Chapter 34: Breakthrough to the Second Rank!

At 4:00 PM, after handing the network management station over to Sakurako, I grabbed my coat, ready to clock out. Lu Xiaobei was still tapping away at her keyboard, apparently locked in a one-on-one duel in the arena, her expression deeply focused.

"Lu Xiaobei, I'm off."

"Oh."

She replied subconsciously, "Stay safe on the way."

I couldn't be bothered to say anything else, so I threw on my coat and headed out. Just then, a call came in. I glanced at the screen—it was Milo.

"I'm awake."

"Go to hell. You're awake, so what? You're not my girlfriend; why do you need to report to me?" I said, feeling speechless.

Milo laughed. "I mean, if you pass by the market, pick up some groceries so we can cook. I’ll head downstairs to grab some beer, and we can have a drink, yeah?"

"That sounds great. I'm only having one bottle, don't buy too much."

I took a detour to the market and bought some pre-prepared ingredients—chicken cubes, chili peppers, and even pre-measured oil and salt, so all that was left was to stir-fry them.

Back at our place, I turned on the stove and started cooking. Milo sat in the living room, cradling his guitar, singing as he played, radiating the aura of an artsy youth.

Once dinner was ready, Milo set down his guitar and opened two bottles of beer. He poured a glass for each of us and said, "It's been a long time since we ate together. Come on, we’ve got to down this first glass in one go."

"You're on!"

After we finished, the atmosphere grew quiet. It was clear Milo had something to say.

I looked at him. "Luo-er?"

"Yeah, Han-er."

The nicknames sounded affectionate, but in truth, we were both trying to be the other's father.

"I’m planning to head to Beijing to chase my dreams in a while..." Milo said, his mood dimming. "When I go, I’ll leave this guitar for you. I’ve got another one in the locker at the bar, and this one is getting a bit old; it goes out of tune easily."

"When exactly are you leaving?"

"In about ten or fifteen days..." Milo seemed restless. "I’ve already made arrangements with some musician friends in Beihai. Food and housing won't be an issue once I'm there. We’ll form a band, practice for a bit, and then start trying to book gigs."

I nodded. "Then let's go over the lyrics and melodies again today. See if there are any other songs you want to include?"

"Chuanxiong Zhou's 'Blue and White Porcelain', Pu Shu's 'Those Flowers', and 'The Ordinary Road'. See how much you can remember, and we'll fill in the gaps. I feel like your writing is a bit better than mine; you really need to help me out with this."

"Your intuition is correct; I do have a bit of literary talent."

"Cocky... give you an inch and you take a mile."

I laughed, then turned serious. "Luo-er, are you planning to make 'The Ordinary Road' your debut album's lead track?"

"Yeah..." Milo said. "As a pseudo-intellectual, I lean more towards the style of 'The Ordinary Road'. I’m thinking that after performing in BH City for a while, I’ll get a car and head northwest to see the desert. I want to film a road-trip music video for the song. Do you think it’ll work?"

"It’s going to be a massive hit!" I agreed. "The music quality in the Star Abyss world is honestly nothing to write home about. With the style of 'The Ordinary Road', combined with the sentiment of breaking free from bonds and yearning for the distance, it will resonate with many people trapped in the grind of daily life. But you have to pay attention to promotion. Without capital behind you, even gold is hard to shine."

"I know," Milo said. "I’ll post a few songs on the popular Nine Heavens Music site first to build up a following. Once I become a so-called 'trending internet singer,' then I’ll plan for the first album."

"Then there's no problem. Good luck!"

"Thanks, brother!"

...

After a bottle of beer, I felt slightly tipsy but my head was still clear. Milo left for his shift at the bar; he was supposed to perform a new song, so he needed to rehearse early. The bar owner relied on him heavily and had specifically asked him to arrive early.

So, I sat in the empty living room for half an hour. Once the alcohol wore off, I decided not to waste time—it was time to finish my breakthrough mission!

*Activate mission!*

[You have officially started the mission: "Proof of Courage" (Tier 2 Breakthrough Mission)! Mission objective: Enter the breakthrough mission map and complete the NPC's request. Mission reward: Professional advancement to Tier 2!]

The moment the mission started, a golden portal appeared on the map. These triggered mission maps were essentially the same as dungeons, even in the way one accessed them.

The portal was only a few streets away. Soon, I found myself in the night air of Creek City. After turning a few corners, I stood in front of a public restroom. I couldn't help but frown—they really knew how to pick a spot. I held my breath against the pungent stench and stepped into the shimmering portal.

*Whoosh!*

The light flashed before my eyes, and the night shifted to day. A chime sounded in my ears.

[You have entered the specific mission map: "Bloody Slaughterhouse"!]

What met my eyes was a map drenched in blood, resembling a dilapidated factory. A foul, metallic stench hit me. At the entrance, a soldier fully encased in power armor turned to look at me.

"Young man, this slaughterhouse has been occupied by those damn bugs. Clean them all out, and you'll get what you're looking for. Are you ready?"

