A Free Meal?

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Dialogue, quest details, prerequisites, rewards, etc.

A Free Meal? is a Side Quest that occurs in Tiger's Maw, Huanglong.

Gameplay notes[]

This quest has two parts. After completing the first part, the second part can be started after one in-game day has passed.
Completing this quest awards the Huanglong I trophy Nothing is Free.

A Free Meal? I[]

Steps[]

Connect the circuit to initiate the test
Protect the Sound Emulators
- Defeat TD
Install the Induction Cell to initiate the test
Protect the Sound Emulators
- Defeat TD
Install the Induction Cell to initiate the test
Protect the Sound Emulators
- Defeat TD

Dialogue[]

Quest Description

Defeat Tacet Discords for rewards? Talk about a real free meal! Join Patroller Minghu, apply and secure your spot!

(Talk to Jovial Patroller)

Jovial Patroller: Hey, friend, I can see you've got some skills. Want to give it a shot?

Jovial Patroller: Well, it might be a little risky, but, you know, fortune favors the bold!

If that's the case, why don't you do it yourself?

Minghu: Honestly, I just switched from logistics, so I'm not great with this stuff... Oh, by the way, I'm Minghu. Nice to meet you.

Minghu: So I have no choice but ask for help. Anyway, as long as I can get it done, it doesn't matter much if I'm the one doing it.

Alright, count me in.

Minghu: I admire your courage!

Minghu: See those Sound Dampeners? They were damaged by TDs in the last onslaught.

Minghu: First, we gotta fix up these three Sound Dampeners, then activate them to take down the TDs that are drawn in.

Minghu: It's been a while since they got damaged. There might be quite a few TDs to deal with, but I'm sure you can handle them well!

No problem.

Minghu: Great! Give me your name, phone number, and details about your weapon. I'll assess it and get you registered.

(Provide information)

Minghu: (Rover), huh? That's a good name. Unique and impressive!

Minghu: You've also got a good weapon. That should do the trick...

Minghu: Alright, assessment passed! Let's dive right in!

(Connect the circuit): Minghu: Seems like you need to connect these circuits to repair this Sound Dampener.; Minghu: All those twisted circuits are making me dizzy, and my head's starting to ache.; Minghu: Hmm... Maybe you can try linking the circuits with the same color.

(After connecting the circuit): Minghu: Fantastic! All fixed! You're pretty sharp, huh? Didn't take you long to get them all sorted.; Minghu: The Sound Dampener's activated!; Minghu: Once activated, it'll attract a big wave of TDs. Be careful!

(Install the Induction Cells): Minghu: Next one is in the southeast corner...; Minghu: Oops, its sensing modules seem to be missing. You need to find them first.; Minghu: Once you find them, slot them in, and that should do real nice.

(After installing the Induction Cells): Minghu: Good job! They're all in place. Didn't realize you were so good at finding stuff.; Minghu: Alright, the Sound Dampener's activated.

(Push suspended blocks into the pedestals): Minghu: Finally, the one in the southwest corner.; Minghu: Just push those suspended blocks into the corresponding pedestals, and that should do the trick.

(After solving the puzzle): Minghu: Fantastic! It works!; Minghu: The Sound Dampener's activated. Take down the last wave of TDs!

(After defeating TDs): Minghu: Fantastic! I knew you had talent! The job's done perfectly!; Minghu: To be honest, fixing those Sound Dampeners is pretty challenging. I've tried getting help from others before, and none of them succeeded...; Minghu: Here, take your payment. Thanks to you, I can wrap up this job nicely now!; Minghu: Next time I run into something tricky, I hope you'll lend me a hand again! Thanks in advance!

