Chapter 42

"Really, you don't know?" the young man asked in surprise. Even a newcomer shouldn't be unaware, right? Without knowledge, one should at least have some common sense.

"Really don't know."

"Alright then, let's sit down and talk." How interesting, there's actually someone who doesn't know. This job is assigned from above, and no one wants to do it. It's too boring; you might not even find one person in a day. The exchange is handled by the service area; here, we just receive guests.

"Alright, let's sit and talk." I'll see what tricks you have up your sleeve.

"First, let me introduce myself. I'm a staff member of the Wilderness Survival Association. I won't tell you my name; it wouldn't be useful anyway. Do you doubt my identity?"

"Hmm." Du Qian nodded rudely, thinking he looked like a fraud.

"Hehe, you really are a newcomer, so cute. Do you know the rules of the exchange area? Direct monetary transactions are not allowed, even for jobs like ours, which are paid per piece. The only ones who can do this are us."

"Hmm." Keep talking.

"You might not believe me, but it's fine." The young man had good eyesight and saw the disdain in Du Qian's eyes. He waved his hand, and several staff members walked over.

Why call them staff members? It's simple: uniform clothing, nameplates on their chests, badges on their arms, and communication devices on their waists all clearly indicated their identities. Even if the association's atmosphere was very free, it was impossible for five or six people to impersonate staff members without the association noticing. Such a thing could never happen.

"What's up, are you bored?" one of them asked.

"Usually, I am, but not now. A brand new newcomer has arrived, and I need to verify my identity," the young man chuckled.

"Ha, you also have moments when you're doubted. How refreshing. I'll prove it; he's not our staff member, he's a bad guy."

"Don't talk nonsense. He's clearly a spy from the Zhenhai Alliance; I recognize him."

"Impossible, he must be from the Buxian group. Look at him, full of righteousness, his eyes full of passion..."

Alright, none of the people who came over verified his identity, but the more outrageous they were, the more Du Qian believed. If he could go to such lengths, even if he was a fraud and Du Qian was deceived, he would do so willingly. The method was too sophisticated, leaving no room for doubt.

If he could go to such lengths, being deceived would be justified; the effort he put in was substantial.

"Alright, I believe you." Du Qian raised his hands and said, memorizing the faces of these people. Damn it, I'm a patrol officer. If you're a fraud, I'll catch you sooner or later.

Next, it's about what this person wants. A deposit? Or some other means?

"Scatter, my customer is here; I don't have time to chat with you." The young man waved his hand.

"Alright, keep talking." Du Qian's curiosity grew even more.

"There's nothing much to say. It's piecework, paid per piece. First, are you interested?"

"Of course, if I wasn't, I wouldn't be sitting here."

"Let's test your combat power first. If it's below five thousand, forget it; you can leave right away." The young man became even more impolite, showing no business attitude at all.

"Let's test it."

The young man, as if performing a magic trick, pulled out a portable tester from under the table. Seeing this, Du Qian was delighted; it was exactly the same as the one he had, the same model and brand, with no difference at all.

A minute later, the result came out: 6,239. It was a few points less than when he tested at home, which was normal. All combat power testers have some fluctuation and error; a completely accurate tester doesn't exist.

This is related to the body's state. Different times, different moods, whether you're full, whether you've just fought, your spirit, and various other factors can all affect the combat power test. Even if you test at the same time and place, the results will fluctuate.

"Over six thousand, not bad. Let's sign the agreement."

Here it comes. If he's a fraud, this is the crucial moment. Du Qian picked up the one-page agreement and read it carefully.

There wasn't much to read. It was just one page, with limited text, no complicated clauses, and the content was quite simple.

Commissioned processing, paid per piece, payment upon delivery.

That's it...

No conditions, no deposit, nothing, not even a mention of materials. It was ridiculously simple.

"Kid, what are you looking at? Are you crazy for money? Just sign it." A martial cultivator, as strong as a bear, passed by, slapped Du Qian on the back of the head, and walked away cursing.

" Ignore those bastards. They're all reckless. Even if you beat them to shit, they'll be the same tomorrow." The young man advised.

"Materials? What materials will I use for processing?" Du Qian didn't pay attention, nor could he. Even as a patrol officer, he had no advantage over martial cultivators.

"Materials? Your combat power is your material. How can I provide it? Use whatever you have." The young man was getting annoyed. At first, he found it interesting to meet a newcomer like Du Qian, but now, having to teach everything from scratch was quite annoying.