A golden exclamation mark hovered over his head; he was clearly the quest giver.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

I nodded, entered combat stance, and clutched my submachine gun.

"Go!"

He leaned on a chainsword, its jagged teeth clogged with blood and gore, and gave me a nod. "Good luck!"

Time to kill bugs.

As I descended the blood-stained steel stairs to the first floor, the chittering of insects filled my ears. Dozens of nest bugs burst from the cracks in the slaughterhouse floor, charging at me without hesitation!

*Bang, bang, bang!*

My "Roarer" began spitting fire. I pinned the trigger, sweeping the swarm while slowly backing up to avoid being surrounded. Fortunately, while there were many, they were only level 15 with 750 HP. Under the hail of gunfire, they kept dropping!

*Swish—*

I suddenly shifted my stance, unleashing "Step-Slash." As a protective aura manifested around me, I switched weapons and slammed a "Ground-Pierce" into the swarm. The insects shrieked as a flurry of damage numbers erupted!

"873!"
"844!"
"802!"
...

One-hit kills across the board. As expected of "Ground-Pierce," the 250% damage multiplier was indeed a god-tier early-game skill. It was an AOE attack that decimated a dozen bugs instantly, buying me a moment to switch magazines.

*Click!*

With a fresh magazine loaded, I resumed firing, keeping the swarm at bay. Whenever I felt like I was being surrounded, I used "Burst-Charge" or "Step-Slash" to break out, keeping my health in the healthy 80% range.

Minutes later, a pile of carcasses lay before me. After reaping a massive amount of experience, I began refilling my magazines. It was a shame there were no auto-loaders; otherwise, my efficiency would have doubled!

Of course, the biggest issue was the weapon.

My current "Roarer" submachine gun was only a Tier 1 green-grade weapon with a pathetic 55-70 firepower. That damage was fixed. If I could get a better weapon, like a Tier 2 purple-grade "Roarer," my firepower would skyrocket, allowing me to deal terrifying damage with the same amount of ammo.

However, primary weapons like submachine guns were extremely rare—a common headache for all players. Most were still using white or even gray-grade guns. Being able to hold a green one already put me in the minority.

Otherwise, the average level of the top ten on the regional leaderboard wouldn't be so low; someone would have already hit level 30 to challenge the Tier 3 promotion.

8:30 PM.

*Beep!*

A WeChat message from Lu Xiaobei: "Ding Han, I'm planning to hit the night market for some barbecue. Want to come?"

She sent a pathetic-looking emoji.

I felt a bit helpless and replied: "As much as I'd love to mooch off you, I really don't have the time. I'm busy right now."

"Fine..."

Lu Xiaobei sent a meat-cleaver emoji. "What could you possibly be busy with at this hour? Out carousing and drinking?"

"What do you think? With the salary you pay me, could I afford to carouse? And with my tolerance? I'm working a second job at night. To survive, you know?"

Lu Xiaobei was silent for a long time before finally replying: "Once the internet cafe expands a bit, I'll give you a raise. Then you won't have to work two jobs."

I glanced at it, but I was too busy killing bugs to reply.

...

Around 11:00 PM.

After an agonizingly long slaughter, I finally cleared every last bug in the factory. The mission progress bar filled up. Unfortunately, the cost was immense—a whole night's work had burned through nearly all four thousand rounds of ammo I had just purchased!

"Not bad!"

The soldier in power armor, his level displayed as "???", smiled. "Young man, you didn't let me down. Not bad, quite good. Come, this is your reward!"

[Congratulations! You have completed the mission: "Proof of Courage" (Tier 2 Breakthrough Mission). Your profession has successfully advanced to Tier 2, and your level cap has been increased to 30!]

Done!

I felt immense relief; my hard work throughout the night had finally yielded the proper result.

At this moment, the text on my character panel had changed.

[Shadow-Chaser] (Starry Super-Weapon · Sword Specialization · Tier 2)

...

Finally a Tier 2 player!

My heart raced with excitement. I opened the skill list and saw several icons flickering with a golden "Upgrade" symbol. Confirming them allowed me to upgrade the skills!

Only basic skills that had reached level 10 could be upgraded. I scanned them: Basic Maintenance, Throwing Technique, Basic Shooting, Basic Swordsmanship, and Basic Programming—five skills in total that could break through their level caps.

As for Dragon Blade, Burst-Charge, and Ground-Pierce, those were fixed skills and could never be upgraded.

I started clicking, and a series of chimes echoed in my ears.

[Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Maintenance lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Maintenance lv1" (Tier 2)!]

[Congratulations! Your skill "Throwing Technique lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Throwing lv1" (Tier 2)!]

[Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Shooting lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Shooting lv1" (Tier 2)!]

[Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Swordsmanship lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Swordsmanship lv1" (Tier 2)!]

[Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Programming lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Programming lv1" (Tier 2)!]

...

The moment the five major skills upgraded to Tier 2, a massive flood of knowledge rushed into my mind. In an instant, I had gained a wealth of new "positions" and techniques across all my skills!