Chapter 58: Even Capitalists Would Cry

When Lu Luo returned to Circle Studio and saw the 13 mutant dog corpses at the entrance, he was clearly stunned. In broad daylight, these Exotic Species corpses were just displayed at the shop’s entrance? "Bro Ding, you guys just dragged the corpses back like this?" "What? Did you want to take a cab? That’s so expensive, are you going to reimburse me? Also, stop calling me Fatty!" Lu Luo wiped the sweat from his forehead. If someone reported this, wouldn’t the Hunters tear his place apart? What? You’re saying Ding Peng and You Xiaoqi are certified Hunters, and he’s a Hunter-in-training? And if anything goes wrong, Ludie will take the blame? Oh, in that case, never mind. Lu Luo looked at Gu Fangyi, who quietly winked at him and gave him a cryptic smile. "I got them." It’s over, it’s over! He’s turned, he’s turned! Gu Fangyi has turned gay! These Exotic Species were pure energy. The energy he had accumulated from the rain was now just over 390 points. Adding the spider Li Manting from earlier and these 13 dogs, his total remaining energy should reach around 600 to 700 points. He currently had over 60,000 Alliance Currency on hand. If he used this money to buy Dark Spirit Stones, he should be able to reach First Tier very quickly. Then, if he used energy for physical Enhancement, his strength would improve dramatically. As for using this money to pay Lan Tian’s contract termination fee, Lu Luo didn’t even consider it. Repaying the money was out of the question, at least for now. The contract wasn’t due for another two years. He planned to steadily develop his strength for a year and a half. By then, with his increased power, wouldn’t settling 750,000 Alliance Currency among three people be a piece of cake? Having envisioned a bright future, Lu Luo found a small, dark room and stealthily devoured all 13 mutant dogs. It was better than nothing. Still, 13 First Tier animal-type Exotic Species only provided him with 220 energy points, which was indeed too little. But these 220 points were essentially free, which was quite good. Lu Luo had received 60,000, Gu Fangyi 7,500, and with some miscellaneous commissions, Circle Studio’s revenue for today alone would likely exceed 70,000 Alliance Currency. For this reason, Lu Luo and several key members of Circle Studio unanimously decided to spend 1,000 Alliance Currency on a small celebratory feast at the studio that afternoon, complete with drinks and meat. Speaking of drinks and meat, the "alcohol" was actually purified water mixed with edible alcohol, and the "meat" was just ordinary pork from the meat processing plant. Even so, Zhou Kai managed to bring the celebratory atmosphere to a fever pitch. Judging solely from the data reports Zhou Kai presented, Circle Studio seemed on the verge of joining the top ranks of Wasteland industries. The banquet speech was entirely Zhou Kai’s one-man show. Gu Fangyi and the others could only stand by and clap silently, not daring to make a peep. "Today, Circle Studio’s revenue broke ten thousand! You must have seen the Exotic Species corpses at the door earlier—those are today’s spoils of victory!" That’s ten thousand, not sixty thousand, because the other sixty thousand was pocketed by a certain scoundrel. What an inhuman bastard! "Next, let’s talk about company business. Firstly, in the high-end business domain, our Circle Hunter Studio has reached new heights, achieving a critical breakthrough from zero to one, from nothing to something." The truth is, we’ve been open for over ten days and only landed our first contract today. So yes, it’s a breakthrough from zero to one. He’s not wrong there. "Secondly, our regular business turnover has increased by over 200%, consistently ranking first in horizontal comparisons. We are the model of the industry, the vanguard of the trade!" Well, a few days ago, we were only finding cats and dogs. These past two days, we’ve had clients looking for people. The growth is indeed rapid. As for being the reigning champion in horizontal rankings and the industry model... it seems we’re the only studio in the East Ring. So, ’vanguard of the trade’? No argument there. "Since its opening, the studio has never had a major misstep and ranks first in industry satisfaction." The studio has had constant minor issues since opening. And since we’re the only one in this ’industry,’ being first also means being last. "Currently, the studio’s prospects are bright, far from reaching the industry ceiling, with immense room for growth." He means we’ve only been handling piddling, dead-end jobs that we can’t even brag about. "Circle Hunter Studio will become the glory of the Fourth Ring, and the glory of the entire Wasteland Alliance! We will all have a wonderful future!" That’s just pure hype. Except for the boss, most employees don’t have such a wonderful future. Whether it was Gu Fangyi, You Xiaoqi, or Ding Peng, they were all left bewildered by Zhou Kai’s stirring rhetoric. "How can this person be such a smooth talker? Are we really