The next day, Fang Senyan rose at the crack of dawn, enjoyed a hearty breakfast, and then took a cab to Cyberdyne Systems on Eleventh Street. Traffic was relatively smooth when he set out, but as he neared his destination, he experienced the severe gridlock of Los Angeles, a megacity whose congestion was many times worse than even in the era Fang Senyan was used to.

With no other choice, Fang Senyan inquired about the location of Cyberdyne Systems, got out of the cab, and proceeded on foot. Fortunately, the company headquarters was built with exceptional grandeur; even among the skyscrapers of Los Angeles, it stood head and shoulders above the rest. He could almost spot the company's enormous LG display in the distance just by looking up, meaning there was no chance of him getting lost.

However, from the moment he stepped out of the car, Fang Senyan felt a powerful sense of danger, the kind that leaves one trembling while gazing down from the top of a high-rise without a guardrail. This feeling intensified the closer he got to the location...

Fortunately, Fang Senyan's destination was not the massive, ominous corporation itself, but rather the Buster Steakhouse located a few hundred meters next to it. The overall ambiance of the steakhouse was none too pleasant, exuding staleness and grease from every corner. The leather upholstery on the chairs was cracked and peeling. Yet, owing to the excellent flavor, it was packed; Fang Senyan waited a full half-hour before finally getting a seat.

Although Fang Senyan only ordered a cup of coffee at his seat, the generous tip ensured the waiter was forthcoming with all information. Thus, thirty seconds later, Fang Senyan knew that the middle-aged, balding man with a ruddy nose seated three rows away was his target: Engineer Vincent. He also learned that Vincent still had some time before finishing his breakfast.

Engineer Vincent clearly had a robust appetite. Several stacked, empty plates already adorned his table. As Fang Senyan watched, Vincent was tackling a sandwich layered with smoked meat, washing it down with a gulp of piping hot oatmeal, and then contentedly patted his chest before spearing a piece of Russian smoked sausage.

Fang Senyan signaled the waiter and paid Vincent’s bill as well, but his gesture failed to win the engineer’s friendship. Vincent dabbed his mouth with a cloth of indiscernible original color and eyed Fang Senyan with suspicion, saying rather rudely:

“That bill won’t make me go easy on you in the interview, kid. No one’s getting preferential treatment from me.”

The engineer truly had a dreadful personality, just as the mission evaluation had described. However, Fang Senyan was not discouraged. Instead, he stared intently into Vincent’s eyes and said seriously:

“Oh, I have zero interest in working for Cyberdyne Systems—and please understand, that’s in no way meant to disparage your company. Five minutes, Mr. Vincent. I only need five minutes of your time. If you still wish to leave after that, I’ll gladly open the car door for you.”

As he spoke, Fang Senyan noticed Vincent’s slightly yellowed index finger, so he pulled a hand-rolled Havana cigar from his coat, clipped the end, and offered it over. Evidently, the hundred-dollar cigar successfully smoothed over the engineer’s impatience and arrogance. He snorted through his nostrils, lit the cigar—deep in color, thick, powerful, and commanding—drew a gentle puff, letting the mellow smoke linger in his mouth before letting it escape slowly from his throat, then slightly closed his eyes:

“Go on.”

Fang Senyan paused, giving the impression he was carefully marshalling his words, before finally saying:

“I’m a resident near the 7th Street area—the place where that massive rumored terrorist attack happened yesterday.”

Vincent nodded, signaling he knew about the event, and then spoke coldly:

“Four minutes left.”

“There was a violent explosion near my home while I was napping. All the windowpanes shattered. After a while, the police surrounded the building. Once the cordon was lifted, I was cleaning up my room when I found this.”

As Fang Senyan spoke, he opened his palm. Resting there was an object that looked utterly ordinary, yet it shone with a strange, faint blue electrical light: the mission item—the Main CPU Chip (Damaged)!

Vincent, who had been comfortably inhaling the smoke with an air of dismissive arrogance, first glanced casually at the object in Fang Senyan’s hand. Then his face gradually grew serious, and he finally sat bolt upright, taking the chip from Fang Senyan’s hand.

This Engineer Vincent did possess capability; he had once been one of the main project leaders at the company. It was just that his usual slovenliness and notoriously foul temper had alienated many people, leading to his gradual sidelining by senior management in recent years.

Despite being sidelined, Vincent had heard news yesterday that the FBI had recovered "some items far surpassing current technological levels" and transferred them to the company headquarters. (According to the movie plot, the Skynet system was developed using residual chips and tissue from the T-800.) The headquarters had held an emergency meeting overnight and dumped these items into the R&D division headed by Miles Dyson, clearly excluding Vincent—his mood, therefore, was predictable, which indirectly accounted for the poor reception Fang Senyan received right from the start.

