Yang Zicang stepped out of the sub-aether channel. Just as he made out the ruined cityscape in the distance, a voice came from behind:
“The last one’s here too.”
He turned around and saw four figures—three men and one woman—standing beneath several broken stone slabs.
“Hey there, new team member, right? I’m Wang Dingshan.” A sturdy young man walked over and extended his hand. “These three are Qiong An, Yu Yusheng, and one guy with a codename.”
“I’m Yang Zicang.” The two shook hands.
Among the three behind him, the fairest-faced youth waved with a smile. “I’m Feng Ming.”
The remaining man and woman also exchanged greetings. Yang Zicang noticed that while their skin was relatively smooth, they hadn’t fully shed the sharp killer instinct—clearly, they hadn’t joined Lost Illusion Company much longer than he had.
A voice echoed in all five of their minds:
{End-of-month patrol of Area A403 has been a rule for many years. Due to its particular nature, it can, at any moment, manifest certain peculiar life forms again.}
They all looked up, and a shimmering mirage appeared before them. The ground seemed to morph into a beach under a mirage, with scorching sunlight gleaming over turquoise waves and soft sand, casting an iridescent glow.
A burly man reclining on a beach chair smiled as he looked their way.
{Greetings, all. I am Fu Qiyong, Group Leader of the First Cleanup Group, First Operations Department.}
“Hello, Group Leader Fu.” they replied.
{You are all newcomers. Although this area has been cleared by the management itself, it still poses considerable danger to you.}
The man in the floral shirt reclining on the beach chair raised his iced drink and grinned, flashing a large mouthful of teeth.
{Of course, with me watching, that possibility has become negligible.}
What a cocky guy. The group fell silent for a moment.
“Group Leader Fu, what do we need to do?” Yu Yusheng asked.
{Alright, you’re all quite reserved, so let’s get to the point. The primary cleaning task is to deal with some special Psychic Bodies here that need to be cleaned up. Our team’s observers have already marked them for you.}
With a point of his finger, folded trails of light appeared on certain chaotic, monster-like shapes on the distant horizon.
{Each monster killed earns the killer 4 points, and the assist qualifies for 2 points.}
{Advanced mission: Find a certain fella lurking here. He’s a Bound Spirit, originally from the now-destroyed City No. 11. Oh, and I threw him in myself. Whoever kills him will get an extra 50 ‘Favorable Reviews’ for the end-of-year selection for the elite.}
“You threw him in, Captain?” Qiong An asked, her face full of astonishment.
{There are two Black Gold Staff Cards about the be up for grabs. Since we’re in the latter half of the year now, I’m giving you new kids who joined recently a chance to catch up.}
Fu Qiyong’s gaze swept over Qiong An, Feng Ming, and Yang Zicang. The three immediately understood that their group leader was offering them this opportunity.
“Whoa, chalking up 50 favorable reviews just like that.” Several people were dearly tempted.
Qiong An’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she shook her clenched fists by her shoulders, saying:
“‘A total of 150 Favorable Reviews in a year’ qualifies one as an elite member—this is practically handing over a third of the score outright.”
“I already have over 90 points. If I successfully make the kill, I’ll qualify for this year’s elite selection.” Wang Dingshan snickered maliciously.
Yu Yusheng stated calmly, “I’m almost at 100 points too. I originally thought I wouldn’t reach 150 until October, but it seems I might get it sooner.”
Wang Dingshan immediately turned to Yu Yusheng, who stood calmly with his arms folded, their gazes practically sparking like welding torches.
Feng Ming looked at Yang Zicang and said, “You look like a newcomer who just joined the company, right? Don’t mind them. Anyone selected by Captain Fu of the First Group has the makings of an elite. Even if we’re slower, it’s only a matter of time.”
“Thanks.”
It was only natural that his background was seen through at a glance.
However, just this morning he had captured the band capable of forging a complete B-level space, which should earn him 20 to 50 Favorable Reviews. Even calculated at the lowest value, it would be close to 20 points. So, he still needed 130 points to reach the reward point for ascilator lines; if he made the kill, he’d have accumulated nearly half.
Once the group’s excitement had died down a little, Fu Qiyong continued from the phantom deck chair, saying:
{Besides these two assessment tasks I’ve set, there’s also a special-level task that has existed in this area for a long time. However, this task is not something you can accomplish. Anyway, if you make any special discoveries, remember to report them, and once admitted, you’ll directly become an elite.}
The five exchanged glances. That was way too vague.
Seeing that Fu Qiyong seemed about to cut off the manifestation of this illusion, Yang Zicang quickly asked, “May I ask, Group Leader Fu, what exactly is this special-level task you mentioned?”
{Huh, kid, pretty ambitious, huh. Wait a few years until your mental power reaches a level capable of carrying a four-ring or even five-ring bloodline; then, without you even bringing it up, I’ll consider letting you participate in this task.}
The people around nodded subtly, marveling at the profundity of the task while also feeling a bit of awe toward this place.
“That long.” Yang Zicang was stunned for a moment before realizing that this Group Leader Fu probably hadn’t looked into his information thoroughly.
