23: Frozen Miles

“An S-Rank? Better than nothing.”

Without needing to check the details, Chen Ming already understood what kind of improvement this skill would bring him just from its literal meaning.

A continuous stream of hacker knowledge poured into his mind, merging with his body.

After Chen Ming felt he had absorbed enough, he got up and walked to the study, which contained many world-famous books and a laptop available for guests to use for temporary work.

Chen Ming opened the computer and, in a flash, in less than a minute, successfully hacked into the hotel's security surveillance system.

Everything on the screen was normal.

The security guard on duty didn't notice anything amiss.

Chen Ming felt that this still wasn't enough to demonstrate the power of the hacker skill, so he decided to go big.

He found the local police officer's official website and, using backend programs, created a fake identity to successfully enter the database.

To prevent detection, he also created an invisibility program.

As soon as the other party began tracking, this program would release a large amount of false information, leading them abroad; it could be anyone, but it would never be him.

But clearly, Chen Ming underestimated the power of an S-Rank Super Hacker.

From beginning to end, the police station had no idea; after browsing the crime database, he retreated completely, clearing the records clean.

Even if a programmer were to backtrack afterwards, they wouldn't find a single anomaly.

“Perhaps, I can be a bit bolder?” Chen Ming set his sights on the four major banks, choosing one of them.

He accessed a personal account, compiled a series of complete information, and then, on a bank card with a zero balance, changed the number to: 1.

“Phew…” After taking a deep breath, he pressed the confirm button.

Chen Ming monitored the security backend in real-time with a split screen, and there were no alarm notifications.

“It worked?” With a highly anxious heart, Chen Ming selected the “Love Donation” function built into the software.

He entered one yuan and confirmed the donation.

Then, the words “Donation Successful” popped up, along with “Love Points +1!”

Chen Ming’s lips trembled, unable to hide his excitement.

Even though it was only one yuan, it truly proved how powerful this skill was.

From nothing, he created a currency that didn't exist before! And he made it genuinely valuable, with an identity.

Chen Ming didn't continue; if he were to modify large sums, he would certainly be traced.

To avoid being caught, he would have to sit in front of the computer, using countless lies to cover up that one lie.

Chen Ming wasn't that idle to do such boring things for money.

He wasn't short on money at all.

Chen Ming just wanted to verify the effect of the skill this way, nothing more.

Just like complete invisibility, Chen Ming was willing to give the Super Hacker skill 101 points; an extra point, he wasn't afraid of him getting arrogant.

In today's data-driven world, there are far too many places where a Super Hacker can be useful.

For example, Chen Ming could later use this skill to know many things in advance that the authorities wouldn't want to disclose, and prepare countermeasures ahead of time.

Avoiding being caught off guard by Zombie monsters.

He closed the computer.

Chen Ming returned to the living room.

He picked up his phone.

To be safe, he kept the invisibility program running to prevent being traced.

“Speaking of which, since the fishing attempts have refreshed, I wonder if anyone in the country has fished up a skill? Or other powerful items?”

With this question, Chen Ming opened the domestic exchange forum.

The “Fishing the Myriad Worlds” section.

The top trending post was: “As a Police Officer, I fished up a cannon during a meeting!”

Clicking in, there was also a photo, showing a heavy cannon crushing an office desk.

The top comment was:

Crime one: playing with a phone during a meeting, crime two: illegally possessing firearms, crime three: damaging public property…

Below this comment, the original author posted a facepalm emoji.

After looking through, it was mostly insignificant rewards that didn't pique Chen Ming's interest.

“Is there really nothing, or… did they choose to develop discreetly?”

If Chen Ming were to guess, if someone truly possessed special skills, the number of people who would choose to cooperate with the authorities should not be small.

Gaining both fame and fortune, being widely reported by major television stations.

Of course, there were also disadvantages: 24-hour strict surveillance, and once they exceeded control, they would face elimination.

For the authorities, any powerful ability that cannot be utilized is considered heresy.

They would not tolerate their power being shaken, affecting social stability…

Why didn't Chen Ming cooperate with the authorities?

Simply because he didn't want to be controlled by others.

With his current confidence, he didn't need to rely on official resources either.

Immediately after, a bold idea was born in Chen Ming's mind: “Could it be that among the 1.4 billion people, or rather, among the tens of billions of people, I'm the only one who drew a skill?”

Unfortunately, this question couldn't be verified.

He shook his head, ending his overthinking.

He decided to cast a few more lines; if he couldn't fish up a satisfactory reward, it was getting late, and he should rest.

“Fishing in progress…”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a box of muscle and bone patches!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a roll of hemostatic cotton!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a gas mask +1!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a box of iced black tea!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a mountain off-road vehicle +1!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a Gatling +1! Bullets +5000!”

“Oh! Another Gatling!”

Paired with the Gatling Chen Ming had fished up before, he now had two.

He took them both out, one in each hand; with the enhancement of his strength attribute, he lifted them easily.

Chen Ming couldn't help but imagine: if he faced a Zombie horde, with these two big guys providing insane output, coupled with infinite bullets, could he hold them off?

It sent shivers down his spine.

He put the Gatlings back into his system backpack and continued fishing.

“Fishing in progress…”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a box of toothpicks!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received an armpit odor spray +1!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a pack of tissues!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a smart toilet!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a Bluetooth speaker!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a double-barreled shotgun +1! Bullets +100!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a specially made watermelon knife!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received an anti-riot shield +1!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received Puppet Talismans +10!”

He paused his hand, which was preparing for the next fishing attempt, and checked the details.

“Puppet Talisman: After attaching the talisman paper to the target you wish to control, you can control them for 24 hours! After twenty-four hours, the talisman paper will spontaneously combust and be destroyed!”

After reading the description, Chen Ming revealed a satisfied smile.

Continue!

“Fishing in progress…”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a hydrating facial mask set +1!”

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received a whitening essence +1!”

…

“Fishing successful! Congratulations, Host, you have received the SSS-grade Skill: Ice Seal Thousands of Miles!”