第42章 谁是大聪明

The first floor of the Deep Sky Technology building served as the reception hall.

Gu Jianlin sat on a sofa, holding a tablet in his hands and reading up on knowledge related to squad operations.

"The iced cola you wanted."

Chen Qing walked over gracefully, bent down to place a canned iced cola in front of him, and said with an expressionless face, "Sometimes I really get the illusion that I've gained another little young master."

"Thank you."

Gu Jianlin asked with rare curiosity, "Sister Chen Qing, why do you call him young master?"

In today's society, such a form of address was quite strange.

Chen Qing sat beside him, her tone cool and detached. "Because I was an orphan when I was young, and he picked me up. The Lu family didn't approve back then, so he raised me outside, using his own pocket money to support me as I grew up."

Gu Jianlin was stunned. "Raised you with pocket money? As expected of an Ascender family, they really are wealthy."

By comparison, although his own family was also an Ascender family, he was the only one left now.

"That's how it is."

Chen Qing brushed her hair back, examining her makeup in her phone screen.

"Are you two childhood sweethearts... or, lovers?"

Gu Jianlin asked.

Chen Qing shook her head. "We don't have that kind of relationship. He has someone he likes, but she is no longer around."

Gu Jianlin hadn't expected to hear something like that and immediately fell silent.

In the hall, many investigators and researchers were coming and going, along with a large number of staff members responsible for business operations.

"Hey, look at that guy. Is that the one who killed the Joker?"

"A Tier 0 solo-killing a Tier 2 Aberrant Fallen? I heard those two Mythic Armaments are on him, too."

"Don't even mention it, he's really handsome, isn't he? Have you seen that photo? The one where he's sitting in the ruins. I heard he's also a rare autonomous awakener. Do you think I should go ask for his WeChat?"

"That's the son of a Fallen. I won't stop you if you want to go."

"So what if he's the son of a Fallen? Being handsome is all that matters!"

Gu Jianlin listened to their whispers without saying a word.

Ever since he arrived at the Deep Sky building, whenever someone recognized him, the conversations were mostly like this.

He discovered that within the Ether Association, "Fallen" was a very sensitive word.

Many people cared deeply about it.

Even though he himself was not a Fallen, because of his father, he was still a subject of gossip.

"In the eyes of the Tribunal, the reason the Fallen fall is because they cannot withstand the temptation of power. Among them, there are also those who have been betrayed by the Fallen, or whose family members were killed by the Fallen."

Chen Qing said tactfully, "Of course, the reason the Tribunal and some local families in Feng City target you is because your father's loss of control severely damaged their interests. They still believe that your father left you the things he obtained in the Immortal Palace."

She hesitated for a moment. "So, don't pay them any mind."

"I understand."

Gu Jianlin nodded slightly and asked, "I have a question regarding the Fallen. Isn't it true that everyone has the potential to be corrupted?"

"Most people still possess the ability to resist corruption, unless they become addicted to power and voluntarily accept it."

Chen Qing said indifferently, "The Tribunal believes that the Fallen are too prone to losing control. Even those who can maintain their sanity in the early stages of infection will suddenly fall into severe madness at some point, exhibiting serious aggression."

She paused. "So it's better to just kill them all. Those who are corrupted either commit suicide or are killed. Even taking medicine to temporarily suppress it is of no use."

So that's how it is, Gu Jianlin thought.

"Of course, that's what they say, but 'if you're corrupted, just commit suicide'..."

Chen Qing said mockingly, "Whether or not one can actually do it is another matter. But the Tribunal has been the sole power for these years, and they have the final say on most matters in the Association, so there's nothing to be done."

At this moment, the elevator doors opened, and Lu Zicheng walked out with a dark expression.

He plopped down onto the sofa, grabbed a bottle of mineral water, and began chugging it down. Gulp, gulp.

A bald parrot stood on his shoulder. "So annoying! So annoying!"

Gu Jianlin asked suspiciously, "What happened?"

After finishing the water, Lu Zicheng said irritably, "If nothing goes wrong, it's very likely that you will be the only member of our squad."

Chen Qing frowned. "Too late?"

Lu Zicheng gave a grunt of affirmation. "Because this operation is very dangerous, there weren't many investigators participating to begin with. Their squads were already set long ago, and there are no extra freelancers."

