"Sigh... This is the eighteenth company I've worked for that's gone bankrupt." Jiang Yuan sat on the bed, looking at the message on his phone.
The company closed due to poor management.
After working for twenty-eight days without receiving a penny in salary, the company shut down. Unable to find the boss or anyone in charge, he was dragged into a group chat by a few colleagues to discuss how to claim their debts.
Jiang Yuan stayed silent.
He's too experienced with this sort of thing to believe any money could be recovered. It was better to use the time to send out resumes and look for a new job.
Since graduating from college, not a single company that Jiang Yuan joined managed to last with him for more than three months. The quickest was an advertising company; on the very day he joined, the boss announced that the company had gone under by that afternoon.
Even the largest and most promising pharmaceutical company, which was thriving in the industry when Jiang Yuan joined, saw a rapid decline after his two months there, with the boss selling off the business units in a rush due to failed investments.
Unfortunately, he was part of the segment that got sold off.
The new owner couldn't even last a month and a half before being squeezed out by competitors, announcing bankruptcy.
Jiang Yuan drew the eighteenth cross on his notebook.
Now even writing a resume poses a problem.
Which HR would remain composed after seeing his string of bad-luck-stained experiences?
[Limited time and quantity download of "Wilderness Descent: Nemesis," countdown 00:00:34]
What's this?
Nemesis?!
Who gave you permission to summarize my life like this?
The urgent ticking of the countdown created an intense sense of urgency, making Jiang Yuan hesitate as he stared at the delicate icon.
He recalled those online games he played that turned into ghost towns; once, he had to choose between Kings and Supreme Gods, and the latter ended up shutting down not long after he started playing.
Should he potentially ruin this game as well?
After a few seconds of hesitation, Jiang Yuan chose to download it.
Who does this game think it is with such a lousy name, daring to despise me? I'll crush you in no time, believe it or not!
[Download complete]
[Installation complete. Would you like to open the game?]
Without a second thought, Jiang Yuan selected "No."
He still needed to figure out his resume and urgently find the next job; who had the leisure to play games now? Especially one he had forgotten he reserved and never saw promoted—it might even be a scam.
The internship pay was usually only around 2,500 to 3,000 yuan, with no other benefits. Plus, often, when the company went under and the boss disappeared, Jiang Yuan didn't get paid, leaving him with only 1,528.64 yuan in his bank account now.
With rent and utility bills looming, a young man out of college for over two years couldn't just ask his parents for living expenses, right?
"Submitting resumes to big companies with solid operations, they still wouldn't want me. If worst comes to worst, should I look for temp jobs again?" He frowned as he rewrote his resume, "The shop I handed out flyers for is already closed. Maybe try a supermarket for a temp sales position?"
This time, Jiang Yuan did not shy away from the fact he had worked for eighteen bankrupt companies; instead, he highlighted it in bold red letters.
Then, in the career objectives section, he carefully crafted this heartfelt statement: Considering my personal circumstances, I am sincerely seeking a commercial undercover position.
Just need to pay a commission and place me in a competitor's company, and I guarantee within three months I'll bring them down perfectly!
Finally, he glanced at the newly downloaded game on his phone and gave himself an occupational title—Commercial Nemesis Undercover, dedicated to bankrupting your competitors.
Efficient; precise and ruthless; defeat opponents without a trace!
Jiang Yuan's new resume was very impressive, with one grand "achievement" after another, so he saved it and submitted it in bulk, casting a wide net to catch more fish.
He opened the web page and copied a few temporary job listings, stretched, and saw it was already 11:30 AM.
He thought about going out to grab a bowl of noodles and then finding a temporary job in the afternoon for a better meal.
With this in mind, he picked up his phone to head out, only to catch a glimpse of the newly installed game icon.
The deep artwork vaguely revealed mountains and rivers, with clouds swirling as if hiding exotic beasts and small villages. It somewhat resembled the ancient wilderness style Jiang Yuan liked.
Just the line below...
Wilderness Descent conjured up endless associations; those two "Nemesis" words were an eyesore—who was this cursing?
With some disdain mixed with curiosity, he casually clicked on the game.
The phone screen instantly went black, followed by "Loading..."
Three seconds later, Jiang Yuan suddenly found everything going dark before coming back to light, staring bewilderedly at the unfamiliar surroundings.
Where is this? Why am I here? Did I transmigrate?
[Background introduction: Three hundred years ago, after the last Immortal ascended, Spiritual Energy became scarce between heaven and earth. Humanity put their hopes in faith, praying for a Spiritual Energy Revival, hoping to embark once more on the path of Immortal cultivation in pursuit of immortality.
