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Skyroad - Chapter 3

Published at 26th of April 2019 12:00:33 PM


Chapter 3

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Chapter 3: Hopeful Present
 
Amid the dark night, Wang Jinhai stumbled along before he climbed onto his feet, cutting a sorry figure doing so. The helmet he was holding had been slammed around so much its paint was peeling. After standing up, he saw us. Our sudden appearance had obviously given him a fright, “What…do you want?”
“Nothing.” Lin Che replied indifferently, “Are you Headshot?”
“Yes. Why?” Wang Jinhai wiped the blood off the corner of his mouth and continued, “Why…are you looking for me?”
I smiled, “We are planning to create a studio and fight together in the game that was going to be launched soon, Skyroad. We need a good Gunman. Therefore, we are here to invite you to join us.”
Even in this condition, Wang Jinhai still had a prideful look in his eyes, “Why should I join you guys? Are you guys even qualified to be joined by me?”
Lin Che smiled and pointed at me, “His name is Ding Muchen, his Skywarp ID is Polaris Herdsman, nicknamed Legendary Horseman of Polaris. My name is Lin Che, my Skywarp ID is Cold Autumn Waters, number 17 Mage in the national server. Are we qualified to have you join us?”
“Po…Polaris Herdsman?” Wang Jinhai looked at me in surprise, “You…are the Polaris Herdsman that brought Silverfox into the Golden League? The number one Horseman in the national server?”
“Any questions?”
Borrowing the light from the street lamp, I studied him. He looked at me and fell into a short daze.  “You do look familiar…”
Lin Che smiled, “There are only 100 king-rank players in the National Arena. He is one of them, also the only professional Horseman among the kings. Are we qualified to have you to join us?”
“What…can I get from joining?” Wang Jinhai asked after giving it a thought.
Lin Che replied with a stern look on his face, “Apart from starting a studio, we will also establish a management company for the club’s administrative needs. Our company will be hiring you with a high salary. Wang Jinhai, are you willing to join us?”
Wang Jinhai was stunned, “Is your company…capable of building an empire within Skyroad?”
“Yes.”
“Ok. I’m in!” Wang Jinhai nodded.
I reached my hand out and smiled, “Welcome abroad. What should we call you in the future?”
“Call me Big Hai.”
“Sure. Big Hai, it was nice meeting you. Let’s take care of each other in the future.”
Wang Jinhai nodded, “Yeah. Let’s help each other out!”

We brought Wang Jinhai back to the studio. Now, everything was ready. The Skyroad launch was the only thing left. Our next topic of discussion was the purchase of the game helmets.
“Three types of helmets had been released by Skyroad. The first type is the basic helmet. It costs only RMB 2,000. However, this helmet only has a realism level of 85%. We might not be able to judge the in game directional sound properly. Also, our in game sight might be slightly affected as well. Besides that, the users of this helmet can only stay online for eight hours before they have to take a minimum one hour rest. If not, it will be harmful to the body.”
Lin Che looked at the gaming magazine on his hand and continued, “The second type is the common helmet, selling for RMB 10,000 per helmet. It is said that these helmets can reach a realism level of at least 96%. The users can stay online for 12 hours straight and still won’t harm their body. The third type is the VIP helmet. It costs RMB 50,000 each and has a realism level nearing 100%. The users can also stay online without limit with this helmet. So long as your body can take it, you can stay online however long you want. After the sale started, all the basic helmets had been bought and there are no stocks left. In any case, this helmet has an eight hours limitation. I don’t really suggest using this helmet.”
Wang Jinhai nodded, “Yeah. This is very important during the early game period. We can only stay ahead of other players if we can stay online for at least 12 hours continuously. Since our studio’s goal is to make money and level up instead of ruling the server, we should get the best – the VIP helmet. To spend on our weapons, so to speak.”
Zhang Wei nodded in agreement.
“But the problem is we have no money.” I said.
Lin Che nodded, “Yeah. Big Brother Chen bought a villa with the size of thousands of square feet at the first class residential area for his uncle’s retirement. All his savings were spent. My savings from selling my gaming stuff had all been given to my mom as well. I am nearly penniless now.”
Zhang Wei spread his hands and added, “Not only am I penniless, I still owed several thousand bucks in debt.”
Wang Jinhai trembled when he noticed that three pairs of eyes were looking at him. A sense of helplessness hit him, “Shit…I thought your company is paying me a high salary? Don’t tell me you will need me to pay for all the gaming helmets…”
Lin Che started placating him, “Consider this a loan to the studio. When we start making money, we will definitely return every single penny. Don’t worry, Big Hai.”
“Big Hai, do you have RMB 200,000?” I asked.
Wang Jinhai clenched his teeth and assumed a stoic expression, “No I don’t. How will I have that much money? Even if I do have that much money, these are all my hard-earned money from all the offline PK matches I had joined. If your company fails to make money after this, I will go bankrupt.”
“You are one of the top Gunman players in the national server. You need to have the confidence level and boldness matching your level of skill.” Lin Che continued penetrating Wang Jinhai’s psychological barrier.
“This is sketchy as fuck.” Wang Jinhai remarked cautiously.
I said, “You only need RMB 150,000. All the king-rank players from the previous national league are given a free VIP helmet. These are the helmets custom-made for us by the Yueheng Corporation. I already have my helmet. You don’t have to buy me one.”
As I spoke, I opened my backpack and took out a shiny helmet. “The righteous are fearless, the brave shall traverse the skies” were imprinted on the helmet. Also on the helmet was my name, Ding Muchen. This helmet was a symbol of glory for the players capable of reaching king-rank in the national league. It was similar to the golden helmet awarded to the best pilots in the aviation industry, a symbol of a glorious accomplishment.
Wang Jinhai’s eyes lit up. His confidence was returning after seeing my helmet, “Fine. I will take out RMB 150,000 and fight along you guys!”
“Yeah!”
After Lin Che bought three VIP helmets, everything was truly ready. We only needed to wait for the server to go live three months from now.