He raised his eyes and, with a slight apology, addressed Group Leader Fu, who was looking back at him with a smile. “Group Leader Fu, sorry about that… um, I’m afraid I won’t have that much time. Of course, I’m not talking about this task; I mean… I might resign by the end of the year. So, I was wondering if my group transfer would cause any trouble for your group’s personnel arrangements.”
Before Group Leader Fu could respond, the four people beside him were staring in shock, sizing up this guy who had only just joined the group today.
“Hey, are you talking in your sleep?”
Wang Dingshan hugged his arms, poked his head out, and squinted as he brought his face close to Yang Zicang’s.
“Yeah, it wasn’t easy getting in, so why would you want to leave?”
“Though losing one competitor is good for me, buddy, truth is, I’d rather you stayed.”
Yang Zicang felt a stir of emotion as he looked at these people, their eyes genuine and warm: “I planned on staying only half a year to begin with. There’s a city ranking assessment in my hometown scheduled for the end of this year. That assessment means a lot for my city.”
The woman behind him seemed to recall something: “I heard a couple months back, one city suddenly jumped from last place to around twentieth overnight. Are you from that city?”
At her words, Feng Ming, as if jogged by something, looked at him with dawning understanding: “You mean City 41 this year, right? You want to leave for that city’s ranking battle?”
“That’s right. I’m from City 41.”
“So that’s how it is. That city… without you it would indeed be — still, so not worth it.”
“Ahem. Guys,” Yu Yusheng interrupted, “Captain Fu is still watching.”
{It’s alright, I’ve got plenty of time for you to jabber away. After all, I don’t want to end up like my old homeroom teacher — the person I disliked most.}
“Haha, sorry, Captain.”
{As for the resignation issue, that’s got nothing to do with our team. What they reportedly told you earlier— about it being the same company-wide — still applies. But staying in First Operations Unit gives you a chance to choose a “Bloodline Resonance Statue” in the year-end bonus. That’s something no other team can offer.}
As he spoke, a cross-shaped starlight flickered on Fu Qiyong’s finger, and from within it emerged the faint image of a statue.
“A chance to choose a Bloodline Resonance Statue!”
Several people looked over. Is this the bloodline resonance statue? It was quite similar to the Resonance Statue obtained from the Moon Shadow Summon Bug earlier.
“Do we get the selection opportunity only when we successfully become elite team members?” Yu Yusheng asked.
Group Leader Fu’s phantom nodded.
The other team members also wore serious and solemn expressions. If they couldn’t make it into the first group, receiving such a rare reward would have to wait until they reached the rank of Executive Officer.
As expected of the First Action Department, the region most prone to danger—the elite employee rewards offered casually were already a grade above those of other departments.
{Alright, time’s running short today. The area patrol mission had best be completed within three days. You can ask me anytime if you have questions.}
With that, the figure of Group Leader Fu disappeared along with the stretch of coastline.
Wang Dingshan turned around and said, “Alright, let’s discuss our task allocation. Huh? Where’s Qiong An?”
The team turned to look—the woman in her twenties had already charged into action, locking in combat with a slime-like shadowy figure among the chaos of rocks not far away.
The team’s jaws dropped in disbelief. That was way too hasty.
By the time these four walked over, Qiong An had already slain the creature.
Feng Ming stared at the grotesquely mangled face of the slime monster and said gloomily, “Sister Qiong, you have just literally kicked what may have been its mono-scope orb into obsolescence.”
Qiong An tidied her ponytail with a flick and hummed a she-ha while mildly stretching in place.
“That kicking technique is probably a secret skill, right?”
“For sure. I’ve been training it for over a year—ain’t it a sight?”
Everyone stared at the shapely curve of her thigh, a pair of legs that could send an adult flying.
Yu Yusheng said, “Then let’s split up. If we find the so-called Bound Spirit, call us if you can’t handle it. Oh, and let’s leave some contact info with each other.”
The silvery-white model pattern on Yu Yusheng’s chest shimmered and moved into his hand, revealing his pass. A ring on Yang Zicang’s chest glimmered, and polylines sketched out a cleaner’s ID card he had just obtained today. The group tapped passes together, exchanging contact information.
With this aid, even different models could connect with one another.
“Then I’ll head to the front right,” Yang Zicang said.
“I’m going with you.” Wang Dingshan walked toward Yang Zicang.
“Why?” Wang Dingshan laughed. “Speaking of which, you’ll never guess where my model ability comes from.”
“Huh?”
“Heh. Ever played a Scratch Card?”
The red pattern on Wang Dingshan’s chest flickered. He pulled a Scratch Card from his clothes—unlike a normal one, it looked more like some dark, artistic piece.
As the eyes of the other four fell on him, Wang Dingshan faced the trio and said:
“Want to give it a try? You can see how your luck plays out. If you win, your luck will be great for the whole next day—except you, Yang Zicang, probably not needed.”
“What do you mean? Why am I singled out?”
“Heh. I watched your last cassette challenge, you know! I scratched your card a few times—always showed you winning. Especially this morning—I hit a second prize out of the blue!”
That morning… wasn’t that…
“So, after you’ve scraped for someone, they can’t scrape again themselves, right?”
“You can still try, but it won’t change anything. Who goes first?”
“Oh oh oh, me!” Qiong An scampered over excitedly on her little feet, unable to wait as she looked at the “Scratch Card (Special Evil)” demonic nightmare in Wang Dingshan’s hand.
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