A Free Meal? II[]

Steps[]

Head to the designated location
Follow Ming'hu to the vehicle
Teach "Minghu" how to unlock the mechanism
Talk to "Minghu"
Retrieve the weapon
Take out the patrol in red
Head to the back door
Investigate further
Defeat the guard in red
Talk to the locked up person
Find the boss in the next room
Solve the mechanism
Defeat the man in red
Open the gate
Summon the elevator
Use the elevator to reach the upper level
Defeat the man in red
Leave the cave
Defeat the man in red

Dialogue[]

Quest Description

Minghu is recruiting TD hunters again. The rewards are tempting as they are... Give it another go?

(Receive call from Minghu): Minghu: Hey, is it (Rover)? Mayday! Mayday! Help me!; Minghu: Somehow, we've detected a large wave of TDs appearing in the nearby area!; Minghu: I can't handle them alone, so I need your help.; Minghu: I'm sorry, but can you come here as soon as possible? It's really urgent.; Minghu: I'll pay you twice as much as yesterday!; Minghu: Since the day I joined the Patroller, I've resolved to sacrifice my life rather than shy away from my responsibilities.; Minghu: So when there's a situation beyond my ability, I have no choice but to hire someone to help me. I must fulfill my responsibilities!; Minghu: Anyway, just come as quickly as possible. I sent the coordinates to your Terminal!

(Head to the designated location): Minghu: Thank goodness, you've finally arrived!; Minghu: Let's hurry up. I've brought the car over, and we'll drive it to the destination.

(Talk to Minghu): Minghu: This one. Get in the car!

As you were about to get in, a sudden dull pain hit the back of your head. Your consciousness gradually faded away, and you passed out.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Are you awake?

Where am I?

Uncle with Rugged Face: This is where the red-clothed keep their prey. Glad to meet you. I'm your cellmate.

What happened?

Uncle with Rugged Face: Long story short, you were tricked.

Who are you?

Uncle with Rugged Face: Just like you, poor kid, I was also tricked and brought here.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Those red-clothed use the guise of high-paying jobs to lure people here. This is where they keep their victims.

Uncle with Rugged Face: The next time you encounter those ridiculously high-paying jobs, you need to think twice; there's no such thing as a free lunch.

As expected.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Huh? Were you intentionally caught?

Yeah, I wanted to see what he was up to.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Hehe, your exceptionally huge curiosity for the truth would suit you well as a Patroller.

Stop talking all big, my dear cellmate.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Yeah, I was tricked, so I'm trying to learn a lesson from it.

Uncle with Rugged Face: Well, since we're both stupid fools, let's exchange our names in case something happens.

Uncle with Rugged Face: What do you go by?

(Rover)

Minghu: Okay, (Rover). I'm Patroller Minghu. Pleased to meet you.

Minghu the Patroller?!

Minghu: Yes. Here's my ID. If you don't trust me, use your Terminal to identify it.

Minghu: As for my clothes...

Minghu: Shh... Someone's coming.

Minghu: That was fast.

...!

Minghu: Relax. He's on our side.

?

"Minghu": I'm so sorry. I was left with no choice but to kidnap you. Please forgive me.

"Minghu": I'm here to make amends. Wait a sec, and I'll help you out.

"Minghu" took out a key and tried to unlock the door but failed.

"Minghu": Oh no, those bastards changed the lock to a laser one. The key doesn't work!

What do we do now?

Minghu: Hey, don't panic. I think we can use the mechanism over there to unlock the door.

Stop acting. I won't be fooled again.

"Minghu": Big misunderstanding! Once I tamper with the lock, they'll know. We're in the same boat, you know!

Minghu: Don't panic. My observation tells me the laser gate can be opened once you solve the cube over there.

"Minghu": Oh! Yeah, there's a mechanism over there. Looks familiar to the one (Rover) solved yesterday.

"Minghu": But... I don't know how to solve it, and you're locked inside...

Minghu: Not a big deal. We can hear each other clearly from this distance. Just let (‍him/her‍) tell you how to solve it.

"Minghu": You're right! Please, I'm counting on you, Teach (Rover)!

