Earth’s Redemption: Chapter 10

Chapter 10: X City First Psychiatric Hospital

Proofread by Cloud Chip Cake

After collecting his rewards, Ning Buwen reappeared in the hall with Xiao Xin.

Well, it was still working hours.

“You—you’re the handsome guy who went in a week ago,” the counter girl said with a hint of surprise when she saw Ning Buwen. “Do you need treatment? We offer a 50% discount for newcomers on treatment fees, and you can also pay in installments.”

The base of the First Legion, before the apocalypse, was roughly equivalent to Beijing’s second ring road. Whether it was food, clothing, shelter, transportation, or the benefits for newcomers in Pandora, it was the best among the forty-nine Legions.

If Ning Buwen had been pulled into the game a little later, he could have chosen some useful item cards in the shopping mall here to improve his chances of survival.

After the apocalypse, people used their wits and had developed the utilization of Pandora to its fullest.

Buildings, food, air, water, even artificial sunlight all came from various item cards.

For example, the machine used to test Xiao Xin’s level in the hall was powered by an A-Grade item card.

“I’m not injured,” Ning Buwen said with a smile, shaking his head. “By the way, can I ask how much you charge as

commission when selling item cards on behalf of others?”

“Sir, you’ve received item cards?” The counter girl’s eyes brightened. “It’s really rare for pure newcomers to get item cards. If you join one of the top ten Legions, our commission fee for selling on your behalf is only 1%. The subsequent Legions have a uniform rate of 3%. For reserve troops, it’s 5%, and for those who are not part of any group, it’s 8%.”

Ning Buwen pondered for a moment.

“I’ve looked into reserve troops a bit before, but I’m not very clear about it. Could you please explain it to me in detail?” He hadn’t thought about going it alone.

After all, he was just a newcomer, and his understanding of Pandora was far less than those who had been fighting in the world of Pandora for three years.

Moreover, if he happened to find himself in an instance later, having reliable companions would be much safer than going solo.

Now that the country’s systems had collapsed, maintaining social order, punishing crimes, and most importantly, the “Redeem The Earth” plan were almost all carried out by the Legions.

This was the case worldwide.

When Pandora’s Box first appeared, it pulled in almost one-fifth of the global population into the game. A large number of officials and politicians died, while those specially trained as soldiers had a significantly higher survival rate.

Prior to the apocalypse, their country was based on the people. The remaining officials, realizing that maintaining social order required the strength of the military, actively took on logistics roles, bringing the military to the forefront and establishing the current unique social structure.

The top game players were gathered together to tackle the most difficult instances, which offered the most generous rewards. The rewards they earned sustained the whole of society’s development. The first to the forty-ninth Legions were responsible for selecting and training these players to become elite individuals.

All resources were dedicated to two purposes:

First, survival; second, ending the apocalypse and redeeming Earth.

Fortunately, since they operated under a socialist system before the apocalypse, they were able to quickly mobilize the last of the national power to create the Pangu Legion, a name chosen by a nationwide vote, meaning “to create and reshape the Earth.” As a result, the Pangu Legion has maintained its position as the world’s top force. In contrast, capitalist nations, due to their many factions, went through a period of chaos before imitating the Pangu Legion to establish two additional legions.

The forty-nine Legions under the Pangu Legion each have their own bases, with each Legion responsible for the safety and financial security of everyone in that base. They also provide assistance to newcomers to help them quickly conquer the Pandora Game.

However, some insider information has been almost entirely covered up; only those who join the Legions will know.

In this situation, it’s best not to create panic among the populace.

“As long as newcomers clear three instances, they will qualify to become reserve soldiers. They will be officially recognized only when they unlock their personal attributes. If they already have a B-grade or higher rating and unlock a special attribute, they will then meet the conditions to apply to join any of the forty-nine Legions. However, when applying, they must submit a clear report of their instance clearances and the nature of their abilities. We guarantee that personal privacy will never be leaked. If the Legion approves the application, they can become a member of the Legion,” the counter lady answered with a smile.

