Chapter 65: Navigating the Sea of Stocks, A Mechanism of Logical Behavior

After a long while, Ren Zhong asked, “Are you alright?”

The boy finally managed to control his emotions, his shoulders no longer trembling. He slowly stood up and shook his head repeatedly. “It’s nothing.”

He quickly transferred the payment to Ren Zhong and handed him the keys to the two-story building. “Mr. Ren, I took the liberty of designing a hidden compartment in the floor based on the original materials. I dug out an extra ten-square-meter basement underneath. I reinforced the basement with reclaimed boards I salvaged from the trash heap. Is that okay?”

Ren Zhong smiled, cheerfully patting the boy’s shoulder. “Of course I can use it. You’ve got a good initiative, young man. Well done—excellent job.”

The boy grinned in delight, “Ah, thank you for your praise, Mr. Ren.”

“Mm, here’s your stuff, keep it safe. You have your gun now, and a practical training guide. But don’t rush out headlong, dreaming of heroic exploits. The wilderness is dangerous, full of peril. One wrong step could be fatal. Take it step by step. First, rent a wristwatch and thoroughly study all the level-one foundational knowledge for gunsmiths. Prepare well before venturing outside. At first, follow experienced scavengers, picking up scraps and learning to accumulate experience; or find a couple of trustworthy companions to team up with. But no matter who they are, never fully trust anyone. Always keep something back for yourself. Remember, that applies to everyone.”

“Ah? Including you, Mr. Ren?”

“Hahaha! Of course not. Besides your mother, I’m the only person you can trust right now. Keep living, keep getting stronger. I hope you’ll soon acquire true combat ability. This world doesn’t believe in tears—it only believes in bullets.”

“Mm!”

“Go on. By the way, what’s your name?”

The boy instinctively gripped his steel gun with both hands. “My name is Yu Jin, Mr. Ren.”

“Alright, I’ll remember your name. See you another day.”

…

Walking alone across the wilds deep into the night, Ren Zhong instinctively recalled that brief, shining look in Yu Jin’s eyes when he held the gun.

Embers in the midst of raging fire? Truly a good name.

Here, in the dead of winter, on one of the rare patches of fertile soil in this barren wilderness, I have sown the first ember seed.

When the mountains bloom, this flower will surely smile among the thicket.

…

The night passed without incident.

Ren Zhong had another reckless night.

Tonight’s prey numbered nineteen wild beasts.

Aside from fifteen level-one beasts, there were four level-two creatures: two companion golden slug mollusks killed by corrosive spray, one mud soft-shell crab caught and killed by an explosive net, and one silver-wire moon rabbit slain with a disposable high-frequency plasma dagger.

Ren Zhong chose these four unlucky creatures for good reason.

He bought specialized weapons from the adjacent arms store when he visited the training ground yesterday, spending a total of thirty-two points.

For someone as well-prepared as he, golden slug mollusks were the easiest, practically a free catch.

The mud soft-shell crab and silver-wire moon rabbit were old acquaintances of his.

Both level-two beasts are smaller and can be packed up and carried away, and they’re especially vulnerable to targeted equipment.

With a bit of ambush beforehand, they’re even easier than level-one beasts.

For Ren Zhong, whose combat ability hasn’t yet recovered and who can only operate his exoskeleton with an amplifier, these were the optimal hunting targets.

He didn’t set all his hunting sights on level-two beasts.

He had mining maps in his head and more goods to gather, but he wasn’t in a hurry.

He might be reckless, but he wasn’t stupid—he knew what he could do right now and what would get him into trouble.

That night, his total income was about 118 points, bringing his cash reserves to 219.36—perfectly meeting his goal.

On the afternoon of the third day, before heading to the training ground, Ren Zhong first bought shares in Ansheng Biotech—the monster stock he’d been eyeing the day before.

Ansheng Biotech is a third-tier subsidiary of Mengdu Group; nobody seems to know what kind of research they’re doing, and news about them is scarce. But today the stock was surging irrationally, without even bothering with an excuse—a true monster stock, defying all conventions.

Before the surge, each share was priced at 1.94, with a lot costing 194.05 points.

Ren Zhong entered the market at twelve thirty in the afternoon.

