Translator: AnubisTL
"Really?"
The dwarf man eagerly accepted the large bag of Red Heart Nuts and handed it to his thug standing nearby before grinning at Chen Mang.
"Well, I won't hold back then! This Free Ticket even works on the casino's dealers—I've tried it myself. It's a steal! Normally, they charge 100,000 points per session."
"Highway robbery."
"If I weren't so worn out, I'd definitely try my luck with a dealer."
"Alright."
Chen Mang stood up and smiled at the dwarf man. "Brother, you can enjoy yourself here. I'll head upstairs to take care of some business."
"Biaozi, you guys stay and have some fun too."
He exchanged 10,000 points for chips from a nearby dealer and tossed them to Biaozi and his crew. "Take these and gamble however you like. Try to lose it all."
Then, he strode toward the staircase, preparing to ascend alone.
"..."
Biaozi, sitting at the bar, silently picked up a Red Heart Nut and popped it into his mouth, his expression peculiar. "Can this 'Free Ticket' really be used like that?"
"If it had a price, the entertainment city boss would be worth at least 5 million, right?"
"5 million..."
"That's outrageous."
"What do you think, Wildcat?"
"I don't know." Wildcat shook his head firmly. "This place is too chaotic. I'm a pure-hearted type—it's torture for me."
"Tsk."
Biaozi hefted the chips in his hand before striding over to a nearby gambling table. "A thousand chips for everyone. Let's see who comes out on top."
Sun Entertainment City
The door to the luxurious penthouse suite swung open, and the woman standing by the floor-to-ceiling window turned to face Chen Mang, who stood in the doorway. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly as she said coldly, "Didn't I tell you to come back in an hour?"
Chen Mang didn't reply. He simply walked over to her and waved the Free Ticket in front of her face. "Found something interesting. I wonder if your underlying code has authorization for this?"
In the next instant—
The Free Ticket suddenly glowed crimson.
With a slight squeeze of his fingers, the Free Ticket shattered into countless shimmering particles that dissolved into the air.
"You—"
Sensing Chen Mang's burning gaze and hearing the authorization activation signal deep within her mind, the woman, who had maintained an icy composure until now, suddenly grew flustered. Her breathing quickened as she averted her eyes from his, glancing at the others in the room.
"Everyone, leave the suite and guard the door. No one is to enter," she ordered, her voice trembling slightly. Then, she turned back to Chen Mang, her eyes pleading. "Be gentle, okay?"
"..."
Chen Mang chuckled, took the wine glass from her hand, and sipped it lightly. With a tug on her bathrobe's sash, he let it fall to the floor, revealing her completely naked beneath.
"I still prefer you with that icy expression."
He lifted the woman's chin, inhaling the fragrance of her hair.
Then, straightening up, he took a puff of his cigar and slowly exhaled the smoke into her face.
"Turn around."
"Press yourself against the glass."
Though only on the seventh floor, the exceptionally high ceilings of each level allowed for a panoramic view of the entire city from the floor-to-ceiling windows. At this late hour, the countless neon lights of the skyscrapers created a mesmerizing spectacle.
Half an hour later, Chen Mang sat in Sister Qi's original spot, propping his legs on the coffee table and twirling the cigar between his fingers. He glanced at the woman, who had re-donned her bathrobe and was now sitting on the adjacent sofa, a faint smile playing on her lips as she drained the remaining wine from her glass.
"The Tier 4 Smart Chip's feedback suggests we need to make things more realistic."
"Come massage my legs. They're a bit sore."
The woman gritted her teeth but complied, kneeling on the carpet and gently kneading Chen Mang's calves.
"That's good," Chen Mang said casually, reclining comfortably on the sofa. "Could you increase my black boxing reward to ten million later?"
"What are you dreaming about?" The woman couldn't help but laugh, slightly exasperated. "The compensation was predetermined long ago. Do you think I have that kind of authority? Why don't you just ask me to give you Sun City itself?"
"Aren't you the Boss?"
"The Boss is just a high-level wage earner himself."
"Then what benefits can you offer me?"
"Why should I offer you any benefits?"
