the scene, looked at the long queue and felt a twinge of despair.

At this position in the line, can I still buy a Game Watch?

Tonight, *Blue Sea* opens its servers.

If I don't manage to buy the watch, I'll have to wait for the next batch to arrive before coming back.

Based on past gaming experience, falling one step behind at launch means falling behind at every step after.

He was still counting on getting rich from *Blue Sea*!

On the way here, he had tried using the parchment's prophecies to buy lottery tickets or stocks through his phone.

But the parchment showed no reaction at all—no text surfaced whatsoever.

Next, Fang Yue tried every method he could think of and discovered that the parchment only reacted to certain actions.

This killed any notion Fang Yue had of getting rich overnight.

He took a queue number from the machine and stood at the very back of the line.

Anxious, Fang Yue pulled out the parchment, and this time text quickly surfaced on it.

【I obediently started queuing.】

【The line moved forward slowly.】

【By the time it was my turn, the Game Watches were already sold out.】

So there's no chance for me?

Fang Yue's heart grew anxious; the text on the parchment vanished and then reappeared.

【Unwilling to wait patiently, I began cutting in line.】

【Someone noticed my immoral behavior and started cursing me out.】

【I swallowed the humiliation, didn't argue back, and silently kept cutting in line, only to be loudly denounced and rouse the crowd's fury.】

【I got beaten up.】

【After a bout of arguing and trading blows, I broke three bones and ended up covered in bruises, in exchange for a seven-day tour of a jail cell.】

【Seven days later, I got out of jail, successfully bought the watch, and fell seven days behind everyone else.】

【I got the watch, but lost my mother. Was it worth it? I fell into deep thought.】

... Damn parchment!

Fang Yue's face darkened. That parchment never spouts anything good!

Queuing normally means I can't buy the watch.

Cutting in line means getting beaten to death.

What do you want me to do?

As if responding to Fang Yue's thoughts, the parchment began surfacing text again.

【I racked my brains and suddenly noticed the guy in the baseball cap ahead of me looked familiar.】

【Thinking carefully, I remembered—I had once bought a scalper ticket from that guy.】

【He's a scalper! Convinced of this, I walked over and had a word with him.】

【After some negotiation, I bought his queue number.】

【Half an hour later, I bought the Game Watch.】

There's still this trick!

Delighted, Fang Yue craned his neck for a look and sure enough spotted a scalper.

He stepped out of the line and went over to the scalper wearing the baseball cap.

"Bro, you selling that spot?"

The scalper lifted his head.

"Sharp eye—you know what I do." He paused, then continued: "But that spot's already reserved."

"Can't sell it?"

Fang Yue was a little disappointed—this wasn't what the parchment had said.

"Sell? What are you joking about! What do we value most in this line of work? Reputation! The word 'reputation'—how important is it? The word 'reputation' is worth a fortune! So..." The scalper emphasized his tone: "... that'll cost extra!"

"... How much?"

"Ten thousand!"

"What?!"

Fang Yue was so startled his eyeballs nearly popped out.

His entire net worth was only thirty thousand—ten thousand for the Game Watch, leaving twenty thousand for living expenses and emergencies.

This scalper opens with ten thousand—treating me like a fat pig to slaughter!

Fang Yue turned to leave, but after three steps he suddenly stopped.

Because text had surfaced on the parchment again.

【I didn't buy that scalper's spot. I went and found another scalper in the long line and bought the Game Watch from them instead.】

【But afterward, I learned that the baseball-cap scalper's spot actually got you the Game Watch with the Lucky Gift Pack.】

【Every night after that, thinking back on it, I was consumed by regret and cried myself to sleep.】

A Game Watch with a Lucky Gift Pack?!

Fang Yue thought for only one second before immediately turning back.

"I'll take it!"

The transfer completed the deal, and Fang Yue got the scalper's spot.

He glanced at the parchment, saw no new content appear, and relaxed.

The people ahead and behind him in line looked at Fang Yue with strange eyes, as if he were a fool.

Scalping seats was common, but paying such a high price and willingly getting ripped off? That was rare.

Fang Yue ignored everything.

