Infinite Ebullience
Chapter 1208 - 80: Major Makeover

A Level A Weapon gift pack allowed him to choose ten types of weapons freely. Even with ordinary bullets, their power would double, and they could even be used by others, which significantly increased the team’s combat power immediately.

Tang Zheng hadn’t finished feeling pleased when he became frustrated again. He selected the Thunderstorm rifle, only to find hints that this round’s setting and future technology weapons were restricted.

MG3 Roaring Death God Enhanced Edition, a Level A prop. It had a firing rate of a thousand rounds per minute, and it had advantages. First, it could use any type of bullet, which would always mutate into .50 caliber heavy machine gun bullets; second, it had an ammunition box that hung a thousand rounds, yet the total weight was always limited to six kilograms; third, it was permanently undamaged and could be used in any extreme environment.

Among the cripples, picking generals, Tang Zheng directly chose five, and then he requested three reusable enhanced RPG-7s, Level A, firing any rocket shells that now morphed into 125mm caliber firepower. With it, he could virtually become a mobile turret, and, if reloaded quickly enough, it could even emulate a Katyusha.

Given Tang Zheng’s hand speed, when deploying his full strength, he could fire ten rounds a minute, enough to give his targets a hard time.

For the remaining two weapons, Tang Zheng chose a large Kukri curved knife with potent poison. The blade was dark red like coagulated plasma exuding a cold chill; the other was a Desert Eagle handgun that could hold fifty bullets, silver-bodied with minimal recoil and an integrated silencer, firing bullets that mutated into 20mm caliber. It was practically a small hand cannon; even a tough-skinned elephant would drop dead instantly if hit.

With the weapons chosen, how he selected ammunition from the gift packs was natural - biochemical bombs, high-explosive grenades, incendiary bullets, a mix of everything, of course, including hand grenades and rocket shells, at least five hundred rounds.

Tang Zheng pulled the slide to check the chamber, then he unlocked the safety and tucked it into his waistband. Both gift packs were small space backpacks, rated at five kilograms, not heavy.

"What happened to your eye?" Susan, like a frightened quail, stood aside and timidly asked Tang Zheng.

"It’s nothing, by the way, go and call Rong He and Tao Ran over." Tang Zheng was about to leave, but then he thought others might also use the vending machine, so he asked Susan to fetch them, considering it wouldn’t hurt to use dollars for experiments unless he was worried about machine usage restrictions.

Susan obediently nodded, turned, and ran toward the bus. In less than five minutes, the three of them came running breathlessly.

"What happened to your eye?" Tao Ran was astonished to see a blood trail on Tang Zheng’s face and his left eye blood-red without the eyeball visible.

"Blinded," Tang Zheng dismissed, but the three others felt a chill in their hearts, worried.

"What happened?" Rong He exclaimed, reaching out to grab Tang Zheng’s shoulder, "Did you apply medicine? You’re the pillar of our team now. If you fall, it’s a total team annihilation."

"It’s nothing. Come here, do as I say." Tang Zheng took out a coin and handed it to Rong He, explaining how he had activated the vending machine.

"Insert the coin, then kick it three times?" Although Rong He did not understand, he followed the instructions and then stared at the vending machine, but no interface appeared.

"Try again." Like when televisions were fuzzy and needed a few slaps, Tang Zheng tapped the vending machine.

The second time, Rong He finally accessed the interface, his face immediately lit up with excitement.

"Check how many points." Tang Zheng gave the usage method to Rong He, and three seconds later, both of their faces turned as sour as bitter melons.

"Only three hundred points?" Even without seeing Tang Zheng’s expression, he knew this number was pitifully small, "How about you?"

"I’m up to five thousand." Tang Zheng had anticipated this; Rong He hadn’t achieved much, but Dong Zixuan would likely have more.

"What can we buy?" Rong He, immensely dejected, randomly clicked on the item list and got scared by the dazzling array of props, "Bloody hell, can the Four Beauties be bought too? Is that Asuka from EVA? I really want her!"

"Just buy some potions," Tang Zheng interjected just as the Trojan cut in.

"You can gamble all your points and a finger to activate the Slot Machine System, then try to win big. It’s the most cost-effective strategy."

"What should I bet?" Rong He was a bit intrigued, yet scared by what Trojan said next.

"Human organs." Trojan’s detailed explanation made Tao Ran and Susan shiver, and they immediately looked at Tang Zheng.

"You’ve gambled, right?" Looking at Tang Zheng’s blinded left eye, Tao Ran felt a pang of sorrow.

Tang Zheng shrugged his shoulders, waiting for Rong He to make a decision.

Rong He was struggling internally, afraid.

"You have no choice. My analysis predicts your death likelihood at a hundred percent, but with powerful equipment, there might be a slim chance of survival." Trojan wasn’t exaggerating. The survival game had been going for less than two days, and nearly a hundred people had already died, with a terrifying elimination rate. If not for Tang Zheng, all the survivors would have been wiped out in Chicago.

