"Night Wanderer!"
Zhang Yuanqing said calmly.
"I'm asking about your profession."
"Night Wanderer."
Li Dongze froze for a moment, then suddenly straightened his back and leaned forward, staring intently at Zhang Yuanqing. "You're a Night Wanderer?"
"Yes." Zhang Yuanqing nodded.
"Hiss." Li Dongze lifted his butt off the chair. He fell silent for more than ten seconds, digesting the news, then raised his voice and asked again:
"You're a Night Wanderer? I—I just picked up a Night Wanderer?"
This was the last thing he'd expected. It was like just telling someone, "I really hope I win five million in the lottery."
And then actually winning.
"I've struck gold." Li Dongze set down his glass and examined Zhang Yuanqing over and over, his face alight with excitement.
Every Night Wanderer was a hot commodity.
They were coveted by all the Spirit Realm Walker teams and even the various gangs.
Li Dongze knew of a young married woman in the Hundred Flowers Society who'd gone so far as to seduce a Night Wanderer informant from the Red Fire Gang to poach him. She'd slept with him until he switched sides of his own free will, becoming a servant to two masters.
The incident nearly sparked a fight between the Red Fire Gang and the Hundred Flowers Society. Even when Five Elements Alliance headquarters stepped in to mediate, it did no good.
The matter only died down after that Night Wanderer perished on a Spirit Realm mission.
"By the way, I still don't know your Spirit Realm ID." Li Dongze hid his excitement, maintaining a steady image in front of his future subordinate.
Zhang Yuanqing puffed out his chest and gathered his breath at the tip of his tongue. "Yuanshi Tianzun!"
Li Dongze was silent for a few seconds, then clapped his hands. "Good name."
Hey, that praise was pretty half-hearted. And why did you look like you wanted to hit me? Zhang Yuanqing said modestly:
"I'm glad you like it, Squad Leader."
Just then, the black business sedan pulled into the Kangyang District Public Security Bureau and parked beside a landscaped strip.
"I'll arrange your onboarding right away. Your salary is twenty thousand a month, and you'll get allowances for missions. If you earn merit, there'll be performance bonuses on top of that. Any questions?"
Li Dongze seemed unwilling to waste even a moment, eager to get Zhang Yuanqing safely signed up.
A base salary of twenty thousand a month? Zhang Yuanqing's eyes lit up. "No questions."
A monthly salary of twenty thousand was considered high even in a major city like Songhai.
Zhang Yuanqing remembered that the management at his mother's company only made fifty to a hundred thousand a month. Of course, that was just the base salary; it didn't include bonuses, commissions, or shares.
He followed Li Dongze out of the car and around to the back of the Public Security Bureau building, where they stopped in front of a two-story building.
The building was made of enormous panes of glass, giving it a chic, sophisticated look.
Inside the front entrance stood a steel staircase leading straight to the second floor.
The left side of the first floor was office space. Seven or eight women sat at desks there: pretty young women, mature and charming married women, and capable, composed older women.
The right side was a living area, furnished with sofas, a round table, a refrigerator, an induction stove, a water dispenser, and other household items.
Some had their heads down, working. Others watched shows with headphones on, or gathered in small groups to gossip.
When Li Dongze came in, they merely glanced up before going back to what they were doing. They showed none of the fear ordinary employees usually felt toward their bosses.
I like this office atmosphere, Zhang Yuanqing muttered.
Li Dongze didn't stop. He led Zhang Yuanqing toward the steel staircase, then suddenly turned around and said:
"They're ordinary staff. They're here to serve us Spirit Realm Walkers. If you need anything in your work or daily life, just ask them."
Work and personal assistants? Zhang Yuanqing nodded.
They went up to the second floor. The chatter faded, and the layout was much simpler. Li Dongze's private office took up the entire left side, while nine desks stood on the right.
Most of them were empty. Only two had people sitting at them.
They were the investigators who'd visited his home yesterday: the long-legged beauty and the disheveled tech nerd with the vacant stare.
"Guan Ya, help him with his onboarding paperwork."
Li Dongze called out from a distance, smiling broadly. "I've brought you a new colleague."
The male tech nerd looked up at Zhang Yuanqing, gave a slight nod, then lowered his head and went back to his work.
The mixed-race beauty smiled as she stood up. "Looks like you made it through your trial mission, little boy with a thing for older women."
A thing for older women?! Zhang Yuanqing's expression went blank for a moment. Then Li Dongze said beside him:
"Guan Ya likes to joke around. You'll get used to it."
Then he scolded his subordinate. "Don't say weird things in front of our young college student. He's still a kid."
The kid promptly glanced at the approaching beauty. She wore an office skirt, her blouse tucked in to accentuate her slender waist. Long, shapely legs were wrapped in black stockings, and her slightly curled hair swayed with each step.
Her face was delicate and pointed, with the sculpted features of a Westerner, yet her skin was fair and smooth.
