Chapter 377: High-Level Connections and High Prices

Coming and going in such a rush, Lu Xin felt a twinge of regret. He hadn’t gotten a good look at Central City’s scenery, nor had he managed to grab a meal and chat with his peers there. He hadn’t even collected the money for a side job he’d picked up on the road.

But seeing Gecko again made Lu Xin feel quite good.

Gecko had arrived even more hastily than him and was leaving just as quickly.

Not only had he also missed the chance to properly connect with colleagues and peers in Central City or enjoy the sights, but after finishing the mission in Water Buffalo City, he hadn’t even snagged a day off. Instead, he spent the whole night helping the lawyers and the office staff.

…Though rumor had it, the work expected to take all night was finished by him in just half.

He somehow managed to squeeze in time to go out for a midnight snack.

…Well, that’s what he claimed anyway.

…

Chen Jing was decisive and meticulous about executing plans.

She had said they’d leave the next day and indeed, by eight the next morning, everything was arranged.

Several lawyers had arrived with official documents issued by the Central City Administrative Main Hall and Satellite City Seven Administration Hall along with testimonies from the Dadi Group warehouse manager, the detention center guards and the police officers who had accompanied Lu Xin to the detention center.

These testimonies proved Lu Xin’s innocence and highlighted his brave actions.

It seemed the medal wouldn’t be issued right away, but the reward money was apparently set in stone.

Did this mean he didn’t need to feel too bad about the money for that half-truckload of cargo?

After a moment’s thought Lu Xin still felt the sting…

The math worked like this: originally he could have gotten the reward plus the money for the cargo. Now he was only getting the reward.

What did this mean?

It meant his payment was cut in half!

…

He had arrived puttering along on a single motorcycle.

But this time Chen Jing arranged the return trip, so they were flying back directly via helicopter, whirring through the sky.

Even with a full tank it couldn’t fly directly from Central City back to Qinggang in one go. Fortunately they had mapped it out on the way there, so they followed the same plan back, dividing the journey into three legs. First they’d fly from Satellite City Seven near Central City to an armed settlement about 300 kilometers away, refuel there, then head towards Red Fruit Mountain.

After refueling at Red Fruit Mountain they could fly straight to Qinggang.

The total travel time was roughly seven hours; even accounting for rest stops and other things ten hours would be sufficient.

This gave Lu Xin a completely different experience from his usual travels.

How to put it? It felt grand impressive and carried a sense of superiority, flying high in the sky.

…

Amidst the whirring sound of the helicopter, Chen Jing, Gecko and Lu Xin each had their own things to do in the cabin.

Gecko was certainly full of energy. He likely hadn’t slept all night but still looked spirited. He was excitedly fiddling with the small gifts he’d bought for Linda: high-end cosmetics only available in big places like Central City, some local snacks carefully sealed in bags and even a thick gold chain, as thick as a finger.

…Right now, he was using a piece of paper as a cushion, writing a little love poem on a card for Tie Cui.

Lu Xin only managed a glance before Gecko blocked his view.

He only saw that even on the helicopter, using paper as a pad, Gecko’s handwriting was extremely elegant, almost like print but with a distinct style. The content was also quite literary. One line he caught was: “My dearest Linda, I’m thinking of you from an altitude of 1286 meters. If you were down below right now, I would jump without hesitation to embrace you…”

Lu Xin actually found this rather interesting.

This brother Gecko was a good guy, but his relationships were a mystery.

He always claimed to like Tie Cui, constantly mentioning her and never forgetting to bring back gifts when away on assignment. Yet when he encountered other pretty girls he’d check them out without hesitation, easily tempted and seemingly without any psychological burden.

Was this genuine affection or just promiscuity?

Lu Xin even believed that if Linda really were below he would actually jump.

Whether Linda could catch him was another question entirely.

…

On the helicopter Chen Jing was diligently reviewing a document, likely the one Xia Chong had given her the previous night.

This female leader was solely focused on work, her mind completely occupied with matters concerning the forbidden zone.

Seeing them so busy Lu Xin decided to spend the time on the road studying the communicator he’d received from the Research Institute.

He had already tested the Undercover Units function and was ready to explore the other two.

The first function was accessing the database, which Lu Xin had already looked at last night.

It was indeed a massive database, containing records of various special pollution incidents, large and small.

There were detailed records expert analyses research findings on mental alterations, the interactions and counters between different abilities, the differences between various pollution sources and optimal solutions. It could be said to be extremely valuable.

Moreover the Research Institute would periodically update the database with new information and release the latest intelligence.

Lu Xin understood the importance of this database; it was extremely useful for his work.

The second function however seemed somewhat interesting.

The contact platform for “High-Level Ability Users” with over twenty members.