Time passed and in a flash, we were only three days away from the launch of Skyroad. On 12:00 pm today, the game will be open for registration.
“Remember this. I will repeat one more time.”
Holding the gaming helmet, I spoke, “I will be the Horseman, Little Che will be the Talisman Master, Big Hai will be the Gunman, and Big Brother Wei will be the Monk. Don’t select the wrong class. After character creation, you will get to pick your class. Only then will your registration be completed. Don’t make any mistakes.”
“Ok!”
They all nodded.
“Ready to get online.”
“Ok.”
In the lounge at the villa’s second floor, several camping beds were placed in a row. This was our office. With everyone entering the game from the same room, communication would be easier since we could still hear someone shouting through the helmet. I lied down and put my helmet on before starting it up.
Di! Di! Di!
When I put the helmet on, darkness enveloped my eyes. Amid the darkness, there seemed to be a tiny red dot. Slowly, it flickered as it approached me. After a few seconds, the tiny red dot bloomed and transformed into a graceful-looking fairy. She was very small and looked very exquisite. The light muslin cloth and miniskirt she wore accentuated the glorious figure she had. She wove the delicate scepter she was holding around as she flew towards me from the darkness.
When she arrived, she smiled, “Master, I am your fairy assistant. Please name me.”
I inhaled deeply, “Name…Ding Muchen’s girlfriend!”
Nobody would understand the pain of an old bachelor like me! The fairy assistant stared blankly at me. Soon, “Ding Muchen’s girlfriend” appeared above her head. She looked rather awkward as her face blushed. It seemed like she was actually able to understand what this name meant.
“Master, you’re very naughty…”
This response stunned me. Holy shit. Skyroad had indeed surpassed Yueheng Corporation’s previous game in some aspects. The fairy assistant continued, “Master, the registration will start in 57 minutes. I will be your guide during the registration.”
 “Ok.”
A timer appeared in the distant darkness. In front of me, the fairy assistant flied around, muttering without stop, “Finally, this new world will be opened. I’m so excited about it…”
This fairy assistant is very human-like. I thought in admiration. Before long, the countdown ended. Then, the darkness before me suddenly opened up.
Whoosh…
It was as if a world was being created before me. Darkness dispersed while light arrived. A dusky world appeared before me. Numerous evil spirits appeared on this world. They all had crooked body, and their body reeked of blood. They howled without stop, an intense evil aura hung in the air. Apart from the evil spirits, there were also five meters tall gigantic creatures with blood red eyes carrying giant stones. Sounds of drum rumbled without stop. Facing the army of monsters was a neatly arranged army of armored human cavalries. Finally, the two armies charged each other.
Thunderous rumbles shook the world, and a bloodbath unfolded.
Numerous evil mages in crimson robes chanted loudly as they summoned the evil spirits of the other world. Immediately, numerous scarlet air currents appeared midair and swirled around in chaos. They then shoot straight towards the human army in the form of scarlet light beams. Flesh and blood sprayed everywhere.
Apart from this, numerous bizarre monsters were rolling among the humans, moving like they were spiked wheels. The cavalries were impaled by the spikes while their steeds were smashed into pieces. This was an incomparably bloody scene. At the front row of the army were numerous ghost slaves. The ghost slaves were once humans. However, they had all been seduced by the darkness into becoming the vanguard of the evil spirits.
They seemed to have endless vitality as they brandished their claws to battle the human cavalries. As the chaotic battle progressed, a petite figure appeared among the human army. This was an exceptionally beautiful young woman. She was wearing a snow white robe, while on her hand was a brightly shining sword with a clump of mist drifting around it. Suddenly, she waved her sword. A sword qi slashed out as if it was about to slash the world into two and charged straight towards the evil mages. Instantly, three evil mages exploded into a bloody mist.
One step at a time, the young woman advanced. Countless crimson flames struck her, yet all the flames were bounced off by the protective aura she had around her. Occasionally, she would stop. Sometimes, she would bit on her lips. However, she did not retreat as she advanced forward without stop. Finally, she was flooded amid the countless ghost slaves and brutal giants.
Then, a sword light soared into the sky, killing countless evil spirits, turning the entire world red. And in a flash, everything turned into nothingness. Only clumps of red cloud were left high up in the air. Finally, the clouds transformed into crimson words saying: The righteous are fearless, the brave shall traverse the skies.
Then, the words faded, leaving only a huge Skyroad hanging on the sky. Subsequently, I was sent into the account creation interface. A temple appeared before me as the system started scanning my body to create a template out of me. A character that looked like me now stood at the center of the temple. On his body were shabby looking newbie equipments.
At long last, I’m here, Skyroad!
Di!
The fairy assistant looked at me, “The system has detected that you once used the name “Polaris Herdsman”. This name has been reserved for you by the system. Are you going to use this name?”
“No.”
I shook my head. There was no need to continue using this name.
“Please create a new name, master.” The fairy assistant prompted with a smile.
After thinking about it, a name appeared in my mind, “Hopeful Present.”
I once led the Silverfox team into the Golden League. How glorious was the past. When I shut my eyes, many faces would appear in my mind, and many names would appear as well. Xia Yiran, Su Xiran, and the others, one by one, they would appear in my recollection. But now, these were all the fleeting past. I now live in the present, the hopeful present.
“Character name is Hopeful Present. Please confirm.”
“Confirm.”





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