Ding dong, you have a new short message, please check it.
Ding dong, you have a new short message, please check it.
Ding dong, you have a new short message, please check it.
Waking up from a deep game-induced dream, Guhan was bombarded by a series of message notifications, making his head spin. Without thinking, Guhan knew these messages were from that little brat, Ha Ma, because in his eighteen years of life, he had only this one close friend.
"Guhan, are you a sour popsicle dyed with Sudan Red? You actually got an SSS rating. You don't know how crazy the world channel and forums are now."
"Damn, why did you set it to reject anyone from adding you? Quickly add me as a friend. I'm called 'The Toad Who Eats Wuji Baifeng Pills.' Add me quickly, I have a girl to introduce to you."
"Xiao Han Han, stop being so proud and add me as a friend already……"
"Hey, Xiao Han Han, you haven't logged out yet, right? Forget it, I'll come to your place."
"Xiao Han Han, I'm in the teahouse downstairs from your place. You'd better get here within half an hour, or we're done as friends. I really mean it."
These messages were transmitted directly to Guhan's mind as neural signals through his personal terminal, like a super-loud cicada constantly buzzing in his head.
Guhan checked the time of the last message, which was sent twenty-seven minutes ago, leaving him only three minutes before Ha Ma would cut ties. Although Guhan didn't think he needed this noisy friend, he still quickly tidied up and slid down the slide from the 190th floor to the first floor.
...Yes, he slid down a slide. In the base city, where every square meter of land was crammed with thousands of people, buildings were like beehives, reaching hundreds of floors and over a thousand meters high. Elevators couldn't meet the residents' travel needs, so slides became the preferred choice for these residential buildings.
Don't worry about accidents from the slides being too fast; this is 3001's magnetic levitation slide technology, which is very safe.
The first three floors of the low-rent apartment building where Guhan lived were converted into various commercial properties. The Floating Life Teahouse was the only place in these three floors where one could speak quietly, though it was extremely expensive. A cup of black tea for an hour cost 100 RMB, which was not comparable to 2000's 100 RMB but was roughly equivalent to the purchasing power of 100 RMB in 1990.
Guhan immediately spotted his close friend sitting by the window, head down, playing with something on the table.
"Stinky toad, what are you playing?" Guhan plopped down opposite his friend and glanced at the personal terminal's projection on the table, which turned out to be a gentleman's mobile game.
"I'm feeding my wife radium... Since she hit level 100, she needs 1000 aluminum per meal... I can barely afford to keep her alive." Ha Ma said with a mournful face. He was playing a nuclear weapon personification game, the hottest mobile game on the market.
"Why don't you give your wife to me? I'll take care of her." Guhan laughed.
"No way, if you dare to have designs on my wife, I'll fight you to the death." Ha Ma made a fierce face at Guhan, then put the game away and took a sip of black tea. "So, what do you want to drink? I'll call the waiter."
"The usual, a cup of green tea. But we agreed, you're buying this one today."
"Fine, it's no big deal, I'll buy it!" Ha Ma agreed generously, patting his chest.
"Song Hama, you're being so generous today." Guhan was quite surprised. This toad was always a miser; he could complain for a month about a piece of organic pork. Today, he was being so generous, it was a miracle.
"Ha, let me tell you, sour popsicle, I'm not the poor toad I used to be. I'm now a rich toad with a lot of money!" Ha Ma lifted his head and chest, looking very proud, like a poor peasant who had risen to power.
"Looks like you've made a lot of money in the game!" Guhan knew without guessing that this toad must have made money in the game. Otherwise, with his extremely poor attitude in real life, it would be a miracle if he made any money.
"You're right, sour popsicle. You don't know, I've found a super cool and beautiful big sister in the game. Since I've been following her, I've been eating well, using the best sword girls, and flirting with pretty girls. It's like heaven on earth. I tell you, as soon as the game goes live, add me as a friend, and I'll introduce you to her. We'll be comrades-in-arms from then on." In a few words, Song Hama revealed his true intention of recruiting Guhan.
