Chapter 54: Let Me Pose You a Problem!

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Lower City District.

Fang Ju lay sprawled on the back of his pet turtle, half-dead, as he stumbled out of the training ground.

Life was unbearable! Truly unbearable!

All because of the college entrance exams—after returning home, his parents would team up against him, forcing him to grind through countless practice tests and memorize answers. Occasionally, he’d be dragged over to Ye Chao’s for extra drills… What used to pass for rest during school hours now felt like a luxury, and on top of it all, he’d caught the eye of the ever-watchful Baldy, who worked him to the bone day in and day out.

When would such days ever end?

What? College entrance exams?

His parents had made it clear enough: if he didn’t get into one of the Big Four, he’d have to repeat the year…

Those Big Four were the top universities in the Cloud State Alliance, only admitting a total of less than a thousand students from the whole province each year. Was that something just anyone could get into?

Heaven and earth! If they wanted him to aim for the Big Four, why not say so earlier? Why wait until senior year to spring it on him, leaving him no time to even prepare himself mentally!

Maybe… he should just run away from home?

But where would he go?

Sometimes, he truly envied Ye Chao—at his house, not only was there no parental tag-team, he barely had enough for singles, so he lived with utter freedom…

"Smack! Smack!" Fang Ju slapped himself twice. “Bah! Bah! Bah!”

Engrossed in his existential musings, he was suddenly interrupted by a strange, eerie voice nearby. “Hey, brother, interested in kindling the flame?”

What?

Fang Ju twisted around atop his turtle to see a figure clad in a drab gray hooded cloak, their face obscured in shadow, suspicious from head to toe in every conceivable way, furtively eyeing him.

Fang Ju paused thoughtfully. “No kindling, I put out flames,” he replied, giving his turtle a pat and turning away with studied nonchalance.

…

The hooded figure was clearly thrown off for a moment.

But she didn’t give up, hurrying after him. “Then, brother, how about a spin?”

After another brief consideration, Fang Ju replied with grave seriousness, “No need, I’d rather sell. Are you buying?”

He wasn’t about to get roped in by some shady street solicitation. No way.

Your face is big enough to sell anyway… Alpha Ji muttered inwardly.

Yes, this suspicious hooded figure was none other than Alpha Ji… or rather, her projection. Her true self and Ye Chao were lurking just around the corner, watching all of this unfold.

The prototype of the holographic sensory helmet was a success. The process was much, much simpler than expected. After all, this piece of pre-cataclysm tech wasn’t all that sophisticated.

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The only reason it could surpass pre-cataclysm technology was the existence of abilities, which happened to push forward the right branches of science—modern understanding of abilities, especially mental power, far exceeded anything before the cataclysm.

Things once deemed nearly impossible were now routine procedures. For instance, using external brainwaves to directly invade thought, letting a person vividly experience light, sound, taste, smell, and even realistic touch…

With just a flash drive and parts from a tablet, they followed the blueprint for the holographic helmet, using the power of the Imaginary Space to print it in 3D—one piece, one try, barely using any materials.

The helmet passed all connection tests, and the Imaginary Space functioned perfectly as a game arena. Now, there was only one thing left—how to sell it.

Ye Chao and Alpha Ji had both thought of Fang Ju: blocky-faced but smooth in dealing with people, well-liked, the perfect candidate. And so, here they were.

This guy certainly knew how to keep a conversation going—no wonder he was Ye Chao’s partner in mischief…

Alpha Ji, frustrated by the repeated rejections, called out to Fang Ju’s retreating back, “Hey, brother, want to know the secret to raising your exam scores?”

Fang Ju froze.

That question struck a nerve.

If he could get into the Big Four, his life wouldn’t be this miserable right now.

He halted his turtle and turned back. “You know the secret?”

“Of course! Why else would I stop you? I can see you’ve got extraordinary potential…”

“Then let me give you a test question!”

“What?”

Fang Ju rattled off a problem at lightning speed: “A sports equipment store buys a batch of skateboards at 100 yuan each and sells them for 130 yuan, moving 80 units per week. The owner decides to lower the price to boost sales. Market research shows that every 5 yuan drop increases weekly sales by 20 units. Question: What is the store’s weekly profit before the price cut? After the price cut, what price maximizes weekly profit, and what is this maximum profit?”

“If you really know the secret to acing the entrance exam, you should be able to answer my question, right?”

Fang Ju was quite pleased with himself. You want to pester me? Am I that easy to fool?

Alpha Ji was furious. Truly furious!

(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻

[Fang Ju's Favorability -100!]

“You dare insult me with such an easy question? 2400, 125, 2500!”

“Kid, I’ve answered your question. If you don’t buy what I’m selling, don’t blame me for losing my temper!” Alpha Ji snapped, black flames blazing around her, exuding the aura of a character turning dark in an anime.

Well, she was quite literally using an anime “going dark” effect.

Fang Ju was terrified—genuinely terrified—and started counting on his fingers.

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But... he really couldn’t work it out. He’d just come across this question himself and hadn’t had time to try it yet.

Still, the numbers sounded roughly right.

“All right,” he said, lifting his head in confusion. “I’ll buy, as long as I can afford it. But what exactly are you selling, and how much is it?”

With a clang, Alpha Ji pulled the holographic helmet out from the Imaginary Space and shoved it onto Fang Ju’s square face.

Ye Chao had made the helmet himself, complete with engravings, so it was sturdy and drop-proof.

Compared to the helmets in the computer lab, this one had an extra feature: wireless connectivity. The range wasn’t great, but originally Ye Chao had considered secretly placing a few signal relays. In the end, he discovered that the helmet’s engraved signals seemed to travel in another world entirely—still limited by distance but completely unhindered by Jiang City’s well-shielded architecture.

The wireless connection, with signal strength similar to a cell phone, could easily cover several districts.

“What I’m selling is a chance to get on the machine. The trial period is free; pay only if you like it! If you bring in others, you can get discounts or even a kickback.”

The most expensive games are always the “free” ones—no doubt about that—but when you have to provide your own hardware, free really isn’t free. So Alpha Ji’s plan was clear: hunger marketing.

“A holographic helmet? A chance to get on the machine?” Of course Fang Ju knew what a holographic helmet was for and what a session implied.

To be honest, he was tempted. Only… Alpha Ji’s disguised appearance was still suspicious, even if she had answered his question…

His eyes darted as he came up with an idea.

==========

Seeing Fang Ju take the helmet and head home, both Ye Chao and Alpha Ji let out a sigh of relief.

Next: go home, study…

But before he could do anything, there was a rapid knock at the door.

He opened it to find Fang Ju, clutching the holographic helmet as he squeezed inside. “Hey, Ye Chao, I got something neat—can you check it out for me? See if it’s legit or not…”

Some things just couldn’t be kept to oneself—good friends had to share.

Good fortune was enjoyed together, and any trouble was shouldered together…

That was so very Fang Ju—blocky-headed but ever-resourceful.

It’s just that…

[Fang Ju’s Favorability -100]