Chen Qing frowned. "That's a bit troublesome."

"Right."

Lu Zicheng hesitated. "So our squad won't be able to recruit anyone else for the time being, and there are loyalist factions of the Tribunal in this operation group who might target little Gu."

Gu Jianlin drank his cola in silence, saying nothing.

This was actually good news.

Because he didn't need teammates at all.

"I originally wanted you to promote to Tier 1 as soon as possible."

Lu Zicheng sighed. "Without an Alchemist and a Priest, it's very troublesome, and exchanging merit points won't work either."

Gu Jianlin frowned. "What do you mean?"

Lu Zicheng said gloomily, "Because they've all been snatched up."

Gu Jianlin took out his phone, logged into the Deep Sky network, and clicked on the resource exchange library.

Then, he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Heaven Spring, out of stock."

"Graphite Blood, out of stock."

"Crimson Wine, out of stock."

Basically, all the Spirit Potions were marked as out of stock because these resources were in such high demand that they were priced beyond availability.

This was the importance of having an Alchemist in the team.

With that Alchemist, Gu Jianlin didn't lack these things at all; his merit points could currently be used to exchange for some Alchemy Armaments.

Including hiring the services of the security team.

The most common use was for the protection of one's home.

"In the Ether Association, these low-tier resources are highly sought after. The truly useful benefits come when the Kirin Immortal Palace can be explored. By using the Association's power as a protective umbrella to search for ancient secret treasures in the Immortal Palace, whatever you find is yours."

Lu Zicheng explained, "Many high-level members of the Ether Association rose to power by relying on these secret treasures. This is also the Association's greatest attraction for Ascenders."

"As for those services, they're just a tax on stupidity. I've already notified my family."

He thought for a moment. "From now on, the safety of your family will be handled by the Lu Family personally, and my sister will help keep an eye on things too."

"Thank you," Gu Jianlin said.

Lu Zicheng reminded him, "I have already registered our squad for this clearing mission, but due to the nature of the mission, we team leaders won't be operating with you. Of course, you have those two Mythic Armaments from the Joker, so self-preservation shouldn't be a problem."

"But if you want to compete for merit points with other teams... that's up to you."

He paused. "If you can promote to the Super-Dimensional level—that is, Tier 4 or above—as soon as possible, my sister's resources and connections will become useful. You need to hurry."

That would be perfect, Gu Jianlin thought.

He had too many secrets.

Whether it was the two Mythic Armaments or his Ancient God transformation.

None of these were suitable for teammates to witness.

Moreover, he was already Tier 1, and he had an Alchemist inside the Kirin Immortal Palace.

He had no worries about resources for promotion.

As for the healing from a Priest, it was even more redundant for him.

First of all, the Divine Priest path could utilize the Divine Sacrifice Fire to absorb life force and recover itself.

And in terms of resources, there was a Tier 4 Alchemist in the ancient tomb, after all.

Suddenly, a notification from the Deep Sky network rang on Gu Jianlin's phone.

"Hello, respected D-rank investigator Gu Jianlin. Your squad is participating in this large-scale hunting mission. Please bring your equipment and supplies and report to the front hall of the Deep Sky Technology building immediately."

It was the voice of Taixu.

"It's about time to go. There are seven squads in total, gathering in the front hall."

Lu Zicheng said indifferently, "These are basically all elites this time."

Gu Jianlin nodded slightly. He suddenly realized that since promoting to Life Controller, he hadn't tested his abilities yet.

It was said that a Tier 1 Divine Priest could expand their range of Life Perception to twenty-five meters.

This distance was just right; he could test it out.

At that moment, he emptied his mind, leaving his thoughts clear, and activated his seventh sense.

For an instant, a chaotic melody of life rang in his ears, as if he were submerged in a tidal wave of noise!

Gu Jianlin's hand trembled, and he nearly spilled the cola all over himself.

Because at that moment, he felt as if he could hear the life melodies of everyone in the entire building!

In the spacious elevator, the atmosphere was extremely oppressive.

Lin Wanqiu had her hands in the pockets of her white lab coat, her beautiful, alluring face devoid of expression.

The other team leaders were also extremely serious.