The line moved orderly, and soon it was Fang Yue's turn.

"Miss, I want to buy a Game Watch!"

"Alright."

Fang Yue grabbed the Game Watch and hurried away.

On the way back, Fang Yue took a taxi to retrieve his electric scooter, then rode it to buy three boxes of instant noodles, preparing for the hard struggle ahead.

He'd already spent over twenty thousand yuan before even entering the game—he was so broke his bells jingled—but now his determination to fight was fierce.

Back at Qing Shui Xiao Qu, he headed straight for Room 305 on the third floor.

This shared apartment had a three-bedroom, one-living-room, one-kitchen layout.

Fang Yue occupied one room; the other two tenants occupied the remaining two rooms.

Fang Yue placed the instant noodles in the kitchen, returned to his room, and suddenly froze—he heard the sound of rushing water coming from the bathroom.

Through the thick glass window, he could make out a hazy, slender figure washing herself.

"Who's in there?"

"It's me."

The bathroom door cracked open a sliver; a cute girl poked her head out, hair dripping wet, grinning: "Ah Yue, you're back?"

"Yuan Jie? It's you! You scared me half to death. Haven't you had someone fix your bathroom yet?" Fang Yue looked annoyed.

"Hehe, tight on cash, so I'm not fixing it yet! Washing here is just as good. By the way, did you get that watch?"

"It's a Game Watch! For the Blue Sea Game…"

"Got it, got it. Sister's got a date soon—I'm going back to shower."

Saying that, Yuan Jie pulled her head back and shut the bathroom door, acting like she owned the place.

Fang Yue felt helpless—he'd known Yuan Jie for a year.

Yuan Jie had lived in this shared apartment longer than he had; she was outgoing, warm-hearted, and always took care of him, so their relationship was fairly harmonious.

But lately, since her bathroom broke, she kept coming to his to shower, which left him exasperated.

A lone man and a lone woman—what if he couldn't control himself?

The other room was occupied by the landlord's daughter, but she rarely came home, so the large apartment was basically just Fang Yue and Yuan Jie living in it.

Ignoring the rushing water from the bathroom, Fang Yue tidied his room, then took out the Game Watch and examined it closely.

The Game Watch had a high-tech design, primarily silver with black accents, and a round disc in the center.

It hadn't been activated yet, so the watch showed no response.

He put the watch away, then pulled out the parchment and looked at it.

"It's almost time for the game's launch."

"I'm fully prepared."

"Time's up—I'm entering the game on schedule."

Good. Everything was going smoothly.

On anything related to the Blue Sea Game, the parchment always displayed text—could this thing actually enjoy games?

Thud.

At that moment, Yuan Jie stepped out of the bathroom, grinning: "Ah Yue, I'm done."

Seeing the massive curves barely contained by the towel, Fang Yue didn't know where to look, only mumbling "uh… uh…"

Yuan Jie didn't mind; she teased him a bit, waved goodbye, and left—soon, the sound of the door closing echoed.

Fang Yue calmed his emotions and waited for time to pass.

Soon, it reached midnight twelve.

Put on the Game Watch—enter the game!

Fang Yue fell into sleep, his consciousness swallowed by darkness.

Lines of white text appeared in the darkness.

"Verifying identity…"

"Confirming ID…"

"Confirming iris…"

"Player, please choose a game ID before entering."

"【Yese Liming】."

Without hesitation, Fang Yue used his old alt account—this alias had taken him years of effort to build even a sliver of reputation among pro players, and he wasn't about to abandon it.

Reputation was credibility; credibility brought clients.

"ID confirmed. Entering game…"

"Welcome to Lan Hai World!"

Fang Yue entered the game world.

At the same time, the parchment lying on his desk suddenly began to display text.

【I escaped!】

【But I'm too weak.】

【Luckily, I took control of an idiot.】

Puff, puff, puff—he's completely under my control, so easy to fool.

I'll use him to restore my strength.

Be careful, even more careful. Be cautious, even more cautious.

This is my last chance to turn the tide! I must not make another mistake!

The text on the parchment began to vanish line by line, returning to blankness.

……

(End of Chapter)