"I..." Rong He was conflicted, wanting to gamble, but he couldn’t bring himself to utter that word from his trembling lips.

"Rong He, don’t force yourself," Tang Zheng sighed, his heart softened at last, unable to watch his classmates play the Slot Machine.

"It’s my turn," Tao Ran said bravely, wanting to repay Tang Zheng.

"Ha, I can’t even match a woman," Rong He laughed, punching the screen, "I gamble."

"No!" Tang Zheng didn’t have time to stop him when he heard Rong He’s scream.

The Trojan couldn’t wait to comply; Rong He only felt a sharp pain in his right hand, and a blood-stained little finger fell off.

"You should thank the Trojan for its mercy, taking only a little finger—it won’t affect combat," the Trojan boasted shamelessly, activating the slot machine system.

"What equipment should I choose?" asked Rong He, covering his severed finger, looking at Tang Zheng for an answer.

"The most important thing is protective clothing," Tang Zheng explained quickly; he had noticed that newbies spent less time using the vending machine than group leaders, only a minute and a half.

The Trojan reintroduced that newbies had to give up three organs to have a chance to gamble, group leaders only two, unless the Trojan chose randomly, then one was enough.

"Random!" Rong He gritted his teeth, looking at the screen filled with icons of body organs, and regretted it; even if he won, he had to pay these costs.

The icons started to spin, each row stopping made Rong He’s heart sink; he didn’t even dare to watch closely.

"Congratulations, you’ve sacrificed a kidney for a chance to gamble."

"Let me choose quickly," Rong He urged, feeling nothing physically, but knowing he was missing a kidney, he kicked the vending machine three times as instructed by the Trojan when the spaces filled with options.

"Don’t worry," Tang Zheng said, noticing Rong He’s uncontrollable trembling, and held his shoulder.

Rong He was about to thank him, but his face turned pale; the choice was over, and the chaotic icons predicted he got nothing.

"How can this be?" Immense disappointment overwhelmed Rong He; thinking about losing a kidney and obtaining nothing, his eyes bloodshot and turned red as he roared, "I won’t accept this! One more time."

"That’s enough, don’t act recklessly," Tang Zheng tried to stop Rong He, but the Trojan had already acted, the organs refilled the slots.

"Trojan, you bastard!" Tang Zheng pulled out his Desert Eagle, aiming at the vending machine.

"Warning, if you hurt me, Rong He will have to give up two organs," stated the Trojan in a calm tone, but this indifference was the cruelest, as it didn’t regard survivors as people, "Besides, it was his own choice."

The icons started spinning again; Susan and Tao Ran didn’t dare speak, just stared at the screen tightly.

"Congratulations, you’ve sacrificed half of your stomach for a chance to gamble."

"Don’t worry anymore, back in the Trojan Room, any injury can be healed," Tang Zheng comforted Rong He; actually, the kid was quite lucky, at least it wasn’t the limbs or other vital parts, and of course, it would be most fortunate if he won the gamble.

Rong He nodded, kicked the vending machine three times, the icons began to spin, and in his heart, he roared for the protective clothing, knowing well how crucial it was for survival.

Tang Zheng watched Rong He focus on protective clothing, sighed, and said nothing, not blaming him.

"He won, it’s an ammunition gift pack," Susan exclaimed happily, seeing the homogeneous icons; she didn’t notice a flash of disappointment in Rong He’s eyes.

"This is good too; it can enhance your firepower," Tang Zheng patted his friend’s shoulder, consoling him, "Don’t gamble anymore, the chances are too slim."

Rong He had calmed down, daring not to risk his life further; remembering his earlier frenzy, cold sweat soaked his back. If he had lost an arm or a leg, under the zombies’ chase, he would certainly have perished.

The usage time reset to zero, the vending machine returned to normal, showing no signs of anything unusual, Susan curiously tapped it.

"It’s my turn," Tao Ran looked at Tang Zheng, extending her delicate hand.

"Don’t mess around," warned Tang Zheng, handing her a coin, their fingers brushing inadvertently, he could feel the girl’s coldness.

"I know," Tao Ran said after seeing the three gift packs carried by Tang Zheng, deciding to take a gamble; she didn’t realize one was purchased and thought all were won from gambling. Considering the poor winning odds, she felt Tang Zheng must have lost half of his organs, feeling so sad she wanted to cry; his role as a group leader was so miserable, yet many group members were ungrateful.

Following Tang Zheng’s instructions, Tao Ran activated the vending machine, but nothing happened.

"Don’t worry, try again," Tao Ran looked at the introduction of the space backpack, somewhat at a loss, "Which bullets should I choose?"

"Rocket shells, incendiary grenades, followed by biochemical bombs..." Tang Zheng hadn’t planned to give Rong He weapons, but since he now had the ammunition gift pack, it made sense to equip him with an MG3 Roaring Death as well. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to vote and support at Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.)