Chapter 106 - Tang Xin

Lin Sheng returned quickly, holding several objects that resembled seashells.Upon closer inspection, the spirals on these seashells were identical, with every detail matching perfectly.

When he placed an ear against the shell’s opening, he could hear the sound of waves and sea breezes, akin to music played on a tranquil beach.

This is the currency of the Star of Art—inspiration.

"Did everything go smoothly?" Lin Sheng asked.

"No issues at all, bro!" Lin Xing made an OK gesture, and behind him walked a silent blonde girl.

Lin Sheng stared at the girl intently, feeling a subtle oddness inside but unable to pinpoint anything specific.

The girl seemed different from earlier, but he couldn’t figure out how.

Was it the expression on her face? Somehow, it seemed her face became even more rigid.

In the stock exchange, people in tailor-made suits dressed neatly, speaking elegantly, yet their eyes were wolf-like, fixed on the changes on the electronic stock board.

The atmosphere was taut with tension, as if a silent battle was being waged.

The red numbers flickered with every change, affecting people’s expressions, while a flow of significant funds moved with each phone call, every minute and second.

The hall was expansive, with the entire floor open, and several people encircled the pillars supporting the steel structure of the dome. As the morning light spilled through the silver-grey glass ceiling, before the sky fully brightened, these investors congregated here from all over the world, drawn to this dreamland with a name that entices, hoping to uncover treasures in this golden land.

Xu Xiaoyou sat on a bench, hands in pockets, scanning her surroundings, finally exhaling in relief when confirming the two Shadows didn’t follow.

It seemed she successfully ditched them by using a Substitute to lead them out of the shop, taking the opportunity to sneak away.

She wondered how long it would take for Lin Sheng and Lin Xing to realize the girl beside them was her Substitute.

She picked up her phone, tapping the screen, and the signal indicator at the top right showed no signal.

Corrupt Nest City is still too backward.

Communication products can’t even connect to the Star of Art’s network, severed from the entire Cosmos.

Observing the people around her, they wore decorative ear-pieces, with light screens hovering before their eyes. A few taps in the air brought up pages upon pages, where myriad informational texts automatically arranged themselves.

That’s a personal curtain, termed a curtain in the Star of Art—one of the main communication tools of this world, developed by Jiulong Message Corporation; they monopolize the top wireless communication technology.

Xu Xiaoyou waved her hand, making the card pool page appear before her.

In the illustration, the girl’s deep blue hair is as profound as the starry river, her blue eyes calm as she sits slightly tilted on the stage, cradling a bow-shaped instrument, with delicate fingers gently plucking its strings. Her long hair flows like moving stars, cascading down to her ankles, scattered across the stage.

She was breathtakingly beautiful, making the entire starry sky pale in comparison, reminiscent of the Night Goddess from mythology. In the dark surroundings, thousands of shadows watched the girl on stage; her subtle gaze and every expression captivated people’s attention, driving them to infatuation.

Xu Xiaoyou struggled to find words for her beauty and splendor; if anything, she possessed a strikingly compelling face.

It was clearly a Human Rights Level character card.

At this point, the decision to draw cards was inevitable.

With the rewards from previous commissions and the S-level employee bonuses from the company, she now possessed over fifty thousand credit points, enough to aim for the grand guarantee.

Hoping for an early gold outcome was beyond her wishes; she skipped through fifty draws without a glance.

The character card gleamed golden, showing a blue-haired girl dressed like the girl next door, holding a microphone with an innocent and bashful look. Before her, only a few spectators, with the sole fluorescent stick shining for her.

In the past, she would have cursed the unscrupulous card pool, but now her mood was calm.

Even though the name was different, making her wonder if it was mistranslated by machine, she was quite certain Tang Xin was Savia Lindong before she evolved—the girl’s looks and temperament had transformed drastically, only her gaze remained unchanged, like a strong yet beautiful flower.

"Very good." Xu Xiaoyou nodded.

Besides a bunch of miscellaneous skill cards, there was a personal curtain, she was unsure of the brand but it looked quite valuable.

Xu Xiaoyou wore the earring with a ginkgo leaf appearance by her ear, feeling a tingling sensation spreading from there, quickly forming into a curtain before her.

Upon booting up, numerous advertisements popped up, such as singing training class, painting training class, adult School of Art, and Cosmic Heavy Industries’ unique organ loans where defaults prompt security services at your doorstep.

The visual overload was dizzying.

After activation, her personal curtain automatically connected to the network, various software began downloading automatically; Xu Xiaoyou had no chance to cancel them before another dinged—they were already downloaded.

"That’s really something." Xu Xiaoyou sighed with a helpless smile.

After some scrambling, she deleted what needed deleting and set it to reject auto-subscriptions, enabling message filtering. She only kept two social apps, the short video platform ’Notes’, and the chat app ’Palette’.

These two social apps are what most young people on the Star of Art would have on their curtains. Greeting friends via Palette and sharing daily life on Notes are things most do daily.

In Xu Xiaoyou’s hand, Tang Xin’s character card floated; as the card’s patterns lit up, the curtain before her automatically changed.

A 3D model of the city appeared before her, she was currently at Belvedere Square, which was not far from Queens District Shell Street, a half-hour walk from here.

Before leaving the stock exchange, Xu Xiaoyou logged into her Corrupt Nest City network account, exchanging the remaining ten thousand-plus credit points for inspiration at the exchange rate counter.

Outside, the snow had stopped, and golden light reflected off the snow, revolving glass doors ahead; Xu Xiaoyou wrapped her scarf around her face multiple times.

After acquiring the second character, the cost for gathering points had notably increased—a ten-shot draw cost one thousand six hundred inspiration, equivalent to tens of thousands of credit points.

Gaming companies are insatiable wolves, Xu Xiaoyou thought.

Her hands were empty, with only a little over a hundred inspiration left.

At that moment, a man in a brown-grey trench coat with a gentle smile stepped forward, colliding with Xu Xiaoyou.

"Sorry, are you okay?" the man asked.

Xu Xiaoyou, still in a good mood, returned a polite smile: "I’m fine, I wish you a pleasant day, sir."

The man paused slightly, his gaze softened: "Same to you, beautiful lady. Hurry along, leave this street."

Xu Xiaoyou, puzzled, watched the man with a black briefcase, wearing his hat, push through the revolving glass doors, heading into the stock exchange without looking back.

But she didn’t dwell on it, sniffing her nose, she briskly departed the stock exchange, arriving at the street side. Despite the apparent prosperity, few hovercars flew overhead, most people still traveled by carriage, pumpkin coach, and similar modes.

"Over here, over here!" Xu Xiaoyou stood on tiptoes and waved, hailing a carriage.

After boarding the carriage,

she resisted the urge to call Tang Xin’s mobile, considering she might be still asleep; she looked quite refined, possibly a young lady of some family. Making a poor first impression might affect favorable sentiment.

She decided to observe the girl’s character first, customizing their first encounter appropriately when the timing was right.

Meanwhile, somewhere on Shell Street in Queens District,

a sky-blue-haired girl carrying a bass guitar, looking slightly anxious, pushed open the door to a dimly lit room...