A middle-aged man looked down at his watch and said coldly, "For this operation, keep your spirits up. If problems like the last time occur again, you can all get lost. Do you understand?"

Cheng Youyu stood in the corner, shrinking his head. "Second Uncle... ah, no, Captain. Don't worry. Last time was force majeure; who knew the Joker had something like a Necro-Gu? This time will be absolutely foolproof."

"Just shut up," someone muttered. "You said it was foolproof last time, and we ended up crashing and burning."

"Brother, I beg you to stop using your 'blessing'—don't jinx us again," someone else said. "If it weren't for our good luck last time, we would all be dead."

Cheng Youyu's face darkened. "Was that my fault? It was just that the Joker was too difficult to deal with!"

In the corner, Nie Xiangsi stood timidly at the very back, holding a tablet in her hands.

On the screen was a photo: in the collapsed ruins, there was an undamaged chair.

A youth covered in blood sat on the chair, with a corpse that had died with eyes wide open at his feet.

"Brother Youyu," Nie Xiangsi said softly. "The person who saved us was him, right?"

Cheng Youyu turned back and said with a flattering smile, "That's right, Sister Xiangsi, it was him. Gu Jianlin, from our Fengcheng No. 2 High School. I even copied his test papers back then; we have a very good relationship."

Nie Xiangsi was silent for a moment before saying, "So he is an Ascender too."

"I didn't know it was him before either." Cheng Youyu asked, "What's wrong?"

Nie Xiangsi minimized the image and opened the mission roster.

"It seems he is also in this operation."

She hesitated. "And his squad... consists only of him."

Cheng Youyu was stunned, seeing that lonely, familiar name on the list.

"Holy crap, it really is this badass brother!"

In the dark laboratory, the sound of bubbling foam echoed.

In the copper cauldron where flames burned, blood-colored liquid churned, surging like magma, turbulent and powerful.

A hunched Alchemist watched this scene, his eyes filled with fanatical fervor.

"Mentor."

A young man stood beside him, swallowing hard. "With this, will we be able to survive?"

"Although it's only one drop, it's not enough to transform us into Divine Servants, but it is enough to prolong our lives."

The Alchemist licked his lips. "This is a gift from the gods."

The young man was silent for a moment before asking again, "Mentor, there is a question here. If we truly consume the Ancient God Blood and transform into Divine Servants, wouldn't we become slaves to that Supreme Being? We are too weak. If He hadn't been unable to escape, He certainly wouldn't have chosen us. We gain life, but lose our freedom."

He paused. "He could even kill us with a single thought."

"My student, how can you be so foolish?"

The Alchemist smiled. "Do you think that with our large inventory of secret potions, and even a fair number of Super-Dimensional spirit potions, why would we risk angering Him by giving Him only a dozen or so low-tier potions?"

Book Elder was stunned.

"If I provide too much spiritual energy at once, I won't be able to gauge when He might escape. Instead, by offering Him spirit potions bit by bit, we can maintain the initiative forever. Although He is a Supreme Being, He is imprisoned by the more powerful Candle Dragon Venerable. In order to stabilize us, He has no other choice but to trade with us using Ancient God Blood time and time again. Do you understand?"

The Alchemist explained, "Quantity is the key! You are my nephew; as long as we can survive, that is enough. As for the Sea Siren, the Butcher, and the Moon Maiden, they are unimportant. The Kirin Venerable is trapped in the Immortal Palace. Even if we become Divine Servants, he cannot cross between two worlds to control us. As long as we never return after becoming Divine Servants, we will be safe."

Book Elder asked again, "However, once the dimensional gate of the Kirin Immortal Palace stabilizes, what about all those ancient treasures and opportunities? Are we just going to give them up? If we never return to the Immortal Palace, we are abandoning the vast resources within it."

The Alchemist laughed. "I am an Alchemist. As long as I can refine sufficiently precious potions, why would I worry about not having others enter the Immortal Palace for us?"

Book Elder was startled. "So that's it!"

"This is the wisdom of a teacher; you still have a long road ahead of you."

The Alchemist laughed. "When the seal of the Kirin Immortal Palace completely disappears and the people from the Ether Association enter, what do you think will happen?"

Book Elder suddenly realized. "Mentor, you are truly brilliant! As long as He cannot descend into reality, we are safe!"