Star Abyss Walker

Chapter 34 Second-Order Breakthrough!

At four o'clock in the afternoon, after handing the network management machine over to Yingzi, I picked up my coat and prepared to leave work.

Lu Xiaobei continued typing away on the keyboard, seemingly engaged in a one-on-one duel in an arena, his expression extremely serious.

"Lu Xiaobei, I'm off work."

"Oh."

She instinctively replied, "Be careful on the road."

I was too lazy to say anything more, so I put on my coat and went out.

Just then, a phone call came in, and upon closer inspection, it turned out to be Milo's number.

"I woke up."

"Damn it, you're awake, so what? You're my girlfriend, why do you have to report to me?" I was speechless.

Milo laughed and said, "What I mean is, when you pass by the market, you can buy some groceries to cook, and I'll go downstairs and buy a few beers so we can have a drink?"

"That's great, I'll only drink one bottle, don't buy any more."

So I took a detour to the market and bought some pre-prepared ingredients, such as diced chicken and chili peppers. Even the amount of oil and salt was already mixed in, so I could just cook it myself when I got home.

After returning to my lodgings, I turned on the gas stove and started cooking.

Milo, meanwhile, was in the living room with his guitar, playing and singing, exuding the aura of an artistic youth.

After preparing the meal, Milo put down his guitar, opened two bottles of wine, poured a glass for each of them, and said, "It's been a long time since we ate together. Come on, let's drink the first glass in one gulp."

"Row!"

After drinking it all in one gulp, the atmosphere became somewhat silent; Milo must have something to say.

I looked at him: "Luo'er?"

"Yes, Han'er."

The way they address each other seems intimate, but in reality, they both want to be each other's father.

"I'm planning to move to Beijing soon..."

Milo seemed a little downcast and said, "I'll leave this guitar at home with you and give it to you. I have another one in the bar cabinet, but this one is a bit old and tends to go out of tune."

When exactly are you leaving?

"It'll probably only take ten days to two weeks..."

Milo was a little annoyed and said, "I've already made arrangements with some friends who play music in Beihai. Food and lodging won't be a problem when we go there. After that, we'll form a band, practice for a while, and then prepare to try out various performances."

I nodded: "Then let's go over the lyrics and melody again today. Is there any other song you'd like to hear?"

"Zhou Chuanxiong's 'Blue and White Porcelain,' Pu Shu's 'Those Flowers,' and 'The Ordinary Road,' see how many you can still remember. Let's match them up, and if we can't match them, we'll make them up on the spot. I feel that your writing skills are a bit better than mine, so you really have to help me with this."

"You're right, I do have some writing talent."

"Wow... You get all worked up just because I said you're fat."

I laughed and then said seriously, "Luo'er, are you planning to release your first album as 'The Ordinary Road'?"

"Um……"

Milo said, "As an artsy type, I actually prefer the style of 'The Ordinary Road,' so after performing in BH City for a while, I plan to get a car and head northwest to see the desert and shoot a road trip music video for the song 'The Ordinary Road.' Do you think it's feasible?"

"I reckon they'll be able to wipe them out!"

I nodded and said, "The music quality in Star Abyss World is really not flattering. The style of Ordinary Road, plus the feeling of breaking free from constraints and yearning for the distance, will resonate with many people who are struggling in life. But you also need to pay attention to the promotion. If you don't have capital behind you, even gold will have a hard time shining."

"I know."

Milo said, "I will first release a few songs on the popular Jiutian Music website to accumulate a certain amount of popularity and become a so-called popular online singer before planning to release my first album."

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

"Thanks, brother!"

……

After downing a bottle of wine, I was slightly tipsy, but my mind was still relatively clear.

Milo went to work at the bar. He was supposed to sing a new song today, so he needed to rehearse in advance. The bar owner relied heavily on him and specifically told him to go early.

So I sat alone in the empty living room for half an hour. After sobering up a bit, I decided I couldn't waste any more time and had to get on my breakthrough mission!
Activate and start the task!

[You have officially started the quest "Proof of Courage" (Second-Tier Breakthrough Quest)! Quest details: Enter the breakthrough quest map, complete the NPC's instructions, and receive the reward: Second-tier job advancement!]

The moment the mission started, a golden teleportation point appeared on the world map with a "whoosh." This type of mission map, which is triggered by the mission, is the same as a dungeon, and even the way to get there is exactly the same.

The portal is just a few streets away, not too far.

Soon, I appeared in the night of Xicheng. After turning a few streets, I came to the front of a public toilet. I couldn't help but frown. They really knew how to pick a place. So I endured the overwhelming smell of fish and stepped into the brightly lit portal.

"Shua~~~"

A flash of light appeared before my eyes, and the night had turned into day. A ding-dong sound rang in my ears.

[You have entered the mission-specific map: Crimson Slaughterhouse!]

What came into view was a map stained with blood, which looked like a dilapidated factory. A stench wafted over me, and right at the entrance, a soldier covered in power armor turned to look at me.

"Young man, this slaughterhouse has been overrun by damned insects. Once you clear them all out, you'll get what you want. Are you ready?"

A golden exclamation mark was above his head, clearly indicating that he was the one who issued the mission.

"Okay, I'm ready." I nodded, entered combat mode, and held the submachine gun in my arms.

"Go!"

