There were fewer and fewer vehicles on the road, and more and more trees. Lin Yu's car gradually rolled into the outskirts of the city.
Finding an open spot, Lin Yu stepped out, walked about five meters from the vehicle, exhaled, summoned the system panel, and said in his heart, "Xiao Shu, check my car."
[ Understood. ]
The various probabilistic attributes of Lin Yu's Wuling Divine Chariot flashed into view on the virtual system panel before him.
[ Name: Wuling Hongguang S ]
[ License Plate Number: Cantonese xxxxxx ]
[ Status: Normal ]
[ Scrap probability: 6 % ]
[ Blowout probability: 3 % ]
[ Rollover probability: 5 % ]
...
[ Fire source activation, probability: 0.000000084 % ]
Without hesitation, Lin Yu tapped on the item "fire source activation, probability" and adjusted it to [ 0.000000084 -> 100 ].
A moment of silence stretched. Just as Lin Yu was about to ask the system if something had gone wrong, his Wuling Hongguang began to shake violently. A surge of blue energy pulsed outward from the car, and then—crack by crack—the entire vehicle fractured. Countless modules began to break apart and reassemble along those fissures, accompanied by a transformation sound that any Transformers fan would recognize: kukukukiki...
A white robot, six meters tall, stood towering before Lin Yu. Sleek in design, smooth in its lines, and painted in a style indistinguishable from the robots in the Transformers film series.
"Hello, my master." The robot bowed elegantly.
"This is badass!" Lin Yu exclaimed, circling the white robot in excitement.
"What's your name?" he asked, once he had calmed down and stood in front of it again.
"I have just awakened to consciousness and do not yet have a name. Please give me one."
"Ugh, naming things is such a pain…" Lin Yu scratched his head. "Alright then… you'll be called Pyramid."
" Acknowledged Naming recorded. "
"Oh, right—can you only transform into a car?" Lin Yu asked, touching his chin, eyeing the robot up and down.
"No. As long as the vehicle or mechanical equipment is approximately my size, I can transform into it." There was a trace of pride in his synthetic voice.
"Aircrafts and such, too?" Lin Yu asked, eyes lighting up.
"Yes." The Pyramid answered simply, and at once began to shift again. His form broke apart and restructured, transforming into a futuristic, sci-fi-style shuttle before Lin Yu's amazed eyes.
"That's so cool!" Lin Yu gasped, quickly stepping into the open hatch of the transformed shuttle.
"This is shotgun transformation, hehe." Lin Yu ran his hand along the shuttle's interior like it was the delicate curve of a lover's back and gave the order, "Let's go."
"Yes". The Pyramid's voice echoed from within. Blue flame burst from the underside of the shuttle.
"Yahoo!!" Lin Yu's shout of joy filled the cabin as the shuttle soared skyward, trailing streams of brilliant blue flame.
"Oh right! Let me test my phone, too." Inside the shuttle, Lin Yu looked out the window, then pulled out his phone to snap a picture. He paused, then grinned, and placed the phone on the console. He summoned the system panel and commanded, "Xiao Shu, check my mobile phone."
[ Understood. ]
The phone's probability panel appeared instantly.
[ Brand: Xiaomi ]
[ Model: Xiaomi ix2 ]
[ Usage Time: 1 year, 5 months, 3 days ]
[ Scrap probability: 2 % ]
[ Crash probability: 0.00012138 % ]
[ Explosion probability: 0.000002333 % ]
...
[Fire source activation probability: 0.000000063 % ]
Just like before, Lin Yu didn't hesitate. He selected "fire source activation, probability" and adjusted it to [ 0.000000063 -> 100 ].
The phone began to shake, and blue light radiated outward. Cracks spidered across its surface as components detached and reshaped. A moment later, a white robot materialized on the shuttle console.
"Hello, my master." The robot was petite, entirely white, with black stripes, red hair, and a bright "O" emblazoned on its chest.
"Student Xiao Ai!?" Lin Yu stared in astonishment. This was clearly the character from Xiaomi's smart AI speaker.
"Shall I use 'Xiao Ai' as my name?" the mechanical girl asked sweetly.
"Hmm… yeah, you'll be Xiao Ai," Lin Yu decided after a moment.
" Okay. Naming recorded. "
"Transform into the newest Xiaomi phone—no, wait—can you become a terminal bracelet like in sci-fi movies?" With Pyramid's example before him, Lin Yu went straight to the point.
"Yes." Xiao Ai disassembled and morphed into a sleek, futuristic personal terminal bracelet.
"If people see this setup, will they think I'm from the future?" Lin Yu chuckled as he picked up the bracelet and slid it onto his wrist. However, the contrast with his clearly modern clothing stood out against the sci-fi shuttle and high-tech bracelet.
"Master, where would you like to go?" The Pyramid's voice echoed in the cabin as the shuttle flew aimlessly.
"Hmm… where to?" Lin Yu reclined comfortably in his seat. After a moment's thought, he said, "Take me to the nearest lottery betting shop."
He definitely wasn't going back to find a job. If he wanted to do whatever he pleased, money would still be necessary. Although he could create many things himself, some expenses were unavoidable. The fastest and most efficient way to get money?
There were two.
One was gambling. Gambling in Macau isn't illegal, but Lin Yu didn't want to earn money that way.
That left just one method: buy lottery tickets.
With his ability, he didn't even need to look at the numbers. Just buy and win.
He didn't need to be like the protagonists in other novels with tens of millions, hundreds of millions, or billions. With his current needs, 500 million would be enough. As long as inflation didn't go wild, that could last decades—maybe a century.
After all, with his past spending habits, Lin Yu barely spent on anything beyond food, clothing, housing, and phone bills.
Maybe… the occasional figurine?
Now, with powers like this, he'd spend even less.
That's the life of a single otaku: thrift through lack of desire. First get the 500 million. If that's not enough… well, we'll deal with it when the time comes.