18: Mood value surged

"Ding—!"

A cold system notification, as precise as a scalpel, rang out sharply in Chen Xi's mind.

He had only just slightly calmed the surging emotions from that heavy conversation with Chen Shusheng.

This notification made him shudder violently.

Immediately following.

"Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding—!"

A dense barrage of notifications, like heavy rain pounding on a tin roof, began to frantically bombard his auditory nerves.

A blue light screen that only he could see forcibly expanded before his eyes, beyond his control.

At the very top of the light screen, the numbers representing "Audience Emotion Points" were like a wild dog off its leash, soaring upward at a frantic, insane speed he had never seen before.

Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands... the numbers jumped so fast they blurred, leaving behind only strings of afterimages.

Chen Xi was completely stunned.

He remembered clearly that just a few minutes ago, this value was still stuck at an awkward five-digit number.

That was accumulated from when he used the sickle to kill the Japanese Army squad and used the mosquito repellent to save Nickname.

But now, it had already broken through millions, tens of millions, and was still rushing toward an astronomical figure he couldn't comprehend at an even more terrifying acceleration.

"Detected intense, large-scale, high-intensity emotional resonance from the 'Universe-2026' observation group."

"Emotion Types: Sadness, Touched, Respect, Pride..."

"Emotion Intensity Determination: Peak."

"Converting 'Audience Emotion Points'..."

The cold mechanical voice, like an emotionless announcer, kept broadcasting in his mind.

Chen Xi looked at the constantly tumbling numbers, then looked around at the Soldiers who had just finished listening to his description of the future, the fire reigniting in their eyes as they silently wiped their weapons.

There was not a trace of joy on his face.

Only a cold irony that reached deep into his bones.

He understood.

These astronomical "Emotion Points" weren't because he had just used a slingshot to blow up the Japs' cannon.

Nor was it because he used a water gun to melt a tank.

It was because of Chen Shusheng's line: "We stay here just so you can live that kind of life."

It was because those viewers in 2026, through this cold screen, saw these vivid, hot, soon-to-pass lives.

Their tears, their respect, their sadness... became these strings of cold numbers in his system that could be used to exchange for lethal weapons.

How absurd.

How cruel.

"Ding—!"

"‘Audience Emotion Points’ have reached the threshold."

"system mall [Tier 2 Permissions] unlocked."

With the final notification, the frantically jumping numbers finally slowed to a stop, eventually settling on a terrifying nine-digit figure that made Chen Xi's eyelids twitch.

And the mall interface before his eyes was also completely refreshed.

The large areas that were originally greyed out were now all lit up.

Countless new, even more bizarre and eccentric "leisure props" appeared in the exchange list.

Chen Xi's gaze mechanically swept across the dazzling array of goods.

[Large Water Gun (Summer Party Edition)]

[Quality: Rare]

[Description: Utilizing the latest liquid metal jet technology, it can instantly heat a target to three thousand degrees Celsius. It is your best choice to become the focus of the crowd at a pool party.]

[Emotion Points Required for Exchange: 500,000]

[Remote Control Model Airplane (Professional Aerial Photography Edition)]

[Quality: Rare]

[Description: Built-in silent power engine and multi-spectral reconnaissance module, can carry a "package" of no more than 500g. Let you record every beautiful moment from a God's-eye view.]

[Emotion Points Required for Exchange: 300,000]

[Anti-Haze Mask (Urban Elite Edition)]

[Quality: Excellent]

[Description: Built-in miniature individual biochemical filtration system, can effectively filter 99.99% of known toxic gases and germs. Let you breathe freely even on hazy days.]

[Emotion Points Required for Exchange: 100,000 (per mask)]

There were also things like [Portable Barbecue Grill] (High-energy Laser Matrix), [Fully Automatic Fishing Rod] (Intelligent Capture Mechanical Arm), [Camping Tent] (Optical Camouflage Force Field)... every single one was disguised to look harmless.

Behind every single one was hidden a terrifying power sufficient to subvert the rules of war in this era.

All of these were exchanged for those tears.

Chen Xi slowly closed his eyes.

He didn't feel a single trace of pleasure from gaining power.

He only felt his heart being squeezed tightly by an invisible hand, so heavy it made him breathless.

He clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms.

He could even feel that torrent of emotion from eighty-nine years later, converging from tens of millions of people, washing over his soul through some invisible connection.

In that torrent, there was sadness, respect, anger, and a kind of... heavy expectation.

What were they expecting?

Expecting him to win?

No.

They wanted him to save these people.

Save Chen Shusheng.

Save Shangguan Zhibiao.

Save Xie Jinyuan.

Save every living soul in this warehouse.

But could he do it?

He looked at those cold props in the system mall, then looked at Chen Shusheng not far away, laughing as he shared half a cigarette with a comrade, and an unprecedented sense of powerlessness, like cold seawater, submerged his entire being.

He could kill people.

But he could not fight against history.

"Boom—!!!"

Just as Chen Xi's mind was in turmoil, a dull sound of tank treads crushing, like rolling thunder, abruptly approached from outside the warehouse!

Immediately following, a piercing alarm rang through the entire warehouse!

"Enemy attack—!"

"It's tanks! It's the Japs' Type 94 Tankettes!"

The warehouse, which had only just obtained a moment of peace, was instantly shrouded in the shadow of death once more.

The smiles on the Soldiers' faces froze; they threw away their cigarette butts, grabbed their weapons, and rushed to their positions.

Panic began to spread like a plague.

"Tanks... what do we have to fight them with..."

"It's over... we're dead for sure this time..."

Chen Xi snapped his eyes open.

He looked at those faces falling into panic because of the tanks' appearance.

He looked at Chen Shusheng, who had just been smiling at him, now also gripping his rifle, his face full of tension and determination.

The sense of powerlessness that had submerged him was, at this moment, instantly dispersed by another, even hotter emotion.

To hell with history.

To hell with being invincible.

Chen Xi's gaze became cold and calm.

He reopened the system mall, his gaze fixed firmly on the ridiculously shaped [Large Water Gun] priced at five hundred thousand emotion points.

He did not hesitate for a second.

"Exchange."