Chapter 172 - 172 154 Unexpected Joy

172: Chapter 154: Unexpected Joy 172: Chapter 154: Unexpected Joy Lu Sheng, formerly known as the “Grey Gold Traveler” Secret Keeper, is now one of the executive deputy directors of the Ancient City Bureau of Anomaly Management. Even though he had retired from the front lines for at least five years, he was still one of the strongest Secret Keepers in the Ancient City. At this moment, with a weary expression on his face, he had just completed two funerals and hurried to this familiar place. The Department of Taboo Item Management. “Patter.” In the empty hall, the sound of water echoed far away. They were here to pick up something, and a small cart was already prepared. But on it, there were only two seemingly ordinary items. “Two Rule-level items, by convention, should be sent to the State, but Old Zhao and I found an excuse to keep them. Now they are part of the Ancient City Bureau of Anomaly Management’s reserve. If something happens to me, it will be your turn to use them. They’re extremely powerful but also very dangerous. Their abilities are…” Behind him were two senior captains from the Special Service Team, who silently nodded, recording this top-secret information that must never be leaked. Due to the previous “mistake,” the Bureau of Anomaly Management had unsealed their own inventory according to the emergency regulations during critical moments. In addition to these two “nuclear weapons,” more Silver weapons also began to be distributed to suitable users. More importantly, the Ancient City Bureau of Anomaly Management, which had now entered a state of emergency, was authorized to take more special measures. Some Taboo items and detection methods would be put into use as well… “Kill them, avenge Little Huang and Ah Ke…” ———— ———- While the outside was engulfed in a prelude to a storm, Lu Ping’an was silently carrying out his daily routine. Without mentioning anything else, he was already sure that with his less than 2-tier body, getting involved in a direct battle would result in instant defeat. But he was still very satisfied with his own gains. [Xis White Flower, a certain peculiar mutant variation, Brass Upper Rank Magic Plant.] The simple description given by Life Bank had already pointed the way for Lu Ping’an. With a name and features, Lu Ping’an eagerly took on the exploration task. He made a trip to Ancient City University, both to boost his “Gardener Chives” buff and to use the official funds to have someone study it. He also bought detailed information about Xis White Flower… of course, he spent a little more money to buy cultivation materials and raw material development purposes, which should be a reasonable expense. “Xis White Flower, in our world we call it ‘White Sleeping Cherry,’ the main ingredient for a powerful sleeping agent in the Otherworldly world.” A sleeping agent? This bit of information surprised Lu Ping’an. It was not that he doubted the accuracy of the information, but that he didn’t think the “harmless pollen” would work so quickly under the careful vigilance of professionals. At the time, he had thought they had died the moment they fell. “Xis White Flower is also known as the Fear Flower. Its pollen is very special, capable of permeating the surface of human skin on contact. Once it enters the body and mixes with the bloodstream, the more excited and dilated your blood vessels are, the faster it takes effect. If you face it calmly, it will have a slower effect and may not put you to sleep. Moreover, this is a ‘downgraded species’ that has undergone domestication and is very potent…” Downgraded? Lu Ping’an had only seen life modules upgraded before. Upon further inquiry, this was a common usage in Magic Plant grafting. The normal Xis White Flower was a third-tier Otherworldly Magic Plant, but these appeared to be grafted and bred with the local “Demonized Cherry Blossoms” to produce the weaker 2-tier variation, and the pink flower color was the most easily identifiable feature. Its “sleeping” effect was naturally weaker than the original, but the downgraded version was easier to breed and, due to “localization,” planting and large-scale cultivation were much simpler in the local area. “Otherworldly Magic Plants in our world always have a strong sense of discord and pollution penetration. If it weren’t for this domesticated subspecies, the ambush would not have been so successful.” Lu Ping’an tried it himself and found that he was barely able to resist direct contact. But if he intentionally kept his emotions excited, he would still fall asleep instantly. At this time, the additional funding that Lu Ping’an spent reaped an unexpected surprise. “…The other half of the graft is not native here, but it seems to be a special kind of cherry blossom from the eastern island country, which means…” That meant the Gardener might be a foreigner from the east? This was undoubtedly a major piece of intelligence. Lu Ping’an felt a lot more justified when reporting his expenses. As soon as he returned to the office, he received another pleasant surprise. “A red envelope? So much?” “It’s an official major task; there was a fourth-tier attacker, considered at least a B-level mission. Due to the difficulty, it was raised to A-level. You also killed a third-tier Magic Monster, so fifty thousand is not much.” “…Didn’t we fail?” “At least 70,000 if successful.” At this moment, Lu Ping’an understood why the Bureau of Anomaly Management and the Special Service Team could attract powerful Battle-professionals with “not that high” monthly salaries. It turns out that the monthly salary is just the base, and the bonus and bounty are the real earners—more work, more pay. No to mention that the growth of professionals requires a large amount of money, and some resources cannot be provided by the Official authorities. Moreover, if they fail to advance, professionals have a “shelf life” of at most just a dozen years, so naturally, they have to consider the future… The common interest of human society is indeed tempting, but you can’t let others take advantage of it as a meal either. Generally, people in the workplace have an unspoken rule of “not asking about other people’s salary,” but now some excited young newcomers naturally like to inquire about other’s bonuses… In some sense, this is also expected of Captain-levels, as nothing is more motivating to morale and combat intentions