Garbage Day

After witnessing an Omen, life returned to its usual monotony. The woman who had been taken away never resurfaced, and Feng Xue had no desire to investigate the secrets behind it. Day after day, he went about collecting corpses and Smelting.

Was this what you'd expect from a world with a refresh mechanic? Feng Xue received at least five or six corpse-collection jobs every day. Aside from a few times when the bodies were too far away for him to reach in time, almost every death toll exceeded fifty.

By that count, nearly two thousand people had died across the entire Landfill Area in the six days since Feng Xue had taken the job.

But Feng Xue felt no particular sympathy for the dead. He simply tallied the spoils he'd collected over the past few days.

In six days, he'd collected more than a hundred corpses and extracted over thirty elements. Meanwhile, the [Shi] bearing personal imprints that he couldn't absorb had accumulated to more than three thousand Towers inside his Golden Finger.

It was worth noting that the Infinite City paid him a hundred Tower Coins for every corpse he collected, about the same as the gang's wages. Those hundred-plus corpses had also boosted his reserve of edible [Shi] to the staggering sum of twenty thousand Tower Coins.

But Feng Xue didn't feel like he'd become a Rich Person, because tomorrow was when he'd be spending the big money—

Garbage Day.

Feng Xue had accumulated quite a few elements, and he had plenty of [Shi] for Reforging. But he was missing the most crucial thing: a base material.

After all, while the key to Reforging was "forging," one shouldn't forget the "re" in front of it. But the only things Feng Xue had on hand that he could use for forging were the White Robe he wore and the dagger he carried for self-defense.

Though his first Reforge had gone well, Feng Xue couldn't be sure it would succeed every time. Until he'd figured out exactly how his Golden Finger worked, he wouldn't practice on anything he owned.

As morning came, the dim room was automatically illuminated by soft lights. For once, Feng Xue hadn't been jolted from sleep by a job involving a newly appeared corpse.

He stretched with a groan, removed his Sleeve Blade, and hid it under the bed. Then he picked up the large-capacity backpack he'd bought for five hundred Towers and left his little nest.

According to the knowledge provided by the Tag, employee dormitories had Phantom Object-level defenses. Aside from their occupants, only someone wielding a Phantom Object could force their way in.

It wasn't absolutely safe, but as long as he didn't reveal that he owned a Phantom Object, no one would be bored enough to use one to smash his way into his dorm.

Maybe collecting corpses over the past few days had improved his role-playing progress, or maybe he'd simply gotten used to walking. Either way, Feng Xue took just over five minutes to reach the west gate of the Garbage Dump. By then, the place was already packed with people. The Garbage Dump had eight gates, but considering it would soon be accommodating hundreds of thousands of people from across the Landfill Area, that still seemed too few.

"Hey! Isn't that Xiao Feng?" A familiar voice came from behind. Feng Xue turned around and, sure enough, saw Old Li. He was just saying goodbye to a young man, apparently having finished giving him a beginner's orientation.

"Morning." Feng Xue greeted him casually, then waited for Old Li to continue. That guy usually had a reason for showing up, and this time was no different.

"I remember this is your first Garbage Day since you transmigrated, right? I've got some things you should know. Interested?" Old Li wore the sleazy expression of a man asking, "Want to buy some?" Feng Xue rolled his eyes, glanced at the Tag above Old Li's head that now read [Information Broker], and asked:

"How much?"

"Five hundred Towers." Old Li knew Feng Xue had probably made a decent amount collecting corpses these past few days, but he didn't try to gouge him. Feng Xue said nothing, took out his employee badge, withdrew five coins, and handed them over.

"Pleasure doing business!" Old Li took the coins, then spoke in a rather mysterious tone:

"Do you know about the Locker Room?"

"The Locker Room?" Feng Xue knew the term, of course, but Old Li clearly didn't mean somewhere to change clothes. Seeing his bewildered expression, Old Li smiled and pointed to a row of rooms on either side of the Garbage Dump's entrance.

"Those are the Locker Rooms. You have to pay for anything you take out of the Garbage Dump, but they can't exactly search everyone thoroughly at the entrance and keep track of what they're carrying. That often leads to arguments. So people usually wear as little as possible when they come to the Garbage Dump."

As he spoke, Old Li glanced around. Only then did Feng Xue notice that over ninety percent of the people gathered around the Garbage Dump were dressed simply. Some wore short-sleeved shirts and shorts, others rough, short jackets. Either way, they were keeping their outfits as simple as possible, with as few pieces as they could manage.

But there were also plenty of people in outlandish outfits among the crowd, and they stood out far more than those dressed simply. That was why Feng Xue hadn't noticed the issue right away.

Now that Old Li had pointed it out, Feng Xue understood. If he went in dressed like this, the gang members could point to his single-shoulder cape and belt on the way out and claim he'd taken them from inside. He wouldn't have much proof to argue otherwise.

"So the Locker Room is where people like me, who didn't know about this, can change clothes? But why isn't there a sign or some notice explaining how to use it? I was wearing this same outfit when I transmigrated!" Feng Xue asked. Old Li gave him a scornful smile.

"No. The gangs didn't set these things up, so of course they don't advertise them. They'd rather everyone pay tuition once! Clothes usually aren't valued very highly, though. They'll only cheat you out of a hundred or so Tower Coins to teach you a lesson. Of course, if you're really short on money, you can always go out naked...

"As for why you didn't get caught last time, they could tell you'd just transmigrated. The Garbage Dump's rules say that 'someone who has just transmigrated and the things they brought with them are one and the same.' So even if they'd wanted to rip you off, they couldn't take the clothes off your back. But once you left the Garbage Dump, your newcomer protection ended."

"Then how do you use the Locker Room?" Feng Xue nodded. He didn't dwell on the issue, instead looking at the row of rooms as he asked. Old Li flicked a coin into the air. It rang out with a "clang—" before he answered:

"For a hundred Tower Coins, you can rent a Storage Box. There's a disposable scavenging outfit inside. Put your clothes in the box, then go out wearing the outfit. Remember to pull out the key, or you'll find your clothes gone when you come back. But the outfit doesn't offer much protection, so don't leave anything valuable in there."

"Got it. I'll go change, then." Feng Xue immediately headed for one of the Locker Rooms. Old Li merely waved him off, then turned toward the next oddly dressed man—

Besides earning a few hundred Towers in information fees, he was also making such an effort because of the hidden profession he had—

[Locker Room Promoter].