Internships Here Are No Ordinary Matter

There was actually nothing. Rubbing his arm, Jiu Ming waited for that Died Severely Wounded Void to vanish completely. Clearly, while the Mysterious Shop did have a Plunder rule, it was useless unless the target was at world-destroying level—or rather, anything it had already surpassed was beneath its notice, like scraps of meat between its teeth.

Hopefully, fewer of these scammy things would show up in the future. When facing creatures with Thick Skin and Tough Flesh and powerful attacks, Jiu Ming would rather deal with those soft, troublesome little girls. Besides, if this guy had not brought it upon himself...

Jiu Ming could have tested the effects of this century egg. Of course, he would definitely have recovered his investment from that Hollow. At the very least, he could not make less than 100 Origin Power!

Seeing how sturdy it was, even extracting its Life Force would have paid him back. Not to mention that Life Force was not the only thing available for trade here. For example, that move where it spat... no, Sprayed Laser—could be traded too!

Once something was traded away, it might temporarily weaken the owner, but their experience would not disappear. They could quickly train it back... very quickly.

Aha, it was just like Life Force. If there was a cultivation method that increased Life Force, then even if trading with him reduced it by ten or twenty percent, as long as the overall limit increased, it would be as though nothing had been lost.

Once someone grew stronger, the Origin Power belonging to them would increase as well. To put it bluntly, if one was capable enough, any shop would be like grass—leave the roots behind, and it could be harvested wave after wave.

That was a rather malicious line of thought. Jiu Ming hurriedly reeled in his runaway thoughts.

Fate was decided by oneself. If this Hollow had sat down and talked properly from the start, perhaps it would have already recovered to full strength and gone back for a counterkill, a double kill, a triple kill, or a full-on massacre.

—Though it was even more likely that food poisoning would have reduced its combat power and made it die even more miserably!

Judging by how that thing looked like no good, Jiu Ming would definitely hide the side effects of this aged century egg. Given that fellow's nature, even if they reached an agreement, it would probably cackle strangely a few times. Food poisoning? How could a Hollow possibly have such symptoms!

Then it would eat it, then its body would recover, and then it would be snack time—followed by getting screwed over by its snack because of food poisoning...

Ahahaha, how could things possibly go that smoothly?

In short! For something so obviously beyond redemption, a "bad thing," death was the best outcome.

If it could still be saved, then it had merely gone astray. If he could lend a hand, he would do so casually.

Come to think of it, were all the people coming here currently idle freeloaders? Even if he did not have much to sell here, he himself could accept commissions. Bodyguard work, escort duty, infiltration, dealing with all kinds of difficult enemies—his personal combat ability was a super guarantee backed by thirty years of professional experience...

Fine! Fine, not thirty years, but he did have three. After all, during the Mysterious Shop's Training Period, the frequency was once per day. But once it began, there was no telling how many days a fight would last. When he encountered some sinister, troublesome enemies or scenarios, it was simply a nightmare.

For example, he had once encountered a troublesome opponent called a Predator in a primeval forest. The other side's combat ability was decent, which would have been fine, but what was with bullying people using high technology?!

Just the Invisibility Device alone had nearly gotten Jiu Ming ambushed to death several times. Then there was the durability of that armor and its other weapons. Most outrageous of all was that damned Shoulder Cannon! Was it really okay to hit people with such an inhuman weapon?

That battle alone had kept Jiu Ming in the forest scenario for nearly a week.

Panel-kun kindly explained that the enemies Jiu Ming faced generally truly existed in other worlds. It was even quite possible that, under certain coincidences, he might encounter them again.

Given the current situation, he should go out and wander around more. It would be best to find some people who "needed help."

Waiting here for customers was far too unreliable. The first had been a Beautiful Girl, the second a Beautiful Boy (?), and the third had directly been a life-threatening Perverted Strong Monster.

Would the fourth and fifth be Demons and Devils or something of that sort?

"What, what? An internship?"

"That's right. It really wasn't easy finding you. Couldn't you leave behind some kind of special contact information?" Wang Hai had a cigarette in his mouth, Black Sunglasses on his face, and a very formal Black Suit on. However, his body was so muscular that it stretched the entire outfit taut. Rather than making him look better, the clothes cost him quite a few points and even gave him an unapproachable aura.

Upon seeing him, more than eighty percent of people would immediately associate him with a brutal profession like thug.

"If you're lucky, of course you can." Jiu Ming chuckled without giving a direct answer. "But your school should count as a high school, right...? A proper school actually has internships?"

"Who says proper schools don't have internships?" Wang Hai asked back. "Upperclassmen all undergo an internship in the second half of the school year. That's common knowledge."