“So, can anyone apply to any of the forty-nine Legions?” Ning Buwen was actually more concerned about the treatment. “What are the benefits of different Legions?”

“The base salary for all Legions is the same, with a monthly salary of fifty thousand. However, the bonuses and performance rewards vary significantly between Legions. Generally speaking, the lower the number of the Legion, the more diverse the internal item card trading types are. Many rare item cards only circulate within the Legion,” the counter lady explained. “Additionally, joining a Legion comes with special benefits; if escape cards appear on the market, the families of soldiers can purchase them first. Some soldiers who lose their ability to continue clearing instances can also buy escape cards at the lowest price through installment payments.”

“Escape cards are even more sought after than I imagined,” Ning Buwen mused, stroking his chin, thinking that the prices of those two cards might be even higher.

“Of course,” the counter lady replied, her tone filled with envy. “Everyone who opens Pandora’s Box must participate in a game at least once, and they have to do it again roughly once a month afterward. Some people are naturally suited for adventuring in the game, while others are not. If you have an escape card, you can officially leave the Pandora game by using it in instances below A-Grade. However, once you’ve cleared an A-Grade instance or above, you lose that qualification. But most players will never encounter high-level instances in their lifetime. So, many people join the Legions to gain the right to purchase escape cards.”

The Pandora Game can actually be considered semi-mandatory.

If someone wants to escape, they just need money or to clear a few more instances to earn an escape card.

However, the reality is that even those who have escape cards still choose to continue adventuring in the game.

Once an escape card is used, all special abilities will disappear, and the person can only become an ordinary member of the apocalypse. They might spend the first half of their life striving to purchase an escape card, only to spend the second half doing the same for their children.

Only by continuously clearing game instances can one amass more wealth, save more people, and even save the world.

It’s said that if you clear the top seven instances in the Pandora Game, you can redeem Earth’s atmosphere, sunlight, soil, and so on, restoring the world to how it was before the apocalypse.

Thus, everyone was working hard for the future of humanity.

“How long does the Legion approval process take?” 

“If it’s fast, it’ll be three days. If you don’t hear anything after a week, it’s basically hopeless.”

“Oh, then give me a form…”

“Is anyone here?” Just as the counter lady was explaining to Ning Buwen, a golden-haired youth swaggered into the hall. “It seems like another Legion sent me an invitation to join. I’m here to see which one it is!”

As soon as the youth entered, a dozen beautiful girls rushed over to serve him.

Ning Buwen looked at the counter lady in front of him and then glanced at the dozen or so girls across the hall. The word “lost” immediately popped into his mind.

“That’s the recent rising star, Mo Xiaoyou,” the counter lady whispered. “He’s a gaming genius. He achieved a C+ rating on his first entry into the game. If it weren’t for his companions dragging him down, he would have unlocked his personal attribute right away. He even got a B-Grade item directly from his newbie gift pack, which he used to wipe out the boss in the newbie instance. After clearing the instance, the newcomers he saved went around bragging about him. After clearing his second instance, he unlocked his personal special attribute and has been receiving legion invitations every few days.”

“Legion invitations?” Ning Buwen replied, confused. “Didn’t you just say I needed to fill out a form?”

“That’s the usual process,” the counter lady said, slightly embarrassed. “But now the Legions are fighting to recruit people. If a particularly talented newcomer appears, they’ll send out Legion invitations ahead of time to reserve them.”

I was planning to fill out a form, but it turns out there’s this shortcut.

“Mr. Mo, the most recent invitation you received is from the Fourteenth Legion.”

“Yes, Mr. Mo, that’s already a top-tier Legion.”

“With this one, you’ve received invitations from six Legions already. Impressive!”

…

Everyone seemed to be fawning over Mo Xiaoyou, which was understandable.

Generally speaking, the stronger a player is, the more item cards they can sell, meaning higher bonuses for those girls. Plus, befriending a powerful player from a top-tier Legion could provide support if they or their friends and family ever entered the Pandora Game.

