Awakened Zhongli Template, Retiring on Terra

Penguin Logistics' employee uniforms had been washed but hadn't dried yet, so Shi Lei went to work today in a designer suit.

It wasn't to show off, but because it was comfortable.

Expensive things had their reasons for being expensive.

Exusiai had sharp eyes and was the first to notice.

"Wow, that outfit looks amazing! Where'd you get it?"

Shi Lei had no intention of hiding it and told her the truth.

"I went on a job yesterday, and the client bought me two similar outfits so I wouldn't make her look bad."

Exusiai couldn't hide the envy in her eyes.

"I've done so many jobs over the years, so why has no client ever bought me clothes? Be honest, are you being kept by some rich woman?"

At that, Texas leaned forward slightly, seemingly interested in the gossip as well.

"How could that be? You're overthinking it."

Shi Lei logged into the employee backend and found a commission specifically assigned to him. A deposit of fifty thousand Lungmen Dollars had already been paid. He was required to go to a designated location in District 27 before 7:00 p.m. tonight, where he would be told the details of the follow-up task.

Usually, only orders from official organizations like the Lungmen Guard Department or major powers would be personally reviewed by the Boss. Otherwise, the orders were checked through the backend, and the Messenger decided whether to accept or reject them based on the notes and difficulty. Once accepted, it was equivalent to forming a contract and could not be changed or revoked.

District 27 was the Slums.

Seeing that the order specifically named him, Shi Lei's first thought was of Lin Gerei and his daughter. They had put in a lot of effort when he asked them to help find his motorcycle last time. Perhaps they had something else to ask of him now.

When they had arranged that meal before, Shi Lei hadn't had a phone, so he had Lin Yuxia write her number on a note and asked Texas to keep it. He quickly had her take it out and saved it in his new phone, lest he get exposed when they met.

December 25th, 5:58 p.m.

After dinner, Lin Gerei sat on the sofa with his eyes closed, taking a brief rest, when a Subordinate came to report.

"Boss, we discovered that two or three hundred Felines have entered District 27 with weapons without requesting permission."

The Rat King had kept the Slums stable because he had capable people under him, people who knew to Investigate Clearly before reporting.

"We just captured a prisoner. After severe interrogation, he said they planned to set up an ambush in District 27 today and teach a male bodyguard from Penguin Logistics a lesson."

A male bodyguard?

Wasn't there only one male Messenger at Penguin Logistics?

These outsider gangs really didn't know the rules.

They actually dared to try and rough up the son-in-law who might one day be entrusted with his daughter's life, on Lin Gerei's territory. If word got out, wouldn't that be a slap right across his face?

Leaning on his cane, he rose to his feet. The firelight from the fireplace cast his silhouette ever deeper against the wall. Thinking of how the other man's real name was Shi Lei and his alias was Zhongli, he decided it was better to use the alias at a time like this, for the sake of personal privacy.

"Don't alert them yet. Notify the brothers at every branch. Arm yourselves and wait on standby around District 28. If any other gangs ask, tell them that at seven tonight, I want to do Penguin Logistics' Zhongli a favor."

"Yes, Boss!"

Unlike Adams Swire, who had been bedridden for years, Lin Gerei held real power.

At seven tonight, he would do Zhongli a favor.

Those words spread through the Slums like a silent virus. Huge numbers of gang members set aside their affairs, grabbed their weapons, and melted into the night.

Many of them didn't even know who Zhongli was, but that didn't stop them from rushing to the scene. Loyalty mattered most in the underground world; even just showing up to lend support was good enough.

Such a large-scale movement of people naturally could not be hidden from the informants and undercover agents lurking in the Slums. Sensing that something major was about to happen, they did everything they could to pass the intelligence along.

Release Notice

As the title says, it was time to put the novel behind a paywall again.

To keep everyone from skipping this, I'll get straight to the point.

This book has truly had a rough fate. Not long after its trial run began, it ran into the Great Silence. Later, the author caught COVID too. A few days ago, I felt worse than dead, and even now this cough is driving me crazy. Thank you to the readers who have continued to support me, as well as my editor, Garlic.

I know there are plenty of big shots launching on Friday, but I'll still grit my teeth and post a one-day limited-time reward event.

Reward period:

December 23rd, 6:00 a.m. to December 24th, 6:00 a.m.

100 blades = 10,000 tips = 1 extra chapter

Honestly, it probably won't add up to many extra chapters. It'll be just right for pushing me to write. Don't ask why it's only one day. The answer is that I have no saved chapters, so I can only do what I'm capable of.

Lonely midnight

Writing online

Friday noon

Waiting for you to read

What happened? (Please support the first subscription)

December 25, 6:25 p.m.

This was a small bar in District 29. The decor left much to be desired, and the environment was fairly poor, but it had everything it needed—bar counter, lights, and all.

After receiving a message, a gang member suddenly stood up, paid his bill, and prepared to leave, prompting his friend beside him to ask:

"What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"

The gang member merely smiled, feeling that there was no point explaining it to an outsider. But his friend would not let it go and kept pressing him. Annoyed by the questioning, he could only come clean:

"It's nothing much. Someone ran into trouble and is about to get jumped. We're going over to back them up. If we get the chance, maybe we can give those foreigners a good beating."

"Hahaha, there's something this good? Then I've got to go take a look! Say, it won't be dangerous, right?"

"Dangerous my ass. Just don't go sticking your head where it doesn't belong. Even if you can't get in on the action, you can still help build up the momentum."

At the same time, at the Lower City checkpoint station.

