Chapter 7: Join the Army!

Xing Xiaolong’s guess was correct—a finger from the same hand, rubbing against the gold or silver ring, could indeed activate the special app within the ring. There was no restriction to using only the thumb. The reason Xing Xiaolong used his thumb was simply that, among the five fingers, it was the most convenient for touching the ring on his index finger.

As for why the left and right hands could not activate each other’s rings—why it seemed as if there was a “conflict” between the gold and silver rings—Xing Xiaolong didn’t pay it much mind. For him, the most important thing was to unravel all the mysteries before him.

Previously, when he activated the silver ring, the prompt had mentioned that, because the gold ring’s CF Mall authorization task was still in progress, the silver ring could not be activated at the same time. This, in itself, revealed two pieces of information to Xing Xiaolong.

First, the silver ring, like the gold one, contained a wondrous golden finger. The specifics remained unknown for now.

Second, the two rings were indeed “at odds,” so much so that Xing Xiaolong could only use one of them at any given moment.

“It seems there’s something good in the silver ring as well. Hopefully, it won’t be as wretched as this CF Mall—no sign of any high-tech intelligence, just stinginess at its worst.”

Xing Xiaolong brimmed with anticipation for the silver ring, all the while venting his frustration at the gold one.

He quickly reined in his wandering thoughts and focused once more on the half-transparent screen hovering about half a meter before his eyes, always moving parallel to his line of sight.

The lowest mall interface was still a mosaic, but above it, there were two small windows on either side. The window on the left was filled with dense lines of text:

[Player “Sniper God of Red Star Street,” do you want to survive longer on the battlefield? Do you want to master supreme firearm skills? Then begin with basic training.

If you’re ready, please click the confirm button at the bottom. Special training will officially begin and activate the special mission panel.

Missions refresh randomly—they won’t actively intervene in the player’s world, but will appear fixed on the left side of the screen, on the mission panel. Please keep an eye on the mission panel and collect missions promptly.

Note: Timed missions, deadline missions, and certain special missions will disappear permanently if failed or left unclaimed.

Every mission offers generous rewards, and mysterious grand prizes may arrive at any moment. As long as you work hard to complete missions, all kinds of gifts await you.

To thank you for entering this special training, the mall has prepared a grand gift for you—complete any mission to unlock it.]

The mission introductions on the interface sounded wonderful, as if all sorts of treasures were free for the taking.

Yet, Xing Xiaolong knew this was nothing but “marketing tactics.”

Anyone who’d played a pay-to-win game knew how deep those waters ran. All their talk of rich rewards, mysterious prizes, and endless gifts was empty boasting—a way to entice and deceive.

If CF Mall really was a “good golden finger,” it wouldn’t have pulled that stunt at the start: gifting 5,000 GP game coins, then immediately forcing you to spend all 5,000, leaving you with nothing.

“Like hell I’ll believe you. You’re nothing but a vampire. I’ll show you what a true free-to-play player can do. I won’t spend a single cent—not even a penny.”

Xing Xiaolong was resolute. Determined not to pay a dime, he was set on freeloading CF Mall for all it was worth.

Without hesitation, he clicked confirm!

The screen flickered; the introduction on the left vanished, replaced completely by the window on the right. The previously empty right-side panel began to fill rapidly with lines of text.

In less than ten seconds, the text finished appearing—one mission and a single line remained.

[Special Training Mainline (1): Join the Army!

Firearms are the soul of a warrior, survival on the battlefield their foundation. The military camp is the crucible of a soldier’s sweat and blood. Only the finest warriors can become honored guests of this mall, and the most formidable players on the battlefield.

No restrictions on method—simply join the army and become a soldier to proceed to the next round of missions.

First round rewards: Lucky Revolver x1, Random Weapon Pack x1, Random Dagger Pack x1, Random Accessory Pack x1, Random Item Pack x1.]

[Special training has begun. Good luck, player: Sniper God of Red Star Street!]

“That’s it? Seriously?”

After reading the entire mission panel, Xing Xiaolong was left feeling helpless. Not even the string of mission rewards could ease his frustration.

The special training mission was the key to his return, yet the mission description was vague and incomplete—leaving no clues at all.

Up to this point, Xing Xiaolong still had no idea about his background in this world. The CF Mall had provided no hints. From his perspective, he felt like an undocumented outsider.

One could not simply walk into the army, especially not as someone with no legitimate identity. The very thought infuriated Xing Xiaolong.

“Ah—”

Several minutes passed. Xing Xiaolong patted the dust from his pants and stood up, sighing deeply as he walked out of the alley.

No matter how furious he was at the mall, things had come to this. No matter the difficulties, he had no choice but to face them head-on.

He had figured out how to awaken CF Mall and had a rough idea of the so-called special training. Now, only one thing remained: to find a way to join the military in this world.

To do this, Xing Xiaolong first had to clarify two things.

First, he needed to confirm his identity—was he truly an undocumented outsider, or had CF Mall already set him up with a background in this world?

If an identity had been arranged, entering the main mission would be much easier. If not, it would be a real headache.

Second, he needed to determine whether this world was real, or just a virtual world like in a sci-fi movie.

If it was the latter—a virtual world—then CF Mall might control everything. Xing Xiaolong could cast aside his worries, for everything was just data, nothing to take too seriously, and CF Mall would ensure he was never truly in danger.

Like dying in a game, he could always respawn and start over.

But if this was a real world—a parallel universe, or a multiverse—then things would be entirely different.

In a parallel or multiverse, everything was truly real. Every human here, like Xing Xiaolong himself, was a living, breathing person—likely beyond CF Mall’s control.

If that was the case, Xing Xiaolong would have to be careful, because he really could die here.

Die in an unknown world.

For now, Xing Xiaolong had no way to determine whether this was a real or virtual world with any certainty.

But as for whether he had a real identity here, or was just an undocumented “traveler,” there was a shortcut—a simple way to find out.