The Times Have Changed, Sir!

For the next several days, Bai Pu kept grinding levels in the vast Black Mist Valley.

The Superpower Corporation seemed to have behaved itself, sending no more Awakened ones to hunt Bai Pu down. Bai Pu guessed that Li Ling had likely played a part in that.

Occasionally, other Awakened ones passed through Black Mist Valley. Seeing Bai Pu wipe out monsters in a single wave, they all expressed a desire to team up with him, but Bai Pu politely declined every one of them.

Most Awakened ones were reasonable. They went to other parts of Black Mist Valley and found monsters to fight and train against on their own.

A few clueless Awakened ones, like that little-mustached man, wanted to steal monsters and share the experience points. They were all sent on their way by the Skeleton Warriors and Undead Bone Mages under Bai Pu's control.

At last, it was time for the Intersection Lands of the Dead Bone Mountain Range to close.

The military's Spirit Energy Cameras sent out a unified command, and all Awakened ones withdrew from the Intersection Lands within a minute.

"This trip to the Dead Bone Mountain Range has been quite rewarding." Bai Pu raised his head and looked at the black mountain range in the distance, shaped like a whale's back. That was the Level 3 area of the Dead Bone Mountain Range.

Bai Pu had not gone there to explore this time, but he did not regret it. He only felt a little disappointed and curious.

With a flash of light, Bai Pu left the Intersection Lands.

Slightly noisy voices rang out around him. Awakened soldiers were maintaining order as the Awakened ones who had emerged from the Intersection Lands lined up and filed out through the passage exit.

Everyone had to undergo an inspection and hand over their Spirit Energy Camera before leaving.

After Bai Pu finished his inspection and handed in his camera, he was about to leave when he suddenly spotted a familiar figure: Taurus.

Kirin and Mad Dog were not beside Taurus.

"Where is your Spirit Energy Camera?" asked the soldier in charge of the records. He wore glasses and spoke pleasantly.

Taurus searched his pockets left and right, then could only shake his head. "It's gone. I think it broke."

"Leave your identification number, name, and affiliated organization. Once we confirm there's no issue, you can leave after paying compensation for one Spirit Energy Camera."

The bespectacled soldier did not make things difficult for Taurus. After all, the General Control Room had people watching the entire time. If anyone had been bold enough to try and damage the Intersection Lands, an alarm would have gone off long ago.

Recovering the Spirit Energy Cameras now was merely a procedural matter.

Taurus agreed, but when he turned around, he saw Bai Pu. He froze slightly, forced out a smile, greeted Bai Pu, then looked away.

Bai Pu sighed inwardly. His mind was keen enough that he had already guessed the whole story.

How had Fish Intestine and Containing Light managed to find him so precisely in the vast Black Mist Valley? They must have had his location, and that location could only have come from the other three members of the Genius Camp.

Kirin and Mad Dog were absent. They had probably been sent away beforehand, perhaps without even having time to take their Spirit Energy Cameras with them.

Taurus had remained in the Intersection Lands, yet his Spirit Energy Camera was missing. What did that mean? He had most likely struck a deal with Fish Intestine! Of course, Taurus could also insist that his Spirit Energy Camera had been damaged by an enemy during battle.

Bai Pu said nothing and turned to leave the hall.

Outside the military base, trucks were lined up in rows. There were colorful flags and signboards bearing company names, while quite a few formally dressed white-collar workers waited beside temporary tables. The place looked rather lively.

The moment Bai Pu stepped outside, a fragrant breeze swept over him. A beautiful white-collar woman in a fitted skirt suit, with alluring curves, warmly approached him.

"Honorable Awakened one, congratulations on your bountiful harvest in the Intersection Lands. Do you happen to have a lot of discarded equipment to sell? We at Hongyan Equipment Recycling Company offer extremely favorable recycling terms and absolutely fair prices! Would you like to come learn more?"

The white-collar beauty enthusiastically tried to take Bai Pu's left arm. The soft sensation came through his clothes with startling clarity.

Bai Pu exerted a little force to free himself. "Sorry, I already made arrangements in advance." He walked straight toward a military-green jeep.

A voice still followed behind him. "Which company? Would you like to compare the benefits offered by both companies? Hongyan Company guarantees that you won't lose out..."

