"Bang, bang!!"
Two clean and swift punches landed, earning Chen Mang another 20,000 points.
A uniform "15," far exceeding the standard.
The standard was 7.
He had already doubled it.
After Zhang Yi stepped down, Zhang Er, who had been eager for his turn, stepped up. With three crisp punches, he scored a uniform "14," earning another 30,000 points.
At that moment—
Biao Zi hesitated and said, "Lord Mang, how about letting me give it a try?"
"You?"
Chen Mang turned to Biao Zi with a skeptical look. "What's your Physical Fitness Index right now?"
"15.5."
"Alright, give it a shot."
Biao Zi took a deep breath, steadied his stance in front of the punching machine, and with veins bulging on his forehead, he roared as he threw the most powerful punch of his life. The air seemed to ignite with the force of his strike.
At that moment.
Countless images flashed through Biao Zi's mind like a kaleidoscope. He lost himself in a state of absolute focus.
He thought of nothing else. At that moment, all he wanted was to smash the damn punching machine in front of him!
A sharp sonic boom suddenly echoed throughout the hall!
The next moment!
"Boom!"
A deafening crash resounded in the hall, and then the number "8" slowly appeared on the punching machine.
"Not bad."
Chen Mang looked at Biao Zi with a hint of surprise. "Come on, you've got two more chances. Give it two more punches."
"No, no, I can't."
Biao Zi, his legs feeling weak, quickly waved his hands, his face bitter as he shook his arm. "Lord Mang, that one punch drained me. My legs feel like jelly now."
"Keep practicing after this."
"Yes."
Chen Mang, satisfied, led Biao Zi and the others away from the stall and headed to the next one. This stall had earned him a total of 70,000 points. Not bad. He was pleased.
His balance now stood at 149,940.
Nearly 150,000.
He was more than ready to go on a shopping spree at the "Mechanical Train Parts Store."
The game at the fourth stall was—
"Sing and Guess."
Chen Mang glanced at it and immediately moved on. The songs were all from the mechanical civilization, and none of them had heard them before. There was no way they could guess.
After wandering around.
None of the games at the remaining stalls seemed suitable for them, so they left that floor and headed to the fourth floor of the "Entertainment City."
Entertainment City, Fourth Floor.
Here, there were still plenty of beautiful women, but the quality on this floor was even higher. These women were all in the flesh trade, and a quick inquiry revealed that prices started at 300,000.
However, he also saw the "Mom" who was priced at 1 million.
"You seem quite intelligent?"
Chen Mang raised an eyebrow as he looked at the madam who had approached him to make a pitch. This was the first time he had encountered someone with their own logical thinking, rather than a robot that responded based on programming.
"I'm equipped with a Level 3 intelligent chip, darling."
The woman in the evening gown placed her finger on Chen Mang's chest, gently tracing it with a seductive smile. "I possess intelligence close to that of a human. There are 3,280 girls here. Do you see anyone who catches your eye?"
"There used to be over ten thousand, including many human and other species girls. But this place has been abandoned for a long time, and those girls had short lifespans. They're all dead now."
"I've been in hibernation for a long time."
"After you arrived, the energy of this city was reactivated."
"See which one you like?"
"I heard you're worth a million?"
"Mhm, do you like me?" The woman's eyes glistened as she took a step closer, looking up at Chen Mang. Her hair inadvertently brushed against his chin as she whispered softly, "You can ask me anything. This floor is managed by my sister."
"Hmm."
Chen Mang pondered for a moment before firing off a series of questions in rapid succession: "Have you heard of Blue Star and Aqua Star? What about the Nai-1 Star System?"
"Has the mechanical civilization been destroyed?"
"How long have you been in hibernation?"
"Who brought about the apocalypse?"
"How much do you know about the Mechanical Train?"
"What does the Five-Year Pact mean?"
"Where can I get more Iron Ore?"
"Where are the Energy Stones in this city? Are there any Fortuitous Encounter spots, or any ways to make money quickly?"
The woman, who had been alluring just moments ago, suddenly showed a hint of confusion in her eyes. She instinctively took a few steps back before stiffly replying, "I haven't heard of Blue Star, Aqua Star, or the Nai-1 Star System. There's no information about them in my database, and I haven't received any such data."