Before this, Ansheng’s stock curve was trembling along like a cafeteria aunt’s ladle, moving forward with shaky uncertainty.

Technical indicators were unremarkable; the news was dead as stagnant water, as if a firecracker tossed in couldn’t even produce a fart.

Six minutes later, a miracle occurred.

It was a steep mountain peak leading to the summit, a train of desire bound for paradise.

The curve shot straight into the sky, shocking all who watched.

In an instant, buy orders exploded, sell orders vanished.

The steep curve transformed into a peerless sword drawn straight towards the heavens.

At that moment, Ren Zhong could imagine how nervous and anxious those lucky enough to catch the ride must be, how fast their hearts must be beating, and how those who missed out must be hopping mad.

Especially the seller whose lot Ren Zhong just bought—they were probably cursing the heavens and bawling in regret.

Ren Zhong laughed.

Friend, face reality—that’s life.

He closed the stock app and walked away.

Later, at exactly five in the afternoon, Ren Zhong finished his physical training fifteen minutes early, borrowed a break room from Ju Qingmeng, lay down on the bed, opened his wristwatch to log onto the internet, and sold his stock precisely at the peak, cashing out and securing his gains.

Barely two minutes after cashing out, Ansheng Biotech, which had been fluctuating at a high level for a while, performed a textbook executioner’s drop, making even Ren Zhong’s eyelids twitch as he watched—a thrill no less intense than slaying wild beasts.

It was just numbers flickering on a screen, yet Ren Zhong could smell the thick scent of blood.

Today’s stock market brought joy to a few and sorrow to many—blood flowed like a river.

Most stock market players were likely ordinary citizens, but their lives seemed far from the idyllic picture.

In the end, after deducting stamp tax and commission, Ren Zhong’s funds totaled 342.61 points, his net worth reaching 366.91—a solid gain.

There were other monster stocks, but their peak gains were only about thirty-two percent, and the cash-out window was at one thirty in the morning.

After a bit of thought, Ren Zhong decided not to risk it. He preferred to venture out for some wild hunting at night.

The significance of hunting was not only in the spoils, but also in training by combat to quickly restore his strength and in familiarizing himself with the intelligence around Xinghuo Town.

Therefore, even if Ren Zhong wanted to buy the Thunderbolt vehicle, the soonest would be tomorrow afternoon.

He looked at his wallet, feeling a touch of longing.

His principal was still too small; if only he’d had double the capital today, maybe he could have settled it all.

He was tempted to borrow more from Brother Sun.

But forget it—Brother Sun is already just a wage slave.

That wouldn’t do; short-sighted overexploitation would ruin everything.

If he pushed too hard and forced Sun into a deadlock, it would damage their relationship.

…

He closed the wristwatch projection and opened his eyes.

But he didn’t rush to join Zheng Tian and the others.

Earlier, when he greeted Ju Qingmeng to borrow the break room, he noticed she was hesitant.

If his guess was right, Ju Qingmeng should be arriving soon.

He began a silent countdown.

Ten, nine… three…

Knock, knock, knock.

As expected, just as Ren Zhong counted down to three, someone knocked at the door.

It fit her behavioral logic perfectly.

Ren Zhong said, “Come in.”

Ju Qingmeng pushed open the door to the break room, which only Ren Zhong occupied, carrying a high-absorption nutritional meal. “Mr. Ren, how’s your rest?”

Ren Zhong sat up, feigning ignorance. “Pretty much done. Is there something you need, Manager Ju?”

Ju Qingmeng smiled and handed him the meal, speaking casually, “It looks like your body has almost recovered. Would you like to test your brain-machine synchronization rate again? I can also help you get accurate values for your other parameters—free of charge.”

Ren Zhong looked at her seemingly calm, casual demeanor, which actually hid anxiety and expectation, and sighed inwardly.

Some things are indeed fate.

She had truly killed the proud, talented person she once was, becoming someone who, despite not being good at disguise, still tried hard to hide; someone who, though not good at lying, still tried hard to weave lies to probe others—a clumsy actress.

“Alright, thank you, I appreciate it.”

The other actor stood up, smiling.

He thought to himself: Though you’ve forgotten, I remember—my promise to you is forever valid.