Mo Xiaoyou looked to be only about fifteen or sixteen, resembling a young punk from before the apocalypse.

“Why hasn’t any Legion with a number below ten sent me an invitation?” Mo Xiaoyou bit his finger. “I need to clear a few more games and sell more item cards.”

After saying that, he pulled out seven or eight item cards from his bag. “Where’s the item card identification device? Hurry up and identify these! Once they’re identified, I’ll have money to buy item cards better suited for me to clear games. Legions with numbers above ten don’t even qualify for the Pangu Legion’s selection. I’d rather wait!”

As he spoke, all players in the hall turned their envious and jealous gazes toward him.

While they were still waiting for their approvals, this guy already had six Legion invitations and was still unsatisfied, truly a case of the droughts dying of thirst and the floods drowning. 

…

“Three C-Grade defense cards, four D-Grade attack cards, and one B-Grade spell card.”

The identification machine quickly made its assessment, which was necessary to prevent anyone from using counterfeit cards to deceive buyers.

“How much is it worth?” Mo Xiaoyou leaned forward instinctively.

“Estimated at nine million.”

“Nine million only buys a B+ item card! Anything that can upgrade personal attributes is priced at at least ten million or more.” Mo Xiaoyou felt a bit gloomy. “Why am I so poor?”

“Two B-Grade escape cards and one B-Grade material object card.”

“Estimated at thirty-five million.”

Although the identification machine’s notifications were soft, those two statements almost captured everyone’s attention in the hall.

Mo Xiaoyou was taken aback for a moment, turning to see which high-level player was selling item cards. Two escape cards right off the bat—impressive!

“Sell them directly and transfer the money to this account,” Ning Buwen said, providing a string of numbers.

“Okay, okay,” the counter lady stammered. “Um, do you still need the form?”

“No need,” Ning Buwen replied slowly. “I think I’ll wait a bit to see which Legion invites me. This is my first time clearing a game, and I’m still not very familiar with the Legions.”

First time clear? 

He already had three B-Grade cards?! 

This would definitely attract invitations from Legions numbered below ten. 

He won. 

Ning Buwen compared himself mentally and felt he had finally regained his footing.

He quickly realized why Mo Xiaoyou was being so high-profile: in this apocalypse, since everyone could enter the Pandora Game, attracting attention was essential to getting into better Legions and obtaining more resources. 

It wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a page from that playbook.

After all, he was poor. 

The trick of pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger ¹ was no longer fashionable.

Some high-profile, highly skilled players even have their own fan clubs. When it comes to buying or selling item cards, their prices are always higher than those of less famous players.

Ning Buwen, having enjoyed his moment, patted the head of his small dog and walked out of the hall as if nothing had happened.

“Wait.” Mo Xiaoyou shouted from behind and directly caught up.

“Is there something you need?” Ning Buwen stopped and smiled at the boy in front of him.

“Did you unlock your personal special attribute on your first clearance?” Mo Xiaoyou seemed a bit incredulous. “Do you have a relative in a Legion who’s trained you since childhood?”

“No, I’m a lone wolf.” Ning Buwen shrugged. “If that’s all you wanted to ask, please step aside.”

“You! The Best Newcomer has to be me,” Mo Xiaoyou immediately put on an arrogant pose. “Just wait and see.”

“Oh,” Ning Buwen replied nonchalantly, “good luck with that.”

Mo Xiaoyou found it impossible to continue the conversation and angrily walked away.

He had to check this guy’s background!

Soon, Ning Buwen received a message on his phone.

【Payment received; this year’s interest is still sixty million.】

“This bloodsucker!” Ning Buwen’s earlier calm demeanor shattered instantly. “I really shouldn’t have gambled with him.”

“Woof.”

“Don’t bark. I’ll buy you dog food when I get back; I still have over a hundred thousand on me. That should be enough to take care of you.” Ning Buwen couldn’t help but sigh. “When will this debt repayment ever end?”

“Woof woof.”

After today, the name of supernova Mo Xiaoyou was replaced by another name.

