Chapter 33 Taking Custom Orders

Gu Fei hesitated for a moment, but Yu Tian Shen Ming and Zhan Wu Shang had already sprung to their feet like lightning. They loved doing anything with a beautiful woman. The two came over together to stop Gu Fei. “Qian Li, Qian Li, don’t trouble yourself with such trivial matters. Murder and robbery are your art. Stay here and continue practicing!”

“You two, get out of the way.” Gu Fei was annoyed. If Xi Xiao Tian had come to deceive everyone in the room, these two would undoubtedly be the easiest to fool. He figured that if she smiled at them, they would already lose consciousness. Letting them go with Xi Xiao Tian to see what she was up to would be as good as not going at all.

“I’ll go take a look.” Gu Fei turned his head and told everyone before following Xi Xiao Tian out. Yu Tian Shen Ming and Zhan Wu Shang stubbornly tried to follow, but with Gu Fei standing between them, they figured it wouldn’t be interesting, so they wisely stayed behind.

“Where to?” Gu Fei asked Xi Xiao Tian after they left the house.

“To pick up some custom-made items,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“What items?”

“Equipment for scamming people.” Xi Xiao Tian smiled. “Disgusted you again?”

Gu Fei was speechless. How should he put it? This was a skill he despised, but at this moment, they needed to rely on it. He couldn’t help but think of that clichéd saying: whether a gun is beneficial or harmful depends on who wields it. But was this time beneficial or harmful? Gu Fei couldn’t quite say. He only realized one thing: it was Ying Qi who had caused trouble first, bringing trouble to everyone. There was no place for reasoning in the game, so this matter could only be resolved by themselves, retaliating in kind. Frankly, Gu Fei rather liked this approach. If it could be solved with a simple PK (player kill), that would be perfect. But this time, the opponent was someone against whom PK would be ineffective, which made Gu Fei feel very powerless. And Xi Xiao Tian seemed to be thriving in this situation, which only increased Gu Fei’s annoyance.

“Let’s go quickly!” Gu Fei ignored Xi Xiao Tian and only urged her to hurry.

“I’m going, aren’t I?” Xi Xiao Tian muttered, leading Gu Fei through the streets of Yun Duan City. After a while, they arrived at the old district of Yun Duan City. The old district was just as its name suggested: dilapidated and old. The NPCs (non-player characters) active here were all scantily clad, like refugees who had fallen into this place. The scenery was ugly, and the people were ugly. It was the most desolate area in the entire Yun Duan City, with the least activity from players. Except for those forced by quests, no one would ever come here. Gu Fei, who had roamed through the streets of Yun Duan City for his bounty quests, had never been here before. He stared in astonishment at this scene that was so out of sync with the Yun Duan City he remembered, and he almost suspected that he and Xi Xiao Tian had used a teleportation scroll to change locations.

“Where is this?” Gu Fei couldn’t help but ask.

“The broken district! Haven’t you been here before?” The old district was called the broken district by Yun Duan City players, a very straightforward name.

“No,” Gu Fei looked around.

“Then that can only mean you never do quests in the game,” Xi Xiao Tian said. Although no one liked to come to the old district, there were still a few quests with considerable rewards that sent players to this place. That he had never done any of these quests… There were only two possibilities for a player over level forty: first, they weren’t a Yun Duan City player; second, they were Qian Li Zui.

Gu Fei, visiting the old district for the first time, was somewhat curious. Not only were the houses dilapidated and leaking, but the air also occasionally carried a foul odor. The NPCs here were also all repugnant, making it impossible to feel any sympathy for them living in such harsh conditions. It should be known that there were many tragic NPCs in the game who were designed to evoke tears. Precisely because they were all fake, they could desperately play pitiful and sentimental under artificial design. Knowing it was fake didn’t mean there would be no feelings? Otherwise, TV shows and movies wouldn’t elicit so much laughter and tears.

However, the old district was definitely not such a place. It seemed to be designed to evoke disgust, and it was not a place that would bring any joy.