He placed a chainsaw sword, its serrated edges stained with blood and bits of flesh, on the ground, nodded and smiled at me, saying, "Good luck!"

Start killing the bugs.

As I walked down the blood-stained steel staircase to the first floor, I was immediately struck by the "chirping" of insects. Then, at least dozens of nest insects emerged from the cracks in the slaughterhouse floor and charged forward without regard for anything else!

"Bang bang bang~~~"

The Roarer began to spew fire continuously. I immediately controlled my gun and kept firing at the swarm of insects while slowly retreating to avoid being surrounded. Fortunately, although these insects were numerous, they were only level 15 and had only 750 health points. They fell one after another under the Roarer's fire!

"Shh-"

Suddenly, he shifted his body and launched a stepping slash. At the same time, a wisp of protective energy appeared around him. He switched to his main-hand weapon and slashed into the swarm of insects with a ground spike. Instantly, the dense swarm of insects squeaked and a large number of damage numbers soared into the air!

"873!"

"844!"

"802!"

……

The instant kills were unanimous; the Ground Spike Slash truly lived up to its name. The 250% damage was indeed a god-tier skill in the early game, and the AOE attack almost instantly wiped out more than a dozen nest bugs, while also giving the user the opportunity to switch magazines.

"Crack!"

After reloading the new magazine, continue firing to keep the swarm of insects at bay. If you are surrounded, use the Burst Charge and Step Slash to break free, always keeping your health above 80%.

A few minutes later, a pile of broodworm corpses lay before me, and after gaining a large amount of experience, I began to reload my bullets, filling the empty magazines one by one. It's a pity there are no automatic magazine reload items, otherwise it would be great, and the efficiency of killing monsters would at least double!
Of course, the most important issue is still weapons.

The Howler submachine gun I currently have is only a Tier 1 green weapon with a pitiful 55-70 damage. This damage value is fixed, but if I could get a better weapon, such as a Tier 2 purple Howler, the firepower would be greatly increased, and I could use the same bullets to deal much more terrifying damage!

However, submachine guns, as a primary weapon in combat, are extremely rare and expensive, which is a major concern for all players. Most players currently use white or even gray submachine guns, and those like me who can use green submachine guns are extremely rare.

Otherwise, the average level of the top ten players on the regional ranking list wouldn't be so low; probably, some would have already reached level 30 to challenge for the third-tier job advancement.

It's 8:30 PM.

"drop!"

A WeChat message from Lu Xiaobei: "Ding Han, I'm planning to go to the night market and have some barbecue. Do you want to come along?"

She sent a pitiful emoji.

I replied somewhat helplessly, "Although I really want to go with you to freeload, I really don't have time right now, I'm busy."

"All right……"

Lu Xiaobei sent a kitchen knife emoji and said, "What are you busy with so late at night? Are you out partying?"

"What do you think? With the meager salary you pay me, is it enough to live a life of debauchery? With my alcohol tolerance, how could I afford to live a life of debauchery? I work another job at night to make a living, you understand?"

Lu Xiaobei remained silent for a long time before finally replying, "Once the internet cafe expands further, I'll give you a raise, and then you won't have to work two jobs anymore."

I glanced at it, but I was busy killing the bugs, so I didn't reply.

……

Around 11 p.m.

After a long and fierce battle, all the insects in the slaughterhouse were finally wiped out, and the mission progress bar was full. Unfortunately, the consumption was too great. In just one night, I used up almost all of the four thousand bullets I had just acquired!

"Not bad!"

A strange warrior, clad in power armor, wielding a chainsaw sword, and displaying a level of "???", smiled and said, "Young man, you haven't disappointed me. Not bad, quite good indeed. Here, this is your reward!"

[Congratulations! You have completed the quest: 〖Proof of Courage〗 (Second-Tier Breakthrough Quest). Your profession has successfully advanced to the second tier, and your level cap has been increased to 30!]

Become!

I was very pleased; all my hard work that night had finally paid off.

At this point, the text on the character panel has changed.

【Chasing Shadows】(Starry Sky Super Weapon - Sword Specialization - Tier 2)

……

I've finally become a Tier 2 player!
Feeling slightly excited, I immediately opened the skill list and saw that many of the skill icons were flashing with golden "upgrade icons". After confirming, I could upgrade the skills!
All skills that can be upgraded are basic skills that have reached level 10. After glancing at them, the skills I currently have that can be upgraded are, in order: Basic Repair, Throwing Techniques, Basic Shooting, Basic Swordsmanship, and Basic Programming, a total of five skills. These five skills can be upgraded to higher levels.

As for skills like Dragon Blade, Burst Charge, and Ground Spike Slash, they are fixed skills and will never be upgraded.

The next moment, I clicked to upgrade, and a series of ringing sounds immediately filled my ears.

Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Repair Lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Repair Lv1" (Tier 2)!

Congratulations! Your skill "Throwing Technique Lv.10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Throwing Lv.1" (Tier 2)!

Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Shooting Lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Shooting Lv1" (Tier 2)!

Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Swordsmanship Lv.10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Swordsmanship Lv.1" (Tier 2)!

Congratulations! Your skill "Basic Programming Lv10" (Tier 1) has successfully advanced to "Advanced Programming Lv1" (Tier 2)!

……

The moment the five skills were upgraded to second-tier skills, a vast amount of knowledge flooded into my mind, and in just a moment I gained many new "techniques" in various skill knowledge!
(End of this chapter)