Acquiring the Bow Blueprint

Su Chen understood that it was incredibly difficult for women to survive in this world.

Looking at the woman in front of him, she was so starved that she could barely stand, making her appear extremely pitiful.

However, simply giving away food for free always made Su Chen uncomfortable.

He had always been a principled person and disliked the idea of anyone freeloading off him.

But when faced with the woman standing before him, he couldn't help but feel curious and intrigued.

He tentatively said, "I have what you need, but as a condition, you'll have to give me something in exchange, right?"

The woman's eyes flickered at his words, clearly hesitant.

It was likely that she had been waiting here for a long time, and Su Chen might have been the first person she encountered. Standing at 1.8 meters tall and being a man, he was an intimidating presence.

She was no match for him in her current state, but she had no other options. Desperation left her with no choice but to take a gamble.

When Su Chen made his offer, it actually relieved her a bit—he hadn't made any strange demands, which was already a blessing.

"I... I do have something," the woman stammered.

Su Chen had initially thought she was alone, but it turned out she was part of a group. She carried a dagger at her waist, likely for self-defense if someone more dangerous than him appeared.

He had initially been wary of the possibility that a burly man might leap out and attack, but he was surprised to find that the person was merely a woman.

Su Chen immediately picked up on her concerns. She was likely afraid that he would kill her and steal whatever blueprint she had, which explained why she was being so vague and unwilling to be upfront.

But Su Chen had no such intentions. He considered himself a fairly upright person. Moreover, he had recently acquired some supplies on the road. If she had a blueprint that interested him, he'd gladly trade for it.

"Don't worry. Just tell me what you have. I won't harm you," Su Chen reassured her.

Hearing his words, the woman finally spoke in a soft voice, "It's... it's a blueprint for a basic bow."

"A bow blueprint?"

Su Chen's eyes lit up. He had always been interested in weapons, especially those with high lethality.

The mention of a bow blueprint instantly caught his attention, and he couldn't hide his excitement.

"Why didn't you list it on the trading platform? Something like that should be highly sought after there," Su Chen asked, puzzled. He had a nagging feeling that something wasn't quite right.

The woman glanced at Su Chen and replied weakly, "Of course, I know it's valuable. But there are too many people on the trading platform who just want to freeload, and many of the offers are simply ridiculous. I couldn't find a reasonable price. Yesterday, I even sent a private message to someone named Su Chen, one of the big names on the platform. I'm a fan of his and part of his support group, but he didn't even bother to reply. It's really frustrating."

Su... Chen?

Hearing his own name from someone else's mouth made him feel a bit embarrassed.

He remembered that his inbox was always flooded with messages, so he hadn't paid much attention, let alone responded to anyone.

If this woman realized that the person standing before her was none other than the "big name" constantly mentioned in the global chat—Su Chen, the one who ignored her message—she'd probably be over the moon.

The avatars and names in this world were all tied to real identities, so it was entirely possible that she might recognize him.

What made it worse was that she was part of his fan support group, which meant she likely knew more about him than the average person.

Feeling awkward, Su Chen kept his head down, hoping to avoid her gaze.

His strange behavior quickly caught the woman's attention.

She raised her head to look at him and asked, "Huh? Why aren't you saying anything? Are we still trading?"

Cold sweat began to bead on Su Chen's forehead. Did she recognize me?

He wanted to end the transaction as quickly as possible, so he brushed her off. "Of course. Just tell me what you want. I still have somewhere to be."

The woman was clearly at her limit. Her dog, tugged at her clothes and whimpered, its big eyes brimming with tears as it nudged her. "Mom, I'm hungry," the dog seemed to say, its actions breaking Su Chen's heart a little.

At this moment, the woman's mind was entirely focused on food. She didn't have the energy to scrutinize Su Chen's appearance, much less realize he was the person she had messaged.

Or maybe, the real-life Su Chen simply looked too different from his profile picture.

"She didn't recognize me?"

"Ha, that's kind of amusing," Su Chen thought to himself.

He handed her five bottles of purified water, three liters of gasoline, and some dry bread.

[Trade Successful]

Maybe it was because Su Chen was tall and imposing, giving off a sense of security, or perhaps the woman was just too lonely in this harsh world.

She glanced at Su Chen's RV and said, "Your RV looks so different from mine. Can I take a look inside?"

Su Chen hesitated but eventually agreed, letting her explore on her own. The reason he didn't want to show her around himself was that he feared she might recognize him.

Leaning against the RV outside, Su Chen waited quietly for her to finish.

As soon as she came out, he planned to drive away immediately—before she could put two and two together.

The woman spent half an hour inside before finally coming out, her eyes sparkling with awe.

"Brother, your RV is amazing! It's so much better than my beat-up old one. Where did you get it?"

Su Chen didn't answer her question. Instead, he jokingly said, "Wow, you actually came out. I thought you were going to stay in there all day."

The woman's face flushed red, and she stammered awkwardly, "R-really? It's such an honor."

"No," Su Chen replied bluntly, shutting down any further conversation.

He quickly got into his RV, started the engine, and drove off without looking back.

Even Su Chen found it funny. He had made a random joke, and the woman had taken it seriously.

As he drove away, he muttered, "If this path doesn't work, I'll just take another one. All roads lead to Rome."

"She's so greedy. Letting her see my RV was already generous enough, and yet she still wanted more."

Shaking his head, Su Chen dismissed the thought. Today hadn't been a complete waste—he had gained a weapon blueprint he truly liked.

After putting some distance between himself and the woman, Su Chen pulled over, took the bow blueprint out of his pocket, and studied it carefully. To him, this was a treasure.

[Enhancement Confirmed]

[Congratulations, Host! The bow blueprint has been enhanced into a bow mold. (Reusable and problem-free)]

With this, Su Chen felt overjoyed. This was truly perfect!

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