Logically this should be a place for high-level ability users to exchange information and intelligence, but since receiving the communicator yesterday Lu Xin hadn’t seen anyone post anything. It was utterly silent, like a pool of stagnant water.

“Cleaner than our company’s suggestion box…”

Lu Xin mused inwardly.

Last night he had considered sending a message to chat with these seniors.

But considering it was quite late when he returned after drinking he decided against it, fearing he might disturb their rest.

Now on the helicopter with nothing else to do, it seemed like a good opportunity.

With that thought Lu Xin slowly pondered and began typing in the input box: “Is anyone there…”

Deleted. Rewrote: “The people in this group should all be real, right?”

Deleted again. Rewrote: “Hello everyone, I’m Single Soldier from Qinggang. It’s nice to meet you all.”

He studied it for a moment, then added another sentence: “I’m new here, please offer your guidance.”

Then he sent it.

Seeing his message appear in the chat room Lu Xin felt a slight thrill and then waited quietly.

Whirr whirr.

Whirr whirr.

The helicopter flew quietly for three or four minutes. There was no activity in the chat room.

Lu Xin typed: “Anyone here?”

Two minutes passed. No reply.

Lu Xin typed again: “Is this group real?”

Three minutes passed. Still no reply.

Lu Xin frowned slightly. He explored the chat room’s other functions again, discovering he could click on someone’s profile picture for individual communication, transfer files and even found his own simple information under the bottom-right icon: “Junior Member”, “Credit Points: 100”, etc.

Looking at that number a formula sharply popped into Lu Xin’s mind.

When paying the Undercover Units before hadn’t it mentioned paying 5000 Alliance Coins or 5 Credit Points?

If 5 Credit Points equaled 5000 coins, then 100 Credit Points must be…

One hundred thousand?

Was this money gifted to him by the Research Institute?

His spirits lifted instantly. He clicked on the Credit Points and sure enough saw an exchange function.

He tried exchanging 10 points and 10,000 cash appeared in his account.

A happy expression spread across Lu Xin’s face.

Thinking the Credit Points might have other uses he decided not to exchange more for now. Of course there was another reason.

He hadn’t yet figured out how to transfer this money to his account in Qinggang.

Continuing to explore other functions Lu Xin saw that besides sending messages there was actually a red packet feature.

He remained silent for a good while, then clicked on the red packet, creating one with one coin split into twenty envelopes.

After some deliberation he clicked send.

“Beep…”

“Beep beep beep beep beep…”

The communicator suddenly started buzzing repeatedly, making both Chen Jing and Gecko look over curiously.

Lu Xin quickly muted it and checked the group. It showed the red packet had been completely claimed.

And still, nobody said anything.

Lu Xin instantly felt a bit slighted. His impression of the people in this chat room dropped to freezing point.

Listlessly he was about to toss the communicator aside when his peripheral vision caught the screen lighting up.

He pulled the communicator back up. Someone had typed a sentence in the chat room: “Since someone’s here, let’s talk business.”

“Unusual activity from the Technology Church detected recently. A Roving Grand Bishop appeared in Water Bay City by the Luo River. His specific objective and information on some accompanying personnel have been ascertained. Suspected major move incoming. If interested, please private message me.”

…

“Technology Church?”

Lu Xin’s heart stirred slightly.

He was quite interested in this Technology Church.

After all according to Doctor An’s hypothesis the rise of this church seemed to be related to the Old Director.

Just as he was about to click on that person’s profile picture another message popped up.

“Price is two million. No bargain hunters.”

…

“What the…”

Lu Xin nearly threw the communicator out of the helicopter.

He felt an urge to tear his hair out. What kind of people were in this club asking for two million right off the bat?

His interest vanished instantly. He prepared to toss the communicator aside.

Just then Chen Jing finished reading a page of her document. Her gaze swept over Lu Xin’s displeased expression and she asked curiously:

“What’s wrong?”

Lu Xin didn’t intend to hide it from her. “Someone in this chat is selling intel on the Technology Church.”

He added emphatically, “Asking price is two million.”

“Hmm?”

Chen Jing also frowned upon hearing the name Technology Church.

Qinggang City had suffered at their hands before and remained wary of them.

After frowning and pondering for a moment she looked up at Lu Xin. “Can I see?”

“Sure.”

Lu Xin handed the communicator to Chen Jing.

Just two sentences, clear at a glance.

Chen Jing considered it briefly then said, “Looks like this platform also functions partly as an information market. Anyone selected by the Research Institute and invited into the club wouldn’t be ordinary. Information priced at two million might actually be very valuable. Of course there’s also a significant chance it could be useless after buying it.”

Lu Xin looked at her, somewhat puzzled, “So…”

“Buy it.”

Chen Jing made her decision. “Two million. Whether as an entry fee or tuition, it’s worth it.”