However, countless prayers resulted in the Wilderness Descent, with Spiritual Energy accompanying it, and humans, having lost their inheritance, could not defeat the powerful alien races, becoming the lowest-ranking species.
You, orphaned from childhood, witnessed the sacred candle representing luck unexpectedly extinguish during your coming-of-age ceremony. The High Priest judged you as an unlucky Nemesis, and you were therefore banished to a Deserted Island.]
[Enter new player tutorial]
[Learn to properly use tools, cut a patch of grass; chop a tree; dig a stone; develop a plot of land; plant a pack of seeds; water the plants. Reward: 1,000 Gold Coins]
Stunned for a few seconds, Jiang Yuan found tools like a trial version sickle and axe on the ground.
Surrounded by a Wild Land with lush trees, Jiang Yuan stood in a clump of grass, the dew on the wild grass felt slightly cool, and the air was filled with a rich earthy scent. Birdsong and the roar of some distant wild beast came with the wind; it all felt so real!
There was genuinely a patch of undeveloped land before him, and his inner farmer genes were eager to go.
Damn! Thrilled yet shocked, at the same time, he felt a bit bewildered and panicked.
Am I actually in a game? Could it be the game I downloaded during that time limit?
Recollecting carefully, indeed, the anomaly happened after opening the game.
At today's level of technology, creating such a realistic holographic game is impossible, let alone for a mobile game.
Jiang Yuan thought about his somewhat outdated phone, already struggling with lagging games; even if advanced technology existed, that broken phone couldn't handle it.
But now...
No exit button was found, and the in-game shop items weren't unlocked, only the new player tutorial kept prompting him to complete tasks.
He nervously swallowed, picked up the old sickle, and began harvesting the specified wild grass.
Damn, can't get out! What should I do?
Although he often imagined living an exciting and limitless life just like in novels, now that this transmigration had occurred so suddenly, Jiang Yuan found it hard to adapt, and how sad would his parents be if he suddenly disappeared!
With a heart full of apprehension and anxiety, he switched to the axe after finishing with the grass, diligently cutting down a tree. After working hard for over an hour, he finally completed all tasks. Accompanied by the pleasant jingling sound of gold coins, as 1,000 Gold Coins were credited, an exit button appeared at the top left.
Without thinking, Jiang Yuan immediately exited, and the next second everything lit up as he found himself still standing in his room, the previous anomaly feeling like a dream.
[Current game account balance: 1,000. Would you like to withdraw?]
Staring at the pop-up dialogue box, Jiang Yuan's breathing became rapid. I haven't even eaten any mushrooms in these past two days, so why am I having hallucinations?
Turbo with countless questions, the lure of "withdrawal" couldn't be resisted.
Having never received a high salary and constantly struggling near the poverty line, Jiang Yuan harbored no ambition; even if it was an illusion, he wanted to indulge in the fantasy of striking it rich.
Clicking withdraw, and there was a "ding!" sound, the phone vibrating as he received a text message.
He opened it, his heartbeat raced, and sweat involuntarily appeared in his palms!
"[China Agricultural Bank] Wilderness Descent Entertainment Information Co., Ltd. completed a transfer transaction of 800.00 RMB to your account ending in 1748 on June 12 at 11:32, balance 2,328.64."
Why is it 200 short?
Jiang Yuan was stunned for a moment and opened the personal income tax app, discovering that indeed, 20% personal income tax had been deducted.
It's—ridiculously sincere, yet quite proper.
After looking over it several times, fully enjoying the thrill of unexpected wealth, he listlessly knocked on the door of the tenant next door with his phone, "Sister Yang, can you help me take a look at this text message on my phone?"
Yang Hongye was about to leave, gathering her hair with a tie neatly and glancing at it in surprise, "Did you find a new job already? An entertainment company... You're not doing water army posting jobs, right?"
Jiang Yuan was taken aback and replied, "Sis, have you eaten any mushrooms these past two days?"
"The newly marketed mushrooms are so expensive, I couldn't bear to eat them even after getting paid. What, did you find a new job and want to treat me to mushrooms?" Yang Hongye laughed, joking while shutting the door as she waved, "Dinner only if you're treating. I have to take some clients out for a meal. Bye!"
Watching her back, Jiang Yuan looked at his bank balance again to confirm it wasn't a hallucination, suddenly struck by a chilling thought: Could I end up bankrupting this game with withdrawable gameplay?