"Squad Leader Li, I'd like to ask about the trial Spirit Realm." Zhang Yuanqing hadn't forgotten why he'd come today.
"You can ask Guan Ya. I've got something to take care of, so I have to go." Li Dongze spoke warmly.
His tone was like a homeroom teacher addressing a top student.
After giving his instructions, he hurried back to his office, eager to report that he'd recruited a Night Wanderer to his superior.
"Did Squad Leader take the wrong medicine today? He's practically floating as he walks."
Guan Ya muttered, then turned to Zhang Yuanqing with a smile.
"Come with me and fill out a form. And give me your ID card."
"I didn't bring it."
"Tell me your ID number, then."
She led Zhang Yuanqing to an empty desk and had him sit down. After writing down his ID number, she went downstairs.
Zhang Yuanqing took a pen from the holder and unscrewed the cap as he looked over the form.
This wasn't an ordinary employment form. It corresponded to a Spirit Realm Walker's status panel.
Besides basic information like profession and level, there was also a section for the trial mission Spirit Realm.
Perfect. I'll ask how to get through Sheling Tunnel later. Zhang Yuanqing filled it out truthfully.
By the time he finished, Guan Ya had returned with two contracts. She pulled over an office chair and sat beside him, her rounded bottom sinking into the seat.
"The squad leader gave you basic training, right?" She leaned lazily against the backrest, a pose that showed off her impressive chest to full effect.
Zhang Yuanqing caught a whiff of her enticing perfume and secretly thought of Miao Renfeng.
In an age when most people weren't even C-rank, an E-rank expert was enough to move anyone.
"Your onboarding is complete. Here's your contract, along with a confidentiality agreement."
After Zhang Yuanqing signed, Guan Ya's smiling expression turned serious.
"There are a few things I need to explain. Starting today, you can't use your current ID card. The organization will issue you a new one. It'll be ready within three days. You'll be able to buy high-speed rail and plane tickets as usual, and you'll get access to the fast-track lanes.
"You'll get a new SIM card tomorrow."
"Why?" Zhang Yuanqing couldn't make sense of it.
"When you named yourself, the Spirit Realm should have told you that you couldn't use your real name."
Zhang Yuanqing nodded.
Guan Ya spoke in a low voice:
"There's a reason for that. We divide the professions in the Spirit Realm into two categories. The first is Orderly Professions, also known as orthodox professions. The second is Evil Professions.
"Spirit Realm Walkers with Evil Professions are either violent and bloodthirsty or twisted and cruel. They also share a common obsession: hunting Spirit Realm Walkers with orthodox professions—in other words, people like us. It's dangerous for Spirit Realm Walkers to expose their identities in the real world."
Like factions fighting in a game? Zhang Yuanqing's expression grew serious.
Last night, when he'd tried to use his real name, he'd been told he couldn't. He'd found that strange.
So Li Dongze and Guan Ya weren't using their real names either?
"But don't worry. We're an official organization. Most of the time, we're the hunters and they're the prey."
Seeing the smile disappear from the young man's face, Guan Ya reassured him.
"Sister Guan Ya must be one hell of a hunter." Zhang Yuanqing relaxed and tossed her a sweet compliment.
Smooth talker, huh? Guan Ya's smile deepened as she teased, "You've got a way with words. How many girlfriends have you had?"
"None!"
Guan Ya was surprised. "Your trash can is so clean. I thought you had a girlfriend."
The trash can again. Do you women have some kind of special obsession with trash cans? Zhang Yuanqing grumbled inwardly.
Guan Ya giggled. "Want me to order you a girlfriend online?"
"That's enough, you woman. No, you old driver." Zhang Yuanqing replied irritably:
"No thanks. I like my girlfriends realistic."
Guan Ya laughed so hard her body swayed. "I like you, little guy."
"Okay, I'll stop teasing you. Back to business. There are ten Spirit Realm Walker teams in the entire Kangyang District. We're the Second Team. There are five Spirit Realm Walkers on the team, or six counting you. Of those five, only the squad leader and I belong to the White Tiger Corps. The squad leader recruited you, so once you're made a full member, you'll belong to the White Tiger Corps too. I want you to remember that."
It sounded like the divisions within the Five Elements Alliance were more serious than I'd thought. Zhang Yuanqing said at once:
"Then I'll be following you from now on, Sister Guan Ya."
He didn't mention Li Dongze, since that would make the young woman like him more.
As expected, Guan Ya's smile grew brighter. "Aside from Wang Tai and me, the other Spirit Realm Walkers usually don't come in to work. You're a student, so you don't have to come in every day either. Don't be too nervous. The squad leader's a good guy. It's just that when he gets excited, he has a strange way of speaking, and he's very particular about elegance.
"As for Wang Tai, his profession is Scholar. He's good at studying and research, so he's a desk worker. If there's anything you don't understand, ask him. When you graduate from college, you can have him help you write your thesis.
"But he's not good at socializing, and he hates it. You don't need to bother with him. Just treat him like a tool."