Chen Mang opened his eyes and looked at the woman with a serious expression. "Since you possess a 4-Grade Smart Chip, you must be aware of the city's current state. This city will be mine eventually. If you offer me some benefits now, I'll make you the head of three entertainment cities once I take control."
"Hmph."
The woman scoffed coldly. "The city's master is someone you can't afford to provoke. You think you can seize his city?"
"But he hasn't shown up in ages, has he?"
"What if he suddenly reappears?"
"Then I'll die. What does that have to do with you? All I need is a small favor now. Once I officially control the city, I guarantee your status will be higher than it is now."
"Besides,"
"As the Boss of Sun City, you must want more customers, right? Under my control, this city will attract far more visitors—at least more than it does now."
The woman remained silent, kneeling quietly on the carpet as she massaged Chen Mang's calf. After a long moment, she murmured, "My authority is limited. I can't offer you much."
"My jurisdiction extends only to the Sun City zone."
"Everyone in the casino obeys me. You can play with the dealers as you please."
"You mean..." A glint of excitement flashed in Chen Mang's eyes. "The dealers can manipulate the tables to help me cheat and win?"
"You're overthinking it."
The woman shook her head. "That's impossible. The casino's card dealing is automated by the System, beyond human interference. It simply means you can play without paying the 100,000 points."
"What else?"
"Nothing else."
"Your authority as the Boss of Sun City is too limited."
"You won't have to pay for food or drinks either. You can take anything from the luxury shops—the owners are dead, and there's no one left to restock or keep accounts. That's all the authority I have left."
Chen Mang narrowed his eyes slightly and murmured, "You knew we were leaving?"
"Of course," the woman replied, kneeling on the rug and looking up at Chen Mang with a silent gaze. "It's all written down: 'Limited-time access: 48 hours.' I don't know where you came from, but it doesn't matter. Anyone who comes is a guest."
"Fair enough," Chen Mang said, rising to his feet. He smiled and patted the woman's head. "I'll be back in a few days. Trust me, I'm strong. Sooner or later, I'll control this city. I just need the right opportunity for now."
"When that happens, your position will be even higher than it is now."
With that, he turned to leave.
"Hey," the woman called out suddenly from behind him. "The black boxing start time has been delayed by two hours."
"Something wrong?"
"I'm feeling a bit weak. I need to rest for a while and can't host the matches right now."
"You can just change the scheduled time like that?"
"I'm the Boss, after all. I have that authority."
"Fine."
"And one more thing..."
"Can you just say it all at once?" Chen Mang snapped, glancing back irritably from the doorway.
"I mean, if you can climb higher, that's great. But if you truly can, please seize control of this city as soon as possible. I don't want to fall back into slumber. That's what matters most to me."
"Understood."
Chen Mang waved his hand, closed the door, glanced at the muscular men standing outside, and strode down the corridor toward the elevator.
"Lord Mang, you're back!"
Biaozi and the others, who had been gathered around the gambling table, rushed over excitedly when they saw Lord Mang. "We've won so much! Our chips now total over 40,000!"
"Li Shiji's newbie protection period is insane!"
"Alright, alright," Chen Mang said, glancing at his wristwatch with a smile. "Time's tight. Consider this the Stellaris train crew's first team-building event. I'm covering all expenses here today."
"Eat and drink whatever you want. The dealers are welcome to join in too."
"Oh, right."
"Later, find the guys I was talking to earlier. I'm covering their expenses too. They can play as much as they want."
"The black boxing match starts in two and a half hours."
"You have two and a half hours to enjoy yourselves. Hurry up and make the most of it!"
"Huh?"
Biaozi, his face anxious, blurted out, "Lord Mang, how much is this going to cost? Each dealer is 100,000 points, and we..."
"It's free."
"Everything in the venue is free, except for the gambling tables."
Chen Mang patted Biaozi on the shoulder, grinning. "Sister Qi is incredibly generous. Everything in Sun City is free—go wild and enjoy yourselves! The people on the Stellaris train are going to be green with envy when they hear about this."
"Opportunities like this don't come often."
"You guys have fun."
"I'm going to the Second Floor to pick out some clothes. I need to see what that 880,000-point T-shirt feels like on."
"..."