"I also don't know if the mechanical civilization has been destroyed."
"It's been 49.29 million hours since the last awakening."
"I don't know what the apocalypse is, and there's no information about the Mechanical Train in my database. I only know from conversations with guests that everyone has a Mechanical Train, though the levels vary."
"I also don't know about Iron Ore or the Five-Year Pact, and I don't know where the Energy Stones are."
"But if you want to make money quickly, you can try your luck in the lobby on the first floor. If you're lucky, you can earn a lot fast."
"Um..."
"Don't you want to play with women?"
Chen Mang shook his head without saying much. He simply turned and led Biao Zi and the others downstairs, preparing to leave this entertainment city. The upper floors were all hotels, and there was no need to explore further.
Although this woman was the only robot he had encountered who could hold a conversation, her level of intelligence still seemed inferior to Xiao Ai's.
Her database was practically empty, with nothing of value.
Blue Star was the name of the planet from his previous world, Aqua Star was the name of this planet, and the Nai-1 Star System was the galaxy this planet belonged to.
49.29 million hours was roughly 5,000 years.
Since the mechanical civilization had built this "Eden" for indulgence and hadn't reactivated it in 5,000 years, it was likely that the civilization had either been destroyed or simply didn't have the resources to manage this place anymore.
However, based on what he had seen in the "Tower of Heaven," he thought the probability of destruction was higher.
After leaving the "Sun Entertainment City," Chen Mang, now carrying nearly 150,000 in wealth, headed toward the next entertainment city. Once he had exhausted the money-making opportunities in these three entertainment cities, he could try his luck elsewhere.
He was actually quite satisfied with this amount.
It was enough to buy several Map Chips.
On the deserted streets, only 11 motorcycles were speeding along.
Chen Mang gently squeezed the brakes, bringing his motorcycle to a stop in front of a shop. It was the "Eden Memory Bank," and next to it was the "Mechanical Train Confession Room." He had seen both of these shops marked on the map.
Both were highlighted in crimson.
He was also very curious about what these two shops were for, as they might both be opportunities.
He first walked into the "Eden Memory Bank."
As he pushed the door open, accompanied by the sound of wind chimes, a hoarse male voice greeted him.
"Welcome."
A man dressed in a waiter's uniform stood at the entrance, holding a tablet and offering a professional smile to Chen Mang and his companions: "This is the Eden Memory Bank."
"We offer the following services."
"1: Purchase memories."
"2: Implant memories."
"3: Delete memories."
"4: Print memories."
"5: Memory banking."
"May I know which services you are interested in?"
"Purchase memories?" Chen Mang raised an eyebrow, sizing up the waiter with curiosity. "What do these services mean? Could you explain them?"
It was not easy.
This was the first male waiter he had seen in this city.
"Certainly."
The man smiled and invited Chen Mang and his group to take a seat before bringing over 11 bottles of chilled Mineral Water.
"Everyone's most valuable asset is their memories. Many memories are almost unique and scarce."
"For example—"
"If a peerless beauty has only slept with you, and when this peerless beauty dies, no one else can experience her. You only need to sell us the memory of sleeping with her, and we will sell this memory to others, allowing them to experience the peerless beauty as well."
"This is uniqueness."
"Because the dead cannot be brought back to life."
"Or, for instance, if you were lucky enough to fall from the 20th floor and survive, this memory is very scarce. After we replicate and sell this memory, many people can also enjoy this rare experience of yours, as not everyone is as fortunate as you."
"But not every memory has value."
"Our shop uses instruments to mark all the important memories in your life, and the system will automatically assign a fair price to them. Once you agree to sell and sign the 'Memory Authorization Agreement,' the transaction is complete, and you will receive a substantial reward."
"The entire process is painless and without any discomfort. Of course, the only cost is that this memory will be completely erased from your mind."
"However, only those with a Mental Strength of 16.0 or higher can undergo memory extraction surgery."
As he spoke.
The man swiped a few times on the screen: "Judging by your attire and demeanor, you don't seem to be short on money, and you probably aren't here to sell memories. The price for purchasing memories is much lower, as memories can be replicated multiple times."
