Seele's Favor

"Why is it so chaotic over here?"

March 7th spoke up from the side.

"It makes sense. Seele is locked in a fierce battle with the Fragmentum Creatures, and the vagrants and miners nearby have started a brawl as well," Dan Heng added, looking toward the distance.

At the same time, he felt a lingering sense of unease regarding the ability Jing Yan had just displayed.

Even though it wasn't the first time he had seen a similar power.

The last time he saw Jing Yan use such an ability was out on the snowfields beyond the city, though back then, Jing Yan's power was used on a person rather than a Fragmentum Creature. Moreover, it hadn't frozen the target in place, but rather caused them to suddenly burst into tears.

This time, however, it was different.

The crux of the matter was that he couldn't identify what kind of power Jing Yan possessed.

What Aeon could possibly bestow such a power?

Jing Yan had never disclosed any relevant information.

[Seele's favorability increased by 3%, favorability raised from 66% to 69%]

Looking at the information displayed on the system panel, Jing Yan felt quite satisfied.

It seemed that this Seele was somewhat different from other women; she had a preference for the strong and for those who could make her fall in love at first sight.

After resolving the crisis on Seele's side, Jing Yan walked toward the side.

That was exactly where the dispute between the vagrants and the miners was taking place.

"Hey, Brother Jing Yan, I finally found you! I didn't get a chance to thank you back up there!"

Just then, a figure darted out from the side, sporting blue-purple hair and a cheeky, grinning expression. His attire was significantly more flamboyant than that of the other Underworlders.

It was Sampo.

"Thanks to you, brother, I managed to move another batch of supplies down here. I'll send a couple your way later."

Jing Yan was left speechless by this.

He asked with suspicion, "Sampo, what are you doing here? Don't tell me you're just here to watch the show."

Sampo shook his head at the question: "I only just saw the situation here myself. But you know me, Jing Yan—I'm a businessman. As long as someone can offer a good price or quality goods, I'm happy to do business with them."

"Look, both the vagrants and the miners over there are my customers. How could I possibly intervene? Besides, maintaining Order has always been the job of Underworld Fire. Not to mention the whole 'the capable do more' business—if a mere peddler like me stole their work, wouldn't that be showing a lack of respect to Miss Seele?"

Sampo said to Seele with a flattering smile.

Seele simply ignored him, paying him no mind.

"By the way, Brother Jing Yan, I heard you just took a trip to the Robot Settlement and even managed to bring out Mr. Svarog."

"What exactly are you..." Sampo looked at the Mechanical Vanguards behind him, his expression ambiguous.

"It's nothing, just here to help out so we can resolve the issue faster," Jing Yan said casually.

"Take those vagrants, for instance. Many of them are people who will stop at nothing for a bit of profit—unlike you, Sampo."

Hearing Jing Yan's remark, Sampo scratched his head in embarrassment.

"You really have a sharp eye for people, brother," Sampo continued.

"Since that's the case, with the Fragmentum invasion currently underway and the people of Underworld Fire stretched thin, is there any problem with me helping to mediate conflicts and maintain Order?" Jing Yan asked.

"No, no problem at all." Sampo scrutinized Jing Yan carefully before shaking his head.

Jing Yan naturally understood what the other man was thinking.

In Sampo's eyes, he was just a minor doctor at Natasha's Clinic not long ago.

Aside from healing the sick and saving lives, his presence in daily life seemed unremarkable. How had he suddenly transformed into the leader of a new faction? Furthermore, what was Jing Yan trying to achieve?

Did Jing Yan truly only want to maintain Order, rather than taking the opportunity to do something else?

Did he really lack such ambition?

This was what was running through Sampo's mind at that very moment.

Meanwhile, the vagrants and miners in the distance were still in a standoff.

They were fighting over a small Geomarrow Ore vein that had just been discovered.

The appearance of this vein wasn't enough to delay the demise of Belobog, but it was enough to trade for a significant amount of money from the Overworld.

According to the standard, a vein generally belonged to whoever discovered it.

However, this time it had been discovered by a miner—and there were only two miners to testify to it. Consequently, the vagrants who arrived later developed greedy intentions, relying on the guns in their hands to claim the new Geomarrow Ore for themselves.

A large crowd had gathered on both sides, creating a tense, hair-trigger situation.

But ever since Jing Yan appeared, things had taken a different turn.

The force behind Jing Yan was more powerful, and...

To their surprise, they were even followed by Boss Svarog.

This was essentially grabbing them by their fatal weakness.

After all, their primary source of income relied on robots excavating treasures from ruins.

These ancient relics were needed by the Underworld Fire organization, and wealthy individuals from the upper levels would also purchase them for their collections; those with high value were even sent to the Research Institute for further study.

However, after being affected by Fragmentum fluctuations, the Mechanical Vanguards were prone to various malfunctions, which caused quite a bit of trouble for the vagrants.

For instance, the previous blockade at the entrance to Svarog's Mansion in the Robot Settlement was carried out precisely because they believed Svarog could no longer control those machines.

Yet, it had now been proven that this was not the case at all, and right now, so many Mechanical Vanguards, along with Mr. Svarog himself, had appeared here under the leadership of Jing Yan.

The vagrants were naturally thrown into a panic, completely losing any desire to bully the weak or continue fighting with the miners.

However, the vagrants here were just as confused as those in the Robot Settlement.

Since when had Jing Yan become so formidable?

How could he possibly command such a force?

Of course, Jing Yan had no intention of explaining anything to them at this moment.

In Jing Yan's view, explaining things to them was entirely unnecessary.

After all, the vagrant organizations were inherently loose; some were true wanderers, while others were different, willing to resort to extortion and plunder for their own selfish gains.

Different people had different mindsets and behavioral styles.

And those present here were just a small faction of vagrants.

The vast majority of the remaining vagrants should still be capable of assessing the situation.

At least, that was how Jing Yan saw it.

Sure enough, just like back at the Robot Settlement, these people quickly became much more docile and obedient.

"By the way, Jing Yan, there's something..." Seele suddenly spoke up from the side.

Hearing this, Jing Yan turned his head to look at her.

"What is it? Just say it directly."

"Well, actually, you must have seen that the conflict in the mining area isn't caused by just one side, but its root cause is the Fragmentum invasion, which led to many people losing their original homes, and some old mining areas being abandoned as well."

"However..."

Seele recalled something.

"Jing Yan, do you possess the ability to purify the Fragmentum?"

Seele's words immediately drew the attention of those nearby, and March 7th, Stelle, and the others also turned their gazes toward Jing Yan's face.

"Is that really the case?" March 7th asked.