This is not my original work; I am merely providing a translation.
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Before encountering those two women earlier in the morning, Chu Tian had thought it was Yang Rong who possessed some sort of special ability. It was only after overhearing their conversation that he realized the issue wasn't with Yang Rong it was with him.
But… what kind of ability was this? How did it work?
The hacking ability had manifested after Yang Rong praised him as an 'expert hacker' when he helped her remove the virus from her computer. Could it be that he gained corresponding abilities or transformations when praised by others?
No, that didn't seem to be the case.
Earlier, he had deliberately asked Yang Rong to praise him, but nothing happened. Furthermore, the situation at the breakfast shop was entirely different. He didn't know those two women at all. He had only overheard their gossip by chance. Their conversation had absolutely nothing to do with him, yet it triggered a dramatic transformation one that matched the length of a chopstick.
Comparing the two situations, there was no clear common ground.
What the hell?
This was confusing! What exactly was his ability, and how did he trigger it?
---
Time flew by, and before he knew it, it was already 4:30 PM.
After hours of fruitlessly trying to analyze his ability, Chu Tian still couldn't figure out how it worked. When the dismissal bell rang, he said goodbye to Yang Rong and left the classroom.
Evening self-study ran from 7:30 PM to 9:30 PM, leaving him two and a half hours to rest and eat. Most students would return to their dorms, but since Chu Tian lived off-campus, he headed back to his rental apartment.
---
5:00 PM.
After returning to his apartment, Chu Tian took a quick shower, then sat down at his computer and turned it on.
Holy!
His hotel registry software had been used 335,624 times!
Seeing that the program had been used over 250,000 times more than it had been that morning, Chu Tian was completely stunned. When he had written the program the night before, he never imagined it would reach such numbers. At the time, he thought it would be a success if dozens or even hundreds of people used it. The current figures far exceeded his expectations.
When he opened his e-wallet, he saw his balance had reached $2.41 million. Chu Tian rubbed his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.
He never imagined that a program charging $7 per inquiry could earn him $2.41 million in less than 24 hours.
This was the power of numbers!
Of course, the main reason for its success was the demand for such a program. Normally, only government law enforcement agencies had the authority to access hotel registry records. Ordinary citizens couldn't check their own records, let alone someone else's. But now, with this program, anyone could do it and at an affordable price. It was no wonder so many people were interested.
Chu Tian also had to thank the middlemen who used his program to make money for themselves. Without even checking the numbers, he knew the overwhelming majority of those 330,000+ searches were generated by these intermediaries.
It was a win-win situation. While Chu Tian enjoyed the lion's share, the middlemen got their cut too.
"Huh? Damn, Wang Xiaofeng is still tracking me?"
Chu Tian suddenly noticed that the Hacker's Forum admin, Wang Xiaofeng, was still trying to track him. He frowned.
"Is this guy trying to kill himself?"
From last night until now, Wang Xiaofeng had been at it nonstop. Was he planning to die at his computer?
Chu Tian began typing on his keyboard. A black dialog box appeared, and he sent a message:
A Handsome Guy Who's Unwilling To Reveal His Identity: "Bro, are you trying to die? Look at the time. Go take a break. Be careful, or you might drop dead at your computer."
---
Meanwhile, in his computer room, Wang Xiaofeng stared at his three monitors with bloodshot eyes, his shaggy hair a mess from constant scratching.
"Damn it! How the hell was this program written?! Why are all the IP addresses fake?! What kind of defense is this?! There's not a single loophole!"
After spending an entire night and day tracking Chu Tian with no progress, Wang Xiaofeng felt like collapsing in despair. Just then, a black dialog box popped up on his screen.
Seeing the message from Chu Tian, Wang Xiaofeng fell silent for a moment before typing a reply:
Wang Xiaofeng: "Amazing. I admit defeat. You're too ruthless. I've spent an entire night and day chasing you around the globe from North America to South Africa and every IP address I've found is fake. Brother, how did you pull this off?"
A Handsome Guy Who's Unwilling To Reveal His Identity: "It's simple. I used the principle of QR codes to randomly generate IP addresses. I already told you you can't track me. Between you and me, there's just a small gap in skill."
"The principle of QR codes? A small gap in skill?"
Wang Xiaofeng laughed bitterly.
"A small gap? This is a fucking chasm!"
He understood the principle behind QR code generation, but applying it to randomly generate IP addresses was something he had never even considered. The difference in their skills was like comparing an elephant to an ant. They weren't even in the same league.
It seemed this guy's understanding of computer science was on a completely different level.