Chapter 75: Piao Ming Group

Watching them leave, Moli said:
“Master Zicang, we meet again. I didn’t expect it to be so soon.”
“Neither did I. I thought I’d have to stabilize the A-level nexus first. By the way, where’s Boppoli?”
“That guy is hiding from someone right now. You have no idea what he’s worth these days.”
Yang Zicang could imagine the scene.
“Haha, he’s not in danger, is he?”
“For those who enter here legitimately, there’s no danger. Sequential attacks are not allowed here. But you need to be careful—you might face an attack, since you’re a stowaway.”
Yang Zicang briefly sensed and understood what was going on.
Under normal circumstances, people in the town cannot launch sequential attacks. However, because he was a stowaway, he was not protected by the town at the moment.
“How much did the guild-leveled contract make?” Yang Zicang asked in a low voice.
“We sold five copies. Guess how much we earned…” Before Yang Zicang could actually guess, the man excitedly raised two fingers, then gestured with four.
“A full 245,000 units of Qi-Xu!”
“Oh my god,” Yang Zicang couldn’t help muttering. This was a massive windfall.
Moli’s eyes glimmered with fierce brilliance:
“Master Zicang, let’s form a team, just like I said last time. With my ability and your combat strength, we can survive here easily for ten thousand years. We’ve already been through battles and honed our teamwork, haven’t we! And I’ve acquired a secret technique too.”
He showed the statue in his hand.
“I believe this city won’t last more than a few hundred years,” Yang Zicang said casually with a chuckle. “But as for the team, we can indeed form one together.”
“That’s fantastic!”
Through this battle with the Xiongying Group, Yang Zicang gained a deeper understanding of the kind of existence someone like Boss Wang represented.
A basic yet most reliable team model: joint investments from multiple people, precise time-sequence control, and excellent warriors.
However… although Boss Wang had a dozen members, they could not compare to the man before him.
With just a few coins or a stack of banknotes, he surpassed the hordes of people supported by those financing teams solely for the sake of hoarding time sequence.
Every single banknote in this man’s hands could store 9999N of time sequence!
Previously, Yang Zicang had rarely thought about this because he simply didn’t know that time sequence had an upper limit.
“I have a question. Of course, you don’t have to answer—it’s just out of curiosity,” Yang Zicang said.
“What is it?”
“Since the time sequence in your coins is fixed at a maximum of nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, how many coins can you use to store time sequence in total?”
“Ah, you mean the rank of my ability? Well, thanks to you, my rank has been unlocked for the fourth time, reaching the Thousand-rank.”
The man standing under the lamppost had his entire face smiling, even the sunken sockets around his eyes.
The rank—the Thousand-rank!
Yang Zicang took a deep breath—this guy’s ability was naturally suited to run a time-sequence bank.
9,999 slots, each capable of storing 9,999N!
As far as he knew, even within this Hub Town, not many were willing to spend that much time-sequence to unlock a Thousand-rank slot. That required nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine years’ worth of time-sequence, not even counting the Hundred-rank and Ten-rank costs.
“Impressive.”
He truly couldn’t understand how his previous captain’s mind worked, casting away such talent right after stabilizing the A-Class area.
Moli, meanwhile, nervously thought: Finally, I won’t be looked down upon wherever I go.
Though he had realized the true power of his ability tonight, not many people actually understood it.
But even if someone eventually caught on and tried to invite him in the future, Moli would unreservedly choose to team up with the man in front of him—for the sake of “peace of mind.” Here, trust was more precious than gold, and Yang Zicang was worthy of that trust.
Moli raised the statue and looked at Yang Zicang. The young man across from him smiled and nodded.
[Moli invited me to join the Park Myung Group.]
“Park Myung?”
“‘Know glory, guard disgrace, be the valley of the world. Being the valley of the world, constant virtue suffices, returning to simplicity.’ *Park’ is a good character in your culture.’”
Yang Zicang was speechless.
[I have synchronized with the Park Myung Group.]
Seeing Yang Zicang join the team, Moli was overjoyed.
……
After discussing the sale of a few stand-in contracts, Morrie suggested that they meet up when all three were free to sort out the contracts. Yang Zicang was pleased that the other was willing to share with him, and of course, nodded in agreement.
The sky gradually brightened, and the train figure behind Yang Zicang became ethereal.
{My time is up. If you need me, please look for me after 11 PM.}
Yang Zicang turned around and looked at it: “Do you know what kind of place it is after being expelled from here?”