“What are we doing here?” Gu Fei’s curiosity waned, and like any other player, he had no good feelings about this place.

“Looking for someone,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“A person, or an NPC?” Gu Fei needed to confirm. He didn’t think anyone would be willing to meet someone in a place like this.

“A person.” Xi Xiao Tian’s answer surprised Gu Fei.

Gu Fei didn’t say much and followed closely behind Xi Xiao Tian to a dilapidated courtyard with scorched earth walls. Xi Xiao Tian seemed to know the way very well. She walked directly to a missing tooth on the earthen wall, tiptoed, and poked her head in. “Peng Peng, I’m here. Are you in?”

“I’m in.” A response came from the dilapidated courtyard. Xi Xiao Tian jumped back and continued walking to the side. A section of the earthen wall was missing, and a person stood there, waving at Xi Xiao Tian.

“Han Peng Peng.” After arriving in front of him, Xi Xiao Tian introduced him to Gu Fei.

“Hello,” Gu Fei nodded.

“Can you recognize this one?” Xi Xiao Tian asked Han Peng Peng with a smile.

“Qian Li Zui?” Han Peng Peng saw that Gu Fei was a black-robed mage, and Xi Xiao Tian had deliberately asked this question, so he must be a famous person. A famous black-robed mage; not guessing Qian Li Zui would only make him a fool.

“Come on in!” Han Peng Peng led the two toward the dilapidated courtyard.

“This… what is this place?” Gu Fei wondered. Could this dilapidated courtyard also be considered a property? Did it belong to this Han Peng Peng? In such a place, the land price should be the cheapest in Yun Duan City, right?

“Houses in the city are too expensive. We can’t afford them, so we can only huddle in such a place. It’s quite hidden. Qian Li, don’t tell anyone about me, okay?” Han Peng Peng said. The last sentence was obviously a joke. It was clear that he trusted Xi Xiao Tian very much, so he also trusted the person Xi Xiao Tian had brought.

Entering the dilapidated courtyard, Gu Fei immediately saw a yard full of debris: wood shavings, paper scraps, and various strange materials that Gu Fei didn’t recognize. Han Peng Peng walked straight toward a huge rock. This rock was more than half a person tall and very flat. It had a lot of things piled on it, looking like a table. Halfway there, Han Peng Peng seemed to have suddenly remembered something and suddenly turned back. “Qian Li, I’ve long heard of your Dark Night Flowing Light Sword. I wonder if you could let me feast my eyes on it?”

“Sure!” Gu Fei took the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword out of his pocket. Han Peng Peng glanced at it, ran to a pile of wood scraps under the earthen wall and rummaged through it. Then he ran back to Gu Fei, holding something in his hand and comparing it to the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword. He shook his head and said, “Damn it, I knew those drawing guys were unreliable. The difference is too big. The dimensions are all wrong!”

Gu Fei almost fainted when he saw it. Han Peng Peng was holding a wooden sword, but it was obviously imitating the shape of his Dark Night Flowing Light Sword, and it was also colored. At first glance, Gu Fei was really confused, but after looking at it for a while, there were obvious differences in many details and dimensions. Especially the unique glow of the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword as a top-grade equipment, Han Peng Peng’s wooden sword had none of it.

Han Peng Peng also noticed this problem. He stretched out his finger and touched the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword. “Oh, this is the unique glow of top-grade equipment, right? This dark purple color is the first time I’ve seen it. It’s quite a challenge.”

“What… what do you do?” Gu Fei had somewhat realized, but he couldn’t help but ask.

Han Peng Peng didn’t answer, and kept studying the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword in Gu Fei’s hand, until Gu Fei put the sword back into his pocket. Only then did the guy withdraw his gaze, but he didn’t bother to answer Gu Fei’s question. Instead, he quickly took out a notebook from his arms, muttering while writing in the book. At that moment, Gu Fei really thought that You Ge had possessed him.

“He is?” Gu Fei looked back at Xi Xiao Tian.