(Teach "Minghu" how to unlock the mechanism)

Give "Minghe" orders

Attack forwards

Attack backwards

Attack left

Attack right

Back to starting point

Leave

(While teaching "Minghu"): "Minghu": C'mon, we're almost there!

"Minghu": Are you sure? Don't get it wrong. If stepping into some trap, I'll be...

(Talk to "Minghu" after unlocking the mechanism): Minghu: Well, honestly, I'm more comfortable in this outfit.; Xiaojue: Fantastic! Now we have time to get to know each other better. Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Xiaojue, an Exile.; Xiaojue: I was just out looking for my missing friends, but then I got lured by a high-paying job and ended up here.; Xiaojue: Well, thinking back, it was obviously a fraud! How could one earn such a huge sum just by killing some TDs! I was blinded by greed and got carried away...; Xiaojue: Then I was caught by the red-clothed, and they confiscated all the money I earned from that TD-killing job... They even took away my savings!; Xiaojue: But it's not all that bad. When I got here, I stumbled upon the weapons my friends used to carry around.; Xiaojue: You know, us Exiles always keep our weapons handy, unless something unexpected happens. So the moment I spotted my friends' weapons, I knew they must be here. To save them, I had to...; So you ended up becoming their accomplice?; Not a smart move.; Xiaojue: Calm down, calm down. If I hadn't done this, I wouldn't have gained their trust, and I wouldn't be able to save my friends.; Xiaojue: So I joined them, attempting to earn their trust. Fortunately, I'm pretty smooth, and with my knowledge of the surrounding areas, they usually sent me on errands.; Xiaojue: ...It took me a long time before they completely trusted me. So now, they've started assigning me the task of kidnapping people.; Xiaojue: As long as I could kidnap someone, I would have an excuse to come to the prison.; So I was just an unfortunate victim kidnapped by you?; Xiaojue: Well, not exactly. Minghu told me to kidnap someone who's smart and strong. In that case, I would have a higher chance of escaping.; Xiaojue: That's why he lent me this outfit and told me how to activate those devices.; Xiaojue: So I found you! Someone who's smart and strong!; ...; Minghu: Sorry to have involved you in this because of my advice.; Xiaojue: Sorry. But I know where they hide my money and they put your weapons there too!; Xiaojue: I'll take you there to get your weapons back. Oh! And please take my money as compensation. Sorry to have you involved.

(Retrive the weapon): Retrive the weapon; Xiaojue: There we are! They have business to attend to, so no one's here.; Xiaojue: C'mon. Take your weapons.

You reclaimed your weapon. You held the familiar weapon in your hand, and there's a satisfying weight to it.

Xiaojue: Oh no! How come there are guards patrolling at this time!

Xiaojue: No, no, no. They must've discovered that someone broke out from the prison!!

Minghu: Relax. Now that we have our weapons back, we don't need to fear them. Let's take them down.

I plan to.

(Head to the back door): Xiaojue: Wow! Impressive! With you two by my side, I don't need to fear the red-clothed.; Minghu: The path's clear. It's not safe to stay here. (Rover), you'd better get out of here before they find out.; What about you?; Xiaojue: We still have companions to save! That's why Minghu's here; he won't leave unless he saves those victims.; Minghu: eah [sic], there have been several cases of residents disappearing in my jurisdiction. My subordinates investigating the cases also went missing.; Minghu: So I pretended to be tricked and made my way here.; So you intentionally got caught?; Minghu: Nothing ventured, nothing gained.; Xiaojue: Minghu, hurry up. "Huzi" is waiting for us to save him!; Are you sure you two can handle this?; Minghu: To be honest, it'll be a bit challenging, but it's still within our abilities.; Minghu: Besides, we don't want to further bother you with this issue. You were just unfortunately caught up in this thing.; Xiaojue: But... (‍heheText for male Rover/shesheText for female Rover‍)'s resilient. With (‍himhimText for male Rover/herherText for female Rover‍) on our side, our chances of rescuing the kidnapped will significantly improve. And... I can't bear to lose my friends.; Count me in.; Xiaojue: Thank you. Your help means a lot to me! There are hidden treasures here, and I'll lead you to their locations!; Xiaojue: I really, really thank you for your help!