"No way!" Guhan didn't hesitate for a second and refused. "You know my personality. I won't get along with your big sister."
"Come on, you don't know. In 'Sword Girl Online,' you can't even think about clearing dungeons, fighting raids, or rebuilding the homeland without a reliable team. Guhan, I'm telling you, my big sister is real, beautiful, and highly skilled. She's a great commander. I, Ha Ma, guarantee that our team will definitely become one of the top 100 super sword schools."
Song Hama spoke enthusiastically, but Guhan ignored him, sipping the green tea that had just been delivered and occasionally blocking the spittle flying from Song Hama's mouth.
After talking for a while and seeing that Guhan was unmoved, Song Hama gritted his teeth and decided to drop some big news to shock this arrogant guy.
"I'll tell you a secret, but you can't tell anyone else!" Song Hama leaned in close to Guhan's ear and whispered, "Our big sister has successfully synchronized with the 88th-ranked Sunset Sword from 'Famous Sword Record.' She's now a Famous Sword holder. She's ranked 197th on the virtual list of the Famous Sword Record."
The 'Famous Sword Record' was a ranking of Famous Sword holders compiled by enthusiasts on the forum. It took over 500 years and hundreds of revisions, and all sword holders basically agreed with it, with an accuracy rate of 95%. There were also the 'Ancient Sword Record' for Ancient Sword holders, the 'Treasure Sword Record' for Treasure Sword holders, the 'Spirit Sword Record' for Spirit Sword holders, the 'Immortal Sword Record' for Immortal Sword holders, and finally the 'Imperial Sword Record.'
The 'Famous Sword Record' ranked Famous Sword holders, while the 'Famous Sword List' ranked existing Famous Sword holders, divided into the real list and the virtual list. The real list ranked real-life Famous Sword holders, while the virtual list ranked in-game Famous Sword holders.
"Oh, the Sunset Sword, 197th place, that's impressive!!" Guhan said insincerely, "But I have the 17th-ranked Sword of King Goujian. Toad, I don't want to repeat myself, but no one can be my leader, not even a big sister."
"Sour popsicle, with your lousy talent, you want to have the Sword of King Goujian? Give me a break! Aren't you giving me, your brother, any face?" Song Hama dismissed Guhan's claim as boasting, never thinking that this guy had actually obtained the Sword of King Goujian. He added, "I'm recruiting you because I want us to be brothers in the game, to fight together, to get rich together, and to become real sword holders together. Sour popsicle, aren't we good brothers?"
"You are my brother!" Guhan put down his green tea, his face sincere. "Without you, there would be no Guhan. You will always be my brother."
"Then come with me, fight together." Ha Ma pressed on.
"Of course, I have no problem fighting together. Toad, you can join me to form a team, fight together, and establish a sword school. Why do you have to be under some mysterious big sister?"
"..." Ha Ma was silent, looking at Guhan with a mix of confusion and helplessness. "You really won't join my team?"
"If your big sister is willing to join my team, it's not impossible."
"Your sister, you're just a new Ancient Sword holder, what kind of team do you have?"
"I'll have one soon. With my skills, do you think I can't form a team?"
"I was saying..." Ha Ma wanted to say more, but his arm tingled, and his personal terminal played a very popular internet song. "My big sister is calling. I'll talk to you later. I need to take this call."
Unlike 21st-century phones, 31st-century communication could be conducted directly through brain neurons without any sound. Song Hama closed his eyes, nodded repeatedly, and his expression changed several times before he opened his eyes and ended the call.
"Alright, let's talk about joining my team later. My big sister wants to talk to you in person. You can at least give me this face, right?"
"Sure, set a time and place, and I'll go with you."
"Right now, let's go to your place and enter the game. I'll take you to meet my big sister."