Scratching his head, was this because he was uncultured? No, no. It was merely a difference in Worldview. It definitely was not his fault.

"Fine, an internship is an internship. Why come to me? Isn't this part of you teachers' job?"

"That's right, but this time it's a little troublesome. No one knows what the State High-Level was thinking this time. They actually used military training standards to set the difficulty of this internship."

"Is military training that difficult?"

"That depends on the level." Wang Hai shrugged and gave Jiu Ming an extra look. "I keep feeling like you're very disconnected from this era, yet somehow very familiar with it?"

"Aha, details like that... Let's discuss the actual matter first. Is this a commission?"

He needed to find a library and look up some information. It seemed that this world had factors beyond just supernatural abilities.

"That's right. We need you to watch over Changhe Academy's interns this year. If they face mortal danger, you must step in and save them when necessary. As for payment, what do you want?"

"Money?"

"...Hey! Why is that the first thing everyone brings up?"

Was talking about money not too vulgar? Did it not hurt feelings?

"Anyway, something valuable other than money—the more expensive, the better!"

"Oh, antiques?" Wang Hai immediately wore an enlightened expression and nodded. "That won't be a problem!"

"What would I want with that junk? Let me put it this way: rare treasures, high-energy items, things like that. Of course, I can also accept things like Life Force." Keeping a smile on his face, Jiu Ming looked very calm. "But have you teachers become so incapable?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Internships are the students' own practical combat training. Naturally, teachers like us cannot interfere. But this time it's too dangerous for the students, so we can only find outside help to keep their survival rate as high as possible."

Wang Hai flicked the cigarette butt in his hand aside. When he spoke of the internship, displeasure had already entered his voice. Clearly, the difficulty of this internship had exceeded what the teachers could tolerate.

"Will people die?"

"They'll be fighting Exotic Beasts. What do you think? Every year at this time, the teachers of all our academies do their best to clear out things the students cannot handle in the internship area. But this year, that rule was actually not approved! Hmph!!"

"So if your interns are unlucky enough to encounter some absurdly powerful... whatever Exotic Beast, you can basically call it a total wipeout?"

Exotic Beasts...

What were those things? Mutated animals?

It actually sounded somewhat believable. Since humans had supernatural abilities, it was not strange for animals to have them too. In the end, supernatural abilities could also be considered a product of mutation. Perhaps this world possessed factors his world before death had lacked, resulting in such circumstances.

"That's right. Teachers and other personnel are prohibited from entering the designated area, so..."

So they came looking for me?

"As long as you can ensure a survival rate of over seventy percent, this commission will be considered a complete success." Wang Hai spoke in a heavy tone.

"Hey, aren't you taking Fate too lightly?" Seventy percent was indeed high, but in some respects—especially where lives were concerned—wasn't it still a little low?

"Even in the past few years, an intern survival rate of around ninety percent was already considered a complete success." Wang Hai's expression was grave. "After all, those Exotic Beasts with great power are also very active, and their intelligence is not low. Countries around the world have struggled against Exotic Beasts for a very long time without achieving much."

"Even seventy percent is already difficult to accomplish. Once these students complete their studies, they will generally join the Frontline against Exotic Beasts. Even teachers like us participate sometimes."

Perhaps because of his profession, Wang Hai unconsciously said a great deal. Then he came back to his senses and stared at Jiu Ming as though looking at an alien. "Say, you don't even know this? Could you be an undercover agent sent by the Exotic Beasts!?"

"Your jokes aren't very funny." Jiu Ming waved a hand. Since the other party had noticed that he was somewhat clueless, he simply stopped hiding it. "Hurry up and get me an encyclopedia. I'll take the commission, but as for the payment..."

"Money isn't a problem!"

"Are you messing with me? What if I discuss it with those interns and tell them I'll protect their lives, then ask them for a little Life Force afterward? They wouldn't refuse, would they?"

"You..." Wang Hai scratched his head in frustration, but could not suppress his curiosity. "Just how do you do that sort of thing?"

"Ha! Trade secret. Don't give me that guarded look. I'm a proper Merchant. Even if I ask for something, it will be through a legitimate transaction both sides agree to. I have principles!"

"...You." Wang Hai frowned and took out a pale blue crystal. "Will this do? It's a High-Energy Crystal containing energy."

Name: High-Energy Crystal

Type: Consumable

Attribute: None

Quality: High

Uses: Undetermined (determined by the amount of internal energy extracted each time)

Note: A very ordinary energy mineral crystal. In the Xianxia World, this thing is called a Low-Grade Spirit Stone...

Origin Power required for forced collection: 8

Convertible Origin Power: 5

Ugh, the Mysterious Shop's built-in "Personal Binding" rule was really troublesome...