Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Part of Chapter 613
Compared to when they first met, Luo Liangde now appeared remarkably respectable.

The tattered beggar's clothes that used to look like rags had disappeared, replaced by a brown leather jacket and a pair of ripped jeans. Although the outfit was a bit old, it was considered quite decent for the economic level of this godforsaken place.

Now this guy is wearing sunglasses and laughing in a really greasy way.

"Brother, you're joking. If I had the ability to suppress the market, why would I bother with pickpocketing? I could make a fortune just by collecting protection money."

"Why did that guy just run away without saying a word?"

Luo Liangde shrugged.

"The reason he gave is similar, after all, I'm a notorious scoundrel here—oh right, you know what scoundrel means, right?"

"I understand a little bit, what's wrong?"

"Let me explain it to you like this—this place is where I go out for a quick bite. If I'm starving at home and it's inconvenient, I'll go out and help people move for free, and then I'll come here to cause trouble. Aside from that, I can at least cover my food expenses for two or three days. That's why these guys call me a leech—because once they stick to me, they can't get rid of me."

"Aren't you afraid they'll beat you to death?"

“I might be a little scared in other places, but this place…” Luo Liangde pointed to the huge sign above, “See that sign? That proves that this is a management area endorsed by higher authorities, where all private fights are prohibited. And my staged accidents are all within the rules—they’re all heartless, every single one of them is a swindler. What’s wrong with me extorting a couple of bucks?”

Zhou You remained silent for a moment.

He finally understood: this was a pure social scum—the kind of social scum who wasn't ashamed but rather proud of it, except that he hadn't committed any serious crimes—and that was probably because he was too cowardly.

Oh well, I'm just looking for a useful helper anyway. This guy is a scumbag, but he's still somewhat useful.

Just as Zhou You was about to say something, San San popped her head out from behind him and gently tugged at his clothes.

"Brother, what is this?"

At this moment, Luo Liangde finally saw the blind girl. He was slightly taken aback, but then he revealed a mercenary smile.

"Me? I'm your brother's friend. Your brother helped me out a little before, so when I saw you, I came to say hello."

It has to be said that this person is indeed shrewd; he understood the situation in just one glance and then casually brushed it off.

Upon hearing this, the little girl breathed a sigh of relief. She looked up and whispered.

"Brother, have we seen enough? If we keep going, we'll be out of this area. Why don't we head back?"

Zhou You patted her back reassuringly, then winked at Luo Liangde.

This person understood perfectly. First, he led the two to an inconspicuous corner, then distracted San San with a few words, before leaning close to Zhou You's ear and whispering something.

"Brother, the batch of goods you gave me has been sold. The price has gone up recently, and I made a good profit. Look."

Without a sound, a roll of banknotes was slipped into his hand.

The paper was old, and the portraits drawn on it were unfamiliar to Zhou You—heard that this was currency issued by the Paradise side, circulating among various shelters; otherwise, with the industry in this godforsaken place, it would be a miracle if they could even return to the era of barter, let alone print money.

After walking around for a while, Zhou You had a general understanding of the current prices—this amount of money was indeed considerable. Even if Luo Liangde had definitely embezzled some of it, what he left behind was enough for the two siblings to live comfortably for more than half a year.

But Zhou You only took out half of it and then pushed the other half back.

"Brother, what's going on?"

Zhou You laughed.

"Don't rush to collect the money. Have you found the person I asked you to find, brother?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Liangde immediately showed a hint of embarrassment—but this did not stop him from putting the remaining half of the banknotes back into his pocket and then saying in a low voice.

"There are many doctors who can treat injuries, but to be able to treat injuries caused by pollution is truly beyond the realm of the supernatural. I have heard of one, but firstly, he is very expensive, and secondly, even if he takes on the case, it is difficult to completely cure the injury; at most, he can restore some of your mobility."

“That works,” Zhou You said decisively. “Consider half the money a referral fee, and the remaining crystals can be used for medical expenses and your commission, brother. What do you think?”

Luo Liangde immediately beamed with joy.

"Then it's settled. I'll contact the person tonight, and I should have news in about seven or eight days. By the way, do you remember how to contact me, bro?"

"Gate 24 of the Expo Area, Time Bar, is that right?"

"Yes, yes, then I won't disturb you two any longer."

After Luo Liangde left, Zhou You breathed a sigh of relief.

He hadn't had high hopes from the beginning, and bribing Luo Liangde was just to use the guy's connections. He didn't expect to get such a pleasant surprise.

Although he has only regained a slight amount of mobility, it is better than nothing. With this crippled leg, let alone escaping the city, even protecting himself has become a problem.

Looking up, I saw San San sitting at the entrance of the alley.

Without anyone calling out to her, the little girl sat quietly as usual, raising her young head as if trying to see the scenery outside through the white cloth.

After all, she's just a young girl who hasn't even reached adulthood yet.

With a silent sigh, Zhou You walked over.

Just as their footsteps drew near, San San also turned her head.

"Brother, you've finished talking to him."

The little girl just can't see, but she understands everything in her heart.

Zhou You smiled and then said.

"We were just discussing some business matters. Now that it's over, shall we go home?"

However, San San did not move.

She simply stared at Zhou You in silence for a long time before finally uttering a single sentence.

"elder brother."

"Well, what's wrong?"

"Maybe I should just leave my eyes untreated."

Zhou You was taken aback, but San San continued.

She spoke so quickly, as if she had been considering it for a long time and had finally made up her mind.

“I’m not having any problems now. Even though I can’t see, I can still do a lot of work. I’ve gotten used to it over the years. On the contrary, you, brother, have been working so hard to treat me for so long, and you’ve almost died several times. Just a few days ago, you were even worse. I really don’t want to see anything happen to you, brother. How about we just let it go? You’ve made some money recently, brother. How about we start a small business? It’s better than going to the wilderness every time.”

