Back home, Li Mu wrestled his new laptop into dial-up connectivity. Thankfully, the shop had preloaded essential software—downloading QQ over this glacial connection would've taken ages.
His priority: check Stone Age Overlord's stats. Forum threads blazed with activity. One moderator pinned a banner: *First 30k-Reply Post!* Total downloads across platforms? 400k+.
Private QQ notifications exploded. Zhao Kang's message topped the list: Holy shit—40k downloads!!!
Li Mu typed: Still at the cybercafé?
Zhao replied instantly: Where else? You ghosted me!
Home. Got a laptop.
Rich bastard.
Earned it.
After confirming Zhao hadn't compromised their proxy setup, Li Mu arranged a meetup.
Then came the reckoning.
His parents gaped at the IBM laptop and 60,000 yuan cash.
"You sold… a song?" Father Li crushed his third cigarette.
Mother Li beamed. "Remember his first guitar? I knew he had talent!"
Li Mu squirmed. That teenage guitar phase—born of idolizing Chinese rock legends—now served as convenient backstory.
"Sing it for us!" Father Li urged.
"Can't. Sold exclusive rights," Li Mu deflected. The李白's slacker-rock lyrics would mortify under parental scrutiny.
Father Li eyed the cash. "This money… you'll manage it wisely?"
"Absolutely."
Mother Li hesitated. "Let's save it for university—"
"No." Father Li cut in. "His earnings, his call. Just no drugs or gambling."
Li Mu split the stack: 10k for himself, 50k pushed forward. "For the house."
Their stunned silence spoke volumes.
Next morning, Zhao Kang inspected the laptop like sacred artifact.
"Yours too when we sell Overlord," Li Mu promised.
Zhao recoiled. "Five grand's insane! I just spammed forums!"
"Next project's bigger." Li Mu studied his friend. Greed? Gratitude? "Two tasks: propaganda and distribution."
"Distribution? Like drug…"
"Exactly. Build channels before the hammer falls."
Zhao paled. "What if they crack down?"
Li Mu grinned. "We outrun the tsunami."
Outside, cicadas droned. The modem's dial-tone screeched—a siren song to digital empires waiting to be claimed.