Chapter 1

"Discounts on the Sect System!"

"Massive sale on the Martial Arts System! All kinds of martial arts from the four major dimensions—Jin, Gu, Wen, and Huang—are available, all at 50% off! Don't miss out as you pass by!"

"Super Lottery System, secret manuals, and even nuclear bombs—everything is available, buy one get half off for every hundred!"

"Infinite Flow Map Pack, three maps for just five dollars! Five dollars won't make you lose, five dollars won't make you regret..."

"The boss has gone crazy! The boss is really crazy!! The Warrior Summoning System, with all kinds of cute girls available at crazy low prices! Just 299! 299, take home a big-breasted Lü Bu. 299, have a cute Zhang Fei warm your bed..."

"League of Legends Hero Summoning System, the hottest and trendiest system, essential for leveling up and flirting!"

"Massive clearance sale! Freshly minted protagonist card, blue quality, with special forces attributes, sold at a loss! Come and take a look even if you don't buy!"

...

"What the hell... What is all this!" Wang Yichen sat on the ground, bewildered and frightened, looking around.

Just a short while ago, he had crossed over—don't ask how he knew this, but he did. Unlike typical crossover protagonists, Wang Yichen felt he had landed in a place that was quite extraordinary...

He was now in a vast square, a place filled with black metal and strange lights, clean, cold, open, and noisy, with a cold, futuristic sci-fi vibe and a touch of earthly烟火气 (human烟火气, meaning the hustle and bustle of everyday life).

In the center of the square stood a prominent black metal pillar, with a large metal sign at the top that read "Black Obsidian Square" in Chinese characters.

Of course, these were not the main points.

The main point was, who were these people in the square...

On the surface, they looked no different from ordinary people. The things they were doing were also very familiar to Wang Yichen—assuming he was right, these people shouting at the top of their lungs were street vendors, and those gathered around them were customers picking out goods.

But what were these vendors selling?

Sect systems, lottery systems, martial arts systems, summoning systems, protagonists... These keywords made Wang Yichen's head spin.

Before crossing over, Wang Yichen had read quite a few wish-fulfillment novels and was familiar with these terms—protagonists and golden fingers were the two essential elements of such novels. But... he had never heard of these things being sold!

More importantly, Wang Yichen could clearly see that these vendors in the Black Obsidian Square were not joking or putting on a show—they were serious, and they really had these magical items and could sell them.

Wang Yichen stared blankly at the cute girl warriors standing next to the vendor selling the summoning system. They were vivid and lifelike, with bright armor and a powerful presence, exuding a strong sense of oppression and visual impact. They were clearly not just for show but could truly fight—Wang Yichen had seen a red-faced, green-robed girl with a large breast and a green dragon偃月刀 (Yanyue Dao) slice a metal pillar as thick as two people's arms in half with one stroke...

Next to the cute girl warriors, a middle-aged vendor was energetically selling his giant robot—it was not a toy but a real, towering mechanical warrior, as tall as a mobile villa, capable of crushing a metal pillar with one step. Standing in front of you, you wouldn't dare call it a fake even if you had the courage.

Next to the giant robot, another vendor was selling a martial arts system, holding several secret manuals and shouting enthusiastically. Wang Yichen, with his nearsighted and astigmatic eyes, could vaguely see titles like "Nine Yin Manual" and "Manual of the Sunflower." Next to this vendor, a man in a long robe was demonstrating martial arts—swords, spears, sabers, fists, palms, legs, fingers, needles, and wall-climbing... the moves were splendid, and his internal energy seemed quite powerful—anyway, he could create a large dent in a thick metal pillar with one palm...

Why were there so many metal pillars here? Was it okay to smash them around without anyone stopping them? Despite his confusion and fear, these thoughts still entered Wang Yichen's mind.

Of course, this was not the main point.

The main point was, what kind of place was this? What should he do next?

Wang Yichen, a 24-year-old ordinary office worker with no special skills except for his ability to criticize, had no answers. Given his abilities, it was already a feat that he could remain mentally clear and think logically after suddenly crossing over to such a terrifying place.

After sitting on the ground for a while, Wang Yichen slowly got up—fortunately, although his legs were a bit shaky, his physical condition seemed normal.

"Whatever happens, I'll take a look around first... There shouldn't be any danger. If these great heroes and immortals had any ill intentions toward me, I would have been dead a hundred times already." Wang Yichen comforted himself and cautiously walked into the Black Obsidian Square.

"Buzz!"

But soon, Wang Yichen regretted it. As he took his first steps forward, he could clearly feel a light membrane that had been enveloping his body rupture as he moved.

Then, Wang Yichen noticed that the people in the Black Obsidian Square, who had previously ignored him, were now looking at him.