As she spoke, the little girl's voice trembled slightly with sobs. —These words were truly sincere, without a trace of falsehood.

unfortunately
Your brother is no longer your brother; now, in this body, there is only a traveler who is not in control of his own destiny.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Zhou You still reached out and ruffled her hair.

"Don't worry, I promise you, I will never abandon you, okay?"

—Although he had no connection with this girl and had only spent a day with her, Zhou You was a person who always repaid kindness. Since he had inherited her body, he could say that she had saved his life.

So no matter what, we must fulfill his unfulfilled wish.

But San San was clearly very dissatisfied with this answer. She opened her mouth, as if she was about to say something, but in the end she lowered her head.

"Okay, I understand, but brother, can you promise me?"

Zhou You flashed a confident smile.

"Of course, I promise."

When I came here, there were hardly any people on the street, but when I went back, for some reason, the whole road was blocked.

The air-raid shelter itself wasn't particularly large, and with so many people living there, the roads were extremely narrow. If there were too many people, the roads would be completely blocked, and it would be impossible to squeeze through.

Now, it's not even about having a lot of people anymore.

Looking around, all you could see was a sea of ​​people shoulder to shoulder—and with that came a stench that filled the air.

Due to the lack of water resources—especially clean water resources—it is common for these people to go for months or even half a year without taking a bath, coupled with the dirty environment and sweltering air.
In short, it smelled like a giant garbage dump.

"How strange, does this godforsaken place have any big promotions or free eggs?"

Zhou You frowned, shielding San San with half of his body, and then limped away, trying to find a shortcut to leave.

Given his current physical condition, he really doesn't want to get involved in any kind of excitement.

But at that moment, all the sounds suddenly stopped.

It was as if a mute button had been pressed; in just a few seconds, the chaotic crowd suddenly fell silent—everyone raised their heads and looked in a certain direction in unison.

what happened?
Zhou You frowned instantly—in this situation, it would be too conspicuous for him to leave now, so he could only follow the crowd and look around.

A few minutes later, dozens of men dressed as police officers rushed out and forcibly separated the crowd—several of them who were unable to dodge were hit on the head with batons and then dragged away like dead dogs.

Then, several burly men carried out an extra-large screen and hung it in the most conspicuous place.

As soon as the power was turned on, a man appeared on the screen.

Compared to the group of refugees, this man seemed to belong to a different era. He was dressed in a crisp, clean suit, his hair was neatly combed and appeared to be coated with hair oil, and he was fair-skinned and handsome. Although he was middle-aged, he was clearly well-maintained and showed no signs of aging.

Now, this person is facing the camera, speaking fluently and confidently.

"Dear citizens."

Upon hearing this sound, whispers finally broke out from the surroundings.

"mayor."

"What instructions did he give this time?"

"Last time, the notice was about a ration shortage, and everyone's rations were halved."

"Last time, a water source was polluted, and the entire canal was abandoned."

"Hopefully this time it's good news."

But soon, after a few shouts from the police, the voices fell silent again.

Only Zhou You narrowed his eyes slightly.

—The mayor? Is he the ruler of this underground regime?
It seems.
Well, judging by his weak appearance, he doesn't seem like a powerful figure.

The other party couldn't possibly know Zhou You's opinion, and after a series of meaningless pleasantries, they finally got to the point.

"Fellow citizens, as you should know, the devastation caused by the disaster is becoming increasingly severe. Not long ago, two more residential areas were affected. Although most people have been evacuated, the losses are still incalculable."

As soon as those words were spoken, many people's faces turned very ugly.

The bizarre invasions never ceased, and the remaining humans could only cower underground like rats. Everyone knew this, but it was brought up directly by those in power.
However, the other party continued talking.

"Of course, I also know that for all of us, this is a slow death. No matter how powerful we are, we can never fight against the strangeness of this entire city. But!"

Just then, the pale-faced man suddenly changed the subject.

"Now we finally have a turning point—just a few days ago, after going through great difficulties, I finally got in touch with Si Chen of the amusement park. He said that if we can provide something of value, they will send people to help us with defense, and even open the park's entrances to let some people in and enjoy peace."

The crowd fell silent for a few seconds.

Then, everything exploded!

This time, no matter how hard the police tried to maintain order, and even after they knocked over several more people, they couldn't control the agitated emotions—

As Zhou You said before, this is a terrible world, and in some ways, it's even worse than Blood Rain Record.

Everyone was struggling in the cesspool, living day to day without knowing tomorrow. But now, suddenly, there was hope for salvation.
Who wouldn't be excited in that situation?
Finally, just as things were about to escalate into a riot, the lead police officer drew his service weapon and fired a shot, which barely managed to quell the unrest of the crowd.

The mayor on the screen naturally couldn't see this view, but as if he had expected it, he smiled and pressed his hand down.

"As for what these valuable things are, they are naturally all things related to the strange and unusual. And I can assure you all that as long as you can provide these things, I will give you the corresponding rewards—among them, if there is anyone who makes a great contribution, I can even recommend him to enter Paradise."

Zhou You didn't listen to the rest of what they said.

He simply tilted his head back and looked at the pale-faced man's wrist.

There was a wristband tied there, with an ornament hanging from it that looked like a dried-out hand.

It's a rather creepy thing, but not exactly terrifying—even in modern times, there are a group of 'avant-garde' people who make these corpse pendants, and the prices are even driven up to a very high level.

But.
Zhou You found the thing very familiar.

Its shape, its size, and the faint marks on it, remnants of burns from playing with fire when I was a child.
—Damn it, isn't that my original body's hand?!
(End of this chapter)