(Investigate further): Xiaojue: There we are. Fortunately, the lock hasn't been changed.; Xiaojue: (Rover), come take them!

(Defeat the guard in red): Xiaojue: Why are there so many people here? They're talking about all this weird stuff.; Minghu: While they haven't noticed, let's take the initiative and get rid of them.

Xiaojue: *snort* Compared to these red-clothed folks, Patrollers are nothing to fear!

Minghu: ?

Xiaojue: My bad! My bosses used to say Patrollers are a bunch of fierce and ruthless guys stopping at nothing to achieve their ends.

Xiaojue: But after staying with Minghu for a while, I realized they lied to me!

Xiaojue: Minghu didn't treat me poorly just because I'm an Exile. He even showed me the ropes on gaining trust and where to investigate.

Xiaojue: Now, with (Rover) on board, our operation is bound to run smoother! We should be able to save them soon!

(Talk to the locked up person): Fengbai: Patroller Minghu? Why are you here?; Minghu: I'm here to save you, of course.; Jia'ming: Patroller! It's a Patroller! We're saved!; Maosan: Xiaojue!!; Xiaojue: Maosan! Are you okay? What about Gousi?; Maosan: I'm fine, but Gousi was taken away by those red-clothed people. Still no news from him...; Xiaojue: Don't worry. We have Minghu and (Rover) here. We're bound to leave together!

Xiaojue took out the key he used before and tried to open the door but failed again.

Xiaojue: This darn key! Could they give me the wrong one?

Fengbai: Dude, you probably don't know that the keys to these cell doors are carried by a junior leader.

Minghu: Fengbai, did you find out anything about that junior leader?

Fengbai: From what I've observed, the junior leader should be in the room next door at this time.

Minghu: Good, we'll be back soon.

Maosan: Wait. Take this!

Maosan: When those red-clothed people took Gousi away, I tried to stop them. Though I didn't win, I managed to grab this.

(Find the boss in the next room): Xiaojue: Another annoying mechanism! Why are they everywhere?; Minghu: Perhaps they hide something important ahead...
(Solve the mechanism)

(Defeat the man in red): Xiaojue: The junior leader's ahead! But why does this place feel so eerie? Dark, creepy, with so many locked apes.; Minghu: These apes might be of help... Let's find the switch and open the cages.

(Optional - Release the apes): Open the cage; Minghu: As expected, these apes really hate the red-clothed and will help us confront them.

(After defeating the men in red): Xiaojue: Phew, finally got the key. Just standing here gives me an uncomfortable feeling. Let's get out of here.; Minghu: Wait. Look at this.

Experiment Report

I. Objectives
1. Assess the feasibility of spore essence extraction.
2. Investigate the diverse effects of spores at different concentrations.
II. Materials
Hoochiefs, with one uncontaminated and one contaminated specimen per group; 1ml syringe, saline solution.
III. Procedure
1. Group two Hoochiefs with similar body weights, weigh them, and assign unique identifiers.
2. Extract spore essence from contaminated individuals, blend it with saline solution, and establish concentrations of 0.2%, 0.4%, and 0.8%, categorized by groups.
3. Administer various concentrations of the spore extracts to uncontaminated individuals, observe their activity, and record findings.
4. After completing the experiment, conduct statistical analysis on the results and formulate conclusions.
IV. Conclusions
1. The spore essence extraction process results in approximately 58% loss, but extraction remains viable.
2. The 0.4% concentration of the extract exhibits the optimal effect, although outcomes may differ based on subjects and necessitate further validation.

Note: Achieved interim success. Transitioning the experimental subjects to humans is authorized.

Minghu: That's an unexpected discovery.

Xiaojue: So these apes were injected with something?

