Chapter 41

The Association of Wilderness Survival is located in the central district of Pingchuan City, at the most prominent position on the main avenue. It occupies a vast area, with four layers of courtyards inside and out, a 16-story main building, a 12-story auxiliary building, and a 4-story annex, forming a massive complex.

The central district is the foremost of Pingchuan's five districts, serving as the city's political, cultural, and economic center. The fact that the Association of Wilderness Survival has such a large complex here demonstrates its formidable strength.

There are few buildings that can rival the Association of Wilderness Survival. Only a few institutions, such as the City Lord's Mansion, the Pingchuan Military District, the Pingchuan Police Headquarters, and the Pingchuan Finance Department, can match its scale.

Duan Qian stopped at the entrance of the Association, pausing for half a minute to marvel at the achievements of humanity. It's truly remarkable that humans have developed to this scale on a planet with such a harsh environment.

Alright, time for the literary musings is over; let's get down to business.

The main building is divided into seven major zones: the four primary zones are the Mountain Sprite, Sea Ghost, Sandworm, and Grassflow zones, followed by the Comprehensive, Service, and Exchange zones.

The names of the four primary zones sound a bit peculiar, at least to newcomers who visit the main building for the first time. However, as a native of Pingchuan, Duan Qian finds nothing strange about it. Among the five districts of Pingchuan, besides the central district, the other four are Zhoushan, Treasure, Oasis, and Mingyang. These four districts are located in the four directions around the city, tightly surrounding the central district, which can even be called a city within a city.

Exiting the city from these four districts, the scenery outside is entirely different. The name "Zhoushan" is very common in the empire; over 80% of cities have a Zhoushan district. The Buzhou Mountains, also known as the Dragon Vein of the Empire, span the vast territory of the empire. Leaving any city, one doesn't need to go too far to see the Buzhou Mountains or their outskirts.

Indeed, traveling east for a hundred miles from the Zhoushan district leads to the world-renowned Buzhou Mountains. As the saying goes, "relying on the mountains for sustenance, relying on the sea for sustenance." A significant portion of the residents in the Zhoushan district make their living from the mountains, hence the name "Mountain Sprite."

As for the "Sea Ghost," it's no secret that it refers to the Treasure district, which backs onto Treasure Bay and faces the sea. Making a living from the sea, being called "Sea Ghost" is quite normal.

Exiting the city from the Mingyang district to the south, one enters the endless desert within fifty kilometers, hence the name "Sandworm."

Traveling north from the Oasis district, one reaches the Hanhai Grassland, 200 kilometers away. Making a living on the grassland is the most challenging, hence the name "Grassflow."

Pingchuan's geographical location is not ideal and is quite unique, as it connects four completely different terrains, which is rare in the entire Zhou Mountain Empire.

It is precisely because of this unique terrain that the Association has these four primary zones, each with distinct characteristics. It's not about who looks down on whom, but about the vastly different survival skills and experiences required in different environments. It's not easy to make a living in another district.

The Association of Wilderness Survival is different from the military or government agencies; no one cares about your life or death. You are already in a high-risk profession, and many people end up dead due to carelessness.

The Comprehensive Zone is a place for versatile individuals. There are two types of people here: the first are true all-rounders who can survive well in any environment and are the true experts in the Pingchuan Association. The second are generalists who can just get by, surviving as long as they don't die.

In reality, these people lack specialization and are not particularly proficient in any environment, but they have some knowledge of all. The Comprehensive Zone combines the strengths of the four primary zones, so the work is more diverse, but it's also harder to survive here.

The Service Zone is where the Association provides services to survivors, including registration, task acceptance, task completion, information release, and assistance. Don't assume the Association is a welfare organization; all services come at a cost, and the prices are not low.

The Exchange Zone is the busiest, with more people than the other seven zones combined. From the name, it's clear that this is a small market, and it's highly open. The only requirement here is not to use Zhou Mountain currency, meaning direct monetary transactions are not allowed; only bartering is permitted.

The purpose of this is to avoid taxes. People entering the Exchange Zone remember the famous saying: "No buying, no harm."

Duan Qian looked at the various information boards in the main hall of the Association, scratching his chin and thinking for a long time, unsure which zone would be most suitable. He is from the Treasure district, so he should naturally go to the Sea Ghost Zone. He lived in an orphanage for ten years, close to the Treasure Bay fishing port, and his swimming skills are quite good.

However, Duan Qian knows that swimming and living at sea are two different things. Most importantly, he doesn't have the time. As a police officer, he works five days a week, with only two days off, which is not enough to go out to sea. Even if he had never been on a boat, he knows that even a medium-sized fishing boat takes more than a few days to return from a trip.

