Chapter 89 - Barrutia’s Core Area
“Alert! Alert! There is an intruder in Area F! Activating self-defense system!”
Before Shi Feng could celebrate his gains, a bucket of cold water dumped over his head by this loud voice. He did not think that there would be such a trap after opening the Treasure Chest.
Just after arriving at the passage’s exit, Shi Feng discovered that the passages leading to the other areas of the Steel Fortress were all sealed off, preventing him from entering. Meanwhile, the water level of the pool below started rising, and according to its speed, it would not be long before the passage flooded.
Without hesitation, Shi Feng took out a bottle of Underwater Breathing Potion, drinking it. The potion allowed players to breathe underwater for 20 minutes. Following which, Shi Feng immediately leaped into the pool, diving towards the deepest region.
After swimming down for over ten minutes, Shi Feng finally saw a dark passage. However, the water currents from there flowed rapidly, and it would not be easy for Shi Feng to approach the passage. After spending a long period, and drinking a second bottle of Underwater Breathing Potion, Shi Feng managed to crawl his way towards the passage entrance with much difficulty.
Following which, he was washed away by the rapidly flowing water, his body unable to move as the current continuously pushed him along the passageway. After flowing along the water currents for several minutes, Shi Feng was thrown out of the passage and landed in another large pool.
Near a wall of the large pool, some stairs spiraled upward. As long as he went up these stairs, he would arrive at the core of the fortress.
Shi Feng swam towards the stairway. He then looked at the time. It was almost 8 o’clock in the morning now, and since locating the Titan’s Heart was not accomplishable in a short amount of time, Shi Feng immediately called out the System Interface and chose to log out.
Upon waking up early in the morning, the first thing Shi Feng did was train his body. This action had long since deeply ingrained in his bones.
However, he could clearly feel that his body was different from yesterday. His body no longer felt stiff, and instead, it felt extremely refreshed. The positive effects of the C-rank Nutrient Fluids he drank were evident. The fluid was slowly altering his body’s condition.
Strike the iron while it's hot.
Shi Feng then started working out, doing sit-ups, pushups and other muscle-strengthening actions. After working out for over an hour, Shi Feng still did not feel tired. On the contrary, his body felt comfortably warm, as if there were an inexhaustible amount of energy within him.
However, he did not continue training his body. Instead, he went downstairs to have a meal. Desperately working out was not necessarily a good thing. It needed to be done in moderation, as overworking his body would only yield opposite effects.
After going through a night’s struggle, the Gold Coins he sold and the Credits he obtained from Gentle Snow filled his current bank account with over 200,000 Credits. A night of his efforts was worth two months of salary of an executive from a big company. This was the power of God’s Domain that had turned around the virtual economy. After a year, becoming rich overnight in God’s Domain was not a strange affair whatsoever.
Unfortunately, not many enterprises had discovered this fact yet. By the time they did discover it, they would have lagged far behind those companies that invested in God’s Domain in the beginning.
After eating, Shi Feng made a trip to the bank. He specifically retrieved 30,000 Credits, intending to buy the virtual reality helmets he rented. Otherwise, if he were to leave it and forget about it, he would eventually be forced out of the game. At that time, he would have to wait until the next working day before handling the necessary procedures and only after could he continue playing. Currently, the game was in a sprinting stage. If Shi Feng were to fall behind by a day, it would be extremely difficult for him to catch back up.
It was also a good chance for Shi Feng to invite Blackie out for a stroll. If Blackie always hid inside his dormitory, his body was bound to have problems.
There were very few people on the streets of the university early in the morning. There were only some sports societies doing their morning exercises, warming up for their work out later on. Watching these university students that radiated youth, Shi Feng felt an unreal feeling. It was as if the ten years he spent battling in God’s Domain were just an illusion, an illusion that would vanish with just a touch.
Walking along the roadside, Shi Feng admired the university campus as he headed towards Blackie’s dormitory. He was experiencing the sceneries on the campus that he paid no attention to in his previous life.