Minghu: Yeah, I'm afraid they were injected with the spore extract, which can control their behavior, making them bloodthirsty and aggressive.

Minghu: And now, those red-clothed people probably want to use the spore extract on humans...

Xiaojue: What! That's bad. We have to rescue them as quickly as possible!

(Open the gate): Open prison gate; Jia'ming: Thank you! Thank you so much for saving my life!; Nianqiu: Thank you. I thought I was going to end up in this dark prison...; Maosan: I wonder how Gousi's doing...; Fengbai: I remember the red-clothed took him upstairs.; Xiaojue: Okay, let's go up and save him!; Fengbai: Mr. Minghu, I'll take care of things here. Please go up and save Gousi.; Fengbai: If those red-clothed people come back, I'll protect them.; Minghu: Alright, I'll leave this to you. Lead everyone to a safe spot near the entrance, and we'll join you after rescuing Gousi.

(Reach the upper level): Gousi: NO! Stay away from me!; Gousi: I don't want to become a zombie or something!!!

(After defeating the man in red): Xiaojue: Gousi, are you okay?; Gousi: Thank goodness you guys came in time! It's... it's too close. I don't want to be controlled like those apes!",; Minghu: This place isn't safe. Let's get out of here.

(Leave the cave): Maosan: Gousi! You finally escaped! Are you alright?; Xiaojue: Let's get out of here first, and we can talk later.

You and your companions gathered and left the cave.

Ambushing Man in Red: Do you think you can come and go as you please?

Maosan: You scammers kidnapped my friends, and I won't let you get away with it!

Gousi: We won't let you!

Maosan and Gousi rushed towards him but were quickly knocked down.

Ambushing Man in Red: So, who's next?

(After defeating the man in red): Minghu: We're safe for now. Let's hurry up and leave.; Minghu: I've already taken photos of crucial evidence, and the Patrol Station will send people to handle it.; Jia'ming: Thanks to all of you, I'm still alive. From now on, I won't trust those "buy one get ten", "one lottery ticket for a Terminal", and "doing grocery shopping to earn a house" schemes...; Jia'ming: Besides, I'll tell everyone in the neighborhood not to believe in these frauds; Nianqiu: Thank you, Mr. Patroller and (Rover). I'll try to find my Prince Charming in a genuine way.; Nianqiu: Now I know there's no handsome and rich boy with washboard abs who will buy me big rings without even meeting me!; Fengbai: Even if you meet each other, you shouldn't trust those sweet words easily! We'll regularly conduct anti-fraud campaigns. Feel free to join!; Nianqiu: Okay, okay, I'll definitely go.; Xiaojue: After we go back, I'll talk to the boss and make sure other companions are aware of these tricks.; Maosan: If we hadn't been so desperate for money to repair our camps, we wouldn't have fallen for this silly trick...; Gousi: Hey, don't you think this place looks good? There's a natural cave here. Plus, the red-clothed have left. We can make use of this cave. What do you think?; Xiaojue: You're right. Let's tell the boss when we're back. It might save us some money.; Maosan: We owe this to (Rover). We barely escaped with our lives. We need to let other companions know and show (‍himhimText for male Rover/herherText for female Rover‍) respect when coming across (Rover).; Xiaojue: Thank you, (Rover). Thank you for taking those bad guys down and saving our lives. I sent the coordinates of the treasures to your Terminal. Feel free to take them!; Xiaojue: Maybe when we get rich, we won't be so easily fooled by these tricks...
(Quest Complete)

Video Guides[]

Guide: A Free Meal?

Other Languages[]

Language	Official Name
English	A Free Meal?
Chinese (S)	天上掉馅饼？
Chinese (T)	天上掉餡餅？
Japanese	棚から牡丹餅？
Korean	하늘에서 떨어진 파이?
French	Un repas gratuit ?
German	Ein Wunder geschieht?
Spanish	¿Una comida gratis?