Two days after the Jiangjincheng Incident.
Town City, inside the Xuanjian Division Headquarters.
Bai Wenliang looked at the two people in front of him with a helpless expression: "If you want to steal kills, steal kills, but why did you have to fight each other and let outsiders laugh at us?"
Opposite him, Fang Wenyu and Jiang Ao were seated, both of their faces covered in dense scars.
Although their recovery ability was astonishing, there were simply too many scars, and they hadn't fully healed even after two days.
Faced with Bai Wenliang's criticism, the two chose to remain silent.
"Forget it. Just don't go too far. Both of you did well this time, especially you, Wenyu. You participated in taking down two Monster Association strongholds." Seeing this, Bai Wenliang decided not to dwell on the topic and shifted the focus to the Monster Association.
"It was mostly luck that we got the vital intelligence needed to take them down," Fang Wenyu replied calmly.
Beside him, Jiang Ao stared at the ceiling, one hand shoved into his pocket, his fingers clenched until they were crimson.
Their conversation was being watched constantly by the Evil Eye sitting nearby.
Inside Liyang Country, Jiang Yan watched the scene displayed through the Evil Eye, a faint smile on his face.
The feeling of effortlessly manipulating two veteran Level Five powerhouses was absolutely wonderful.
'Given Jiang Ao's personality, if I add a little more fuel to the fire, this fight for the Deputy Director position will definitely spiral out of control, exceeding Bai Wenliang's ability to manage it.'
Thinking this, his mood brightened further. He rested his hands on the sofa, tilting his head back against the edge: "Any news on finding an Awakened One with consciousness-related abilities?"
Behind the sofa, An Conghao quickly replied upon hearing Jiang Yan's question: "President, there is news. In Jinghe Kingdom, the target is a recently-adult student who awakened two months ago. He can swap people's consciousnesses, and each swap lasts for three days. If his ability is developed, he might even reach the level of permanent swapping."
"Jinghe Kingdom, isn't that the Supersonic Group's territory?" Jiang Yan narrowed his eyes slightly.
The Supersonic Group has one Level Five martial artist, but seven Level Fours under their command, not counting the Level Fours belonging to the Jinghe Kingdom itself.
"The target is currently being recruited by the Supersonic Group, but he personally seems to dislike the fighting life and rejected them," An Conghao reported, relaying the intelligence gathered during this period to Jiang Yan.
Jiang Yan pondered for a moment and said, "Arrange for Lei Xiangchen, Blood Master, and Wei Gaocheng to go personally. Lei Xiangchen can decide who else he needs. This kind of special talent must be brought back, by any means necessary!"
"Yes!" An Conghao nodded and immediately turned to execute Jiang Yan's orders... Jinghe Kingdom, a coastal country on the edge of the continent, with a population of one hundred million.
Inside the Kingdom, in a small city coffee shop.
"Thank you for your invitation, but I'm not interested in that kind of life. I just want to be an ordinary person." A white-clad, spectacled youth rejected the invitation from the girl in front of him.
This was already the sixth organization of Awakened Ones he had rejected.
The girl tilted her head, looking at him as if he were a strange new species: "In this world, wanting an ordinary life without enough power to protect yourself is naive. If you join us, you can come to us if you encounter difficulties."
Without waiting for the youth's reply, she stood up, took out a business card, and slipped it into his pocket: "If you run into a problem you can't solve yourself, you can call me at this number. We Seven Luminaries are quite powerful."
Having done all that, she gave the youth a cute smile and turned to leave.
"What kind of small-time faction is Seven Luminaries, daring to recruit people on the territory of our Jinghe Kingdom?" Before the girl could walk out the door, a voice of mockery rang out.
Immediately after, a bald man with a scar near his mouth stood up and looked at the girl who had turned to face him: "If you dare to poach people from our Jinghe Kingdom again, I guarantee you'll regret it."
"Whatever you say." The girl merely smiled, unconcerned, and turned to continue leaving.
Liang Dong watched all of this silently. The bald man then walked toward him and said in a flat tone, "The higher-ups told me to come and invite you to join again. Are you willing?"
Liang Dong refused, just as he had before: "I still prefer the life of an ordinary person."
"Fine, but you'd better not join any faction besides ours." The bald man dropped this sentence and turned to leave.
'This is such a hassle. I wish I hadn't used my ability.' Liang Dong shook his head and walked out of the coffee shop.
Pedestrians walked back and forth on the street, but none of it concerned him; he still needed to go home to see his grandfather.
Just as he rounded a corner, he saw a hunched, elderly man in his nineties taking a stroll with a man in his thirties wearing a black top hat and a black tailcoat.
The two were chatting and laughing, but the moment Liang Dong saw the man, his expression darkened. The elderly man was his grandfather. "Another Awakened One? This time they've even approached my family."
This was simply because the man's demeanor was too unique; his identity was obvious at a glance.
He walked up with a dark expression and looked at the man in the tailcoat: "You've gone to great lengths to recruit me, even contacting my family. Don't you know that this is my bottom line? No matter what faction you belong to, I will not join you."
Lei Xiangchen looked at him with a smile: "Whether you join or not is not up to you. I just arrived here. Now, I'll give you an offer: a base salary of one hundred million blue star coins per year. If you join, we will transfer one year's salary immediately, plus 24-hour security, and a pharmaceutical agent that can increase the lifespan of the elderly."
As soon as these words were spoken, Liang Dong's dark expression instantly changed. The offer was simply too generous.
The factions that had approached him during this time offered quite a bit—the highest, the Supersonic Group, offered six million a year, and the lowest offered 1.5 million a year, not counting other benefits.
Yet, the combined price offered by all those factions was less than what the man in front of him was offering alone.
Lei Xiangchen's smile widened as he watched the change in Liang Dong's expression.
Problems that can be solved with money are not problems at all.
But to his surprise, although Liang Dong clearly looked conflicted, he still said, "Can you give me one day to think about it?"
"Of course. This is my number. Call me directly once you've made up your mind." Lei Xiangchen handed him a business card.
Liang Dong reached out and took it, glancing at the card, which only contained a simple string of phone numbers followed by the character 'Lei'.
"I await your good news." After saying this, Lei Xiangchen turned and walked toward the crowd.
Liang Dong stood rooted to the spot, feeling hesitant. The reason he hadn't joined any of those factions was...
...because his ability had a drawback: every time he used it, his hair would turn a little whiter, and his face would show slight signs of aging.
Although he recovered to normal the next day, a faint feeling of weakness accumulated inside his body, a weakness that he couldn't get rid of.
It felt as if his lifespan would continuously decrease the more he used his ability, and this was his main concern.
However, one of the conditions offered by the man made him hesitate: the pharmaceutical agent that could increase the lifespan of the elderly.