Rows of fully armed Lungmen Guard Department members usually stood watch here. But today, their numbers had noticeably decreased, and there were several young, inexperienced faces among them.

Although losses from the previous suppression operation had been kept to a minimum, there had still been more than thirty casualties. On top of that, infected personnel did not remain in the Lungmen Guard Department, leaving nearly a hundred positions vacant all at once. They had no choice but to transfer interns over to fill in.

Their shift ran from eight in the morning to eight at night, and they had only an hour and a half left before they could hand over duty.

At that moment, a gang member walked toward the checkpoint with a long-stemmed pipe clenched between his teeth. Once he got a clear look at the guard on duty, he raised a hand in greeting:

"Old Zhang, can we talk somewhere else?"

"Come on. Over there."

After they reached a corner of the checkpoint, Old Zhang asked:

"What happened?"

"Someone's planning to make trouble for Zhongli tonight. For safety's sake, you'd better close this checkpoint early."

Old Zhang studied the man with a grave expression. He did not seem to be joking.

"Thanks for the warning, but I need to report this to my superiors and get approval before I can leave."

"Fine. Take care of yourself."

With that, the man pulled down his hat and turned to leave.

A new trainee heard Old Zhang mention Zhongli while making his report. Curious, he asked:

"Senior, who exactly is Zhongli? That name sounds so familiar. I've heard it several times around the department."

"If it weren't for him, I probably wouldn't be standing in front of you today. He's the Lungmen Guard Department's her—"

Before Old Zhang could finish, his phone suddenly buzzed. He picked it up and saw a message from the Lungmen Guard Department.

"All Lungmen Guard Department members stationed at Upper and Lower City checkpoints are to get off duty and return home immediately. Do not delay. Personnel scheduled to hand over at eight are to remain on standby and await further notice."

December 25, 6:35 p.m.

A force of two to three hundred people entered District 27 through different checkpoints in batches and gathered together.

They took machetes, crossbows, and other weapons from a truck in preparation for any eventuality. With so many people going after a single bodyguard, it should have been more than enough.

These Felines, whose ancestors had been from Victoria but who had been forced to be born in Lungmen, still held considerable hopes of restoring Victoria's former glory.

They considered their bloodlines noble and were deeply repulsed by filthy, rundown Slums like this. They even felt that the residents living here were as disgusting as pigs.

The filthy water seeping out from between the gaps in the stone pavement

was like the foot-binding cloth of an old woman that had gone unwashed for years. The foul stench it gave off made them pinch their noses shut.

Clothes hanging out to dry on the second and third floors dripped steadily, leaving the ground damp. Countless Slums residents poked their heads out of windows as though they were watching a circus performance.

It was simply far too inelegant.

The two to three hundred Felines moved through the cramped streets and alleys, nearly every face filled with disgust.

"Boss, people who work in logistics these days tend to have some skills. Maybe he's got a powerful background. How about we call it off today and think it over after we get back?"

"Listen to the nonsense you're spouting. Afraid before the battle has even begun? I'm ashamed for you. Never mind an employee of a Logistics Company—even if it were the Governor himself, as long as Boss gave the word, we'd charge through fire and water."

After not walking much farther in, the group arrived at the meeting spot they had arranged with Shi Lei.

The buildings here resembled a sunken school building, enclosed by structures on three sides with only an exit to the south. As long as they finished this quickly, they could leave this damned place sooner.

"Listen up! Spread out and hide around the area. When I give the signal, we all rush out and kill them. Understand?"

"Understood!"

Before the Felines could finish hiding, a huge crowd of Slums residents suddenly surged in through the South Gate. Like an unstoppable flood, they surrounded the two to three hundred Felines.

Some carried knives, some held hoes, and some came empty-handed. Some had come for excitement, some to stir things up, some to lend support, and some simply to watch the show.

Everyone had come for different reasons, but they had all gathered here for one purpose: to help Zhongli of Penguin Logistics.

December 25, 6:40 p.m.

Shi Lei got off work early today and went to the Kilometer Library to read. He did not set out until around six.

Following the map's directions, he headed to District 27 to meet the mysterious employer. The details of this commission were unknown, but he figured it was probably another bodyguard job.

As he passed through the checkpoint, he was surprised to find that there were no Lungmen Guard Department officers on duty. He entered the Lower City openly, feeling that something was very strange.

But Shi Lei had the Jade Shield protecting him, so he was not afraid even if something happened.

He checked the map a couple more times and arrived outside a concave residential building. Yet he found that the meeting spot he had agreed upon with the employer was already packed tight with people.

Many onlookers clung to the railings and craned their necks to watch, breaking into cheers from time to time.

What was going on?

Shi Lei was a little bewildered. He had no idea why there were so many people here. He put the Jade Shield around himself and squeezed in through the entrance.

Whatever the case, he needed to find the employer first.

When the other party posted the commission, they had neither left a contact number nor arranged a password for identification. With so many people here, how was he supposed to find them?

Other spectacle-loving civilians followed him and squeezed their way inside as well, quickly filling the gaps in the crowd.

As Shi Lei squeezed through the entrance, he saw Slums gang members fighting a group of well-dressed Felines.

The Slums people were weaker and smaller than their opponents, but they had richer combat experience. Using feints and deceptive moves, they held a slight advantage.

There were quite a few Felines, but they all seemed to have the airs of celebrities, carrying themselves with an affected restraint.

Once their leader began changing tactics, however, the gang members started to struggle.

A member of the crowd who had squeezed in behind Shi Lei tugged at his sleeve and asked curiously:

"Friend, why are they fighting?"

"No idea. I just got here too."