Infinite Ebullience
Chapter 791 - 54: Exemption from Drawing Lots

Chapter 791: Chapter 54: Exemption from Drawing Lots

"In recognition of the survivors’ bravery in combat, The Silver Trojan will provide extra game rewards. For the toys that have managed to acquire soul shards, they will be given a chance to participate in a lottery for exemption from half of the game. Those selected can teleport back to the Trojan Room in advance."

These words from Trojan undoubtedly caused a huge uproar among the survivors. People like Yu Manli and Chen Hong, often too aware of the game’s growing difficulty, were eager to leave as soon as possible. Even the strong ones like Qin Yan and Dantai were, truth be told, longing to go home early.

However, at this moment, most people were more concerned about other things. In addition to wishing they were selected, they did not want Tang Zheng to get chosen. After all, if good Samaritan Tang stayed behind and they were not chosen, they would feel a lot safer.

The newbies who don’t have a single shard to their names looked ashen-faced. Some of them were green-eyed and resentful, staring at Song Huiqiao and Cheng Cheng, grumbling under their breath – why do they get a chance in the lottery?

"In five minutes, the lottery will start. Please be ready."

Liu Qian quickly understood the significance of those words and dashed upstairs to find Tang Zheng, hoping to get a shard. The other newbies looked confused initially, but soon they grasped the situation and also began rushing upstairs.

"Liang Mao, give me a shard. When we return to reality, you can have anything you want." The bald leader was no longer calm and started making promises.

Xu Liangmao didn’t say anything but shook his head.

The bald leader was almost bursting with anger, wishing he could tear Xu Liangmao apart. Instead of successfully persuading this ordinary, honest civilian, he had to plead in such a humbling manner, which he felt was very humiliating.

"Liang Mao, give me a shard and consider yourself my brother from now on. Though my father has retired, he still has connections. How about getting you a county magistrate position?" The bald leader tried to entice Xu Liangmao with a smile, but he was planning to get rid of him once they returned home.

The wig leader and the garlic-nosed leader remained silent, watching the bald leader’s clown-like performance. They may not be the best people, but they have some integrity and were under no illusions about getting a shard from Xu Liangmao.

"Really, I can be a county magistrate?" Xu Liangmao stared at the bald leader lazily.

"Absolutely, I tell you, it is official rank." The bald leader thought Xu Liangmao was interested and quickly sat next to him, only to be slapped hard on the left side of his face as soon as his buttocks touched the sofa.

In the clear sound of a slap, the bald leader was almost knocked down, and blood instantly sprayed from his nose.

"Did I allow you to sit?" Even though Xu Liangmao is a straightforward person, he couldn’t help wanting to hit him for his actions.

"No, you didn’t. What about the shard?" The bald leader, still hopeful, smiled and asked despite everything.

"Here you go." Xu Liangmao finished speaking, his clenched fist landed squarely on the bald leader’s eye, followed by a blow to his stomach. The unfortunate leader fell to his knees in pain and threw up.

Looking at the newbies before him, Tang Zheng shook his head. The guys from his old school were so disappointed they wanted to cry, while Song Huiqiao felt relieved.

"The time is up; the lottery begins."

With the word of the Silver Trojan, a virtual screen popped up on everyone’s wristwatch, listing all the survivors’ profile pictures, spinning like a roulette wheel.

Mei Jueye stared fixedly at the screen, mumbling under his breath. It was not that he wanted to be selected, but he was cursing Gu Xueqi and Tang Zheng to be omitted.

Chen Hong and Red Sister clasped their hands together, praying for the first time with genuine sincerity. Even though their abilities were weak, they managed to slay the demonic shadow and earn a shard, allowing them to qualify for the lottery.

"Anyone but Mei Jueye." Tang Zheng did not care who got selected. Staying would mean earning more points, which was also good.

"Tang Zheng." Lu Fan, Qin Yan, and others who were close to Tang Zheng, hoped that the team leader would be selected.

As the spinning profile pictures slowed down, everyone’s breathing also slowed significantly. Their eyes unconsciously widened as they awaited the Trojan’s choice.

The spinning of the profile pictures had slowed significantly, leaving only the faces of Red Sister, Cheng Cheng, Mei Jueye, and Chen Hong on the screen. According to the size of the screen, there would only be room for one person left.

"Stop, stop!" Red Sister was trembling, murmuring constantly, but luck was not on her side as her profile spun off the screen disappearing into the edge. All energy seemed to drain out of Red Sister, her body went slack, and finally, she started to cry, utterly heartbroken.

Cheng Cheng didn’t fully understand what was happening and was just clinging to Tang Zheng’s arm, wanting to stay with her brother.

"Yay, it’s me!" Chen Hong jumped up. At that moment, she felt that she was the luckiest person in the world, luckier even than a billion-dollar tycoon.

Indeed, Li Hongda, a member of the team, turned pale at that moment. Despite his vast wealth, he had no shard and therefore no chance in the lottery.

"The lottery has ended. Congratulations to the toy, Chen Hong, for leaving home early!" The Silver Trojan even played a piece of Moonlight Sonata for this occasion, obviously aimed at mocking the other toys into regret and disappointment, as the Trojan enjoyed seeing their misfortune.

The Conquerors didn’t show much disappointment. They quickly adjusted their emotions to prepare for the upcoming battle.