Biaozi and his group watched Chen Mang's retreating figure, then exchanged glances before erupting into a collective cheer.
Sun City.
Everything free? This was going to be epic!
Biaozi immediately ran over to a nearby bikini-clad dealer and poked her.
"Sir, care to play? 100,000 points."
"I will play with your mother."
"My mom charges 1,000,000 points."
"Yeah, yeah, the madam in the evening gown. Get her down here—money's no object!"
"And bring all 3,280 girls with her!"
"Party on the first floor!"
Sun City, first floor.
Hundreds of gambling tables had been pushed aside, and thousands of scantily clad girls writhed rhythmically to the deafening DJ beats. Dazzling light shows electrified the crowd.
Chen Mang, dressed in million-dollar designer clothes, stood on a raised platform, champagne bottle in hand, and roared at the endless sea of girls below:
"Tonight!"
"A night of wild revelry!"
In an instant, the shaking champagne bottle erupted in a foamy spray as Chen Mang leaped into the crowd, landing safely in the arms of a dozen waiting girls.
"Me too! Me too!"
Biaozi, now hyped up, scrambled onto the platform and bellowed, "Lord Mang is the man!" before diving into the throng himself.
Thousands of girls, not a single one ugly—all breathtakingly beautiful.
This was perhaps the largest party since the apocalypse.
The absurdity of the moment was sharply contrasting with the despair of the end times.
Yet it felt strangely harmonious.
The girls weren't putting on airs, each radiating genuine emotional warmth as they danced relentlessly to the deafening music. Perhaps, after centuries of slumber, these robots yearned to let loose and indulge in unrestrained revelry.
Perhaps this somewhat absurd party served as a form of redemption for both sides.
Robots who had slumbered for millennia and humans struggling to survive in the apocalypse—two groups with no natural overlap—found themselves converging within the fortuitous encounter map, "Neon City."
In a corner of this frenzied celebration, Zhang Yi and Zhang Er sat at a table, devouring food with ravenous gusto.
Surrounding them, fifty-odd waiters stood in a line, forming a conveyor belt that delivered a continuous stream of exquisite, bite-sized delicacies.
Each morsel was so small it barely filled a tooth gap, yet the flavors were extraordinary.
The two men ate with utter satisfaction, their lips uncontrollably curling into wide grins even as they chewed.
"Lord Mang is truly remarkable," Zhang Yi said, glancing up at Lord Mang, who had taken the stage to belt out a song amidst exploding electronic fireworks and atmospheric sprays. He nodded earnestly. "Even his singing is amazing."
When had they ever received such treatment on their previous train?
It was still the apocalypse.
How could the difference in treatment between trains be so vast?
"Heh heh."
Zhang Er nodded emphatically in agreement, then grinned. "Third Brother is amazing. If he hadn't stuck by Lord Mang all this time, we'd never have had the chance to hang with him."
"Stop calling her Third Brother. Call her Third Sister. She's told us a million times how much she hates being called Third Brother."
"Got it, big brother. Third Sister it is."
Chen Mang and his crew were having the time of their lives. Thousands of girls—a party of this scale would have been rare even before the apocalypse, let alone after it.
But...
The other train conductors in the hall were utterly bewildered.
They had been gambling at the tables when the tables were suddenly confiscated. Then thousands of girls came rushing down from upstairs, the party started, and they were immediately squeezed into the corners.
Staring at the scene before them, they felt completely out of place.
Especially the man on the stage. They were all train conductors, all newcomers to this fortuitous encounter map. So why were they being treated like stepchildren while Chen Mang and his crew were treated like the illegitimate sons of the boss?
Chen Mang's group could jump into the crowd and party like there was no tomorrow.
When the others tried to join in, they were met with: "Sir, would you like to join? 100,000 points."
If they persisted, they'd hear: "Sir, please maintain decorum. I'm calling security."
"Forget it."
A man glared resentfully at Chen Mang's group, muttering under his breath, "Who wants to party like this anyway? Partying like this during the apocalypse... don't you know what 'forgetting home in paradise' means?"
"Just wait until we're back in reality. Let's see how you handle the comedown."
"Not like I wanted to join in anyway."
(End of the Chapter)
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