Global Awakening: Infinite Gift Pack System-Chapter 108: The First Gene Trader
The three looked at each other before explaining what had truly happened.
Russell spoke first.
"We actually saw him, Kai. The cloaked figure was inside one of the ruined buildings. He had luggage around him, so we contacted you immediately about it. We’re sure that it was the Gene Trader... But as soon as we stepped into that area, the mutants started appearing out of nowhere."
Gabby added quickly, "It wasn’t random. I’m sure it was the moment we crossed into what felt like his territory that they came at us. Dozens of them at first, but they keep appearing when we try getting closer to the cloaked figure. We couldn’t even get close to him."
Dylan shook his head. He was really frustrated about this.
"We thought we could approach, but it was like the place itself was guarded. Just like what Gabby said, every time we tried to move forward, more mutants showed up..."
Russel continued. "So we started moving away instead. We realized it a bit too late... For some reason, we can’t approach him directly. It’s like the Gene Trader’s chamber is protected, or maybe he set it up that way."
Kai gently nodded after hearing their explanation. "Did he leave after the mutants appeared?"
Gabby frowned. "He didn’t move, Kai. He just stood there, watching us from the darkness... It felt like he wanted to see if we could survive before letting us near. Not really sure... Maybe he just didn’t care what happened to us."
Dylan "So yeah... we found him. But we couldn’t reach him... You can probably try."
Kai finally understood.
"Alright. You’ll guide me back to where you saw him. But only I’ll enter. Atom will also with you three... if more mutants show up, it’ll protect you."
Russell frowned. "You’re going in alone?"
Kai nodded. "Yes. I’ll test it myself. No point risking everyone."
Gabby sighed but nodded. "We’ll position ourselves well. Just... be careful."
Dylan muttered, "We’ll cover you from outside."
With that settled, the group began moving through the broken roads and collapsed structures once more.
Atom marched silently behind them, scanning the ruins, while Kai walked at the front.
As they advanced, Kai finally turned his attention back to the glowing corner of his interface. The level-up notification was waiting.
[ You have leveled up! ]
[ Level: 17 ]
[ Health Points +5 ] 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮
[ Spirit Points +1 ]
[ Physique Rating has slightly improved! ]
[ Skill Points +1 ]
Kai’s eyes widened slightly. "A Skill Point..." he muttered.
He was happy. Skill Points were rare, usually earned through special rewards or milestones. Level 17 wasn’t a milestone, so he wasn’t sure why the system had granted one, but he wasn’t about to complain.
Still, he couldn’t help but realize how slow it was to get stronger.
Leveling up through enemy subjugation wasn’t as good as leveling up through Gene Enhancement. The increases to Health and Spirit Points were too low.
The only advantage was the fact that killing enemies gave far more experience overall, letting him reach milestones faster and claim bigger rewards.
Kai closed the interface, satisfied with the small reward he obtained.
"This will help," he whispered.
Russell glanced at him. He realized that Kai had a better mood now, but he didn’t ask questions.
Soon, Kai’s focus was shifted back to the mission. The Gene Trader was waiting and he had to be prepared.
After a few more minutes, the three guided him deeper into the industrial zone, toward the ruined building where they had first seen the cloaked figure.
***
"It’s here..." Russel said, pointing at the building.
Kai slowed his pace and nodded.
He didn’t rush in immediately. Instead, he observed the place carefully.
The building wasn’t that huge... Looking through the open door, he noticed that the chamber was dark, its walls were cracked, but there was no foul smell whatsoever.
Soon, he saw the Gene Trader or the cloaked figure at the far end of the dark room... Just like what they said, it had some luggage around, like some kind of merchant.
Still, Kai didn’t rush and looked for possible threat.
There were shattered beams leaning against each other, forming rough shapes that blocked most of the light. The floor was uneven, littered with broken tiles and rusted scraps of machinery. It wasn’t the kind of place anyone would choose to live in... but for the Gene Trader, it made sense.
Kai thought to himself...
’So this is the kind of place they go into... places abandoned, places where no one else dares to stay. This is a good reference in case I need to find them again.’
He then stepped forward, crossing the threshold of the chamber.
Thud. His boot hit the floor... but nothing happened.
Then, he took another step. Still nothing.
Third... Fourth...
As he got closer, Kai realized there was no problem at all. The mutants didn’t appear!
Then it struck him.
’Maybe only Foreign Survivors like me can approach the Gene Trader...’
This actually made sense. At the very least, his three subordinates weren’t qualified yet. After all, he recalled Hale Libra, a resident of this world, should’ve been able to approach a Gene Trader.
Perhaps there was a level requirement for the natives here, unlike for him and other Foreign Survivors.
Then, as he finally stood before the cloaked figure, there were no greetings, no words.
Instead, the Gene Trader raised a hand and placed a crystal in front of him. The crystal floated upward, glowing faintly, before transforming into a notification window!
"Ahh..."
Kai’s eyes widened as the interface unfolded before him. Apparently, he could browse items directly!
Surprisingly, the first thing he noticed was the fact that there were two tabs.
The first tab displayed items that could be traded for Survivor Medals. It was currency only Foreign Survivors like him could obtain.
The second tab was different. It only accepted Top‑Grade Energy Cores, rare resources that could only be obtained from high-level A.I. Machine!
’So this is how it works...’ Kai thought as he looked at the Gene Trader, whose eyes were fixed on him.
’What? Are you intimidating me?’
