Chapter 20 Crazy Advertising
"Hey, look, how come these abandoned billboards were repaired overnight?"
The scene on the roadside flashed by.
The player who was driving the car slammed on the brakes, and the car made a sharp "squeak" and stopped on the side of the road.
He frowned and backed the car up in doubt.
"It's true! Weird, I just passed by here yesterday, and weren't these signs all covered with sand?"
The players sitting in the back seat of the car rolled down their windows and leaned out to stare at the brand new billboards in front of them.
The billboards looked as if they had just been repainted.
A line of eye-catching words above caught my eye:
"The underground city train station has been grandly opened, with the first stop leading directly to Liuhuo City!"
The card features a metallic black train traveling against a majestic backdrop of a lava volcano.
That is the iconic landform of Liuhuo City.
There is also a line of conspicuous small words at the bottom of the advertisement:
"Limited time discount fares, book in advance to enjoy more value benefits!"
Right next to this advertisement is another sign with a completely different style.
The picture shows a bowl of colorful fruit salad, with a lush orchard in the background. The signboard text looks particularly lively:
“Dungeon Fruit Salad: Limited to 100 servings per day, exclusively for VIP customers! Take a bite and the benefits will be immediate!”
"Fruit in the dungeon? How come I've never heard of it?"
A player swallowed his saliva and said, "It looks delicious."
"It's normal that you haven't heard of it. The store just opened not long ago. I heard that a serving of fruit salad not only has a variety of additional effects, but it is also sold in limited quantities. It is in short supply every day, and the business is booming."
As another player was talking, his eyes were drawn to the next billboard.
This is a fresh and eye-catching billboard. In the center of the picture is a kitten doll with an ice cream ball on its head, surrounded by cute fruits such as strawberries and pineapples.
"Ahhh, what a cute ice cream... I mean the kitten~"
A female player in the back row was so excited that her voice rose a few notches. Her eyes were fixed on the image of the kitten on the billboard, and her finger unconsciously pointed out the window.
"This kitten looks like my little stuffed doll. I really want to know where I can buy kitten dolls. I must buy a dozen!"
She almost leaned on the window frame, her eyes full of excitement.
The other players in the car looked at the billboard and showed interest:
"These ads are all from the dungeon. I feel like the things coming out of the dungeon are getting more attractive than the last."
"Yes, first there were the swimming pool and fruit tea ads on the forum, and now there are these. The advertising planning behind the dungeon must have been guided by an expert. It really catches people's attention!"
“…”
While everyone was discussing heatedly, the player sitting in the driver's seat suddenly cleared his throat and turned to ask his friends:
"Speaking of which, have you completed most of your union's tasks?"
Several people were stunned for a moment, looked at each other, and then nodded vigorously:
"Yeah, it's already been done!"
The driver player saw this and smiled:
"That's good. Now that the mission is completed, let's take a short detour..."
Before he finished speaking, he turned the steering wheel sharply and the car made a beautiful turn.
The wheels rubbed against the ground with a harsh sound, the car body drew an arc, turned around and sped towards the direction of the underground city.
"Hey hey hey! Drive slower! Don't throw us out!"
A player in the back seat was holding onto the handrail on the roof tightly, complaining, but he couldn't hide the smile on his face.
The player sitting in the passenger seat was so excited that he leaned half out of the window and waved his arms in the wind:
"I left in too much of a hurry last time. This time, I not only want to go to the fruit tea shop, but I also have to check in at the newly opened ice cream shop. And there's also the train station. I have to see if there really is a train there."
"Of course, I haven't had enough of the pineapple lemon tea from the fruit tea shop!"
“I just wish the ice cream had flavors I like.”
“…”
There was a relaxed and exciting atmosphere in the car.
The player in the driver's seat turned the steering wheel again, and the car sped away in the direction of the dungeon, accompanied by cheers from inside the car:
"Dungeon, here we come!"
******
As usual, Zhao Shu led his team to carry out tasks outside every day.
After the mission was completed, the team found a rocky shade to rest for a while, temporarily shielding themselves from the scorching sun above their heads.
Qi Lecheng sat down dejectedly to help deal with the monster's corpse, beads of sweat sliding down his cheeks and soaking his collar.
As he cut open the monster's belly with a knife, he muttered:
"Is this damn weather trying to roast us? Can this dungeon be any more unbearable?"
The temperature has risen by several degrees recently, and even Erfeng, who usually loves to run outside when on missions, has taken the initiative to hide back in the summoning space.
Peng Yi, who was standing by, raised his head and drank a sip of water, fanning himself by the collar and said with emotion:
"Who said it wasn't? Although we can't hide in the space to escape the heat like Erfeng, at least our guild has finally moved into the underground city. Now every day I look forward to completing the task early and returning to the city, finding a cool place to lie down, or going swimming directly, how refreshing."
Zhao Shu leaned against the stone wall nearby, wiping his weapon calmly:
"You don't have to think too much today. Hurry up and deal with the spoils. Go back and rest for a while. Don't forget, we still have to take the train to Liuhuo City to help move things."
As he was speaking, Qi Lecheng suddenly screamed, attracting everyone's attention:
"Holy shit, what is this?"
Zhao Shu and Peng Yi were attracted by his reaction and hurried over to see.