"Alright, but you have to tell me what I need to do, right?" Du Qian felt his head was about to explode. The person in front of him didn't seem to be a fraud. From the tone of the bear-like martial cultivator, this job didn't seem easy.

"Today, I'll be lenient with you." Saying this, he pulled out a spirit storage box from under the table and threw it in front of Du Qian.

"Is this for me?"

"Yes, I'm too lazy to explain." The young man said. Each staff member assigned here only gets one per month, a pitifully small number. Even so, they rarely use it. This thing can't be sold; it must be used and noted, or it has to be returned.

Opening the storage box, a red light rose, attracting the attention of hundreds of eyes. Once they realized what it was, they quickly turned back to their own business.

This was a spirit talisman. Spirit talismans always attract attention, especially from martial cultivators. Even mentioning them makes their eyes light up. But this spirit talisman, forget it, it's useless. Only the Wilderness Survival Association would waste resources having talisman masters make such things.

"What is this?" Du Qian didn't touch it, blinking his eyes. This thing was glowing, clearly high-end. What if he broke it by touching it? Was it a trap?

It had to be said that Du Qian, a war orphan from the lower rungs of society, had superior knowledge in some areas, but in others, his perspective was quite laughable.

"What is this? This is a spirit talisman. Don't tell me you don't recognize a spirit talisman."

"Oh... this is a spirit talisman. I know, I know. My teacher mentioned it." Du Qian suddenly understood.

He slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "That's right, it emits a rainbow of light, with runes flowing in the middle, the colors are bright and vivid, making one yearn to possess it..."

What the... Where did this guy come from, actually reciting from a book? His teacher must be a weirdo to explain a spirit talisman like that.

Rainbow? Rainbow your sister. A spirit talisman that emits a rainbow is a divine-level talisman. In the entire Pingchuan Wilderness Survival Association, no one has ever seen one, not even the presidents. Such a thing, let alone in a secondary city like Pingchuan, even in a primary city or the capital, you might not see one in a year.

"This... this is for me?" Du Qian found it hard to believe. Was he really going to give him a spirit talisman? Although he didn't know what it was for, it was a spirit talisman, a legendary spirit talisman...

"Use it, use it now. If you take it away, I'll break your legs." The young man was angry. Seeing Du Qian's shining eyes, he suspected that if he didn't say this, the guy would run off with the spirit talisman and the storage box.

Crazy for money, huh? This is a spirit talisman, but if you take it out, you won't get a single cent for it, and you'll end up in jail. This kind of spirit talisman is only found in the Wilderness Survival Association in the entire Pingchuan city.

It's not that others can't make it; they just don't bother. Only the Wilderness Survival Association has the resources to make some every year. If anyone else did, they wouldn't even cover the cost.

"How... how do I use it?" Du Qian looked embarrassed. His teacher had mentioned spirit talismans, which are products of spirit gatherers, one of the three major professions, and are said to be extremely valuable. Many spirit talismans can't be bought with any amount of money.

As for how to use them, the teacher at the orphanage didn't think their students would encounter them immediately after graduation, or even in their entire lives. Was it necessary to teach them?

"Pick it up, guide the energy inside you into the spirit talisman. The spirit talisman will automatically enter your brain. After that, you don't need to worry. Use it now, don't take it away." The young man said lazily.

Today's job was a waste. If it were really that easy to make money, thousands of people would be doing it every day in this hall. You'd be lucky to get a chance.

Du Qian picked up the spirit talisman, which emitted a red light, and examined it curiously from all angles before finally activating it.

He felt a strange energy flow into his body through his fingers. This feeling was somewhat similar to absorbing a spirit horn but also very different.

Suddenly, everything went dark. Du Qian felt himself enter a wondrous space. It was like a dark starry sky, with no stars in the distance, only three nebulae that seemed infinitely far away, appearing faint and weak.

The nebulae were slowly rotating, almost imperceptibly. A meteor streaked past him, heading toward the distant nebulae.

A dazzling light caused a disturbance in the nebula. A monumental change occurred, and the nebula emitted countless rays of light, creating a mesmerizing world of colors.

Du Qian's eyes moved rapidly. There was no sound, no words, but he understood. It was as if someone had forcibly implanted a pre-compiled consciousness into his brain.

Divide the energy into tens of thousands of fine threads and weave them according to certain rules...