"As for me," she said with a teasing smile, "I really like spending time with energetic young men."
For a moment, Zhang Yuanqing couldn't tell whether she meant it or was teasing him.
He quickly assigned the team members the labels he'd come up with:
The squad leader, who valued elegance and occasionally spoke in a strange, stilted way; the antisocial tech nerd; and the old driver.
"By the way, what's your zodiac sign?" Guan Ya asked.
"Scorpio!" Zhang Yuanqing didn't know why she'd suddenly asked, but answered truthfully.
Guan Ya gave him a strange look. "Are you sure you don't have a girlfriend?"
What did that have to do with his zodiac sign? Zhang Yuanqing looked confused.
Guan Ya didn't seem convinced, but dropped the subject and picked up the form Zhang Yuanqing had filled out.
"Yuanshi Tianzun. Twenty-one years old. Heh, does your ID have any gravitas? Aren't you afraid someone will beat you up if you go out, Night Wanderer?"
Guan Ya's charming face went blank. She blurted out, "You're a Night Wanderer?!"
Zhang Yuanqing rather enjoyed her reaction.
"No wonder the squad leader was practically floating as he walked," Guan Ya muttered, then beamed. "Our team finally has a Night Wanderer too. You'd better not run off with some wild woman from another organization."
Zhang Yuanqing noticed that Wang Tai had also looked up from his desk and was staring over at them.
"Yuanshi Tianzun. Hmm, I'll call you Yuanshi from now on." Guan Ya happily continued down the form. When she saw his level was zero, she paused, about to ask him something, but then she spotted the next line: Trial Mission:
Sheling Tunnel!
Guan Ya's mind went "buzz." Her lips parted, her expression froze, and she stood there stunned.
After a long moment, she looked at him with a complicated expression. "Your trial Spirit Realm is Sheling Tunnel?"
Seeing her reaction, Zhang Yuanqing's heart skipped a beat. "I was just about to ask about the trial mission. It's a dungeon, so there must be a guide, right?"
As he spoke, he saw the supposedly indifferent tech nerd lift his head and look over. This time, his eyes were full of sympathy and pity.
"Y-you wait here." Guan Ya left the office area with a troubled expression and headed for Li Dongze's office.
Why had she looked at him like he was already dead? Zhang Yuanqing felt a little uneasy.
Just then, Wang Tai spoke flatly from the desk beside him:
"It's true that there are guides. Submitting details of the Spirit Realms they've experienced is every official Walker's duty, and the organization provides appropriate rewards. But Sheling Tunnel is a little different. See for yourself."
He handed Zhang Yuanqing a laptop.
Zhang Yuanqing took it, half curious and half confused. An open document filled the screen.
Songhai Night Wanderer Trial Spirit Realm Summary:
[Wang Village Ruins, C-rank. Mission requirement: Survive until dawn.]
[The dangers in the village come from the hanged ghost and the desolate graves outside the village. When the hanged ghost comes to claim your life, the Spirit Realm Walker must turn upside down to avoid danger. Those with poor stamina can only pray for the best.]
[At midnight, the vengeful spirits in the graves will enter the village together. Spirit Realm Walkers must immediately go to the grocery store and look for incense and candles. Lighting them will prevent the ghosts from devouring you.]
[Lingang Reservoir, B-rank. Mission requirement: Swim across the reservoir.]
[On the way across, a Water Ghost will try to drag you underwater. Don't resist. Hold your breath underwater for two minutes, and the Water Ghost will leave on its own.]
[Ghost Bride, A-rank. Mission requirement: Share a bridal chamber with the Ghost Bride until dawn.]
[The Ghost Bride is a stunning beauty who will treat every groom wildly. She won't harm her own groom as long as you can satisfy her. But in theory, no man can keep going until dawn. This Spirit Realm is almost certainly fatal. So far, only one brave soul has survived, and afterward he developed a powerful aversion to women.]
[Xiangshui Amusement Park, B-rank. Mission requirement]
The farther Zhang Yuanqing read, the more something seemed off. The more he read, the more confused he became.
These were way too easy, weren't they?
The trial missions were way too easy. Aside from the Ghost Bride, which required a pair of iron kidneys, the survival rates of the other trial Spirit Realms were all high.
And the highest difficulty listed was A-rank, while his trial mission was the S-rank Sheling Tunnel.
He read on and finally found Sheling Tunnel.
[Sheling Tunnel, difficulty unknown. Mission requirement unknown.]
[The initial incident occurred during construction of the tunnel, when a construction crew accidentally entered the Spirit Realm. Of the twelve people who entered, only one survived. He was severely traumatized and mentally unstable. Thirty-six hours later, he entered the Spirit Realm again and died inside.]
[Warning: This Spirit Realm is extremely dangerous. So far, no one has been found to have successfully cleared Sheling Tunnel.]
The last sentence was highlighted in bright red.
Zhang Yuanqing stared at the screen, stunned.
Before you continue