"No need. He's with Great Tang." Li Ling, leaning against the car door, removed her brown-tinted glasses, revealing a somewhat sharp gaze.

The white-collar beauty looked at Li Ling's white shirt, stretched high over her chest, then lowered her head to look at her own visibly smaller white shirt. She wisely walked away.

"Isn't Great Tang Group mainly in pharmaceuticals?" Bai Pu asked casually as he opened the car door.

"What era do you think this is? What major power doesn't operate across industries?"

Li Ling got in after him. Once she closed the door, she got straight to the point. "This was very dangerous. Fortunately, your strength improved quickly—far beyond what I imagined."

"I was somewhat mentally prepared. The Superpower Corporation couldn't hold back forever," Bai Pu said.

"On behalf of the God Strategy Army, I have already held the Superstar Alliance accountable. But the outcome may not satisfy you." Li Ling coughed lightly and explained that the Superstar Alliance had expelled Fish Intestine and Containing Light in advance.

"As expected. I should still thank the organization. If I were a rootless duckweed, the Superstar Alliance probably wouldn't even bother putting on that kind of show..."

Bai Pu smiled. "The reason no new assassins came after me during the next seven or eight days was also because you and the organization took this matter seriously."

Li Ling let out a breath. "Go back to the Xi City branch first. I'll stay here. I still have some things to take care of."

God Strategy Army, Xi City Branch.

Bai Pu got out of the car and entered the hall.

"Bai Pu, you're back?" Kirin had been chatting with Su Xiaoxiao in the hall. When he saw Bai Pu enter, his eyes lit up.

"Mm." Bai Pu yawned slightly. "Xiaoxiao, my Storage Space is full of unsealed discarded equipment. Does the organization buy it?"

"Of course we do." Su Xiaoxiao happily ran over to Bai Pu and touched his shoulder. "I heard you ran into danger this time. How was it? You weren't hurt, were you?"

Kirin was somewhat speechless. "As long as an Awakened one didn't die on the spot, even the most severe injuries would have healed after so many days..."

"Who asked you?" Su Xiaoxiao shot Kirin a glare.

"Still, Bai Pu, you really did a great job. You helped Mad Dog and me vent our anger." Kirin had clearly learned through Li Ling that Bai Pu had killed Fish Intestine in return.

"It's fine as long as you don't blame me," Bai Pu said.

"At first, I did feel a little resentful. But then I thought about it. We're all in the same organization, so we have to stick together for warmth. If I blamed you over being dragged into something this minor, who would help me if I made enemies in the future? That resentment naturally disappeared." Kirin spoke frankly.

The logic was sound, but few people could truly think that way.

Bai Pu gave Kirin a faint smile.

"Alright, little Bai Pu, do you want to exchange your equipment for Spirit Energy Points or Hua Xia Currency?" Su Xiaoxiao asked.

"What's the exchange rate?" Bai Pu had always been curious about how much Spirit Energy Points were actually worth.

"Currently, the major state-owned banks exchange 1 Spirit Energy Point for 59 Hua Xia Currency, but they only accept Spirit Energy Points being exchanged in, not exchanged out. So the official listed rate can only serve as a reference."

Su Xiaoxiao said, "Spirit Energy Points are the circulating currency of the Awakened World. Because strengthening equipment consumes massive amounts of Spirit Energy Points, their value is generally quite stable. Awakened ones rarely exchange Spirit Energy Points for cash, so in private exchanges, 1 Spirit Energy Point can go for over 100 yuan. There's no fixed rate."

Kirin covered his face and sighed. "I heard that when the Spirit Energy Era had just begun, Spirit Energy Points were incredibly valuable. Trading 1 Spirit Energy Point for 10,000 yuan was no problem. You could casually kill a few mutated beasts in the Wilderness Area and become a millionaire. What a pity—the good times are gone forever."

"Why don't you look at how many Awakened ones there were in the early days of the Spirit Energy Era, compared to how huge the Awakened population is now?" Su Xiaoxiao said disdainfully. "The times have changed, sir!"

There was a bug in the earlier text: Mad Dog and Kirin's Spirit Energy Cameras were confiscated, so the Sting Squad asking Taurus for his camera was not for locating Bai Pu, but to prevent Taurus from warning him. Taurus's mistake was compromising with the enemy and failing to warn Bai Pu.

Sorry! The earlier text has already been corrected.