than a “huge sum”. Hua senior sister got 35,000, Xue En got 25,000… From the results, he should have gotten the minimum, but in the team, he was the most excited one. Perhaps, he had never seen such a huge sum before… Considering that in some sense, this was also his first major mission after getting the “temporary License,” this was quite likely the reality. “How much did Sister Xia get?” Lu Ping’an boldly asked, something others wanted to know but didn’t dare ask. “120,000, I had a level bonus, plus the 200,000 mercenary bonus.” It was quite an exaggeration, but considering her performance, it was normal. As for those who have done dirty work as mercenaries for a long time, they naturally accumulated a lot of resentment, and with Captain Xia’s official background, it was easy to get bounties. “Previously, the maximum was only half of this, and the bonus system has also been reformed; you guys are catching up with the good times.” Xia Qin added after a change in tone. “Generally speaking, it’s better not to inquire about other people’s bonuses. But since you are all newcomers, let me talk to you about something. Do you know 5221? Oh, you all don’t seem to know. This is an income distribution mechanism…” Xia Qin casually mentioned some of the Official Secret Keeper’s “rules.” Such high-reward missions are actually not common… If it were truly common, the Special Service Team would have become a high-risk department, although it is already quite dangerous now. It’s easy to splurge when you have a bonus in hand, especially for professionals—good equipment might drain all your savings. If you spend recklessly, no matter how much you earn, it will be a sad old age. “…Five, that is, half of the income, is put into things related to improving your professional abilities. This is the main part. Professionals who don’t progress can only die, and the higher investment is necessary.” This is also a rule of the Special Service Team, to teach newcomers how to use their first bonus after it has been received. Whether they listen or not is one thing, but a competent Captain has to nag a bit. “Two are for equipment, including various consumables, Magic Potions, weapons, etc. When you get started, the maintenance cost of weapons might not be enough, so you can increase it later. But in the early stages, it’s not recommended to spend on this money pit, as the manufacturers are all too dark.” Lu Ping’an had a faint sense of this, as Magic Potions were indeed expensive. “Two more are for savings, either buying Precious Metals or bank deposits. The reason could be obvious, but I personally recommend buying ‘consumables’ as they are the most valuable and can avoid fluctuations.” Xia Qin spoke calmly, but Lu Ping’an could read more from it. It’s normal not to recommend Precious Metals because, if “Customs” loses control due to the existence of other worlds, it could become a big issue. Bank deposits are not recommended either? Why? Once the social order breaks down, a fortune of millions may turn into waste paper in an instant. As for the consumables of professionals, they will naturally persist in value as long as there are supernatural forces and pollution in this world. “The last one is donating… Don’t be so surprised. It’s not that you have to donate to a church. Most companies, associations, and churches have this kind of ‘donation’ mechanism. It’s voluntary, either for those poor fellows who have been seriously injured or even retired, or for the families of those unfortunate guys. Many colleagues died without a penny in their pockets, or other people couldn’t even find them…” Although this is not a pleasant topic, it is quite realistic. The Ancient City Special Service Team has an internal “Fund” dedicated to handling these miscellaneous matters… Don’t get it wrong, the official pension and compensation of the Official agencies are functioning properly, and this is just a spontaneous civil fundraising, operation, and compensation. Once you donate, you become a member of the foundation and have the right to benefit from it in case of an accident. Of course, there are all kinds of misdeeds involved, but at least due to the existence of “contracts” and the Otherworldly demands for “credit,” the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, and its existence is valuable. When it comes to actual operation, there is a series of processes such as resigning, retiring, and transferring files, and the relationship between the upper and lower departments of the Special Service Team and the Bureau of Anomaly Management is also involved. This will not be discussed further. Xia Qin made it very clear while also revealing that ninety percent of her colleagues would choose to join… Of course, some people always take an unusual path. Newcomers looked at each other, hesitated for a moment, and naturally chose to join. “5221 is a common bonus allocation mechanism, and as you can see, 70% are spent on their Battle capabilities. Strength is the crux of everything; you can consider your own distribution ratio, but there must be at least one ratio, otherwise…” Xia Qin looked silently at Lei in the office, who was pretending to be serious about reading a report. It seems that someone’s tendency to overspend is not just acting. Lu Ping’an thought for a moment and set his ratio to “91” without hesitation. It is not that he has a preference for this number, but for him, having savings seems meaningless. Just spend all the earnings from the “monthly payments” on improving his abilities. Only by improving his capabilities can he afford to consider other things. For newcomers, getting their first income naturally led to happy spending. But Xia Qin stopped Lu Ping’an, who was about to leave, and handed him a task. “This task is very suitable for you. Since you’ve just gotten the bonus, maybe you can use it inside. If it’s not enough, you can borrow from me, and I’ll see if I can reimburse some of the intelligence expenses.” In Xia Qin’s opinion, this is a great opportunity. The task is very simple, but it leaves Lu Ping’an somewhat puzzled. “Why do I have to liaison with the local Brother Tu Chamber of Commerce? Why me?” Not to mention that GT Evil Gods actually have a Chamber of Commerce, having a newcomer like him do intelligence work is quite unusual. “Because you are probably the only Gardener in the Zion District Special Service Team with combat power.”