“The same as you think, he makes fake goods,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“Damn!” Gu Fei couldn’t help but blurt out. As a teacher, he usually tried to avoid using such words. He looked around and found that this Han Peng Peng was really skilled. There were many of his works buried in the surrounding piles of garbage. The equipment made of wood actually seemed to have a layer of light like top-grade equipment. Players familiar with top-grade equipment could still distinguish the difference upon closer inspection, but just this effect alone, how it was artificially made, Gu Fei couldn’t understand at all.

After Han Peng Peng finished making notes in his notebook, he moved closer to Gu Fei. “Qian Li, I heard you also have a bounty warrant? Can you…”

“No!” Gu Fei’s face darkened. Unintentionally becoming an accomplice to counterfeiters, Gu Fei really wanted to chop this guy. But then he thought that this guy’s skill probably had nothing to do with his level. What could he do even if he chopped him? Destroy his counterfeit workshop? Gu Fei had this thought again. Obviously, what Han Peng Peng was doing needed to be hidden, but he couldn’t afford a private house in the game, so he had to hide in such a dilapidated courtyard in the old district. When Gu Fei came, he didn’t see a single NPC around here. Presumably even quest players wouldn’t set foot here, making it seem like his private courtyard.

“Don’t have too many associations,” Xi Xiao Tian finally came over and said. “Peng Peng is just a craftsman. These things of his are mainly made at the request of people like us. We take them to the market to deceive people, and it has nothing to do with him. He makes equipment out of wood for fun. There’s nothing wrong with that, right?”

“This…” Gu Fei was speechless for a moment, feeling somewhat helpless toward this bootleg enthusiast. The guy just liked making bootleg products, and as a result, the bootleg goods were used by others for deception. This was another mess. Everyone had some responsibility, but it was impossible to stop. Even if this bootleg workshop was exposed, it wouldn’t prevent Han Peng Peng from changing places and resuming his business. Moreover, this guy seemed to be highly valued by the scammers. If they were pushed too hard, they might jointly fund a property for him. What could they do then? The game was realistic, and the problems it generated were truly multifaceted. That Ye Xiao Wu kept clamoring that his Kung Fu was disrupting the balance, but what about such craftsmen? The Dark Night Flowing Light Sword made of a wooden board could almost be mistaken for the real thing. How could that be accounted for?

Of course, at least he couldn’t make the attribute data of the game equipment. If the buyer really made a careful appraisal, they definitely wouldn’t be fooled. It all depended on the methods of Xi Xiao Tian and her gang of scammers.

“Bringing me to such a place, aren’t you afraid that I’ll expose your methods?” Gu Fei glared at Xi Xiao Tian.

“Expose? Are you really unaware, or are you pretending not to know? Using fake items to replace real ones is considered a grandfather-level scamming method. In the online game circle, it has existed since the day online games were born. Be careful, look closely, and confirm more during transactions. Is this the kind of reminder you’d make after exposing it? It’s a pity that such reminders have existed for countless years. But people still keep falling for it. Even now, in Parallel World, this kind of incident has long been exposed, but what’s the result? Peng Peng’s business has only gotten better… Exposing scams can sometimes become scamming tutorials. It’s very awkward, right?” Xi Xiao Tian said.

Gu Fei had to admit that there was some truth in what Xi Xiao Tian said. Since someone was doing such a thing, the victims must have exposed it long ago. But Han Peng Peng was still doing very well and looked so busy, showing that exposure simply had no effect. Perhaps only the game developer’s intervention, completely removing people like Han Peng Peng from the game, could fundamentally solve the problem.

But… Gu Fei looked at Han Peng Peng. Han Peng Peng was holding the notes he had just taken after looking at Gu Fei’s Dark Night Flowing Light Sword, holding his bootleg sword and gesticulating, with a look of doubt on his face from time to time. But in any case, that look of concentration made it easy to see how much he enjoyed it. Was he scamming people? No, he wasn’t. He liked making these imitations, but these imitations were useless. Which player in the game would be willing to buy such a replica to collect? As a result, his talent was appreciated by scammers with ulterior motives.

Suddenly, Gu Fei felt a sense of sorrow, the sorrow of uselessness. This sorrow was very familiar.

