The price of 500,000 lunar coins was indeed beyond expectation.
Su Mo also realized that he was somewhat assuming the "protagonist's perspective."
In the game "Dawn," if a player starts by choosing the background of a "street kid," the "protagonist" can indeed get an identity in Haywood for just 150,000 lunar coins because they're well acquainted with both sides.
As an outsider, it's naturally a different price.
Haywood, having mingled on the frontier for years, was skilled at reading people and instantly realized Su Mo couldn't afford it. He wasn't polite either: "Come find me when you have the money. Tank, show him out."
Just as Tank grabbed Su Mo's arm, he shook it off.
Su Mo flashed a friendly smile: "Haywood, don't be so stingy; let's make friends. In a place like the frontier, the more friends you have, the better."
Haywood seemed to hear a joke, and mockingly asked, "Then tell me, 'friend,' why should I befriend you? What can you offer me?"
Su Mo stepped forward.
Haywood signaled with his eyes for the eager Tank to hold back, curious to see what Su Mo was up to.
Su Mo walked to the table, picked up a small snack from the plate, and sniffed it.
Under Haywood's stunned gaze, Su Mo tossed the snack into his mouth, chewing as he spoke, "Oh? This is real beef jerky, not synthetic meat."
"Bro, you're so rich that you can afford real meat, why still look for a reason to make friends?"
Haywood was a bit angry. Was this guy here to freeload?!
His face was displeased, and his voice grew louder: "Show him out!"
As Tank was about to step forward to drag him, Su Mo suddenly spoke: "Do you have a subordinate named Pizi Jie?"
Haywood asked suspiciously: "So what if I do?"
Su Mo grinned mysteriously: "I heard you banned your subordinates from touching drugs. You'd better check on this kid soon, otherwise, once he's high, who knows what big trouble he'll bring you."
Haywood's expression slightly changed, staring skeptically at Su Mo.
After a moment of thought, he hesitantly told Tank: "Go search Pizi Jie's room."
"Yes." Tank responded and left.
Haywood coldly said to Su Mo: "If you're messing with me, you'll crawl out of here."
Su Mo shrugged, unconcerned.
Five minutes later, Tank returned, full of anger.
In his left hand, he held a yellow-haired kid, and in his right, a black plastic bag covered in wood chips.
Tank pushed the panicked Pizi Jie down and threw the black plastic bag to Haywood: "Found this in his room. When I got there, this bastard was hiding it under the floorboards."
Haywood opened the black bag to find several bags of white powder.
Haywood was furious, glaring at Pizi Jie.
Pizi Jie trembled and pleaded: "Boss, I know I'm wrong! Please give me one more chance, I'll never touch it again!"
Haywood said nothing, opened a drawer, and took out a revolver.
He spun the cylinder, calmly loading bullets, spinning it back with a twist.
Pizi Jie cried out: "Boss! Spare..."
"Bang!" Haywood shot him through the head, and the body twitched in a pool of blood, quickly falling still.
Haywood took out a handkerchief, wiping the revolver with a sullen look, signaling Tank to drag the body away and telling the two trembling girls to leave.
The room was left with just him and Su Mo.
Haywood frowned deeply, looking evasively at Su Mo: "My subordinate was into drugs, and I didn't know, yet you knew first?"
"So, do you have informants with the junkies? Or did you see Pizi Jie trading with them? Who are you, really?"
Su Mo smiled slightly.
In the game "Dawn," Haywood was later seriously harmed by this drug-addicted Pizi Jie, and now he helped him remove a major hidden danger.
Su Mo said meaningfully: "Who I am doesn't matter. You only need to know that befriending someone like me is a guaranteed win for you."
For a moment, Su Mo appeared ever more mysterious and elusive in Haywood's eyes.
Haywood pondered for a moment, putting the revolver back in place, silently saying: "Then it's 150,000. Come in and take a photo with me."
Su Mo and Haywood went to the back, where they took a photo for the ID.
Haywood took the photo from the machine, asking: "What's your name?"
This was a simple question, yet it made Su Mo fall into deep thought.
He was "Dr. Chen" now, but this identity was definitely unusable.
So what should he be called?
A name is just a code, and as a transmigrator, he could name himself anything, as long as it wasn't too weird, Haywood could certainly get the identity sorted.
Rather than considering what to be called, perhaps...
Who does he want to become?
In this world, how does he want to walk his path?
Su Mo looked out the window, gazing into the distance.
Haywood's yard was on high ground, offering a view of the dim lights; the slightly cool summer evening breeze was relaxing and pleasant, evoking a reminiscence of watching the night view from the balcony after gaming.
At this moment, past life experiences flashed repeatedly across his mind.
In his previous life, Su Mo was an ordinary person, born ordinary, grew up ordinary, finished high school before savoring youth, muddled through college, graduated into society as an average person.
Like most working people, he was oppressed by company assessments, endured the boss's suppression and scolding, and sustained his bread with street food for breakfast, takeout for lunch and dinner, crowding into a small, shabby rental after work, unable to afford a house.
He was still young, but his life could be seen nearly to its end.
He would work 996 until 35, then face a midlife crisis after being laid off, drive a cab, deliver takeout, endure his wife's contempt and cold shoulder at home—if he could even afford the dowry to get married.
Later, his parents would pass one after another, and he too would succumb to overwork illnesses from his youth, dying insignificantly on a sickbed, becoming just another name in a graveyard, perhaps even without being able to afford a grave.
The reason he loved gaming so much in his past life was because real life was too bitter.
In the game, he could temporarily forget his life's troubles, traverse in vibrant worlds, and rewrite his own story.
And now, he'd really traversed into the game.
In the precarious Dawn Realm, he could undoubtedly hide his name, laze around at the bottom of society, and remain an obscure nobody, maximizing his survival chances.
But, is that really what he wants?
Even after traversing, did he want to live like his past life?
At this moment, countless scenes appeared in Su Mo's mind.
The grandiose plots, tear-jerking elegies, heart-stirring endings of the Dawn Realm... all overlapping together.
Underneath it all, Su Mo felt the mist in his heart disappear, obtaining the answer he sought—he would again ascend the Peak of Dawn!
In his past life, he lay low at the bottom, escaping life through gaming because reality's gravity was too heavy.
But now, with his near omniscient-memory, the most precious guides of the Dawn Realm were in his mind.
Anything he wished to achieve had a shortcut.
If so, let him commence a brand new life.
In this new world after crossing over, he wouldn't assume any NPC's identity, nor live under another name, and wouldn't change his name.
He would live as himself!
The things he couldn't achieve in the past, he would reclaim them all here!
Reach the Peak of Dawn!
"Su Mo."
Su Mo gazed at Haywood with determination in his eyes, stating his real name clearly and deliberately.
"My name is Su Mo!"