Elsewhere.
Wolf Team led Qi Wu out of the testing grounds and took the elevator to the registration office on the branch's fifth floor.
"Wolf Team!"
Seeing the branch director arrive, the clerk at the registration office respectfully stood and saluted him.
"Mm."
Wolf Team nodded slightly and shifted his burly frame aside, gesturing toward Qi Wu as he strolled over behind him.
"Register a team for him."
Wolf Team's rough voice echoed through the registration office.
The clerk adjusted his glasses, studying the silver-haired young man in sunglasses with surprise.
He seemed a little too young.
And the clerk didn't recall ever hearing of him before.
The clerk silently wondered about this, then collected himself and asked:
"May I ask... what is the team's name?"
Qi Wu's azure eyes gleamed mysteriously beneath his blindfold.
"Salvation."
Hearing the name Qi Wu had chosen, Wolf Team raised a blade-sharp eyebrow.
"Salvation? That's quite a grand name."
It even sounded flashier than the name of his own team, Greedy Wolf.
Qi Wu's Six Eyes gazed into the distance through his blindfold, and a meaningful smile curved his lips.
"Not really."
Reborn into this life, he intended to save the country during the coming tide of spiritual energy.
The name Salvation represented Qi Wu's ambition.
"Sir, your team has been registered."
The clerk slid a holographic display toward him.
It listed the team's information.
[Captain privileges activated.] [Team name: Salvation (D-rank).] [Current members: 1.] [Base: Nanjiang branch.]
Looking at the display, Wolf Team spoke solemnly.
"Your team is D-rank for now."
"Everyone starts at the bottom, so don't be unhappy about it."
Qi Wu calmly shook his head.
"I understand."
"Is there any way to raise the team's rank?"
Wolf Team grinned, revealing stark white wolf fangs.
"Young people these days really are impatient."
He explained the team promotion system to Qi Wu.
Generally speaking, the ranks of 749 Bureau teams were determined by their "contribution" and their "operatives' combat strength."
Once both requirements were met, they could apply to headquarters in the imperial capital for promotion.
Aside from that, there was an exceptional route that allowed teams to rise through the ranks quickly.
That was participating in the 749 Bureau's "Hundred Cities League," held once every three years.
It was the highest-level competition in which teams from different city branches tested themselves against one another.
Teams with outstanding performances could receive special promotions from headquarters.
As it happened, the next Hundred Cities League would be held at the end of this year.
Wolf Team patted Qi Wu on the shoulder.
"Work hard, kid."
"Maybe your team can win a place in the league for our Nanjiang branch at the end of the year."
Qi Wu slid his fingertips across the holographic screen, bringing up records of previous Hundred Cities Leagues.
"Interesting~"
"The last champion was the imperial capital's Heavenly Pivot team?"
A strange light flickered in his eyes.
"Yes. They're the strongest S-rank team."
Wolf Team's voice suddenly turned serious.
"Their captain, Xiao Tiance, is the strongest fighter at headquarters. They say he's already reached the threshold of 'Awakening.'"
Xiao Tiance.
A ripple suddenly stirred in Qi Wu's eyes as memories of his previous life flooded back.
In the future, that name would likewise belong to a hero known to everyone.
Yet even someone like him had died fighting a powerful Demon during the early days of the spiritual energy tide.
Awakening?
Qi Wu inwardly shook his head with a smile.
In the future's spiritually abundant environment, awakened people would be everywhere.
Demons above the ninth tier would be too numerous to count.
That level of strength was nowhere near enough.
Xiao Tiance is talented. He died too early in my previous life. I should try meeting him and save him later if I get the chance.
Qi Wu thought to himself.
"The Hundred Cities League at the end of the year..."
Under Wolf Team's expectant gaze, Qi Wu turned and walked toward the window.
"I'll make Salvation the benchmark for every team."
After leaving the registration office, Qi Wu said goodbye to Wolf Team.
Guided by a staff member, he arrived at his luxurious residence on the dormitory building's top floor.
The instant the elevator doors opened, even someone as worldly as him raised an eyebrow slightly-
Beyond the panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows, the lights of all Nanjiang City spread out before him.
The interior blended futuristic technology with classical aesthetics, and the smart home system automatically switched on soft lighting as he walked in.
The most eye-catching feature was the training area, equipped with the latest virtual simulation pod and gravity adjustment device.
"Not bad~"
"The 749 Bureau really does have money~"
Qi Wu casually tossed his uniform jacket onto the leather sofa, his gaze sweeping over the slim smartphone on a nearby ebony table.
The staff member who had brought him here had explained it.
This phone was a work device issued specifically by the 749 Bureau.
It could connect to the 749 Bureau's internal network.
The phone on Qi Wu's table had a black-and-gold back and looked like some sort of limited edition.
Qi Wu picked it up and began playing around with it.
Several bureau-exclusive apps had already been installed.
There were apps such as "Forum" and "Store."
The forum was probably where he could accept missions and earn contribution points.
Qi Wu lounged lazily on the sofa, his long fingers gliding across the phone screen.
When he opened the "Forum" app, a holographic projection automatically unfolded, displaying the 749 Bureau's internal forum interface.
[Welcome, Nanjiang branch trainee operative Qi Wu.] [Operative privileges: trainee.] [Available contribution points: 0.]
Seeing the word "trainee,"
Qi Wu's lips twitched slightly.
He was already a team captain, yet his professional rank was still only trainee operative.
But those were the bureau's rules.
New recruits had to serve for three full years before they could leave trainee status behind.
Allowing him to establish a team had already been an exception.
Breaking the rules again wouldn't be appropriate.
Trainee it is, then.
The strongest person in Konoha is still a genin, after all.
Qi Wu opened the forum, first to see whether any missions were worth trying.
Second, he hoped to find suitable teammates there.
He swiped down, and all sorts of missions scrolled across the screen.
[C-rank: Clear mutant rat swarms from Nanjiang City's sewers (reward: 50 contribution points).] [B-rank: Escort an archaeological team to the Kunlun Ruins (reward: 200 contribution points).] [A-rank: Investigate abnormal spiritual power fluctuations in Donghai City (reward: 500 contribution points).]
Qi Wu's blue eyes brightened slightly.
With the resurgence of spiritual energy imminent, quite a few of these missions involved pivotal events that could change people's destinies.
Just as his fingertip was about to tap the A-rank Donghai City investigation mission,
he suddenly noticed an interesting mission farther down.
[B-rank: A humanoid weasel Demon capable of human speech has reportedly appeared in an abandoned factory in the reservoir area of Nanjiang's eastern outskirts. Several people are said to have been killed. Powerful operatives urgently needed to investigate (300 contribution points).]
Seeing this mission reminded Qi Wu of something, instantly piquing his interest.
In his previous life, Yellow Weasel Seeking a Title had been an urban legend passed from person to person among Nanjiang City's residents.
He had thought it was made up.
He hadn't expected such Demons to actually exist.
If he could kill these weasels,
he would definitely gain greater exposure.
In other words, a hefty sum of popularity points.
For Qi Wu, who had already decided to commit to the "popular heartthrob" path,
choosing this mission with viral appeal
would undoubtedly make him more widely known.
And so, Qi Wu accepted the mission without hesitation.
He also posted a notice recruiting teammates beneath the mission listing.
Before you continue