After taking the chip, Vincent became increasingly engrossed, a look of fanaticism blazing in his eyes. He muttered to himself:

“This kind of line conductivity... how can it have a carbon-based structure? The electronic points laid out must exceed one hundred billion! Damn it, what am I seeing? Wireless functional base points—how is that possible? Raphael, quickly initiate the high-voltage pulse module, Raphael, quick...”

At this moment, Fang Senyan also received a prompt from the Nightmare Mark.

You have successfully allowed Vincent to come into contact with the Main CPU Chip (Damaged). Side Mission: Contact (Completed) You may choose one of the following options to receive a reward: A: Gift the chip to Vincent, gaining a certain amount (1025) of favorability, and a small remuneration. The fluctuation in favorability is directly linked to the Contractor’s Charm value. B: Sell the chip to Vincent, causing his favorability toward you to drop (3050) points, and receive a moderate remuneration. The fluctuation in favorability is directly linked to the Contractor’s Charm value.

Vincent, lost in thought, suddenly snapped back to awareness as Fang Senyan cleanly retrieved the chip from his palm, wearing an annoyingly sincere smile:

“Now, Mr. Vincent should have time to discuss the relevant pricing with me, shouldn’t he?”

Vincent hadn’t reacted immediately and looked stunned:

“WHAT? What price?”

Fang Senyan smiled and stated:

“The price for transferring this chip to you.”

Vincent’s face immediately soured. He lowered his voice, staring at Fang Senyan:

“How much do you want? One thousand dollars, two thousand? Ten thousand, HIT! Don’t push it. I just have to shout, and those lovely police officers will rush in and arrest you, you greedy bastard!”

“But the police won’t give you the chip either!” Fang Senyan replied with a smile, but his gaze was sharp as a needle! Although he didn't know Vincent's exact situation, he pierced straight to the heart of the matter.

“Furthermore, Mr. Vincent, please note that I have now confirmed the authenticity and value of this item from you, so you are no longer my only potential customer. If your offer is not satisfactory, I think other engineers at Cyberdyne might offer a more generous price.”

Vincent’s face turned ashen. He stood up and began pacing back and forth like a desperate beast trapped in a cage, muttering something in what sounded like a provincial idiom. He then emptied all the cash from his wallet, adding an antique-looking gold pocket watch engraved with the year 1944.

“You greedy devil! Take it, damn it! This watch is one of the few heirlooms my father left me. Then you can hand over that miraculous chip and disappear from my sight as quickly as possible—the farther, the better! I never want to see your greedy face again!”

Fang Senyan instantly received information on both items:

USD ($397): Circulating currency, valuable item, can be carried out of this world or sold to the Space for 133 General Points. Swiss Gold Casing Pocket Watch (1944) Equipment Type: Accessory Origin: Bern Watch Factory, Swiss Confederation Equipment Rarity: White Equipment Effect: Stamina +1 Equipment Requirement: None Material: Iron/Aluminum Weight: 182 grams. Combat Rating Score: 4 Description: My lifelong wish was to travel to Salt Lake City and become a devout Mormon. Alas, it seems this dream must be fulfilled by my son. Note: The USD Fang Senyan spends in this world functions like ordinary currency and will not have special descriptions from the Nightmare Mark, nor will an ordinary pocket watch. Both items cannot be taken out of this world.

Looking at these two items, Fang Senyan made no move to take them, instead keeping his grip on the chip, a mysterious smile playing on his lips, shaking his head slightly. A fierce glint appeared in Vincent’s eyes, and he threatened in a strained voice:

“Young man, excessive greed will bring the Devil to your door.”

Fang Senyan sighed, realizing in that moment the pleasure a shrewd businessman feels when squeezing out every last bit of a person's bottom line across the negotiation table:

“My dear Mr. Vincent, please don’t misunderstand. I just have one more question for you.”

Vincent stared fixedly at the left hand clutching the chip, his ruddy nose and bald head glistening with oily sweat, and snarled in a voice he struggled to suppress:

“What else do you want!”

Fang Senyan suddenly opened his palm. Resting in it were two identical chips! This caused Vincent’s eyes to widen abruptly like a dead fish, then glaze over in a stupor. It was easy to imagine the violent pounding of Vincent’s heart, surging blood into his cerebral vessels.

“I only wanted to ask, what price could you offer if you were to purchase both chips from me?”

...

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve interacted with everyone. Let’s have a prize quiz below: What kind of person was Vincent’s father? Students willing to participate should post in the review section. Participants will receive an esteemed post, and those who answer correctly will also get bonus points! Of course, don’t forget to cast your spare votes for me, hehe. (To be continued, please visit for the latest chapters.)

For more novels, visit storyread.net.