When Qi Lecheng cut open the monster's belly, he found not only a crystal core, but also a small wooden sign!
The wooden sign was wrapped in the monster's flesh and skin and was only the size of a palm. A small fire dragon in a simple sketch could be vaguely seen in a corner of the sign.
Qi Lecheng wiped off the meat scraps stuck to the wooden sign, revealing the words on it.
“…”
The moment they saw the contents of the wooden sign, they fell into a brief silence.
"Oh, it's another dungeon ad."
After a moment, Zhao Shu spoke calmly, as if he was no longer surprised.
Peng Yi's mouth twitched and he rolled his eyes:
"This dungeon ad is really cool, even inside the monster's stomach. Will they even be able to dig out ads from the sand next time?"
Qi Lecheng threw the billboard aside, put away the crystal core, and waved his hand:
"Alright, alright, stop complaining and hurry up and get ready to go back to the city."
The three of them simply packed up their spoils, organized their equipment, and then set off.
However, they had not walked far when golden grains of sand suddenly began to gather on their own in a patch of quicksand, slowly forming a line of shining words in front of them:
"Big giveaway in the dungeon, the second cup of fruit tea is half price, don't miss this opportunity!"
The wind blew gently, and the sand scattered again, and then another set of words was rearranged:
"Want to enjoy a 15% discount? Become a Dungeon VIP customer and unlock exclusive benefits immediately!"
The three of them stopped and stared at the quicksand for a long time in silence.
Peng Yi opened his mouth first, then finally sighed:
"How much money did the dungeon owner spend on advertising? This is too crazy. Even the sand is not spared."
“…Let’s go.”
Zhao Shu silently held his forehead and looked away expressionlessly:
"Never mind that."
******
"President, something bad has happened!"
In a lush green field, an old man in plain clothes was bending over, carefully checking a batch of newly ripened plants.
These plants are about half a meter tall, with leaves glowing a light golden color. Crystal-transparent fruits hang from the plants. They are called "dew fruits" and are a rare crop that can restore mental strength in high-temperature copies.
Hearing the hurried shouts behind him, the old man frowned, slowly straightened up, took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat off his face, and said with a somewhat unhappy tone:
"What's the hurry? Speak softly, these fruits have just fallen asleep, don't scare them."
The visitor seemed to realize his own recklessness and lowered his voice hastily, but his expression was still anxious:
"President, you'd better go out and take a look. You'll know what's going on after you see it."
Seeing that the other party was still panic-stricken, the old president could only sigh, temporarily put down the work in his hands, and walked out in the direction the other party pointed.
As soon as he stepped out of the field inside the locust tree, he saw that the originally lush and thick trunks and branches seemed to have been peeled off at some point, with parts of the trunks and branches revealing a smooth surface. The bark was gone, replaced by rows of conspicuous advertising patterns.
The old man touched the bark with trembling fingers. He stared at the words and asked in a deep voice:
"Who did this? How dare they do this!"
He was about to ask the people around him when he heard the communication on his bracelet ringing.
After he answered the call, before he could speak, Yunze's brisk voice came from the other side:
"Surprise! Old man, did you see the surprise I gave you?"
"Did you do this bark?"
Hearing the anger in the voice on the other end of the line, Yunze subconsciously straightened up and admitted:
"Yeah, what's wrong, isn't it surprising enough, Grandpa?"
What a surprise! This is a shock!
The old man took a deep breath, covered his chest, closed his eyes and said:
"Are you feeling itchy again recently? Believe it or not, I will stop giving you pocket money!"
Yunze heard that his grandfather seemed to be really angry, and realized that the other party seemed to have misunderstood something, so he quickly explained:
"Hey, hey, hey, Grandpa, I know you're anxious, but don't be anxious! This is not something that can be done casually. This is a cooperation that I finally negotiated with the dungeon lord!"
"Cooperation?" The old president's tone paused slightly, but his expression remained unfriendly:
"Please explain clearly, what kind of cooperation is this? How did you mess up my locust tree like this?"
Yunze: "This is a two-way cooperation! The underground city and our Oasis City will advertise with each other. In this way, our Oasis City will have a higher exposure in the underground city and the Lost City. And the materials used on the locust trees are all biodegradable and will not harm the trees. I have specifically confirmed this with the people in the underground city."
The old president was silent for a moment, his eyes fell on the billboards in front of him again, and after taking a closer look, his tone finally softened:
"Are you sure this thing won't affect the locust tree?"
"Absolutely not!" Yunze assured, "I have personally verified this, and the effect is absolutely significant!"
"And recently, due to the dungeon's advertising incident, the number of people heading to the Lost City has skyrocketed. Just imagine, if our Oasis City's crops and other supplies could be promoted through the dungeon's fame, how much profit would that bring!"
The old president snorted coldly: "You are good at doing business. But next time, remember to give us a heads up, and don't make such a big fuss without saying anything. Also, remember, no matter what you do, you must not damage the roots of the locust tree, otherwise you will have to move out by yourself."
"Understood! Don't worry, Grandpa!" Yunze responded repeatedly, "Leave it to me. I will never let you down!"
"I hope so. If anything goes wrong with you later, I'll show you how I'll deal with you!"
"What? I can't hear you. The signal here is bad. I'll hang up first—"
“Beep, beep, beep…”
Old Chairman: “…”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