The nearest is the endless desert, but Duan Qian has issues surviving in the desert, let alone finding work there.

Forget it, no need to think too much. First, register as a survivor; otherwise, he can't even accept tasks.

The Association of Wilderness Survival has grown large for a reason. Under the pressure from the City Lord's Mansion, the military, and the business sector, many people don't want to endure the humiliation. These people almost all run to the Survival Association.

The fees here are indeed charged, but relatively speaking, they are much lower. The majority of the earnings still go to the survivors, attracting more people.

Those who can survive here are not comparable to the small-time thugs at the docks. Most of the people he encountered were martial cultivators, and Duan Qian couldn't imagine that Pingchuan City had so many martial cultivators.

Moreover, these martial cultivators only make up one-third or half of the martial cultivators in Pingchuan City. The majority still serve the City Lord's Mansion, the military, and the business sector. Although they earn less, their lives are more stable and less dangerous.

The registration fee is ten dollars per person, regardless of identity, as long as one is an adult. After registration, whether one can earn money is not the Association's concern. At least this identity allows free access to the Exchange Zone.

The number of registered members in the Association is far more than Duan Qian imagined. Even martial cultivators working for the City Lord's Mansion and the business sector often register, as ten dollars is nothing to a martial cultivator.

On the other hand, very few military personnel, especially those from the field army, register here. Military law is strict, and they lack the courage to do so.

After circling for over two hours and looking at all the tasks, Duan Qian had to admit that none of the tasks in the Association of Wilderness Survival were suitable for him, not even odd jobs, as the timing didn't match.

As for the truly profitable tasks, only martial cultivators can take them. Even if he had good luck recently, Duan Qian didn't really believe that he had a protagonist's aura, capable of slaughtering all enemies with his 6,000 combat power and completing tasks with flying colors. That was just a dream.

Orphans have many dreams, but not daydreams.

Checking the time, he realized he had to return in an hour. Absorbing spirit horns couldn't be delayed. Joining the Association of Wilderness Survival made him realize how important combat power is. Without combat power, one has no rights.

The Exchange Zone covers over 20,000 square meters, with nearly 10,000 stalls provided by the Association, one after another. The stalls sell everything, from spirit horns and spirit spines to all kinds of bizarre items, 90% of which Duan Qian had never seen.

After a cursory look for ten minutes, Duan Qian's interest waned. There were many items and people, but none of it was relevant to him.

Forget it, might as well go home.

Turning around, he noticed a unique stall. Why was it unique? Because the stall had only a sign with nothing else. The sign read: "Earnings discussed in person."

This is perfect; I came here because I need money.

Isn't that true? Who doesn't need money here? Everyone does. But there was no one asking questions at this stall, and Duan Qian was a bit suspicious. Could it be a scam?

"Discussion?" Duan Qian mustered his courage and asked. After all, he is a patrol officer, and officers can arrest scammers.

"New here?" The person behind the stall was a young man, not much older than Duan Qian, wearing a small metal badge that read: "Staff Member" with "Association of Wilderness Survival" below it.

This badge is impressive. To dare to wear it and scam people in the Association of Wilderness Survival, you must have some nerve.

But then he thought, that's not right. There are definitely people with big nerves, but the Association of Wilderness Survival wouldn't let someone ruin their reputation here. Could this guy be the real deal?

"New here, how did you know?" Duan Qian asked, following his tone. Scammers usually talk like this to deceive people.

"This stall has been here since the Exchange Zone opened, and it was the first stall. If you weren't new, there would be no need to ask."

"Ah! Real deal?"

"Alright, I'm here to discuss. How can I earn money?"

"Piecework. Ten dollars per qualified item. Minimum requirement: combat power over 5,000. You can start anytime, and payment is made upon delivery. Cash or card, your choice. No limit on quantity, as much as you want." The young man's speech was smooth, and it was clear he had practiced it many times.

"What do I do?" Duan Qian admitted that, whether the other party was a scammer or not, he was intrigued, especially by the ten-dollar per item rate, which was very tempting.

What can ten dollars do? Everyone has different opinions. For Duan Qian, ten dollars is equivalent to a pack of spirit fragments. While it's not as good as a spirit horn in terms of absorption speed and quantity, it's much cheaper.

Duan Qian had bought spirit fragments twice. The first time was effective, but that was because Li Guan took care of him. The second time, the quantity was halved, and the worst part was that he encountered an assassination attempt and lost the pack of spirit fragments.