At that moment, Wang Yichen suddenly understood. He had been safe and undisturbed because he was protected by that light membrane—perhaps it was like a newbie protection zone in an online game?

In other words, as long as Wang Yichen stayed within the light membrane, he would be safe. But now, who knew?

Wang Yichen regretted his rashness. But it was too late to regret now—the light membrane had already ruptured, and there was nothing behind him. With no choice, Wang Yichen had to pretend to be familiar with the place and walk into the Black Obsidian Square.

"Hey, look, a newbie."

"Ha, this unlucky kid is a newbie from the Red Flag Guild. How long do you think he'll last in the Red Flag Guild?"

"Last? It would be good if he could survive..."

But soon, Wang Yichen realized how laughable his disguise was—almost everyone who saw him could immediately tell he was a newbie, which puzzled him. Did he have "newbie" written on his forehead? Or did he really exude a weak aura that couldn't be hidden?

Anyway, Wang Yichen found himself becoming a very noticeable presence, which made him very uneasy. Looking up, he saw a building area with tall buildings nearby and had an idea—find a corner to hide and observe the situation.

"Bang!"

But at that moment, the thing Wang Yichen feared the most happened—someone really came to cause trouble!

Just as Wang Yichen lowered his head and quickened his pace toward the building area, a loud thud was heard, and a huge shadow suddenly loomed over him.

Wang Yichen looked up to see a towering man at least two meters tall!

This man was muscular, with at least ten abs, and chest muscles larger than a D-cup, even his face seemed to be made of muscle. Wang Yichen, trembling with fear, felt that this man standing in front of him was like a mountain of muscle, blocking out the sun.

This man had a striking head of short, fiery red hair. His features were actually quite handsome—thick eyebrows, large eyes, a straight nose, and a square mouth, exuding a strong masculine aura. However, his challenging expression and clearly malicious smile only made him more intimidating.

In his right hand, the red-haired muscular man held a large, stylish gun, clearly a heavy-duty weapon that could tear Wang Yichen to pieces with a single close-range burst.

The red-haired muscular man used this terrifying gun like a spear, slamming it heavily into the ground—the loud thud came from this.

In short, the scene was terrifying.

Wang Yichen swallowed hard and managed to ask, "Big brother, what do you want?"

"I wouldn't dare to call it important..." The red-haired muscular man held the gun in one hand and casually dug his ear with the other, looking very laid-back, which was quite out of place with his noble appearance.

If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't fight back, Wang Yichen would have commented, "Why are you, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, betraying the revolution?"

"I want you to come with me... How about it, buddy, give me some face?" After digging his ear for a while, the red-haired muscular man finally spoke again. He then blew the earwax from his hand, and a golden powder scattered in the air.

"Damn, do you think you're a dandelion..." Wang Yichen muttered to himself and then cautiously asked, "Can I ask where we're going? What's the matter?"

"Of course, it's a good thing." The red-haired muscular man smiled warmly, but his large gun was already pointed at Wang Yichen's forehead. He then started digging his ear again with his other hand.

At the moment the cold gun barrel touched his forehead, Wang Yichen did not feel the intense humiliation or sudden burst of power as described in wish-fulfillment novels. He did not suddenly unleash his dominant aura and beat the red-haired muscular man to a pulp...

Honestly, feelings of humiliation and revenge only slowly surfaced in Wang Yichen's mind after the initial shock. At that moment, the only thing he felt was fear. The fact that he didn't faint or wet his pants was already a feat.

"Big brother, I'll go with you, no need for weapons," Wang Yichen said in a stiff voice, the words coming out slowly in the frozen air.

"Good." The red-haired muscular man seemed satisfied with Wang Yichen's response, put away his gun, and lazily waved his hand. "Let's go."

"Hey, isn't that red-haired guy from the Gray Wolf Guild? The Gray Wolf Guild is getting more and more arrogant, openly snatching newbies in broad daylight."

"Shh, keep your voice down. Didn't you see he's almost at the third-level halo?"

"Hey, the Red Flag Guild only got one newbie this time, and he's already been snatched. What a tragedy."

"The Red Flag Guild has been impotent for a long time. How long has it been since they produced a decent expert? What newbies who joined the Red Flag Guild recently have had a good outcome? If you're not strong enough, getting snatched is your own fault."

"Yeah, the Red Flag Guild doesn't have many capable people. Even this red-haired guy is not someone the Red Flag Guild can provoke. Unless that person comes..."

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd, the red-haired muscular man, carrying his large gun, looked smug.

"Do you want to die? How dare you snatch my people?" At that moment, a cold female voice rang out, and a black shadow darted toward the red-haired muscular man.