He just wanted an environment where he could use his Kung Fu, while Han Peng Peng probably wanted his beloved things to be appreciated by others, right? Did he need to destroy it?

Although Gu Fei repeatedly warned himself that what he was doing was completely different in terms of right and wrong, he kept avoiding Han Peng Peng’s focused gaze. He was even restraining himself. Seeing Han Peng Peng’s doubtful and pondering expression, he even had the urge to lend Han Peng Peng the Dark Night Flowing Light Sword so he could take a good look.

Gu Fei even thought of himself. He was using Kung Fu unrestrainedly in the game, although he was trying to limit it to the bounty quest mode. But in city battles and mercenary group battles, his skills caused great trouble for others. Although it was said that there were no losses from death in those modes, to be precise, there was just no loss of levels or equipment like in ordinary PK environments. In those matches, death meant losing points and losing the chance to win the game. How was that not a loss?

Was there any difference between the impact he caused and the items Han Peng Peng made being used by scammers for deception?

Han Peng Peng relied on his skills to drive a fake-for-real scamming industry; and he, relying on his Kung Fu, often influenced the victory of a battle. In fact, most of the players who lost because of him weren’t hateful people. Too many of them were just ordinary players, not much different from his friends. There was no good or evil in this world. Everyone was the same. It was just a game…

“Hey, what are you thinking about?” Xi Xiao Tian had just finished speaking and went to Han Peng Peng to pick up the items. As a result, after making a circle, Gu Fei was still standing there in a daze.

“Nothing. Just a little something on my mind,” Gu Fei said.

“Violent Fei also has things on his mind?” Xi Xiao Tian asked.

“Who doesn’t?” Gu Fei said.

“What are you thinking about?”

“Because it’s a game, so you can do whatever you want. This kind of thinking seems too simple…” Gu Fei said.

“I know, so you haven’t done whatever you want. You want to PK, but you’ve only been doing bounty quests, right?” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“If only it were that simple… But too many battles have already dragged me in involuntarily. Maybe I am a destroyer,” Gu Fei said.

“What’s the meaning of that ‘also’?” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“Aren’t you?” Gu Fei asked.

“Okay… I am too, much worse than you,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“That’s for sure.”

“I hope you can be appropriately humble,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“In the face of facts, there’s no need to be.”

“Violent Fei!”

“Scammer Tian!”

Their eyes met, they looked at each other, they got closer, slowly… Actually, you’re wrong. This didn’t happen. Cough, this sentence doesn’t exist.

“When should I come to pick up the items?” Xi Xiao Tian turned her head and asked Han Peng Peng.

“Well, four hours!” Han Peng Peng said.

“Okay, then I’ll come back in four hours.” Xi Xiao Tian said, signaling that Gu Fei could leave.

“What exactly are you having him make?” Gu Fei asked.

“Press credentials,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“What?”

“Press credentials. You’ve been interviewed by Duo Mu Mu Duo. It seems they didn’t show them to you? I’ve learned that the reporters stationed in the game by major websites actually have press credentials, and this thing is compiled through the game’s system. It has a serial number on it and is very useful. In some special cases, you can even apply for PK protection with the credentials. It’s just that when interviewing private players in the game, like you, there may not be too much wariness, so there’s no need to show the press credentials to prove their identity, which leads many players to not know that such a thing exists. But in fact, this is the only proof for online reporters in Parallel World. Ying Qi, as a studio, should know about the existence of press credentials. And they shouldn’t ignore this detail that ordinary players don’t care about. Making a press credential is an easy way to fool people,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“No way? Since it’s something given by the system, it should be easy to see through if you’re careful,” Gu Fei said.

“At least we should take a look at the effect of real press credentials before drawing conclusions,” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“Where can we find one?”

“Please, can’t you just borrow Duo Mu Mu Duo’s and take a look?” Xi Xiao Tian said.

“But what’s the use of that?” Gu Fei was puzzled.

“You’ll understand soon enough,” Xi Xiao Tian smiled.