Entering the sixth day of the game, the entire Tokyo city was still experiencing a major power outage, and the surrounding counties and cities were also being affected. As power couldn’t be restored, all utilities were brought to a standstill, forcing more and more citizens to choose to evacuate temporarily. Those remaining were mainly the poor who had nowhere else to go.

There was continuous destruction every day, and law and order situation was in extreme chaos. All police officers were mobilized and were indeed overwhelmed by the disorder. However, they still could not control the situation. The Self-Defense Force provided strength to some extent, but they were in limited numbers. The government was deciding whether to allocate more soldiers and was even considering the imposition of martial law for the whole city.

In broad daylight, the Demonic Shadow disappeared so Tang Zheng took the opportunity to rest for the morning. After lunch, he decided to go out for a bit. Song Huiqiao volunteered to be the driver, prompting Jing Xiang to swear that she would learn how to drive no matter what.

Cheng Cheng also wanted to tag along, as for the other newbies, he couldn’t care less.

As the car passed Xi Zi’s convenience store, through the glass door, Tang Zheng saw a group of delinquents barraging Xi Zi at the cash register. His brows furrowed as he stepped out of the car.

"Stay in the car." Song Huiqiao and Jing Xiang hurriedly followed, and Cheng Cheng wanted to go, but Tang Zheng stopped her.

"Give us your money quickly." Since the troublemakers couldn’t find anything of value in the store, they became infuriated and started extorting Xi Zi. They wouldn’t let a chance to make a fortune go to waste.

"I don’t have anymore." Xi Zi said, her face wet with tears. If she had money, she would leave Tokyo City with her child long ago. A few days ago, a Chinese youth did leave some money for her, but after using some to repay debts, the rest just weren’t sufficient to live in another city. Plus, she couldn’t bear to leave the convenience store, her last surviving safety net.

"If there’s no money, we’ll trash your store." Said one of the delinquents swinging a baseball bat and smashing it directly on the cash register. The drawer scattered with a bang, and two coins flew out. The miscreants stomped on them and burst into cacophonic laughter.

"Hey boss, you like it rough don’t you? This mature lady ain’t bad, though her tits sag a bit, and she’s got wrinkles, she’d still be fun to tie up and play with."

In absence of cash, the delinquents began to think up vile ways to vent their frustrations.

As Xi Zi cowered helplessly in a corner, she spotted Tang Zheng entering the store. She looked surprised at first, but then a smile illuminated her face, and she ran towards him, crying for help.

One of the troublemakers held her back while the others fixed their unpleasant gazes on Tang Zheng.

"Hey you, who are you?"

"Get out."

The delinquents didn’t give Tang Zheng a chance to speak, opting to spew vulgarities instead. Emboldened by the havoc they had wreaked over the past few days, three of the youths approached Tang Zheng menacingly, clearly intending to beat him up.

But Tang Zheng was not one for pacifism. As the baseball bat descended on his head, he did not flinch. Instead, he reached out with his left hand, catching the bat mid-air. Then, he dealt a punch to the thug’s face.

The troublemaker fell flat on his back, his nasal bone shattered, his nose receding and blood spouted out ceaselessly.

The sight of Tang Zheng swiftly handling their comrade left the other two troublemakers startled, but their forward momentum was unstoppable.

Grabbing the baseball bat Tang Zheng swung it hard, smashing it into the mouth of the one on the left, causing him to spit out a mouthful of teeth.

The one on the right didn’t fare any better. A punch to the stomach sent him flying, and he landed with a thud on the ground.

The others were petrified by Tang Zheng’s ruthless tactics. The three thugs lay sprawling on the ground, too winded even to scream. Their fresh blood adorned the store floor, a petrifying sight.

"Idiots, beat him up." Spurred the head of the delinquents and they charged forward, some even brandishing knives and daggers they had brought along.

"A bunch of morons." Tang Zheng took out his Beretta M9 from his pocket and fired two shots at the gang leader’s arm.

The gunshots brought the charge to a halt. At the sight of the black gun, nobody dared advance. They even held their breaths.

"Leave here on your own." Tang Zheng said, unwilling to add bodies to his kill count in the store.

The gang helped their injured comrades up and scrambled past Tang Zheng, swiftly vanishing from the scene.

"Thank you." Xi Zi sighed in relief and then sat down on the floor.

"Why not leave? This city is in danger." Tango Zheng’s tone softened considerably. After all, she was a victim he had once kidnapped.

"I’m leaving right away." Xi Zi didn’t want to stay a minute longer after this incident. Despite the difficulties, she was determined to leave.

"Pack up then." Tang Zheng looked as Xi Zi hurried upstairs, then picked a comic book magazine from a shelf. He had barely flipped through a few pages when he heard a thud in the store.

Tang Zheng took a look and couldn’t help laughing. This was clearly a cheap attempt to lure him out. Unfortunately, the tactics were all too familiar.

Seeing Tang Zheng unmoved, the person behind the disturbance tossed another object to make some noise.

"Come out!" Tang Zheng called out, but there was no response. So, he went over to where the sound came from. Behind the shelf, a schoolgirl in a sailor suit seemed to vanished out of thin air.

......

PS, I was busy today so there will only be one update. There will be three updates tomorrow! (To be continued. If you liked this work, please vote and support on qidian.com, your support is my greatest motivation.)