As he was about to enter into Blackie’s dormitory, Shi Feng heard sounds of laughter coming from within.
“Blackie, weren’t you extremely confident in getting into Shadow Workshop before? I’ve been waiting for you for several days now, so why haven’t I seen you there yet?”
“Wu Yi, haven’t I already said it before? I joined another Workshop, so I didn’t participate in Shadow’s test.”
“Blackie, don’t try to trick me. Where in the entire Jin Hai University is there another Workshop? What is it called? How many members does it have? Who established it? Can you tell me that? If they treat players well, I might even decide to join!”
Being asked in such a way, Blackie suddenly realized that Shi Feng did not actually tell him the name of their Workshop. As for the number of members… taking everything into account, there were exactly 6 people. Not to mention having a Workshop to play God’s Domain, they possessed absolutely nothing right now and were even riddled with debt.
“Blackie, stop being obstinate. I know that you didn’t pass Shadow’s test. If it really is no good, then let Brother Wu plead for you. In any case, Brother Wu is currently an official member. Who knows; you might be able to become an outer member of Shadow. At the very least, you could continue playing God’s Domain, and earning two thousand Credits a month should not be a problem. Don’t forget, the trial period for the virtual gaming helmet is only ten days. After this period, you will not be able to continue playing the game,” Blackie’s fellow dorm mate sneered.
“It can’t be, right? What kind of Workshop can’t even afford an official virtual gaming helmet? Isn’t that just too pitiful?” Wu Yi pretended to be shocked. He then clapped Blackie’s shoulders, saying with a sigh, “Even the outer members of Shadow are given an official helmet. Official members even receive an advanced helmet that’s worth 20,000 Credits. Your Workshop is just ripping you off. Who started the thing? I’ll demand justice for you.
“Why don’t you mingle with me from now on? I can guarantee that you’ll obtain an official helmet. By the time I become a core member of Shadow, I guarantee that you’ll be able to live in luxury. You should know that Young Master Lan has already invested five million Credits in Shadow. I heard that he has invested another two million now. If you enter Shadow, your future will be limitless.”
“Wu Yi, I’ve already said it. I won’t be joining. I’m currently getting by very well,” Blackie quickly rejected.
“Blackie, you should know that there aren’t many such chances. Shadow Workshop is the best Workshop in Jin Hai University. If it weren’t for the fact that you’re already Level 5 and we’re classmates, I wouldn’t even be looking for you.” Wu Yi patiently persuaded, “You keep saying that you’ve joined some other Workshop, but you have to tell me at least the name, right? Must you keep lying to a classmate in such a way?
“What? Don’t tell me that this Workshop doesn’t even have a name?
“Even if it doesn’t have a name, you must know which person established it, right? Nowadays, even nobodies dare to make Workshops, so you musn’t be tricked. Shadow Workshop has an upright business sponsoring it, and there is also a contract to ensure that you won’t starve to death at the very least.”
Wu Yi was all praises about Shadow. It was as if one would become an elite in society just for entering Shadow Workshop, becoming the envy of others.
However, Blackie had long since seen through Shadow. He did not have even the slightest favorable opinion towards Shadow. He only blamed himself for having a big mouth, showing off to others that he had already risen to Level 5. As a result, the information was found out by Shadow Workshop, and they had sent Wu Yi, his classmate, to recruit him.
However, how could he so easily betray Shi Feng and join Shadow? He was only able to obtain all of his current achievements by relying on Shi Feng. Even if he had to suffer hardships right now, he still believed that Shi Feng would lead him towards the path of success.
At this stage of the game, all the Level 5 players were experts. To Shadow Workshop, which was currently lacking experts, Blackie was an alluring beauty. So, naturally, they were itching to try and recruit him, turning him into one of the their belongings.
At this moment, Shi Feng opened the door, taking a step into the room.
“I am the nobody that established the Workshop. I wonder what kind of opinion you have?” Shi Feng looked towards the robust Wu Yi, speaking coldly.