{A barren abandoned place. Ma Chao is a regular there. Just stay put until nightfall when you go over.}
Hearing this, Yang Zicang was finally completely relieved.
{Oh, you can extract the station platform today. Do you need it? The next time would be three days later.}
The platform faintly appeared around the train, like a sudden, out-of-place mirage for the town.
“Then let’s extract it.”
After the train departed, the platform remained in the same spot.
Yang Zicang’s hand with quadrilateral marks selected and enclosed it. The platform, like a dismantled sweater, quickly folded back with the light and gradually took shape into a model.
……
As pedestrians engaging in morning activities gradually increased, the air in the town, filled with stone houses, began to diffuse with the fragrance of food and smoke from cooking fires.
Two strangers, each carrying two portions of food and water, approached. They cheerfully expressed the good intentions from headquarters and their own admiration. The headquarters didn’t have many people in this area, so finding him in these several streets must have cost them quite an effort.
“I really admire you, could you give me an autograph?”
“I’ll pass on the autograph.”
Though they were excited, they remained respectful. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Yang Zicang, the two took their leave—their main purpose was simply to deliver these supplies of food and clothing.
[The host here informs me that there are only ten minutes left until departure.]
Mu Xiaoyu still hadn’t shown up. Yang Zicang felt a pang of anxiety. It would be terrible if she were to be expelled in the middle of an operation.
“Is it not over yet?”
“Zicang!”
Wrapped in a blanket, the young girl spotted the figure by the street. Tears of grievance welled up uncontrollably in her eyes as she rushed off the vehicle at a brisk pace.
“You look much better, with such a healthy glow now.”
The girl came over and embraced Yang Zicang, sobbing between sniffles, “I thought I was going to die.”
For a moment, Yang Zicang was at a loss for how to react.
“Dr. Jia Ruoqing, and you too, Dr. Shi, thank you so much,” said Moli.
“No need to be so polite. If you ever have more skill books in the future, remember to give us first priority.”
Yang Zicang watched them leave, noting the composed and unhurried demeanor typical of the people here.
These two were among Poppoli’s former clients. As doctors, they lacked aggressive abilities. But now, after obtaining the Contract Scroll for Training, Dr. Jia had secretly acquired a means of self-preservation, making her capable of both healing and fighting.
Seeing them depart, Moli silently flashed a figure-eight gesture toward Yang Zicang.
Yang Zicang understood. They alone had contributed an additional eighty thousand years of lifespan. For physicians of this caliber, eighty thousand was indeed not an insurmountable amount of chronological points.
“I have a feeling that we can’t stay here any longer.” Mu Xiaoyu straightened up from Yang Zicang’s chest, speaking with some embarrassment.
“Yes, this town is refusing us entry, because this place isn’t meant for who we are, not now.”
Mu Xiaoyu blinked her dark, shimmering eyes and whispered, “Did you bring me here?”
“Uh-huh.”
Clap, clap, clap.
The sound of sparse applause rang out.
Those who were bidding farewell all turned their heads to look. A man in a red plaid casual suit was walking towards them from behind Yang Zicang.
With his appearance, the sounds in the surrounding air seemed abruptly cut off. Early morning pedestrians chatted and laughed as they bypassed the area, as if they couldn’t see it at all.
“I’ve already heard about your success in elevating the city’s ranking. Well done, Mr. Yang Zicang,” the newcomer said.
Over the past hour, more and more news had reached him, and he’d finally figured out Yang Zicang’s name—learning that he was also someone possessing psionic abilities.
Yang Zicang shielded Mu Xiaoyu behind him. “Have you come to drive us away? Please just tell us which way to leave, and we’ll go.”
Mori quickly coughed and stepped forward to speak in a low voice:
“Zicang, this is Deputy Mayor Zhuyin. His appearance is a good thing; don’t worry.”
Zhuyin waved his hand and said with a smile:
“See? Your friend understands me. First, let me introduce myself—I’m Zhu Yin, the deputy mayor of this town, as he said. And yes, I belong to the same kind as you.”
Yang Zicang’s heart stirred as he thought:
“Are all the administrators of this town people who came in from various cities?”
“That’s right. For instance, my city ranks 12th, which qualifies me to run for deputy mayor. Once your city’s ranking moves up to the top, you’ll have this kind of opportunity too.”
So this town wasn’t just for living in—you could become its administrator!