As for the shockwaves stirred up by this, let’s set that aside for now.

Legion Intelligence Office.

“Ning Buwen? Strange, there doesn’t seem to be much information about him.”

“He’s indeed a rookie entering the game for the first time. He was pulled in right after opening the newbie gift pack and didn’t even have time to register.”

“It’s rare to see a newbie of such caliber.”

“It seems he made Mo Xiaoyou run away. Hahaha.”

“Mo Xiaoyou actually has decent qualities, just not enough composure. She still needs to observe more.”

“…Boss, I found something.”

“Hmm?”

“Ning Buwen… he seems to be the youngest champion in a gambling competition held in Las Vegas before the apocalypse.”

“What?”

……

Ning Buwen returned to his apartment with Xiao Xin.

It was a one-bedroom apartment, but it was in a good location, and the decor was decent, making it feel quite cozy.

Life with a person and a dog was pretty interesting.

That divination die was quite powerful; he could easily walk into a lottery hall and buy a few double-color balls to make some money. Although the amounts weren’t large, they added up to enough for Ning Buwen and Xiao Xin to gain a few pounds in just a few days.

He only chose the best food.

“Pandora is really terrifying,” Ning Buwen said as he lay on his bed, playing with that special multi-faced die. “If I had this die back then, would I still have lost?”

“Woof.”

“Xiao Xin, I think I forgot something,” Ning Buwen scratched his head, curious. “What do you think I forgot?”

“Woof.”

“It seems… oh no! I forgot to water that guy’s flowers!” Ning Buwen suddenly jumped up from the bed. “I forgot to water his flowers! Where did I throw that picture frame?”

“Woof.” Xiao Xin ran to his dog bed and retrieved the picture frame.

Ning Buwen didn’t want to think about his pitiful, tragic first love and had thrown the picture frame into the dog bed as soon as he got back.

“I need to hurry and take a look. Xiao Xin, stay here and watch the house.”

“Woof.” Xiao Xin wagged his tail, happily seeing his owner off.

Ning Buwen ran out onto the street.

People nearby noticed him, and almost all of them cast their gazes in his direction.

As the most famous new star lately, his personal information had spread online, and his popularity had skyrocketed.

“Take me to this address.” Ning Buwen quickly flagged down a car and showed the driver the address on the back of the picture frame. “Hurry up.”

The driver looked a bit stunned. “This… this place is…”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s a bit far…” The driver’s expression was complicated.

“Don’t worry, money is no issue.” Ning Buwen waved his hand dismissively. “Just hurry, I’m in a rush.”

“Alright.” The driver, seeing Ning Buwen’s upright and sunny face, revealed a hint of pity in his eyes.

These days, no one had it easy.

Ning Buwen dozed off in the car.

It was indeed far.

The driver drove for a full four hours.

Four hours was enough time to reach the base of a neighboring Legion. He should have checked the location on his phone first.

“We’re here.”

“Huh? We’re here?” Ning Buwen rubbed his sleepy eyes, yawned, and got out of the car. Stretching, he looked at the sign in front of him and almost thought he was mistaken.

“Um… driver?”

“Yes, customer, what is it?”

“I was supposed to go to a residence, to someone’s home.” Ning Buwen felt like he might have been tricked. “What does it mean that you brought me here?”

“There’s never been a residence here,” the driver replied, just as confused as Ning Buwen. “This has been the case since before the apocalypse. Look, it’s written right here. 111 Changjiang Road, this is definitely the place.”

Ning Buwen looked at the building in front of him and nearly fell to his knees.

111 Changjiang Road, the home that the school doctor mentioned, was actually a hospital?

In front of the hospital was a massive stone, on which the name of the hospital was elegantly inscribed in red letters, clearly indicating its considerable value.

If only the name of this hospital wasn’t the one he saw before him.

X City First Psychiatric Hospital.

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Translator Notes

1. Playing wolf in sheep’s clothing – Disguise oneself as harmless in order to lure the target into lowering their guard.[↩]