that strong already?" Even a rich kid like Xu Minglei felt a sense of belonging at Circle Studio for the first time. He and the other ordinary employees shared the same sentiment, feeling that as long as they worked at Circle Studio, a bright future awaited them. After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Zhou Kai, under Lu Luo’s special instructions, arranged an employee raffle. First prize: an honorary Investigator badge of inestimable value. Winner: Xu Minglei. Second prize: a company-assigned van worth 3,300 Alliance Currency. Winner: Zhou Kai. Third prize: a Wasteland supermarket shopping voucher worth 1,000 Alliance Currency. Winner: You Xiaoqi. Although Xu Minglei couldn’t help feeling the first prize wasn’t as practical as the second or third, he was a rich kid, after all. It didn’t really matter to him; it wasn’t much money, and besides, company honor was more important than cash. Lu Luo watched the beaming Xu Minglei and silently marveled at Zhou Kai’s truly exceptional recruitment skills. Good heavens. Rigging the draw is one thing, but giving a useless plaque for first place? Even a true capitalist would shed tears over this. The crucial part is how readily this guy is swallowing all this bull. It’s ridiculous. And so, Circle Studio’s first "Employee Motivation Rally" came to a successful conclusion. 「The next day.」 Lu Luo left 1,000 Alliance Currency, nominally as studio activity funds, and with a fortune of 65,000 Alliance Currency tucked away, he headed to Siping District in the East Ring. Siping District, its name suggesting "stability and security," was the East Ring’s market for weapons and Transcendent supplies. It was a place frequently patronized by those who ventured beyond the walls. Those who managed to obtain an "Over-the-Wall Visa" were sure to earn substantial profits. So, what they sought was precisely that "stability and security" beyond the walls, just as the market’s name implied. Lu Luo wandered through the dazzling array of weapons, almost overwhelmed by the choices. In his previous life, such blatantly public weapon markets were a rare sight. Moreover, this place also boasted even more high-end items, such as those crafted by Transcendents or Wasteland Alchemists. However, Lu Luo quickly lost interest in browsing as the Observer’s prompts kept appearing, completely disrupting his shopping rhythm. This is junk, don’t look. That’s also junk. I told you not to look, are you still looking? Do you not trust me? What the hell is this? Selling ordinary sand as carborundum! This shop owner is a real piece of work, almost as bad as you. GT-9500 Energy Hand Cannon. I think you could get one. It’s not too expensive, just 28,000. You can afford it. "Shut up!" Lu Luo’s main purpose here was to buy Dark Spirit Stones to directly convert into energy, essentially power-leveling with money. The price of Dark Spirit Stones was too steep; weapons and equipment would have to wait. As for sharing the money with everyone, Lu Luo hadn’t even considered it. It wasn’t that Lu Luo didn’t value Circle Studio or his team’s strength; he knew teamwork was important. But he understood even more clearly that Circle Studio could only develop steadily and securely under a supremely strong leader. Therefore, investing all resources in himself was the most correct choice. Yes, this wasn’t selfishness. It was a display of dauntless spirit, shouldering all the pressure himself. Observer’s friendly translation: Money can’t buy love or happiness; it’s the root of all suffering! Give all your money to me, and let me bear this pain alone! "Scram!" After browsing around, Lu Luo finally stopped at a Transcendent supplies shop called "Circular City Buyers." "Boss, how much for Dark Spirit Stones?" "800." "Any cheaper?" "No." "Alright, I understand." The owner of this Transcendent supplies shop was engrossed in watching television, enjoying a singing program featuring the Wasteland superstar Gu Wanyun. Apparently feeling Lu Luo had disturbed him, the owner’s attitude was rather poor. Lu Luo left the shop. A price of 800 per gram for Dark Spirit Stones was still too expensive for him. This 800 per gram price was actually a fixed rate set jointly by the Wasteland Alliance Council and the Dawn Church; it was their official selling price to the public. In reality, Dark Spirit Stones traded privately among Transcendents went for considerably less than 800. Especially in private trades among Hunters, prices could drop to 700 or even lower. However, Hunters usually consumed Dark Spirit Stones internally and rarely sold them. Besides, Team 13 was currently in a dormant state and lacked the ability to sell Dark Spirit Stones. Furthermore, Lu Luo hadn’t been able to contact Ludie, so he was on his own for acquiring Dark Spirit Stones. "This price is truly outrageous. I only have 65,000. I absolutely must reach First Tier with this money." If you want cheap Dark Spirit Stones, I suggest you check out the stalls of those fringe traders. You might find something unexpected there.