"The more unique the memory, the higher the price."
"You can take a look and see if there are any memories you'd like to purchase."
"There are no Mental Strength requirements for purchasing memories, but if your Mental Strength is below 16.0, it is not recommended to purchase more than 20 units of memory, as it may pose a risk of mental fragmentation."
Chen Mang narrowed his eyes slightly, thoughtfully gazing at the list of products on the screen.
"1: A fragment of a frontline worker's hard labor, capacity of 380 units, price 2 million points."
"2: Beginner's memory of piloting the 'Stellar Generation One' mecha, capacity of 90 units, price 180,000 points."
"3: All memories of sharing a room with Zhang Meiqi, capacity of 980 units, price 700,000 points."
"4:"
"."
After browsing for a while, he finally spoke up: "Fragments of memories from frontline workers' jobs are this expensive?"
"Mm-hmm."
The man, gentle and scholarly, smiled and explained: "Because the memory extraction surgery requires a Mental Strength of at least 16.0, very few frontline workers have a Mental Strength that reaches this number. Scarcity drives up the price, so naturally, it's expensive. Generally speaking, these memories are bought by politicians."
"It ensures they can deliver speeches to workers with more genuine emotion, making the workers empathize more."
"Can knowledge-based memories like piloting mechs also be sold?"
"Mm-hmm, but they are usually beginner-level memories, used to assist in quickly learning something previously unfamiliar. Since most people who pilot mechs have a Mental Strength above 16.0, the price is relatively cheaper."
"Is that Zhang Meiqi some kind of celebrity?"
"No, she's just an ordinary man's wife."
"An ordinary man's wife, selling for 700,000 points?"
"There aren't many sellers, and clients who buy this part often inspect the goods first to ensure there's genuine emotional connection. These clients enjoy the immersive experience of real-life scenarios, and... they have plenty of money."
"Of course, this woman is somewhat good-looking, so the price is a bit higher."
At that moment—
"Let me give it a try."
Biao Zi looked at the man in confusion: "Where's the device? Let's see which of my memories can be sold."
"Alright, hold on, extend your arm and roll up your sleeve."
The man immediately took out something resembling a "blood pressure monitor" from under the table, attached a part to Biao Zi's arm, and explained: "This device will quickly search all the memories deep in your mind and identify the valuable ones."
"To respect the customer's privacy."
"The displayed memory names are all garbled codes with corresponding prices. Only when the customer clicks on the screen will the name of that memory appear."
"Shall we begin?"
"Mm, let's start."
One minute later.
Ten memory fragments with garbled names appeared on the screen, the only ones with commercial value.
"Huh?"
"So my life has been this eventful?"
Biao Zi looked at the memory fragment with the highest price tag, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. He eagerly clicked on the garbled code of this memory fragment, wanting to see which part of his life it was, worth 380,000 points.
Equivalent to 6 Map Chips.
When his finger touched the screen.
Soon, the name of this memory fragment appeared.
"Memory of sharing a room with a Goblin."
"."
The smile on Biao Zi's face slowly froze, his expression quickly turning gloomy, as if dripping with discomfort. But soon, he spoke in a hoarse, pained voice: "What happens if my Mental Strength isn't 16.0 and I force the memory extraction surgery?"
"You'll die."
The next moment—
The device on the table suddenly began to disassemble itself. The man, with practiced ease, swept the fragments into a nearby trash bin: "All devices for testing memory prices are disposable. After testing the price, they automatically disassemble to absolutely ensure the customer's memories are not leaked."
"Rest assured, esteemed customers, since our opening, there hasn't been a single case of leakage."
"Is this free of charge?"
"The test is complimentary, and the shop covers the equipment wear and tear."
"Let me give it a try."
Li Shiji took a deep breath, extended his arm, and said with a serious expression, "My Mental Strength is sufficient. Let's see which of my valuable memories can be sold."
His Mental Strength was 26.9.
Originally, it was 26.8, but after continuously working on maps these past days, his mental exertion had caused it to increase slightly.
It seemed like he was about to make a significant contribution this time.
Soon—
Just a minute later, the test results were out.
(End of Chapter)